March 2022

From Düsseldorf to Aurich it is 300 km, about a 3-hour drive. The weather was wonderful that day, sunny. Halfway there, we decided to go for a walk in the forest. We wanted to plant our little ailing Christmas tree in the forest. We bought it 2 years ago, on New Year’s Eve. A couple of times it was on the verge of death, dried out, and became depleted, but somehow it still survived. We decided to take it out into freedom, into the forest.

We found a wonderful spot for the little tree, in an open clearing where other small fir trees were growing. After successfully planting our little tree, we had a picnic right there in the grass, drank tea from a thermos, and ate sandwiches with ham and baguette.

The forest is located on the border of two federal states - our native state of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony. We entered a new state.

***

We arrived at the house in Aurich when it was already completely dark. It is a wonderful two-story house. In the spacious kitchen, sitting at the table, we opened a bottle of red wine, cheese, ham - celebrating our move. Someone’s fat ginger cat came to us, amusingly standing up on its hind legs and asking to come inside. We let it in; the cat sheds a lot, and now we’re all covered in its fur :)

On Monday, we went for a walk around the neighborhood. It’s all private housing here. Cute red-brick houses, with lawns and beautifully trimmed trees in front of the house. The streets are named after composers. We live on Brahms Street. There is also Mozart Street, Beethoven Street, and Schubert Street. I really like it here.

Aurich is located in the East Frisia region. I notice that some signs and words here are written and звучат differently. And indeed, there is a local dialect here. For example, instead of “Hallo,” people say “Moin” here (in the city, almost all passersby greet one another). Instead of “haus” (house), “huus” is written everywhere.

It is also surprising that tea drinking is so popular here in East Frisia. And not just popular — they even have their own tea, which is called East Frisian tea (ostfriesentee in the original).

East Frisian tea is a blend of more than 20 types of black tea — Assam, Darjeeling, teas from Java, Sumatra, and Sri Lanka. This tea is drunk in a special way. A “kluntje” — a transparent sugar candy — is placed at the bottom of the cup, the tea is poured over it, and a little cream is added. Do not stir! That way, every sip of tea is unique as the tea gradually mixes with the sugar and cream.

During the week, we head to the city center. The center is very close to our house, a 15-minute walk away. It is small, but nice.

***

On Saturday, March 19, we are going on a trip to the island of Norderney. Mayakovsky has a poem of the same name; the poet отдыхал at the German resort in the early 20th century. I had long dreamed of visiting one of the Frisian Islands. Norderney is one of the most popular; about 6,000 people live on the island.

On Friday evening, practically before going to bed, we bought tickets for the ship to the island. I was so happy; an adventure lay ahead of us. The ferry departure to the island was at 8:40 in the morning. We woke up at 6:30, got ready, had breakfast, and drove to the port. We were very lucky with the weather — sunny, not a cloud in the sky.

The ship is large; we boarded among the first and chose seats by the window in the sunshine. The trip was to take 1 hour.

Time flew by quickly, and here we are disembarking on the island. In the supermarket near the port, we bought food for a picnic - fresh warm buns, ham, cheese, and a tiny bottle of liqueur. We decided to buy the liqueur because we liked the label - an old man walking along the seabed at low tide in rolled-up trousers, with a stick and a bundle.

After the shop, we went for a walk around the island on foot. While walking to the sea, we saw an old man, an island resident, just like on the liqueur bottle - with the same snow-white beard, in the same trousers and hat. So funny.

We decided to hide from the wind and went a little deeper into the island. We had a picnic. We tried liqueur. We drank tea, ate buns and cheese. We lay in the sun for a while. Seagulls flew overhead and cried loudly, probably worried because we had settled not far from their nests.

We continued on our way. There are few cars on the island. The road for cars goes only to the middle of the island; from there on, there are only paths for cyclists (of whom there are very many here) and pedestrians.

We walk past the lighthouse, past a café filled with laughing Germans drinking beer. At one point I thought: “this is what life without war looks like — these people’s cities are not being bombed back home.”

We came out onto a beautiful beach with snow-white sand and sandy hills overgrown with tall grass. Once again, we had a meal on the slope of one of the hills; it sheltered us well from the gusts of wind. Our strength was running out, and besides, time was running short (the ship on which we were supposed to return to the mainland was leaving at 16:45). We decided to return to the island’s only town, Norderney, by bus.

