ToyVoyagers - Travelling Toys - Little Things on Big Adventures

Threadbear asked if we would go down and help him catch up on his bear collection. Well why not, it is not like we have anything better to do this evening....

Here we all are, ready for action.

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Fi had her i-pod on a bit loud... but the music was okay.

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Fiona cut the tags off the bears, I took out the plastic barbs... a very important job, we don't want children getting hurt with them.

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What a job! 75 bears worth...

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Everyone else had a job to do too. Buttons was cutting off labels, he has been ignoring me lately, I don't know why... Moley was tying bows... Eloise performed emergency surgery on a bear, she is so amazing... just Cassiopeia could not help as she doesn't have paws.

She felt really bad about this but Fi said she would switch off the music and Cassiopeia could read to us. That cheered her up so much.

So Cassiopeia started reading us traditional South African tales

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The evening went so fast, even once we had finished with the bears, we sat and listened... I loved these stories. Here is one I liked best...

'Kwasuka sukela' means once upon a time.

The Curse of the Chameleon (A Traditional Zulu Story)

Gogo breathed deeply of the cool evening air. She paused beneath the darkening sky, hands pressed into her back.

"Woza, Gogo!" called little Methembe, who, although he seemed to have unlimited energy, always waited for his granny. "Come on!" he encouraged as he turned and dashed up the final rise toward the homestead. Gogo chuckled, shook her head slowly and forced her feet to continue up the path. "Hawu!" she thought to herself. Soon she would no longer be able to make it down to the river and back. By the time Gogo came within sight of the evening fire, the children had put away the washed clothing and deposited the firewood where it was stored. They were now squatting in a tight circle, the older ones rocking on their heels, waiting for their elders to finish eating that they might then have their dinner.

After everyone had eaten and the pots were filled with water to soak, Gogo and the children settled down before the fire. "Gogo," asked Methembe rather tentatively, choosing to look into the fire rather than at his beloved granny, "why do people grow old and die?" The old woman looked lovingly at her grandson and smiled. She knew his unspoken fears.

"Ahh, my little Hope," she answered, looking into the fire herself. "That is a very interesting tale! Shall I tell you, my children, the story of why people must grow old and die?"

"Yebo, Gogo! Yes!" they all answered as if one.

"Alright then..." And Gogo began. "Kwasuka sukela...."

After God the great Creator finished making all things, he sat back and took a long look at the world he'd made. He smiled and decided that it was very good. He was especially pleased with the people, the first man and woman. They, after all, were the most like himself. "Yes," he thought, "this is good! Very good!"

But as time went on the Creator noticed that man and woman kept injuring their bodies. Oh, the skin would heal with time, but it always left scars. And after many years the first man and woman's bodies were looking old and tatty indeed! "Hmmm," thought Creator, "these bodies are wearing out! Time, I think, for new ones!"

So Creator called Chameleon to himself. "Listen, Chameleon," said Creator, "I have a package that I want you to deliver to man and woman. It is most urgent, so do not delay. Go straight to the people, tell them I sent you, and give them this parcel from me!" With that he pushed a small package into Chameleon's hands. "I trust you, Chameleon, for you are loyal and swift. Go now!"

So Chameleon set off to do as his Lord bid. In those days Chameleon was fast as lightning. He sped toward Earth, the parcel neatly tucked beneath his arm. When he reached the great river he paused to take a drink. And this proved to be his undoing!

Snake just happened to be drinking at the same time. "Hello, Cousin Chameleon," he hissed. "My, you are in a great hurry today! What are you about?"

Chameleon looked up. "Ah, yebo! Sawubona, Nyoka!" he politely replied. (sah-woo-boh'-nah nyoh'kah = "Yes, I see you, Snake!" or "Hello, Snake!" ) "I have a package to deliver for Creator. Something for the people."

Now Snake hated the people. They walked so far above the ground, often treading on Snake and his family members without even noticing. And Creator seemed to pay so much more attention to them than he did to the other animals. Snake was bitterly jealous of people, and when he heard that Chameleon was taking a gift to them from Creator, Snake began to scheme. How could he make sure that people did not receive this gift?

"Oh, dear Cousin Chameleon," Snake hissed, edging closer to Chameleon and the parcel. "It is so good to see you again! My family has missed you a great deal! All of our other relatives come often to share a meal. But you never seem to have time for us! One would tend to think that perhaps you thought yourself too good to associate with your close kin!"

