Weekend Houses

DAY 22 of “Chancellor Watch”- Germany's conservative leader Angela Merkel has announced that she will be the country's next chancellor at the head of a coalition government. This marks the first time a woman has held the post. Merkel said she had reached a power-sharing deal with outgoing Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. As the part of the agreement, most of the seats in Merkel's new cabinet will go to Schroeder's Social Democratic party, including top jobs such as the foreign minister's post. The deal ends weeks of deadlock and paves the way for formal coalition talks between Merkel's conservative CDU and Schroeder's SPD parties.

Every time I am running along the Rhein or Buddy and I take a trip by car or train, we see these houses. Actually, that is not quite the correct term. These structures look like nothing more than tool sheds with an Alpine theme. They are usually neatly maintained, and always have little gardens surrounding them. And, there are usually several of them clustered together (5 -20 at any one time) along railroad tracks, along river banks, or other areas that are not necessarily ideal for residential or business use.

At first, we only saw these buildings clustered together along railroad tracks. Our first thought was “Is this the German equivalent of shanty town”? Yet, the buildings were often nicer than not, and the flower gardens were quite elaborate.

Later, we were told these buildings were the homes of workers employed by the Deutsche Bahn (German Rail Company). The close proximity to rail lines allowed them to easily get to and from work. Yea…then I really want that job…living in a house the size of a cracker box. We soon realized somebody was pulling our leg because we saw these same buildings along the sides of highways and along the various German rivers.

What gives? We had no clue as to what these buildings were, what they were used for, and why they existed. Finally, someone set the record straight. Before I share this revelation with you, here are a few photos to give you a visual of what I am trying to describe.







OK, these are weekend houses! They are little buildings that have some basic utilities (some have electricity while some do not, none supposedly have toilets), but people are supposedly not allowed to sleep in them overnight (or so we have been told). The Germans keep these little plots of land for weekend get-a-ways outside of apartment life, to do a little gardening, to enjoy the great outdoors, etc. I guess when most Germans live in apartments, the need to get out and feel the dirt and plants between your fingers can become quite great. As we’ve traveled around Germany (and a few other countries as well), we’ve seen many people working their little plots of land. I guess for many Americans with "big ole yards", gardening and lawnwork is something we just take for granted as a necessary chore, rather than a hobby to enjoy.