The Real Confession

Munchen is definitely not my favorite city. It does provide a good base for visiting Augsburg--or so sayeth the guidebook. I have to say though that when I arrived in Augsburg and started walking around I noticed a couple of hostels which would have been just fine. Once again the guidebook fails to guide me. The train ride gave me a lovely view of the countryside with small towns along the rail line and rolling green hills dotted with pines and white birch trees. Something you don't see much of in PA. The town itself feels similar to the ones I loved in Provence (Aix-en and Avignon). Modern parts mesh with areas preserved from long ago centuries filled with charm. There were two main places I wanted to visit in town for certain: St. Anna Church where Luther hung out and the Fuggerei a housing unit for poor Catholics.

Finding the tourist office was a bit of a challenge. Usually they put them near the train station so you don't have to look too far. This one was in the center of the old town. Good thing I did some map research online before coming! It's always easier to move around these towns (even the small ones) with a map. I started my explorations at the Catholic Dom just up the hill from the old part of town. But first I must tell you about the best thing I've bought since I've been here. On my way down the street I ran across a E1 shop which had a rack of socks displayed outside. They happened to be short sport socks and looked to be about my size. Since S France it's been rather warm here--often in the mid to upper 60sF. The socks looked just right. I opted for 2 pairs and continued down the street. When I reached the Dom plaza I stopped to eat lunch. I thought I'd try out my new socks to see if they fit since my knee high wool ones were making me rather toasty. Oh my gosh! It was like starting the day all over again. A new pair of fresh socks can turn your entire day around. To this I can attest. Now back to the church... Like most massive cathedrals it has all sorts of side chapels and stained glass. My favorite part about this one was a small quiet space half a floor down in what I assume was (still is?) probably the crypt. It's always a treat to find these quiet spaces when you stay in busy, noisy cities.

From here I headed to the Fuggerei which is a series of housing units built in the 1700s or 1800s for poor Catholics by philanthropist Jacob Fuggerei. Rent was either the equivalent of E.80 for a month or a year. Either way, still a deal. During WWII the units were badly damaged when Augsburg was bombed, but rebuilding went underway as soon as it was safe from war threats. In the old bomb shelter they have a display about how the war affected the local people and specifically the housing unit. I got some good background on the war which put a few more historical puzzle pieces together in my mind. The other cool part of this place was the model units they had on display. One is furnished to today's standards and one like it would have looked when first built. The units are equivalent to the space of a nice two bedroom apartment in the US. I wish I could afford a place that nice. Not that I want to become a poor German Catholic. Some of the original trademarks are still in use such as the unique door bell ringers for each place. By feeling each of the distinct handles you could find your way back to your house after dark. Now, of course, they have modern lighting. The most impressive fact about these housing units is that they are still being used today. What a gift for people in need of help to have the opportunity to stay in a decent place for an affordable rate to give you a chance to work toward a better living situation.

St. Anna Church was next on the list. The building was rather empty and unclear about where you could visit. Apparently it's common for Germans to keep doors closed and while it's perfectly fine for you to check them out, you must take the initiative to explore said rooms by trying the door handle to see if it's locked or not. I found a few locked doors and a few open ones. Like most European places there's scaffolding all over the towns. St. Anna had it inside where their famous chapel was being restored. I was more interested in the Luther display upstairs so I breezed through the main sanctuary and headed up a long flight of old wooden stairs. All of the information was in German, but I know the Luther story right? Hopefully there was no new info. The best part was the original bibles and books Luther and his cohort used. I think I even saw an authentic copy of the Augsburg Confessions. Some of them are enormous--like 10" high when closed. I have to say I was a bit disappointed that they didn't have a bit more to look at. Maybe if I could read German I'd have been satisfied by their posted boards. While walking around trying to decide what else to do in town, I spotted an ice cream cafe. Being so sunny I couldn't pass up a yummy, cool treat. I sampled coco-choconut and something fruity I can't remember now. I know it all tasted delicious and hit the spot. It even came with a gummy bear on top!

