#in 2 hours we will arrive at Frankfurt main station

[theoniprince]

Football clubs, Kiez - Iconic

[judithsupportsteamchampery]

Why you’ve made my winter!

- by Judith Dombrowski

My personal Team Champéry season review

This is dedicated to figure skater Deniss Vasiljevs, coach and figure skater Stéphane Lambiel and their manager Christopher Trevisan!

My very special thanks to my mother Beate. Without you nothing of this would have been possible. I can say with my whole heart that you are the best mother I ever could have imagined.

Also special thanks to:

Anastasia, Charlie, Estephanía, Jelena, Laia, Maria R., Maria T., Marina, P., Susanne, Szilvia

You all have become amazing and true friends. I love you with my whole heart!

And to everyone else whom I met because of Team Champéry this winter, either personally or via the internet. We are the best fan community I can imagine.

On March 2nd 2019, after I had been able to take THAT picture, that picture thousands of skating fans dream of, that picture I would never ever had imagined to happen, I turned around and thanked both of you: “Thank you so much for everything!“, I said. Then I looked at you, Deniss, and said: “You’ve really made my winter! Thanks!“ You looked flattered and surprised but didn’t respond anything. But you, Stéph, said something like: “Wow, you are really so positive!“ It was the second time you said that that afternoon and I do understand why you said it in this situation: For the two of you it definitely hadn’t been the winter you’ve dreamed of. It must have been a hard winter full of worries, concerns and disappointments. It seemed to surprise you, Stéph, why you’ve made somebody’s winter even though so much seemed to have gone wrong for you.

So I am writing this blog post / article / review to explain to the two of you and to everyone interested, why this sentence was incredibly true. Why I actually couldn’t have thanked you in a more accurate way. Beware, this might gonna be long. I usually fail saying things short and there has been really a lot going on this winter relating to the two of you. I will also miss out some moments because it has just been too much.

When to start? Should it be the moment when we decided to go to Grenoble? The moment I started to be your fan, Deniss? Should I go back to Worlds 2005 when I had my first big crush on that handsome Swiss figure skater? This would turn into a novel so lets start right at the beginning… of… this winter:

October

“Hey, I just wanted to tell you that I am free earlier than expected today. So if you’d like we can meet earlier?“

“I am sorry I fear I won’t be able to come over before 18.30? Hope that’s still alright?“, I replied to a good friend of mine on WhatsApp.

“Haha, yea, sure, thought you have holidays…“

“Well, yea“, … she was a really good friend so I could be honest, “but my Mom doesn’t. She’s only free from 3pm and we’ll have to watch a movie together this afternoon. This is like the only possibility before next weekend. Will explain you later!“

“Okayyyy…!“

It was a Wednesday afternoon in early October during my autumn holidays and I spent the week in South Germany with my mother and tried to meet up with as many old friends as possible. It was also the week before Japan Open, the first time you, Deniss, were supposed to skate your new free program. And it finally had leaked that you would be skating to the soundtrack of the movie “Last Samurai“. So to totally understand the program my mother and I watched the movie together, listened to the music very precisely, discussed about the plot, read and learned about the history of the samurai on Wikipedia.

We liked and appreciated the theme and that music choice right away. As we did with the whole program when it had finally been uploaded. Despite technical difficulties we saw the efforts and the great thoughts behind the choreography of this program right away and were really looking forward to see this program grow and bloom over the season.

It was different with the Short Program. When “Papa was a rolling stone“ was posted first, I listened to the song in the car and it left me quite puzzled… How was that supposed to be the song of a skating program? And those lyrics? Well… I liked the beat and the rhythm of the song from the beginning and I put all my trust in your good taste and I wasn’t going to be disappointed.

The figure skating season was speeding up: The first Grand Prix was coming along together with a small competition called “Minsk Ice Star“ - the warm up contest for you, Deniss. I spent that weekend in the Netherlands where a friend celebrated her birthday. The moment I remember best of these days is myself walking up and down at the beach streaming the free program in bad quality on my phone screaming and jumping up and down at every landed jump. This weekend brought the first fully rotated and landed Quad in competition for you, Deniss, and the first gold medal of the season. For me this weekend made me like and appreciate the short program and I “met“ my “soulmate“ because of this competition:

Until then I hadn’t been too active about figure skating on social media, because most of my followers on Instagram were my real life friends who didn’t care about this sport at all. There was no official livestream of Minsk Ice Star. But I found some Russian girls via Instagram who were in the arena and were so kind to stream the practices and the competition. That’s how I met my today very very good and close friend Maria. We started texting since then, we went through this winter together, kept each other updated all the time and finally went to Innsbruck together. But that happened many moments and stories later.

November

NHK Trophy was after all the only competition this entire season I didn’t manage to follow live. Despite all efforts I didn’t make it home from work in time for the SP, and I also missed the LP the next day because of my tennis practice. I did come home when Shoma Uno was about to start his Free Skate performance but of course he skated deep in the second group. I clicked on “pause“ and scrolled back to start watching the competition from the beginning. There had been a number though in the left upper corner of my screen I couldn’t have avoided seeing: The leading skater at the moment Shoma started to skate had the technical score of 70 points. 70 Points! DAMN! That was…. low. Very low for that moment in the competition. And 70… that was a number you, Deniss, were likely to score. My heart started racing. Could it be possible? If you were the leader at that moment you were… about to win a medal.

“It was hard to see how excited you still were!“, my Mom told me on the phone an hour later when I was full of disappointment. She had been able to watch everything live and knew that it unfortunately hadn’t been you, Deniss, who had scored those 70 points, it had been Matteo Rizzo. I felt really sorry for you, missing that opportunity. “Keep your head up, keep your heart strong…“, I kept listening on repeat during that weekend and I wished you could also hear that motivating song by Ben Howard. The next competition was going to be better. I was sure! And the next competition was: IdF in Grenoble. THE competition. Our competition. Where my mother and I would go to see and support you live. The weekend I had been waiting for since the end of June when the assignments came out. And now it was not even two weeks away…The Sunday after NHK I spent in the kitchen baking my gifts for the two of you: The lion and the ladybug as German gingerbread. I am not the most artistically talented person, and I didn’t honestly expect this project to be successful, especially drawing a lion with chocolate and sugar icing on a piece of cookie seemed like a far too motivated project for me. But I did it, every millimeter drawn with concentration and passion. And succeeded: I had baked a lion and a ladybug gingerbread. The presents were ready, the flags had arrived and got inked, all tickets were printed, we were ready to go.

You probably all remember a weekend or an event you once desperately had been waiting for. And then the moment when it is really happening. So you can probably imagine how I felt: I see myself as if it was yesterday walking from the parking lot in Mainz to the station where I had to take the train to Frankfurt airport, feeling like I was flying: It was real, yes, it was. I was on my way to Grenoble, I had everything prepared, I had gotten the extra day off at school, I had the gifts and the banners in my bag, I had your program music in my ears, I was so so ready for it!

I had high expectations for this weekend just as you probably had as well, Deniss. Unfortunately yours weren’t totally fulfilled again especially in the long program. Mine instead were outreached by far:

That moment, when I saw the two of you live right ahead of me in practice. The moment you really nailed your SP, how I was screaming and celebrating of relief. The moment I was able to give you the gifts after the second practice. The moment when you walked around proudly showing my baked lion to other fans. All those moments of wonderful and magical performances by your fellow skaters, all those people I had been admiring in front of the TV screen for years: Evgenia Medvedeva, Rika Kihira, Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres, Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron, Nathan Chen, Jason Brown and Dimitri Aliev just to name a few…

And that moment, Saturday 24th of November, 6 pm during the Ice Dance medal ceremony when I checked on my emails and my heart skipped for sure more than one beat: Email by Christopher Trevisan: “Sorry for the short notice, if you are still interested you can have a fan meeting with Deniss tomorrow morning either at 10 or 11 o’clock. Let me know if you are still interested.“ If I was interested? Hell, YES. But: Our bus to the airport was booked tomorrow at 10 o’clock from the main station in Grenoble. Our flight home was leaving Lyon at 2 pm. I was in shock, excited and concerned at the same time. It was hard to think straight.

I will never forget the night from November 24th to November 25th in my entire life. So many insecurities: When exactly? Where? Who will come? How will we get home? Take the train instead of flying? Take a taxi to the airport? Skip the whole fan meeting myself?

Charlie, my mother and I were sitting together until far after midnight without having any solutions. The three of us mainly discussed the question: Where? There was no nice café that had opened Sunday morning just around the corner…

We noticed that the only space we had available on this short notice were our own hotel rooms. Probably our entire hotel woke up by us laughing loudly about the joke: “Imagine, when I come home, I will be able to say: There was Stéphane Lambiel… in my hotel room!“ We weren’t sure back then if you’d accompany Deniss, Stéph.

Sometime during the night after sleeping for a few hours I was able to calm down and think more straight again. I checked the Lufthansa App and found out that it was actually possible to change our booking to a flight that flew to Frankfurt four hours later than our original one. I got the idea to ask in our hotel if there was a possibility to hold the meeting in a free conference room or another silent place. It was all coming together. We got a space in our hotel, we had people who messaged they would come to the meeting, we had the time to sit down and think about some questions that I wanted to ask you, Deniss. You came, you had quite some time, you were incredibly nice and the two of us got more and more relaxed while the interview / meeting went on and I had the feeling that I could continue talking with you forever. You are such an interesting, intelligent, nice, humble and funny person. Before Grenoble I had liked you mostly because of your beautiful and amazing skating, after Grenoble I knew where this was coming from. Before Grenoble I had been amazed by you, after Grenoble I was totally enchanted.

December

I was on endorphins for the next weeks straight. That weekend had been far better and beyond all my expectations.

But at the same time I was afraid: Was it ever going to be that perfect again? Should I maybe keep this one perfect weekend as one magic memory and not let it get destroyed maybe by disappointments coming in the near future? Would I maybe expect too much from future events? I told around: “That weekend was perfect. I will not go again this season. Next season again!“

What a luck I hadn’t been able to resist. Because my heart, longing to see the two of you again, won over my anxious head.

Christmas time came, I followed the Grand Prix Final together with my Mom, we got up in the middle of the night to cheer for Koshiro, we were worried when you, Deniss, withdrew from a competition in Zagreb, were relieved when it was announced that it wasn’t an injury. And we decided that it was finally about time to see you skate live as well, Stéph! So we ordered our tickets for Art on Ice in Davos in February. And with booking those tickets my plan not to go anymore this season had already faded away. I spent hours on the internet searching for possibilities to make it to Minsk for the European Championships. Meanwhile I knew many fans via social media and almost all of them were about to be in Minsk to support you, Deniss. I wanted to be part of it really  badly. As a teacher though it is hard to get days off apart from the public holidays. Flights for the weekend only costed a fortune. It seemed impossible. My frustration grew. I am a person who fights really hard if she really wants something and usually tries everything to make it happen.

January

New years eve came along, together with a very nice and enthusiastic video of the two of you: “We hope to see you in Bellinzona for Music on Ice!“, you said, Stéph. And after countless times watching this lovely video and a sleepless and crazy night from the 1st to the 2nd of January my decision was made: Instead of the impossible mission going to Minsk, I would to go to Music on Ice in Bellinzona. I was going to take a train from my hometown Osnabrück in the Northwest of Germany on Friday afternoon to Stuttgart in the South of Germany. The next morning I was going to take the earliest train to continue traveling all the way to Switzerland where I would arrive in Bellinzona on January 12th at 11 am. I would go to the show on Saturday night and early Sunday morning I was going to take the train back, 10 hours all the way up to Osnabrück where I would arrive at 6 pm, ready to go back to school on Monday morning. But going to the show wasn’t the only plan I had. With help of the amazing Jelena from Daugavpils who runs the official Fan Club on Facebook we activated fans from all over the world to send me pictures with good luck wishes for you for Europeans. I was overwhelmed by the positive responses on the project. I received exactly 50 pictures, most of them amazingly creative.

When I entered the train on Friday afternoon, January 11th 2019, I felt the company of all those 50 people. I was nervous because I hadn’t heard of Chris yet, whom I had messaged with the idea of the project and had asked for an opportunity to give you the album personally.

But the sun was shining, I had motivating music in my ears, the train was riding further and further South and I felt the support of all of my friends and of my mom, who unfortunately couldn’t accompany me this weekend, so the nervousness turned into major excitement.

In Bellinzona I also wasn’t alone at all: I teamed up with two friends that I had both met in Grenoble. After our arrival we checked out the ice rink and sat down on a bench nearby the arena. The girls went through your album, Deniss, when suddenly my phone vibrated and I saw the message: Christopher Trevisan had written: “Hey Judith, can you be at the rink at 15.00?”

Have you ever been waiting for a message to come in for five consecutive days? Do you know that feeling that whenever you get a message you have that slight hope inside you that it could be the one you are waiting for and you get disappointed over and over again? And then the releasing moment comes? And you know my temper, right? Then you can maybe imagine how I screamed and jumped up and down when seeing that message. Did you maybe even hear that scream from somewhere far away that afternoon? Quite possible since Bellinzona isn’t that big and my joy was… LOUD! My two friends shared my joy and enthusiasm but not as loud. We had an “appointment”! I messaged all of my good friends right away: “Appointment at 3 pm!” I was so happy and excited. I carried the hopes and wishes of 50 people in my bag and now I knew I wouldn’t disappoint them.

That moment on the bench had only been the beginning of a day that again turned out so much better than all my expectations:

Hearing you say: “So nice to see you again!”, and being really thankful for the book. Being able to watch all three hours of show rehearsal, including the two of you practicing throw jumps.  Recording an successfully landed throw jump for all my friends and many other fans. Seeing you, Stéph, skate live for the first time in my life. You, that man that had carried me through my teenage years with all your wonderful programs. Finally seeing you perform in person was magical. Seeing that wonderful and touching duet of the two of you. I had tears of joy in my eyes. And that moment after the show when you, Deniss, were walking beneath us and you turned around and came back thanking me for the album: “Thanks for the book. It’s fantastic!” These six words meant so much to me and to all those who had participated. My heart was full of joy and my body full of dancing endorphins again. It didn’t matter at all that the train ride the next day didn’t last ten but twelve hours. I was the happiest and luckiest girl on the planet.

Thanks to my amazing two girls who were my company during these crazy 21 hours I have spent in Bellinzona. Wouldn’t have been the same without those two and we do have an appointment at our “Appointment Bench” next year.

Still… after the Bellinzona - Fun it was getting serious! Europeans were on their way and it felt like the most important competition for you this season, Deniss. The season hadn’t gone as planed yet for sure… plus: Skating really well there would give you the chance to medal. Even though I had been in Bellinzona it was really hard for me to follow the action in Minsk from home. But that week showed me what great friends I had got to know because of you, Deniss. Those girls, who kept me updated the entire week, and never forgot about me were my personal heros. Some special mentions: Jelena, who waved at me through the TV stream during the Ladies Short program. That was so hilarious and made my day. Szilvia, whom I would have loved to share that horrible hostel with. Maybe with the two of us that place would have been less spooky? And thanks to her for sending birthday wishes to my mom during the live stream of your fan meeting, Stéph. Marina, for telling me the “they-only-want-me”- story right after it had happened and for asking Brian Joubert about his inspiration for the tiger jacket. And my amazing girl Maria. Thanks for just everything. I felt with her and like her at every moment during the entire week. I shared her excitement, her fears, worries, tears and joy. And I am proud and thankful to all of the girls who organized both fan meetings and streamed it for us at home. You’ve got the most amazing fans, I really hope you know that both.

Deniss? We all know you gave your best! You wanted it so much and we know you actually are able to do everything you had planed. That makes the outcome of this competition so sad. Thanks for keeping your smile for us fans, thanks for still performing amazingly. Thanks for that intense gala-program. “Iron“ is now one of my personal top 5 programs of all times.

And Stéph? Your week must have been nerve-wracking and cruel. Thanks for being there for your students, giving them strength and confidence. Thanks for trying everything you could to support Deniss and Emmi and still staying that nice and friendly to us fans. The pressure must have been immense. Maria summed it up so perfectly as an Instagram caption, so I will quote her here: “Thanks for being in the world!”

February

During Euros you were so nice to confirm that Team Champéry would keep its tradition and would come to the Cup of Tyrol in Innsbruck, Stéph. The planing for us attending and supporting you at that event started the moment Europeans were over. That Sunday still after watching the Gala my mother and I booked the last available cheap apartment in the city centre of Innsbruck. All February long we were busy planing that trip but hadn’t there been another appointment in February? My second 10 hour long train ride was scheduled from February 15th to February 17th. Osnabrück - Davos and back. Art on Ice was about to happen. I imagined that trip to maybe be a little less exciting. I expected to watch the show, see you perform two wonderful programs and was also looking forward to see James Blunt live again after more than 10 years. Back in 2006 James Blunts concert had been the first concert I had ever visited, so it was going to be a bit nostalgic… But… probably no surprise anymore: Also this trip turned out to be so much better than expected.

