It was a bad day when the email arrived announcing that our American Turners group that attended the last several Turnfests in Germany would not be going to Frankfurt. A combination of personal problems, injuries, scheduling and the fear of a worsening economy created a general lack of enthusiasm for the trip. Just a few people responded positively to Annette’s call for intent. There was no other choice but to cancel the group’s trip. Yet there were still a few who wanted to go and we made attempts to contact those of like mind. Our final group numbered only seven but we all considered it a very memorable and worthwhile trip.

Unable to attend and once again lead the group, Annette still rendered invaluable aid to our small party including advice, translations and contacts. Across the Atlantic, the Turnfest officials too were especially helpful and we owe a big debt of gratitude to Annette Hofmann, Nadine Volpe and Katja Reichel for all their work to keep us on track.

Our main goal for accommodations was to find a place to sleep, and we had the good fortune to select the Hotel Astoria, very close to the main Turnfest venue and even closer to the U-Bahn, bus and trolley lines. The rooms were all nice and clean, breakfast was delicious and very generous and all the staff was friendly and accommodating.

After arriving at the hotel and distributing transportation passes to the remainder of our small group, we boarded the U-Bahn to Willie Brandt Square. Orienting ourselves and taking a short walk, we arrived at the very tail end of the Turner’s parade route close by the Romer, Frankfurt’s large public square surrounded by medieval buildings. The square itself was completely crowded and you had to go with the flow even after the parade ended. For the first time since Munich, we did not march in the parade or display our banner. However “Old Glory” was ably carried by a young lady none of us recognized. We learned much later that she was part of a group from the Illinois State University Gamma Phi Circus. Tired and hungry from our travels, we dined in a local restaurant. In retrospect, we should have instead crossed the Main River and walked downstream a half mile to witness the Opening Ceremony. From what I saw later on YouTube it was a spectacular combination of laser images and fireworks.

Most of the Turnfest events in Frankfurt took place in the Messe, a very large convention center that hosts many international events. It is a pleasant combination from parts of the old convention center building among much larger modern buildings that are placed around an immense open square filled with activity. Once we were accustomed to the building plan and how the buildings, floors and rooms were numbered, navigating was easy, but there was still the inevitable long walk to arrive at your destination. The Turners appeared to have utilized every square inch of this tremendous complex.

The Turnfest Gala was one of the events held in a theater in the Messe. It featured a large variety of gymnastic performances. From the opening Trampoline act right through to the all performers on the floor close, the show kept us engaged, fascinated and filled with awe at the talent on display. Young boys circling the mushroom shaped apparatus, Karate gymnastics, synchronized wheels, a ballet featuring still rings and rhythmic gymnasts, a 4 story human pyramid by the Japanese gymnastic group, the girl in the web high above the floor and a high bar performance by Fabian Hambuschen all woven into a most enjoyable spectacle. The audience gasped when Fabian missed a catch and fell to the mat, but he was not hurt and completed his routine after signaling a “thumbs up” to the great relief of everyone there. He is Germany’s most prominent male gymnast and 3^rd place winner in a recent world championship meet.

In our group of 7, 3 actually competed. Rolf Schroeder maintained our honor in the Track and Field Wahlwettkampfe doing well in his 4 separate events; 50 Meter dash, Long Jump, Shot Put and Hurlball. Frank Wedl and Karl Grohn both swam well in their 4 separate events at the aquatic center. Karl repeated his winning ways once again placing first in his age group. All these events were held at the huge Rebstockbad Park facilities at the end of the #17 trolley line. The Aquatic Center is a very modern style, up scale facility with many interesting features. Just the price of admission on a regular weekday was about 10 Euros.

Wednesday afternoon, Annette Hoffman invited us to attend a lecture in St. Paul’s Church, the site of assembly meetings held by the revolutionaries of 1848. The lecture featured a history of the Turner Movement and was also well attended by members of the Argentine Turners. Later that evening, we had dinner with Annette and several of her friends from her university. Annette is at this time a Vice President of the German Turners and a person to who we owe much gratitude for her gracious hospitality and help in making this trip a success.

Sachsenhausen is the town on the other side of the Main River. It is famous for its apple wine district with several notable restaurants that remind one of a smaller Munich Hofbraühaus. They were always crowded with Turners, tourists and locals while we were there and with good reason. We dined in a large room sized open courtyard the first time having a typical meal of pork knuckles and red cabbage, outstanding! Apple wine is almost mandatory, one of the restaurants refused to serve beer; in Germany? Apple wine is close to what we know as apple cider. Their regular red table wine was very good.

Mainhatten is the area’s nickname for Frankfurt due to the many tall, modern buildings that dominate the city center as well as several that appear in the surrounding area. Walking around the city, you will find an interesting mix of modern with intact and reconstructed buildings that survived WWII. Long gone are the original city walls, replaced by gardens, walks and small lakes. The Zeil is a famous shopping mall where you can find most anything except a 1 GB secure dx memory chip for an Olympus camera. The 2 GB version went for about 100 Euro. Transportation around the area is the model of German efficiency. Walking around in the newer U-Bahn stations you will find many different, interesting artifacts with items and style relevant to the locale. The main train station has lots of great shops on the main floor and underground. If you like Frikadellen, this is the place to be.

The Closing Ceremony that ended our week at the Turnfest was simply terrific. I believe it was inspired by the tales collected by the Grimm brothers, who lived in the Frankfurt area. When we arrived just before the actual start the audience was not quite at capacity, but there was some action taking place on the 4 corners of the field. A wave made it around the stadium twice but the crowd’s impatience was dampened by having a large clock high above the field count down the time to the actual start of the program. The rest of the program went off exactly on cue. The choreography, the costumes, the colors, the performances, everything worked together to rivet ones attention to the field, but it was impossible to see everything that was taking place. Overall, it was simply magnificent!

You can see some of the many photos Frank Wedl and I took at the Frankfurt Turnfest here in this section.  You may also find videos of the Turnfest with a Google search for Turnfest under the video link. YouTube has several engaging clips, but you may need a broadband connection to view them.

The 2013 Turnfest will be centered in the Heidelberg area. In 2011, Austria will host its Turnfest in Salzburg. There is no shortage of events if you are able to get there and if expenses are still reasonable, we may yet get to march in one more Turnfest parade.

Bahn Frei,

George Zink