First Excursion

These last few days have been completely unbelievable. As of a week ago, I had never been out of the US, but now I’ve waded in the North Sea, toured Amsterdam, and seen landscapes that look like they were stolen from the Lord of the Rings movies. At an ungodly hour Wednesday morning, we traveled to Hannover. We spent a very full day learning about nephrology and visiting the Axolotl Research Center. I was shocked to learn how prevalent diabetes and the need for dialysis was in Germany—it seem that the people there are so fit and eat so healthfully.

My only previous exposure to Axolotls had been their brief mention in that “Animal Beatbox” youtube video, but I’m probably going to rush out and acquire one or four when I get back to my apartment. Axolotls are these smiley little salamander Pokemon that are well-known for their ability to regrow amputated limbs, but are also extremely social, mate for life, and have more personality than I thought amphibians could possess. Also, the proteins that contribute to their ability to regenerate limbs and parts of their eyes and brains are being discovered, so my evil plot of injecting myself with Salamander Serum and morphing into SalamanderWomen (hey, it’s as good an origin story has any) is one step closer to fruition.

That night, we stayed at a hotel with one of the most poorly-chosen decorations I’ve ever seen. A column of bloody, ghostly handprints stretching from floor to ceiling adorned the wall on the second floor. Sweet dreams.

Thursday we traveled to the north coast of Germany and took a ferry to Norderney. Norderney is a favorite place for recovering from lung disease or allergies because of its pure air. At the rehabilitation center we visited, we learned that Norderney is remarkably unpolluted compared to almost anywhere else in Europe. Thankfully, it should stay that way since it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We watched the sunset over the North Sea that evening, but it was not as beautiful as the sunrise over the dunes at 4:50 the next morning. The area near the population center on Norderney is hilly with dunes covered in vegetation, but as you get out towards the east end of the island, the landscapes flattens out into huge fields covered with purple flowers. I found it striking how new that section of the island was, and how quickly the terrain can change. An enormous sand dune takes only a few decades to form, and that entire field on the protected side of the island had been under the sea a few centuries earlier. The populated side of the island has freshwater lakes that some types of birds use for breeding, but the living things on the other side of the island have to survive in a salt-rich environment. Our guide showed us a couple of plants that have different strategies for living on sea-water. For example, one exuded the salt from pores on the underside of its leave. I probably learned more about ecology on the walk from Norderney to Norddeich Mole than in the rest of my college career combined.

After the Wattwanderung, I was too exhausted to appreciated the Seal Center and Walsoseum properly. I didn’t even have the presence of mind to sneak a baby seal home in my backpack, like I had been planning to.

If that day wasn’t full enough already, we had to switch gears and head to bustling Amsterdam. Amsterdam, well, Amsterdam merits its own post…