Dong Qiangqiang's Story of Leaving Germany

Chapter 1113. Grapes are always blown away by the rain and wind

"Actually, I feel the problem this time is not the flood, but the people."

"There are also man-made disasters in Germany? That's impossible?"

"It's not a man-made disaster. Germany has a temperate maritime climate. Germans have long been accustomed to gentle and mild weather. They don't know much about rain and floods, and they are almost unprepared in normal times. They are seriously unprepared before the rainstorm. Just a week before the rainstorm, the European meteorological agency had already issued an early warning of a stagnant low vortex. Two or three days before the rainstorm, the German Meteorological Bureau accurately predicted the potential rainfall and issued a warning, but the disaster still happened. Floods swept through Germany, Belgium, France, Switzerland, the Netherlands and other countries. At present, the rainfall covers almost the entire territory of Germany. The area of ​​the rainstorm exceeds 10,000 square kilometers, which is equivalent to the area of ​​the imperial capital. Even in the history of German meteorology, it is extremely rare and extreme. It is not an exaggeration to say that it happens once in a hundred years. The west has also seen unprecedented disasters such as mountain torrents and mudslides. The carefree Germans were really caught off guard."

"Floods are only caused by rain, right? I remember there were several in the 1990s."

"You are surprised by what you have seen. Heavy rain floods are only one of them. There are also snowmelt floods, ice floods and engineering failure floods."

"You know this as well?"

"Compared with Germany, we live in a monsoon climate, and our disaster prevention, mitigation and emergency response systems for all kinds of severe weather have long been honed. However, there will always be a situation where the devil is always stronger than the good. The extreme weather we encounter is definitely not on the same level as Germany. Of course, it is best not to encounter it, otherwise we ordinary people will be the ones who suffer."

"Before coming to (Germany), (I) always thought that Europe was the most suitable place to live. The summers were not too hot and the winters were not too cold. It was not like Africa was too hot, Northern Europe was too cold, and the United States and Asia always had a lot of messy natural disasters."

"Europe has a low frequency of earthquakes, but there are still floods and wildfires, which are much less than in the United States. But it is not accurate to say that Europe's summers are not too hot. Just this summer, Germany experienced a heat wave, and it is said that many people died, mainly elderly people with underlying diseases. It may be because of this heat wave that many people did not maintain sufficient vigilance against rain, thinking it was just an ordinary rain. No one expected that the heat wave would be followed by a monstrous flood."

"Heat wave? This summer? But I didn't find it particularly hot in summer. How could it be so hot that it could kill me?" Although he said this, Dong Qiangqiang quickly remembered that the newspaper he read to the landlord before seemed to have mentioned the heat wave.

"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that you live halfway up a mountain, where there is always good weather, birds singing, and flowers blooming. You are not exposed to the sun or floods, so you don't know the sufferings of the world." Zheng Chunhua joked as she steered the motorcycle around a sharp turn. "There's something you wouldn't expect. The water level of the Moselle River has risen in the past few days, and passing ships have slowed down. Everyone thought that the old town with a long history would be the first to collapse. But after a few days, the old town was fine, not even a drop of water accumulated. Instead, several newly built places outside the old town have had problems one after another."

"Is this true?" Dong Qiangqiang didn't believe it. "This is all unofficial history reported by the roadside news agency, right?"

"Of course it's true. There are many documents about ancient Rome in the library. You can read them when you have time. The drainage system of the old city of Trier was laid by the ancient Romans. Ancient Roman civilization still has many advanced features. Even today, it's amazing and surprising how people at that time could think of and do such things."

"How did you turn that corner so steadily just now?" Dong Qiangqiang didn't bother to listen to Zheng Chunhua's propaganda, his mind was still on the muddy road before.

"Turning corners? You need to control the clutch, brakes and angles so that you won't fall easily even on difficult roads. Haven't you learned this?"

Dong Qiangqiang shook his head.

"We'll be almost at your house after we cross the two high hillside mixed forests ahead. To get to the mixed forest, we have to go in along this road ahead," Zheng Chunhua said, pointing to a narrow path not far in front of the two of them. "There's a fork in the road at the end. The road on the left is similar to the large 'Wine Road' you see. The soil in some places has been washed away, so it would be very unsafe to ride through. I fell on that road when I came here just now. If we choose to go this way, it will be faster, but we have to push the bike for a while first, and then we can ride after the muddy ground is over. If you don't want to push the bike, go to the right, but the right way is a detour and will take longer. Which way do you want to go?"

"I choose the left side." Dong Qiangqiang got off the motorcycle without saying anything. "What road did you say this was?"

