February 25, 2007 at 8:04 pm · Filed under colorpuncture, life in germany
For a long time, I’ve been hearing about the Peter Mandel crystal healing room in the Swarovski Crystal Worlds with its huge, sixty-pound version of the 10.5 cm therapeutic crystal. So when the clinic closed a few days for Fasching (Mardi Gras), I took the train to Innsbruch to see for myself what the Kristallwelten is all about.
I couldn’t wait to experience the big crystal, but I was a bit worried that the rest of the tour might be excruciatingly tacky, since I have an aversion to those little crystal tchotchkes. I couldn’t have been more wrong!!! It was completely entrancing, beginning with the entrance, guarded by the Giant:
Once inside, thirteen crystal worlds unfold–each an astonishing creation of crystal, light, color and sound. In addition to a crystal dome faceted with 590 mirrors, there are crystal artworks by famous artists, light sculpture, and of course, the Peter Mandel room.
The photo above, though very dim, gives you an idea of the size of the healing crystal. It is in the center of the room, surrounded by red padded pillars you can lean against as you experience the healing energy. On the ceiling the world’s largest kaleidoscope projects a “constant recreation of crystalline shapes conveying the effect of healing crystals”, according to the brochure. The powerful healing energy in the room, though, definitely emanates from the big crystal, and is beyond words. When you go there, you will know what I mean.
Anyway, you must visit the Kristallwelten yourself to see all its other wonders, including the crystal forest, and a video of Jessye Norman singing in the crystal dome, but here are a couple of my favorites–a light sculpture and the Giant’s accordion. It opens and closes and squeezes out something amusing and Viennese.
The old city of Innsbruch is charming too. A few sights caught my eye:
February 4, 2007 at 7:41 pm · Filed under life in germany
This week I moved into my upstairs apartment, leaving the heads and horns behind without a moment’s regret! I really love my new place with its quirky angles and little surprises like the skylight in the kitchen. Naturally I had to open it up and take a look around:
This is the living room. Check out the geometry!! And here’s what you can see outside:
The weather this afternoon was gorgeous–the most beautiful since I arrived, and just perfect for a long walk to explore more of the city.
The main tourist attraction here in Bruchsal is the palace:
I went to a wonderful concert there last week, in the very ornate Kammermusiksaal, but there is a lot more to see both inside and out. Stay tuned…
January 28, 2007 at 10:01 am · Filed under life in germany
The first few flakes fell out of the sky on Tuesday afternoon. From inside the clinic on the second floor, I could see them melt when they touched the ground–nothing too serious. But early the next morning, it was an entirely different story. The whole world had turned white overnight. I made my way to the bus stop through the silence of ankle-deep snow in my fabulous sheepskin-lined boots and waited for the bus. And waited, and waited. Finally I realized that even in Germany, the first snowfall of the year had caught the transit system by surprise, and gladly returned to the comfort of my warm, snug home.
After an hour or so, everything was back on schedule, and I arrived uneventfully at the clinic. I couldn’t wait to see how the bus would cope with the now-icy 13% grade hill on the trip home. However, the driver was very skillful, and there was a minimum of slipping and sliding, and just one tense moment on the narrow street when the bus had to unexpectedly yield the right of way to a car.
Speaking of tense moments, my Inner American and I picked up our long-awaited laundry on Thursday. And it was perfect!! No stains, no shrinkage, and folded ever so much more neatly than I could hope to achieve. The only drawback was the incredibly high price. My Inner American is now officially in love with the concept of someone else doing her laundry–but hoping to find a better price!
January 21, 2007 at 6:57 am · Filed under life in germany
After all the letting go I’ve done recently, it would seem that just one more teeny-tiny, insignificant letting go would not matter at all. I mean, what could be as wrenching as saying good bye to my practice, my friends and family, my apartment and most of my possessions, and my cats?
Well, yesterday I learned two interesting things: A) Bruchsal has no laundromats in the American sense, and B) here, just as at the dry cleaner’s in America, one exchanges one’s dirty laundry at the Wäscherei for a paper ticket, and returns in a few days to claim the washed items.
Better make that three interesting things: C) I have major laundry control issues of which I was completely unaware!!!! I let go of my laundry with grave misgivings along with some instructions in mangled German and went home to freak out. What about the stain on my new shirt? What if they leave my favorite jeans in the dryer too long? What if they wash the cold water stuff in hot water and it’s all ruined? What if, what if, what if!!!!!
That’s when I heard myself and just had to laugh out loud–my Inner American was suffering from acute Kulturschock!
OK, then! Stay tuned for the next time, including a possible laundry up-date. In the meantime, enjoy these views of Bruchsal, laundromatless, but beautiful.
January 14, 2007 at 10:42 am · Filed under life in germany
I arrived in Bruchsal last Sunday, January 7th, and right away met my landlady, Ms. Gredler. She has connections everywhere in Bruchsal, and she has been incredibly helpful to me. Right now I am staying in the downstairs apartment which is very nice, but in two more weeks I will move to the upstairs apartment which is even nicer. Here are a few of my current roommates:
On my first day at Peter’s clinic, one of the first people I met was my colleague from America, Sherry Reeves and her daughter Shiloh. It was really great to follow their treatments all week, especially because their sessions with Peter were translated into English.
All last week I sat in on Peter’s sessions with his patients. It was both wonderful and terrifying! Wonderful to hear him expounding his theories, and terrifying to realize the current inadequacy of my German. However, it can only improve as time passes!!
On the whole, I am really enjoying being in Germany. The rhythm of things is quite different here. Lots of businesses close for a couple of hours midday, early on Saturday, and all day on Sunday. The thing to do on Sunday is eat a long and delicious meal with friends or family, and then take a walk. I walked through this field this afternoon. Yes, it is this green in January, no doubt due to global warming, but it is supposed to be cold tomorrow. Let’s see how I will cope with real weather!
January 10, 2007 at 10:22 am · Filed under Uncategorized
but only after sorting and packing the 10,000 things!
It was a relief to finally get on the airplane after all of that. However, my struggles with the material world were just beginning. What you can’t see in this photo are four more huge suitcases, making a total of six bags to haul on the train from Frankfurt to Bruchsal. What a nightmare!! But I managed to get them all to my beautiful new place in Bruchsal. More about that next time, along with details about my first few days in Peter’s clinic. Stay tuned…
