Freezing their asses off in Nordeney

November 27, 1953

We left Straubing at 1900 hours Wednesday night.  Changed at 0500 in Hanover.  Changed again at Bremen.  Then at Ernden West got a bus to Norddeich (in Northern Germany on the North Sea coast) but we had to change halfway there.  There we got the steamer to Nordeney (one of seven populated East Frisian islands off the North Sea coast of Germany) where we got a horse drawn omnibus to the house.  This is an island in the North Sea off the coast of Germany and Holland.  It took us 20 hours to get here.  This is a big summer resort, but it sho’ is cold now.  The land up here is very flat.  Very, very few Americans come here but this is where Hilde’s father is from.  We are staying with an aunt and uncle who speak no English.  One cousin and her uncle’s helper speak some English, but when they are not around it’s nip & tuck in sign language.  There is a stove in one room and we stay in here.  Upstairs is freezing and we use a pitcher and wash bowl to wash in freezing water.  Slept under feather beds and everything else we could find.  I don’t believe I have ever been so cold.

I can certainly empathize with that feeling of being so cold.  I remember a couple of times when I thought I truly couldn't be colder.  The first time was my freshman year of college at the Georgia-Georgia Tech game.  It was the Saturday after Thanksgiving and I had gone back up to Athens for the game.  I went with several friends and for once we actually had seats on the 50 yard line!  Student tickets were always a gamble and there didn't seem to be a rhyme or reason to where you ended up.  So this was exciting.  But wouldn't you know it, it was not only very cold but it was also raining.  Steady, cold rain.

I clearly was either drunk or stoned or maybe both, because I wore some ridiculous sandals (with socks, though) to the game.  When it rained in Athens, it always seemed like everything flooded.  I always got wet clear up to my thighs, no matter how I dressed.  My shoes would always be soaked.  So here I am at a football game in freezing cold rain wearing completely inappropriate shoes.  I can remember that no one wanted to sit in the stands, so it was incredibly crowded under the stadium ceilings.  We finally gave up and headed back to the dorm.  My feet were frozen and at that point, I just slogged through the water.  When I got back to my dorm, peeled off the shoes that were now ruined, and put my feet up against the heater, I couldn't feel my feet or the heat. 

To make matters worse, Georgia lost the game.

The other super cold experience I had was when I lived in Cincinnati.  The high temperature was -4 and the wind chill was -64.  The Bengals had a playoff game that day and I remember seeing people with no shirts on at the stadium.  I was glad I was inside and my heat worked!  I had to drive to Columbus that afternoon to pick up a coworker at the airport for a meeting we had the next day.

The airport was freezing and when Valerie came off the plane, I nearly died.  She was wearing a light coat and open toed shoes!!  I remember saying to her, "Valerie, did you even bother to look at the weather up here before you left?"  I think she had no clue how really cold it was.

It was bitterly cold still and the wind was awful.  We had a room along the outside of the hotel and even with the heater turned up to the max the room was icy cold.  We stupidly never went to the front desk to ask for a different room.  So we spent a nearly sleepless night huddled under whatever covers we could find, shivering.  The next morning we spent a lot of time in the bathroom with the heat lamp on.  I know that I didn't feel warm until we got in the car.

          Yesterday we stayed here so the relatives could come and look at us.  This morning we walked around the island.  Everything is closed because it is winter.  Every time we go to somebody’s house or somebody comes here, we have to drink something – what, I don’t know.  And they are always bringing out something to eat.

I’ll bet we have said less this week than we ever have before.  (Considering how chatty Mother was, this had to be terribly hard for her.)

We have spent our time shaking hands.  Every time someone comes into a room you shake hands and say “guten tag”, and every time someone leaves the room you shake hands and say “auf wiedersein”.  Since a lot of people have been coming and going, that’s what we have been doing.

You ought to see us trying to talk to these people!  It’s really a scream.

November 28, 1953

Last night one of the uncles took us to a dance.  I think it was a benefit for a children’s school.  We were the only Americans there.  We have certainly gone native since we have been here.  We have nearly frozen to death – no running water or heat.  (Ok, this is where I would have had to take the first train back home.  I am not good with no conveniences.)

           This morning we walked around the town again.  Went to school and to an English class – very interesting.  There is a windmill in front of the school.  We also saw this indoor swimming pool that has waves in it.

November 29, 1953

Yesterday afternoon we went down to the harbor.  It was most interesting.  Then we went over to one of the uncle’s for tea and dinner.  You know they really bring out the food.  I have never seen so much and it is all good.

This morning we got the omnibus down to the steamer at 7:30.  Right now we are in Bremen.  Because we had to change here coming up, we thought we did this time too.  We got off one end of the car and right back on the other end.  It was a scream. 

Darn it!  This train is cold and I wanted to get on a warm one.

You know I think we really amazed them what with my sauchen (I have no idea what this word is - whether it is real, she made it up, or it's another of her amusing misspellings), our making sandwiches, our wearing our boots all the time and being cold, and my wearing two pairs of gloves.  (I wonder if I’ll ever thaw out!)  The thing that really threw them was our drinking water.  They told us it would give us lice.

The whole week-end we spent shaking hands and the chief topic of conversation was Hilde’s snozzle.  That was an experience I shall never forget and thoroughly enjoyed, but I don’t want to go anywhere that doesn’t have central heating until it gets hot.  (I am with you there!)

           Oh yes!  There are quite a few windmills around there.  The land is so low and flat with a lot of cattle and sheep.  It looks like what I imagine Holland looks like.

Here is the house they stayed in at Nordeney:

And Mother and Hilde feeding chickens while they were there: