Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Arrival In Vatican City

　　After the 4 hours' bus drive, we entered the central district of Roma. What most impressed me there was the method of parking along the streets. Numerous cars occupied the outermost lane, sometimes two lanes! Moreover, some cars were parked even on the sidewalks. Elderly citizens and challenged people with impaired eyesight, or who move with wheelchairs would feel inconvenient. When I said that Dr. Dieter Salomon would faint away if he saw the scene, the tour members erupted into gales of laughter. Dr. Salomon is the mayor of Freiburg, which was an extremely tidy and peaceful city in southern Germany. Then I wondered how they could start their car. There wasn't enough space both in front and back for going out. The cars must have scrapes.
　　At the point where we came to directly see the building of the Vatican Museum, our bus turned right and stopped in front of the restaurant, CASANOVA. The lunch was fusilli pasta and wine! It was nice. If you want to know the location of the restaurant, you'd better check the map below. The goal of the route was the restaurant.
　　After lunch, the guide, Mrs. Giuliano, joined our group for guiding in Vatican City. We took the bus for a few hundred meters and got off just in front of the Vatican Museum.

Route Map: Florence --- Restaurant CASANOVA
http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro13/Florence_Lunch_CASANOVA.html

(Vocabulary)
Vatican City［the ～］バチカン市国《教皇支配下にあるローマ市内の世界最小の独立国》.
outermost  最も外側の；中心から最も離れた, 一番はずれの（⇔innermost）.
a gale of laughter 爆笑
fusilli フジッリ　パスタの一種。らせん状に巻いた形のもの。

Breakage of Suitcase

　　I'd like to direct your attention to my daughter's gaze in the first picture below, which was shot just before getting on the bus at the Florence-Peretola Airport. She found the breakage of her suitcase at that time. Her suitcase was the product of the Globe-Trotter and newly bought last August. The handling of the suitcase by the Air Dolomiti personnel must have been so rough. The cabin attendants were polite and I liked the company, but .... Anyway, I asked the tour guide to recognize the occurrence. Then I took several pictures and sent them to my insurance company for the sake of a claim for insurance. I'll show you some of them. I'm writing this entry in December remembering the trip, and I received the insurance benefit the other day.
　　I purchased it from Japan's branch of the Globe-Trotter, not from the parallel import shops. The tour guide worked for me and all the procedure was really smooth. I was relieved to receive the repaired one.
　　We moved to the center of Florence directly by bus without calling in our reserved hotel. The streets around the main tourist attractions were very narrow and winding. Ten minutes' walk after getting out of the bus took us to Campanile di Giotto and the Duomo, meaning the principal cathedral in the city. The last picture is the dome of the Duomo. Do you notice several holes on the wall? They were for footholds for painters.

Route Map: Freiburg --- Frankfurt --- Florence-Peretola Airport --- Duomo --- Piazza della Signoria --- Ponte Vecchio --- Galleria degli Uffizi
http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro13/Freiburg_Florence.html

(Vocabulary)
parallel import 並行輸入
Campanile di Giotto ジョットの鐘楼
Duomo　ドゥオーモ

To Italy

　　I had to get up at 4 o'clock on Nov. 17th despite a light hangover, though it was usual for me in Germany. A chartered bus would pick us up and take us to Frankfurt International Airport. We were supposed to move to Florence, Italy this day. Our breakfast was taken into the bus, which is shown in the following pictures. Something that looks triangular is a piece of cookie that I bit half of. Eating and drinking in the bus apparently weren't permitted in Germany, but the driver allowed us to eat during the rest in the parking lot. I was going to fly from Frankfurt a few hours later and I thought I would like to revisit Germany seeing the scenery from the bus in the dim light.
　　A light meal would be served on the plane, but I didn't expect much and I dropped in at Lufthansa Lounge to eat something. I also wanted to see how the lounge was and use WiFi to upload pictures. The lounge was really comfortable.
　　Our plane from Frankfurt was EMBRAER 90 or 95 operated by Air Dolomiti, which I thought was the powerful rival of the Japanese regional jet of MRJ, because the flight was comfortable. One more thing, I saw an A380 in Frankfurt. I'd like to utilize it some day.

