I haven't updated the blog in a few days, because it's been a bit nuts since I last wrote a post. In fact, that was also the last time I was even really online. So, a quick recap.
On Friday morning, Sarina, Simon, and I went to breakfast in der Oberstadt, which is basically the upper part of Marburg. It's full of little shops, cafes, and restaurants along small cobblestone streets. There's a place that has a full breakfast for students for 5,80€ with drinks included.
Not only was the view amazing, but the food was also quite good as well. Check out the awesome drawings on our hardboiled eggs.
After breakfast and a bit of downtime at Sarina's, I headed to the south train station to meet my ride share to Berlin. On the bus, I snapped a view of the castle in Marburg. Everything seemed so familiar, since I had basically taken this bus to my language course three years ago.
My ride share arrived after a few minutes of me wondering if I was going to be able to find this blue 2010 Renault Clio. I don't have a German cell phone this time, so I've been making plans ahead of time and going to places at times I've arranged with people. For the most part, Germans are very punctual (and I try to be as well), so it works out well.
The plus side of a Mitfahrt (or ride share/carpool) is that it's quite affordable and is usually with pretty chill people. It only cost me 25€ instead of the 99€ for a train ticket. The down side is that you never know what's going to happen traffic-wise.
It doesn't happen often, but when a bad accident happens on the Autobahn, the entire thing just shuts down. My first experience with this was during my Fulbright year when it took me 12 hours to get from Marburg back to Berlin (normally takes six). This time, it took us nine hours, because of an accident that saw us move about 15 km in three hours — we were walking around on the Autobahn, because you literally could not move!
The radio later said it was backed up for 16 km (which is 10 miles), and it was only six km long when we first hit the back up. I asked our driver where we were, and even she had no idea. We turned around and saw this exit sign that cracked us up, because it sounds like literally in the middle of nowhere.
The three-hour delay meant that it would not be easy for me to meet up with Brandon, who would be hosting me for the week. Since I don't have a German cell this week, I realized I had to pull one of the SIM cards from my bag to see what might work (while avoiding costly charges on my American cell).
I ended up using up the balance on my Singaporean SIM card, but it did help me snag a bed for the night at another friend of mine's apartment. It worked out well, because she lives just around the corner from where I was dropped off — and also just down the street from one of my old apartments in Berlin-Neukölln.
It turns out she ended up cutting her night short after getting my text, so I felt awful. But she would have none of it. She let me sleep in her bed while she took the couch, even though I protested that I could sleep on the couch. So I made sure to buy her lunch the next day — at my favorite spot in Berlin.
My favorite spot is a schwarma shop that has 3€ chicken schwarma sandwiches that will fill you up. I used to go there all the time. But sadly, they've become more expensive and way too salty. In fact, it really didn't taste as good as it used to. Bummer. I may not be going back there anymore.
After thanking Tamar again, I headed to Brandon's. Thankfully, he was home, so we got to catch up. It was like old times!
Honestly, my Fulbright year was as great as it was, because I had a buddy like Brandon to hang out with. In catching up, it was like I had never left. He actually reminded me of some hilarious stories that I had completely forgotten — like how one of his first memories of me was at breakfast in Marburg when I stacked a plate full of schnitzel like pancakes and had a bowl of cereal to boot. In case you didn't know, you don't eat schnitzel for breakfast.
Soon, we both headed out: him to our friend Stefan's roommates' birthday party, where I'd join them later, and me to the complete opposite corner of the city to meet some old softball buddies for a drink. It was fun to see the guys and to chat about American sports in German. Good times!
After that, I headed to the other corner of the city to meet Stefan, Brandon, and the rest of the gang. It took me nearly two hours just to get there, even with only one transfer. It was really all the walking that caused the long transit, but still, it was quite a trek. Saw some really nice buildings on the way there, though.
It was great to see Stefan again, whom I had last seen in Seattle. I told him all our friends in Seattle said hi and that he should come back and visit again. Just like old times, we enjoyed some grilling, beers, and catching up in the park. Random note: we also saw a heron in the park.
Once it got dark, we decided to head to a bar with delicious Augustiner beer on tap. It's one of my absolute favorite beers, and it's either too expensive or too hard to find in the US. The bar was cool, too. There was the smallest foosball table I've ever seen, so we stuck with pool. Brandon and I paired up against two of the German friends we met in a sort of US vs. German shoot out. I'm ashamed to say that we started strong but couldn't finish in the clutch. Ugh.
After we left the bar, it was already quite late, so we spent the night at Stefan's, but not before we picked up a dürüm döner for the road. Sooo delicious!
