🥳✨️ Today I turn 39! I'm enjoying the day all to myself on the German North Sea island of Baltrum. It's the smallest of the populated East Frisian Islands. I've visited here several times since I was a small child. Baltrum is so small that there are no cars and no street names, only house numbers.

⏳️🪁 The last time I was here was 23 years ago, at the age of 16. The photos show me when I was about 3-4 years old (1989/1990), and the others when I was 6 (1992).

👶🦷 I remember losing my very first baby tooth on Baltrum. But you can't see it, because it happened on the last day. As a child, my hair was quite light—but yes, that's really me!

🐇🐓 In the early 90s, there were lots of pheasants and rabbits on Baltrum, and they were very friendly. But that hasn't been the case for decades. Today you can still see them occasionally, but back then there were a lot of them!

🐚🦀⛱️ I remember the girl I played with on the beach, and I also remember that a small seahorse and several starfish washed up into the hole we dug.

🐴😳 I was a bit sceptical about the horse (Norwegian Fjord Horse) because I didn't really like feeding it by hand. I was once bitten by a donkey, and that scared me. But I wasn't afraid to get on the horse and ride it. I have many memories of Baltrum, and that's why I'm spending my birthday in this special place. I'll have a detailed report as soon as I get back.

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Dedicated to Daenerys. 🐲🐲🐲

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The Islas Ballestas are ruled by birds. They produce the valuable guano. They can s(h)it wherever they want.

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🌊The Islas Ballestas are a group of small islands. They are part of a nature reserve and home to numerous animal species.🐧💩 Thousands of seabirds produce guano here. This is caused by the reaction of bird droppings and limestone and is traditionally used as a fertilizer 🚜, but also in the production of explosives💣. The word guano comes from Quechua, where it's called "wanu". 🤓 Responsible for the chemical reaction is the nucleobase guanine contained in the bird's urine.

🤗 For a more nuanced discussion, please feel free to use the comments section, private messages or the anonymous contact form on my website.