(Vocabulary)
dim  〈明かり・光などが〉薄暗い, 暗い

Route Map: Freiburg --- Frankfurt --- Florence-Peretola Airport --- Duomo --- Piazza della Signoria --- Ponte Vecchio --- Galleria degli Uffizi
http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro13/Freiburg_Florence.html

Winery Visit

　　After taking a quick shower, I changed my clothes into casual ones. A little later, a bus came in in front of the hotel, which had already accommodated members of the official envoy who stayed at another hotel. We were scheduled to visit a winery, Weingut Bernhard Schätzle, which was located in the Lehen district in Freiburg. I'll put together the route from my hotel to the winery below. When we reached the winery, beautiful music welcomed us. They were the local orchestra, whose pictures I'll show you below. Three members of the orchestra had visited Matsuyama City when the sister city treaty was signed 25 years ago. I saw them playing each instrument proudly. I took pictures of the signboard displaying the tasting spot and the flag of the logo of the winery. What kind of wines would be served; my expectations were getting bigger and bigger!
　　The party started with the greeting of the deputy of the owner of the winery, who were late due to another meeting. A German band's iconic songs from Germany and specially southern Germany were really wonderful. The winery's vaunted wines were served one after another, from Kabinett to Auslese. I enjoyed those wines to my content. I really wanted this winery to open a store in my hometown, Matsuyama City. I'd be one of the frequent customers.

(Vocabulary)
vaunted  《[名]の前でのみ》ご自慢の

写真撮影で皆がぐずぐずしていると、突然場を仕切り始めたHarukaちゃん ↑

Route Map:
http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro13/LEHEN.html

Weingut Bernhard Schätzle:
http://www.weingut-schaetzle.de/index.html
http://www.weingut-schaetzle.de/startseite.htm
http://www.home.regioseiten.com/schaetzle

試飲のはずが、深酒の夜になったフライブルク最後の夜。このワイナリー、松山に店を出さないかな？かなり気に入りました。我らがアイドル、添乗員のHarukaちゃん、我々以外のグループも仕切る仕切る！愛媛ＦＣの社長も、市議会副議長も何のその。右端にいたワイナリーのオーナー(ヒゲの男性）は仕切られて左端最後列へ移動！

Anniversary Celebration

　　The anniversary celebration was in a friendly atmosphere from start to finish. After the consul general's congratulatory speech, both mayors from Freiburg and Matsuyama Cities exchanged greetings and presents. Mr. Noshi, the mayor of Matsuyama City, delivered a lecture about the culture, history and location of Matsuyama City as well as some of the sightseeing spots. Lots of people in Freiburg must have been interested in Matsuyama City. I hoped that I would see them again in Matsuyama.
　　For the last part of the celebration, a small reception was scheduled in two adjoining rooms adjacent to the main hall as written in the order of the ceremony in the pictures below. To my big regret, however, when I saw people in the hall standing up, I assumed that the ceremony had come to an end and went out of the building. I didn't pay attention to the order of the ceremony. Most Japanese went out, but German people didn't. My daughter also didn't come out. I entered the building again to find her and heard about the reception. My daughter could understand the German announcement, but most Japanese couldn't. It was regrettable that the reception got ill-assorted.
　　About 30 minutes later, the lunch meeting was held in a historic building which was a part of the municipal office. My daughter was busy taking snapshots with Freiburgites. The last picture is of Dr. Dieter Salomon, the mayor of Freiburg, my daughter and a member from Matsuyama.

(Vocabulary)
Anniversary Celebration  記念式典
consul general　総領事
adjoining 隣接した, 隣の
adjoin …に隣接する
order of the ceremony　式次第
ill-assorted ちぐはぐした

Outdoor Market

　　It was slightly cloudy but didn't seem to rain on Nov. 16th. I ate breakfast at my hotel. The menu was the same as yesterday, many kinds of sausagaes, no fresh vegetables. I wondered how people in Germany would take vitamins.
　　I set out for a walk around the outdoor market in the old city with a hangover. This market is open around the church called Münster, which is a German word for minster or cathedral. I had been to the market several times and knew what it was like, but tofu snacks surprised me. Several tofu hamburgers interested me, but I couldn't try them because I had a slight hangover and it was just after breakfast. Anyway tofu is recognized as very healthy food and is highly nutritious. The global spreading of tofu is a delight as a Japanese. Except for the cloudy weather, it was nice walking seeing various local products like food, handicrafts, flowers and wines.
　　In the church a small assembly was being held. I was with the congregationfor some time. Shooting without flash was permitted there. The last two pictures are Historische Kaufhaus, historical department store in English. The anniversary event commemorating the 25th year of the sister city between Freiburg and Matsuyama was supposed to be held there. The flags of both cities were put up. I came back to my hotel and got dressed up before attending the ceremony.

