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Travel Requirements and Guidelines German Travel Components Itinerary Belgian Travel Components Itinerary

Michigan Farm Bureau & Indiana Farm Bureaus

AgriTours Canada / Farm Tours Germany / GET To Belgium

AgriTours Canada/North America

• AgriTours Canada Inc. owned and operated by Richard and

Barbara Buck, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

• Richard has been organizing agricultural tours since 1982
• Was Assistant Manager of the University of Guelph Dairy Cattle

Research Farm – Chief Technician

• Teaching Instructor at the University of Guelph, Ontario

Agriculture College, OAC Dean’s Office

Michigan/Indiana Farm Bureaus EU Tour 2015

Preparing for your trip Documentation? What to pack? Health and Safety! The Tour – what to expect…..

European Union Commission

The Charlemagne building, the second largest building of the Commission housing its external relations departments. The European Union has attempted to manage an entire agricultural production system consisting of many countries with different cultures, farming methods, climatic zones and political systems. During the time of the visit by the Michigan/Indiana Farm Bureau, there will be protests taking place in Brussels, by EU farmers who are looking for better management of agriculture. You will be there during a critical time in the history of the EU.

The purpose of your trip – Learn about CAP

• Your eventual destination is the European Union Offices in

Brussels – Learn first hand about the Common Agricultural Policy after 2013 – CAP - Check it out before you travel.

• http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/policy-perspectives/policy-briefs/05_en.pdf
• Specifically CAP introduces a new architecture of direct

payments; better targeted, more equitable and greener, an enhanced safety net and strengthened rural development for agriculture production.

Be Ready To Travel

Communications while you are away

• Cell phone service is exceptional in Europe, but it is not cheap.

Be sure if you are planning to use your mobile phone that you have an “off-shore plan” for use in case of emergency or for text, e-mail or surfing purposes.

• WiFi is available at most hotels, some is free, some have costs
• involved. Unlike North America, not all restaurants, or coffee

shops have free WiFi so do NOT expect such services.

• Phone “cards” can be purchased for using regular phones.
• European Time - 24 hour clock – 13:00=1 pm, 14:00=2 pm, etc.

Weather, clothing and personal “stuff”

Germany and Belgium - climate

• Average Temperature predictions for

September in Germany is an average of 20 Celsius while you will be there.

• 16 C = 60.8 F
• 18 C = 64.4 F
• 20 C = 68.0 F
• 22 C = 71.6 F
• Prediction is for some rain early, but

sunshine for the balance of your tour.

Clothing to bring

• Layering your clothes will allow you to

adapt from morning low temperatures to afternoon heat and again for evening coolness.

• Bring waterproof jacket, good

footwear, short and long-sleeved shirts/blouses, long and short pants.

• DO NOT BRING ANY FOOTWEAR OR

CLOTHING YOU USE ON YOUR FARMS AT HOME IN INDIANA OR MICHIGAN.

Food and beverages while on tour

Germany – alcohol not included

• North American food is very similar in many

respects to German food – not just Hamburgers and

• Frankfurters. You’ll get a mixture of German food.
• Meals will include basic components – meat and

potatoes in various traditional German recipes.

• Breakfasts in Europe are somewhat different than in
• America. Cold cuts, tomatoes, cucumbers, fresh

fruit, yogurts, muslix (mixed cereal), eggs, cereal, strong coffee, juice, etc. with some meals having cooked eggs and bacon/sausage/breakfast weiners.

• Lunch and dinner will be a mixture of hot and cold

meals, including pork schnitzel, chicken, beef dishes, rinde rouladin (beef specialty) etc.

Belgium - alcohol not included

• It is sometimes said that Belgian food is served in

the quantity of German cuisine but with the quality

• f French food.
• Outside the country, Belgium is best known for its

chocolate, waffles, fries and beer.

• Ingredients typical in Belgian dishes include

potatoes, leeks, grey shrimp, white asparagus, Belgian endives and local beer.

• Belgian and German beer is generally higher in

alcohol content than in America – be careful as this may have adverse side-effects for your tomorrow!

