From last night at Joker's:
John (talking about what he had to do to get his residence permit): They made me get this special picture, where I couldn't smile. And they collected this ridiculous data on me, like the curve of my nose..."
Scott: "Jesus doesn't know the curve of your nose."
20.4.06
Okay. Now is as good of a time as any to recap my travels from the last month. If I don't do it now, I won't want to do it when school starts, and then it'll never get done. Be forewarned, though; this post covers from March 23, 2006 to the present. This could be a long one.
My aunt arrived in Germany in March, and after a day of sightseeing in Tuebingen, we headed out to Baden-Baden, a small, pleasant city a few hours from here by train and very close to the French border. I'd been to Baden-Baden a few times before, since Jeff's mom's cousin lives near there with her husband and we've visited them a couple times this year. So I'd seen a lot of it before - the pretty gardens, the casino, the upscale shopping, the old Roman bath ruins - but my aunt wanted to go to the spa, which I had never done. I thought this to be a good idea, since it was decently priced and I'd never been to a spa. Plus, Baden-Baden was historically a very popular place to bathe publicly, because of thermal water that is still used in the spas there today. We chose the Friedrichsbad, which was built in a Renaissance style near the Roman ruins. It was then that I realized the two problems I would have with this:
- You had to be completely naked for the entirety of the time in the spa.
- The pools were co-ed on the day we decided to go.
Naturally, I had my reservations about this, having extremely pale skin and not exactly proud of my weight. Being naked in front of women was something that I got used to quick, but being around strange men? Luckily, the atmosphere was such that no one said a thing to each other, or even looked at other people with anything but curious observation. It was very comfortable, and I can rest assured knowing that the only person that I will ever see again from that experience will be my aunt. Oh, and I was very relaxed and rejuvinated after I got out of there - I highly recommend a visit to the Friedrichsbad if you are ever in Baden-Baden.
Related statement: Any sons of mine will be circumcised. End of discussion.
After enjoying a few days in Baden-Baden with surprisingly good weather, my aunt and I made our way to Switzerland, to visit her old host family from a high-school exchange that took place almost forty years ago. It's amazing that they still stay in contact, but once I got there I found out why. These people are the nicest people you will ever meet. The Swiss have a reputation of being cold and stand-offish, much like the Germans, but once you're invited to their home, they are completely different. We stayed for a week, and here are my impressions/experiences, not in any particular order:
Bodensee. Known in English as Lake Constance, the Bodensee is bordered by Germany to the north, Switzerland to the southwest and Austria to the southeast. We took several trips to Konstanz, the German city which was right across the border from the Swiss village we were staying in. (At night, I could see the lights of the city from my bedroom.) We also visited other cities on the Bodensee, most notably Friedrichshafen, where Graf Zeppelin (of Zeppelin balloon fame) was born and developed his air ships. We visited a museum dedicated to him while we were there, and I learned a lot about what I consider to be the fascinating subject of zepplins. This was my first encounter with Bodensee, and I have to say, it's beautiful and I'd love to go again.
Zurich. Staying with the older sister of my aunt's exchange sister, we spent a pleasant evening in Zurich. We went to the Kunsthaus, where I admired Impressionist works and lamented how terribly underdressed I was in comparision to most of the other patrons. Afterwards, we walked around Zurich, looked at the Grossmunster (where my aunt actually went to school), and had a drink before heading home for the night. Zurich is quite a pretty place, and it was different this time from what I remembered it being like from the first time I was there, almost 2 years ago.
Appenzeller Cheese. Appenzell is a quaint, picturesque little Swiss town: cute Fachwerk houses nestled among rolling cow-scattered hills, with snowy mountains in the near distance. They are known for their picturesque quality, their traditions, their dogs, and their cheese. We visited the cheese factory, and sampled the delicious cheese - I recommend Surchoix. You can visit their website for more info, if you care that much.
