Learning So Much

Wow, who knew that there was so much to learn! Well, we did actually but sometimes keeping it all straight is very difficult. We spent 4 hours yesterday with a tour guide walking the area within the old city of Munich. We learned so much especially about how Germany became Germany, how Munich became Munich and all about the escapades of its historical people such as Napoleon and Hitler. There are amazing memorials all over the city that you can't find or understand unless an historian shows them to you and tells you what they mean. We walked famous or infamous streets, all with a gruesome or interesting story. And who knew that as we drank beer in the famous HofBrauhaus, we were in a place where Hitler had locked the doors on several people and military men to convince them to support him in a 'power over Germany' campaign. This all led to the Beer House Push. Good grief, will I remember all of this? No matter, G will remind me. He's better at it than I am. All this in the rain.
Last night started their huge celebration over May Day. Fireworks, parties, bands, noise all night. They sure do party hardier than we do in NA. We have experienced partying in almost every country and city that we've been in. One has to wonder why. I guess that if I lived in these crowded cities and had to struggle with their economic and political difficulties, I would need to party too. It's much like that group of people that adopted us in Cologne during Karneval, who told us that no matter what, they needed to have the celebration where they could just let go.
Here's the realization for me: Years ago when I was younger and living here for so long, I was smitten with the place and wanted to live here forever. Now, in my older years and back here with Gerhard and looking at it from different eyes and with more experience under my belt, I can see that it's far too volatile of a union for me to want to be a part of. Even our guide yesterday said that the countries are afraid that if one thing goes wrong with any one country, then they are all embroiled in the problem because they are so intensely connected. We have very much enjoyed our time here in Europe but as someone visiting from off continent, we can see all the things that this great collection of countries doesn't get yet.
Cheers to my home country of Canada.