'This star won’t go out'

Hey guys! I have recently bought a new book called ‘This star won’t go out’ by Lori and Wayne Earl. I want to share my impression of it with you. Well first of all, it isn’t a novel; it actually is a collection of journals, letters, drawings and pictures of Esther Grace Earl, a girl who passed in 2010. I really like the fact that there are her personal journals and letters in this book. Due to that you can kind of empathize with Esther and experience how she felt. You can definitely see that she had ups and downs, but what impresses me most is that she remained strong and did not wallow in self-pity. I’m not sure if I would be able to be as positive as she had been when I would have a disease with such a low chance of cure. There are letters were she wrote that she wouldn’t have wanted her life to happen differently because things wouldn’t be the same. Of course she wanted to beat cancer but it seems that she did not want to miss the experience of having thyroid cancer. This attitude really surprises me because I always thought that mostly all cancer patients ask themselves why they have to suffer from this disease and would wish that it would have never happened to them. Esther, however, accepted it and tried to enjoy life as long as she could. I think that it is important to accept your fortune, stay strong and try to fight it, although it might absolutely be difficult. ‘This star won’t go out’ should remind us all of Esther’s love for others.

Life of Esther:

She was born on August 3, 1994 in Beverly, Massachusetts. She had two older sisters and two younger brothers. Esther was diagnosed with metastasized papillary thyroid cancer and extensive tumors in her lungs in November 2006. She and her family were living in Marseille, France at that time. After seven months of treatment they moved back to New England for further treatment. She definitely had to go through a hard time, but she patiently endured radioiodine treatments, an experimental chemotherapy, extensive medications and a bi-pap machine. Her mobility decreased as Esther needed more supplemental oxygen. Due to that she started making online friendships and created her own videos, which she shared with the world. On August 25, 2010 Esther Grace Earl died at an age of 16 years.

Here are the links to Esther’s youtube channel and her flickr account:

https://www.youtube.com/user/cookie4monster4

https://www.flickr.com/photos/estherearl/sets/

Austria in its whole beauty

A lot of Austrians know this feeling. You’re on an excursion with your school visiting a place you find really boring and you see a lot of tourists.  At this moment you just ask yourself, why anybody would want to see Austria voluntarily.  Well, I think we are used to see all the sights and the landscape and we just don’t appreciate them anymore. Lots of people around the world, however, love Austria and there are some good reasons if you think about it.

Mountains

First of all, we have beautiful mountains, which are perfect for skiing and snowboarding. A lot of famous people come to Austria to do winter sports as well and even competitions that attract a lot of tourists can be watched here. One mountain which is visited by most of the tourists is Großglockner in the Hohen Tauern Range in Tyrol. With 3,798 metres height it is the highest mountain in Austria.

Lakes

In addition to the breath taking mountains we also have enchanting lakes, to be exact more than 300 in total. Lake Bodensee in the West and Lake Neusiedlersee in the East are one of the most famous lakes we have. In summer a lot of tourists come to Austria for swimming in these lakes and in winter for ice skating. There are also people who love to fish there.

Cities & Sights

However, not only the landscape of Austria is attracting foreigners, but also cities like Vienna or Graz. The tourists love the sights which can be found there.

 

Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna:

From the 18^th century until 1918 the palace, which was designed by the architects Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach and Nicolaus Pacassi, was the residence of the Habsburg emperors. It is full of decorative art and a Baroque ensemble. Furthermore, it declared a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage in 1996.

St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna:

The Romanesque and Gothic cathedral is located on the Stephansplatz in the first district of Vienna. It was largely initiated by Duke Rudolf IV and is one of the largest churches in the world. Furthermore it is seat of the Archbishop of Vienna, Christoph Cardinal Schönborn and is mother church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienna. During World War II the roof of St. Stephen’s Cathedral got damaged but rebuilding started immediately.

Clock Tower in Graz:

The Clock Tower of Graz is 28 metres high and it was built in the 16^th century in place of another tower. The clockhands are “inverted”. The small clockhand shows the minutes and the large one shows the hours.

Food

Famous for Austria is also Schnitzel. You can ask anybody what they associate with Austria and they will definitely say Schnitzel. The original Schnitzel is a breaded escalope of veal.