The afternoon in Davos was beautiful already, the sun was shining brightly and we had an amazing walk through the snowy landscape. We managed to sneak in to watch the practice again and: I  got the opportunity to talk to you, Stéph. It was short and since totally unexpected I also didn’t really know what to say but it was extremely special for me. And I could take a selfie with you. A picture I had wanted to have ever since my teenage years. I am not the type of person who collects pictures with celebrities. I think asking for a picture is such an unreal and awkward situation. But I really longed for that picture with you, Stéph. With the guy I used to tell all of my friends about, who all didn’t know you, because figure skating is not too popular in Germany. With the guy I had admired ever since my teenage years. With the guy that is in my opinion the most passionate and elegant skater ever. With the guy that touched me to tears and overwhelmed my emotions when skating to the song Goodbye my Lover some hours later. With the guy who gave his second last performance at Art on Ice ever that night.

I read your post about quitting Art on Ice when my train had almost reached Osnabrück again. I felt incredibly sad and incredibly blessed at the same time: I had still been able to see your magic. Art on Ice will miss you incredibly, Stéph. But you surely made the right decision for yourself and we as fans will support you and keep loving you no matter what projects will come for you in the future.

I had two more weeks until the crazy road trip to Innsbruck was about to happen but well… there was one weekend in between. And I found the perfect place to go for that weekend: Barcelona, Spain.

You have already heard some names of great people I got to know because of you two, but I haven’t told you about Laia yet what is a shame because, Deniss, you would certainly like Laia as much as I like her: She’s an artist, she draws amazingly. She’s a baker and an excellent cook. She’s a bit of a philosopher. She is a big Star Wars fan. She’s incredibly funny and sarcastic but at the same time a bit shy and introverted. And she is a big fan of the two of you. Even though you know the story how Laia and I met already, Deniss, I think it’s worth telling it here again: Laia was also at the Grand Prix in Grenoble. I didn’t know her back then. And we also didn’t meet at the event itself. But she was the girl who took the picture of you holding my baked gingerbread lion. I discovered that picture on Instagram some weeks later. We started to chat, and we chatted even more. I talked with her for hours because, Deniss, in many ways she seems like a female version of you.

So at that last weekend in February I took a plane to Barcelona to finally meet her in person. She showed me some skating tricks on the ice and I showed her that the mediterranean sea is not too cold to swim in in February. She introduced me to traditional Catalan food and I brought her some Swiss Chocolate I had bought in Davos.

And she gave me the most precious gift I ever received from anyone: An amazing drawing of you, Deniss, skating to “Iron“. You have seen it in Innsbruck yourself and I am quite sure you will remember it.

So that weekend was another amazing experience thanks to the two of you.

March

“Good morning everyone”, I told my Instagram followers totally excited at the morning of February 28th, “my last big journey of the figure skating season is about to start. I will drive to work first and then I will drive from my school via Frankfurt airport and Munich airport all the way to Innsbruck. It will be a really long journey but I will pick up some amazing girls on the way. And I actually can’t wait to see Deniss and Stéph tomorrow.”

The Cup of Tyrol in Innsbruck was the smallest event I visited this season but it highlighted up everything that had happened before. At the beginning of the season my mom and I had been alone. The trip to Innsbruck ended with seven good friends from five different countries sitting together in a small apartment, laughing and celebrating you, ourselves and life.

Marina had flown to Frankfurt from Kyiv and Szilvia from Budapest. Maria had come from Chelyabinsk, Russia, to Munich. I met both, Marina and Maria for the first time in real life and that alone was really special. Suddenly sitting with those three girls together in my small car, singing along to Britney Spears songs was unreal and amazing enough. But of course we were here to support you, Deniss.

All three of you, Chris included, seemed quite surprised to see us around. Cup of Tyrol was such a small competition. Why should anyone go there? Well, we were and we weren’t the only ones, even though probably the loudest ones. Here are again some very special moments picked from many special moments:

Imitating your car karaoke to Britney’s Toxic on our way to Innsbruck with Marina and Szilvia.

Stepping out of our apartment early Friday morning in Innsbruck and seeing this city in all of its beauty: The river, the colorful houses and the mountains in the beautiful morning sun.

Watching you skate a nice and clean short program after some struggles during practice.

Chris laughing loudly about our designed shirt for you, Deniss: “I am not coaching Stéph!” Do you wear it from time to time? If you don’t I am sure Chris would…

Giving you my self knitted hat in Latvia colors.

Showing you Laias drawing and you complimenting her amazing “shade work”.

You, Stéph, telling us that we were just about to hang up our “Team Champéry banner” mirror converted. Oh dear…

Suffering with every quad attempt. Cheering for every jump that seemed “okay” somehow- especially for underrotated quads…sorry Stéph, but that’s what fans are there for.

Crying with Matilda after her Free Program. It was hard to see this but those moments belong to the sport just as tears of joy at another time. Please, Stéph, tell Matilda, that she is a very beautiful skater. She is very graceful and a joy to watch on the ice and we all hope to see her shining on the ice sometime again.

Calling ourselves to be the “Crazy Rabbit Crew” after constantly eating carrots and joking about what to throw on the ice. Carrots, maybe?

Watching your little extra show on the ice after you won the title, Deniss.

Joking with you, Stéph about our petition to bring Britney Spears to Art on Ice.

And for me, personally, receiving the compliment from you, Stéph, of being such a positive person. I am aware that you, the first time you said it, thought that my positivity was even a bit too much when we discussed the success of your Quad attempts, Deniss, but when we all said goodbye I had the honest feeling that you liked me, Stéph. And that means more than a lot to me!

And of course THAT picture. Yes, again a celebrity picture. But what a special one. Standing in the middle of both of you. In the middle of the two people who made my winter. You didn’t understand it back then, right?

I am sure you understand it now!

Of course Innsbruck hadn’t been the end of the season yet: Worlds were yet to come. Far away in Japan. The competition where you wanted to show everyone what you actually could do. In the country that you love so much and where your season had started. The country on which history your free program was built. The Last Samurai. The last dance of the season. It was a hard week for us as fans because it was obviously a hard week for your whole team. I watched the Short Program locked into the music room of my school during our break. Afterwards I had to teach a Music lesson, singing cheerful and happy songs with eight year olds. It was tough. But I can hardly imagine how tough it was for you.

The free program was a huge fight. After everything you had gone through that week, it was even an incredible fight. The score still wasn’t probably what you had dreamed of neither the placement in the end.

But you can be incredibly proud of that fight, Deniss. This whole season was surely a hard learning process. It was a season without a single competition you were completely happy with. After all the hard work you put in every single day it must be horribly frustrating. I got to know you though as a person who is thinking thoroughly about everything. And I got to know you as a person who is able to see this season as a learning process for the future. You never stopped performing no matter what happened to the jumps. All three programs this year were incredibly well choreographed and performed even better. And during that hard and rocky road you made so many people incredibly happy.

Stéph, this winter was surely also a hard one for you. One of the reasons why I like you that much is that you, just as I do myself, put your whole heart and passion into everything you do. I could feel your pain when things didn’t turn out as you wanted them to go for your skaters. It must be so hard to just watch and not being able to actually do something in those moments. I do imagine those intense emotions you had during your last Art on Ice shows. Thanks so much for sharing some of these moments with us.

And equally I want to thank you, Chris: Thank you so much for being there for the whole team whenever you are needed. Thanks for staying calm, positive and objective throughout the season. Thanks for sometimes probably being the connection between the two artists. I am sure it hasn’t always been easy. Thanks for the great cooperation with us fans. You are doing an amazing job in every way.

You as a team managed to go through this season together and I hope with my whole heart that it brought you even closer together. Success, failure, joy and sorrow are so close together in this sport. The future seasons will bring all of that again. And I am looking forward to laugh, cry and celebrate with you again next winter and hopefully many more winters. Until then I will spend time with some of the amazing people I met on the road. Next weekend Szilvia and I will visit Marina in Kyiv. It will be another amazing trip. You are about to make my spring, too!

[norwegianfriedokra]

I’ve done it!

It's been a while since I've posted something substantial, but now that the residency permit has come through I've got some breathing room, 11 months in fact!! So, it might get lengthy, but here is everything that happened as I remembered and experienced it.

To get a residency permit you fill out your initial application. That part isn't too difficult, as long as you already have a job offer.  You must have a job offer before your application means anything. Then you wait for them to ask for follow up, because it seems there is always follow up to your initial application.  That tends to be corrections, additional information, or something similar, and there was definitely some additional information needed about my job.  

Next you'll get a letter in the mail, because everything is sent by mail by the Auslӓnderbehӧrde (Residency Office). This letter lets you know what you will need to bring to your appointment, and that you need to go to the Auslӓnderbehӧrde to get a "Wartenummer" (waiting number) in order to get an appointment.  Here's where the real story begins.

After several cultural and translation miscommunications occurred, which for me is most likely way easier than most internationals seeking a residency permit, I show up at the Auslӓnderbehӧrde to get this Wartenummer. I show up around 11am, wait in line for about 60 minutes (that's on average around that time of day). When I get to the service desk they tell me all the Wartenummer have already been given out for the day and that I will need to show up the next day to get one.  I ask how early I should show up the next day and they said people start to show up around 8am.  Keep in mind, the next day they actually open up at 1pm, so that means if I want a Wartenummer I have to show up around 8am and wait for 5 hours before I get a Wartenummer.  

Ok, no big deal, I pack some stuff to keep me busy and head down there the next morning.  I show up 15 minutes before 8am and there are already 16 people ahead of me in line. I think to myself at this point that I'm still pretty early. I wait around for a couple of hours, get really cold and whine at Jens to bring me coffee. When he shows up I don't think I had ever shivered in my life that much, and by that time everyone waiting in line had a general understanding that movement and standing in the sun from time to time to keep warm wasn't going to lose your spot. Thankfully so, I was having a hard time of it. Luckily around 11am they opened the doors and allowed people into the warming interior waiting space, even though they aren't actually open, and give people a small piece of paper with their spot in line.  This means you can now come and go until they officially open at 1pm.  So I have lunch with Jens and then go back inside.  When I finally get to the service counter again, pretty soon after 1pm because I was number 17, I find out all the Wartenummer are gone.  I'm confused because I assumed that the slip of paper was the Wartenummer I was waiting for.  I come to find out that no, actually, that was just the number in line, not the Wartenummer for appointments.  But at this point they go ahead and schedule an actual appointment for me on the 6th of May.  Which wasn't that far ahead and all, but still after my start date for work.  

So, at this point I have an appointment to get my residency permit, albeit after my start date at work.  So I bike off to work from the Auslӓnderbehӧrde to explain my situation...

Ah, I forgot to mention that biking to the Auslӓnderbehӧrde takes about 30 minutes, so every time I had to go there it was a bit of a bike ride. Not bad, it just took planning, right?  

Side note: I often would get a bit lost on my way there because I was always searching for a more direct route, as I kept missing a certain on ramp (somehow) that would take me over the main tracks from the Frankfurt Main train station.  You can see those tracks on the map above, they are quite substantial.  Often my bike tires would get low on air, like really low, so biking was super painful (eventually I got them aired up), also I loaded down the bike with a sleeping bag and other gear to make the waiting easier and the bike was just heavy to begin with.  

...but back to the main story.  I arrive at work and tell them my story. Me: "I have an appointment for my residency permit but it's not until after my start date" *sad face* (see other definition; dejected duck face). Work: "That's cool, but can you please try to get a cancelled appointment (that really means Wartenummer)? Otherwise we have to redo all your paperwork." *slightly annoyed face* (see other definition; it's always hard being an immigrant get with the program...face)

Alrighty then..the next day the Auslӓnderbehӧrde opens at 8am.  At this point I figure, I arrived 5 hours early for them opening at 1pm, but since this is really early in the morning I'll show up at 4am and see if that is early enough. This time I'm prepared with a sleeping bag, a thick coat and tea...I'm ready for it all! I arrive at 3:45am to find the doors already open, and I'm Wartenummer 22.  Ok, I'm probably not early enough for an appointment but I'll wait 4 hours and try anyways.

Side note: During this whole process I learned all kinds of new sleeping positions, and I learned how little I really care about sleeping weirdly in front of other people, and vice versa.

And...no Wartenummer.  

That evening (I think, it's still a bit of a blur), Jens and I are out with some friends of his of which many are internationals, and I share my story.  At the dinner table I heard their stories, and one story was of a person who showed up at midnight in order to get a Wartenummer at 8am.  More information I find out is that there are often only 2 available Wartenummer per day, because it's all based on how many unexpected cancelled appointments there were for that day.

Woah there...ok, I'm a bit intimidated at this point. But I'm like, ok this is my dream, work hard to get your dream right? I can wait overnight at the Auslӓnderbehӧrde, I can totally do this.  You see, as an american I'm sitting here thinking the following, "I'm going to be by myself, in the dark, sitting outside this building, near a slightly industrial area in the middle of a big city".  I'm nervous..and I can hear my relatives telling me not to do it because it's too dangerous. You see I've been told not to go running alone late at night (that means after 8pm) in the US. So for many europeans/germans they think I'm this crazy american, being scared.  That still doesn't mean I'm not fighting against my cultural instincts here.

Anyways, the next time I arrive at the Auslӓnderbehӧrde I show up at 10:45pm, because they are to open at 7:30am the next day...

Side note: Did I mention they have different operating hours every day, so I had to reassess each day when I was to arrive? And as my story progressed I learned new information so I was continually having to reassess my arrival time.  

...I have my gear, I'm ready.  I show up and there are already 15 people in line.  At this point I'm like, what the f**k there is no point in staying, but seriously folks.  I ask those waiting when they showed up to wait in line and I'm greeted with crickets.  No one is talking (or they don't understand english or german, either way), and when I thought about it, it was obvious. You don't want to share because in case you don't get an appointment you'll have to show up again the next day.

Side note: Just because they often have approx. 2 Wartenummer for cancelled appointments that doesn't mean they actually have them every day.  Sometimes they don't have any Wartenummer because no one cancels. That means you might be waiting in line for your Wartenummer for five hours with nothing to show for it.

Eventually one person did pipe up and state that she showed up at 10pm and there were 20 others that had shown up but left, and that they had friends holding their place, so there were in fact more like 35 people in line at that point.

So I'm stressed, right?  When exactly am I going to be able to make this work? How early do I really need to show up?  How can I make this work when I have to use a restroom overnight? Would I need to buy that tool to allow women to pee like men and bring a bottle? Or would I need to find the German version of Depends to make it work?

Then Easter weekend shows up on me, something I hadn't even thought about because all I did every day was think about the Auslӓnderbehӧrde. I find out that their hours changed for Thursday, and that Friday and Monday they wouldn't be open for the holiday weekend. At this point, there wasn't anything else I could even do until Tuesday. But...oh wait..on Tuesdays they aren't even open, so I can't try to get an appointment until Wednesday!

So...my plan became this.  I'll drop by work on Tuesday, explain the situation, and see if they are willing to push my start date to past my appointment on the 6th of May so my new start date would be the 15th of May.  I arrive at work and no one's there, still on vacation from the Easter Holiday it seems. I send an email and get an automated response saying anyone who can make such a decision isn't there, but they will be back the next day.  Alrighty then...Let's try  again at the Auslӓnderbehӧrde.  

I figured I would show up on Tuesday night around 7pm-ish, see what the line looks like and if it's bad already I will simply go to work on Wednesday and try to explain in person. I had bought myself a camp chair at some point to make the whole process easier too, so I bring that instead of a sleeping bag this time as the weather had gotten a lot warmer. At this point I'm pretty pessimistic that I'll get a Wartenummer.  Here's a picture of me when I get there at 725pm.

I was the first one to show up! I couldn't believe it, I was so flabbergasted. I set up my chair, brought out my waiting gear (see other definition: kindle, phone with downloaded Netflix episodes, Spotify playlists).  Not more than 30 minutes after I showed up someone else arrived, said that they normally start a list, and then he made a list with my name first, and then he wrote his name and left. I wasn't sure about the list thing, I hadn't heard about it before, so I figured I would stay to be sure.

It was a pretty nice evening so the first 3 hours were no big deal. Around 9pm people started showing up. Around 10pm it started to get a bit cold but I had brought my down jacket so I was ok. I started drifting in and out of sleep. I remember bolting awake just after midnight hearing the, I believe, turkish guy who had been sitting next to me holding people back saying I was first in line, as they had just opened the doors to let us in to wait inside. Kind of bleary eyed and panicky I grabbed my things and went inside. It didn't really matter though, because the security guy who let us in just took the list, after confirming everyone was on it, and then we waited another 2 hours. Weird sleeping positions abounded, but somehow snoring never showed up.

