The Great Europe Adventure: Berlin

My time in Berlin has not been nearly as touristy as the rest of my trip. Mostly, I've been hanging out with Nora and taking it easy.

I left Prague on a 6:30PM train and was supposed to arrive in Berlin at 11:33PM, but for some reason, our train just stopped between Dresden and Berlin. I ended up getting in around midnight (keep in mind that the Berlin metro stops running at 1AM).

The train ride wasn't too bad. After settling myself in a carriage, a man asked me if there was reserved seating. When I responded, he realized that I was American, and he sat in the carriage, and we talked about America vs. Europe. Turns out, he's a history teacher in Newark. As we were talking, another passenger heard us speaking English and decided to join us. He was a Computer Science student from Atlanta, Georgia who is working (for the short-term) in Prague. It was nice to have some travel companions, even if I am pretty sure that I fell asleep and may have drooled on my hand a bit. Also, the Newark teacher had a Berlin metro map, which helped me find my way to Nora's.

When I got to the metro, all the trains appeared to terminate too soon. I called Nora to ask if there was an alternate route, but another guy overheard my conversation and promised to help me find the transfer at the next station. He had just bought "the best disco album ever made" -- which is, apparently, Annie's "The Greatest Hit" -- and was in a very good mood. Apparently, he's a Norwegian artist working in Berlin. He spoke English almost flawlessly, and he got me safely to the train (lucky, too, as it was the last train).

Nora and Kurt met me at the station, and we decided to stop for kebabs (I had bought a snack at the train station in Prague, but it turned out to be the most repulsive conglomeration of yeast and flour known to man). Of course, it was 1AM by this time, but kebabs are effectively the NJ diner food of Europe.

We stayed up kinda late, catching up. Nora and Kurt are doing really well. Nora's studying alternative medicine (and she's apparently interested in acupuncture), and Kurt is studying design. They have this lovely, spacious apartment on the 6th floor (thank goodness for Kurt or I would have died on the stairs with my luggage). Nora had early morning class the next day, so we decided to call it a night.

The next morning, I slept in (9AM -- haha) and spent the rest of the morning organizing my flight home (check-in online, print tickets, book transportation from airport to central London, book train to meet family in Bath). I met Nora near her campus, and we got lunch at this nice Asian restaurant nearby. Nora and Kurt seem to eat a lot of Indian and Turkish food, so honestly, I've tried almost no German cuisine, but I'm also eating for cheap (and finally having regular meals -- most of this trip has been snacking when the need arises).

We walked around the neighborhood a bit and saw this really strange art exhibit at a nearby alternative school (which had previously been an abandoned hospital, or something). We grabbed some small groceries for dinner, but Kurt did the majority of the shopping and cooking when he returned from class. Nora admits that Kurt is a better cook, and honestly, all his food has been delicious (and healthy!).

The next day, Nora and I went down to central Berlin, where we walked through a lot of the more touristy sights. I saw the remains of the Berlin Wall, the Brandenberg Gate, the Reichstag, the Holocaust Memorial, the Neue Wache, Museuminsel, and Fersehturm. The weather was rather nice, and it was good to walk around. After lunch (Egyptian), we went to a nearby market to pick up some fruits and veggies for the house.

When we got home, news of the Iceland volcano was becoming more ominous, as the Berlin airports were closed for the day. At the time, my flight was still on, and I would hopefully be able to meet my family in Bath as planned; however, not long before dinner, we saw news of Ryanair cancelling all flights until Monday and a phone call to the airport confirmed that my flight was, indeed, cancelled. This is about when the anxiety set in.

First, I would not be able to book any other flights until Monday, and then there's no guarantee that it would not also be cancelled. I wouldn't have been able to book a bus until Wednesday, and all train lines were booked through the weekend. I was pretty tense all evening, as one thing after the other fell through, but Kurt made a nice pasta dinner with homemade sauce that was fortifying and restorative. After dinner, Kurt had to go to a party at a friend's house, and Nora (who had a headache) and I (who had panic) stayed behind.

Finally, at around 11PM and after about 4hrs of searching, I was able to book a train for Monday. Of course, I have to leave the Berlin main station at 12:44AM on Sunday night/Monday morning, arrive in Aachen at 6:45AM (it's unclear whether this includes a transfer in Koln), transfer to a train to Brussels at 7:23AM, arrive in Brussels at 8:32AM, and transfer to my final train to London. I should get in to London at 10:26AM on Monday morning. And I will kiss the sweet, sweet UK ground.

Nora and I watched a couple episodes of 30 Rock to unwind, but we still went to bed relatively early. I stayed up for another hour or so from the anxiety and woke up at 7AM to find that my parents' flight to the UK had been cancelled mid-air, and their flight had been sent back to Newark after having made it about halfway there. I really hope they will still be able to come visit, but this really throws a wrench into our travel plans...

Today is beautiful and sunny (which is perhaps the most frustrating part). Nora and I had breakfast outside, but she left to have lunch with her uncle. Kurt is around somewhere. I went for a walk earlier and sat outside to read, which has been nice. Mostly, I just want to get back to the UK safely and with as little hassle as possible.