Now Chameleon was a sensitive fellow. It worried him to think that Snake might have something against him. "Oh, no, dear cousin Nyoka," pleaded Chameleon. "I assure you that I hold you in high regard! I would be honoured to come for a meal sometime!"

"Well," Snake answered quickly, "why not now? My wife is at this very moment waiting lunch for me. She would be pleased beyond words to see you dine with us!"

"Oh, dear!" answered Chameleon, looking at the parcel still tucked beneath his arm. "I really have an urgent errand for Creator at the moment. Ummmm....perhaps some other time?"

"Yes, yes," hissed Snake turning away with a hint of disgust in his voice. "Just as I thought. Too good for the likes of us! Well, run along then with your all-important business."

Chameleon looked at the sun. It was still high in the sky. He could have the mid-day meal with Snake's family and have plenty of time left to deliver the package. Perhaps he was being too hasty. "Wait, Snake," Chameleon spoke quickly. "I was being too abrupt. I beg your pardon. I really would love to have a meal with you. To prove it I will dine with you now and do my business after the meal!"

Snake smiled to himself before he turned back toward Chameleon. "Oh, Chameleon," Snake replied, sounding quite humble indeed, "Thank you! It is we who will be honoured by your presence, I assure you!" And with that he led Chameleon off to his burrow.

Snake's wife had really outdone herself, as usual. She'd prepared a huge and sumptuous meal and truly was delighted to see that Chameleon had come to share it with them. She encouraged him to have more and more, and as it was so delicious, Chameleon helped himself until he was almost too full to move. He was having such a good time, and was especially enjoying Snake's outstanding utshwala (oo-chwah'-lah = a traditional Zulu beer brewed from sorghum), that he forgot all about his special mission. Snake smiled slyly as he watched Chameleon's head nod and his eyelids droop. Snake laughed aloud as Chameleon fell asleep with a satisfied little grunt.

"What is so funny, my husband?" asked Snake's wife, accustomed to the ways of nature to rest after the mid-day meal in the hottest hours of the day. She saw nothing strange or funny about Chameleon's behaviour. It was actually a compliment to her as a hostess, that she had made her guest so comfortable and welcome.

"Look here," Snake hissed, as he gently lifted the package from under Chameleon's arm.

"What is that?" she asked.

"A gift for us from Creator," Snake laughed. And with that Snake tore open the parcel. "Look, my good wife," he exclaimed, lifting something from the box. "Creator has sent us new skins! New skins, so that whenever our old ones wear out we can change into new ones!" Snake laughed again, louder this time, waking his guest. Chameleon took one look at the parcel and immediately knew what had happened.

"No, Snake!" Chameleon pleaded, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Those are not for you! They are for people. You know that! Give them back!" Chameleon stretched out his hands toward the skins. "Please, Nyoka! Give them back!"

But Snake just laughed, holding the skins beyond Chameleon's reach. "No, my cousin. These are my skins now!" And with that Snake slithered away.

As the sun went down Chameleon was sick with sadness for the way in which he'd been betrayed and for the way in which he had disobeyed. He hid away from Creator in the braces of the trees, clinging to the limbs, moving slowly so as not to be detected. He was too afraid to face Creator.

"And so, you see, my children," finished Gogo, "how it was that people were cheated out of new skins by Snake. To this day snake will shed his old skin and don a new one whenever he is feeling his age."

"But that's not fair, Gogo!" cried Methembe. "Creator should make Snake return the skins!"

"Ah, well, my boy," Gogo looked at him and placed a hand on his head, "Life is not always fair. But while Snake got the skins, Creator did not stop the people from standing on Snake from time-to-time. In fact, when most people encounter Snake these days they give him what they think he deserves: a sound thrashing! And, of course, Chameleon is still hiding away in the trees, moving so slowly that he usually goes undetected. And as for people, well, Creator gave them another gift that was better than new skins!"

"What was that, Gogo?" the children asked

"Oh, my children," Gogo replied with a smile, "That is a story for another time! Now my weary old bones tell me that it is time for a good night's rest!"

And with a great heave Gogo lifted herself from her stump by the fire and walked slowly toward her hut.