I definitely slept some more inside.  Warm, in my camp chair (me and that camp chair are now good friends), I waited. At 2am we all got our little slips of paper, which I coveted and stored securely before I jumped on my bike and took off for home.  

I had hoped to get some more sleep when I got home, but after that 25 minute bike ride I was awake again. I also knew I had to wake up in 3 hours to bike back to the Auslӓnderbehӧrde, so I was nervous to fall asleep in case I didn't actually wake up with my alarm. Instead I just took it easy, ate some food, packed my paperwork and headed back out there around 5:45ish.  I show up and…

Side Note: I waited in one particular spot in the waiting area inside when I showed back up and the other 5 after me in line gravitated towards me and waited around me like I was a beacon.  It was rather strange and humorous, or perhaps I was just sleep deprived?

...finally my number gets called at 8am when they open.  I got an actual Wartenummer! Hallelujah!!  I go upstairs for the open appointment. I go inside, bring all my paperwork out, and after 10 minutes of review they find a missing piece of information.  

Unfortunately it was on the paperwork confirming my living situation, something only Guillaume could officially answer as the owner of the apartment. It's even more unfortunate because he's currently in Argentina for work. I had no idea when he would even wake up, let alone see a message from me about the situation.  At this point I'm like, s**t, I was first in line but I'm still not going to get this finished today. Luckily she tells me an email from him confirming such and such is fine, and that if they get the email before 2pm that day I can show up and go straight back upstairs to that room and finish processing my paperwork. Also, that if I don't hear back from him before 2pm, I need to email them an update and they will try to fit me in before I'm supposed to start work. Ok, I'm exhausted, but I bike off to work to give them an update. That maybe, just maybe, I can start on the 1st of May.  

Then I bike home, super exhausted now...wait wait, I stopped off at the store first and bought a pastry and some pringles because I'm also super hungry at this point, and go home. Oh man, I was beat walking through that store. If it had been slightly worse I might have been drooling as I walked around.

So now I'm laying on the couch for the next couple of hours, trying to stay slightly awake in case I get a message from Guillaume or the Auslӓnderbehӧrde. Then around 10:15am Guillaume messages me like the Superman that he is. Guillaume: "Is there still time?" Me: "Are you wearing a cape?" *something akin to Avengers/Superman theme music is now playing in my sleep deprived brain...OMG I'm so happy at this point*.  He quickly sends the necessary email, and the previously super exhausted me who is now wide awake takes a quick shower and jumps back on her bike to bike back, a 3rd time, to the Auslӓnderbehӧrde.  

I get there with 30 minutes to spare before their lunch break. The person helping me is also training someone else so I guess it takes 5 more minutes for my paperwork to get finished.  The actual processing time for the paperwork was so short, but everything leading up to it was so drawn out and exhausting, I was stunned at the end.

Me: "Das War's?" (definition: that's it?)

Nice Lady: "Ja." (see other definition: ah you're so cute, what did you expect?)

Elated I bike off to the copy shop to make copies of my Aufenthaltstitle for work. I'm almost dancing on my bike, singing to the music on my phone. I'm overjoyed that it's finally done! I make copies, and dropped them off at work. Once home I'm so exhausted but still awake that it took me a bit but eventually I passed out.  I think I passed out around...2pm? I'm not sure really.  I just know I snacked hard on peanuts and chocolate before I fell asleep. I woke up this morning just before 6am, and have been until now writing this all up for ya'll to enjoy.

Ok, this was a bit drawn out, but seriously guys the whole process was intense. There were several times these past few weeks when I wanted to cry because of messed up sleeping schedules, unknowns, and the fear of having to leave the country and then come back in three months because I might have missed something.

Revelation: I have an even more profound respect for immigrants now. I have an inkling of what it must be like for people waiting in lines for things like water in 3rd world countries.

I met some really interesting people during this experience. The people waiting in line like me were from everywhere but europe or the US. I met some interesting people from Japan, Taiwan, Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Turkey, and India. Those were the people who I actually bothered to ask where they came from. They were also the people who understood what I was asking. I honestly cannot imagine how hard it must have been for those who didn't speak much english or german.  

I have a request for anyone reading this blog entry. After reading my small commentary as someone without much of a language barrier and a lot of local help I hope I can share this with you all. This process for me was exhausting, confusing, and at times frightening. But can you imagine, after reading my tale, just how much harder it must be for those trying to immigrate in Germany or the US, who didn't have the help I did?  How hard it must be for those who don't know the languages I know, and...for those who didn't have the skin tone I have? Let's also mention that I was, by far, the worst dressed out of the bunch. Oregonians, already known as rather lowkey in attire for the US, and here I am in jeans and a hoodie waiting in line next to others dressed super nice.  Despite that I feel I still had an easier time of it simply from the lack of language barrier, and I'm sure some unconscious white privilege that came along with it.

Whelp my coffee's gone cold, and I'm starting to get hungry. Thanks to everyone who has supported me on this journey, a life goal of mine, to live and work in Germany as an adult. I didn't realize just how much of a dream this was until after leaving that office. The sunny bike ride from the Auslӓnderbehӧrde to work, when I should have been exhausted, was one of sheer joy. A life experience that I hope I never forget. With this I leave you with my theme song during this adventure, "Can't Knock the Hustle" by Weezer.      

[chaletnz]

The Trip Begins in Sofia

An afternoon flight allowed me ample time to prepare for my next European adventure. I took a leisurely breakfast with Alice at the hotel, ran all of my errands and even had time to pick up a chicken sandwich on my way to the airport. Although we waited for 30 minutes in the bus to the aircraft, all was smooth on the flight and I realised that it would only take 2 hours and not 3 because of the hour time difference. We arrived to rolling green hills, small clusters of houses and dry farmland that was probably grateful for less hot weather. The shuttle between terminals drove me around the airport right at sunset and I enjoyed some spectacular views of the air traffic control tower and large letters spelling Sofia in both English and Bulgarian. Inside Terminal 2 I changed 20 euros into local currency Bulgarian lev and then bought 2 tickets for the metro as my hostel had instructed. One for me and one for my bag! It was a much more advanced subway system than I'd anticipated - the scrolling sign inside and the announcements were in both Bulgarian and English (actually better than the Ubahn in Frankfurt which is only in German). After a journey of about 20-30 minutes I arrived at Serdika station which is right in the centre of Sofia and serves as the change station between the two metro lines, I walked upstairs to some deafening club music which was outside a bank of all places and desperately tried to navigate my way to the hostel. I walked down a dark main road and followed the directions to find my way into a little courtyard where I simply followed the sound of people speaking English and felt like I must be in the right place. I was checked in by Antonia who was super helpful and friendly despite my feeling uncomfortable with all of the socializing in large groups happening around me. I was shown to my room and then headed out for a quick Lidl trip to buy some water and a shower gel for the trip. Back in my room I planned out some activities for tomorrow and chatted to an American lady called Wendy who had also just arrived. It was actually a very comfortable bed and dorm room, unfortunately 2 of the roommates came in quite late and woke us up. And in the morning there was a mad scramble to get up and shower in the only shower between 15 people. It definitely made me think back to my leisurely mornings in the hotels! Once the scrambling was over I got ready and went to the free breakfast in the main hall, it was chaos with so many people fighting for cutlery and plates and two young Bulgarian ladies in aprons trying frantically to replenish the food. I took a waffle and grabbed the nearest free seat at a table with some hungover Germans. After my light breakfast I packed my day bag and headed off, first stop was the bank to exchange some cash. I walked down one of the central roads Alabin and found the huge court house with its two lion statues outside. A little bit further down I reached the 2 Giraffes espresso bar for my morning cappuccino. I had just enough time left to quickly find the street art I had spotted last night and then I met the walking tour guide Slavyan and the other participants at the court house. Around the corner opposite the St Nedelya church we began with a short history of Sofia - one of the oldest cities in Europe at around 6000 years old. The church was the site of a terrorist attack in 1925 that killed almost all Bulgarian political and influential leaders except for the king. A funeral was being held in the church whilst stacks of explosives lay below, by his own good fortune the king was running late and that is how he survived. Next we visited Serdica square where the St Sofia Monument stands. Slavyan told us about the "big misunderstanding" relating to this monument which was a millennium gift from the government of Sofia to its citizens. It was presented as a monument to St Sofia after whom the city was supposedly named but historians disagreed and said the city is not named after the Saint. The church was also not pleased at the depiction of a "Saint" with such an open dress. But the monument stayed put and that was that! We followed Slavyan to the Sveta Petka Orthodox Church. It was from the 14th century and nearby some ruins from the 4th century had been excavated, it seems that the Bulgarians loved to build their new buildings on top of old ones. Outside the mosque Slavyan pointed out the synagogue (the 4th largest in Europe) and told us about the Jewish population's interesting history. When Germany approached the Bulgarian border the Bulgarians were forced to ally as they did not have a strong army, however each time the trains came to take Jewish people to concentration camps the citizens worked together to save them. The king himself even stood on the train tracks and said they could only be taken over his dead body. We passed through the hot springs next and were invited to drink some water in hope to improve our cardiovascular system. Across the road we saw an old bath house that had been converted into the Sofia history museum and had beautiful gardens and a fountain laid out in front of the building. We passed by the Communist headquarters building where 700-1000 administrators would have worked but now it functions as an office for the socialist party which is the second or third political party in present day Bulgaria. Slavyan led us underground to the ancient city ruins of Serdica and showed us exactly where the east gate was located and in doing so we ended up taking a convenient underpass to cross the road and emerge outside the presidential office. Luckily we arrived just in time to see the guards marching for the changing of duty and we could all take a photo before Slavyan took a group photo of us. Next we passed through some archways to arrive in a courtyard where the St George church (also known as the rotunda church) is located. It was built in the 4th century and is one of the oldest buildings in the world at 1600 years old. In front of our next landmark; the National Art Gallery, formerly the royal palace, Slavyan directed us around to tell the story of the royal family in a bit of a performance so we understood how Bulgaria had initially "imported" its royal family but eventually ended up with a Bulgarian-born king. As we walked down the yellow brick road Slavyan told us about how the government had bought these expensive yellow bricks to look more European however once it rained for the first time and it was discovered that they were slippery and impractical, the government decided to lie and say the bricks were a gift for the royal wedding so that the citizens wouldn't know that so much money had been spent on the slippery bricks. We walked up to the Hagia Sofia which was the church responsible for the renaming of Sofia from its original name Serdica. And then we had reached our final destination, the one and only Aleksander Nevski Cathedral with its shiny golden domes. The grandest building in Sofia made with only the best materials, including a total of 22 tonnes worth of bells imported from Moscow. The largest and heaviest bell weighs 13 tonnes and it has been said that if you were to ring all of the bells together then the windows in the surrounding buildings would blow out! After the tour I went to take some photos of the cathedral and went inside to see how big it really was. Then I retraced my steps to get photos of everything we had visited on the tour. I felt hungry and luckily stumbled upon a supermarket to buy a milkshake and an oat bar for sustenance. Then I walked up to the central train station stopping only for a short break at the Lion Bridge. I bought my onward ticket to Skopje, Macedonia and luckily I checked the details in the agency because the woman had accidentally given me the morning bus rather than the afternoon one! My last big excursion for the day was a trip out to the NDK where I walked through the Bulgaria Square and into a quiet neighbourhood to find a speciality coffee shop called Dabov to enjoy a flat white. On the way back I watched the skaters for a while, especially the inline skaters as they were waxing all of the steps and getting in everyone's way. On my walk back I found a Bulgarian Apple Bandit cider in a supermarket which of course came back to the hostel with me to drink while writing my blog!

[k2kid]

Confidential War Diary of 18th CANADIAN BATTALION – 2nd CANADIAN DIVISION

From 1st December, 1918 to 31th December, 1918

Volume 40 With appendices 1 – 30

Place Date Hour Summary of Events and Information       Maps for reference: Marche 9, Germany 1 M, 1 L, 2 L. 1/160,000 attached. Appendix No. 27. 28. 29, and 30. Mean- 23.05.40. Marche 9 1   The Battalion moved in full marching order 08.00 Hrs. for VILLERS STE. GERTRUDE, the usual noonday halt was made for dinner. From the Noon Hour on the country became rolling, and hilly and very heavily wooded. The Battalion arrived at the destination at 15:00 Hours. Capt. T.H.C. Rayward, and batman returned from Instructor’s Course at Senior Officer’s School, Aldershot, England. 1 O.R. to hospital. 1 O.R. from leave. Appendix No. 1. Villers Ste. Gertrude. 2-G.95.35 Marche 9 2   Battalion resting in billets. 12 O.R’s on leave and 2 O.R’s returned from leave. 3 O.R’s to Hospital and 1 O.R. returned from Hospital.   3   Battalion resting in Billets awaiting move order. 2 O.R’s to hospital.   4   The Battalion moved in full marching order at 08:30 Hours and marched via GRAND MONIL to ODEIGNE. It rained practically during the entire march of the day. A noonday halt for dinner was made, the Battalion arriving at its destination at 16:00 Hours. The march to-day was stedily [sic] uphill into the heart of the Ardenne Mountains. Lieut. R.E. Rouse and 2 O.R’s from leave and 2 O.R’s to Hospital. Appendix No. 2. Odeigne 3-I 20.10 Marche 9 5   The Battalion moved off at 08:30 Hours in full marching order for COUTRIL, dropping down the latter part of the march into open country. Battalion arrived at its destination at 15:00 Hours. 2 O.R’s to Hospital. Appendix No. 3. COUTRIL 4-K 98.60 6   The Battalion moved off at 08:00 Hours in full marching order for WALL RODE, Germany, crossing the Frontier shortly after 10:00 Hours, and passing through St. Vith about 14:30 Hours, arrived at destination at 16:00 Hours. 8 O.R’s from leave and 3 O.R’s to hospital. Appendix No. 4. WALLERODE 5-C 90.35 Germany 1-M 7   The Battalion moved off at 08:30 Hours for MANDERFELD, arriving there at 15:30 Hours. The country roundabout assuming more of an agricultural aspect. 1 O.R. to Hospital and 2 O.R’s returned from Hospital. MANDERFELD 4-H 60.10 Germany 1-M 8   Battalion resting in billets. Capt. R.R. Hartry and 7 O.R. from leave. 2 O.R’s to Hospital. MANDERFELD 4-H 60.10 Germany 1-M 9   The Battalion moved off at 08:30 Hours for DAHLEM, arriving at destination at 16:00 Hours. The Battalion Headquarters being located in the Post Office. 1 O.R. from leave and 1 O.R. on Course. Appendix No. 6. DAHLEM 3-K 60.45 Germany 1-M 10   The Battalion moved off in fighting order at 08:30 Hours and marched to MUNSTEREIFEL, arriving at destination at 15:00 Hours. Lories provided by Brigade, carrying the Men’s packs. The Battalion was billeted in a Boy’s Boarding School. Appendix No. 7. MUNSTEREIFEL Germany 1-L 11   The Battalion moved at 08:30 Hours in fighting order, and marched to KUCHENHEIM, arriving at destination at 13:30 Hours. The Battalion Headquarters being located in the Burgomeister’s house. 18 O.R’s from leave 1 O.R. to hospital and 1 O.R. returned from Hospital. Appendix No. 8. KUCHENHEIM Germany 1-L 12   The Battalion moved in fighting order at 08:30 Hours and marched to DUISDORF, arriving at 12:00 Hours. 2 O.R’s from leave and 1 O.R. to Hospital. 1 C.S.M. and 11 O.R’s [to] 2nd Divisional Headquarters, Bonn, for Guard Duty. Appendix No. 9. DUISDORF Germany 2-L 7 D 35.40 13   The Battalion moved off in full marching order at 08:00 Hours and marched via Bonn, crossing the famous RIVER RHINE at that point to its final destination in the town of Hennef (Sieg). In passing through Bonn the Battalion marched with rifles at the slope and bayonets fixed and passed in review at the east end of the Bonn Bridge, before the Corps and Divisional Commanders. Lieut.-General A.W. Currie, Corps Commander, taking the salute. Maj.-Gen. H.E. Burstall, Commander of the Division, and the Divisional Staff being immediately in the rear of Lieut.-Gen. Currie on the reviewing stand. Upon the arrival of the Battalion in Hennef, 13:30 Hours, Batt’n. Hdqr’s was located in the office of a manufacturing establishment on Frankfurter Strasse, and Hdqr’s officers were billeted in a large Chateau nearby. The Men of “A”, “C” and “d” and Hdqr’s Companies were assigned to billets they were to occupy during their stay in the area. These billets being in private homes of the civilian population. “D” Company proceeded without delay to the village of Happershass, where they were to be on duty as Outpost Company. 3 O.R’s from lave. Appendix No. 10. HENNEF 6 G 90.80 Germany 2-L 14   On this second day of the stay of the Battalion in this are the Officers and men rested in their billets, recovering in a measure from the hardships of the march. Conforming with Army Orders issued to the Burgomeister and from him to the population in general, many civilians have reported to Batt’n. Hdqr’s. for the necessary Identification Passes for use in the local area. These passes being a description of the holder and having further, his or her photograph attached thereto. Several men of the Battn. having knowledge of the German Language, have been selected for Batt’n. duty as Interpreters, etc. 1 O.R. on Hand Compositors Course. 5 O.R’s from leave. 2 O.R. Canadian Corps Cyclists returned to their unit. 2 O.R’s to Hospital.   15   The Battalion formed up on parade and marched though the town to a theatre, in which nothing in the way of amusement was presented for quite some time, and in which the Battalion now held Church Service. The Padre, being in fine form, gave the Battalion an excellent sermon, which was thoroughly appreciated by all members of the Batt’n. present. 1 O.R. to Brigade Duty as Paymaster’s Clerk. Appendix No. 11 attached.   16   The Battalion carried on with training, as per syllabi attached. Between “A” and “D” Companies’ billeting areas a fine large field was located and it served as an excellent Drill Square or Parade Ground. 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 12.   17   Battalion Headquarters Staff and Company moved today to the village of Allner, locating the Battalion Orderly Room in a magnificent large Castle, or as termed in the German tongue, Schloss. The Schloss is a huge and very fine specimen of Architectural Art of an earlier period, and is built entirely of stone. Its is surrounded by a beautiful park. When one has seen the Castle and Grounds he is immediately struck with the thought that it is emblematic of the utmost in luxury and convenience. The Batt’n. Headquarters Officers have appropriated the entire Castle and appurtenances for their quarters, having installed themselves in the Sleeping Chambers and using the Breakfast Rooms, Dining Rooms, Drawing Rooms, Billiard Rooms, etc. at their will. The Castle maintains a large staff of servants and consequently the order of the house is of the finest and our Officers are living, as is their due, in every luxury. In a large forest in the rear of the Castle Grounds Dear [sic] and small game abound and the Officers of the Battalion secure a great measure of enjoyment from their hunting and shooting expeditions. The remainder of the Battalion remain in Hennef and are continuing with their training as per syllabi attached. 6 O.R’s from leave. 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 13. Allner 6 G 90.80 Germany 2-L 18   The Men of the Battalion have now fully recovered from the hardships of the march and are training as per Syllabi attached. The spirit of the men is superb and they are entering into the daily routine of their stay here and are carrying on their various duties with an eagerness and willingness that is proverbial with the Canadians as a whole. Clothing parades are being held almost daily and the various Company Quartermasters are as rapidly as possible fitting the men with the required new clothing so that the Battalion has now approached the appearance of smartness that is second to none in the allied Armies and in the Canadian and British Armies in particular. 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 14.   19   The Battalion continued their training as per syllabi attached. Lieut. S.G. Stokes and 4 O.R’s on leave. Appendix No. 15.   20   “B” Company moved to-day to Brel to continue their duty as Outpost Company there. The remainder of the Battalion continuing their training per Syllabi attached. 3 O.R’s on leave. Appendix No. 16.   21   The Battalion continues training as per Syllabi attached. 4 O.R’s on leave, 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 17.   22   The Battalion attended Church Service to-day and enjoyed an excellent sermon, the Padre being in his usual good voice. Major J.J. Richardson and 3 O.R’s on leave. 2 O.R’s attached to Battalion as interpreters. Appendix No. 18.   23   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached, and are maintaining duties in control of the area in the following manner:-