Winterthur. Since it is one of the larger Swiss towns, my aunt's host sister suggested I go to Winterthur on the day she and my aunt were scheduled to have lunch with 3 of the ladies they went to high school with 40 years ago. It sounded like a better option than the lunch for me, so I went. On that day, we did a lot of car travel, and I felt pretty sick about half an hour before they were going to set me on the bus that would take me to Winterthur, so they almost made me come with them to the lunch. Rather than let a bunch of ladies fret about me, I decided to go to Winterthur anyway. It wasn't a bad decision, but it was kind of boring exploring the city by myself. Basically, I walked the pedestrian zone, shopped, and ducked the rain for 3 hours. Finally, I had a cappiccino, asked where an internet cafe was, and was directed to the State Library, where I ate up the remaining 2 hours by reading magazines.
Swiss German. I swear to you, it was like an entirely different language. Listening to conversations, I picked up about as much as I would have if they had been speaking French. Everything's completely different from Hochdeutsch, or High German, which is what I am used to speaking and hearing. The only difference is that when I spoke High German to anyone, they would switch into it too, because they use High German for reading and writing, both in schools and in newspapers and other written media. So basically, I couldn't understand what was going on, but when I asked questions, they still had the upper hand, even when answering in Hochdeutsch, because it's still their language after all. It was a very weird experience. Also, Swiss German is much throatier, much more gutteral, and generally just a lot uglier than regular German. So if you thought German was ugly, go to Northern Switzerland.
Coffee Machines. Every house that we visited had an awesome coffee machine. The house we stayed at the most had a manual Nespresso machine, where you just added another little Nestle capsule every time you wanted an espresso, and then fired up the machine for as long as you wanted, depending on how strong you wanted your coffee. The one at the sister's house was an automatic, so much more expensive and with more features, but still serving the same basic purpose. The Swiss take their coffee very seriously, as I found out on this trip.
Tante Frene und Tante Griete. These two old members of the family, Aunt Frene and Aunt Griete, were hands-down the coolest old people I have EVER met. (With the exception of Ashley's dad.) The two aunts never married, and have been living together in a little house in a Swiss village since the 50's. They are both in their 90's now, but are still very active - they ride their bicycles and take the bus in to town to go grocery shopping. Mentally, they are very much aware of what is going on around them, and they spoke a very refined High German while I was there, since they knew I didn't understand Swiss German. They asked me lots of questions and referenced literature and spoke about the past and the present - I couldn't believe that I was having this conversation with two little old hunchbacked ladies who were still living on their own. If you can't tell, I was very impressed, and hope I am just like them if I ever make it to 90.
Family dinner. On the last night of my stay in Switzerland, we had a big family reunion in the restaurant owned and operated by the host brother. I basically sat and listened, trying to discern some crumbs of the conversation and failing miserably. So instead, I looked around the table at all the cousins, which was not a bad option because every single boy in that family is super, super cute. Every once in a while, I'd have a short conversation with somebody in either High German or English, but for the most part I just sat, looked around and ate the wonderful Swiss food. I didn't have much of a problem with this, because I knew that if I had some random foreigner at my family reunion, I'd be much more concerned with catching up with the relatives than talking to this guy I didn't know. Plus, it was a wonderful free dinner. So it was all good.
Switzerland is an expensive country. That's all I have to say about that one.
Next major post will cover the main points about the trip to Paris with Jeff and his parents. Right now, I have to get ready to go walking to Bebenhausen with Ronda, who just got back yesterday. I'm super excited, because a. I haven't been to Bebenhausen yet, even though it's right next to Tuebingen, and b. Ronda and I haven't seen each other for more than 6 weeks!
So, till tomorrow. Hopefully.
My aunt arrived in Germany in March, and after a day of sightseeing in Tuebingen, we headed out to Baden-Baden, a small, pleasant city a few hours from here by train and very close to the French border. I'd been to Baden-Baden a few times before, since Jeff's mom's cousin lives near there with her husband and we've visited them a couple times this year. So I'd seen a lot of it before - the pretty gardens, the casino, the upscale shopping, the old Roman bath ruins - but my aunt wanted to go to the spa, which I had never done. I thought this to be a good idea, since it was decently priced and I'd never been to a spa. Plus, Baden-Baden was historically a very popular place to bathe publicly, because of thermal water that is still used in the spas there today. We chose the Friedrichsbad, which was built in a Renaissance style near the Roman ruins. It was then that I realized the two problems I would have with this:
- You had to be completely naked for the entirety of the time in the spa.
