June 10th – 12th: WWOOFing weekend, and a wonderful weekend at that. WWOOFing usually entails and ‘willing worker’ to volunteer on a farm but I managed to find myself at something a bit different for this particular weekend, and nevertheless amazing.
The ‘farm’ that I stayed at was actually an old renovated farmhouse, which had been left to deteriorate during the DDR (Deutsche Demokratische Republik), with a very large herb garden and the ‘farmer’ that I stayed with was a splendid woman who supplies organic herb salads (i.e. salads not using lettuce, but various leaves and flowers of ‘unconventional’ plants) and sprouts to local restaurants.
During my stay, my task was to help tend to the garden and pick violet flowers. Although this may seem like a very monotonous task to some, I enjoyed my time. Throughout the day, Sonja, my host, and I worked in the garden together chatted about various things, unabashedly exposing our curiosity for one another’s life. I, being the first American that Sonja met, talked about my life as an American and Sonja gave me perspective into life during the DDR.
One night, Saturday night, with both of us exhausted and looking for an escape from the heat, we took a quick swim in an old, nearby quarry and made a spur of the moment trip to ‘Amerika.’ This is the name of a nearby village. Believe it. I couldn’t stop laughing when I saw the city sign with an American flag behind it. And the local biergarten (outdoor bar) was covered with American type things.
Looking back, I really enjoyed my weekend on the farm with Sonja. It was really nice to connect with someone immediately and ask so many questions openly and inquisitively.
To see Sonja’s website, go to: http://www.landsprosse.de/
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