  Duties of Commandant and Town Major combined in towns of Hennef (North of Railway), ALLNER, Happerschloss, Heisterschloss, Brehl, Mushmuchl and Weldergoven, in the person O.C. Battalion occupying this district. Headquarters at Schloss in Allner. One H.Q. Officer has office at Hennef permanently for purpose of stamping identification cards. District Administration is carried on by the Battalion Administration through the Burgomeister. No civilians are employed.

  One Railway Control Post on broad gauge Railway station at Hennef, which has phone connection to Inter-Allied Railway Commission at Cologne. On the outpost line we have two main Control posts, four subsidiary posts and tow patrols, reference map Germany 2-L.

  No. 1 Post (subsidiary) at railroad bridge under V. in Weldergoven.

No. 2 Post (subsidiary) on dirt road just east of village of Weldergoven, just above N. in Weldergoven.

No. 3 Post (subsidiary) on bridge over river where Hennef road joins Allner road. Directly above W. in Weldergoven.

No. 4 Post (Main Control) on bridge in Muschnuehl road, directly below M. in Muschnuehl.

No. 5 Post (subsidiary) on foot bridge S.E. of village of Brehl halfway between l. in Brehl and T in Triesch.

No. 6 Post (Main Control) on bridge where main road Winterschield crosses river.

No. 1 Patrol covers ground between No. 4 and No. 5 Posts.

No. 2 Patrol covers ground along river from junction main Winterschield road with main Brehl-Schied Road.

Traffic with Neutral territory only through main control posts.

Subsidiary posts to guard bridges and prevent traffic to foot paths etc.

No. 377223 Pte. Bihl W. (193 Labour Co’y) and No. 3108760 Pte. Wieber J. (11th Co’y Cdn. Forestry Corps) are attached from 4th C.I.B. as interpreters at Railway Control Post. We have no F.(b) Police attached.

3 O.R’s on leave and 3 O.R’s returned from leave. 5 O.R’s attached to 2nd Divisional Train. 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 19.

    24   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached. 4 O.R’s on leave and 2 O.R’s returned. Appendix No. 20.   25   “‘A MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL’. Christmas  Day dawned bright and clear, with just a touch of snow upon the ground, which gave the vicinity a very “Christmas-like” appearance.

The members of the Battalion were in excellent spirit and thoroughly prepared for anything the day might bring forth. The Officers of the Battalion made every preparation for a fine Christmas Dinner and the men were awaiting it with very keen anticipation. At the appointed hour the tables in the different Company mess-rooms, especially selected for the day, were teeming with good things to eat, and they assuredly presented a most pleasant sight.

“A” Company Mess-room was located in a large hall in the Northern section of the town. “C” Company enjoyed its dinner in a very picturesque theatre in the centre of the town, while “D” Company had theirs in one of the schools the town affords. “B” Company being on duty as Outpost Company, had arranged to  have dinner in one of the schools in the village of Brohl.

Each of the mess-rooms was decorated in a most pleasant and “Christmas-like” style and tended to heighten the then very high spirit of the men. The tables were loaded with Apples, Oranges, Nuts, Ginger-ale, Cakes, etc. and from the serving tables in the rear came the most appetizing odours of Turkey, meats, vegetables, Christmas Plum Pudding and other items to be served as the dinner progressed.

The men took their places at the tables in a very business-like manner, the different platoons being kept together, and then began what was their first Christmas dinner and also, in all probability their last one in German Territory.

Lt.-Col. L.E. Jones and ad Staff Officers and the Officers of the different Companies were in attendance at each of the dinners of the Companies and during the progress of the dinner Lt.-Col. Jones made a short [entered in pencil] speech of good will, wishing the members of the Battalion a “Very  Merry Christmas” and every prosperity for the coming year, which as he remarked would be the one year that would never be forgotten by any one present or by the world in its entirety, being the Anniversary year of the Ending of the War. He again complimented the members of the Battalion upon their share of the conflict and expressed himself as being more than pleased with their conduct in the past and present.

At the close of his address the men express their appreciation of his remarks by rising and giving him three of the most hearty cheers and a “Tiger”.

At the close of the dinner the faces of the men showed, very glowingly, their entire satisfaction. Altogether the occasion was carried off in an excellent manner and it will be one that will never be forgotten by any of the members of this battalion.

2 O.R.s on leave and 3 O.R.s returned.

  26   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached. 4 O.R’s on leave and 1 O.R. returned. 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 21.   27   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached. 3 O.R’s on leave and 24 O.R’s  returned. 4 O.R’s attached to Repatriated Prisoners of War Camp, Wahm. 1 O.R. attached as reinforcement. 2 O.R’s to Hospital. Appendix No. 22.   28   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached. Lieut. C.D. Smith and 4 O.R’s on leave. Appendix No. 23.   29   The Battalion attended Church Service and enjoyed another of the Padre’s excellent Sermons. Capt. C.H. Boulden and Capt. W.A.S. Porter and 5 O.R’s on leave, and 1 O.R. returned. 1 O.R. to Fitters Course at Duran. 1 O.R. to Hospital. Appendix No. 24.   30   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached. 1 O.R. on leave to Paris and 1 O.R. returned from leave, from United Kingdom. 1 O.R. returned from Hospital Appendix no 25.   31   The Battalion continued training as per Syllabi attached. 4 O.R’s on leave. 1 O.R. to Hospital and 1 O.R. returned from Hospital. Appendix No. 26.

War Diary

Appendices (Not Including Maps)

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War Diary of the 18th Battalion: December 1918 Confidential War Diary of 18th CANADIAN BATTALION – 2nd CANADIAN DIVISION From 1st December, 1918 to 31th December, 1918…

[a380flightdeck]

FOR A WHOLE HOST OF REASONS, airports are often bewildering, maddening places. There is much to be found in the modern-day terminal to enrage, confuse, or vex the traveler. Where to begin?

The following list was inspired by a layover I spent not long ago at Incheon International Airport (ICN), serving Seoul, Korea. Not to take away from perennial survey-toppers like Amsterdam’s Schiphol or Singapore’s Changi Airport (amenities at Changi include a movie theater, a swimming pool and a butterfly garden), but Incheon stands as the most functional, attractive, and overall flyer-friendly airport I’ve ever visited. It’s cavernous and immaculate, with a cathedral-like calm throughout. Security and immigration are a breeze; international transit is effortless. The staff at the multilingual information desks are disarmingly helpful. Amenities include free internet, free showers, luggage storage, cellphone rental desks, a post office and massage facilities. Relaxation areas, with sofas and easy chairs, are set away from the main thoroughfares.  There’s a cultural center, a museum, and a full-service hotel inside the secure zone, allowing those with extended layovers to rent a room without the need to clear immigration. Or, if you’re feeling energetic, a tour desk arranges free excursions to Incheon city. If you’re headed into Seoul, the airport’s high-speed rail connection will have you downtown in under an hour. Why can’t every airport be like this?

FIFTEEN THINGS NO TERMINAL SHOULD BE WITHOUT:

1. A fast, low-cost public transportation link to downtown.

In a way, choosing a favorite airport is like choosing a favorite hospital: amenities aside, nobody really wants to be there in the first place, and the easier and faster you can get the hell out, the better. To that end, every terminal should have a public transport links similar to those across Asia and Europe. The examples of Portland, Oregon and Washington-Reagan notwithstanding, rail links in the United States aren’t nearly as convenient – when the exist at all. Or how about JFK, where for hundreds of millions dollars they finally got the AirTrain completed — an inter-terminal rail loop that connects only as far as the Queens subway. It can take 45 minutes, up and down a Rube Goldberg assembly of escalators, elevators and passageways, just to get from one terminal to another, let alone all the way to Manhattan.

2. In-transit capabilities

It’s a shame that American airports cannot, for whatever reasons, recognize the “in transit” concept. In the United States, all passengers arriving from other countries, even if they’re merely passing through on the way to a third country, are forced to clear customs and immigration, collect and re-check their luggage, and pass through security screening. It’s an enormous hassle, unheard of in most of the world. And it costs our airlines millions of annual customers. Why change planes in the US, where you’ll have to stand in three different lines, be photographed and fingerprinted, re-check your bags and face the TSA gauntlet, when instead you can transfer seamlessly in Frankfurt or Dubai? Indeed this is part of what has made carriers like Emirates, Singapore Airlines, and others so successful.

3. Complimentary wireless internet

What do we do at airports? We kill time. And there are few better and more productive ways of killing time than logging on to the Web. Send an email to your mistress, read my blog, Skype your friend in Slovenia. Many, if not most major terminals do have Wi-Fi access, but it’s often expensive and cumbersome (few things in life are more irritating than those credit card payment pages). It should be everywhere, and it should be free.

4. Convenience stores

It appears the evolution of airport design will not be complete until the terminal and shopping mall become indistinguishable. I’m okay with Starbucks and souvenir kiosks, but it’s the saturation of high-end boutiques that always confounds me. Apparently there isn’t a traveler alive who isn’t in dying need of a hundred-dollar Mont Blanc pen, a remote-control helicopter or a thousand-dollar massage chair. And what’s with all the luggage stores? Who on earth buys a suitcase after they get to the airport? What we really need are the same sorts of things we buy at CVS or the corner convenience store: basic groceries and dry goods, stationery, and personal care items. Brussels and Amsterdam are two that do this right, with in-terminal food marts and pharmacies.

5. Power ports

I didn’t realize that passengers have a right—nay, a duty—to mooch electricity from their carrier of choice, but at this point it’s a lost cause to argue. I hope your battery isn’t dying, because good luck finding an outlet that isn’t hooked up already to somebody’s iPhone or computer. Airlines should throw in the towel and build more charging stations.

6. Showers and a short-stay hotel

Another amenity that is common overseas but sorely lacking in North America.  No serious international terminal should be without a place to wash up or crash for a few hours. Passengers arriving from overseas can shower and change before their next connection. Those with longer waits can grab a nap in one of those pay-by-the-hour sleeping pods.

7. Play areas for children

Truth be told, airport play areas encourage toddlers to shriek and yell even more than they already do, but at least they’re doing it in a localized area that’s easy for the rest of us to avoid. Ideally, this spot should be in a soundproofed bubble six miles from the airport, but a space at the far end of the concourse is a reasonable alternative. The Delta terminal in Boston has a pretty cool kidport, but nothing tops the “Kids’ Forest” at Amsterdam-Schiphol. I’d play there myself if nobody was watching.

8. Better dining options — i.e. fewer chain restaurants

Chick-fil-A, Burger King, Sbarro’s. Airport cuisine isn’t a whole lot different from the shopping mall food court. We need more independent restaurants serving actual food, ideally with a local bent.

The next time you’re at LaGuardia, check out the Yankee Clipper restaurant over at the Marine Air Terminal. That’s the circular building at the far southwest corner of the airport, with the art deco doors and flying fish relief along its rooftop. Yankee Clipper is a cafeteria-style place on the left-hand side of the rotunda. It’s good greasy spoon food with absolutely no corporate affiliation. The Marine Air Terminal was the launching point of the first-ever transatlantic and around-the-world flights, and the restaurant’s walls are decorated with historic photographs. You can eat in, or take your sandwich out to one of the wooden benches beneath the famous James Brooks “Flight” mural. Commissioned in 1952, Brooks’ expansive, 360-degree painting traces the history of aviation from mythical to (then) modern, Icarus to Pan Am Clipper. Its style is a less than shy nod at Socialist realism, and at the height of ’50’s McCarthyism, in a controversy not unlike that surrounding Diego Rivera’s famous mural at Rockefeller Center, it was declared propaganda and obliterated under gray paint. Not until 1977 was it restored.

9. An information kiosk

Where is the Yankee Clipper restaurant? Where is the nearest ATM? Where is the nonexistent subway link to the city? Every arrivals hall ought to have personnel who can give directions, hand out maps and make change.

10.  A bookstore

Reading on planes is a natural, am I right? Why then is it so hard to find a proper bookstore at an airport? (Not all of us pre-load our reading material on a Kindle.) Not long ago, every major airport had a proper bookseller. Nowadays they are harder and harder to find, and usually what passes as a bookstore is really just a newsstand hawking a thin selection of business books, thrillers and pop-culture trash. Believe it or not, travelers’ tastes extend beyond Sudoku, Suze Orman, and the latest CEO autobiography.

11. Sufficient gate-side seating

If the plane at the gate holds 250 people, there ought to be a minimum of 250 chairs in the boarding lounge. There is something uncivilized about having to sit on the floor while waiting to board. Do we sit on the floor when waiting for a table in a restaurant, or at the doctor’s office? When Changi was built in Singapore, the gates were outfitted with no fewer than 420 chairs, matching the number on the average 747.

12.  Escalator etiquette

Americans haven’t figured out how to behave on an escalator. If you’re not in a hurry, stand on the right and enjoy the ride, allowing those of us with a flight to catch to walk on the left. Instead we stand in the middle, hogging up both sides.  Ditto for moving sidewalks. The point of the moving sidewalk is to expedite your passage, not to indulge your laziness. You’re not supposed to stand on it, you’re supposed to walk on it. And to take yet another page from the Europeans and Asians, what prevents us from fitting escalators and sidewalks with a light-beam trigger that shuts off the motor when nobody is on them? Ours run constantly, riders or no riders, wasting huge amounts of energy.

13. A view

Why are so many architects intent on hiding the fact that airports are actually airports? Gateside seating always faces away from the windows, and the windows themselves are sometimes intentionally opaqued or obstructed by barriers. Why? Penty of people would enjoy the opportunity to sit and watch the planes go by. You needn’t be an airplane buff to find this relaxing, or even a little exciting. As a bonus, more windows mean more natural light — always welcome over harsh fluorescents.