- The pools were co-ed on the day we decided to go.
Naturally, I had my reservations about this, having extremely pale skin and not exactly proud of my weight. Being naked in front of women was something that I got used to quick, but being around strange men? Luckily, the atmosphere was such that no one said a thing to each other, or even looked at other people with anything but curious observation. It was very comfortable, and I can rest assured knowing that the only person that I will ever see again from that experience will be my aunt. Oh, and I was very relaxed and rejuvinated after I got out of there - I highly recommend a visit to the Friedrichsbad if you are ever in Baden-Baden.
Related statement: Any sons of mine will be circumcised. End of discussion.
After enjoying a few days in Baden-Baden with surprisingly good weather, my aunt and I made our way to Switzerland, to visit her old host family from a high-school exchange that took place almost forty years ago. It's amazing that they still stay in contact, but once I got there I found out why. These people are the nicest people you will ever meet. The Swiss have a reputation of being cold and stand-offish, much like the Germans, but once you're invited to their home, they are completely different. We stayed for a week, and here are my impressions/experiences, not in any particular order:
Bodensee. Known in English as Lake Constance, the Bodensee is bordered by Germany to the north, Switzerland to the southwest and Austria to the southeast. We took several trips to Konstanz, the German city which was right across the border from the Swiss village we were staying in. (At night, I could see the lights of the city from my bedroom.) We also visited other cities on the Bodensee, most notably Friedrichshafen, where Graf Zeppelin (of Zeppelin balloon fame) was born and developed his air ships. We visited a museum dedicated to him while we were there, and I learned a lot about what I consider to be the fascinating subject of zepplins. This was my first encounter with Bodensee, and I have to say, it's beautiful and I'd love to go again.
Zurich. Staying with the older sister of my aunt's exchange sister, we spent a pleasant evening in Zurich. We went to the Kunsthaus, where I admired Impressionist works and lamented how terribly underdressed I was in comparision to most of the other patrons. Afterwards, we walked around Zurich, looked at the Grossmunster (where my aunt actually went to school), and had a drink before heading home for the night. Zurich is quite a pretty place, and it was different this time from what I remembered it being like from the first time I was there, almost 2 years ago.
Appenzeller Cheese. Appenzell is a quaint, picturesque little Swiss town: cute Fachwerk houses nestled among rolling cow-scattered hills, with snowy mountains in the near distance. They are known for their picturesque quality, their traditions, their dogs, and their cheese. We visited the cheese factory, and sampled the delicious cheese - I recommend Surchoix. You can visit their website for more info, if you care that much.
Winterthur. Since it is one of the larger Swiss towns, my aunt's host sister suggested I go to Winterthur on the day she and my aunt were scheduled to have lunch with 3 of the ladies they went to high school with 40 years ago. It sounded like a better option than the lunch for me, so I went. On that day, we did a lot of car travel, and I felt pretty sick about half an hour before they were going to set me on the bus that would take me to Winterthur, so they almost made me come with them to the lunch. Rather than let a bunch of ladies fret about me, I decided to go to Winterthur anyway. It wasn't a bad decision, but it was kind of boring exploring the city by myself. Basically, I walked the pedestrian zone, shopped, and ducked the rain for 3 hours. Finally, I had a cappiccino, asked where an internet cafe was, and was directed to the State Library, where I ate up the remaining 2 hours by reading magazines.
Swiss German. I swear to you, it was like an entirely different language. Listening to conversations, I picked up about as much as I would have if they had been speaking French. Everything's completely different from Hochdeutsch, or High German, which is what I am used to speaking and hearing. The only difference is that when I spoke High German to anyone, they would switch into it too, because they use High German for reading and writing, both in schools and in newspapers and other written media. So basically, I couldn't understand what was going on, but when I asked questions, they still had the upper hand, even when answering in Hochdeutsch, because it's still their language after all. It was a very weird experience. Also, Swiss German is much throatier, much more gutteral, and generally just a lot uglier than regular German. So if you thought German was ugly, go to Northern Switzerland.
