Our first spring OUT meeting was both delightful and educational.  On 18th March we, 16 members and one guest,  had a guided tour in English of the Kanzlerbungalow in Bonn, now a museum only accessible on a scheduled tour, and the surrounding park.  Some of us met for lunch in the café of Haus der Geschichte in Bonn.  Then it was an easy walk to the Bungalow, where we met our guide.  She not only spoke excellent English but gave us a lively, brief refresher course in recent German history,  including some humorous inside stories of the persons who lived in this bungalow during a period of about 35 years.
It was built for the second chancellor of the young Bundesrepublik, Ludwig Erhard, in 1964.  Konrad Adenauer, the first chancellor, preferred to lived in his private quarters.  Erhard wanted something modern and full of light and that’s what he got.  Not at all showy or prententious.  We were amazed how small the private quarters are, providing no room for children and only 3 small guest rooms.  There was very little privacy, due to the openness of the structure and its rectangular shape.  However, there is ample space for formal dinners and receptions of foreign dignitaries.  Part of its charme is its location in a lovely  park, looking out onto the Rhine and nicely hidden from the road.  The last chancellor to live there was Helmut Kohl, also living there the longest, 17 years!  It was finally closed in 1999, when the German Government was moved to Berlin.
All in all, it was an interesting and enjoyable start into spring especially since lots of daffodils were already in bloom in Bonn.