One Saturday, with nothing planned at the Hochschule, I set my alarm and boarded the train for Fulda. A bit off the beaten path, Fulda is known for a couple things: it's beautifully preserved Baroque Quarter in the old part of the city, and also being the final resting place of Saint Boniface, "Apostle to the Germans." As often happens to me on my travels, upon arrival in Fulda, within a couple blocks of the train station, I stumbled upon something interesting. Suddenly hearing a marching band behind me, I turned around and followed them to a political rally. All the big political parties in Germany were represented. And what rally is complete without cheerleaders and a German brass band? But the highlight for me were the Bratwurst mit Brötchen for one Euro! (I ate two.) Overall, however, the highlight for me was nearing the edge of the Baroque Quarter and seeing Sankt Marien Kirche for the first time. It was a beautiful day, and in the sunshine under a bright blue sky, St. Mary's was impressive. There is a cobblestone plaza in front of the church that is probably 300 meters in diameter. Across the street was the church where Boniface is buried (unfortunately, closed to tourists in January). After taking a nice long look inside St. Mary's, I sat outside on the plaza and enjoyed an apple and some water and just soaked it all in . . .
I spent nearly five hours on the train that day, too, but it didn't feel like it. I had picked up "The Kite Runner" by Khalid Housseni the previous afternoon and couldn't put it down. If you haven't read it, it is probably one of the three best novels I have ever read. It is intensely emotional. And Housseni has an incredibly vivd way of setting the scene - yet with such an efficiency that you can hardly tell he's using adjectives (if that makes any sense). I almost missed three train stops because of this book - including my own when I came home, and that was after I had finished the book. I finished it barely 24 hours after I began. Read it! I'd love to talk to you about it.
Peace to you.
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