Coffee Machines. Every house that we visited had an awesome coffee machine. The house we stayed at the most had a manual Nespresso machine, where you just added another little Nestle capsule every time you wanted an espresso, and then fired up the machine for as long as you wanted, depending on how strong you wanted your coffee. The one at the sister's house was an automatic, so much more expensive and with more features, but still serving the same basic purpose. The Swiss take their coffee very seriously, as I found out on this trip.
Tante Frene und Tante Griete. These two old members of the family, Aunt Frene and Aunt Griete, were hands-down the coolest old people I have EVER met. (With the exception of Ashley's dad.) The two aunts never married, and have been living together in a little house in a Swiss village since the 50's. They are both in their 90's now, but are still very active - they ride their bicycles and take the bus in to town to go grocery shopping. Mentally, they are very much aware of what is going on around them, and they spoke a very refined High German while I was there, since they knew I didn't understand Swiss German. They asked me lots of questions and referenced literature and spoke about the past and the present - I couldn't believe that I was having this conversation with two little old hunchbacked ladies who were still living on their own. If you can't tell, I was very impressed, and hope I am just like them if I ever make it to 90.
Family dinner. On the last night of my stay in Switzerland, we had a big family reunion in the restaurant owned and operated by the host brother. I basically sat and listened, trying to discern some crumbs of the conversation and failing miserably. So instead, I looked around the table at all the cousins, which was not a bad option because every single boy in that family is super, super cute. Every once in a while, I'd have a short conversation with somebody in either High German or English, but for the most part I just sat, looked around and ate the wonderful Swiss food. I didn't have much of a problem with this, because I knew that if I had some random foreigner at my family reunion, I'd be much more concerned with catching up with the relatives than talking to this guy I didn't know. Plus, it was a wonderful free dinner. So it was all good.
Switzerland is an expensive country. That's all I have to say about that one.
Next major post will cover the main points about the trip to Paris with Jeff and his parents. Right now, I have to get ready to go walking to Bebenhausen with Ronda, who just got back yesterday. I'm super excited, because a. I haven't been to Bebenhausen yet, even though it's right next to Tuebingen, and b. Ronda and I haven't seen each other for more than 6 weeks!
So, till tomorrow. Hopefully.
19.4.06
Tomorrow is 4/20. To the pot smokers of the world, it's the day to smoke one bowl after another. If you're into that kind of thing.
It's also Hitler's birthday. I've been told that rallies occur in some of the bigger German cities. Scary.
So my question is: Which one is more celebrated here in the Big D? A similar question would be, does this country have more starry-eyed left-leaning liberals, or more radical rights?
I guess I'll find the answers to my questions tomorrow...
It's also Hitler's birthday. I've been told that rallies occur in some of the bigger German cities. Scary.
So my question is: Which one is more celebrated here in the Big D? A similar question would be, does this country have more starry-eyed left-leaning liberals, or more radical rights?
I guess I'll find the answers to my questions tomorrow...
18.4.06
6.4.06
Sadly, I have run out of time and the updates on the trip to Switzerland will not find their way to this page until I come back from Paris. But like most pieces of literary genius of our time, my recollections of the trip have been scribbled onto the back of a receipt. Of course, I'm aware you are all very, very* disappointed to have to wait, but try to stifle your enthusiasm for just another week.
*,very, very, very
*,very, very, very
5.4.06
4.4.06
Back from Switzerland. I'll try to post tomorrow about all the things that happened, the things that could have happened, and the things that did not happen.
Right now, I have to get ready to go out for dinner with friends that I haven't seen for a while. It's nice to be back in Tuebingen again, even if only for a short while.
Friends are pretty much the best thing in life, along with family. I miss my US buddies, and I will try to call you (yes, all of you) in the next 2 days before leaving again for Paris.
Right now, I have to get ready to go out for dinner with friends that I haven't seen for a while. It's nice to be back in Tuebingen again, even if only for a short while.
Friends are pretty much the best thing in life, along with family. I miss my US buddies, and I will try to call you (yes, all of you) in the next 2 days before leaving again for Paris.
