Thursday, November 29, 2007
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Checking in
Tonight, I have absolutely nothing that needs to be done. It's a good feeling.
In the last three days, I've probably had only about 13 hours of sleep. I'm actually going to bed fairly soon. Don't worry about me.
I'll make sure to put together a real post sometime soon. There'll definitely be one summing up the whole program.
I'm actually having some slight trouble focusing my eyes here, so I'm going to bed now.
*collapse*
In the last three days, I've probably had only about 13 hours of sleep. I'm actually going to bed fairly soon. Don't worry about me.
I'll make sure to put together a real post sometime soon. There'll definitely be one summing up the whole program.
I'm actually having some slight trouble focusing my eyes here, so I'm going to bed now.
*collapse*
Monday, November 26, 2007
Null and void
I don't think I can go see Gogol Bordello. Not while I still have this term paper to do.
I need to go to bed if I want any hope of getting this done.
I need to go to bed if I want any hope of getting this done.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Oh my god
I have over 30 pages of papers to write in the next two weeks, plus other homework.
I am so utterly screwed.
I am so utterly screwed.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
In Which Geoff is Accosted by a Crazy Lady
Hey Sibi. I'm a History Major, just so you know!
So, the plan was for me to take the U-Bahn to Nollendorfplatz and meet Dorothee there. Then the both of us would drive to Hauptbahnhof to get Ian. Little did I know that I would soon find myself on Germany's most wanted list.
After getting off the train, I went down the stairs to a small parking area under the station (The part I had exited from was a raised platform). I was early, so I wasn't surprised when I found myself waiting for 10 or 15 minutes. By now it was pretty dark (but it was only 4:45, still). Throughout all of this, something odd was going on.
Eventually, over the white noise of cars , I noticed a woman's voice saying "Hey" repeatedly. Following the sound, I saw a woman on a 4rd floor balcony (that's the 3rd in Germany), who apparently wanted to get my attention. No, I thought, why would she want to talk to me? She's probably yelling to someone on the platform. Later I realized that the platform was entirely covered. Compunding my confusion was that I couldn't understand the what the woman was saying after I looked at her. She also yelled to other people on the street, but I couldn't hear their conversations over the noise of the cars. As I walked back and forth, sat on railings, and generally just waited around, the woman apparently got more agitated. She began to wave her left arm, implying that I should move on. So I did what any person waiting for a ride might do.
I continued to ignore her.
It had been about 20 minutes for sure. I walked to the other end of the under-area, to see if Dorothee was there. Unsuccessfully I returned to my original spot. The woman was nowhere to be found...until she noticed that I was back. She got back out to her watchtower, and started yelling again. I swear that she had binoculars by this point. The awkward factor was off the charts. A taxi driver pulled up and parked, then went off, probably to get something to eat. Something had to give!
5 minutes later, and I got a call from Dorothee asking where I was. As I described my location (to Dorothee's confusion), I heard a noise from behind me.
"Hey!"
The woman, seen clearly, was in her 50's or 60's, and looked like a stereotypical German Housewife. She had this black robe-like piece of clothing on It actually took me a minute to realize who this was, because, honestly, I wasn't expecting this woman to actually come down and face me. She was pissed.
After her first lighting fast tirade, she stared at me and asked if I understood German. I said "A little." Apparently, that gave her a free pass to continue as fast as possible. At first, I thought she was angry about the taxi. She kept turning towards it, and pointing at me, and then all around. I explained that it wasn't mine, and that the driver had gone somewhere. Bzzt. Wrong answer. She kept going. Although I didn't get all of it, I understood that she wanted to know what I was doing here. "Waiting for a car." I said, not without difficulty, since she kept interrupting me. She didn't believe me, of course. "Yes," I said. "And now my car is here." I pointed to my phone which I had left on the whole time, for effect. She said something (I only gleaned "I've never seen such something something" from her words) and made some motion. It looked like she wanted me to follow her. So I did.