 

Here's a funny video for you guys! ;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_pG60cDzQ8

 

Weird laws in the USA

Some years ago I came around some dumb or weird laws of the USA and I really asked myself why there are such laws. Who makes them and why? Do American people even know about them? However, if you think about going on a trip to the USA or even moving there, you should better inform yourself about the laws before. To help you or to make you laugh I decided to do some research about such laws. I separated them into the different states to give you a better overview. So, let’s start!

Arizona:

·         First of all, in Arizona it is forbidden to cut a cactus. If you get caught in the act, you can get sentenced to 25 years in prison.

·         If you steal soap and somebody sees you, you have to wash yourself until the soap is used up.

Florida:

·         Another funny law prohibits singing in public places while wearing a swimsuit in Florida.

·         What you probably didn’t know about Florida as well, is that you need a license for skateboarding

West Virginia:

·         A really dumb law in West Virginia makes it illegal to snooze on a train.

Vermont:

·         Ever owned a giraffe? Well, better not move to Vermont with it. It is forbidden to tie your giraffe to a telephone pole.

New York:

·         In New York there exist some funny laws as well. For instance, if you ride an elevator, you have to fold your hands while looking to the door and you are not allowed to talk to anybody.

·         Another law in New York prohibits a person to walk around with an ice cream cone in his pocket on Sundays.

Georgia:

·         Chicken are not allowed to cross the road. As if any chicken would think “Oh no. There is a street. I have to turn around and go back where I came from in order not to break the law. Better be a good chicken.” xD

·         Furthermore, in Georgia they even want to tell you how to eat your fried chicken. You have to eat it with your hands and you are not allowed to use a fork or a knife.

Ohio:

·         Policemen are allowed to bite a dog if they think it will calm the dog down. Who in world thinks that it will a calm a dog down if you bite him? Additionally, why are policemen allowed to bite a dog but if a dog bites a policemen he will probably get shot?

Texas:

·         It’s illegal to sell your eyeball. First of all, who wants to sell his eyeball? xD However, I think it is your decision if you want to sell it or not. Eventually it is your eyeball and not government property.

Rhode Island:

·         A ridiculous law in Rhode Island says that you may not sell a toothbrush and toothpaste to the same customer on Sunday.

Minnesota:

·         Red cars may not drive down Lake Street. In my opinion this is discriminating. xD

Indiana:

·         It’s illegal to attend a public event or use public transport within 4 hours of eating an onions or garlic. On one hand that’s really helpful for the people living in Indiana. They never have to sit next to somebody with a bad breath (because of onions or garlic) on a bus. On the other hand, however, if you have eaten something with garlic and you suddenly have to go somewhere, you can’t.

  

“Indians” of the Pacific coast of Canada/ PART 2

 
‘How is it like to live in a tipi?’ This would a European probably ask you if you tell them that you are Native Canadian because the get wrong information through movies. Many people believe that all Native “Indians” lived or still live in tipis, but that is of course not true. Indeed there were tribes who lived in this sort of tent. These were the nomads of the prairies who had to move with the climate and with the animals they hunted. The tribal nations of the Pacific Coast lived in massive wood houses, also called longhouses. They were about 100 feet (31m) long and were mainly made of cedar wood, which grows in Western Canada. It was hard work for the Natives to build the houses by hand and it took a long time to finish one in comparison to today. However, when it was time to build one, all men of the tribe helped together in order to finish it faster.

Many different kinds of dwellings are known, depending on the environment of the people and the climate. The indigenous people on the West Coast of Canada lived in such cedar houses because they were a resident population and not nomads. Up to seven families lived in one of these longhouses. An average family consisted of 6 approximately 12 people and each of them had their own area within the longhouse. "A man's home is his castle." is definitely not the motto of Natives. Living together as a community means to share and respect each other. (cf. Indians.org 2013)

Interior of Longhouses

 

In the middle of the house was the fireplace, where the women cooked. The occupants slept on mats next to the fire, which helped them to keep warm in winter. In summer they slept on a kind of a shelf along the walls of the longhouse, where it was cooler. They put baskets, animal hides and plants on the top and they also stored some food like corn inside. In addition to that, dry wood could be found, which was used to make fire. The people living in the longhouse never used green wood because it produces too much smoke when it is burnt. Furthermore, there were no shelves, to put their belongings into and because of that every person dug a hole into the ground, put his or her stuff inside and covered it with dirt. Tree stumps and benches were used to sit on.
(cf. berverleepettit.org 2014)
 
 

