Germany

So, before you start reading this, I'll just let you know that I don't reveal until the bottom of the post why I'm in the outfit. :-)

So, I was a little unsure of what my next move was going to be now that Dad's plans to travel with me were foiled by airline madness. I was meeting Rob and Lorraine's sister, Katie, in London in 2 weeks, so I really took it day by day deciding where to go next before heading for England.

If the ontological shock I experienced by traveling from Dubai to Delhi wasn't enough, I was now having a type of shock that I think could be equally as astounding--economical shock. Being in a wealthy country with the evil, evil, EURO/US $ exchange was not good for the old budget. While excited to be in Europe, I was acutely aware of my newest mission not to spend every last penny that I had. You could call this mission impossible.

Frankfurt
I spent one night in Frankfurt which was, like all of Germany, incredibly clean, organized and well marked. There is no such thing as a bad neighborhood here. The Germans may have an area some of them think is dodgy, but in reality its as shady as Main Street in the magic kingdom. I laughed out loud on the street when I saw the area near the train station that I was warned by a local not to stay in. It was so nice. So, I stayed there. This was the view from my window at the hostel. Looks pretty good, eh? Not sketchy in the least bit. I loved this hostel because it led me to meet Alexander, by far one of the most interesting people I've met in my life. He worked in the hostel and also gives a free group tours of the city (which he loves so much) to the backpackers who stay. We were chatting away and I found out that he was going to Hamburg the next morning to visit his five year old son as he does every two weeks. Maybe you see where this is heading. . .I asked him if I could hitch a ride up north with him. It turns out that he was hoping to have some people to share the ride anyways, so, the next day we left for the six hour journey! This was one of the most interesting car trips ever! Cruising along the autobahn with Alexander, whom at this point I'm convinced is my own personal tour guide. He tells me about German history, political climate, economy and details on every little town we pass by. And if this wasn't enough he gives me directions to two hostels he knows are good in Hamburg. Cheers Alexander!

Hamburg

It rained a lot of the time I was in Hamburg. This really slowed me down, plus I was feeling lethargic, maybe I was still adjusting to my new surroundings or maybe the last bits of the malaria drugs were leaving my system, whatever it was I was particularly tired. I decided that it was time to start jogging again. I couldn't run in India because people would think that you'd lost your head or that you were in a big hurry maybe. So, it was time--and Germany was the perfect place with so many beautiful parks. I enjoyed my renewed routine, visiting the extraordinary modern art museum, strolls around the city and over the top nightlife in the Reeperbahn. Now it was time to develop an exit plan from Hamburg and investigate the ride share web site Alexander told me about. Basically people who are driving from one city to another register on the site saying when and where they are heading out. You contact them--and for lets say 10 Euro (share of petrol) you can ride with them. Every ride share I did was the driver and four passengers, which was really cool because it was the ideal situation to get to talk to the locals. I mean they were trapped in the car with you for a given period of time. :) So I find the website, but, like everything in Germany, it's all in German. Go figure. The lovely girl from the hostel helps me navigate the website. Then actually says she will make a few phone calls for me. Long story short she actually organizes the ride for me! I love her because this has saved me about 100 Euro not getting on the train. Yes!!!!!!

Berlin

Berlin rocked. What a fabulous city. I stayed just outside the center in a great hostel near a delightful part that I took full advantage of. Everyday after touring I would come back "home" to my neighborhood. I'd spend an hour or two in the Internet cafe on the corner where the Turkish owner (who spoke no English) seemed to really like me and come over to give me little bottles of shots and we'd cheers in Turkish, but I can't remember how that goes now, but I remember feeling welcomed nonetheless. Also he played great music.

The city was alive with events, including an annual music festival. I watched a fun reggae band (in the rain) and made friends with a big group of locals who took me to a house party where everyone danced to salsa late into the evening. I poked my head into hip art galleries and received a much needed hair cut from German hairdresser, Tobias, who used to live in SF. Anyone know him? I should remind everyone that while I'm certainly enjoying the comforts of the west, at this point I'm still a bit frightened by returning to a material girl in a material world (these lines are plagiarized not only from Madonna but a book I just read). BUT I do feel pretty strongly that a fabulous haircut is just one of those things you always NEED. Hmmmm. Maybe I am jumping right back in.

But its also in Berlin that I purchase my ticket to fly back to Southeast Asia on August 9th, to Kuala Lampur. For those of you who don't know, my return ticket to the states was cancelled by the airline and I received a full refund. I thought this was a stroke of good luck as I'm not ready to return! So, I will reunite with Lorraine on the 10th and we'll spend a week in Kuala Lampur where searching for an island where I can practice yoga and she can teach dive lessons with her new dive master certification. But plans always change, so I'll keep everyone updated. ;-)

Dresden

Quaint, peaceful with more splendid parks, I enjoyed my time in Dresden. I even splurged on a yoga class here, reminding me of the east.

Allmendingen
What, you've never heard of this place? Well, in all of Germany this was by far my favorite place and best experience and it's all because of Stephanie! She and I met in New Zealand a few months prior and she, with the help of her family and friends, showed me a fantastic time. Staying in Stephanie's apartment was, of course, relaxing after two weeks of hostel life. While she worked I was SO happy to catch up on email, photos and laundry. Also, her father (who has a hotel next door) and her brothers (one who has a restaurant next door and the other an insurance office down the street) were gracious as could be, having me over for coffee and baked goods then later dinner while Steph worked! I'll never forget how lovely it felt to be taken in by the entire family. Also communicating with the language barrier, without Steph around to translate, everyone was so sweet and probably spoke more English than they had in awhile. I should have learned some German, but it's hard! We also spent a great day with Steph's best friend and boyfriend, this is where they dressed me up in the traditional outfit you see in the picture. We were all LAUGHING, so I hope it brought smiles to the rest of you as well! Later that evening we made Kase Spätzle (cheese with dumplings) and I was in heaven. The next day I left for England feeling full of cheese and love, which are my two favorite things. Thank you Stephanie, because of you I'll never forget Germany.