Also, there was a funny little cartoon on the wall. An angel offered a boy three wishes, and he responds, "Okay, I'll have three döners." They're that good.
This morning, we all went to brunch at this all-you-can-eat place near Stefan's apartment (which is also very close to the HIA Berlin office). It was a smorgasbord of food to eat, but my appetite has changed such that I really can't eat that much anymore. So I only had two plates, which were both mostly vegetables and fruits. I didn't even bother grabbing bread.
After brunch, I had to leave them all to rush to the Berlin central train station to meet my friend, Benjamin, who came up from Leipzig for the day. I was so grateful to him for making the trip up to see me and to take pictures in Berlin. You can see his amazing photos on FB.
He thought it was funny that I (the American) was giving him (the German) a tour of Germany's capital city, but I'm glad I could show him around. We took a few pictures around the federal government buildings area, and I snapped a picture that a recent CW show had shown as "Nanjing, China" on TV.
I also got to see the articles of the German Constitution on a glass wall nearby for the first time. The first line is one that all Germans know: "Die Würde des Menschen ist unantastbar" or "Human dignity is inviolable."
We made our way to Unter den Linden and caught a boat up the Spree for a river tour. It was so hot out, but we were able to enjoy the best of Berlin, including one of my favorite places: the Berliner Dom.
I just learned today, too, that the long debate over what to rebuild (or not rebuild) on the spot where the former Palace of the Republic stood was decided last year. The debate had been over whether to rebuild the original Berlin Castle (Berliner Schloss) or leave it as a grassy open space. Personally, I think the original castle (destroyed after heavy damage during World War II) would be great. Not sure how the funding looks, but the idea is nice. Obviously, it's a touchy debate in Berlin still.
Ben also taught me a few tricks for taking and touching up awesome pictures with my iPhone. Check out what we did to this picture of the Reichstag:
Ostensibly, touching up pictures too much makes it look pretty obvious. But it can help make some of the features in various pictures pop. This was actually a bad example, as Ben shared, because of the type of photo we used and the color balance to begin with. I learned a ton today!
Ben headed home after dinner, and then I went home to hang out with Brandon and relax after a busy weekend. We snacked on Brandon's homemade pizza and some delicious red wine (and I don't even like red wine!). All in all, it was a busy but enjoyable weekend back in Berlin.
The next few days will include a few meetups with other friends. Then I fly out on Thursday. The travels continue!
On Friday morning, Sarina, Simon, and I went to breakfast in der Oberstadt, which is basically the upper part of Marburg. It's full of little shops, cafes, and restaurants along small cobblestone streets. There's a place that has a full breakfast for students for 5,80€ with drinks included.
Not only was the view amazing, but the food was also quite good as well. Check out the awesome drawings on our hardboiled eggs.
After breakfast and a bit of downtime at Sarina's, I headed to the south train station to meet my ride share to Berlin. On the bus, I snapped a view of the castle in Marburg. Everything seemed so familiar, since I had basically taken this bus to my language course three years ago.
My ride share arrived after a few minutes of me wondering if I was going to be able to find this blue 2010 Renault Clio. I don't have a German cell phone this time, so I've been making plans ahead of time and going to places at times I've arranged with people. For the most part, Germans are very punctual (and I try to be as well), so it works out well.
The plus side of a Mitfahrt (or ride share/carpool) is that it's quite affordable and is usually with pretty chill people. It only cost me 25€ instead of the 99€ for a train ticket. The down side is that you never know what's going to happen traffic-wise.
It doesn't happen often, but when a bad accident happens on the Autobahn, the entire thing just shuts down. My first experience with this was during my Fulbright year when it took me 12 hours to get from Marburg back to Berlin (normally takes six). This time, it took us nine hours, because of an accident that saw us move about 15 km in three hours — we were walking around on the Autobahn, because you literally could not move!
The radio later said it was backed up for 16 km (which is 10 miles), and it was only six km long when we first hit the back up. I asked our driver where we were, and even she had no idea. We turned around and saw this exit sign that cracked us up, because it sounds like literally in the middle of nowhere.
The three-hour delay meant that it would not be easy for me to meet up with Brandon, who would be hosting me for the week. Since I don't have a German cell this week, I realized I had to pull one of the SIM cards from my bag to see what might work (while avoiding costly charges on my American cell).
I ended up using up the balance on my Singaporean SIM card, but it did help me snag a bed for the night at another friend of mine's apartment. It worked out well, because she lives just around the corner from where I was dropped off — and also just down the street from one of my old apartments in Berlin-Neukölln.
