Se habla Deutsch: Germano-Gringoglot speak teach 3 tongues Idiotmatically

07/31/2026

05/13/2026

Eine Schmidt Rustikal in Alt-Fichte! 😄🎶👍

05/13/2026

Pennsylvania German Dialects. I think it would be super interesting to hear how (what blend of German and English) my ancestors in Pennsylvania spoke from say 1750 to 1900.

I mainly know of their having lived in Crawford County, PA just south of Erie (Smith and Brookhauser lines) but it must have taken some of them "a minute" to get to NW PA.

Dialect Differences between and within Western Berks and Western Lehigh Counties, Pa.By Lester W. J. Seifert (1915-1996)in ’s Pennsylvaanisch Deitsch...

05/06/2026

Die Wartburg from above. I think I have seen pictures of it before but never from above.

Die Wartburg von oben. Ich glaube schon dass ich mal Fotos von der Wartburg gesehen habe, aber noch nie von oben.

Friedrich III (the Wise) hid Martin Luther in this castle, Wartburg, from May 1521 to March 1522, after having him "kidnapped". Protecting Luther from ex*****on as an outlaw who could be killed without legal consequences.

There Luther settled down, translating Erasmus’s Greek version of the New Testament in eleven weeks.

The Elector of Saxony, Friedrich died three years later on 5 May 1525.

Patron of artists Albrecht Dürer and Lucas Cranach the Elder, he founded the University of Wittenberg in 1502, and a catholic not protestant protected Martin Luther to ensure a fair legal process, while rejecting the superior authority of the Pope and Holy Roman Emperor.

This defense of Martin Luther, at a critical period between the Reichstag meetings of 1518 and 1522, may have saved the Protestant Reformation, and also protected the reputation of his university where Luther taught for most of his career.

Friedrich der Weise von Sachsen didn't live in this 11th century castle overlooking Eisenach, instead in his Wittenberg, Torgau and Lochau residences, and born 17 January 1463 in Torgau, Saxony, he died on 5 May 1525 in Lochau near Torgau.

Photo credit: Wartburg-Stiftung, www.thueringen-entdecken.de/w/opendata/organization/wartburg-stiftung

05/06/2026

Wow, I never knew that Dresden had a Schwebebahn. Until today, I had only heard of the one in Wuppertal.

Die Schwebebahn Dresden opened on 6 May 1901, but how many would have risked a trip if they had seen this postcard first.

A four minute crossing, connecting the districts of Loschwitz and Oberloschwitz, the Dresden Suspension Railway is still there. Fun to ride, a journey back in time, and with a stunning view over Dresden and the River Elbe.

Image credit: German at Portsmouth@GermanAtPompey, x.com/GermanAtPompey

05/04/2026

Catherine the Great, who started life as a Prussian Princess: " I wanted to be a Russian woman, in order to be loved by the Russian people."

This is also true of Donald Trump

Geboren wurde sie als deutsche Prinzessin Sophie Auguste Friederike von Anhalt-Zerbst in Stettin, am 2. Mai 1729. Später ging sie als Kaiserin von Russland mit dem Namen Katharina die Große in die Geschichte ein.

Die damalige anhaltische Prinzessin wurde ausgewählt, den Großfürsten Peter Fjodorowitsch (geboren als Karl Peter Ulrich von Schleswig-Holstein) zu heiraten – Thronfolger der russischen Zarin Elisabeth. Dafür konvertierte sie zum orthodoxen Glauben und erhielt den Namen Katharina Alexejevna. Ihren Ehemann verachtete sie allerdings, empfand die Ehe mit ihm als Qual und langweilte sich mit ihm und in der Gesellschaft am Hof. So nutzte sie die Zeit, sich weiterzubilden, las zahlreiche Bücher und lernte die russische Sprache.

1754 wurde ihr Sohn und späterer Nachfolger Paul geboren, bei dem es sich um ein Kind aus ihrer Affäre mit dem Kammerherr Sergej Saltykow gehandelt haben soll. Nachdem Kaiserin Elisabeth 1761 starb, trat Peter der III. ihre Nachfolge an. Zu dieser Zeit waren Peter und Katharina so zerstritten, dass sie befürchtete, vertrieben zu werden.