• As they say, “dessert is to die for” in Belgium.
• Note flags – same color, reverse order

Europe – A different World

Accommodations and Services

• Power in Europe is 220 Volts. Your computers,

I-Pads, phones, etc. will need adaptors that are universal and can convert from 220 to 110 Volts.

• Sockets in hotels have 2 round pin plugs so

your adaptors will need a pug-end adaptor to fit into those sockets.

• Hotels have business centers and WiFi

services, check with front desk upon arrival if there are access passwords.

• If leaving a hotel for a “walk-about” take the

hotel name and address with you-just in case.

There’s no place like home….

• Beds in most hotels are singles (not queens or

doubles) when two people are sharing. Some beds are 2 singles joined together.

• Instead of bedsheets, many European hotels

have feather “puffs” or comforters as we know them.

• Time – you will be 6 hours ahead of Indiana

and Michigan – you will need to adapt quickly to the time difference.

• Many people speak English, many more don’t

– learn a few German or Belgian words for use in restaurants, bars, etc.

Your Host Companies

Farm Tours Germany

• Based in Munster, this company

has been in business many years.

• It is owned by the largest

agricultural publishing company in Germany and as such, has access to subscribers from all aspects of German agriculture.

• Your German Guide is a specialist

in agriculture - Dr. Carl-Josef Weiers. GET to Belgium

• This specialist in agriculture is

based in Brussels and they have specialists in agriculture throughout Belgium who work for them part time.

• The program Tour Directors from

this company will step-on daily to assist Dr. Weiers in Belgium.

• Each day there will be a different

specialist to accompany you.

Your Program – Berlin, Germany

August 31

• Depart Detroit, Michigan – Delta Airlines – try to sleep on the flight, resist the urge to watch the “late,

late show”!

• Don’t over “imbibe” in the free alcohol – the effect will be troublesome when you arrive the next

morning at lower altitudes.

• Get up and walk around at least a couple times before settling in for the night.
• Wear compression socks to avoid swollen legs and ankles, bring a blow-up pillow – SLEEP!

September 1

• Arrive, Berlin: Met at the airport by Dr. Carl-Josef Weiers (mobile phone: 0049 – 152 – 244 958 34.
• Look for a Farm-Tours Germany Sin
• Transfer to Hotel Leonardo, Wilmersdorfer Straße 32, 10585 in the heart of Berlin.
• Time to freshen up before you hit ground running.

September 1 – Berlin, Germany

09:30 Meet and greet with the local guide Dr. Carl-Josef Weiers (mobile phone: 0049 – 152 – 244 958 34) at the Arrivals Level.

• Because hotel rooms won’t be ready, the group

will go to the hotel where two day rooms are booked so that there is a room one for women

• ne for men for freshening up.
• Light lunch at the hotel
• Start 2,5 hours city tour - end at the US embassy
• At 3:00 pm: meeting with Kelly Stange (1 hour)
• 4:00 - Return to the hotel to check in - Official

check-in to the hotel, time to freshen up.

• Possibility for the participants to introduce

themselves to each other before dinner

• Dinner at the hotel

Overnight: Hotel Leonardo, Wilmersdorfer Straße 32, 10585 Berlin – free WiFi.

September 2 – Berlin, Germany

Wed., September 2nd – Central Germany – Berlin (B, L, D)

• Breakfast.
• Visit to Lübars, small village with traditional

agriculture close to Berlin. (In the German

language an ‘ ü ’ with two dots over the u, can be written with an ‘ue’ when keyboard symbol for the umlaut –> ü - is not available.)

• The group will make a guided stroll in Lübars

and following they will have a farm visit (arable

farming and horses)

• Lunch in Luebars.
• Return to Berlin city center.
• 15:00-meeting with Cornelia Berns at the

German embassy for agriculture (1 hour)

• Free time in the city center
• Dinner in the center
• Transfer to the hotel

Overnight: Hotel Leonardo, Wilmersdorfer Straße 32, 10585 Berlin – free WiFi.

Potsdamer Platz in the Center of Berlin’s Business District and near political center of Germany. Tier Garten or Animal Garden is like Central Park New York, in the center of Berlin and near the Bundestag – the German Parliament.

