July 2002 - Nr. 7
Letter from the Editor
Dear Reader
This year the Canadian National Holiday weekend and the final game of the World Soccer Tournament coincided. For Canadians of German decent this was a double welcome reason to celebrate. What could be better than having your cake and eat it too? The rest of the world news was not all that welcome lately and celebration was sorely needed to uplift bruised hearts and portfolios.
We
followed the proceedings as diligently as the next guy, but withstood the
temptation to get up in the middle of the night to watch the early
tournament presentations. Instead we followed the early morning repeats.
Other then that we tried to stay cool in the sweltering heat.
Every year in spring I have a priority: before I consider doing a total housecleaning and revamping I think about creating our outdoor living room.
After
being confined to the house during the icy season - I hate winter – I can
hardly wait to serve that first lunch out in the garden. But this is of
course only pleasant if enough flowers in bloom create that special
atmosphere and shade makes for a comfortable stay. Our cats too need to have
a summerhouse and get it, inclusive of sun umbrellas, which also protect
from the rain.
I think that this year the roses created an almost fairytale like setting for our pleasure. See for yourself.
For a little Canadiana we visited the tremendously rich hinterland of Toronto to the north, attended a "Last night at the Proms" concert and spoke with Immigration Minister Codere. You can read about that in "Sybille Reports". Irena Wandschneider reports on Canadian culture as she experienced it.
Other then that we are preparing 2 events for our readers and their friends. On September 14, we are planning a cruise on Lake Ontario. That is a Saturday and we will be going in the afternoon. Delicious food and great entertainment will await you, and I guaranty that the view of the city has changed again from the last time you saw it and it will be spectacular. You need to let us know as quickly as possible if you can come along. We will be a little less expensive as other opportunities. And the more people commit, the less the price will be. We are not doing this to get rich! We just want to follow on the theme of togetherness that seems to have been the motto for this year. Call me at 416-652-1332 and I will take your reservation personally.
The other thing we are involved with this year is what was called German Day last year at the Canadian National Exhibition. Gabi Schick is once again the producer. Read what she has to say and look at the preliminary line up for this year. It is spectacular. We hope you turn up in great numbers and bring your Canadian Friends. It is called Alpine Fest this year to have a broader appeal and be more inclusive of the other German language cultures.
And once again I want to assure you that German culture can be celebrated in English. Since we know who we are we need to celebrate our roots in English too so others might get to know us better. For the same reason we report about our heritage in English. That does not mean that we think that the German language is superfluous. We applaud the efforts of schools and institutions to teach and uphold our culture through and with the German language. Read about that in Herwig Wandschneider’s report.
I hope you have a wonderful summer and that we will see you in our community and elsewhere happy and healthy.
See you soon
Sybille Forster-Rentmeister
Comments to: editor@echoworld.com
