CIDRE Portfolio: Caitlyn Dowell

About Me:

My name is Caitlyn Dowell and I am a current first grade teacher at Mills Park Elementary School in Cary, NC. When first applying to the CIDRE program, I was a third grade teacher, which is why the research I conducted in Germany deals directly with EL's first unit of study, overcoming challenges to education and books around the world. Currently, in this unit of study, students do not learn about Germany, but through my time abroad I have come to realize the importance of books in a post-war society. I was able to learn and see first hand the steps taken to improve every child's access to books across the country.

Written Reflection

Reflection on German Education System:

Reflection of the German Education System

Visual Thinking Analysis
What is going on with this object?

My mind is immediately drawn to the various colors Twombly uses in his depiction of these fully bloomed roses. Each wood paneling comes with 4 roses painted with similar shades of color. However, just like in nature, each rose is painted slightly different. Some have more open spaces between the petals, and some are darker in coloring showing slightly less space between the petals. Each wood panel is the same shade, but has different pieces of writing behind it. I do wonder if the writing had an intentional purpose for the roses that were painted on top of it.

What do you see that makes you say that?

Looking at the roses you can see that the shading is done to show the depth of the flower. But I think what makes it the most interesting is the variation in which colors were towards the outside and which were on the inside. One would think it would be the same for each rose, but looking at these, Twombly would change it up and use dark in the middle for one, and light in the middle for the other three. As mentioned before, some had more space in between with less paint, while others were heavy with paint with little space in between petals.

What more can we find?

One of the more interesting aspects to these paintings is the fact that the paint is being pulled down by gravity. The streak marks left behind make me think of nature and how plants can fall apart and leave traces of themselves behind. They are imperfect, but in a perfect way.

What does this object reveal about German culture?

In a room to the right of the Roses exhibit there was an opportunity for visitors to create their own artwork inspired by what they were able to view throughout the museum. The bottom picture to the left shows how many visitors chose to re-create the roses paintings. I believe this shows the importance of nature and color in art. I know for myself, when I walked into the Roses exhibit my breath was taken away by the art. If I had some more time I would have loved to add my own roses artwork, but I really enjoyed getting to see these recreations!

Painting: Untitled (Roses), 2008
By: Cy Twombly

Photo taken at the Museum Brandhorst

Clio Waypoint

Chinesischer Turm

One of the most fun and lively sections within the Englische Garten is a building reminiscent of a Chinese temple, called the "Chinesischer Turm", or Chinese Tower. Built between 1789 and 1792, and reconstructed in 1952, is seen as a "landmark of the English Garden".

In 1960, the tower was finally reopened to the public, even though public guests are denied entry into the actual tower. The only people to be seen regularly in the tower are the brass band players that can be heard playing for the public. However, there are some rare cases of people that have been allowed into the tower including a group of 15 people who were given a guided tour on September 6, 2002 for the 50th anniversary of the rebuilding.

Another one of the special features to this location is the beer garden next door that has 7,000 seats, making it the 2nd largest beer garden in Munich. There they serve what you can only guess.. Munich's own Hofbräu beer. This spot in the English garden is a popular meeting point during the summer for both locals and tourists. When visiting this location, we noticed the table seated next to us had a wonderful blue and white table cloth along with a full picnic basket. Apparently, as with all beer gardens, you are allowed to bring your own food, but all drinks have to come from the bar.

One of the biggest events held at the Chinese Tower is an event called the Kocherball which is held on the third Sunday of July. This is when men and women come dressed in traditional Bavarian dress and dance along to waltz music and folk dances.

If you are looking for a daytime, or evening, spot to hangout with friends, then this is the spot for you!

Click here for Clio Link!

Cultural Insights

#1
City Accessibility
Walking around the city I noticed that there were no "sidewalk bumps" when going into the street, which are used by the visually impaired to know when to pause as they would be leaving the sidewalk and entering the street. I find this interesting since we have many of them in our major cities in the states and would find this a little stressful when traveling, especially in a new city. However, when walking through the metro today I did find some on the floor since I saw a man who was visually impaired using the lines and bumps to travel through it. I'll be on the lookout to see where else I can find them. Also on another note for city accessibility, there are no sounds or speech to alert people when to cross the road which would make it harder for the visually impaired as well.

#2Pay Phones

I know NYC took out their last remaining pay phone booth somewhat recently and I would even say its pretty rare to see them anywhere in the US but I've noticed a few of them here in Munich. I think it's a great resource to have just in case your phone dies or there's an emergency, so I love it! This one might also be a hotspot for Wi-fi which is also really neat!

#3
Lack of Public Water Fountains
I've noticed very, very few water filling stations or even just water fountains in general. I find this so fascinating from an environmental standpoint as it would save on a ton of plastic water bottles. Even today at the lake, when a bunch of bike riders came into town they all had to purchase plastic water bottles and then they emptied them into their metal reusable bottles. I know that someone mentioned this earlier but even in the museums the only water I came across was in the documentation center. I've certainly been missing out on being able to refill my bottle throughout the day!

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#4
Respect to traditions

Getting to see the traditions that Germans continue today was absolutely amazing! I was in the English Garden one weekend and came across a festival that is held once a year where people will come dressed in their traditional formal wear and dance to folk music. It was such a great sight to see this blend of old traditions with new ones. Prost to learning all about traditions!