His first stop was Munich. My third cousin Ulrike, her husband Andreas, and daughter Désirée live in that area, and Nick (who's been following my blog) was interested in meeting them. I e-mailed them both and also sent Ulrike Nick's phone number (with his permission) and - eureka! - it happened!
The photo at right is a selfie of Nick and his fourth cousin Désirée, taken at Désirée's home outside Munich. Perhaps inspired by the series I recently finished transcribing his grandmother's (my mother's) journal from her three month road trip in Europe in 1953, Nick is journaling his experiences in Europe in his blog.
Second cousins Bob Pape (my uncle) and Karl-Heinz Pape (Ulrike's dad) met about 1976. Third cousins, Ulrike and me, met in the USA in September 1977 and in Germany in April 1982. Now some fourth cousins meet.
Ulrike e-mailed me on October 20 and wrote,
Thanks for letting us know that Nick is in Munich. We met yesterday and had a good time together. He tried German cake and at night we went out for dinner at a Bavarian restaurant. Later Andreas took him to see the lit up Dachau castle and the overwhelming sight towards Munich and the Alps. Tomorrow afternoon Nick will come out to our home again. Late at night he will be leaving for Amsterdam on the night train. Désirée and Nick are getting along fine - Amanda, you and I succeeded in getting the next generation in contact. That really makes me very happy.
That really makes me very happy, too!
© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.
That is so cool!!! We tried to have a cousins reunion and everyone was excited...but then only two others besides my siblings showed up. How wonderful that you helped them connect - across an ocean!
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