"Lalani kahle, bantwana!" (lah-lah'-nee kah'-hlay bah-ntwah'-nah = "Sleep well, children!" )

It is still cold outside and in the early evening we had rain again.

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So we read a book about Bruchsal, at least we looked at the photos and our host explained, what we saw.

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Bruchsal occupies an excellent geogrphical position on the western side of a charming region of rolling hills between the Odenwald and the Black Forest, called the Kraichgau. Thanks to its convenient location the town of more than 40000 inhabitants on the Saalbach, historic yet modern, has developped into an industrial and trade centre. Bruchsal is also regarded as the Euopean 'capital of asparagus', being the main trade centre for this delicious vegetable.

Bruchsal was first named in 976 A.D., but they found pieces, which are much older than that.

This is an old photo of Bruchsal's palace after the bombing on March 1st, 1945.

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This is the ground plan of the men's prison, completed in 1848, today a detention centre.

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The Damianstor (Damian's Gate) forms the remarkable northern entrance to the palace area and the town. The spendid palace of Damian Hugo of Schönborn - bishop, sovereign and cardinal of the state of Speyer - with its numerous surrounding baroque buildings, is fenced off by walls and ditches to produce the impression of a baroque quarter of its own.

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Rebuilt from the ruins the magnificent baroque residence serves many purposes today. The portrait of Maria Theresa, empress of Austria, looks upon the shining and gleaming Marbe Hall from Cardinal Hutten. The crowning glory of the stairwell by Balthasar Neimann leads to the reconstructed halls and modern museums. In the south wing the parish of St. Damian and Hugo has its church with a modern interior.

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At the front, on top and at the rear - baroque elements and shapes everywhere.
In the baroque garden you find lifesize allegories of the four seasons and the ancient elements of fire, water, air and earth adorn the main axis of the palace grounds. Stone-halberdiers guard the palace.

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There is the town museum of Bruchsal, the Museum of Mechanical Musical Instruments and valuable exhibits presented by the Badische Landesmuseum at the Corps de Logis.

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The fountains are beautiful, this time colourful, because there was a special concert.
The 'Ehrenhof' on the right side with Balthasar Neumann's 'Torwache', unfinished - full of smmetry despite the missing obelisk.
THe building with the little tower is the county court.

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One event that we missed on Mother's day was the Summer's Day procession of the colourfully adorned children of Bruchsal. The snowman will be in for a fiery end after the hardships of the winter - sure, it didn't burn well enough this year, because it still is so cold.

On the right you see municipal architecture and the world of business in the heart of Bruchsal. The big house were you can read a few letters of the word Schneider is a closed shopping center.

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I'm sure I will see the carnival procession in Bruchsal's centre next year - if everything goes well until then. So called 'Guggenmusiken' take care of the necessary background noise.
On the right you see a view from the former town hall, built in 1954, which soon will be a shopping center. St.Peter rises above the 'Große Brücke' (Great Bridge). Balthasar Neumann's creation is the town's sacral gem.

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The choir and bell tower of the catholic church Unsere liebe Frau (Our lady) are gothic, the roof of the bell tower is baroque, the nave modern. From the bell towe you have a good view to the weekly market, which is in front of the former town hall two times a week.

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On the left page you see the old medieval keep, dated in 1358, next to it the Community Centre, built in the end of the eighties. It houses two halls, foyers, conference rooms, a restaurant, shops, an underground car park, the 'Badische Landesbühne'- theater, the municipal library, the tourist information and the adult education centre.

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I should try to get a photo of this, because it was taken only a few steps from our home. It is the view from Friedhofstraße towards the Holzmarkt, municipal theatre, keep and part of the new town hall.
Holzmarkt and Kübelmarkt are at the end of Kaiserstraße. During the Advent season fistive lights, the smell of 'Glühwein' and the scent of the pines are predominant. The Christmas market is held under the statues of St. Peter and Paul. The building behind the statues is a music school.

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The Saalbach, here at Holzmarkt and Kübelmarkt, flows through Bruchsal from the east to the west. The banks are connected by several bridges and footbridges. The footbridge at the ''Große Brücke' is used frequently - also by us.

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At the end of the pedestrian precinct the Seilersbahn leads to Huttenstraße. The limestone building of the Pallotines' private grammar-school St. Paulusheim, built in 1923, towers above the massive concrete walls of the senior citizen's centre at the Klosterberg. The white big houses belongs to the old people's house.

