52 New Things -- Week 11 -- Exploring my German Roots in New Ulm, MN

Okay, I admit it: I didn't really go to New Ulm just to see all the German stuff. My college friend Amanda lives there, and along with our friend Erin, we had a mini Augustana reunion weekend. But I did think all the German stuff was pretty cool. I mean, where else have you seen a giant statue of Herman the German?

Sidenote One: There are only two of these in all of America, so if you name a place other than those two spots where you've seen Herman the German, you're a big fat liar.
Sidenote Two: Under the shadow of Big Herman, I proved myself not coordinated enough to walk backwards and talk at the same time as I fell off the sidewalk and into the snow while trying to tell Erin and Amanda something that I'm sure was incredibly important.

Other German highlights from New Ulm:

I can read that! And here I thought the only German I remembered from my childhood was O Tanenbaum . . .

Plenty of cuckoo clocks and beer steins!

Buttons and t-shirts are not enough. We should get a holiday. We're as good as the Irish, darn it.

I brought along my old college photo album and we had a few laughs over it, particularly looking at how much flannel we wore and how every shirt was an XL. What were we thinking? Here's our gang as sophomores . . . count the flannels:

We got better with age. A couple of years later? Down to one flannel. (And those boots! Remember how popular they were?)

And by our senior banquet, just before graduation . . . no flannel in sight!!

And holy cow! We had shapely bodies that were hidden under XL flannels for four years!?! What were we thinking?

Anyway, it was really fun to catch up with Erin and Amanda . . . and even Kristen via FaceTime! We're hoping to do a summer reunion in New Ulm, too. Next time we've got to get the boys to join us . . . and wear flannel to make the reunion more authentic.