14. Bring back the airstairs!

Have you ever taken a good look at a jet bridge (or Jetway to use the proprietary term), that strange umbilicus connecting terminal to fuselage? One thing to notice is how ridiculously overbuilt they are. Do we really need all of that metal and cable and wire and hydraulics for what is, at heart, a simple gangway?

Of course, I am opposed to jet bridges on principle. I prefer the classic, drive-up airstairs. Some of the international stations I fly to still employ those old-timey stairs, and I always get a thrill from them. There’s something dramatic about stepping onto a plane that way: the ground-level approach along the tarmac followed by the slow ascent. The effect is like the opening credits of a film — a brief, formal introduction to the journey. By contrast, the jet bridge makes the airplane almost irrelevant; you’re merely in transit from one annoying interior space (terminal) to another (cabin).

Save your emails. This is just me being romantic. The benefits to the jet bridge are obvious — inclement weather, disabled passengers, etc. – and I realize there’s no going back.

15. Last but not least, some aesthetic flair

If an airport has one aesthetic obligation, it’s to impart a sense of place: you are here and nowhere else. On this front, Europe and Asia again set the standard. I think of Lyon and its magnificent hall by Santiago Calatrava, or Kuala Lumpur with its indoor rainforest, and a dozen places between, where terminal design is a point of expressive pride — where it makes a statement, be it quietly stylish or architecturally stupendous.

Take the magnificent Suvarnabhumi airport (pronounced “Su-wanna-poom”) in Bangkok, Thailand. Its central terminal is the most visually spectacular airport building I have ever seen. At night, as you approach by highway from the city, it looms out of the darkness like a goliath space station — a vision of glass and light and steel, its immense transoms bathed in blue spotlight. Or for sheer character, try the little airport in Timbuktu, Mali. Here you’ll find a handsome, Sudanese-style building emulating the mud-built mosques ubiquitous in that country.

With scattered exceptions (Denver, San Francisco, Washington, Vancouver), there is nothing comparable in America. To the contrary, some of our most expensive airport renovations have been terrible disappointments. JetBlue’s wildly overrated home at JFK, for example. Terminal 5 – or “T5” as the carrier likes to call it — is a $743 million, 72-acre structure that opened in 2008 to considerable promotion and fanfare. Inside, the atrium food court and rows of shops conspire to make yet another airport feel like yet another mall. The Wi-Fi is free, and so is the noise and claustrophobia at the overcrowded gates. But it’s the exterior that’s the real tragedy. Although the street-side facade is at worst cheerless, the tarmac-side is truly abominable — a wide, low-slung, industrial-brutalist expanse of concrete and gray. Once again it looks like a shopping mall.  Or, to be more specific, it looks like the back of a shopping mall. All that’s missing are some pallets and dumpsters. The facility’s only visual statement is one of not caring, a presentation of architectural nothingness, absolutely empty of inspiration — precisely what an airport terminal should not be. Is this the best we can do?

It’s ironic that Eero Saarinen’s landmark TWA “Flight Center” sits directly in front of T5, itself part of the JetBlue complex. The TWA building is supposed to serve as an entryway lobby and ticketing plaza for T5, though for now it remains semi-derelict and only partly renovated. I wish they’d finish the thing so that more people could appreciate what is arguably the most architecturally significant airport terminal ever constructed. Regarded as a modernist masterpiece, the Flight Center opened in 1962 and was the first major terminal built expressly for jet airliners. Saarinen, a Finn whose other projects included the Gateway Arch in St. Louis and the terminal at Washington-Dulles, described his TWA as “all one thing.” The lobby is a fluid, unified sculpture of a space, at once futuristic and organic. It’s a kind of Gaudi inversion, a carved-out atrium reminiscent of the caves of Turkish Cappadocia, overhung by a pair of cantilevered ceilings that rise from a central spine like huge wings.

And just to the north of T5 used to be the National Airlines Sundrome, designed by I. M. Pei. It opened in 1970 and was named in honor of National’s yellow and orange sunburst logo and its popular routes between the Northeast and Florida. After National was folded into Pan Am, the terminal was taken over by TWA. Later it was used by jetBlue, then abandoned and torn down. Pei and Saarinen, a half-minute walk from each other. Our airports ain’t what they used to be.

Am I making too much of this? While terminal design and passenger friendliness are important, isn’t it the operational aspects of an airport—the state of its runways, taxiways, and logistical infrastructure—that ultimately matter most? Indeed, but here too the situation is worrying, as any American who travels globally can attest. Once again, it’s a funding issue. Our airports are failing, and nobody wants to pay for them.

“Other parts of the world are more enlightened in their aviation policies than we are,” said Greg Principato, North American president of the Airports Council International, speaking at a conference in 2012. He added that members of the U.S. Congress have a poor understanding of how the upkeep and renovation of U.S. airports needs to be funded. “They have a sense that airports are economically important,” he explained, “but don’t really understand why.” Principato warns that the declining state of its airport infrastructure puts the United States “at risk of being turned into a feeder system for the global aviation network.”

But let’s change gears for a minute, and move from what airports lack to something they have too much of. To me, the single most annoying thing about airports is how noisy they are. I’m not talking about the noise from jet engines. I’m talking about the in-terminal noise. I’m talking about the sounds of humanity on the move, with our shrieking kids, and our beeping electric carts, our laughing and our shouting and our cellphone chatter. All of it amplified by the sadistic acoustics of the typical terminal.

And what makes this a distinctly American problem is our peculiar infatuation with public address announcements. As we’ve already seen, there are plenty of good ideas that American airports can borrow from their counterparts in Europe and Asia, but perhaps none would be more appreciated than realizing that passengers need not be assailed by a continuous loop of useless and redundant PAs: security alerts, boarding calls, traffic and parking directives, promotional and welcome messages. You’ll often hear two or more announcements playing simultaneously. I’ve heard up to four of them blaring at once, rendering all of them unintelligible in a hurricane of noise.

Intensifying this bombardment are those infernal gate-side television monitors blaring CNN Airport Network. These yammering hellboxes are everywhere, and they cannot be turned off. There is no volume control, no power cord, no escape. Every gate has one, and they run twenty-four hours a day. Not even the employees know how to shut them up (believe me, I’ve asked).

All of this sonic pollution does not make passengers more attentive or keep them better informed. What it does is make an already stressful and nerve-wracking experience that much worse.

On a lighter note, am I the only one struck by the phenomenon of teenage girls carrying big fluffy pillows onto airplanes? I’m uncertain when this trend got started, but take a look around in any terminal, anywhere in the world, and you’ll see girls clutching big fluffy pillows.

What’s wrong with this? Nothing. It’s a great idea, especially now that carriers no longer dispense even tiny, non-fluffy pillows on all but the longest flights. In a window seat, putting a pillow between your body and the sidewall creates a comfy sleeping surface. I only bring it up because, on behalf of guys everywhere, I feel excluded. It’s unfair. Grown men like me can’t walk through airports with big fluffy pillows unless we’re willing to get laughed at. We’re stuck with those neck pillow things.

But this isn’t right. To hell with dignity, I say. It’s time to rise up and break the pillow barrier. Who will be first? I’m thinking we should organize a march — a line of men strutting through the concourse, pillows proudly in hand.  

“We’re men, we’re strong, this is true, Fluffy pillows aren’t just for you! Downy soft, pastel blues, Come on girls, let us snooze!”

Later, in the parking lot, we can high-five and toss a few of those neck braces into a bonfire. And I smell a gold here mine for airport merchants. Instead of luggage and massage chairs, why not a pillow shop right there in the terminal? No need to lug one from home when you can pick one up gate-side for just a few bucks. You’d have a choice of foam or feather, and a selection of pillowcases to pick from. To entice the guys, cases could be emblazoned with camo patterns and beer logos.

[3monthsineurope]

September 20, 2019

Friday morning we woke up at 8, in Trier at Franzi’s and Soli’s. I gathered up the laundry they had washed for us (thanks again, Franzi!) while Franzi made us some breakfast. Ingvar and I packed up and got our bags already, then we sat down to have breakfast with them. Franzi made fresh croissants, eggs, coffee, and had out jams and Nutella, with cheese and meat, too. They were so hospitable! I still can’t get over it. Franzi made us a little bag of snacks, too, for the long day on the train. She gave us apples and bananas, chocolate covered rice cakes, chocolate, and granola bars.

Franzi had to work that morning, and Soli was going to the university to study, so they both drove us to the train station. It was such an amazing stay in Trier, I’m so glad we trekked out there! Our train was at 9:33, so we found the platform and waited for it. We got on the right train, but I began to get worried when the stops on the screen stopped at Luxembourg. I was pretty worried, and my fears were confirmed when a women checked our tickets. We were supposed to sit in the front of the train, and we were near the back. Oh no! She told us to get off at the next stop, then go back to Trier. Ugh, this was super frustrating, because there was no notice anywhere that that’s where we needed to be.

So, we got off the train and took the next one back to Trier. We went to the reservations room to ask for help from the DB workers. The woman helping us told us we were definitely not the first people to do this! She got us a new itinerary and had us catch a 10:33 train. This new itinerary only had one connection, instead of two, but we lost our seat assignments, which was a bummer. Thankfully we made the 10:33 train.

We sat together and snoozed a bit, ate snacks, and I wrote. We were on this train for about three hours, then we had ten minutes to change trains in Mannheim. Thankfully, the platform was nearby, so we hopped on the new train. We couldn’t find seats without reservations for ages, but eventually we found two in the same car. Ingvar was sitting next to an older woman, while I found a seat at a table for four. Before we both got settled though, the woman offered to switch seats with me so Ingvar and I could sit together! How nice is that?! We spent that train ride doing the same thing, listening to music, snoozing, and snacking. Before we knew it, our three hour train ride was ending in Munich!

I went to Oktoberfest/Munich in 2016 with my friend Natalie, so I recognized the main train station, HBF, right away. We went downstairs and bought a three day metro pass, then back upstairs to book our tickets to Venice for Monday. We ended up getting our tickets with a super nice man! We got our tickets for 7:30 am on Monday, with one stop, arriving in Venice around 2. We went back downstairs and took the metro to our stop, Frankfurter Ring. A women immediately asked if we needed directions, which was so kind! We popped up on the street and made our way to the hotel. The walk took about fifteen minutes. Our hotel was so nice! We booked it back in February I think? It had a king bed and a really nice bathroom. It didn’t have a bath tub, but oh well.

We dropped off our stuff in the room—it was so nice to not have to lock it up! We were super grateful to have our own space for a few days! This was also the longest we were staying anywhere, 3 nights. It was about 6, so we decided to try to get dinner at Hofbrauhaus. Hofbrauhaus is the “world’s most famous tavern”. We took the metro into Marienplatz, the main square in the city. I had wanted to see the town hall and St. Peter’s church. It was super busy! We checked out the area, then headed to Hofbrauhaus for dinner. There was a huge line to get in, but thankfully we were inside in under ten minutes. We looked around for a spot to eat, and found a table that was getting up. Ingvar and I sat down, then a group of five students joined us. Our waiter was super busy, so it took him a while to get to us. Ingvar had the darker of the two beers, while I had the original. We shared half a roast chicken and potato salad. I had been dreaming of the potato salad since I had it last time in 2016! There is something about this potato salad, it’s delicious. The chicken was actually so tasty too, we were super satisfied.

Aaron was just arriving in Munich, too! I had my phone data on, in case he was going to join us. It was Aaron’s first solo trip, and first tune to Europe. He was having a bit of a hard go so far, but he eventually made it to his campsite. He was camping at a huge place just for Oktoberfest goers. Ingvar and I took the metro back to our place, and by then, Aaron had made it to his “hostel”. Ingvar actually drove us on a scooter to get to our hotel fast! It was super fun and my first time on one of the scooters you just pick up on the street. Ingvar and I both showered and decided to call it an early night, around 9. We were so excited to see Aaron and do Oktoberfest the next day! :]

[bigtinyworldtravel]

Hello once again to another installment of our adventures around the world!  We’ve been posting a lot about Africa (did you read our story about driving 8 hours out of our way to find big cats or how we were robbed in Cape Town?), so a lot of folks think we’re still there.  The truth is, we have been in Europe now for about a month, but we’re soooo far behind on our blog posts (but we’ll catch up!).  If you want to keep up with where we are actually at and what we’re currently doing, I recommend you follow us on social media – where we post regularly – or sign up for our newsletter where we send out periodic updates on what we’re up to!

In the meantime, we’re taking a break from the Africa posts this week to bring you a taste of Europe (don’t worry; we have lots more to share from Africa, so stay tuned!).  When looking at Europe after Namibia, we scoured the interwebs for the cheapest airfare.  Probably due to the large German influence in Namibia, Frankfurt came up as the best option.  Germany, it is!

And as you know, funds are tight, and we’re always looking for ways to save money while traveling.  Fortunately, many cities in Europe offer discount cards.  We had our first opportunity to take advantage of this in Frankfurt, and it certainly helped us enjoy the city!

What is the Frankfurt Card?

The Frankfurt Card is basically a discount card available for purchase as either a day or two-day pass.  Presenting this pass at local restaurants, museums, and shops grants the visitor admission and goods at reduced rates.  This is especially good if you want to check out the local attractions and hit the popular spots.

Furthermore – and most importantly for us – these cards serve as a public transit pass.  This, alone, made the card worthwhile, as each one-way trip on trains and trams would have otherwise cost us €2-3.  Hopping all around the city, we almost saw a return in the value of our two-day passes before the second day (but we also have a tendency to pack our days with a lot of activity).

What did we use the card for?

When we first arrived in Frankfurt, we had high ambitions of wandering around the city, exploring at least four museums, taking a walking tour, sampling the local beer and pretzels, and discovering the beauty of the Main.  Long story short: we overcommitted ourselves (does that ever happen to you, too?).

We spent our first evening in town meandering all over the city and along the waterfront.  There were several festivals either being torn down or going up, and so many people were just enjoying the sunny afternoon.  Before we knew it, we were clear across town and exhausted from a full day of traveling.  We’d start anew the next day with some museum visits.

The Frankfurt History Museum

Our plan with the new day was to visit the History Museum in the morning, find a quaint restaurant for some quiet lunch and a beer, and then hit the Staedel in the afternoon, possibly wrapping up the day with a quick pop into the Schirn or the Filmmuseum.

That didn’t happen.

By around 1pm, we were still at the History Museum (50% off with the Frankfurt Card), and we had several floors left to explore.  It was quite clear that two more museums just weren’t going to fit into the day.

It was 4pm before we finally left this remarkable museum (more details on the unique exhibits coming soon!), and we dragged our worn-out, starving bodies to the closest cheap food we could find (it was Thai and simply delicious).

And then we sought out the flagship Haagen Dazs – this is Frankfurt, right?  Google led us to the train station, which evidently was not the original.. nor was it a location at which we could take advantage of the 20% discount with our Frankfurt Card.  Oh well.. it was still tasty!

On our feet the entire day, we just didn’t have the energy for another museum.  We resolved to visit the Staedel the following day, instead, after our planned walking tour.

Walking Frankfurt

Our second full day in Frankfurt, we woke up bright and early, treated ourselves to some flammkuchen, and headed to the meeting spot for the city’s free walking tour (popular and available in many European cities).  This would occupy our morning, concluding about midday – plenty of time for us to visit another museum in the afternoon.

That didn’t happen.

The walking tour was fantastic, and we learned quite a lot about the city and some of its local secrets (did you know the euphemism for visiting a brothel is “climbing stairs”?  This is because most brothels in Frankfurt begin on the second level, above streetside shops).

But once it ended, we got to talking with a few of our fellow tourmates and decided to grab lunch together at the local Kleinmarkthalle (an indoor food hall and market).  This led to a decision to venture across the river in search of apfelwein (a non-carbonated wine made from apples for which Frankfurt is famous).  We saved 10% on our visit to Struwwelpeter as part of our Frankfurt Card and indulged in some local apfelwein.

And then it rained.

We ducked into the restaurant for another round to wait out the sudden downpour, and by the time it was all said and done, it was nearly 4pm again.  We didn’t want to rush through a museum that late in the day, so we gave up.

Main Tower

Instead, we opted for an evening visit to the Main Tower to view the city from 56 stories up (discounted 20% with the Frankfurt Card).  The plan was to arrive a little before sunset to photograph the city in the evening light and then have some time to shoot the city lights just after dark.

That didn’t happen.

We got there on time, alright, but about 20 minutes after our arrival, we were all ushered off the observation deck.  A storm was moving in, and they were concerned the tower (obviously the tallest thing around) would be struck by lightning, endangering those outside.

We were super disappointed to be forced to leave so soon after arriving, but we didn’t give up just yet.  We stuck around with the mumbling crowd, and sure enough, they reopened the deck to let us back outside.