On the doorstep of St.Paulusheim: the remakable landscape surrounding Bruchsal. The fertile 'Löß' soil can be intensively cultivated. The Kraichgau offers pleasant views to nature lovers and walkers throughout the year.

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The walker is rewarded by a magnificent panorama after a steep ascent to the top of Andreas-Staffel (Andrew's stairs). It leads uphill from Huttenstraße, next to the senior citizen's centre. In 1852, Victor v. Scheffel hat to take a detour to arrive at his favourite spot, since known as the 'Scheffelhöhe'. The keep, the Community Centre, the catholic church Our Lady and Lutheran Church are below. Karlsruhe and the Palatinate mountains are visible in the background. We surely will go there to take a look.

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The baroque retreat of the Belvedere, today situated in the municipal park, has always been a favourite subject of painters. The delicately elded 'Chinese-style' towers with their wrought-iron work crown the traditional building from 1758. Today there is no more shooting at the former shooting range - except possibly during some summer evenings, when the Belvedere serves as a very fitting background for open-air plays staged by the amateur theatre 'Die Koralle'.

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Bruchsal's famous former men prison outside the Damian's Gate originally accommodated revolutionaries from Baden in 1848. Today it is a modern detention centre and an important employer, supplier and manufacturer of a broad range of products.
The 'New Men's Prison' for the Grand Duchy of Baden was built as a fortress. It was a modern prison then because of its prison cells for solitary confinement. The four wing building, including a central building - locally known as 'Café Octagon - Caf´d Achteck' - was constructed between 1841 and 1848 by Heinrich Hübsch.
On the right you see the neo-baroque part of Bruchsal's hospital from 1905/06 by Fritz Hirsch. In the old days nu s with their caps with upturned wings took care of 70 patients at the Fürst-Stirum-Hospital. The beneficial work of the 'crested larks' is acknowledged by a statue from the artist Jürgen Goertz. The hospital training nurses and doctores occupies over 700 employees. It can take in 350 patients. The historic central building has been enlarged and modernized several times.

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Nature is thriving and blossoming in and around Bruchsal. The 'white gold' - delicious asparagus grows in the sandy soil of the Rhine Valley.
THe central axis of the palace gardens becomes a straight avenue of several kilometres which used to connect the residence with the supplying farm of Altenbürg (Karlsdorf) and continue on to Graben through parks, forests and fields. Today the old axis is interrupted and crossed several times by railway tracks, roads and the highway.

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Train tracks from the four points of the compass meet at the Bruchsal junction. The post-war train station in the west of the centre is a stop for Interregio - and regional trains and buses. The Stadtbahn has boosted the public transport service.

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Once in the year the is a big flea market near the palace.

The right page shows the Saalbach and one of Bruchsal's schools, the Stirumschule. It was the primary school where also my hosts was from grade one to four.

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During hot summer days many people enjoy the cool, refreshing waters of the outdoor pool, Sash.

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The 'Justus-Knecht-Gymnasium' is the largest municipal grammar-school. It dates back over a hundred years. In 1953 it was named after the bishop Dr. Justus Knecht from Freiburg, who was born in Bruchsal. This was the grammar school, in which my host was from grade 5 to 13.
The building on the right side belongs to the way of the sorrows of our holy lady, near by the Feldkirchle.

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You surely know this house with the nice front. Many women from Bruchsal and the surrounding region still remember their courses in housekeepiong and needle-work at the Sancta-Maria-Institute. Built in 1906/08 by Reverend Kunz, the house is owned by the Fransiscan nuns of Gengenbach. Today it is still led by nuns as a school of social education. Female nursery teachers are trained here in full-time courses.

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Pleasant old buildings are rare since the fire storm of March 1st 1945 destrayed 80 per cent of the town. Only the upper town remained. St. Peter's Church with its characteristic onion towers was the only one to survive World War II.

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The sacral baroque gem of Bruchsal is St. Peter's Church. Cardinal Schönborn began the building in 1740, his successor, Cardinal Hutten completed it and had the interior finished. The architect was Balthasar Neumann from Würzburg. The church holds the remains of the last prince-bishops in a crypt. The black-and-White marble gravestones adorn the choir. High altar, side altars, pulpit, gallery and organ are masterpieces of the Rokoko - thought up to praise God and to edify people.

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