(Vocabulary)
congregation  (教会に来る) 会衆

Martin's Bräu

　　The title of this entry is the name of the drinking spot to which we were invited by people in Freiburg. I enjoyed chatting over genuine German dishes and BEERS! As you see in the pictures, a variety of sausages, cheese and potato dishes, all of which were my favorite, were served on the tables. I had a really good time there. To my single regret, however, I sat on a remote seat from the aisle and couldn't freely wander in the bar to say "hello" to every person from Freiburg. Anyway, I'll show you some pictures taken here.
　　One of the pictures shows that our leader was giving an interview to the TV media crew who had been accompanying us from Matsuyama. Just after the interview, I told them to join the party, but they seemed to have other work to be done promptly. According to my wife's e-mail, things about our tour were aired in Matsuyama, though I didn't appear on the screen. Their work must be the transmitting of the motion pictures to their company, EAT.
　　By the way, did you notice that the beer appears cloudy? It was the white beer which I wrote about this (link) and wanted to drink again. I heard it was brewed with a large proportion of wheat in addition to malted barley. I didn't remember clearly about this party. :-)

(Vocabulary)
malt 〈大麦など〉をモルト［麦芽］にする

Wandering in the Old City

　　We separated from the Matsuyama municipal group and moved to the district called the old city by street car. The first picture was shot in the car. In the center is my daughter and the right-hand lady is our tour guide who accompanied us during our whole trip. I have made several trips outside Japan, but it was the first time to be accompanied by such a professional tour guide. I have hired some guides where I visited before, but no one has followed me all the way from Japan. To tell the truth, I didn't know what she would do for us during the trip. I'm going to write about her in entries about Italy, but anyway, it was easygoing to spend every day with her. I didn't need to bother with meals to eat, places to go, when and where I should be. My daughter had lived in Freiburg for a year to learn German and German culture, so she looked so happy to see old friends and acquaintances.
　　After an hour's wandering in the old streets, we dropped in at an art gallery where lots of Ukiyo-e, Japanese woodblock prints and pictures of the floating world, were displayed. Champagne and nibbles were offered there by courtesy of members of the Freiburg-Matsuyama Association. We were really grateful for their hospitality and kindness. Some of the members of the association will come to my hometown next spring. I wondered what I could do for them for some time.

(Vocabulary)
(by) courtesy of sb/sth  ＜人・組織など＞の好意によって, 無償提供で
Everyone on the flight was put up in a local hotel courtesy of the airline. 乗客は全員，航空会社の負担で現地のホテルに宿泊した．

 

Japanese Garden

　　We visited the Japanese Garden next after 10 minutes' walk from the ökostation through the park of late autumn. I'll show you several pictures below. The first one is the entrance of the garden. You'll see the flags of both cities of Freiburg and Matsuyama. Additionally, there was the logo of Matsuyama City on the ground. I was grateful for a favor from citizens of Freiburg. The entrance closely resembled the gates of Matsuyama Castle. Just after stepping in the garden, I found the stone monument on which "肝胆相照" in Tokio Nakamura's original handwriting was carved. For your information, he was the mayor of Matsuyama City when the sister city treaty was signed 25 years ago. If this Japanese phrase could be translated literally into English, let each other see to the liver and gallbladder. That is to say, say what you think without pulling your punches and be good friends. I admired that he chose this phrase as the words on the monument which stood there.
　　The present mayor of Matsuyama City was formerly a popular announcer of the local broadcasting company. He was well known and some people wanted to take pictures with him. I don't have permission to upload pictures from them, but it would be no problem. The last picture shows me and my daughter. Do you see that I wore a blue pin to express my opposition to the kidnapping by DPRK (North Korea)?

