April 19, 2009

Written April 21

Friends and Families ,

My current work assignment has me "stuck" in Offenbach, Frankfurt's neighbor. On one hand, it's not so bad since we've lived here before and we like the area. But, on my own, there's not a lot to do. That's where the camera comes in.

Yesterday, I made a pleasant Sunday afternoon trip from home up here. Nice drive, but plenty well documented earlier. It hasn't changed. Check in at the hotel took the normal 90 seconds. Then what? Well, I forced myself to grab the camera and take the subway downtown to see what I could see.

I think having a serious camera along makes wandering much better. It forces me to look around. It forces me to see. The process of taking pictures and, sometimes, selecting shots for a website that few visit, is enjoyable. That's the way my Sunday walk was and, even if this record may seem unremarkable, I know it was fun to do and, hopefully, will be fun to look at sometime in the future.

	Leaving the S-Bahn at Konstablerwache, I went up to sunny skies and the Zeil, the large shopping street in Frankfurt. Of course, this was a German Sunday so there was no shopping. For the last Woolworth's in the world, there would be no shopping anytime because they went bankrupt this week.
	Frankfurt's central square is Römer Platz, named after the Romans who reportedly settled the place. Nowadays, there are still Romans ... and Americans and Chinese and Japanese and even Germans. It's a nice place to enjoy the sun and grab a bite and a beer. Even the prices are reasonable.
	Big cities have all sorts of street activity. Here a group (gang doesn't seem appropriate) of young men were practicing jumping from roofs to walls. I saw no broken legs, arms, or heads, so I suppose they were successful.
	And what was so fascinating for THIS crowd? Mimes. A bunch (flock?, school?, pride?) of mimes. This is a standard feature of many city squares on a sunny day, but I'm not sure why they do it. Sure, they get a few euros (actually, a whole hat full) but the per-hour wages are very, very low. Budding actors perhaps, at least that's what they looked like when they broke character and had a smoke while they ended their day.
	Other young men had less unusual Sunday pastimes. I think these guys were shooting a few hoops just because they could. Their enthusiasm was the same as American big city kids, but I'll admit their round ball skills were lagging.
Of course, this is a European tour so there must be churches. Today, however, no inside tours. Too dark. Too gloomy. While outside, the scene was worthy of religion.
	I finally made my way down to the Main River bank which I would follow all the way out to Offenbach. Along the way, I noticed bridges, bridges I had seen and used for years, but today they seemed picture-worthy.
Under these bridges, a variety of boats passed by. Even the huge barges looked comfortable, more comfortable perhaps than the cruise ships. Certainly less crowded. The little rent-a-power-boat was my favorite. Can you see the tiny dog in the back seat?
	For my last picture series, I followed the Volendam from Rotterdam as it made its way from under a bridge and through the river locks between Frankfurt and Offenbach. The skill of the crew was apparent as they eased into the lock, not much wider than the ship. On this passage, they were joined by an almost-as-large lock-mate. On both boats, the dance of entering, tying up, floating higher, and then nudging out was as routine as could be. Not a scratch on boats or walls.

My Sunday walk. Now I'm off to Offenbach. Next time it is sunny, grab your imagination and walk with your eyes open. Camera optional, but helpful

John