23.3.06
Last night, I bought a printer. An exchange student who was going home to Chile soon sold it to me for 25 Euros, which is quite the steal except it didn't include a USB cable, so I'll either have to borrow or buy one. But now I can print things without having to go downtown for it!
As we were getting ready to go pick up the printer, Jeff and I were trying to find a box to carry it in, just in case the guy didn't still have the box. (He did.) As I was digging under the table that the TV is on, I came across a box that I hadn't even looked in before. (You have to remember, I'm living in a room that has collected all the appliances and knickknacks left by every recipient of this scholarship for the last 10 years, or maybe more. So I have a lot of junk lying around.) The box contained watercolor paints, brushes, paper, and a water heater (for tea and the like). I swear, this room is like a treasure trove. And my legacy will be a color printer and a hair dryer.
**Edit: I started telling that story about the mystery box because I wanted to tell you that it also included an old Walkman, which I have since hooked up to my speakers. It is now pirating radio to me, which I think is pretty cool, even though German radio, as a general rule, sucks pretty bad. People who own a TV set and/or a radio in Germany are required to pay monthly fees (Runkfunkgebuehren) to Rundfunk, which purportedly distributes the money to all the public TV channels and radio stations. I now have both a TV set AND a radio, and I'm not paying the fees. Yet. Don't tell the authorities.
And last night I had a scary dream about dinosaurs. I went to an amusement park with a friend for her birthday, and we had to be plunged 3000 floors down into the earth via elevator to be disinfected. The only ride I remember going on was pretty sucky, but for some reason the birthday girl couldn't be persuaded to leave, even though there was the threat of dinosaurs. A brontosaurus, tyrannosaurus, and a triceratops were the only dinosaurs there, and the brontosaurus almost stole my backpack, which went missing by the end of our time at the amusement park anyway. None of the dinosaurs could move if it started to snow on them, an effect that could be simulated if you released confetti over them. This proved helpful in our attempts to escape, which oddly enough we only needed to pull on the brontosaurus. The other two dinos weren't as aggressive. Okay, enough of my weird dreams. **End Edit
Tonight, my aunt comes in, and we will leave tomorrow for Switzerland via Baden-Baden. That means I have to pack again, and run countless errands today. This includes cleaning my room, so I'd better get started now. Have a good time while I'm away from the internet world, everybody!
As we were getting ready to go pick up the printer, Jeff and I were trying to find a box to carry it in, just in case the guy didn't still have the box. (He did.) As I was digging under the table that the TV is on, I came across a box that I hadn't even looked in before. (You have to remember, I'm living in a room that has collected all the appliances and knickknacks left by every recipient of this scholarship for the last 10 years, or maybe more. So I have a lot of junk lying around.) The box contained watercolor paints, brushes, paper, and a water heater (for tea and the like). I swear, this room is like a treasure trove. And my legacy will be a color printer and a hair dryer.
**Edit: I started telling that story about the mystery box because I wanted to tell you that it also included an old Walkman, which I have since hooked up to my speakers. It is now pirating radio to me, which I think is pretty cool, even though German radio, as a general rule, sucks pretty bad. People who own a TV set and/or a radio in Germany are required to pay monthly fees (Runkfunkgebuehren) to Rundfunk, which purportedly distributes the money to all the public TV channels and radio stations. I now have both a TV set AND a radio, and I'm not paying the fees. Yet. Don't tell the authorities.
And last night I had a scary dream about dinosaurs. I went to an amusement park with a friend for her birthday, and we had to be plunged 3000 floors down into the earth via elevator to be disinfected. The only ride I remember going on was pretty sucky, but for some reason the birthday girl couldn't be persuaded to leave, even though there was the threat of dinosaurs. A brontosaurus, tyrannosaurus, and a triceratops were the only dinosaurs there, and the brontosaurus almost stole my backpack, which went missing by the end of our time at the amusement park anyway. None of the dinosaurs could move if it started to snow on them, an effect that could be simulated if you released confetti over them. This proved helpful in our attempts to escape, which oddly enough we only needed to pull on the brontosaurus. The other two dinos weren't as aggressive. Okay, enough of my weird dreams. **End Edit
Tonight, my aunt comes in, and we will leave tomorrow for Switzerland via Baden-Baden. That means I have to pack again, and run countless errands today. This includes cleaning my room, so I'd better get started now. Have a good time while I'm away from the internet world, everybody!