(Vocabulary)
in sb's original handwriting （人）の直筆の
original 《[名]の前でのみ》自筆の, 原画の, 真作の
not pull any punches (informal)  (反対・非難などで) 手かげんしない, 遠慮せずに述べる

Titisee, the Lake Resort in Southern Germany

　　After we left the monastery fairly later than our schedule, someone shouted for joy at finding an interesting truck outside the monastery. It was a garbage collector. I had seen a similar one in Prince Edward Island, but most people were staring at the truck working for some time. The driver would be surprised to see us admire it with delight. Just the tour guide and the translator were feeling pressed from the delay of the schedule. We headed for Titisee next and I put together the route map of this bus trip here(link). Our bus made for the opposite direction from Freiburg and went on and on into the forest. The next village which appeared was deep in snow. I found a ski jump in the small town of Hinterzarten and I heard that the Japanese ski jumper, Mr. Funaki, held the record at this ski jump.
　　We arrived at the southern German lake resort of Titisee in 30 minutes or so. In the designated restaurant, I ordered a local beer and ate the specialty of the resort. It was nice. When I saw Titisee (the name of the lake) first, I was on a day trip bus from Freiburg to Bodensee. It was four years ago and I wished at that time that I would come back again. Then, it came true.

Route Map

(Vocabulary)
ski jump スキーのジャンプ台

ボーデン湖ツアー(４年前にこのあたりを旅行したときのアルバム)
http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro09/Mainau.html

Zähringer Städte

　　The lecture of the priest continued longer than I had expected. It was maybe due to our sincere attitude towards him. What interested me most in his lecture was the story of the royal house of Zähringer, which originated in this area. People who had a royal connection with the Zähringers had scattered across Europe and finally built twelve cities in Europe through several rises and falls. Bern, the capital city of Switzerland, is one of the cities related to the Zähringers. You can see those cities on the front cover of the book in the picture below. St. Peter is also shown on the 9th line. Our sister city of Freiburg im Breisgau is also shown. The priest emphasized that St. Peter had been the center of Europe.
　　While listening to his story, I was thumbing through the book and found that St. Peter was exactly located at the center part of Europe. The Schwarzwald area is the source of the Rhein and Donaueschingen, which is said to be the source of the Donau. That is to say, , , If I could urinate on the hill that I saw in the distance,  half of my urine would have flown to the North Sea and another half eventually to the Black Sea. Wow, I was on the top of Europe! When I told the priest such an idea, he laughed with a satisfactory expression.

(Vocabulary)
royal house  王家
rise and fall  盛衰
the Rhein ライン川
the Donau ドナウ川
urinate (フォーマル・専門) 排尿する, 小便をする
St. Peter 　Schwarzwaldの中に位置する村
Schwarzwald　《黒い森の意》ドイツ南西部の山地。長さ約160キロ、最高地点は1493メートルのフェルトベルク山。針葉樹の密林に覆われ、温泉・鉱泉が豊富。シュワルツワルト。
Donaueschingen ドイツ南西部、バーデン‐ビュルテンベルク州、シュバルツバルト山地の都市。「ドナウの泉」と呼ばれる湧水池があり、観光名所になっている。毎年10月に現代音楽を中心とするドナウエッシンゲン音楽祭が開催される。

St. Peter

　　The first day in Freiburg started. The staff members of Matsuyama City, including the Mayor Mr. Noshi and councilors, were supposed to visit various eco-friendly facilities to learn the environmental strategy in Freiburg. You know, this is a business trip for them. On the other hand, we, the Matsuyama citizens' group enjoyed sightseeing in and around the city along with people in Freiburg who belonged to the Freiburg Matsuyama Friendship Association.
　　After breakfast without fresh vegetables, we headed for St. Peter by bus. I didn't have any preliminary knowledge about St. Peter but it seemed that Freiburg city authorities wanted us to see the small village of St. Peter. Do you know why?
　　As our bus went into the black forest, its beautiful and peaceful scenery fascinated me. As soon as we reached the village, a magnificent church and monastery surprised me. To begin with, we were invited to the town office for a short lecture about the village. The vice-mayor of the village gave us a brief lecture about the history and environmental policy of the village. I was strongly impressed with both.
　　Then I entered the historic church and monastery of the village and was overwhelmed by the magnificence of its traditional beauty. The priest also gave us a lesson in the library, which was very similar to the library that I had seen in the movie of the Harry Potter Series. I felt as if I had stepped into the world of fantasy.

