Additional Christmas presence

On the day after Christmas, Grandma Grace came from Hawaii to visit and stayed with us through mid-January. We were sad when she went home.

Here's the traveler with Laurel right after she landed at Frankfurt International.

The girls had an enjoyable winter week at home with grandma before school started up again. She kept them busy with all kinds of fun crafts. Here's a bit of their handiwork.

This is Alan's personalized shirt. And, yes, that is a Crimson Tide elephant--the kids' idea. Meggie made the dotted lines to separate Laurel's area from her own.

My awesome shirt has two designer areas as well (and they're labeled). Pretty nice, huh?

Here's Laurel's solo creation.

And, instead of a shirt, Meggie decided to paint herself a purse.

Since the weather canceled our trip to Prague, we decided to take the train to Cologne for a day. I like the route. So scenic--mostly along the Rhine. We really like exploring Cologne.

The cathedral looms over the train station.

On this trip, we visited Cologne's National Socialist museum for the first time. From the outside, the museum is a nondescript building--a storefront that used to be a jewelry store and later housed offices. But during World War II, the building was occupied by a Gestapo prison. The cells in the basement and sub-basement have been preserved, including the messages inmates left behind. One person wrote, "I sit here and I don't know why."

Visiting this museum was very moving and very sad. We should return, because we didn't spend enough time there.

After wandering the city a bit more and having lunch, we decided to try the Ludwig Museum of modern art.

We stepped on this blue goop in the entryway. We ought to have taken the goop as a hint that this wasn't really our kind of museum. And the following conversation should have confirmed that suspicion:

docent: Please, ma'am, next time don't roll the stroller over the floor.
h: The what?
docent: The floor.
h: This blue stuff? What is this?
docent: It's just clay.
h: Am I allowed to walk on it?
docent: Yes, footprints are fine.
h: Why aren't the stroller tracks fine?
docent: They're not art.
h: Uh... But the footprints are art?
docent: Yes.
h: According to whom?
docent: The artist.
h: Oh.
docent: It's stupid, isn't it.
h: Well, um, kinda.

But we decided to try the Ludwig anyway. Now, we're not art experts. And we'll admit that there were some interesting paintings and photographs.

But. Much of the Ludwig was just too off the wall for us. It reminded me of the time someone hung a sign on a water fountain at the Guggenheim and called it art. Take, for instance, "canteen," a group of four tables and 16 chairs placed along a wall at the Ludwig. This was apparently interactive art, because visitors were allowed to sit in and rearrange the chairs.

It's good we had a place to rest, because Meggie soon said, "I'm getting tired of exploring this weird 'art' " and "That over there looks like a big purple booger." And we had difficulty exiting the Ludwig, because the floors on one side of the building don't align with the floors on the other side. So, as we wandered up and down half-flights of stairs, we started making our own photographic art.

This portrait is titled "I sure hope there is a playground in here somewhere."

This is "These people said this would be fun" by Meggie.

And this: "Boy, this is reeeeally greeeeat."

But we did have a fun time together in the Ludwig. If we had to look at a few nice paintings and a whole lot of "giant boogers" (hey, kids call 'em like they see 'em), at least we greatly enjoyed each other's company.

Still, if we go back to Cologne with Grandma Grace, we'll try the Chocolate Museum instead.