But because of the clouds and the distant rain, we didn’t get any sunset to speak of.  In fact, we got some of that rain on us.. and our cameras.

But we also caught some lightning.  And I did still shoot the nighttime city lights, so it all worked out.

How much did we save?

All in all, we saved about €1 on the apfelwein, €3 on the tower, and €8 on the museum.  We also didn’t have to pay for any public transit, which likely would have cost us about €10 each.  As of the time of this writing, two-day Frankfurt Cards for two people cost €31, so we pretty much broke even.

However, we didn’t visit as many museums as we intended, and we also didn’t take advantage of the many other various possible discounts of the card (including theater, shops, botanical gardens, the zoo, and segway tours).  If you are interested in any of these things or even just plan to use public transit a lot while in Frankfurt, the Frankfurt Card is likely a worthwhile investment.

There’s a lot to see and do in Frankfurt, and even two days wasn’t enough to truly see everything.  When next a cheaper flight takes us to Germany, we’ll know what to do next and how to save money doing so!

What kinds of activities do you most enjoy doing in a new city?

Disclaimer: Frankfurt Cards were provided to each of us free of charge by Frankfurt Tourism.  We thank them as this enabled us to explore more of the city than we would have otherwise, but as always, our experiences and opinions of the service are entirely our own.

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We are always looking for ways to #savemoney wherever we go. See how much we saved with the #FrankfurtCard! #frankfurtgermany #europetravel #budgettravel Hello once again to another installment of our adventures around the world!  We've been posting a lot about Africa (did you read our story about…

[julieinfulda]

16.7.17

Holy moly today was a good but long day (as per usual)! I don’t know what it is about travelling, but it really takes it all out of you. This morning I got to sleep in (!!) for like the first time this trip... and sleeping in here is about 8am! My body woke me up at 6:30 and it was so nice to be able to fall back asleep until 8. 

So I woke up, had a little breakfast, and packed my backpack before calling a taxi to take me to the train station. The bus on Sunday doesn’t run until about 10 so I had to call a cab and it was typical! I got in, told her where I wanted to go, she took me, and I paid an outrageous price for the Sunday morning ride! But, it got me where I needed to be at the right time, so I really can’t complain. I waited on the platform for my train and got on the 9:48 train to Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof (main train station)! It all went really smooth until I got to the main train station. There were so many people, no real common seating area, and my texts to McKenna weren’t going through. BUT I got a drink at Starbucks, sat at a little bench, and waited for McKenna to get there (once my texts did go through, she was on her way to meet me). I waited all of 2 minutes before spotting a girl from my program, Connie, walking by! I called out to her and just was saying hi when about that time McKenna saw us and came over. When Connie heard that we were going to watch some quidditch she was game so we all went together! McKenna traveled from Ireland this morning and Connie was passing through from Amsterdam-- they’re such cool people honestly. 

We had some time before the matches started (at 1:30 and it was 11 at this point) and McKenna was starved so we went to a Mexican place down from the train station. It was amazing! I had nachos, McKenna had tacos, and Connie wasn’t hungry so she got a beer. We stayed there until about 12:45 when we then made our way back to the train station, bought city tickets for it, and rode it outside of the city a little bit to where the quidditch tournament was being held. It was a 25 minute walk from that station to the fields, so we got our steps in! The quidditch tournament we went to was a fantasy one, meaning that the teams consisted of players that didn’t necessarily play together on a regular basis, and anyone could sign up to play. If I had realized that sooner, I would have gone to participate, but the timing was bad! So we just watched. It was really fun to watch McKenna get a grasp for the sport and Connie napped so it was a good time by all! It really just made me excited for the fall when I get back to Morgantown and can start building up a team again! I was a little burned out at the end of spring semester but now I’m ready to get at it! 

We made our way back to the small train station outside the city after the last game of the tournement (so we watched 2 long games in total) and then to the main train station. From there, we bought tickets back to Fulda on a regional train, not like the long-distance (faster) trains like I’ve ridden on before. Luckily, we were 30 minutes out from the last regional train going to Fulda so it worked out perfect! We got on the train and it took so many stops, but it got us to Fulda at about 7:00pm. We took a taxi back to avoid waiting for the bus and that ended my long journey for the day! 

Vita and I decided to work a little more on our projects today, so I rode my bike down to her dorm at about 9 and stayed an hour and a half or so and biked back. Honestly it’s just been a long day of travel and work. So much for a relaxing day off! Our presentation for that class is on Wednesday so that will be my focus for the next couple days, and then my German class presentation on John Henry is sometime this week as well. Busy third week of the program! I can’t believe 2 whole weeks have already passed here, I’ve had the best time so far! The people here are great and I’m more thankful every day for the opportunity to be here. What a life! 

[backroadblues]

June 5th, 2017 - Mainz to Boppard & and Kelkheim, Gernany

Today is our last full day in Germany and tomorrow we head home. We decided to take a Rhine (or as the German’s spell it, Rhein) river cruise. We left the house by 7:15, so we could head to the town of Mainz to catch one of the river boats that sales up and down the Rhine river. We get to Mainz by 8:10 and there is a boat leaving at 8:30AM. We park at the Hilton am Rhine and it is just a short walk over to the river boat ticket office. We ask the agent if the we can go to Koblenz, she says yes. Once again, I learn that in Germany you have to be very specific with your questions. I’ll come back to this later.

With our tickets in hand, we hop on board the MS Godsburg. It is a large cruiser operated by KD (Koln/Düsseldorf) Ship Lines. It has a main deck that is indoors and is set up much like a large restaurant surrounded by large picture windows so that anyone sitting here has a good view on either side of the river. There is also a large open air deck up above, with low railings and cafe tables set up nearest the railing on either side of the ship. My research suggest that its best to be sitting on the left hand side of the ship when going down stream toward Koblenz, or at the very bow of the boat, however the bow is closed to passengers today. There is friendly waiters who are eager to take orders for food and beverages. There is a slight premium for shipboard service but not as much as I was expecting.

We start out bright and early on the upper deck. The ship’s initial point of departure is Mainz and there are only about 20 people boarding, so Elisa and I have our pick of the seats. We also purchased a map/guide of the sights we will see on this ride. We are seated on the left hand side of the boat near the front with unobstructed views forward and of the landscape on the left bank of the Rhine. It is 8:30 in the morning, the clouds are thick but the sun breaks through intermittently and best of all there is no rain in the forecast. I have my rain jacket with me just in case, and it is a good thing becasue it is downright cold out here on the water. Eventually, we head downstairs to get out of the cold.

As we leave Mainz the boat will be making several stops at towns along the way, and the ride to the end of the line will take over 3-½ hours and we are only traveling about 35 miles. There is a lot of barge traffic out on the river at this time of the morning. We see a great many barges heading upstream that are riding very low in the water, with their open holds carrying a wide variety of different cargo. We see coal, containers, sand and other raw materials. However mostly what we see are tanker barges carrying crude oil upstream, having picked it up in Rotterdam and taking it to refineries up river. We also see a lot of tanker barges carrying refined petroleum products back down stream - heading to Rotterdam where they will export them around the world. Between Mainz and Rudisheim, the scenery is mostly industrial. This journey takes about one hour.

As we approach Rudisheim, we see the dock filled with tourists - mostly Asian - waiting to board. With that is sight, Elisa heads up to the top deck to nab a prime spot before they all board. I stay back finishing my breakfast I ordered. When i head upstairs to join Elisa, I see the top deck is very crowded, we are lucky to have gotten our prime seats once again. The trip up river from Rudisheim is where things start to get really beautiful. We are headed into the Rhine Valley Gorge. In this section, the hills on either side of the Rhine are steep and dotted with many different castles. There seems to be the ruins of castles almost every ½ mile. These castles largely popped up in the 1400’s when Germany was not yet united and the land was carved up into over 350 nation states. The Rhine river was a key corridor for the transportation of goods into and out of the area. This was a time when there was no motor driven vehicles. Navigating the fast moving waters of the Rhine was treacherous and would require assistance from handlers and animals on the shore. The castles would pop-up along the way by self-appointed “Princes”, who were people with money and they would extract tolls and fees for services from the barges making their way up and down the river. Because of the valuable cargo moving on the river there were also robbers out there and barges could seek refuge or protection from the various castles in return for fees paid. As the castles popped up, so too did towns. The land that these towns would occupy were on lands claimed by the castle owners, consequently the people in those towns would have to pay taxes to the castle owners in return for the use of the land and for protection from mauraders. I suppose from this chaos of extortion modern governments would arise.

We see so many stunning castles along the way. Many are in ruins but others are very well preserved and have been rehabilitated to house hotels and restaurants. There is one stretch of river that makes some sharp bends and the river also narrows. Consequently the current runs fast here. There is a tall stone cliff on the right hand side of the river and they call it the Lorelei rocks. Legend has it that beautiful sirens would sing their enchanting songs from the top of the rocks and distract the sailors and they would wreck their ships. I think that the sailors of yore were simply looking for something to pin the blame on for any accidents they might have. Sort of the equivalent of - “oh, a cat ran out in front of my car, and I had to swerve into the tree to avoid hitting it.” Once we get past the Lorelei, we pass two castles on the right hand side that are very closely situated with one another. At the very top of the hill, between the two castles is a very large and high wall. Legend has it that these castles were owned by brothers who had a disagreement. They call the wall the “hostility wall”. The legend goes on to say that the two brothers would end up killing one another in church in the town below the castles. After about 3-½ hours on the river its about 12:00 noon, we are nearing the town of Boppard. It is about 5 miles away from Koblenz, our desired destination. We are told that the boat we are on will be turning around at Boppard and heading back down to Mainz. We ask what about going to Koblenz and we are told that if we wait in Boppard for 3 hours there will be a boat that continues on to Koblenz.Well, it sure would have been nice to have that little piece of information from the agent when I was buying my ticket. We don’t have time to wait another 3 hours for the boat to Koblenz.

Instead we walk around this quaint little town and we learn that settlements in this location date back to Roman times around 4BC. The settlements would expand and grow through about 12AD. Roman walls and thermal baths are found in the area. By 12AD the Romans would be pushed out the Saxons. Boppard wouldn’t re-emerge until around the 11th century. Because of its location, it is fought over occupied by many different groups. In the 1400’s there is a 30 year period of wars and during that time the town of Boppard would be occupied by the Spanish, French, Swiss, Bavarians and Prussians. As the feudal system began to develop in the late 1400’s Boppard would pledge it’s allegiance to the Counsel of Trier. In return, Trier would protect the city and its prince. However, the city would have to build a palace and taxes would be collected from the people, further subjugating them. It sounds like a tough life back then if your weren’t a 1 Percenter. It’s now about 1:00 and we decide to fine a place for lunch. We need to get to the train station by 3:00 so we can make it to Elisa’s friends house by 5:00 in Kelkheim which is near Frankfurt.

So, we look at this one restaurant and we see that there are about 10 tables inside with most of them empty. There are also a few tables in front of the cafe outside and in the shade. Over all it doesn’t look too busy, we thine we’ll be able to get a quick bite to eat. As I sit down at one of the tables inside the restaurant, I have a view outside and I"m looking out on the plaza and I see an area with about 30 tables under umbrellas. It takes our hostess about 15 minutes just to give us menus. That’s when I notice that our hostess along with one other waiter, are also waiting on the 30 tables out on the square - all of which are full of diners. They are doing their best to keep up with all those tables plus the ones inside, where we are sitting, and the ones right out front. We feel really sorry for them because they are really overwhelmed. We finally place our orders after waiting 40 minutes. Our food comes out by 2:15, we wolf it down and are dashing to the train station. We see a sign pointing across the street to the ticket office. We dash over there but it’s closed. I’m assuming we will have to purchase a ticket on the train. As I figure out what track we will be leaving from, Elisa decides she needs to use the restroom. By now it is 2;30 and our train arrives and departs at 2:44. I see that there is a ticket machine on the landing where the train will be arriving. I go up to buy our tickets. The first machine I go to is not accepting my credit cards. It’s now about 2:38. I find another machine, finally it is working - I buy our tickets. It is now 2:40. My phone starts ringing, I’m sure that Elisa is wondering where I’ve gone since she doesn’t see me in the entry way of the station. I dash back down and urge her to come onto the platform. We are finally on the right track with our tickets in hand and the train arrives on time at 2:44. Once again Minerva is with us and everything works out.

The train ride is very smooth and quiet. I don’t know how those Germans get this trains to run so quietly. If only they could do that with Bart. I takes us about an our to make our way back to Mainz. By now, my phone is totally dead from having taken so many pictures on the river boat ride. Elisa’s phone is also very low. The challenge is to figure out how to walk the mile from the Mainz train station to the Hilton Hotel where our car is parked. Normally, we would use my phone’s GPS and maps to help guide us, but my phone is dead. I take a look at a rough map that we have and I have a good general idea of the direction we need to go. For some reason, Elisa does not have confidence in my dead reckoning skills - it might have something to do with the fact that my nickname is “wrong turn Rex”. I’m pretty sure I’m going in the right direction, but she is sort of in a panic. Fortunately, her phone has just enough charge left in it to lay out a course on the GPS and we are in deed going in the right direction. After about a 15 minute walk we see the Hilton Hotel sign in the distance. We are back to our car by 4:30. We have to be in Kelkheim by 5:00 and our GPS now says we are 36 minutes away. Close enough.

If you read yesterday’s blog post, you know that we reconnected with Terri, one of Elisa’s high-school friends, whom Elisa had lost contact. We had such a good time reconnecting, with them we made plans for dinner at their home in Kelkheim. Today was a German Holiday for them and it would not be too much of an inconvenience. They make us a fantastic dinner. Gary has deep fried a small turkey that has a garlic and herb rub on it. It tastes great. Terri has made some asparagus. - Elisa is thrilled because it’s so hard to get veggies when eating in restaurants here. Terri also make some really tasty roasted potatoes. The capper to this great dinner is the homemade Creme Brûlée that Terri has made. She has a little trouble getting the torch to stay lit so she can caramelize the sugar on top but Gary gets it going. It is really good

Terri and Gary live in a beautiful home in this suburb of Frankfurt. It is sprawling and occupies 2 levels plus a basement. They have been leasing it since they arrived in Germany over 6 years ago. The owner did an excellent job of renovating it. The home is very unique, in that the basement which occupies the full footprint of the home at one time had a dance studio and pub in it. This is fantastic, since Terri and her husband Gary love to entertain. What also makes this the perfect home for them is that Gary used to operate a karaoke and DJ business. So he has plenty of room to set up his sound system and all of their parties include karaoke down in the basement / dance studio. Elisa thinks she has died and gone to heaven. She loves to sing karaoke and she hasn’t really been about to do it since we moved into the new house. She, Terri and Gary sing several songs and I must say they sounded great. I am a happy audience for them.

As we begin to roll up on 10:00 pm we need to head out and let Terri and Gary get their rest so that Terri can go back to work tomorrow. Also, we need to re-pack our bags and get ready to head home to California tomorrow.

So this may be my final Aufwiedersehen. I will write an epilogue to this installment of my Backroad Blues Blog.

I’m so long winded, that I’m sure few of you have had the time or inclination to read my ramblings. I do it so I can remember what we’ve done on our many trips. I also do it so that I can share our experiences with all of you.

