Geniessen Giessen

Enjoying Giessen

The evening we arrived in Giessen we were greeted by the slippery remnants of an ice storm, however, the warm reception we received literally melted the ice away.  We awoke the next morning to continued precipitation – but not the freezing kind.  The rainy Sunday was perfect for enjoying a museum highly recommended by our gasthaus hosts and university colleagues. 

Giessen boasts “the world’s first mathematical science center,” appropriately named the Mathematikum.  We, along with dozens and dozens of other kids, spent the whole afternoon exploring the wonderful world of math.  Surprised at such a statement from a Communication major and an English major?  Remember, we are big fans of the liberal arts education!

We sometimes had to elbow out the kids so we could play too.  Sorry little guy.

The Möbius strip is not what makes this photo amazing, rather, it is the fact that it depicts ONE of two different men we saw wearing red leather pants in the museum.  

This ball shooter, twirler, ringer, plinger-plunker, dropper, racer thingy was so cool!

This is just a small portion of the great hall of presidents (and there have been a bunch lo these 402 years).  Note the different hairstyles, robes, and colors in each painting.  Our hosts told us the presidents had to foot half the bill for their portraits - so those who were less wealthy used less color.  Some used less color as a statement of protest against university waste.  

We agrarian Nebraskans had a natural affinity for Justus Liebig University in Giessen since Herr Professor Liebig was the person who discovered, among other things, nitrogen-based fertilizer.  Our action-packed day put us in touch with a myriad of friendly JLU folks who teach, advise, and welcome international students.  We even learned about an innovative new program, the International Graduate Center for the Study of Culture (very cutting edge).  We had the distinct pleasure of sharing a lovely meal with the GCSC director, Martin, and his friend, Kirsten.  It was a lively evening, as these two knew their way around topics from video game morality and Texas football, to hermeneutics and crème brûlée torches.

Our wonderful JLU hosts, Heidi, Julia, Margo, and Petra

On every stop of our JLU tour we were greeted with warm smiles and hot coffee; the visit to the extremely cool GCSC was no exception.

The last course of our 4-plus hour dinner with Kirsten and Martin.  Yes, this is dessert, and yes, we did eat it all.

During World War II, about 75% of Giessen was destroyed.  Of the few remaining historic buildings, most are in the town center (the factories which were bombed were on the edge of town).  Of course new architecture has been integrated within the remaining old structures.  In addition, the city center is dotted with sculptures, the most famous of which is Die Drei Schwätzer (the three talkers or gossipers).   When we passed by this sculpture a genuine Giessner stopped as if on cue, and asked if we’d like an explanation!  He described how the three figures depict the most common Giessner “types”:  the worker, the hausfrau, and the ubiquitous professor (we were told that the university provides about 70% of the income for the city).  Our generous Giessner explained that, no matter what their profession, all Giessners are so friendly, that they will gladly stop in the middle of the street for a little chat with one another, and this is what makes life in Giessen so enjoyable.  Jawohl!

Just right around the corner from our cozy hotel - (Can you spot our golden guardian angel?)

A beautiful war memorial at the "new" castle. The sign on the building explained that, in December of 1943, brave Giessners stood atop the castle to fight off incoming bombers and thus, saved the structure.

Our friendly (and very chatty) Giessner