"This large area of ​​vineyards you see is part of Trier's 'Wine Road'. Several famous local wineries have wineries here. Don't you know this when you're so close to here? Julia never mentioned this to you?" Zheng Chunhua said in surprise, "She was the one who told me all this." Zheng Chunhua led the way in front, holding the cart, and Dong Qiangqiang followed behind, pushing the cart.

"Are you familiar with this place?" Dong Qiangqiang pushed his motorcycle and looked down along the steep slope along the grape vines. "I thought the area near the river where the student dormitories were located was the area of ​​the 'Wine Road'."

"Wine is Trier's mainstay industry and economic engine, so the 'Wine Road' is very large, with many routes with different themes, some suitable for self-driving, some convenient for cycling, and of course the most famous one is the hiking route. It is said that since the ancient Roman era, this valley has been planting grapes and making wine, especially Pinot Noir for making red wine. Many of the inconspicuous small wineries you see along the way may have a history of hundreds of years."

Although the helmet narrowed Dong Qiangqiang's vision significantly, he could still enjoy the panoramic view of the lush hills around him. Further away were vast fields and rolling meadows. Herds of grazing cattle and sheep would definitely not appear today, but his attention was not on the vineyard in front of him. Instead, he cast his gaze towards the small village at the foot of the hillside.

The village is much smaller than Wasserbillig, with only about a hundred households. The situation of the entire village is similar to that of Wasserbillig: all the buildings are submerged in water without exception. Fortunately, no houses collapsed. Several giant barrel-shaped buildings are particularly eye-catching. Cars of different sizes are scattered to various corners of the street. The only bridge in the village seems to have been washed away, and many rotten tree roots are blocking the bridge. Further away, a section of railway track is crookedly protruding into the water. The low-lying vineyards bordering the village have all been flooded.

"Look, do you see that yellow sign stuck in the mud down there?" Zheng Chunhua suddenly pointed down the slope.

"The yellow sign with 'Wine Road' and a bunch of ten grapes on it?" Dong Qiangqiang had already seen it without Zheng Chunhua saying anything. "Why is this place so ruined?"

When Wang Shunan came to Trier to attend the China Week in May, Dong Qiangqiang took her to other places to appreciate equally beautiful vineyards. However, the vineyard in front of him, which had been ravaged by heavy rain, was left with only mud and mess, and could be called a ruin.

"Can we stop here for a while? I want to take a quick walk." When Dong Qiangqiang looked down the mountain, he remembered that he had just escaped from a flood.

"Walk around here?" Zheng Chunhua looked up at the dark clouds moving quickly overhead for a few seconds. "I can only say that it's easier to walk if the rain is light, but if it gets heavier, it's hard to say how long it will take."

"I know, I'm fast." Dong Qiangqiang quickly parked the cart before letting go of the hand that was pushing the cart and walked down the slope along the grape vine trellis.

The once idyllic wine trail is now in ruins, with most of the vines collapsed. The survivors are shivering in the rain. The bare vines are leafless, intertwined in rows, silently looking at Dong Qiangqiang, whose face is full of sullenness, and silently sobbing. Under the vines are scattered red and white grapes, which are now rotting in the mud, revealing the dull flesh. Collapsed long wooden chairs and broken wooden strips can be seen everywhere, as well as broken ceramic cups from nowhere. Looking down the rugged slope of the vineyard, some of the wire mesh on the guardrail at the bottom of the vineyard is broken, and some of them have blocked a pile of broken leaves and garbage that cannot be described.

He picked up the ceramics, looked up and looked around, and then he found a mini wine house higher up, and a place like an observation deck, where the bench must have been washed down. I think on sunny days, people would sit on the bench, looking at the fields in the distance, admiring the skyline of Trier, tasting and enjoying the beautiful scenery of the vineyard composed of tender green grape leaves, warm sunshine and hardworking grape growers, while drinking fine wine.

In the midst of the green, Dong Qiangqiang vaguely noticed a blue human-shaped figure looming among the vine trellises. Thinking that someone had met with misfortune, he hurriedly crossed several vine trellises, and when he got closer, he found that it was a scarecrow stuck in the dirty water and mud.

Everywhere you look, there is ruin.

Rainwater fell from the sky and flowed downwards, and floods were surging at the foot of the mountain. How come the grape fields on the hillside were not safe and sound?

Dong Qiangqiang thought: Lao Bai’s idea has completely failed this time. The vineyards in other parts of Trier are probably not much better than here. The situation is extremely bad. Now he just wants to curl up in his bed, have a good sleep, and forget about these bad things as soon as possible.