Uh, no, wait. That's not right. I walked away from her while she slowly walked back towards her apartment. Why would I ever follow a crazy person. I had hung up the phone after using it as a prop, so I called Dorothee. After a bit of clarification, I discovered that there are two exits to Nollendorfplatz, and I was supposed to be at the other one. When we finally met up, Dorothee said that she was worried about me.
From what she heard over the phone (which was everything, considering how loud the Crazy Lady was talking), there was a distinct possibility that my accuser either was going to call the police, or already had.
What the hell, Crazy Lady? What did I ever do to you?
What I learned from all this, aside from the laughs that I had about the whole thing afterwards (and even during; it was so ridiculous), was that I must have looked like some sort of criminal-type, what with my Black fleece jacket, Black gloves, Black shoes, and Jeans.
I'm just glad that Crazy Lady stopped me before I gave in to my criminal urges; I could have been arrested for loitering! In a public space, no less!
You so crazy, Crazy Lady.
So, the plan was for me to take the U-Bahn to Nollendorfplatz and meet Dorothee there. Then the both of us would drive to Hauptbahnhof to get Ian. Little did I know that I would soon find myself on Germany's most wanted list.
After getting off the train, I went down the stairs to a small parking area under the station (The part I had exited from was a raised platform). I was early, so I wasn't surprised when I found myself waiting for 10 or 15 minutes. By now it was pretty dark (but it was only 4:45, still). Throughout all of this, something odd was going on.
Eventually, over the white noise of cars , I noticed a woman's voice saying "Hey" repeatedly. Following the sound, I saw a woman on a 4rd floor balcony (that's the 3rd in Germany), who apparently wanted to get my attention. No, I thought, why would she want to talk to me? She's probably yelling to someone on the platform. Later I realized that the platform was entirely covered. Compunding my confusion was that I couldn't understand the what the woman was saying after I looked at her. She also yelled to other people on the street, but I couldn't hear their conversations over the noise of the cars. As I walked back and forth, sat on railings, and generally just waited around, the woman apparently got more agitated. She began to wave her left arm, implying that I should move on. So I did what any person waiting for a ride might do.
I continued to ignore her.
It had been about 20 minutes for sure. I walked to the other end of the under-area, to see if Dorothee was there. Unsuccessfully I returned to my original spot. The woman was nowhere to be found...until she noticed that I was back. She got back out to her watchtower, and started yelling again. I swear that she had binoculars by this point. The awkward factor was off the charts. A taxi driver pulled up and parked, then went off, probably to get something to eat. Something had to give!
5 minutes later, and I got a call from Dorothee asking where I was. As I described my location (to Dorothee's confusion), I heard a noise from behind me.
"Hey!"
The woman, seen clearly, was in her 50's or 60's, and looked like a stereotypical German Housewife. She had this black robe-like piece of clothing on It actually took me a minute to realize who this was, because, honestly, I wasn't expecting this woman to actually come down and face me. She was pissed.
After her first lighting fast tirade, she stared at me and asked if I understood German. I said "A little." Apparently, that gave her a free pass to continue as fast as possible. At first, I thought she was angry about the taxi. She kept turning towards it, and pointing at me, and then all around. I explained that it wasn't mine, and that the driver had gone somewhere. Bzzt. Wrong answer. She kept going. Although I didn't get all of it, I understood that she wanted to know what I was doing here. "Waiting for a car." I said, not without difficulty, since she kept interrupting me. She didn't believe me, of course. "Yes," I said. "And now my car is here." I pointed to my phone which I had left on the whole time, for effect. She said something (I only gleaned "I've never seen such something something" from her words) and made some motion. It looked like she wanted me to follow her. So I did.
Uh, no, wait. That's not right. I walked away from her while she slowly walked back towards her apartment. Why would I ever follow a crazy person. I had hung up the phone after using it as a prop, so I called Dorothee. After a bit of clarification, I discovered that there are two exits to Nollendorfplatz, and I was supposed to be at the other one. When we finally met up, Dorothee said that she was worried about me.
