Monday afternoon in Würzburg

_MAL3110, originally uploaded by Michael A. Lowry.

Monday morning I accompanied Andrea to the school in Schweinfurt where she teaches French and English to middle- and high school students. She made me part of her lesson plan, and instructed the students to practice their English by asking me questions. Their questions included:
"What do Americans think about Germany?"
"Did you vote for President Bush?"
"What do Americans think of the war in Iraq?"

It was interesting to chat with the students. I tried to impress upon them that not all Americans are ignorant of the rest of the world. I also encouraged them to study abroad if the opportunity presents itself. Nothing helps one better to understand oneself and one's home country than a fresh, outside perspective.

School ends around lunchtime in Germany. So after her classes were done, Andrea took me to one of her favorite lunch restaurants in town. We had aufläuf, a sort of noddle casserole. It was tasty and filling. It reminded me a bit of Belgian or Slovakian food: hearty, and with lots of noodles and cheese.

Later in the afternoon we went to a wholesaler similar to Costco, where I bought a bunch of liquor at about 1/3 the price one would have to pay in Systembolaget in Sweden. Then I picked up about a dozen bottles of assorted beers at a local supermarket. Yes, I know it's not possible to take large quantities of liquid in one's carry-on baggage. What was I thinking? More on this later.