Farewell to the RUB--and its Stalwart Astronomers

This is one dimension of the RUB--Ruehr Universitaet Bochum . One can hardly avoid Shakespeare
`Alas there-s the rub'. It is vast. This is a view from the bridge we crossed everyday--usually streaming along with hundreds of students and staff.




This is the view from the same bridge but along the other side. The new buildings are in front of a line that is just as formidable as on the right. We had to walk nearly a kilometre directly across the bridge to reach our row of science buildings. The University is built into the side of a valley in such a multilevel fashion that it almost is the valley side.



The Bridge--on a sunday

The Rühr gebiet is synonymous with industrial muscle, whether it be coal and steel or the University.



This is `the group' who welcomed us into their world. Ralf-Juergen at left front, dominique Bowmans
front--students and other staff at rear. This was the large seminar room.




Perhaps a better view of the rear guard--actually some of these people are very astute.


It wasn't all work---Pizza Party!



In the small seminar room--they also have a library that is their own! Bjorn--the dark haired guy at right is the tallest person we have ever seen off a basketball court--well over two metres


A nice picture--Judith organized and paid for several of these as part of her VIP duties.



Helmut  --at right---is ignoring retirement like me.


happy contemplation when the food is gone





Should I take the last piece?







This is Katharina. It was her birthday and coincided with the Pizza party. Birthday people here bake their own cakes. She welcomes us to the mittag essen group dynamics. They love groups. You have to gather one to go to lunch in the MENSA. The long-haired girl to the left --Noelia is a spanish student.


The calm before the storm




Another side of the RUB--as we leave




To the left of the bridge

And of course we must say farewell to the Laerhoeltz



The city workers came and cleared all the leaves away--you can't have leaves on the forest paths--too disorganized

There were some streets that we visited again and again in our walking commutes. So here it is
auf wiederspazierten




We entered the wood--laerhoeltz along this street. I hesitate to translate



Our suburb or `stadtteil' was Querenburg. We were Querenburgers--Querenburger and Querenburgerin. `Quer' seems to mean roughly odd or different or dare I say queer. So it fits.

And of course the comforting sign of home





We lived at number 14 auf der  papenburg apt 10--underneath a family with a super energetic little girl--who ran across our  ceiling without end.


And so we come to the very end--But this last picture was always welcome when we saw it. It marked the road leading to our garage. After many adventures and challenges on German roads we always breathed a sigh of relief at this point. Unfortunately our faithful navigator -Serena-could never quite get the hang of this geography and always abandoned us roughly at this corner--still she was good to us and I hope the next owner of our car will treat her well----




So we always reach an end--home soon after Frankfurt--cheers!