From what she heard over the phone (which was everything, considering how loud the Crazy Lady was talking), there was a distinct possibility that my accuser either was going to call the police, or already had.
What the hell, Crazy Lady? What did I ever do to you?
What I learned from all this, aside from the laughs that I had about the whole thing afterwards (and even during; it was so ridiculous), was that I must have looked like some sort of criminal-type, what with my Black fleece jacket, Black gloves, Black shoes, and Jeans.
I'm just glad that Crazy Lady stopped me before I gave in to my criminal urges; I could have been arrested for loitering! In a public space, no less!
You so crazy, Crazy Lady.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
I suck.
I'd really like to have an actual update for you, but I just don't have the time or inclination right now to sit down and post something. Ian's going to be here in about 17 hours, which should be a welcome change. Next Tuesday, I'm going to see Gogol Bordello.
We're winding down to the home stretch, people. Just a few scant weeks left.
We're winding down to the home stretch, people. Just a few scant weeks left.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Nope
Despite all my best efforts, Megavideo is not cooperation (and neither is my internet connection). We'll see what happens in the future.
Right now, I'm going to finish my homework and then go to bed. I feel like I could drop dead, I'm so exhausted.
Right now, I'm going to finish my homework and then go to bed. I feel like I could drop dead, I'm so exhausted.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Forecast
3 O'clock today:
4 O'clock Today:
The weather is forecast to be gray, foggy, cloudy, rainy, and snowy, all at the same time, for the next week. It's just like home!
So, what's been up with me, you might ask? I'll tell you.
Went to the gym on Thursday for a couple of hours. I'm feeling a bit sore now, but it's not as bad as the first time that I went while I was here. In other words, it's working out well (ha ha).
Yesterday part of the group took a trip to the Reichstag. We got to sit in on a session for about 45 minutes, and then we had the privilege of skipping the line to see the Cupola. Now, the session of parliament that we saw was, of course, in German. I was surprised at how much I understood - not that it was enough to fully follow the speeches being made, but enough to get the gist of what they were saying. It was a good feeling. Anyways, they were debating whether there should be speed limits created for the Autobahn. I'm pretty sure it won't pass. What was a little odd about the whole affair was that less than half of the members were present for the debate (aka speeches from the parties). Even more odd (and a bit insulting) was that the Transportation minister didn't bother to show up. I mean, this is kind of his area of employment; you'd think he'd try to put a bit more effort in. The more extreme parties seemed to be a bit more steamed about it than the mainstream, on the whole.
Even though the whole parliament wasn't there, there was still a fair bit of interaction between the parties. They clapped for their own speakers, shook their heads, grumbled, or laughed at the opposition, and did a lot of talking and consulting amongst themselves. According to my host mother, there is a system in place where the amount of seats you have in the Reichstag is directly proportional to the time you get for a speech. It did seem that the smaller parties were a bit more direct in their speeches, so that could explain why.
The cupola was pretty cool. You can actually see down into the main assembly hall, which is supposed to be a sign of openness and liberty. Aside from that, it's a really good view of the city. When I got to the top of the dome, though, I was surprised by a one-legged-pigeon. Yeah.
It was surveying all of the people walking around as if it owned the place.
After we left the Reichstag, we passed through the Brandenburg Gate, and saw this rainbow-neon colored wall, representing the separation of North and South Korea. An interesting installation, to be sure.
Just through the Gate, we saw a multitude of black cars and vans idling, with police and men in suits standing around and throughout the whole mix. There were lots of Mercedes and Volkswagen present, so I though that it might be some sort of auto show, but the fact that the new American embassy is right next to the Gate convinced me otherwise. Some big official must have just arrived, as all the cars were empty. We didn't stick around to see who else might show up, but I did take some pictures.