21.3.06
Finally, finally back. I was starting to get used to living out of my backpack and hopping from place to place to sleep. Takes about 2 weeks to get used to it, but once I was, I could have kept that up for a few more, because I was comfortable with the fact that I had 4 shirts, 2 pairs of pants and enough underwear for about a week.
But now I'm back in Tuebingen, and I couldn't be happier. Of course, I'll only be here until Friday, but it's so nice to rest for a few days and wash some very dirty laundry. My aunt will be here Thursday, so just a few days before it all starts again.
As for the rest of my trip, it was delightful as can be. Jeff and I enjoyed the streets of London very much, and were impressed by the Tower of London. We flew back Wednesday, spent the night at Jeff's relative's house, and then the next day took off. Jeff was headed for Tuebingen, but not I... I had bought a ticket for the Jack Johnson concert in Munich, so I headed straight for the capital of Bavaria, locked up my backpack in a locker at the train station, and headed to the concert hall. Jack was amazing and I'm really glad I went to see him. Coincidentally, I ran into one of my dorm mates at the show. She invited me to hang out the next day with her and go to the Nockherbergfest, and then spend the night with her at her parent's house (they live in Munich and she goes home for the breaks). I spent the night at my friend Jess's dorm, and then the next day met up with Clara (my dorm mate) and went to the Nockherbergfest.
Now, if you've ever been to Oktoberfest or even Hofbrauhaus, you'll know have an idea of what Nockherbergfest is all about. It's basically the same: long wooden tables filled with Germans in lederhosen and dirndls, raising liters of beer to each other and dancing on the tables as the oom-pah band plays old traditional songs and waitresses in traditional dress bring up to 6 steins of beer to tables. The only differences at the Nockherbergfest is that it's a Starkbierfest, which means the beer served there has a higher alcohol content, and the celebration is smaller and way more authentic (aka less touristy). Basically, it was the Oktoberfest experience I had always wanted to have, because this time I was with actual Germans, one of which was wearing Lederhosen.
It was awesome.
The night went on for a while, as we had arrived at the Fest at 5:30, then later went to a house party, and then finally to a club. When we got home shortly after 2 AM, I realized with bewilderment that this was early for a Friday night. Personally, I felt like I had been out for a short eternity.
The next morning, I hopped a train to Hannover to visit my old host family, the Languths. It was as good as a time as ever - I got to relax, watch some TV, eat, and not really do anything but hang out with one of my favorite families for a few days, which was glorious. The most strenuous thing I did was go out and see "V is for Vendetta" with Jutta and Claus. I also hung out in the city on Sunday night with Albi, a guy I met in Stuttgart who's from Hannover. There are a lot of cool clubs in northern Hannover, which I didn't really know, and I was excited to go to one. We tried to find a club that was open, but nothing was going on that night, so I took the train back to the Languth's house.
And then yesterday, I came back to Tuebingen, which just delighted me to no end. To celebrate, Jeff and I went to Storchen.
So that's that story. There were many times that I wanted to blog because I had some inspriation for a great post, but didn't have the time or the means and so whatever genius I had stored up for y'all is lost, and you get a synopsis of what I did.
Added bonus: my Dad now has a blog. Want me to add you to the blogroll, Dad?
But now I'm back in Tuebingen, and I couldn't be happier. Of course, I'll only be here until Friday, but it's so nice to rest for a few days and wash some very dirty laundry. My aunt will be here Thursday, so just a few days before it all starts again.