(Vocabulary)
monastery  (キリスト教の) 修道院, (仏教などの) 僧院

Arrival in Freiburg

　　I took a nap for a while and when I woke I found that I was over the three Baltic countries, the map of which reminded me of the Baltic Fleet which had attacked Japan in 1905, coming over from here through the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean and South China Sea all the way. I wanted to see the coastlines of the countries, but a sea of clouds was spread in my sight. Anyway, I made a soundless prayer for Russian soldiers who couldn't return to their home. As the plane passed over Leipzig, I heard an announcement to tell us to stay seated and fasten our seat belt. I couldn't suppress my excitement, knowing that I would reach Frankfurt in 20 minutes or so.
　　On the last two trips to Freiburg, I utilized the high speed train, ICE, at the Frankfurt Airport station, but this time a bus was used for transportation to the Novotel Hotel in Freiburg. It was about 21:00 hours when I arrived at the hotel. The last picture shows our 4th meal served by the hotel. It was not bad, but the simplicity of the meal made me feel that I had actually visited Germany. I preferred ICE to the bus, but it was nice to call in a rest house along the autobahn. You can point out the location of the rest house on the map below, which shows our route from Frankfurt to Freiburg.

(Vocabulary)
the three Baltic countries　バルト三国
Baltic Fleet  バルチック艦隊
spread, spread, spread vt.
be spread across/over/throughout sth  ＜場所＞一面に広がって［散らばって］いる, 〈店舗などが〉 ＜地域＞じゅうに展開している, 〈地域などが〉 ＜範囲＞にわたって広がっている
The company has more than 2,500 stores spread throughout the country. その会社は全国に2,500以上の店舗を展開している．
[同意] be spread out
make a soundless prayer for  ～を祈って黙とうする
4th meal 夜食

Route from Japan to Freiburg

 

スクリーンに表示された地図ではバルト三国の上空あたりにいる。すぐに下を見たが雲海で海は見えず。バルチック艦隊を思い出した。日本海海戦で命を落とした兵士達に黙祷。彼らはきっと帰国したかったはず。１００年後、ワインを楽しみながら１２時間で到達できるようになると想像しただろうか。フランクフルトからはバスでフライブルクへ移動。ICEを利用したかったが、アウトバーンとサービスエリアを経験できた。マップは是非拡大してご覧ください。ホテルの用意してくれた夜食はやはりドイツ風。シンプルの極み。

Over Siberia

　　This flight which departed at noon and arrived in Frankfurt at about 16:00 hours flew in sunshine all the way. The view of Siberia was also great fun for me. However, the 12 hour flight time was so long. The plane's speed looked slow on the world map.
　　My relationship to Germany dates back 37 years. German was an essential subject in most medical schools in Japan at that time. I had wanted to stay in Germany for research work after graduation from the school, but I had no opportunity to visit it and I came to think that I would never visit Germany in my life. However, the situation dramatically changed when I attended a reception party to welcome the official guests from Freiburg in spring five years ago. I visited Freiburg to see an acquaintance whom I had met in the party in autumn in the same year. It was my first visit to Germany. Five years have passed since then.
　　Around the time when Finland came up on the magnified map, beef braiser was served. It was also nice.
　　By the way, I was reading a German conversation book all the way after departure. My German vocabulary is considerably poor. I crammed for chatting with German people. When I went to a washroom, a foreigner who was sitting three rows behind me was reading a newspaper throwing his leg in the aisle. This phrase came out spontaneously, "Entschuldigung!", which means "Excuse me". My brain was successfully changing into German!