We walked along the city’s main street and came out onto the waterfront. On the waterfront, about a dozen Ukrainian flags are flying. We walked on foot to the port, where, tired but happy, we boarded the ship and sailed back home. In total, 17 km were covered in a day, not that much, but perhaps the wind and sand played their cruel trick.

***

We drank delicious beer in a very cozy restaurant by the fireplace. And we even caught a “show” once. We usually skip them because the sauna show gets very crowded. But this was the last show, and there were significantly fewer people, so we decided to go.

The show was hosted by a young guy. First, he poured water over the heated stones, and then, one by one, he placed balls of ice soaked in aromatic oils onto the stones, and because of that it smelled very pleasant. The guy also waved a towel very skillfully, and because of that the hot, humid air seemed to envelop you completely. I really liked it; this show somehow helped me relax and warm up even more…

***

The week flew by unnoticed.

Every day was sunny and warm. During the day we make coffee with cinnamon. I bake waffles in a waffle iron — they turn out in a beautiful heart shape. We drink coffee on our terrace.

I already know my way around the area well, and I walk almost without looking at the map. I already have several favorite walking routes. One is along a narrow canal through the fields.

***

On Saturday, March 26, it was cloudy and cool. Volchyi found a naval museum with a destroyer and a submarine. We decided to go there. The museum is located in the city of Wilhelmshaven. We parked not far from the center. Whether because of the weather or the mood, the city gives off a somewhat gloomy impression (we never even took a single photo of the city itself).

We walk up to a beautiful swing bridge built in the early 20th century. The bridge is the city’s calling card; it is the first swing bridge we have ever seen in our lives, and it can rotate 90 degrees from the center to let ships pass. From the bridge, there is a view of the harbor and the museum ships.

We cross the bridge and arrive on a narrow strip of land with a waterfront promenade and cafés. It’s lovely here. We head toward the museum building. At the museum, we show our vaccination certificates. We are asked to present our passports. While I fumble around looking for my German card, Volchyi shows his Ukrainian foreign passport.

The woman at the ticket counter asks, “Are you Ukrainians?”

“Yes,” we answer (the hit song “Good evening. We are from Ukraine” pops into my head).

“Then admission to our museum is free for you,” the woman says.

I try to explain that we can pay. But the woman is already printing free tickets for us.

It’s interesting to explore the ships. We go down the narrow stairways to the lower decks, inspect the sailors’ cabins, kitchens, and toilets. Captains always have very beautiful, spacious cabins with a porthole.

In the U10 submarine, I’m amazed by how long the torpedoes are. How much space there is in the engine compartment. And how little space there is for people. We walk around the submarine, and Volchyi shows me the “little wings” — the dive planes.

After the submarine, we go for a walk around the destroyer; it is huge. My strength is slowly leaving me. It is cold. The destroyer is spacious, with a large mess hall, a kitchen, and a separate infirmary. There are many rooms for radio operators and engineers. There is also a room with washing and drying machines. Interestingly, this destroyer is American-made.

I was already completely tired and frozen. There was one ship left — a minesweeper, a ship for searching for sea mines. On the deck of the ship, we look at an orange mine-searching device; it looks like a large gas cylinder with a tail.

As we leave the museum, Volchyi notices a small, inconspicuous-looking boat. It is a tugboat.

We return to the car. Sitting in the car, we drink tea with cookies and warm up. I have the feeling that my body has gone numb, and in the car it is slowly thawing.

***

On Sunday, March 27, it was amazingly sunny and warm. As if yesterday’s looming gray clouds and piercing wind had never been there. The clocks were moved forward by one hour. We drove to the town of Neuharlingersiel by the sea; according to the map, there is a beach there.

At the sea, it was low tide, and people were walking on the seabed.

We took a short walk along the embankment. It was a strange feeling — we came to the sea, but it wasn’t there… There was only this dark sand. The water was somewhere out there, far on the horizon.

It was only around 2 p.m., and the sun was shining brightly. After a walk around Neuharlingersiel, we decided to go to another beach - Schillig. It is wilder here. A strip of beautiful white sand. There is no sea here either; it is far away. Only by the ships sailing on the horizon can you believe that there is water somewhere out there. Sitting on the sand, we had our traditional picnic lunch and headed home…

It got colder on Monday. It was cloudy all week.

On March 31, it started to snow… Big wet flakes swirled and fell on the flowers, on the grass, on the roofs of houses…