Yesterday was also November 9th. The infamous deed known as Kristallnacht was perpetrated on this day in 1938 by the Nazis.
***
Later that day, I hit up the Film and Television museum for a couple of class projects. They're both quite interesting, but even moreso was the entrance hall to the Film museum. There's a small corridor with dim lighting that suddenly turns into another room, with what appears at first to be a catwalk stretched out over infinite repeating dimensions. The room is actually pretty small, with a snaking path that travels about 30 feet to the exhibits. However, almost every surface of the room, aside from the walkway floor itself and a few odd screens playing movies, is covered in mirrors. I could look down to the left and see myself from the back and above, or straight to my right and see my left. That was how many mirrors there were. I spent a good 10 minutes in that room, just looking at myself from every conceivable angle. It was creepy, in an entertaining sort of way.
I've been trying to get some homework done this weekend, so it doesn't pile up at the end of the semester (gasp), which, incidentally, is only about a month away.
That's all for now, folks. See you around.
Pics from the Reichstag
4 O'clock Today:
The weather is forecast to be gray, foggy, cloudy, rainy, and snowy, all at the same time, for the next week. It's just like home!
So, what's been up with me, you might ask? I'll tell you.
Went to the gym on Thursday for a couple of hours. I'm feeling a bit sore now, but it's not as bad as the first time that I went while I was here. In other words, it's working out well (ha ha).
Yesterday part of the group took a trip to the Reichstag. We got to sit in on a session for about 45 minutes, and then we had the privilege of skipping the line to see the Cupola. Now, the session of parliament that we saw was, of course, in German. I was surprised at how much I understood - not that it was enough to fully follow the speeches being made, but enough to get the gist of what they were saying. It was a good feeling. Anyways, they were debating whether there should be speed limits created for the Autobahn. I'm pretty sure it won't pass. What was a little odd about the whole affair was that less than half of the members were present for the debate (aka speeches from the parties). Even more odd (and a bit insulting) was that the Transportation minister didn't bother to show up. I mean, this is kind of his area of employment; you'd think he'd try to put a bit more effort in. The more extreme parties seemed to be a bit more steamed about it than the mainstream, on the whole.
Even though the whole parliament wasn't there, there was still a fair bit of interaction between the parties. They clapped for their own speakers, shook their heads, grumbled, or laughed at the opposition, and did a lot of talking and consulting amongst themselves. According to my host mother, there is a system in place where the amount of seats you have in the Reichstag is directly proportional to the time you get for a speech. It did seem that the smaller parties were a bit more direct in their speeches, so that could explain why.
The cupola was pretty cool. You can actually see down into the main assembly hall, which is supposed to be a sign of openness and liberty. Aside from that, it's a really good view of the city. When I got to the top of the dome, though, I was surprised by a one-legged-pigeon. Yeah.
It was surveying all of the people walking around as if it owned the place.
After we left the Reichstag, we passed through the Brandenburg Gate, and saw this rainbow-neon colored wall, representing the separation of North and South Korea. An interesting installation, to be sure.
Just through the Gate, we saw a multitude of black cars and vans idling, with police and men in suits standing around and throughout the whole mix. There were lots of Mercedes and Volkswagen present, so I though that it might be some sort of auto show, but the fact that the new American embassy is right next to the Gate convinced me otherwise. Some big official must have just arrived, as all the cars were empty. We didn't stick around to see who else might show up, but I did take some pictures.
Yesterday was also November 9th. The infamous deed known as Kristallnacht was perpetrated on this day in 1938 by the Nazis.