(Vocabulary)
My relationship to Germany  ドイツとの縁、なれそめ
beef braiser  ビーフブレゼ
braiser (少量の汁でゆっくりと) 〈肉・野菜〉 を蒸し煮にする

シベリア上空にて雑感：

ドイツは学生時代からあこがれの国。しかし、渡航は叶わず。ところが、５年前の春、フライブルクからの一行を歓迎するパーティーに呼ばれてから状況が一変。知りあいができ、その秋に初めてドイツへ。これが縁で次女のフライブルク留学、そして２回目、今回が３回目の訪独となる。フィンランドの上空にさしかかった頃、２回目の食事。これも良かった。またまた横の娘に睨まれながらワインを注文。飲み放題は辛い、、、(^_^;)　トイレに向かったとき、後ろの外国人が足を投げ出していたので「すみません」と声を掛けた。無意識に自然に出てきた単語はドイツ語だった。(^o^)機内ではずっとドイツ語の一夜漬け(^_^;)

Formal Visit

　　My usual overseas trips were always easygoing with old and tried friends. This trip, however, is a formal visit as a representative of citizens in Matsuyama City. I'm not so familiar with a half of the tour members. What would become of the trip? To tell the truth, it's the first time for me to attend such a group tour accompanied by a professional tour guide. Seemingly, I have only to follow her.
　　Let me explain the picture below, which was shot at Matsuyama Airport just before the departure. I'm a member of Matsuyama Chuo Lions Club and four of the members are going to join the tour. The second person from the left, my superior general surgeon, is my sponsor in the club and at the same time he is the former chairman of the Matsuyama Freiburg Friendship Association (MFFA). He pulled me into MFFA at the last anniversary event held in Matsuyama City five years ago. (http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2009/04/visitors-from-1.html) As a result, this event lead me to Germany three times and my second daughter came to stay in Freiburg for a year. Additionally I was invited into the Lions Club. He is really a precious one for me.
　　The plane soared into the clear sky just like my growing sense of expectations, heading for Tokyo, where we would change planes.

(Vocabulary)
old and tried ［trusted］ 気心の知れた
tried and tested (tried and true とも) 〈方法・技法などが〉立証済みの, 確立された
tried and tested research methods 確立された調査方法 [同意] well-tried
sponsor 〔…の〕引受人, 保証人〔of, for〕.

Carry-on Luggage

　　I started packing my possessions into my two suitcases and carry-on bags. On my usual trip, I had worn casual clothes, but this time I had to bring my formal suits and a coat for attending the anniversary event of the sister city treaty. I didn't want to pack these clothes tightly. That's why I'm bringing two suitcases. I'm a gold member of Star Alliance and am permitted to use two suitcases without an additional fee. The carry-on bags are a daypack and a waist pouch. I'm carrying a digital single-lens reflex camera and another wide-angle lens, and moreover a compact digital camera. So, I need two types of carry-on bags.
　　In spring two years ago, when I headed home from Vancouver, I was supposed to arrive at Narita International Airport, but I awoke to something different. I found my plane flying near Incheon International Airport in South Korea on the private screen when I awoke. My plane couldn't land at Narita due to strong seasonal winds. I had to spend a day in Seoul with possessions in my carry-on bag only, without underwear, a battery charger for my cell phone and my mobile PC, my electric shaver,,, it was extremely inconvenient. I decided to pack minimum necessities for spending a day into my carry-on bags. The picture shows a compression bag for clothes. It's for space-saving and is very nice for packing clothes. Underwear and socks for a day are in the bag.

(Vocabulary)
carry-on luggage  機内持ち込みの手荷物
awake to sth ＜…＞という状況で目が覚める
We awoke to a beautiful sunny day. 目が覚めるとすばらしい天気だった．
awake to sth [句動詞]  ＜…＞に気づく, を悟る
check  （乗客が荷物を）（同じ飛行機やバスなどの貨物室に入れるために）預ける

Notice

　　While this entry is shown on the blog, I am staying in Germany and Italy as a member of the official envoy to Freiburg, the sister city of my hometown. This blog system has a function of receiving e-mails and posting them at the same time. Using this function, I'll post my trip memos in English or German. Don't mind these articles. They are just trip memos and I'll write lots of entries detailing them later.

　 　松山市とドイツのフライブルク市が姉妹都市になって２５周年となります。松山市からの公式訪問団の一員として、フライブルク市で行われる交流会に参加してきます。この時期はかなり寒いので交流会が終わったら野志市長や市議会議員とは別行動でドイツを脱出して暖を求めてイタリアへ移動し、数日間の観光後、帰国します。いつものように帰国後に詳細な旅行記録を書くつもりです。それまでこのブログは単なるメモになります。帰国後に書く記事の参考とするためのものです。

　では！　Auf Wiedersehen!