Thanks, Rex

[chaletnz]

Spontaneous Stuttgart Getaway

After a long (yet again understaffed) day at work we enjoyed a typical Friday afternoon in Frankfurt... drinks at the wine stand! First round for Clarissa and I was a cool crisp wine and then once Debby and Isabelle joined us we opted for the edbeerebowle, a kind of strawberry alcohol that went down a treat in the sun! We were all a bit drunk and hungry so our next stop was McDonald's for an early dinner even though our staff lunch had been schnitzel and wedges today. Clarissa sat with me for another drink to wait for my train and then I headed on my way to Stuttgart for my day off. It was a very busy train to Stuttgart but it was redeemed by some spectacular sunset views on the ride down. My next challenge was finding the way to my hotel on the Ubahn as Google maps doesn't show routes on the Ubahns so I would need to rely on maps and information signs in the station instead. To my surprise however, everything was in German. Completely. Kein English! Usually where you would see a sign saying Fahrkarten there would be a small note beside it in italics saying Tickets. But not in Stuttgart apparently. Perhaps Frankfurt is just more international than I had first thought! So I found myself to a Ubahn line that said Neckarpark - exactly the station I needed so I bought a ticket (the ticket machine with alternate language options being the only presence of English here) and headed down to the track. But the signs then told me the Ubahn only operates when there is an event on at the Neckarpark or Mercedes Benz Arena and alas tonight there would be no direct U11 for me to get to the hotel. I quickly decided to jump on the next Ubahn hoping it would take me to another station where I could change to another line but no after two stops I realised I was headed in the wrong direction so I hopped off, crossed and took the next train back to the central station to try again. I weighed up my options and decided that I'd need to get to Schlachthof (which I had tiredly and a bit drunkenly read as Schlafhof (sleep station more or less). This time was a success albeit including a long walk from Schlachthof to my hotel in the dark on the main road at 10.30pm on Friday night. I slept with plans to wake up early but it didn't happen yet again! At 9 I dragged myself down for breakfast and enjoyed a simple sausage, hash brown, bacon breakfast followed by a waffle then waddled back up to my room to plan my day and get ready. I checked out and walked down the road to the very conveniently located Mercedes Benz museum. I was not expecting anything at all given I don't have much interest in cars or Mercedes Benz as a brand but I really was astounded by the museum. It was so well designed and laid out. It gave such a simple and engaging glimpse into the journey of Karl Benz and his developments in the world of auto transportation. From the old school three wheel buggy that had a maximum speed of 16km per hour to the middle era of double decker buses and the two seater sports car that defined the brand to today's Hybrid vehicles and rigid safety controls. Everything was there on display literally taking you on a walk through the life of the brand Mercedes Benz. I was so impressed by the museum I didn't want to leave and wanted to make a second round but I had to get a move on to make it to my chosen coffee spot of the day. I'd chosen a small independent shop called Schwarzmahler. I began with a cappuccino and planned to head off after that but the owner/barista and some other customers were being so helpful with tips about Stuttgart I decided to stay and have one more coffee - this time his signature Kasselkaffee which resembled a piccolo. I bid them all farewell at the cafe and went with all intentions to visit the Schweinemuseum (pig museum) complete with a train carriage parked outside decorated like a huge pig. I expected weird but the taste from the reception area was enough for me and I opted instead to have a cold Naturradler in the adjoining Biergarten and write this very blog post. I took the next Ubahn from Schlachthof to Staatgalerie and then attempted to walk to the Hauptbahnhof amid a motorway covered in fenced off construction areas so needless to say I ended up in a huge park nearby instead. It was a beautiful day, the best weather of the week I think because it was about 26 degrees, everyone was out on the grass with snacks and I was feeling a little bit sunburnt... I walked right through the Oberer Schlossgarten and crossed the road into Schlossplatz for further walking in the opposite direction than needed! I was beginning to feel a bit hungry by now as my huge buffet breakfast started to wear off and I found a Markthalle full of specialist food kiosks. I decided that time was running out so I struggled back on the Ubahn from Charlottenplatz to the Hauptbahnhof where I picked up 2 crispy chicken rolls for just €3 and carried them all the way up to the panorama viewing platform of the train station for a look over central Stuttgart. After a quick look it was almost time to go and catch my bus back to Frankfurt which required a long wait at the train station (I'd just missed my train by 20 seconds, it drove away as I arrived at the platform) and then a delayed ride to the northern station for my lovely empty Flixbus ride back home ready for a short sleep and work at 5.30am again tomorrow.

[coaching4success-bizcoaching]

#Biz Traveling Mistakes

1. Not getting enough sleep

The worst thing you can do on an overseas business trip is conduct a meeting in a lounge with comfortable chairs you can sink into — and without having had enough sleep on the flight over the night before. That I nodded off while talking with the president of an important cruise line is a lasting embarrassment to me, though I was lucky enough to be with someone understanding: an hard-traveling working woman just like me. —Nancy Novogrod, founder, The Essentialist

2. Not being prepared

I have learned that in my busy life and travel schedule I consistently forget something — appropriate shoes, toiletries, favorite lipstick, charger, phone, even a computer! Not all at the same time, of course. Due to this, I always book myself in a hotel that either has a sundries store, plus electronics, clothing and shoe stores very near (as in walking distance). I don't want to have to spend time searching for what is near or driving/taking a car there. —Anne Chaisson, executive director, Hamptons International Film Festival

3. Assuming you know the visa requirements

I was headed to India on assignment and didn't check the visa requirements. My route was through Kenya and the U.A.E., and I only discovered I lacked the proper paperwork while checking in for an onward flight, at midnight, in Nairobi. I was refused entry. Not going to make that mistake again. My travel prep homework now includes the CIA World Factbook, U.S. Department of State travel alerts, the U.K. Foreign Travel Advice site, the Center for Disease Control and even a global religious holiday calendar app. This last one can be crucial. While I was waiting for that emergency visa, I got caught in a vortex of converging religion celebrations — Easter, Passover, Mawlid — when visa offices were shut down across all countries I traveled through. —Shane Mitchell, author, Far Afield: Rare Food Encounters From Around the World

4. Reserving hotels at the last minute (especially for big industry events)

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is a massive event in the technology industry, and I've attended the past two years with Eight. Last year, we didn't plan on showcasing our product, so when I committed to go at the last minute, the only hotel available on the Strip — at a reasonable price — was also the furthest away from the main conference venue. I decided to book it, and I regretted it later. I ended up spending so much time on taxi lines and had to leave my hotel at least an hour before any meeting. Time not well spent! —Alex Zatarain, co-founder, Eight Sleep

6. Scheduling leisure before business

When planning a "bleisure" (business + leisure) trip, schedule the business part first, followed by your leisure stay. If you start with the leisure part of the trip, it's 10 times harder to shift into work mode. I once went on vacation to Cozumel and Tulum right before a conference in Cancun. I was so chilled out and relaxed, and then the conference set me abruptly into the high-stress mode. Massive vacation buzz kill! I've never vacationed before work on a bleisure trip since. —Tammy Peters, founder, Media Mixology

7. Not booking a hotel when you have a red-eye flight

Having traveled the world for work, I have found that booking your hotel in advance when you have a red-eye flight to be crucial. I once arrived early in the morning to my hotel to get some rest and shower after a red-eye flight and the hotel could not check me in until 3 p.m.that afternoons because it was fully booked and none of the rooms were ready. Now I always book the hotel for the previous night, as well, to have the room ready for me when I arrive at 5 a.m. —Daria Rebenok, CEO/co-founder, Grabr

8. Not getting Global Entry

I learned the hard way on the way home from a business trip to Los Cabos after standing in a three-hour immigration line to apply for a Global Entry. This simple application gives you pre-approved clearance to breeze through immigration. Some major credit cards will also give you a credit for the fee. —Carey Reilly, lifestyle/travel expert, and editor, Not So Skinny Mom

9. Not learning basic language skills

When I was in my 20's I was the regional director of sales at Swissotel for the East Coast and I went to Switzerland to see the hotels. I was late to the train station in Bern dragging too many bags, as I still was not an experienced international traveler. I asked someone in uniform if they knew which track was for the train to Zurich. The person said, "Nein," so I rushed off to track nine and ended up on a train to Geneva. Now I know: "nein" means "no."—Adele Gutman, vice president of sales, marketing & revenue, Library Hotel Collection

10. Taking it with you

I lost my passport in Hong Kong while going out for dinner. I had to stay behind for three days to have the embassy issue a new one. Lesson learned: Leave your passport and other valuables in the hotel room safe when going out. —Debi Bishop, managing director, Hilton Hawaiian Village

11. Not paying attention to local customs

During my first trip to the Middle East as a blonde American female, I took the time to read the 70-odd-page document that came along with my travel confirmation. There were warnings — from covering my head, neck, and shoulders to issues of water safety. Even more interestingly: to not accept a verbal agreement. Rather, it's customary to insist on a signed agreement. To this day, all this information has proved helpful whenever I travel to the region. —Michaela Guzy, founder, Oh the People You Meet

11. Not paying attention to local customs

During my first trip to the Middle East as a blonde American female, I took the time to read the 70-odd-page document that came along with my travel confirmation. There were warnings — from covering my head, neck, and shoulders to issues of water safety. Even more interestingly: to not accept a verbal agreement. Rather, it's customary to insist on a signed agreement. To this day, all this information has proved helpful whenever I travel to the region. —Michaela Guzy, founder, Oh the People You Meet

12. Not double-checking your plane ticket

Last year, I attended Pirate Summit in Cologne and then numerous tech events in Berlin. After a long week of work, I had a reunion planned with friends in Porto. From Berlin, I booked a flight to Cologne as my next flight was 6:30 a.m. from Frankfurt Hahn Airport to Porto. So I scheduled a BlaBlaCar from Cologne to Frankfurt. The driver agreed to drop me and another passenger off to the airport. We arrived at Frankfurt's huge international airport. But my flight was booked with a budget carrier from Frankfurt-Hahn Airport, which was on the other side of the city. I'm lucky I didn't miss the flight. Lesson learned: the importance of planning. —Mevish Aslam, founder, Terminal 3 and Sprinters

13. Planning last minute

The worst thing that I have done is saying yes to a last-minute international business trip that demanded me to leave in the next three hours. With little to no time to pack left the country awaiting an email with my hotel reservation and transportation accommodations only to find out 30,000 feet up in the air through WiFi that they were unable to book them due to a card freeze. Now, I never leave to go to another country or even to another state without everything being secured before my departure. —Jae Scott, motivational speaker, and image consultant

14. Only bringing your work tote

I always have a versatile, small cross-body purse ready to go. I don't need it for getting to my destination, so I pack it in my suitcase. But if I plan to go out to dinner or wander around a town to bar hop, my large work tote is such a pain to carry around, especially in the Spanish towns where visiting a tapas bar is always a "squeeze-in-to-get-in" experience. Having that little bag to carry just my essentials

[ashlynbradshaw-blog]

7/15/18 Doesn’t it seem like just a week ago I was in Europe posting about my travels? Well, that’s because it was only a week ago, and I’m happy to report I’m now in Israel! Today has been quite the day- a very long day. I woke up at 3:50 in the morning to leave for the airport at 4:30am. Before meeting up with my Birthright group, I had to fly to Los Angeles alone and navigate my way to the international terminal at LAX. Before my flight to LA, I realized I didn’t have my license with me, and with 30 Minutes until my plane boarded, I asked my mom to run back home and get it for me so I wouldn’t have to keep my passport with me at all times as identification. After meeting up with the group in LA, we had for hours to spare before our 14 hour flight. During our long waiting period, I made a lot of new friends! Two specifically are twins Skylar and Nicole, and they go to Chapman and Cal Poly respectively. I’ve really been enjoying getting to know them today! And the girl Sammy who I sat next to on the plane, she’s awesome too. Our 14 hour flight soon turned into a 17 hour flight when 2 hours away from our destination we had to make an emergency landing in Frankfurt for medical reasons. Needless to say none of us were too excited about the added on time, but at least I think the person ended up ok. Flying over Germany made me already miss Europe in all honesty, I just love it there so much. This guy who sat next to me on the plane was probably the worst person I could have gotten stuck with. He wasn’t apart of this trip, in fact he’s probably about 40. His arm was on my side, his legs were in my seat area, and he leaned on my side when he slept... even though he has the window and could have easily leaned the other way. On the wall. Isn’t that the main reason everyone loves the window? For the wall? He also called me beautiful to his other adult friend who came to visit from first class, even though I told him I was 18 and literally a child. I avoided him for 17 hours and had minimal conversations with him. It was a nightmare. Anyways, we arrived in Israel, made a pit stop at a gas station to buy snacks and use the restroom, and headed an hour and 20 Minutes north to Tiberius, by the Sea of Galilee! We arrived right at sunset, had dinner in the cafeteria, went to our hostel rooms to put our bags away; and headed to a “classroom” to play name games and go over some rules. Not a very eventful day, but I’m trying to get it a blog each night. If I don’t, it’s because the wifi is horrible, and I am unable to post. I’m still writing each night though, just might take a few days to get them up on the blog, so be patient if that’s the case!

[nebsabroad-blog]

Bahir Dar

Our last stop on the historic Northern Circuit was Bahir Dar which is a big bustling city.  Unfortunately for us Bahir Dar was the site of three calamities which I shall detail forthwith.

Our route to Bahir Dar was a bit long winded. We got driven to Axum airport in a car stinking of diesel by the lovely man who owned our shabby-not-chic hotel that was being built as we stayed there. We then flew one hour to Gondar which was in the midst of protests (so we had heard). We avoided these by going straight from the airport to the bus station and from there catching a bus to Bahir Dar.

Calamity one was it was the first place we were scammed on our whole trip. After our long journey we were met off the bus by a guy who said he could direct us to our hotel. This happens a lot and usually we’d have just ignored him but we didn’t have a map or our bearings and had no idea where we were and so we let him take us. Once in the hotel he tried to upsell us a tour of the main sites in Bahir Dar - the Blue Nile Falls and a tour of some islands with ancient convents. After travelling for quite a long time and meeting only trustworthy and good people we got a bit lazy and couldn’t be bothered to price check. We just said yes to this guy and paid $35 each for our tour. We’ll circle back to this price in a bit.

Calamity 2 was our hotel. It was a total and complete shitshow, a veritable faulty towers. The first sign was that the toilet didn’t flush and the public ones in the hallways were backed-up and disgusting. I asked the front desk about this and they said the water only works from 2pm onwards which of course makes complete sense (that was irony FYI). At this point we should have just upsticks but we were tired and hopeful. After leaving to explore the city and then going back we found that by some miracle the toilet was working. Rejoicing with the news of functioning plumbing we decide to take showers. On the shower goes and almost immediately the bathroom starts flooding and we only prevented the water escaping into the room by shutting off the shower in the nick of time.  We asked for a new room but I already was thinking that with dodgy plumbing and non-functioning drainage meant we should probably just leave.

Avi went off with the man to check on some other rooms and there proceeded to be a comedy of errors. The first room he tried to open, the door handle fell off. Then he ran downstairs to open the room beside our one for me to check out. He then ran back up the stairs to show Avi another room. Meanwhile I run the shower in the new room to see if it would flood, and the good news was that the drainage looked good. The bad news was that 5 seconds after I put the shower on strange noises started emanating from it, then sparks started to fly from the exposed electrical wire above the shower (live wire and water always a good combo) and then the shower-head genuinely went on fire. 

“Wholly fuck” I scream, “it’s on fire.” 

Ariel :“What?! What?!” 

I run back into the shower and shut off the tap and by the grace of god the fire went out before it could properly take hold.  “We’ve got to leave before this hotel kills us” I tell Ariel. We scream up to Avi to come down so we can get the hell out of there.

We felt very sorry the poor man who was showing us around as one calamity followed another. He said that he pleaded with the owner for investment to fix the hotel and he knows it is a hellhole. He organised a cab for us and escorted us all the way to a hotel he recommended. Of course we were sceptical but we arrived at a lovely new hotel that was light years ahead of where we had just been. As we settled in to our amazing new room, I ran down the stairs to catch him just as he was heading back. I tried to give him a tip for helping us and going the extra mile; in fact the sceptical part of me thought he had only been so diligent because he was angling for a tip. But he flat out refused. He said it was the least he could do given what had happened (the electrical fire and all). It was another example of the friendliness we experienced throughout our time in Ethiopia and in fact the whole of Africa.

The next day we went on our trip and quickly realised what a waste of money it was. The islands and convents were all lovely. But the boat that took us there was just a public taxi boat anyone could get by going to the harbour. The Blue Nile Falls were also good enough but the car that took us was just a taxi that we could have flagged down. Basically we could have organised everything ourselves for literally £10 total. So we paid 10x more than we hadto and got absolutely nothing for it, no tour guide, no extra explanation, no air conditioned car (in fact the shitty taxi didn’t have headlights and so the journey home, over a long dirt road, was terrifying).

Of course once we had figured all this out we had no way to find the bastard that duped us. To be fair most of my anger stemmed from frustration with ourselves for being so bloody stupid.

We consoled ourselves by heading to a night of Ethiopian food and dancing. Ethiopia has a few “traditional” restaurants which are as popular with Ethiopians as tourists. In fact in Bahir Dar we were the only tourists there. The dancers and singers perform on stage doing 5-10 minute bits each. Towards the end of the evening they come into the audience and look for some participation, cue our heads sinking towards our knees and complete avoidance of eye contact. Naturally as the only Westerners there one guy makes a beeline for us and Avi and Ariel push me up. And then I proceed to dance off with the pro and as you can imagine there was only one winner…. 

Job offers were made but I had to tell them that despite my extreme natural ability at shoulder and head dancing I had to get back to the UK eventually. After all the UK electricity and gas markets won’t regulate themselves (despite what economists may believe).

Onto the final calamity. (for those still with us) We booked our last internal flight to take us from Bahir Dar back to Addis Ababa. We turn up to the airport the requisite hour before, all with a strange feeling in our stomach. We are stopped at the entrance to the airport by a heavily armed security guard who looks at us quizzically, shakes his head and says “finished finished.” 

Uh oh.

We check our ticket and we’re sure we’re on time. We rush up to the tiny airport terminal, Ariel leaps out of the taxi before it stops moving - as if in a movie when the driver in the heist has shouted “Go! Go! Go!” -  in a desperate bid to somehow find that that extra second means we have not arrived at a deserted airport. 