***
Later that day, I hit up the Film and Television museum for a couple of class projects. They're both quite interesting, but even moreso was the entrance hall to the Film museum. There's a small corridor with dim lighting that suddenly turns into another room, with what appears at first to be a catwalk stretched out over infinite repeating dimensions. The room is actually pretty small, with a snaking path that travels about 30 feet to the exhibits. However, almost every surface of the room, aside from the walkway floor itself and a few odd screens playing movies, is covered in mirrors. I could look down to the left and see myself from the back and above, or straight to my right and see my left. That was how many mirrors there were. I spent a good 10 minutes in that room, just looking at myself from every conceivable angle. It was creepy, in an entertaining sort of way.
I've been trying to get some homework done this weekend, so it doesn't pile up at the end of the semester (gasp), which, incidentally, is only about a month away.
That's all for now, folks. See you around.
Pics from the Reichstag
Saturday, November 3, 2007
Tropical Ai-ai ai
Cafe recommendation: Bilderbuch, at Akazienstrasse 28. It may look unassuming from the street, but inside it has a kitschy, casual charm. Good food too. The back room feels like it belongs in someone's private library or study, making it stand out from every other cafe I've been to.
***
Yesterday was cold, gray, and rainy. That's why a small group of us put on our bathing suits and headed off to the beach. What? No good beaches this time of year in Germany? Balderdash and poppycock! There's always a good beach around when you can go to Tropical Islands resort, conveniently located only an hour's train ride from Berlin!
The whole structure is contained within a giant dome. As I understand it, it used to be a hangar for zeppelins or something like that. Now, it contains a miniature rain forest, two big pools with beaches, and a lot of other nice little attractions including tents that you can rent out for an overnight stay. They had this ingenious payment system where each visitor is given a wristband with a RF transmitter inside. When you buy something, like food or admission to the balloon ride, you simply swipe the wristband, and the cost is added to your account. It seems to me like if you weren't paying attention, you could spend a lot of money there.
Apparently, the material in part of the dome is UV permeable, so it is possible to get a tan (or even burned), even though you're technically inside. Regardless, we swam, had food (the chicken nugget meal has the best quantity/cost ratio, and it's tasty to boot), and saw this dance/acrobatics/magic show, although it was really light on all three, if you can believe that.
For dancers, we had some buff Latin looking guy, an emaciated Aryan looking guy who couldn't have been much over 20, a thin Aryan looking woman, and a normal sized black haired woman. While the other three were perfectly good at what they did, the black haired woman was pretty bad. She was always looking at the Blond for her cues. It was painfully obvious. The anorexic Aryan was painfully skinny. In fact, the whole dance portion was pretty painful (Big Bad Voodoo Daddy? Ricky Martin? What's up with that?)
Magic consisted of this Swedisg guy (or was he Russian?) pouring himself some wine, duplicating the wine bottles, and removing the wineglass, all using two tubes. Neat, I guess.
The acrobatic part was the best. The magician and this other Swedish/Russian woman did some balancing tricks (on each other). The woman also did this routine where she suspended herself from a long red ribbon. Yeah, it was hot.
Here's the real weird thing. The show was pretty short, but the dancers changed costumes for each song (there were 3 or 4 throughout the entire show). However, they didn't change all the way. It was like they ran out of time and had to go on halfway between each costume.
And then the most horrible thing ever struck my ears. The Tropical Islands theme song:
Tropical Ai-Ai-Ai,
Tropical Island.
Repeat ad-nauseum.
Good Gravy.
Later that night the group went to a club, Steinhaus. Good times, with lots of 70's, 80's, and 90's music being played. That's American music, mind you. The Germans love American music. It was cheap, because they had a student discount going on. I think I spent about 2 Euros at the club. The best part of the night? Some random guy told me "nice hat." I was wearing this black felt fedora-esque thing, which means I looked like a badass.
Some of us left around 2:30, and I got on my train at about 3:15 (we stopped for some food). Now, I knew this was going to be a long ride; Berlin is huge, and it would have taken about 45 minutes to get home during the day. At night, well, you get the picture.
