Vierzehn, fünfzehn, sechzehn, siebzehn, achtzehn, neunzehn, zwanzig, einundzwanzig

Friday December 5th, 9 AM :: Neue Wache :: Description

The Neue Wache is the place

where we commemorate the victims
of war and tyranny.

We honor the memory
of the peoples who suffered through war.
We remember their citizens who were persecuted
and who lost their lives.
We remember those killed in action in the World Wars.
We remember the innocent who lost their lives as
a result of war in their homeland, in captivity
and through expulsion.

We remember the millions of Jews who were murdered.
We remember the Sinti and Roma who were murdered.
We remember all those who were killed because of their
origin, homosexuality, sickness or infirmity.
We remember all who were murdered
whose right to life was denied.

We remember the people who had to die
because of their religious or political convictions.
We remember all those who were victims of tyranny
and met their death, though innocent.

We remember the women and men
who sacrificed their lives in resistance to despotic rule.
We honour all who preferred to die rather
than act against their conscience.

We honour the memory of the women and men
who were persecuted and murdered
because they resisted totalitarian dictatorship
after 1945.

Sei, sette, otto; Nüün, zää, elf; Twaalf, dertien

Massive amounts of twittering has occurred (http://twitter.com/felcearto) and while the frequency of these travel posts isn't much different (or maybe it's better) than the frequency of my regular semester posts, I'm switching locations so often that it feels like it's been far longer than a week.

So… Amalfi area, Rome, Florence, Venice (Uno, due, tre, quattro, cinque, sei, sette, otto)
Then culture shock myself out of Italy through
Zurich (nüün, zää, elf), Amsterdam (twaalf, dertien), and tomorrow: Berlin!

And then?

Culture shock myself back to the U.S. on December 11th. I can't wait!

And since I'm arriving at LAX at night… methinks I'll request In-n-Out for my first meal back because I know there's one nearby.

No scoffing. The familiar holds a very strong pull after three and a half months of the unfamiliar.

I hate to admit how many times I've been tempted to go into a Starbucks or McDonalds or Burger King solely because I was tired of being uncomfortable or unsure about what to order or what to do.

Thus far, what have I learned?