As for the rest of my trip, it was delightful as can be. Jeff and I enjoyed the streets of London very much, and were impressed by the Tower of London. We flew back Wednesday, spent the night at Jeff's relative's house, and then the next day took off. Jeff was headed for Tuebingen, but not I... I had bought a ticket for the Jack Johnson concert in Munich, so I headed straight for the capital of Bavaria, locked up my backpack in a locker at the train station, and headed to the concert hall. Jack was amazing and I'm really glad I went to see him. Coincidentally, I ran into one of my dorm mates at the show. She invited me to hang out the next day with her and go to the Nockherbergfest, and then spend the night with her at her parent's house (they live in Munich and she goes home for the breaks). I spent the night at my friend Jess's dorm, and then the next day met up with Clara (my dorm mate) and went to the Nockherbergfest.
Now, if you've ever been to Oktoberfest or even Hofbrauhaus, you'll know have an idea of what Nockherbergfest is all about. It's basically the same: long wooden tables filled with Germans in lederhosen and dirndls, raising liters of beer to each other and dancing on the tables as the oom-pah band plays old traditional songs and waitresses in traditional dress bring up to 6 steins of beer to tables. The only differences at the Nockherbergfest is that it's a Starkbierfest, which means the beer served there has a higher alcohol content, and the celebration is smaller and way more authentic (aka less touristy). Basically, it was the Oktoberfest experience I had always wanted to have, because this time I was with actual Germans, one of which was wearing Lederhosen.
It was awesome.
The night went on for a while, as we had arrived at the Fest at 5:30, then later went to a house party, and then finally to a club. When we got home shortly after 2 AM, I realized with bewilderment that this was early for a Friday night. Personally, I felt like I had been out for a short eternity.
The next morning, I hopped a train to Hannover to visit my old host family, the Languths. It was as good as a time as ever - I got to relax, watch some TV, eat, and not really do anything but hang out with one of my favorite families for a few days, which was glorious. The most strenuous thing I did was go out and see "V is for Vendetta" with Jutta and Claus. I also hung out in the city on Sunday night with Albi, a guy I met in Stuttgart who's from Hannover. There are a lot of cool clubs in northern Hannover, which I didn't really know, and I was excited to go to one. We tried to find a club that was open, but nothing was going on that night, so I took the train back to the Languth's house.
And then yesterday, I came back to Tuebingen, which just delighted me to no end. To celebrate, Jeff and I went to Storchen.
So that's that story. There were many times that I wanted to blog because I had some inspriation for a great post, but didn't have the time or the means and so whatever genius I had stored up for y'all is lost, and you get a synopsis of what I did.
Added bonus: my Dad now has a blog. Want me to add you to the blogroll, Dad?
13.3.06
London!
So, what can I say about London? I guess there are two main points.
1. London is beautiful.
2. London is expensive.
Both are facts, and the first fact makes the second fact a lot easier to live with. For example, Jeff and I walked for two hours yesterday to get to the city center. Of course, we stopped along the way to look at things, and saw Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the Parlament Buildings, and various parts of inner London such as Trafalger Square, Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus. So the £10 we saved by shunning public transportation was not saved in vain, for we saw a lot more than we would have if we had traveled on the Underground. (My opinion, anyway.)
Our hostel here is better than the one in Ireland. The kitchen here is smaller, but that's no big deal since here, everything works. (Only two out of the total of 15 stovetops could boil water in the Ireland hostel kitchen.) We're staying at the Queen Astor Hostel in Bayswater, a place my guidebook describes as a 'virtual tourist ghetto'. But it's right next to Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, which is a nice consolation. And within a minute's walk, we can reach McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Starbucks!! (Sad that this is exciting to me...)
Tonight we will go back to a pub that we discovered yesterday in Soho called the Red Lion. Hopefully we'll do a little more discovering of London. Tomorrow will be the day for seeing the inside of Westminster Abbey, London Tower, and visiting the Tower Bridge. Wednesday will hopefully include a swing over to Camden Town before we have to leave to catch our flight back to Germany.
Time to go and spend some more quid...
So, what can I say about London? I guess there are two main points.
1. London is beautiful.
2. London is expensive.
Both are facts, and the first fact makes the second fact a lot easier to live with. For example, Jeff and I walked for two hours yesterday to get to the city center. Of course, we stopped along the way to look at things, and saw Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the Parlament Buildings, and various parts of inner London such as Trafalger Square, Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus. So the £10 we saved by shunning public transportation was not saved in vain, for we saw a lot more than we would have if we had traveled on the Underground. (My opinion, anyway.)