German Parliament – the Bundestag

The German Bundestag is elected by the German people and is the forum where differing opinions about the policies the country should be pursuing are formulated and discussed. The most important tasks performed by the Bundestag are the legislative process and the parliamentary scrutiny of the government and its work. The Members of the German Bundestag also decide on the federal budget and deployments of the Bundeswehr (Federal Armed Forces) outside Germany. Another important function performed by the Bundestag is the election of the German Federal Chancellor.

The division of powers is one of the principles of Germany’s democracy and is anchored in the Basic Law. The powers of the state are divided between several branches, the legislative, the executive and the judiciary, which are supposed to monitor one another and limit the power of the state. In line with the principle of the division of powers, the Bundestag is the highest organ of the legislative in Germany. Alongside it stand the Federal Government, representing the executive, and the federal and Land courts, representing the judiciary

September 3 – Berlin Region, Lande Brandenburg, Germany

Thurs., Sept. 3rd – Berlin-Schöbendorf-Kloster Lehnin-Nauen (B, L, D)

• Breakfast.
• Depart for Schöbendorf (85 km)
• Jersey farm with arable farming with approx. 380

cows and all in all 490 ha (180 ha grassland, 310 ha grain farming, silage maize/corn, Lucerne/alfalfa)

• Lunch on the farm.
• Depart for Kloster Lehnin (85 km) - Dairy farm

with biogas plant (500 dairy cows, 1900 ha farmland). The crops are used for the animals as well as for biogas / energy production.

• Nauen (56 km)-Arable crop farm (540 ha

farmland and 240 ha grassland, 142 dairy cows, biogas plant with biomethane feed) Return to the hotel (45 km) in Berlin. Overnight: Hotel Leonardo

The technology of biogas plants contributes to the reduction of the C02 emission and also provides an energy supply that feeds electricity into the national electrical grid – this company engineers bio-gas systems and assists in managing the systems and maintaining them on contract with the farmers..

September 4 – Berlin to Hanover

Fri., September 4th – Berlin – Hanover (B, L, D)

• Early breakfast.
• Short visit to the garden of Sanssouci Palace in

Potsdam with its unique terraced garden

• Depart for Cremlingen (190 km)
• Farm with farmer-to-consumer direct marketing

and own farm shop (this farm not confirmed yet)

• Lunch on the farm. The group will eat products

produced on the farm.

• Depart for Wunstorf-Kolenfeld (100 km)
• Arable farm with biogas plant (170 ha farmland,

50 ha grassland, approx. 100 dairy cows and 100 female offspring, 500 kW biogas plant)

• Dinner & overnight in Hanover (Hotel: Mercure

Hotel Hannover City, Willy-Brandt-Allee 3, 30169 Hanover) (25 km) Your guide Dr. Carl-Josef Weiers has to leave this evening for an important family celebration on

• Saturday. From Friday evening to Sunday at noon the

group is accompanied by our guide Gerd Olde

The Sanssouci Palace (German: Schloss Sanssouci) is the former summer palace of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, in Potsdam, near Berlin. It is

• ften counted among the German rivals of Versailles. While Sanssouci is in

the more intimate Rococo style and is far smaller than its French Baroque counterpart, it too is notable for the numerous temples and follies in the

• park. The palace was designed/built between 1745 and 1747 to fulfill King

Frederick's need for a private residence where he could relax away from the pomp and ceremony of the Berlin court.

September 4th – Berlin to Potsdam to Cremlingen – Wunstorf-Kolenfeld - Hanover

Distance to be traveled this day is 315 km or about 196 miles. Visit include Sanssouci Palace, a direct farm marketing farm, and a medium sized dairy enterprize producing electricity on the farm.

September 5 – Hanover to Rheine

Sat., Sept. 5th –- Hanover – Rheine (B, L, D)

• Early breakfast.
• Depart for Haus Düsse, Bad Sassendorf (170

km)

• 10:00 am: Haus Düsse, Bad Sassendorf

(agricultural research center: arable farming, biogas plant). http://www.duesse.de/wir/aufgaben/praese ntation_english.pdf

• Lunch at Haus Düsse
• Transfer to Saerbeck (120 km)
• 15:30 - City of Saerbeck with a new bio

energy park (combination of on-shore wind power, solar energy and biogas energy for 2,400 households).