Culture of Romani people

Hey guys! I just watched a series on TLC called ‘My big fat gypsy wedding’ and so I decided to do some research on the topic of Romani people. The Romani people, who are an ethnic group originating in India, live in Europe and America. They are also known as “Gypsies”.  While some of them try to assimilate to the country they live in, others try to keep their culture. Virginity, for instance, is very important for them. In addition to that they often marry very young and have extended families. The Romani girls leave school at a young age and learn how to cook, to wash the dishes and clothes, and how to look after their husband. It is very essential as a married woman to tend to her children’s and husband’s needs. Women have less authority than men, but they gain their respect as they get older. By the time a woman has her first child she starts to gain authority. The social behavior of Romani people is regulated by Hindu purity laws. These laws have some effects on the lives of Romanis. The clothes for the lower body and clothes of menstruating women are washed separately because the genital organs are considered impure due to the emissions they produce. Additionally, the birth of a child is also thought to be impure and for this reason has to happen outside of the house. Thirdly, death is considered impure. Dead people must be buried not cremated. For me it is fascinating that they are still holding on to their traditions.

“Indians” of the Pacific Coast of Canada/ PART 1

Hey :) I’m really fascinated by the indigenous people of West Canada. So I’m going to tell you a bit more about their language in this post. The Pacific Coast “Indians” are some of the most important tribes in Canada. They were and still are located in the west of Canada on the Pacific Coast.  There are a number of different tribal nations, e.g. the Haida, The Nootka, the Tsimshian, the Coast Salish, the Kwakiutl and the Bella Coola, to name a few. 

·         Way up north at the Queen Charlotte Islands is the Haida nation.

·         The Nootka occupy the west part of the Vancouver Islands in the South of Canada.

·         The Tsimshian reside on the mainland, opposite the Queen Charlotte Islands.

·         The Coast Salish dwell on the mainland in and around Vancouver and at the eastern seaside of Vancouver Island.

·         The Bella Coola Nation lives alongside the Bella Coola Rivers and the Dean and the fjord, where these rivers enter the Pacific.

·         The Kwakiutl are found in the North of Vancouver Island and on the mainland located next to it.

 

(cf. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada 1990, pp.33,34)

   

As there were so many tribes, there were also many different language families. Often some nearby located tribes were part of the same language group and their common language was important for trade. Being of the same language family did not mean that they had the same culture, whereas same culture did not mean they had to have same language. However, very often the use of culture and language were very closed related. In former times there were no classifications for the different languages. Anthropologists have ranged them with regard to the sound and the meaning of words.  There is a total of eleven language groups within Canada, but only four on the Pacific Coast:
 

·         Haida
·         Tsimshian
·         Wakashan: spoken by the Nootka and the Kwakiutl
·         Salishan: spoken by the Coast Salish and the Bella Coola  

(cf. Indian and Northern Affairs Canada 1990, pp.33,34)

 

If you would like to know more about the Natives, come back later! 

Belated Thanksgiving!

Hey guys! Last week was the American holiday Thanksgiving which is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November each year. So first of all, belated Thanksgiving! I don’t want to tell you about the history of this special day, which we all learned in school, but about facts you may not know yet. First Thanksgiving ever was celebrated in 1621, when the pilgrims invited Natives to have a meal with them in honour to their first successful harvest.  It was kind of a festival which lasted 3 days. They didn’t just eat, they also hunted and did other entertaining things. What you probably didn’t know is that there were no turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie or potatoes. The Natives brought five deers, so they ate venison for sure. One thing many people don’t know is that Thanksgiving was not celebrated each year from 1621 on. In 1789 president George Washington announced the first ever national thanksgiving holiday which took place on Thursday November 26. However, it did not become an annual national holiday until the 19^th century.  Sara Josepha Hale, an American writer, was inspired by a diary of pilgrim life and wanted to recreate that first Thanksgiving.  So she started a campaign to make thanksgiving a national holiday and published recipes for pumpkin pie, Turkey and stuffing. In 1863 during the civil war Abraham Lincoln announced that from now on Thanksgiving would be celebrated on the last Thursday of November each year.  In 1939, however, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday up a week in order to give the retailers more time to make money through the free Christmas shopping season. This was criticised by the public, so in 1941 Roosevelt signed a bill fixing Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in November. From then on it has been celebrated each year.

Source:
http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving/videos/bet-you-didnt-know-thanksgiving