German Society of New Zealand Inc. - Auckland

2024

 

8th December 2024 - Christmas celebration in Restaurant 'Sorrento', One Tree Hill

As every year, our Christmas party in the festively decorated hall of ‘Sorrento in the Park’ was with 48 members and 8 guests well attended and was the highlight of our events calendar.  On arrival, each participant received a bag of sweets and there was Stollen from our baker Helmut Telle on the tables.  The band from ‘Sounds of Europe’ played background music and it was a good opportunity to exchange ideas until our president Bärbel Clearkin opened the function.  Jürgen Schubert led the program and alternating with music we heard the Christmas story, read by Gisela Klette, sang Christmas carols, Rosa Frost recited two poems and more music until the buffet was ready.  A varied selection of main courses and desserts was served, as befits a festive event. After the meal, the tombola took place and 13 impressive prizes were raffled off, bringing great joy to the winners.  A short closing remark by Jürgen Schubert brought the celebration and the event year 2024 to an end and very soon afterwards the first participants set off for home.

 

15th November 2024 - Spring Festival in Eden Garden, Epsom​​​​

On November 15, we celebrated our annual spring festival in Eden Garden in Epsom.  The most beautiful time of the blooming of azaleas, camellias and magnolias was already over. The weather forecast was for a 60% chance of rain.  The sky was uniformly gray and it did rain, but only once - the whole day (40mm).

A little rain did not stop 25 of our members to came together.  But no one ventured to visit the garden. Our president Bärbel Clearkin welcomed those present.  After some chance for chatter, a selection of several types of 'finger food' was served plus tea or the obligatory coffee.. This was followed by delicious Bienenstich from our baker Meinolf Krähling.  There was a lot of cake and several members 'sacrificed' themselves to take a piece home with them.  It was a convivial gathering and it is always welcome to meet ‘old’ friends.

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13th October 2024 - Celebrating the day of German Unity in Restaurant 'Sorrento', One Tree Hill

​The day of the reunification of Germany is one of our most important events and is always celebrated in a festive setting. Our president, Bärbel Clearkin, opened the ceremony and spoke about her experiences and fears when the Berlin Wall was built in 1961.  After reunification, there was concern about how a people who had been separated for so long and who had developed differently could ever be brought together without neglecting one side.  Even today, 35 years later, not all inequalities have been eliminated and the recent elections in Saxony, Thuringia and Brandenburg speak for themselves. Afterwards, Jürgen Schubert recited some humorous poems by Eugen Roth to lighten the mood.  Afterwards, we toasted tp the health of the Federal Republic of Germany and New Zealand with a glass of champagne and sang the German national anthem.  With piano accompaniment by Timothy, Kate sang some songs we knew and concert pianist Rachel brought the formal setting with some classical pieces to a close.  In the meantime, the food had been served and the coffee afterwards encouraged personal exchange and the event ended.  Unfortunately, the ranks of participants have thinned out.

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18th & 19th September 2024 - Trip to Rotorua

22 members took part in our September bus trip to Rotorua.  We boarded at Smales Farm, Green Lane and Karaka.  The night before was the coldest of the year and we felt the icy wind all day long.  We stopped in Tirau for refreshments.  The town has expanded rapidly in recent years and was unrecognisable.  We reached our accommodation in the ‘Ripples’ Motel at around 12:30 p.m.  A little later, after a short walk to the Rotorua Skyline, we took the cable car up the mountain to enjoy the wide view of Rotorua in the sunshine.  This was followed by a visit to Kuirau Park with its many thermal springs. Dinner had already been pre-ordered and was served quickly.  The highlight of the trip was the tree-top walk in the Redwood Forest.  In the dark, we navigated on suspension bridges through the treetops illuminated with creatively designed lanterns and laser lights.  Light effects and a lack of wind created a fairytale atmosphere and rounded off a great day.  After a hearty breakfast the next morning, a visit to St Faith's Church in Ohinemutu, a walk around Government Gardens and a break for lunch in Cambridge, a wonderful trip with sociable participants came to an end. Everything went very well and we are left with wonderful memories.

 

18th August 2024 - Ten Pin Bowling, West Gate

Bowling with our Austrian friends has always been a very enjoyable event and this year was no different, although there was less participation than before.  Four members of the German Society and 10 of the Austrian Club came together and formed a fun group.  Some people experienced how quickly things can change, one ball hits the bullseye and the next goes straight into the gutter.  Günter Lammer shone again and the challenge cup remained in his hands and that was well deserved.  To finish off, a coffee at Starbucks brought a lovely afternoon to a close.

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16th June 2024 - Frühschoppen at Comopolitan Club, Papatoetoe

After a long absence, we met again for this year's morning pint at the Cosmopolitan Club in Papatoetoe.  We were a small group of only 10 members, but it doesn't take a lot of participation to be sociable.  We came together again and food and drink always promotes conversation and community.  With the good feeling of having renewed the bonds, everyone set off home in the afternoon.​

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23rd April 2024 - Visit of the Waiheke Musical Museum

A group of 22 participants had gathered to visit the Musical Museum.  The crossing to Waiheke took place in glorious summer weather and resembled a boat trip to a holiday paradise.  After docking in Matiatia, a short bus ride and we had reached our destination.  The museum was founded in 1996 by Lloyd and Joan Whittaker.  Already years before, the couple had acquired and restored musical instruments obtained from antique shops, second-hand shops and sheds.

Through a lively explanation and demonstration, we were introduced to rare and unusual instruments.  These were brought to NZ by early missionaries and immigrants and also left behind by artists after their tour.  For us, it was an insight into the musical life of the country 100 to 150 years ago.

The museum visit was the end of our event, but most of the participants went to the same restaurant for lunch.  There everyone decided when they wanted to go back and an impressive trip came to an end.

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23rd March 2024 - Onion cake and cider in the home of Bärbel

For many years we met in March for Federweißer and onion cake at Coopers Creek Vineyard.  But from this year onwards Federweißer was no longer available and our president opened her house to people to enjoy onion cake with apple wine or cider. Including the landlady, we were a group of 21 members plus 2 guests and 3 musicians from the ‘Sounds of Europe’ band.  The journey alone was a trip into the countryside and the wonderful location of the property with a far-reaching view over the Manukau Harbour was a blessing.  We enjoyed the president's hospitality, the relaxed conviviality, the onion cake with apple wine and the sounds of the music.  After a suitable break, sour cherry crumble cake with cream and the indispensable coffee was served on princely porcelain.  Once again an excellent get-together and thanks to everyone who contributed to the success of the event behind the scenes.​

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13th February 2024 - Picnic in Botanical Garden, Manurewa

Our annual picnic has always been in Cornwall Park and each participant brought their own provisions.  This year the format was to be different and the decision was made to go to the Botanical Gardens.  In order to be independent of the weather, the Logan Campbell Bldg was rented.  Sausages were fried there and the committee provided a varied selection of food and drink.

19 members came together at 11 a.m. and in the most beautiful summer weather we sat in the garden, enjoying the food and drink served and each other's company.  The meal was plentiful and everyone sat comfortably and no one thought of taking a walk through the garden.  At around 3 pm the group began to disperse again, everyone happy to have been there.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​