(平成２１年、南朝鮮坡州（パジュ）市臨津閣にて撮影、後方は非武装地帯)

25th Anniversary of Sister City Treaty

　　My hometown, Matsuyama City entered into a sister city treaty with the southern German city of Freiburg 25 years ago, so this year is a quarter century anniversary. Several officials, including the mayor and city council members of Matsuyama City, and a few dozen citizens are planning to make official visits to Freiburg to attend the event comemorating the 25th anniversary.
　　Today, citizens of Matsuyama City who had an interest in Germany got together and enjoyed German wines and gorgeous dishes to get to know each other better. Some of them would visit Freiburg in November. Additionally three students from Freiburg were invited to the party. They could speak in Japanese and seemed to enjoy chatting with people who love Germany. So many topics were mentioned. One of them really wanted to climb Mt. Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan and recently listed as a World Natural Heritage Site. I'm not sure now, but if several people wanted, I'd arrange the climbing plan next summer. Climbing is one of my hobbies. Freiburg seemingly has a cold climate at this time of the year. I could imagine how cold it is from the latitude of Freiburg, which is no less than 4 degrees in latitude further north than Japan's northern city of Sapporo. For your information Matsuyama City is located in the southern part of Japan and is relatively warm except in January and February. I'm afraid my possessions will become more and more, because of lots of winter clothes.

(Vocabulary)
no less than 〔数詞などを伴って〕～ほども多くの
He speaks no less than five languages.  彼は５種類もの言語を話す。

　
　

German Fair

　　My hometown of Matsuyama City has been the sister city of the German city of Freiburg for 25 years, which is located in the south-western part of Germany. I've been to the city twice. The city is near the border with Switzerland and France, and so I visited Basel crossing into Switzerland and also Alsace-Lorraine Province and its capital of Strasbourg, stepping into France. Naturally I began to feel some affinity for Freiburg and southern Germany.
　　By the way, do you know Jazz Chor Freiburg, a chorus group consisting of the citizens of Freiburg. The group's Japan Tour was conducted this year and they dropped in at my city after a three years' interval. On the occasion of their visit, Matsuyama City held a PR event for Germany and particularly Freiburg. I was asked to take part in the event as a member of the Matsuyama-Freiburg Association. My task was to chat with people who were interested in Germany and if possible to collect new members. As you see in the following pictures, there were several concessions which sold various goods related to Germany. Some members of Jazz Chor Freiburg suddenly appeared at a corner of the event park and performed a few cuts from their concert just before the opening of the concert.
　　I heard that Matsuyama City would dispatch a municipal official envoy to Freiburg marking the 25th anniversary of their sister city treaty and recruit its members. I wonder if I should apply for it.

White Beer

　　Do you know white beer? I didn't know about it. The picture is of the white beer (Weissbier in German). In the same way as there is white and red wine, does beer have such a kind? This beer was also from my second daughter. It seems to be made from wheat. I drank it last February, but I saw it on a German educational TV program. That's why I posted the picture.

(Vocabulary from comments)
fond
《[名]の前不可》
be fond of sb; grow fond of sb; be fond of (doing) sth
be not very/overly fond of something  ＜…＞があまり好きではない
《[名]の前でのみ》 (言葉・表情などが) 愛情のこもった, 優しい
a fond farewell  愛情のこもった別れの言葉 = affectionate
《[名]の前でのみ》 (人が) 優しい, 情愛の深い
[成句]
a fond hope/belief(フォーマル)  (非現実的な) 甘い望み［考え］
in the fond hope/belief that  …という甘い望み［考え］を抱いて
fond memories  懐かしい思い出
be fond of doing sth  ＜…＞ばかりしている
He is very fond of giving out advice. 彼は人に意見ばかりしている．

(Vocabulary from comments 2)
be staffed by sb〈組織・部署は〉＜人＞がスタッフである
The store is staffed by volunteers. その店のスタッフはボランティアだ．
hiatus (交渉・仕事などの) 中断, 休止
on hiatus (米) 中断して =break