Heidelberg

"...Out of a billowy upheaval of vivid green foliage...rises Heidelberg Castle, with empty window arches, ivy-mailed battlements, moldering towers -- the Lear of inanimate nature, -- deserted, discrowned, beaten by the storms, but royal still, and beautiful."

Not everyone can claim Heidelberg as their hometown. I feel especially privileged and lucky to have been raised as an Army brat in such a city. I lived in Heidelberg from 1962-1966 and also from 1972-1977 attending Heidelberg American High School in what was then called West Germany. There are the memories of the way things were like a divided Germany, the 1972 Bader-Meinhoff gang bombing at Campbell Barracks, and the terrible events of the Munich Olympics. Communism was alive and well, and Russia was still a world super power.

I have many wonderful memories associated with growing up in Heidelberg such as attending Prom and graduating from high school in the King's Ballroom of the magnificent Heidelberg Castle. There were weekend nights spent at the Teen Club dancing to the tunes of the Commodores, KC and the Sunshine Band, and Kool and the Gang until midnight. We walked, rode our bicycles, took the bus, or hitchhiked when we needed to reach our destination without being afraid for our safety.

These were times when we didn't pick our friends by the color of their skin or religious beliefs but for who they were as a person. In the end we were all American kids living in a foreign country who would find many years later that these are the bonds that will always keep us together.

I hope you enjoy your visit to my site for it's about a place I truly call "home".