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We went to a German Circus a few weeks ago. Words cannot describe how different yet intriguing this show was. The whole experience started on the private facebook page we made for our small neighborhood that is located about twenty minutes from post. One of the moms posted to it that they were going to go to the circus down the road and we were all invited to tag along and we could meet at her house and convoy over there. Well, she had a GREAT idea and it ended up being 5 mothers and about 10 children total which made it a great opportunity for all of us to get to know each other better, but that’s a story for another day. We were among the first ones to arrive at the circus which was a huge benefit on our part because once we got into the tent we saw that behind the barriers that were set up to surround the center of the tent they had regular lawn like chairs set up, so we definitely lucked out on being able to grab those as they were the best seats in the house. Once the seating arrangements were settled we ventured over to the concession stand which consisted of a popcorn machine, which made a sweet/salty version of popcorn, full sized bags of German potato chips, bottles of water, both spring and bubbly, juice boxes, and the German dollar store sized bags of gummis. After the hustle and bustle of repeatedly asking each other how much each of the items were in euro we were finally equipped with snacks and beverages as well as those neat little light up toys that you find at most sporting and community events in America. Finally the show started and it was definitely unforgettable. It began with a horse act and once the horse act was over they brought out the camels. Both the horses and camels ran around the outer edge of the circle lined with the barriers and seeing as we were seated on the other side of them it was a little to close for comfort for me, but my kids and the other kids were mesmerized. The rest of the acts consisted of a girl hanging from the top of the tent on her hula hoop, a man who could balance five chairs on his chin, a clown who despite only speaking German had the kids wrapped around his finger, a man who climbed a rope to the top of the tent only using his upper body strength and a fire breathing man who could not only breathe fire, but he ate it too. I’m sure there were more acts that I am forgetting, but these were the ones that stood out the most. Overall, it was an experience I am glad that I was able to give my children. This circus was definitely not a Ringling Bros Barnum and Bailey Circus, but it also served as a great reminder that I don’t have to go all out and provide the best of the best for my kids to be happy. It also served as another reminder of how thankful I am that we get to live here in a foreign country and experience this foreign culture thanks to my husbands job in the Army. These experiences will do well to shape my children and our family into much more than what we thought we were capable of and I hope that anyone else who is stationed in a foreign country, or even statieside, recognizes the value in being able to move every three years to a new home and a new adventure.
Making the Most of the Circus
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