My map suggested St. Ulrich and Afra would also be an interesting place to visit. A short 500km down the road was a small Protestant church "glued" to a large Catholic church. A sign out front seemed to indicate both were closed and the Catholic one was under significant reconstruction. Since it was around 4pm I thought I would wander the shops a bit and scout out a good place for dinner before taking the train back to Munchen. Like many of the smaller towns I've visited so far, amidst the old part of town is a large pedestrian shopping area. Thanks to Italy the pedestrian sign is branded in my brain as Zona Pedonale no matter what language is on the sign. I walked through a few clothing stores (yes, I got my H&M fix just like almost every other town I've been in) and cased the main streets before deciding to head toward the area where one of the restaurants was from my guidebook. I expected it to be on more of a side street, but there were quite a few nice non-commercialized shops down there as well. The menu for the restaurant seemed to promise food I would like so I grabbed a seat outside. The waitresses wore more traditional style German clothing with the flowing skirted dresses and aprons. I felt bad for the younger girl who had on this blue gingham get up. It gave the "I feel like I'm wearing a clown costume" vibe, but she wore it happily and had enough spunk to pull off the outfit. It's hard to remember the exact name of the meal, but I think it was something like Rauschauerbraten. Visually translated this meant perfectly tender beef roast slices in brown gravy with a bread ball dumpling and red spiced sauerkraut. I sampled a brown lager which was quite good and complimented the beef nicely. The sauerkraut was by far the newest item. It literally was red cabbage sauerkraut with a hint of what I'll take a stab at saying was perhaps cloves and cinnamon. It gave a lightly sweet spiced cider flavor to the sauerkraut. I was sad to leave the lovely town of Augsburg.

For Whom The Bell Tolls

Today began with a drive through downtown Mandalay past the popular Zay Cho market and a huge downtown clock tower on our way to the bank of the Ayarwady River. This might be some of the worst living conditions we have seen so far. Small shacks and huts closely built along the river house families working in fishing or boat tours. Literally on the bank, the ground was rutted and muddy. Locals bathed and washed clothes in the brown, opaque river. Some live on their boats which are packed in about 5 two story boats deep along the shore. We walked out across 3-4 to see the river and the bank. Small boats with double bed sized sails patchworked together float by. After a half hour or so we boarded the bus where Stefan suggested we consider taking a boat ride this afternoon to see King Mingdon’s (who founded former Burman capital Mandalay) unfinished temple and the 90 ton bell replica replacing the one built centuries ago by the king which fell into the Ayarwady River never to be recovered. No one objected and our group leader wandered off to make arrangements.


The church was pretty like most are. We sat for a bit while a local member explained the new sidewalk they were constructing outside and some of the programs they offer. As churches start to blend together in my mind, I think this one touted a baptismal font made of marble from the Queen of England.

Our final stop of the morning was a Methodist bible school. We were scheduled to lead chapel for them at 10am. Thanks to our intrepid group leader, we arrived 15 minutes late. Naturally they went on without us. We joined in worship to find at the end they suggested we have a question and answer session with them. Three seminary professors teaching in Myanmar had joined us for our northern study tour and our new friends at the Methodist school decided this would be a lovely time to put them in the hot seat. Amusingly the students had an assignment to write on various theological questions and this was an excellent way for them to research :) For the next 2 hours we participated in a lively session of theology. Jackie and I agreed that this was a most interesting and engaging part of the trip for us. I had food for thought when I arrived back at the hotel to ponder.

Enjoying the breeze and bananas on the boat ride was delightful. It was nice to sit and relax in the cool air. Upon arriving up river, we were greeted by a swarm of children who proceeded to question us and act as our “tour guides” telling us all about the area, where they lived and their willingness to walk us all the way to the top of the unfinished temple. Like all other holy temples in Myanmar we removed our shoes before entering. This time, however, we were basically walking up roughly 150 stairs with weeds encroaching from the edges and pieces of brush and crumbled rock on the path. I tried to step gingerly to protect my feet while balancing my bag and listening to the 2 kids accompanying me. I successfully reached the top to a lovely, far reaching view of the river, the 2 gargantuan half crumbled elephant/lion statues guarding the temple and the local town. I video taped my two guides and had them translate a grouping of stones arranged to spell out “I love so and so.” Then tragedy struck. While heading to the far side of the temple, gouged and cracked with deep ravines, I acquired a splinter in the bottom of my foot. Brilliant. We walk most places and who knows what kind of toxins were on the bit of wood. One of the two kids ventured off to procure a toothpick from a friend which I managed to use to get about half of it out—enough to allow me to walk down without pushing it in further. Surprisingly none of my group noticed my trouble. Shortly after my two guides indicated they were going to stay up top and requested I consider sponsoring their school with a donation. Pleased with their accompaniment and care I offered them some kyats. Stefan informed us earlier part of their congenial ploy was to guide tourists to the top, ask for money since they weren’t going to return for a while and often to follow you down regardless of whether they received money.