• Continue to Rheine (20 km).
• Check-in City Club Hotel Rheine,

Humboldtplatz 8, 48429 Rheine

• Dinner & overnight in Rheine.

http://www.landwirtschaftskammer.de/grafik/lwknrwlogo.gif SAERBECK BIOENERGY PARK - The Saerbeck bioenergy park is the site of Europe's largest solar plant constructed on bunkers. The former German army munitions depot is home to 24,000 solar modules today. In the extension to the existing bunker roofs, vast modular tables were installed at a height of 8 m. Due to their size, the tables required a special

• foundation. To do this, 7 m long steel bars were rammed into the ground

and were then anchored using a special concrete.With this ambitious solar project, F&S solar brought its many years of experience to bear.

September 5 – Hanover toHaus Düsse, Bad Sassendorf (170 km) to Saerbeck to Rheine

September 6 – Rheine - Kleve

Sun., Sept. 6th – Rheine – Münster- Bergheim – Kleve (B, L, D)

• Breakfast - Depart for Münster.
• Because of Münster marathon the guided city

tour is canceled.

• Visit of the open-air museum “Mühlenhof” (farm

houses and handcraft business 17 C. – 18 C.

• After the guided visit of the open-air museum

the participants will get lunch packages with traditional food of the region around Münster. Farewell from your guide Gerd Olde.

• Depart for Castle Paffendorf in Bergheim. Here

the group will meet with Dr. Weiers again.

• Visit the visitors’ center about the Rhenish

brown coal industry. The group will look at the soft coal opencast mining from a viewing point.

• Visit to an arable crop farmer with farmland on

recultivated land (ex soft coal opencast mining)

• Transfer to Kleve
• Dinner & overnight in Kleve (The Rilano Hotel

Cleve City, Bensdorpstr. 3, 47533 Kleve).

Castle Paffendorf - The estate of the Vogt (sheriff) in Paffendorf is first mentioned

in 1230. The castle that can be seen today is built in the Renaissance style, completely constructed from bricks and surrounded by a moat on all sides; it originates mainly from the building period between 1531 and 1546. Today, the castle houses an information center of the energy corporation RWE Power AG, and an exhibition on the region‘s history of lignite mining. During the summer months, the castle yard sees many open air concerts with artists from the region, sponsored by RWE. www.paffendorf-erft.de

Sun., Sept. 6th – Rheine – Münster- Bergheim – Kleve

September 7 – Kleve - Brussels

Mon., Sept. 7th – Kleve - Brussels (240 km) (B, L, D)

• Breakfast
• Continue to visit Haus Riswick in Kleve

(research center: dairy cattle, cultivated pasture, calf rearing).

• 10:00 am visit Haus Riswick (2 hours with

following lunch)

• After lunch continue to Brussels
• Possible farm visit on the way into Brussels –

due to protest in Brussels, many Belgian Farmers including the farmer we were to visit, will be heading into Brussels for the

• protest. Brewery has cancelled tours that day.
• Meet and greet with the local Belgium host

for dinner.

• Hotels, meals and program organized by the

Belgium tour operator.

• Dinner & Overnight Brussels. Hotel Bedford

( www.hotelbedford.be )

Location: Kleve, Germany Construction Period: 2002 Input: Manure, Agricultural Organic Waste Fermenter: Concrete Tank, 570 m³ Co-generator: Dual Fuel Co-generator, 65 kW Special Features: External Heat Exchanger, Gas Holder above Fermenter, Demonstration Biogas Plant for Education of Farmers Responsibility of Krieg & Fischer Ingenieure GmbH: Conception, Preplanning, Permission, Detailed Construction Plans, Tender Documents, Supervision of Construction, Start-up Welcome to the Bedford Hotel & Congress Centre, ever since 1955 "The Bedford combines traditional hospitality of a privately owned hotel, to the professionalism of an experienced team"

September 8 – Brussels- Perwez - Brussels

Tues., Sept. 8th –Belgium - EU Headquarters(B, L, D)

• Breakfast. Guide Xavier : Tel + 32 478336313
• Visit as arranged by the US Embassy in Brussels with

coordination with Pierre-Yves Dalem from the “Get to Belgium”. Meeting with a representative from the European (Union) Commission. Discussion on how the EU Institution works, Common Agriculture Policy Reform (CAP), learn about The EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership - TTIP position in farming sector. The European Union has a strategies aiming for the year 2020 in addition to agriculture regarding several key trade sectors including Digital Union, and Energy Union, the Environment and Agriculture as well as other important initiatives. Agricultural land is presently about 50% of the land surface area of Europe.