Mithilfe von Grigori Orlow – Offizier der russischen Armee und ihr Geliebter – und seinen Brüdern plante sie also über Monate hinweg einen Putsch, bei dem sie Peter, unterstützt durch die russische Armee, entthronte. 1762 wurde sie Kaiserin. Kurz darauf kam ihr Ehemann zu Tode; bis heute ist nicht ganz klar, ob sie selbst oder einer seiner zahlreichen politischen Widersacher dafür verantwortlich war.

Sie regierte das Land 34 Jahre lang, in denen sie das Bildungs- und Verwaltungswesen reformierte, Schulen bauen ließ, die Kindersterblichkeit durch Impfungen senkte und Weltpolitik betrieb. Nach zahlreichen Kriegen machte sie aus dem russischen Reich eine Großmacht und brachte neue Gebiete unter ihre Kontrolle. Ihre Herrschaft war autoritär: Aufstände verschiedener Gruppen oder Proteste der leibeigenen Bauern ließ sie brutal niederschlagen, um ihre Macht zu sichern.

Am 17. November 1796 starb sie im Alter von 67 Jahren in St. Petersburg.

05/04/2026

Goettl was founded by brothers Gust and Adam Goettl in Phoenix, Arizona in 1939.

Is Phoenix a place so hot that Air Conditioning can save your life? Yes, yes it is.

Call Goettl now at (844) 446-3885 for AC Repair, HVAC Installation, Rejuuuvenation® Tune-Ups, Plumbing, Water Treatment, Water Softening, Water Purity, and Indoor Air Quality in Arizona, Nevada, and Texas. With a 100% Unconditional Satisfaction Guarantee, G-O-E-T-T-L It'll keep you cool but it's ha...

05/04/2026

This van is parked regularly overnight at the Apartment Complex where I live. I take it some one who lives here works for Goettl.
Going by the name and the picture, (I will Google when I get a chance) it seems to have been founded by another German-American. I suppose the founders could have been Dutch-, Austrian-, or Danish-American, but those are much smaller countries. If the Founder was of German heritage, 1939 is an interesting date because it tends to indicate that Mr. Goettl--like my German-American ancestors--was already established in America and played no role in invading Poland on September 1, 1939, kicking off the conflagration known as World War II.

The picture with the suspenders is reminiscent of the Marketing another American air condition Lennox, which used to have an actor playing the founder Dave Lennox dressed similarly. I am not sure what you would call the style, but it seems to harken back to a simpler time. When adolescent joys with flashlights solved problems.

05/03/2026

I was in Erfurt briefly in 1993

March 1349, just before the Erfurt pogrom began, a merchant hid a fortune in a hole under the basement entrance of his house. And there it remained for centuries, until 1998.

This Jewish wedding ring is only the third ever found, and a part of that Erfurt Treasure. In keeping with medieval Jewish tradition it's made of pure gold, without gemstone trimming, and only worn during the wedding ceremony.

On the lower side of its broad circlet is an image of two interlocked hands, an ancient symbol of marital fidelity. Along its sides two winged dragons carry a stylised Gothic temple, and the Hebrew wish for happiness, Mazel Tov, engraved on the "roof" areas.

Rings, brooches, belt buckles, coins in silver tableware, more than 3000 French silver coins, 700 pieces of Gothic goldsmiths’ work, silver bars, all dating from the late 13th and early 14th century, and all wrapped in a cloth.

Construction workers were preparing for new buildings when they came across a silver bowl in a Michaelisstraße cellar on that day in 1998. Thinking it was tin they put it to one side. No archaeological investigations had been planned there, but what the archaeologists brought to light after they saw the piece of "tin" is the Erfurt Treasure.

And unique worldwide.

Witness to amazing craftsmanship, and an insight into a world of more than 670 years ago, the treasure has been on show in the basement vault of Erfurt Old Synagogue, in Thuringia central Germany, since October 27, 2009.

Not far from where merchant Kalman von Wiehe buried it, before he and his family became victims of the pogrom.

Photo credit: Der jüdische Hochzeitsring ist im Keller der Alten Synagoge in Erfurt ausgestellt (Archiv-Foto) © Jens König via Thüringer Allgemeine, thueringer-allgemeine.de

03/27/2026

Climate adaptation is crucial to protect human lives. Forecasts suggest poor countries will be hit much harder and see massive increases in death rates due to extreme heat. Helping poor countries to adapt to hotter climates is crucial. You want a cause worth investing in? Here it is.