evil

Yesterday, Bobbi and I went to Sachenhausen, a concentration camp used by both the Nazis and Soviets for political prisoners. It was the model used for all other camps and the training grounds for the SS. The lack of humanity and the immense evil overwhelms. I have no answers, only questions.
- How do you write about this evil? Are there even words?
- How do you speak of inhumanity without wondering if you are capable of the same brutality?

Without the right words, I say today that I am a witness to this part of history. This bears a load of responsibility on my soul to speak against injustice and inhumanity wherever. As I am human so is my neighbour whether they live in Burma, China, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Palestine or Guatanemo Bay.

It has been a couple of deep days with visits to the Holocaust Memorial/Museum, The Topography of Terror and of course, Sachenhausen. I still need to process my sadness and my anger. But there is hope...there will be a day when evil will be gone and peace will come.

more and more of berlin

I don't really have anything deep to write about my trip. Staying with Wendy here has been great because she is also friends with Bobbi. I hope they continue their friendship when they are both back in Vancouver. Two phenomenal girls!

Since my last post, many more things have been seen and experienced. Still no photos due to a shared computer situation so just deal with it. Imagine my face next to some really old European architecture or a statue of some German dude or a picture of random quotes/words. That is what I have been taking pictures of (all 298 of them so far). I promise to share them once edited upon my return.

Here is another list of thrilling action in the life of Sara whilst in Berlin:
- Climb the dome at the Reichstag and saw Berlin by early morning light
- Experienced the coffee/cafe CARAS (my fav)
- Went shopping at H&M (I know we have it at home but how could I say no when there were 5 on one street in West Berlin)
- Explored a home/decor shopping mall (this could have been dangerous if my suitcases could fit armchairs - thank goodness for airline weight restrictions)
- Had Vietnamese at Mr Hai & Friends
- Watched the sunset with Bobbi, Wendy & Ben from Victoria Park
- Have had 5 different experiences of people coming up to me thinking I was German and asking me questions or starting conversations on the street.
- Pushed open gates and wandered in hofs
- Had Currywurst at Curry 36
- Trained it to Potsdam - a small city to the SW of Berlin
- Wandered the gardens of Sans Souci Palace in Potsdam
- Sat by a creek and journaled
- Picnicked in TierGarten with cheese/meat/bread/wine
- Had Wayne Gretzky pizza at Ron Telesky's Canadian Pizza
- Rented hot orange bikes and rode all around central Berlin
- Viewed the East Side Gallery (a major portion of the Berlin Wall still standing and used a canvas by various artists)
- Saw the Victory Tower

Am currently reading "Four Loves" by C.S. Lewis. It is a timely read for me as this trip is definitely a soul-searching time for me. The ideas around giving and needing love, as simple as they are on the surface, seem to be stopping me in my tracks.

Bye for now. Time is flying quickly but yet it is a good pace. Tomorrow we are exploring various aspects of the darker side of Germany and the Holocaust. Remembering my last time in Europe, coming face to face with that evil drained me. It will be a tough day.

berlin, berlin

Okay, it is decided I love Berlin. It is a truly amazing city, full of life and history. Spring is all around us here. I don't have any pictures to show you because I am borrowing a computer. But lilacs and blossoms are out and it smells beautiful.
Here is a quick summary of what we have done/accomplished since we arrived:
- had "Couch Potato" pizza from Ron Telesky's Canadian Pizza
- Attended May Day protests/riots/festival
- drank beer on the streets of Berlin
- slept for more than 12 hours
- rode a double decker bus
- consumed more than 10 cappuccinos at last count.
- strolled through Berlin neighborhoods
- had great conversations with Wendy and Bobbi
- sat by a canal and drank beer
- celebrated Bobbi's birthday in style and with a variety of fun beverages. (it was a late night!)
- wandered through a graveyard
- went to a flea market and a farmers market
- gawked a beautiful architecture
- attempted to speak some German (used the word "purpurfarbig" twice so far)
- ate a traditional German breakfast - meat, cheese, bread, fruit, hardboiled egg and Nutella
- discovered hidden courtyards
- rode the U-Bahn
- sat in cafes and journalled
- saw the following landmarks: Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate, TV Tower, Museum Island, numerous embassies, Water Tower, Victory Tower, and more

We have a few more days in Berlin and there is so much still to see. But most importantly, I need to remind myself to just be and enjoy where I am. We are definitely going at a leisurely pace. Tonight we are going out for a nice dinner to celebrate Bobbi's 30th birthday. Last night, we celebrated like we were 18...tonight, we will try to class it up a bit and act our age (a bit).