It turns out she ended up cutting her night short after getting my text, so I felt awful. But she would have none of it. She let me sleep in her bed while she took the couch, even though I protested that I could sleep on the couch. So I made sure to buy her lunch the next day — at my favorite spot in Berlin.
My favorite spot is a schwarma shop that has 3€ chicken schwarma sandwiches that will fill you up. I used to go there all the time. But sadly, they've become more expensive and way too salty. In fact, it really didn't taste as good as it used to. Bummer. I may not be going back there anymore.
After thanking Tamar again, I headed to Brandon's. Thankfully, he was home, so we got to catch up. It was like old times!
Honestly, my Fulbright year was as great as it was, because I had a buddy like Brandon to hang out with. In catching up, it was like I had never left. He actually reminded me of some hilarious stories that I had completely forgotten — like how one of his first memories of me was at breakfast in Marburg when I stacked a plate full of schnitzel like pancakes and had a bowl of cereal to boot. In case you didn't know, you don't eat schnitzel for breakfast.
Soon, we both headed out: him to our friend Stefan's roommates' birthday party, where I'd join them later, and me to the complete opposite corner of the city to meet some old softball buddies for a drink. It was fun to see the guys and to chat about American sports in German. Good times!
After that, I headed to the other corner of the city to meet Stefan, Brandon, and the rest of the gang. It took me nearly two hours just to get there, even with only one transfer. It was really all the walking that caused the long transit, but still, it was quite a trek. Saw some really nice buildings on the way there, though.
It was great to see Stefan again, whom I had last seen in Seattle. I told him all our friends in Seattle said hi and that he should come back and visit again. Just like old times, we enjoyed some grilling, beers, and catching up in the park. Random note: we also saw a heron in the park.
Once it got dark, we decided to head to a bar with delicious Augustiner beer on tap. It's one of my absolute favorite beers, and it's either too expensive or too hard to find in the US. The bar was cool, too. There was the smallest foosball table I've ever seen, so we stuck with pool. Brandon and I paired up against two of the German friends we met in a sort of US vs. German shoot out. I'm ashamed to say that we started strong but couldn't finish in the clutch. Ugh.
After we left the bar, it was already quite late, so we spent the night at Stefan's, but not before we picked up a dürüm döner for the road. Sooo delicious!
Also, there was a funny little cartoon on the wall. An angel offered a boy three wishes, and he responds, "Okay, I'll have three döners." They're that good.
This morning, we all went to brunch at this all-you-can-eat place near Stefan's apartment (which is also very close to the HIA Berlin office). It was a smorgasbord of food to eat, but my appetite has changed such that I really can't eat that much anymore. So I only had two plates, which were both mostly vegetables and fruits. I didn't even bother grabbing bread.
After brunch, I had to leave them all to rush to the Berlin central train station to meet my friend, Benjamin, who came up from Leipzig for the day. I was so grateful to him for making the trip up to see me and to take pictures in Berlin. You can see his amazing photos on FB.
He thought it was funny that I (the American) was giving him (the German) a tour of Germany's capital city, but I'm glad I could show him around. We took a few pictures around the federal government buildings area, and I snapped a picture that a recent CW show had shown as "Nanjing, China" on TV.
I also got to see the articles of the German Constitution on a glass wall nearby for the first time. The first line is one that all Germans know: "Die Würde des Menschen ist unantastbar" or "Human dignity is inviolable."
We made our way to Unter den Linden and caught a boat up the Spree for a river tour. It was so hot out, but we were able to enjoy the best of Berlin, including one of my favorite places: the Berliner Dom.
I just learned today, too, that the long debate over what to rebuild (or not rebuild) on the spot where the former Palace of the Republic stood was decided last year. The debate had been over whether to rebuild the original Berlin Castle (Berliner Schloss) or leave it as a grassy open space. Personally, I think the original castle (destroyed after heavy damage during World War II) would be great. Not sure how the funding looks, but the idea is nice. Obviously, it's a touchy debate in Berlin still.
Ben also taught me a few tricks for taking and touching up awesome pictures with my iPhone. Check out what we did to this picture of the Reichstag:
Ostensibly, touching up pictures too much makes it look pretty obvious. But it can help make some of the features in various pictures pop. This was actually a bad example, as Ben shared, because of the type of photo we used and the color balance to begin with. I learned a ton today!
Ben headed home after dinner, and then I went home to hang out with Brandon and relax after a busy weekend. We snacked on Brandon's homemade pizza and some delicious red wine (and I don't even like red wine!). All in all, it was a busy but enjoyable weekend back in Berlin.
The next few days will include a few meetups with other friends. Then I fly out on Thursday. The travels continue!
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