Thursday, 7/19/2018, 10am
We’ve had breakfast and are regrouping for the day. On the way back from the breakfast room I spotted something I haven’t seen since I was a child – a cigarette vending machine. Smoking is still pretty big in Europe. It’s declining some since I started coming 5 years ago, but it isn’t unusual to see tables with ashtrays, and people lighting up.
The weather is sunny and hot. I’ve already got a slight sunburn. Sunscreen works better on skin than sitting at the bottom of a backpack.
One more aside before we really begin our day. We’re staying in a basic IBIS hotel. This is a Holiday Inn chain equavelent. It’s nice, with a bright room, and the biggest bathroom I’ve ever seen. Our last hotel in Paris was a a small family run hotel. The bathroom door always hit the bed when you opened it, a bathroom the size of a closet, and the room was pretty small. Trade offs – family run hotels are wonderful – full of charm and character. I love them, and generally I tend to prefer them. But for something like this horse show? A chain is excellent. However, horseshow week in Aachen, you pay double or triple for anything, so less expensive is a good thing. (And it’s a block from the train station).
Sharon figured out how to use the hair dryer today. We both just thought it didn’t work! She used a translator, and figured out you have to turn on the light. This is the other thing I’ve noticed about Germany. In many other countries (depending on where you are, of course), many instructions are in pictures so non native speakers can figure things out pretty easily. Germany does not do pictures. This has been apparent from the transportation system to something as simple as a hairdryer. Each country is different, as is each town, really. With traveling being akin to driving from state to state in the US, I’m sure most people have a smattering of a lot of different languages. My problem is that since I’ve been learning French, if somebody doesn’t understand English, I automatically try French! It’s doesn’t work that well in Germany. I may have to add some German to the mix in the future, because clearly, we’ll be back in German speaking territory on our travels in the future.
An amusing aside; when on the shuttle home last night, I was standing next to a young woman in a head scarf and her two children. I’m not sure what language they were speaking, but it wasn’t English. At one point one of the children, a girl of about 12, smiled, and said ‘Excuse Me’ as she moved over closer to her parent. The younger girl repeated the phrase as a question, and they talked for a few moments in their native language. Then, when they exited, the older girl told me ‘good bye’ with a big grin. Clearly, she was practicing her English and was excited to actually be able to use it.
Sharon is doing well, and we’ve gotten into a routine. We sit a lot, watching horses jump, and since this is the point of this trip, it’s working great. We’re on our way out to the show to watch the Nations Cup, so it will be a late night. More on the show later.
Thursday, 7/19/2018, 11:21 PM, Nations Cup!
The show was great. This show runs on time to the minute, and it’s incredibly efficient in everything that they do. There are plenty of staff, and the crowd control is very effective. Yet there are all kinds of opportunities to see the horses and riders as they are warming up, without interrupting their concentration. There are all kinds of special touches. One is that the national flag of the leading rider for the current class is always on the flag pole. Sometimes this means that it changes with each rider!
The crowd is very knowledgeable. A collective moan would be heard when any rider dropped a rail, and lots of clapping for clear rounds. Germans are very enthusiastic about their own riders. Each time a German rider enters the arena, they begin rhythmic clapping. Tonight, the Nations Cup was won by the Germans. Practically nobody left the stands. We headed out because it would be about the only way to get on one of the shuttles. After the capacity crowd was disgorged from the stands, it would be bedlam. We could hear the roar when Germany was introduced as the winner as we walked down to the shuttle stop. Also, for the first time, there were huge tour buses lined up. Sharon said she counted 8. Horse shows are a big deal in Germany, and this is their National Horse Show.
Between the first and second round the winner of the Dressage Gran Prix was announced. To my amazement, it was Laura Graves of the US. This is a big deal. Usually Germany owns the dressage competitions. And to have one of our own win it was huge. Checking back, last year this competition was won by Isabella Worth, and Laura Graves won the Grand Prix Special. She’s on a real roll. Hopefully she can repeat in the Special this year once again.
The Victory Gallop for the Dressage prizes is always interesting. The first 5 placed horses were fine. Strong, but fine. The last three came completely uncorked. Sharon says that was an understatement. I really felt for the riders. It must have felt like sitting on a ton of TNT!
Also, at one point in the day, the award ceremony for the Dressage portion of the Combined Driving Event was done. Chester Weber of the US was third. A great placing.
More shopping, and an afternoon and evening of great competition. I’m tired now, so I’m going to load up the pictures, and finish up for tonight. I’ve followed with some more, miscellaneous pictures of the day.
Suzanne’s Travels 