• Lunch at the ‘The Comic’ Restaurant.
• Your Belgian Tour Director Xavier worked for 4 years

as Vice-President of the Federation of Young Farmers (FJA) in Wallonia. He basically took care of international issues.

• Farm Flabat 47 rue du Ponceau

1360 Perwez

• It’s a typical family farm for

Belgium with diversified

• production. 150 ha of crops

(cereals, sugar beet, peas, potatoes, corn silage, grass), 45 dairy cows (Red Holstein) and 50 beef cows

• Brussels City tour on the way back

to the hotel.

• Dinner & Overnight Brussels. Hotel

Bedford (www.hotelbedford.be )

• Sept. 7 – Kleve to Brussels – Sept. 8 – Brussels to Perwez

September 9 – Brussels- Perwez - Brussels

Wed., Sept. 9th – Belgium – Bruges (B, L, D)

• Breakfast.
• “The Berverse kaasmakerij” Kerkhove, 64

1547 BEVER. – meet our guide Bob for this day’s tour.

• Excellent Dairy farm with 160 dairy cows and

cheese fabrication on the farm. 4 employees.

• Lunch at the farm. (Meet Michel and Yolande

Van Schaftingen-Bielaer).

• Travel to Ghent to see the Van Eyck Alter in

Sint Baaf in the St. Bavo’s Cathedral Check in to your hotel.

• Walking tour in Brugge/Bruges – walk to the

local restaurant at the conclusion of your tour.

• Overnight in Brugge.

Traditional Cheese making by family farmers – Yolande and Michel Van Schaftingen-Bielaer See a replica of the Van Eyck Alter in Sint Baaf in the St. Bavo’s

• Cathedral. The real

art piece is securely hidden away.

The Van Eyck Alter

September 10 – Brussels - Perwez - Brussels

Thurs., Sept. 10th – Bruges – Eltville – Frankfurt (am Main) (B, L, D)

• Breakfast.
• Depart for Germany
• Lunch in a restaurant somewhere near the

Rhine River

• Depart for Eltville
• Winery tour at Eberbach Abbey with tasting of

6 wines

• Dinner at Eberbach Abbey
• Continue to Frankfurt to hotel near the airport

(35 km)

• Overnight in Frankfurt (InterCityHotel

Frankfurt-Airport, Am Luftbrückendenkmal 1, 60549 Frankfurt)

Experience the monastery with all your senses with. a tour, during which you will learn interesting facts about its eventful history of this winery. Visit the monks' cloister, once strictly reserved for the use of the ordained choir monks. Feel the chill of the historical monastery vaults and the atmospheric wine

• cellars. And finally, enjoy the fine bouquet and aromatic taste of the wonderful

wines served there. All of these wines were produced by the Hessian State Wineries Kloster Eberbach, which today still cultivate a key area of the former monastery vineyards.

• Sept. 10th – Bruges – Koblenz – Eltville – Frankfurt (am Main)

Depart from Bruge, travel across the country of Belgium traveling back into Germany Lunch in a restaurant at the Rhine River - Depart for Eltville Winery tour at Eberbach Abbey with tasting of 6 wines - Dinner at Eberbach Abbey Overnight in Frankfurt (InterCityHotel Frankfurt-Airport, Am Luftbrückendenkmal 1, 60549 Frankfurt

Departure for Detroit, Michigan

• Fri., Sept. 11th – Frankfurt – Detroit

(B)

• 06:30 Breakfast.
• 08:00 Load motor coach with luggage for transfer to the airport.
• 08:30 Arrival at the airport 3 hours in advance of check in for flights.
• 11:30 Flight Delta Airlines DL 087 (11:30 am) – Departing for Detroit on a direct flight (European Time)
• 14:57 Arrival (2:57 pm) in Detroit to Wayne County International Airport (US Time)