As she runs through security, I follow suit, tripping up over the body scanner Benny Hill style. We are directed by a security guard to the Ethiopian Air office where we are informed the plane had just left.

“Why? How?” we exclaimed,

“oh well, we moved it an hour earlier”

“YOU DID WHAT?!?!”

“we did try to call to let you know”

“But we have no phone network, why didn’t you email and also WHY DID YOU CHANGE THE TIME OF THE FLIGHT, WHO DOES THAT, SERIOUSLY WHICH INTERNATIONAL AIRLINE DECIDES JUST TO MOVE A FLIGHT AN HOUR EARLIER???

And then we proceeded to scream: “why? who does that?” at the 2 Ethiopian Airline representatives for the next 20 minutes.

After doing that until we were blue in the face we then had to try resolve the situation. And there we sat for an hour and a half waiting for the two guys to figure out how they could get Avi to London. Unfortunately for her the best option would be to wait a day and then fly to London via Frankfurt missing a day of work. Luckily for me and Ariel our flight out of Ethiopia wasn’t until the next day and so we didn’t miss ours. Avi had to spend a day in Bahir Dar on her own, I’m sure feeling very frustrated not to be home.

After displaying our incredulity over moving a scheduled flight and completely messing up our travel plans, we got a free night’s accommodation and taxi back to the airport. Incredibly the taxi driver who took us to the airport in the first place had waited and took us to our new hotel. Again he refused a tip until we pushed it into his hand.

We got back to Addis the next morning and left Ethiopia and Africa shortly afterwards, bound for Bangkok.

[greenbagjosh]

Feb 2006 Days 1 and 2 THY to Istanbul TR

EN Hi everyone, today we are going to Southeast Europe!  We will fly first from DFW to JFK by American Airlines, then fly to Istanbul Atatürk Airport, and take an airport transfer to the hotel in the Sultanahment district.  We will take the tram to Eminönü and Karaköy, funicular to Tünel Beyoglu and a nostalgic tram to Taksim square.  Then we take the metro one stop to Osmanbey to see a Mehter military band performance, return to Sultanahmet for a genuine Döner Kebab dinner and then plan for the next day(s).

TR Herkese merhaba, bugün Güneydoğu Avrupa'ya gidiyoruz! Önce American Airlines ile DFW'den JFK'ye, ardından İstanbul Atatürk Havalimanı'na uçup Sultanahment semtindeki otele havalimanı transferi yapacağız. Tramvayı Eminönü ve Karaköy'e, füniküler Tünel Beyoğlu'na ve nostaljik tramvayı Taksim meydanına götüreceğiz. Daha sonra bir Mehter askeri bandosunun performansını görmek için metroyla Osmanbey'e bir durak gidiyoruz, hakiki bir Döner Kebap yemeği için Sultanahmet'e dönüyor ve ertesi gün (ler) i planlıyoruz.

BG Здравейте всички, днес отиваме в Югоизточна Европа! Първо ще летим от DFW до JFK от American Airlines, след това ще летим до летище Ататюрк в Истанбул и ще вземем летищен трансфер до хотела в квартал Султанахмент. Ще вземем трамвая до Eminönü и Karaköy, фуникулер до Tünel Beyoglu и носталгичен трамвай до площад Taksim. След това се отправяме на метрото до Османбей, за да видим представление на военната група на Mehter, връщаме се в Султанахмет за истинска вечеря на Döner Kebab и след това планираме следващия ден (дни).

RO Bună tuturor, astăzi mergem în sud-estul Europei! Vom zbura mai întâi de la DFW la JFK cu American Airlines, apoi vom zbura la Aeroportul Istanbul Atatürk și vom lua un transfer de la aeroport la hotelul din districtul Sultanahment. Vom lua tramvaiul către Eminönü și Karaköy, funicular către Tünel Beyoglu și un tramvai nostalgic către piața Taksim. Apoi, luăm o stație de metrou până la Osmanbey pentru a vedea o reprezentație a trupei militare Mehter, ne întoarcem la Sultanahmet pentru o cină autentică Döner Kebab și apoi planificăm ziua (zilele) următoare.

SR Поздрав свима, данас идемо у југоисточну Европу! Прво ћемо летјети из DFW-а до ЈFК-а Америцан Аирлинес-ом, затим летјети до истанбулског аеродрома Ататурк и превести се аеродромом до хотела у округу Султанахмент. Возимо се трамвајем до Еминону-а и Каракои-а, успињачом до Тунел-а Беиоглу-а и носталгичним трамвајем до трга Таксим. Затим се метроом заустављамо до Османбеиа да бисмо видели наступ војног оркестра Мехтер, враћамо се у Султанахмет на истинску вечеру од Донер Кебаба и планирамо за следећи дан (е).

HU Sziasztok mindenkinek, ma Délkelet-Európába megyünk! Először DFW-ből repülünk az American Airlines JFK-be, majd az isztambuli Atatürk repülőtérre repülünk, és reptéri transzfert viszünk a Sultanahment kerületben lévő szállodába. Villamossal megyünk Eminönü és Karaköy felé, siklóval a Tünel Beyoglu-ra, nosztalgikus villamossal a Taksim térre. Ezután metróval indulunk Osmanbey-be, hogy megnézzük egy Mehter katonai együttes fellépését, visszatérünk Sultanahmetbe egy igazi Döner Kebab vacsorára, majd megtervezzük a következő nap (oka) t.

CZ Ahoj všichni, dnes jedeme do jihovýchodní Evropy! Nejprve letíme z DFW do JFK společností American Airlines, poté letíme na istanbulské letiště Atatürk a letištním transferem do hotelu ve čtvrti Sultanahment. Půjdeme tramvají do Eminönü a Karaköy, lanovkou do Tünel Beyoglu a nostalgickou tramvají na náměstí Taksim. Pak jedeme metrem o jednu zastávku do Osmanbey, abychom viděli představení vojenské kapely Mehter, vrátili se do Sultanahmetu na skutečnou večeři Döner Kebab a poté plánovali další den (dny).

DE Hallo allerseits, heute fahren wir nach Südosteuropa! Wir fliegen zuerst mit American Airlines von DFW nach JFK, dann zum Flughafen Istanbul Atatürk und nehmen einen Flughafentransfer zum Hotel im Stadtteil Sultanahment. Wir fahren mit der Straßenbahn nach Eminönü und Karaköy, mit der Standseilbahn nach Tünel Beyoglu und mit einer nostalgischen Straßenbahn zum Taksim-Platz. Dann fahren wir mit der U-Bahn eine Station nach Osmanbey, um eine Mehter-Militärkapelle zu sehen, kehren nach Sultanahmet zurück, um ein echtes Döner Kebab-Abendessen zu genießen, und planen dann die nächsten Tage.

Thursday the 9th February 2006 would be the start of a unique journey, one that would take a part of the route of the Orient Express train, and that would also go off the beaten path part of the way.  Where does the Orient Express go?  Originally it went between Istanbul, Bucharest, Budapest, Vienna, Zurich and Paris. Later it would change its course from Bucharest to Sofia and Belgrade.  My route was Istanbul, Bucharest, Sofia, Belgrade, Budapest, Bratislava, Prague, Berlin (via Dresden and the former Schönefeld Airport), Cologne and Frankfurt am Main.  

I had to get a shared ride to DFW airport because in 2006, there was no useable airport connection from Frisco, TX, where I was living at the time, other than DART's 500 bus line and Trinity Rail Express.  From there, I depart from either A or C, cannot remember just now, and arrived at JFK Airport in Terminal 8.  My flight to Istanbul would depart from Terminal 1.  The only way I could get there was by Airtrain JFK.  The outer train was in operation that day, so I took that to Federal Circle and back by a train going in the opposite direction.  

Terminal 1 had the Turkish Airways / Türk Hava Yollari checkin for Istanbul.  The flight would leave about 5:30 PM and arrive the next day in Istanbul about 9:30 AM, seven hours past Eastern time.  I was in the middle of coach class in a Boeing 777, with a window seat.  The flight took off on time.  About an hour or so after takeoff, the inflight crew served drinks and snacks.  One snack I remember was a bag of unsalted roasted hazelnuts.  I asked for raki, an anise-flavored liqueur, and I was given one glass of the raki and another of ice water.  The raki went from clear to milky after putting a bit of water in it.

An hour later, when the onboard entertainment was turned on, dinner was served.  I chose the cheese tortellini and Turkish red wine. It came with an appetizer of salmon and lemon.  On the food container, there was a 3 inch by 2 inch disclaimer that the food did not contain any pork or alcohol in English, Turkish, Arabic, German and French, and a pictogram of a pig crossed out to eliminate any doubts.

I think I may have slept a while on the plane, but I cannot remember what movies I watched.  I remember on one of the audio channels "First there is no mountain" by Donovan.  About 7:30 AM the sky started lightening, and breakfast was served.  I had the eggs and chicken sausage.  Along with the meal was another 3 inch by 2 inch disclaimer, again with a pig crossed out.  I would not have pork again until late evening on the 13th February when I would have arrived in Bucharest.

The plane landed about 9 AM at the Atatürk airport.  Since 2019 it is no longer the official airport, as the new airport is located closer to the Black Sea and also Anadolu Kavagi.  Atatürk Airport is located near the Ataköy district.  I had my passport and entry visa stamped and then I went to collect my suitcase with nothing to declare.  At the exit, was a man with a sign with my name on it, and he led me to his minivan to take me to my hotel in the Sultanahmet district.  It was an 8 mile / 12 km journey.  The passenger seat belt did not work, but the driver said to not worry about it (reminding me very much of the Kelal Yildirim Driving School sketches as played by Kaya Yanar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bhxGyz8YldY).

About 11 AM I arrived at the hotel on 82 Akbiyik Cadessi.  It was close to the Blue Mosque.  I paid in advance for my room which I would have for three nights.  I think it was about $100.00 for all three nights including breakfast.  There was no elevator and my room was on the third floor.  The breakfast room was on the fourth floor.  Before going to the Military Museum near Osmanbey, I took a shower and changed clothes.  I left my belongings in my room.  

As Akbiyik Cadessi was downhill, I had an uphill walk to the Sultanahmet tram stop.  The fact that the temperature was around 35 degrees did not help.  I had to buy a token for one Turkish Lira (one million old Lira which had long since been converted) to get to Sirkeci rail station.  At the "Giris" gate, I had to drop in my token.  Why was I going to Sirkeci before the Military Museum? I wanted to be sure that on the 12th February about 8 PM I would have a place to sleep on the train to Bucharest.  When I arrived at Sirkeci station, I found the ticket office to buy a sleeper ticket supplement, with my Eastern Europe rail pass.  They had a lower level bunk.  I think the ticket may have cost $ 20.00.  

After leaving Sirkeci, I took the tram to Karaköy where there was an underground funicular train to Beyloglu.  The funicular train did not accept the regular tokens so I had to buy one for about one lira.  Once I arrived at Beyloglu, I had a snack of a ring bread.  The bread was similar to a sesame bagel but was a little larger.  I used to get those also in Greece when I was very young.  The tram from Beyloglu to Taksim Square had not yet arrived but when it did, I bought a separate ticket.  Not everything in 2006 was fully integrated.  When I took the M2 from Taksim to Osmanbey, I could easily use a token, or I could use an Akbil, which was a stored value device consisting of a thumb sized piece of plastic and a hearing aid battery sized stored value disk.  Earlier I send a picture of it.  Those went out of use in 2009.  Taksim Square station was very deep and trains must have been at least three stories underground.  The situation was the same at Osmanbey station where I had to alight in order to reach the military museum.

When I went to the military museum, there was a scheduled band performance about 2 PM.  I had arrived just in time before the performance started.  I had to pay about 12 Lira for entrance and the privilege of filming and photography. The band performance started with a slide show narrated in Turkish about the long history of the band, with its origins about the time of the pre-renaissance Crusades, circa 1290 AD.  A few minutes later the entire band appeared on stage, about 50 people or so, maybe 20 of them as vocalists singing the traditional marching songs.  And almost all had long moustaches, very fitting with their Ottoman-era costumes.  The band must have played eight songs.  

After the performance, there was some time to see the rest of the museum.  I looked at displays of the musical instruments, including the percussions and wind instruments (trumpet, zurna, clarinet).  I was thinking at the time, maybe go to the grand bazaar near Cemberlitas, and buy a similar outfit with instrument.

I took the M2 back to Taksim, and then walked along Istikal Caddesi.  It is on the same route as the nostalgic tram that goes to Beyoglu.  I found a record store where I could buy Turkish-language music.  I bought a couple of CDs from Mustufa Sandal, in particular "Yamali Tövbeler" that also included "Isyankar" and "Gel Askim".  I should have also looked for music by Mirkelam.  I only know of his "Her Gece".  

Soon it became dark, I took the funicular back to Karaköy, the tram to Sultanahmet and then I found a place to eat Döner Kebap with rice.  It was located at 12 Divan Yolu Cadessi.  I ordered a can of Uludag soda and a shot of raki with that.

I walked back to the hotel and went to sleep.  As it was a day that I had arrived from overseas, it was understandable wanting to go to bed around 9 PM EET (+2 GMT).  The next day I would go to Asia by boat.

 EN

Next adventure – Calls to prayer at 5 AM, breakfast on the "roof", boat ride to Haydarpasa in Asia, ride on the Moda tram, first Lahmacun in Asia, the Grand Bazaar Experience, metro ride to Otogar and back, Iskender Kebab on the Mimar Mehmet Aga Cadessi  

 TR

Sonraki macera - Sabah 5'de ezan sesleri, "çatıda" kahvaltı, Asya'da Haydarpaşa'ya tekne yolculuğu, Moda tramvayı, Asya'da ilk Lahmacun, Kapalıçarşı Deneyimi, Otogar'a metro yolculuğu ve dönüş, İşkender Kebab Mimar Mehmet Ağa Cadessi

 BG

Следващо приключение - призиви за молитва в 5 ч. Сутринта, закуска на "покрива", разходка с лодка до Хайдарпаша в Азия, каране на трамвай Мода, първият Лахмакун в Азия, опитът на Капалъ чарши, пътуване с метро до Отогар и обратно, Ишкендер Кебаб на Мимар Мехмет Ага Кадеси

 RO

Următoarea aventură - Apeluri la rugăciune la ora 5 dimineața, mic dejun pe "acoperiș", plimbare cu barca la Haydarpasa în Asia, plimbare cu tramvaiul Moda, primul Lahmacun din Asia, Grand Bazaar Experience, plimbare cu metroul până la Otogar și înapoi, Ișkender Kebab pe Mimar Mehmet Aga Cadessi

 SR

Следећа авантура - позиви на молитву у 5 сати, доручак на „крову“, вожња бродом до Хајдарпаше у Азији, вожња трамвајем Мода, први Лахмацун у Азији, Гранд Базаар Екпериенце, вожња метроом до Отогара и назад, Искендер Кебаб на Мимар Мехмет Ага Цадесси

 HU

Következő kaland - Hívás imára reggel 5 órakor, reggeli a "tetőn", hajóút az ázsiai Haydarpasába, a Moda villamos, az első ázsiai Lahmacun, a Grand Bazaar Experience, metrózás Otogarig és vissza, Işkender Kebab tovább a Mimar Mehmet Aga Cadessi

 CZ Další dobrodružství - výzvy k modlitbě v 5 hodin ráno, snídaně na „střeše“, jízda lodí do asijské Haydarpasy, jízda tramvají Moda, první asijský Lahmacun, zážitek Grand Bazaar, jízda metrem do Otogaru a zpět, Işkender Kebab dále Mimar Mehmet Aga Cadessi

 DE

Nächstes Abenteuer - Aufruf zum Gebet um 5 Uhr morgens, Frühstück auf dem "Dach", Bootsfahrt nach Haydarpasa in Asien, Fahrt mit der Moda-Straßenbahn, erste Lahmacun in Asien, Grand Bazaar Experience, U-Bahnfahrt nach Otogar und zurück, Işkender Kebab weiter der Mimar Mehmet Aga Cadessi

[abloggeringermany]

My day 15th November 2017

Well, it was just a normal school day... except that I came 2 hours too late, because I had a doctor's meeting at 7am. They just checked my arm there, and found out that it seems to be OK.

In school I stayed with my friend I in the breaks. Many of my classmates saw me walking with I, and asked if she is my girlfriend. I(me) said "No", but still many of them think that probably. K also wasn't at school today.

After school I just sit arround and hanged out, instead of doing homework. I did this untill 6pm, then I cycled to the train station, drawed something special there, and took a train to Frankfurt, where I bought some alcohol and got drunk on my special place nearby the Main river. It made a lot of fun to cycle home drunk from Frankfurt to my city. I arrived back at home at 11pm, where I directly felt into sleep.

Li didnt wrote me today on Whatsapp. She also didn't talked with me in school, I wonder why, because yesterday we wrote so much...