Writing

DER GRÜNE HÖLLE

A cool breeze pushes through the Eiffel Mountains. The solitary and strong Nurburg Castle sits high above the rest of the landscape on a lofty hill, with little shops and the rest of town sitting below, looking up at the impenetrable fortress. The scene is beautiful. Everything. But as you look at the grandeur of the German forest, suddenly you hear a loud rumbling, a roar, and you turn around, to see an old MG racing past, then a VW Polo Hot Hatch with numerous sponsors all over the doors, and just when you thought you've seen it all, you spy a Porsche Cayenne S with a sticker on the side reading: AVIS Prestige, being driven by a man in a Porsche Cap (naturally), with his wife, and 3 kids. If you're wondering what this has to do with the Eiffel Mountains, a Medieval Castle on a big hill, and a small town in the surrounding valley below, well then, let me say, welcome to the Nurburgring. And if you're also wondering what this has to do with me as the writer, I am the 10 year old sitting in the back left seat of the Cayenne I told you about, smiling while my dad is driving the ring at 200 kph.

I can still vividly remember that day, as the massive pines looked like a painter's strokes moving at a million miles an hour, the black asphalt of the track covered in graffiti flying past before I ever even saw it, and my heart pounding faster than a Hasenpfeffer. The sensation was amazing, the blurred sights rolling by, the smell of burning rubber and petrol in the air, and the feeling of centripetal force whenever we would turn.

As if there was not enough excitement already, the car raced toward the Carousel. We reached the turn, and my dad dove into 'the bowl', the lower half of the banking in the corner. Our car was now at a 45º Angle, and moving at 130 kmh. As I looked out my window, all I could see was concrete, the molded alligator teeth of the curbing looking only like a jagged line. Certainly my many hours of playing Gran Turismo had payed off to prepare me for this very moment.

Many corners later, we came to the main straightway. My dad shifted into 6th, and the car sprinted down the track. We were flying, and flying fast. But as soon as all the excitement came, it came to an end, as we pulled into the parking lot.

It began to rain. The once blue, cloudless skies we're now cloudy, grey, and dark. We stationed our car, and we checked the tires to see how they looked. Grooves were etched perpendicular to the treads, something not seen on a normal rental car. In the rain, the brakes sizzled, and the engine emitted heat like a furnace. The car had definitely been working throughout the drive.

                                                                     
But as we left that day, heading back to Stuttgart, there was one thing in my head;

I had survived the Green Hell.

The Zoo;

Full of many animals from far, far away. An interesting place, one that smells of, well, you know, and one that a family can enjoy themselves, and have a good time. Well, usually, at least.

We were in San Diego, enjoying our stay in the city, and on one of the days on our vacation, we decided to go to the zoo. I remember walking on the red cobble around the place, looking at all the curious animals while they stared at the people around them. The pandas, the ostriches, the hippos, you name it. But eventually, it started to get late in the afternoon, before the sunset, and we went to see one last enclosure; the apes.

My parents rolled my 2-year old brother (Michael) in the stroller over to the mammalian giants. Me and my older brother, Daniel, ran over to the glass, and we were pressed to the window, looking at them. They were far off, but visible, and one began to walk over. My parents caught up, and Michael began to look intently at them, especially at the one heading towards us. We all watched to see what would happen, and all that happened was that it just, sat down.

And stared.

Michael then let out a blood-curdling scream, for whatever reason why, and began to cry. Other families began to look at the scene, so we frantically began to leave as soon as possible. My dad quickly got the stroller going, and my mom desperately tried to calm him down. We ran out of the zoo, and hopped in the car. Michael was still freaking out after seeing the ape, but eventually fell asleep, and all was well with our family.