so we are here finally

After an interesting mechanical issue in Calgary and spending 2+ hours in the plane on the Calgary tarmac, Bobbi and I took off for Germany. The consequence of a delayed departure was a missed connecting flight to Berlin but we were able to get the next flight in and were only 3 hours behind schedule. All is good...we called Wendy and she waited at the airport for us. Thank goodness for cell phones.
I haven't been to bed yet. It is 7:40 p.m. Berlin time which is almost noon in Calgary which means we have been up for more than 28 hours. It is almost time for bed. I hope to stay awake until at least 8:30 p.m.
Will fill in the details later about the May Day carnival/festival we attended and the pizza from Ron Telesky's Canadian Pizza place.
Auf Wiedersehn.

another adventure

Perhaps I should change my blog to sarasomewhereintheworld.blogspot.com. Last year, when I travelled to Hong Kong, I started the blog just to give friends and family at home a taste of my trip. A year later, I am still blogging although sometimes I am not sure why. Perhaps it is because I had more adventures in life to share.

My latest adventure starts tomorrow morning. I leave with my dear friend Bobbi for Europe. Fifteen years ago, I went to Europe and it changed me completely. I thought I would be back there within five years. However, life had other plans and my journey took me in other directions. Now, I am heading back - this time to new cities. Bobbi and I are heading to Berlin to just sit next to my dear sister Wendy. I am so excited to see her and just be near her for about 10 days. Then Bob and I are off to Prague and then wrap up the trip in London.

I will keep you posted periodically of anything of note along the way. While my photos are not art (that is not my "spiritual" gift), I will attempt to share my pictures and words about our travels with you.

I have a distinct sort of feeling that the next three weeks will be a more spiritual journey than a physical trip. It will be soul-searching time rather than a photo-op moment. Do you ever feel that you are being prepared for a journey?

Here is a glimpse of what is to come...Beer, Berlin, Bobbi and Batemans

the mirror

Recently, a mirror of truth was placed in front of me and all my selfishness was reflected back. This is a rather unpleasant experience as I had been going along quite nicely thinking I was a giving, kind sort of person. The mirror showed my independence and stubbornness stemming from a selfish root.

The busyness of life (work, dating, prep for trip, and friends), the time to sort through this necessary realization has not been available. I haven't been able to really work through it. My time away in Europe will hopefully give me the space to stare into the mirror and uproot some of that selfishness that has crept into my heart and soul.

As my mother can attest to, I have a rebellious nature. Although it would be easier to ignore the reflection I see, I don't really want to rebel against this truth.

so far

Some people don't understand what I do in my career because it is such an unusual world from their own. There are moments that even seem surreal to me. During my various roles, I have had amazing opportunities. I went on the road with Paul Brandt in connection with Operation Christmas Child, I met David Suzuki, went to a Stampede party at a very shee-shee house of a wealthy philanthropist here in Calgary, and planned all sorts of different events ranging in size from 5 to 3500 attendees. But I think I had my best career moment this week...this event on Thursday may even be in competition for best life experience yet.

Over the past three months, I have been working with the YWCA of Calgary for an inaugural event called Keep A Roof Over Their Heads. Since my job is giving away the bank's money to charitable organizations, I was designated to help the YWCA raise awareness and funds for women needing shelter due to poverty or domestic abuse. Although I work with many great causes and organizations, the cause of women in abusive relationship has impacted me more than I could imagine. When we launched the event/partnership to our branches, personal stories were shared. Many days, I found myself with tears in my eyes over the pain and honesty of a colleague who has just shared her story with me. And I don't cry easily as many of you know. This cause for women seeking housing after leaving domestic abuse situations has touched me to the core.

Excuse me for a moment while I rant...In Calgary, affordable housing is a huge issue as our economy is booming but many people are being left behind as prices for everything rise. In addition, Alberta has the dubious distinction of having Canada's highest rate of domestic abuse (1 in 4 women have or will be abused). The event we did this week was under the premise of a woman should not have to choose between homelessness and abuse. We were raising money specifically for long-term supported transistional housing (the next step after emergency shelters). Our provincial government has a policy of ONLY funding a 21-day stay at emergency shelters for women escaping violence....that appalls me and is the reason I did not vote for the Conservatives. So after 21 days, the women have to make a choice and many go back to their abuser. Anyhow, I digress.

Back to the event, on Thursday, we invited Calgarians to give to this important cause. We had a goal of $100,000 when we started planning the event. Through live radio and TV cut-ins, we held a tele-thon of sorts at a local mall. The response was overwhelming. I think it was more than just the money raised...the passion and the people at the YWCA so committed to women in our city. By the end of the day, we raised more than $160,000. The bank then matched the first $50,000 which brought our totals to $210,000+. And the numbers are still growing. I am not sure really how to put this experience into words but the stress and the unknowns of the event as we were planning it now all seem so insignificant.