I remember getting on the train, and leaning against the window in my seat for the first few stops. Then, I was being woken up by the conductor. We were at Wannsee, 5 stops past where I needed to go. I fell asleep, in case you hadn't gathered. Dragging myself out of the train, I got oriented to the right train, and got home a little past 4:30. I was in bed soon after that.
Then I woke up at 10am today, and despite all my efforts, could not get back to sleep. That's been happening a lot lately. Tonight I'm taking some Nyquil so I can actually get a good night's sleep.
It was a really good day, and I'm glad that I was there to experience it.
Good night, everybody.
***
Yesterday was cold, gray, and rainy. That's why a small group of us put on our bathing suits and headed off to the beach. What? No good beaches this time of year in Germany? Balderdash and poppycock! There's always a good beach around when you can go to Tropical Islands resort, conveniently located only an hour's train ride from Berlin!
The whole structure is contained within a giant dome. As I understand it, it used to be a hangar for zeppelins or something like that. Now, it contains a miniature rain forest, two big pools with beaches, and a lot of other nice little attractions including tents that you can rent out for an overnight stay. They had this ingenious payment system where each visitor is given a wristband with a RF transmitter inside. When you buy something, like food or admission to the balloon ride, you simply swipe the wristband, and the cost is added to your account. It seems to me like if you weren't paying attention, you could spend a lot of money there.
Apparently, the material in part of the dome is UV permeable, so it is possible to get a tan (or even burned), even though you're technically inside. Regardless, we swam, had food (the chicken nugget meal has the best quantity/cost ratio, and it's tasty to boot), and saw this dance/acrobatics/magic show, although it was really light on all three, if you can believe that.
For dancers, we had some buff Latin looking guy, an emaciated Aryan looking guy who couldn't have been much over 20, a thin Aryan looking woman, and a normal sized black haired woman. While the other three were perfectly good at what they did, the black haired woman was pretty bad. She was always looking at the Blond for her cues. It was painfully obvious. The anorexic Aryan was painfully skinny. In fact, the whole dance portion was pretty painful (Big Bad Voodoo Daddy? Ricky Martin? What's up with that?)
Magic consisted of this Swedisg guy (or was he Russian?) pouring himself some wine, duplicating the wine bottles, and removing the wineglass, all using two tubes. Neat, I guess.
The acrobatic part was the best. The magician and this other Swedish/Russian woman did some balancing tricks (on each other). The woman also did this routine where she suspended herself from a long red ribbon. Yeah, it was hot.
Here's the real weird thing. The show was pretty short, but the dancers changed costumes for each song (there were 3 or 4 throughout the entire show). However, they didn't change all the way. It was like they ran out of time and had to go on halfway between each costume.
And then the most horrible thing ever struck my ears. The Tropical Islands theme song:
Tropical Ai-Ai-Ai,
Tropical Island.
Repeat ad-nauseum.
Good Gravy.
Later that night the group went to a club, Steinhaus. Good times, with lots of 70's, 80's, and 90's music being played. That's American music, mind you. The Germans love American music. It was cheap, because they had a student discount going on. I think I spent about 2 Euros at the club. The best part of the night? Some random guy told me "nice hat." I was wearing this black felt fedora-esque thing, which means I looked like a badass.
Some of us left around 2:30, and I got on my train at about 3:15 (we stopped for some food). Now, I knew this was going to be a long ride; Berlin is huge, and it would have taken about 45 minutes to get home during the day. At night, well, you get the picture.
I remember getting on the train, and leaning against the window in my seat for the first few stops. Then, I was being woken up by the conductor. We were at Wannsee, 5 stops past where I needed to go. I fell asleep, in case you hadn't gathered. Dragging myself out of the train, I got oriented to the right train, and got home a little past 4:30. I was in bed soon after that.
Then I woke up at 10am today, and despite all my efforts, could not get back to sleep. That's been happening a lot lately. Tonight I'm taking some Nyquil so I can actually get a good night's sleep.
It was a really good day, and I'm glad that I was there to experience it.
Good night, everybody.
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