Our hostel here is better than the one in Ireland. The kitchen here is smaller, but that's no big deal since here, everything works. (Only two out of the total of 15 stovetops could boil water in the Ireland hostel kitchen.) We're staying at the Queen Astor Hostel in Bayswater, a place my guidebook describes as a 'virtual tourist ghetto'. But it's right next to Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, which is a nice consolation. And within a minute's walk, we can reach McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, and Starbucks!! (Sad that this is exciting to me...)
Tonight we will go back to a pub that we discovered yesterday in Soho called the Red Lion. Hopefully we'll do a little more discovering of London. Tomorrow will be the day for seeing the inside of Westminster Abbey, London Tower, and visiting the Tower Bridge. Wednesday will hopefully include a swing over to Camden Town before we have to leave to catch our flight back to Germany.
Time to go and spend some more quid...
11.3.06
Our Dublin days have come to a close. In the last 3 hours before the bus ride to the airport, Jeff and I chose to pass the time by making food, drinking coffee at a cafe and watching passers-by, and spending an hour in an internet shop.
Things were good here. My impression of Dublin is a gritty city in the middle of a lush land, a place that's trying hard to bloom but can't quite break through the surface. There were lots of young people at our hostel that had moved to Dublin in hopes of finding employment, but are stuck staying long-term at the hostel because apartments are very hard to attain. Jeff and I ate some good fish and chips, drank some good Guiness stout (missed touring the factory, but that's expensive!), and managed to fit in some culture at two different Irish museums, one history and one art. The trip to Howth last Thursday was a jaunt to the countryside that happened to be included on the 5-day bus passes we bought when we got here. And then last night, we stayed standing for hours in a crowded pub, listening to live Irish music and watching people dance around. Tonight is a big rugby game between Scotland and Ireland, so Dublin is teeming with Scots. They're easy to spot, since many of them are wearing kilts. Needless to say, last night in the pub was a ruckus, with kilted men dancing, and one guy even bringing in his bagpipes and playing a few songs, much to the crowd's delight.
Today we fly to England, and hopefully we'll survive the expenses of London. My guide book describes prices in London as "horrendous". Great. But we've stocked up on pasta, and hopefully we'll make it for 4 days. Til the next...
Things were good here. My impression of Dublin is a gritty city in the middle of a lush land, a place that's trying hard to bloom but can't quite break through the surface. There were lots of young people at our hostel that had moved to Dublin in hopes of finding employment, but are stuck staying long-term at the hostel because apartments are very hard to attain. Jeff and I ate some good fish and chips, drank some good Guiness stout (missed touring the factory, but that's expensive!), and managed to fit in some culture at two different Irish museums, one history and one art. The trip to Howth last Thursday was a jaunt to the countryside that happened to be included on the 5-day bus passes we bought when we got here. And then last night, we stayed standing for hours in a crowded pub, listening to live Irish music and watching people dance around. Tonight is a big rugby game between Scotland and Ireland, so Dublin is teeming with Scots. They're easy to spot, since many of them are wearing kilts. Needless to say, last night in the pub was a ruckus, with kilted men dancing, and one guy even bringing in his bagpipes and playing a few songs, much to the crowd's delight.
Today we fly to England, and hopefully we'll survive the expenses of London. My guide book describes prices in London as "horrendous". Great. But we've stocked up on pasta, and hopefully we'll make it for 4 days. Til the next...
9.3.06
Jeff and I took a trip outside of the city today. We went north to the coast to a small town called Howth, where the bus dropped us off in the middle of nowhere and we walked along the coast for a while. It was awesome to see the islands, the grass, and the water for a full day. There were church ruins to explore and local taverns to visit.
All in all, it was a great day of nothing and everything. I'm too tired to explain it much more than that.
Tomorrow it's looking like we will spend more time in Dublin, and then we fly out Saturday afternoon to London.
Cheers!
All in all, it was a great day of nothing and everything. I'm too tired to explain it much more than that.
Tomorrow it's looking like we will spend more time in Dublin, and then we fly out Saturday afternoon to London.
Cheers!
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