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Our secret of luck
Since 2003, the TV stars Claudia Wenzel and Rüdiger Joswig are happily married. Because of their profession, they are often spatially separated in everyday life, but every year they take a break together. This time we went to South Africa and Namibia ...
Ms. Wenzel, how important are such common trips for your marriage? Claudia Wenzel: Very. We try to make at least four weeks of vacation together every year. If we receive offers in this period, we reject them in principle. Then the holiday comes first. Spending time together is something very important. It shows us again and again how well our relationship works. What is the secret of your marriage? Claudia Wenzel: I was married once before, my husband twice. We have learned from these experiences. We know what mistakes we have made in past relationships. In my first marriage I have z. B. sometimes excited about a sock lying around. Today, I no longer burden my marriage with such trifles and rather pick up the sock myself. The most important thing is to let the partner be the way you know him, to love him, and not to try to bend him. Is not there anything your husband likes to wake up with? Claudia Wenzel: Of course, something annoys me too. He is a really great environmentally conscious person. I also pay attention to that, but he is already more extreme. With him, it goes so far that he does not turn on the lights at night in the hall to save electricity. And I have to run up the stairs with high heels in the dark. Then sometimes I turn on the light and say: "I do not want to break my leg!" But on the other hand, I understand him too, and in retrospect we laugh about it. Was it your first trip to Africa? Claudia Wenzel: No. It was certainly already our sixth. Africa is the country that we both love about everything. The landscapes are beautiful, the people incredibly friendly. My husband recently spent a year in South Africa, in Zimbabwe. At that time I visited him more often and since then we have been trying to travel there every two years. Not only in civilized South Africa but also in other regions. This time we went to Namibia and did a four day safari tour there.
Which stations did you particularly impress?
Claudia Wenzel: By a very big coincidence we were able to observe the birth of a wildebeest on our safari. It was born in the midday sun right by the wayside and only 25 minutes later it got up and staggered away with the herd. That was very impressive, an absolute highlight.
Have you also looked at the slums?
Claudia Wenzel: Yes, of course. We support an AIDS orphanage in Namibia, which we visited again this time. During the time my husband spent in Zimbabwe, he took over the sponsorship of three children whom he allowed to attend school. We suspect life in the slums with the terrible misery and the great AIDS problems. Of course we are dealing with this, that is part of an African holiday.
Many do not want to look at the misery because it depresses the mood.
Claudia Wenzel: Of course, but it would be a mistake to just look at the beautiful pages. I think it would be bad to drive in a screened hotel area and get nothing from the country. We like the country and want to experience it.
You are so excited about Africa, could you imagine living there someday?
Claudia Wenzel: No. I love Germany, with the different seasons and all the beautiful cities. It's just a great country and I would not want to live in any other. My husband and I agree. Although, of course, it's great to see something different for a month or two a year, especially in winter when it's wet and gray.
What's next on the itinerary?
Claudia Wenzel: Next, we want to stay in Germany again and make a really nice winter holiday, with snow and skiing and then it's maybe even a week on the Canary Islands .
You've already seen a lot of the world. What makes the perfect holiday for you?
Claudia Wenzel: The right mix of good planning and spontaneity. Roughly the trip must be planned, but I would also like to see many things and if I like it somewhere spontaneously stay there. And otherwise: sleeping in, good food and the loved ones on the side - this is pure holiday.
Common time is not self-evident for you. They are often in Leipzig for "in all friendliness", her husband spent most of the year on the Baltic Sea for the "Coast Guard" in front of the camera ...
Claudia Wenzel: There are always times when we are a little longer separated. But we try to spend as much time as possible together. A holiday is therefore something very beautiful for us. It's great when we can always be together for so long.
What do you love most about your husband?
Claudia Wenzel: I love his humor with my husband. And when we meet again after a week of separation, we are right back on the same wavelength. We fit perfectly together. We always say, "We just found each other, even if it took a long time."
That sounds very harmonious. Is there sometimes a dispute?
Claudia Wenzel: Surely there are some small quarrels, but I can not think of a concrete example. These are really always trifles. But there is no serious argument between us.
What role does jealousy play in your relationship, especially in times when you see yourself less often?
Claudia Wenzel: The issue of jealousy does not occur with us. We have a great foundation of trust. And we are both already at an age where you have experienced a lot and know what you want. That's why we would never risk what we have for an adventure. However, when my husband sees me kissing someone in the movie or I see him lying in bed with another woman on the other hand, it tingles. I am then curious and ask: "Well, how was that with the colleague?" But I think that's fine too. It would be weird if it was not so.
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