Before returning to the boat, we ventured to the large 90 ton bell. Each of us rang it using a 2 foot long and 4” wide chunk of wood with a carved out handle in the middle by ramming it into the bell. Great fun! How often do you get to do that?? I think Amy kindly captured a picture of me.

Later in the evening at the hotel I expertly used my tweezers and a can of Sprite to chill my foot and removed the remnants of the overall ¼” long splinter.

The Cost Of Living Adjustment

Bananas here have a unique tanginess you cannot find with the fruit picked too early and shipped in from South America. A Myanmar banana can be mostly brown and still not too sweet or over ripe to eat. There are two kinds: one similar in shape/size to what you see in the US and one about 2/3 the length and 1.5” in diameter with a grainier texture. Papaya is out every morning for breakfast. The buttery taste is not my favorite, but it does offer energy and water that is safe to consume. That’s less bottled water to consume and less plastic in the landfill or on the street.

Much of the food here is excessively oily so I have taken to eating 3 Chinese buns and 2 slices of bread each morning to balance things out. Grazing has also become necessary. If I don’t eat something at morning tea and in the afternoon, I find my stomach revolting with hunger pangs. Hot tea has been revived again as an obsession. Every restaurant offers it before a meal. Good to know there will be a reliable source of water. Just make sure to ask for Chinese tea at breakfast or you will end up with coffee colored tea that is far to bitter to consume without sugar.

Morning conversation centered around women and feminist theology. Anna May came in wearing a bright pink shirt reading “This is what a feminist looks like” to lead our session. Ruth 3.1-5 paralleled conversation on human trafficking along the Thai and Chinese borders. When the young girls arrive, they are given clothes and makeup, told not to talk or leave the bed before a man and are locked in the room. Some girls sleep with an average of 5-10 men per night. Half of the money is promised to the girls, but with fees for police and electricity they barely end up with enough to buy a bowl of noodles for a meal. When they die their bodies are burned on piles of tires to prevent further disease from spreading. If they are lucky enough to buy their freedom and return home, no one associates with them for they are damaged women. Some are followed in the evenings into the fields or woods where bad monks and other men force them to have sex. Some girls stay at the brothels and keep working to send money home. Once they reach 20-25 they are too old, make little money and are forced to take other jobs. Here is the story of one young girl who looked to be about 15 or 16.

As she recounted her story, she said she had sex with about 1000 men in a year. She had been in Thailand for 6 years. Having not stayed in school, she couldn’t do the math to figure out how many men that was. The first time a man has sex with her she bled so much she passed out. Two more men had sex with her before she was allowed to recover. The first paid $1000, the second $800 and the third $600. After a few years she got pregnant, but did not know until she went to a doctor because she felt so tired. She was 6 months pregnant when she asked the doctor for an abortion. Without a large amount of money, she was told it was too late to get rid of the baby. Returning to the brothel she asked the house mother for money and she refused saying it wasn’t her problem. The girl returned to her room and took some pills. The next day she passed out. When she awoke to feel her abdomen, the baby was gone. They told her she had a baby girl who she said “would have sinned when she got older like her mother had. This is not the life I want for my kids.” Men take a few minutes and give you money, but planting rice takes a few hours while you wait for the harvest.

Anywhere from 30-80K girls are trafficked each year in Thailand.

The Seduction of Taking Charge

Poverty and justice were the focus today. Did Jesus really condone fasting? From what should poor people fast? Does it make sense or is it fair to ask poor people to fast? Our presenters suggested that action can be more important than ritual or rules that confine. The rich are the ones who need to fast because they distracted from doing good by earthly treasures. Oppression keeps people focused on survival and not on advancement. When basic needs are met, people are able to flourish and be fruitful.

It is hard to sit with those who have little. We ate lunch at a very poor church and the church members were the ones giving us presents. They gifted us and we simply showed up for food. Granted we were there for conversation and fellowship. I am always blown away by how generous or other focused people with limited resources are (be it money, status political say or the like). Perhaps I focus too much on the details and not the larger story. I see the trees, but not the forest. Jesus, are you still in the business of corrective vision eye surgery??

Control is seductive. It’s everything we humans want: to know what is next, to know who is in charge, to know what you can get away with, to know when you have accomplished enough to earn your own position or items. Perhaps it’s not so strange that the highlighted object of trouble in the Garden of Eden is the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. After all, knowledge is power. It is authority. Even knowledge we think of as good can lead to trouble and misfortune when achieved outside of God's means and time line. Certainly the view from up top (higher up on the ladder of knowledge or power) has a unique perspective greater visibility of the surrounding land. Yet heavy hangs the head that wears the crown--and we're back into the tension of life.