Thank you to Katrin's co-worker's Mom for playing detective

Remember that post we wrote about the funny sign we saw at a playground near Katrin and Christian's apartment. Well, wait until you read what Katrin's co-worker, Moneim, did for us--without any prompting! His mother is fabulous. I'm in love. Love. She actually sent an e-mail to the city government to figure out this whole weird sign.




(Apologies for any weird-sounding translations.)

E-mail from Moneim to Katrin:

-----Original message-----
From: Moneim
To: Katrin
Re: Questionable Prohibition Sign

The puzzle about the prohibition sign has been solved. My mother has refused to let this mystery remain unsolved and so she has asked about it. The answer follows.

Message 1:

-----Original message-----
From: Moneim's Mom
To: The Department of Parks, Berlin

Dear Sir or Madam:

Recently, I was at a park where I stumbled across this prohibition sign, and I cannot figure out what is being forbidden by the symbol, which I have have marked with a green arrow. I would be grateful for your clarification.

Kind regards,
M.E.

Message 2:

-----Original Message-----
From: Ms. Bureaucrat
To: Moneim's Mom
Re: Questionable Prohibition Sign

Dear Mrs. E.,

The sign should make clear that children should take off their bicycle helmets when climbing on the playground equipment. The equipment is constructed according to special safety standards, which are based on a child's body measurements. Bicycle helmets could cause them to hit their heads. This is not a legal prohibition. Because most would not read the details, the pictogram provides the information.

Kind regards,
Ms. Bureaucrat

Sure, sure, now you post one

I've always been a fan of these "36 Hours In ..." articles that the New York Times does, and I was really hoping for an updated Berlin article before we left last month. Oh, well, better late than never: http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/10/11/travel/11Hours.html?em

Long post on the wedding

Christian just reminded me that I never wrote up my thoughts about their wedding. So, here we go...

Trying to get from Berlin to Schloss Ziethen was hysterically maddening. The S-Bahn was in disarray because the whole system was being worked on or repaired, so the trains weren't going the way my directions indicated. Using my crafty street skills and asking people every few minutes, I managed to figure out which trains we needed to take. We finally arrived (late) at the train station, where Christian's wonderful father picked us up and took us on our first German car ride. He drove fast! It was a fun ride through the countryside from the station to the Schloss, where we met up with Christian and were introduced to a few of Christian and Katrin's friends. Then we headed up to our room, where we changed and cleaned up for the wedding. After gathering in the hotel lobby, we walked across the street to the church, which is the village church in Groß Ziethen. It is this beautiful, simple, old church with wood pews. The sermon was pretty good. Did I already tell this part? I was slightly worried about what the minister was telling them--that we can only expect 50 percent of life to be happy. He said something to the effect of this: don't expect to be happy all the time. Be happy with what you have and do the things that make you happy: listen to music and share time with friends and love each other.

After the service, (in which there was no kiss! and in which I could not believe how strange it felt to hear Christian and Katrin say "Ich will" instead of "I do" that it felt somehow incomplete and shocking!), we all walked together back to the manor house/hotel. When we got back to Schloss Ziethen, everyone filed out back and started drinking Sekt (the best-tasting version of Champagne I've ever had). It was terrific! Then we all got balloons and let them go together, to symbolize our support for the newlyweds. This part felt like when in U.S. weddings we throw rice or confetti or blow bubbles; it felt like we were doing something collective to celebrate the newly married couple. It was so pretty to see all the different colors float up into the air. This was organized by Katrin's mom. I wondered if Katrin was worried about it being environmentally unfriendly to release balloons and hoped she was not anxious about such things on her wedding day.

Then we kept drinking Sekt and talking with Katrin's friend from work (Moneim and his girlfriend from Sweden whose name I can't remember at the moment) and other people--many of Katrin and Christian's friends speak impeccable English. We ate wedding cake (no feeding each other cake from what I remember--another U.S. wedding tradition that seems not to transfer over--and there was certainly no threat of the cake-in-the-face smashing, a truly horrible wedding idea that I don't think I've ever personally witnessed). It was heart-shaped with strawberries on top. Also, there was wonderful apple küchen and more Sekt. I drank perhaps a bit too much, but that just made it fun to chat. Two of Katrin's friends took pictures of everyone framed by an empty picture frame, which was lots of fun and will make a great wedding present. The atmosphere was very playful. Some people wandered back to their rooms after awhile, but Ryan and I only took a very short break before returning to this back patio area, where Christian and his band entertained everyone and more Sekt was drunk by all. It was great fun. Then we all filed into dinner.

Dinner was amazing. Katrin's dad gave a great speech. Christian's uncle gave the long, complicated Donald Duck speech. There were games! Games! Fun games. This was fantastic because as our American readers know, there are no fun games like this at American weddings. It was all designed to keep people busy and getting to know one another. And it worked. Our table had great fun.

One of the games involved everyone at the table writing their wishes on the back of a piece of wrapping paper, which was then wrapped and secured around a bottle of champagne, one for each of the next seven wedding anniversaries. Our table was lucky: we were bottle number seven, so in seven years, K & C will get to read our wishes to them and hopefully they will laugh and enjoy thinking of all of us thinking about what clever things to wish them for their seventh anniversary.

We also had to do a quiz, which was horribly difficult, testing our knowledge of all things K & C. The first question was our favorite: "What U.S. state (in which Katrin went to school as an exchange student) has the capitol city of Columbus?" Of course, many people came around to ask Ryan and me about this one, since we were the token Americans in the room. Other questions wanted us to know about their musical interests, sports, hobbies, and the places where they have lived. We all learned a lot, I think. The hardest question asked "Which famous place did Katrin and Christian visit on their pilgrimage to the land of The Beatles?" (The answer was not Abbey Road or Penney Lane, despite our attempts to make these words fit into the spaces. The answer was the Cavern Club, the place where the Beatles once played together.)

Another "game" involved us choosing greeting cards to send to Katrin and Christian over the next year. Ryan and I are excited about the ones we chose. We got some excellent dates! Also, I think we got to send the first one! I hope they received it already. I can't wait to send more mail to the "Eheleute" (Married People) this year. This was perhaps my favorite idea of the night.

Another activity involved everyone singing a song that Katrin's mom had written to an old folk tune. It was corny but fun and everyone had a great time singing together.

The food was unbelievably good: creamy mushroom soup, salad with grilled fish on top, venison from a young deer that tasted buttery and delicious--the best I've ever had, apple tart, wine, coffee, and a tasty pear schnapps to finish off the four-and-a-half-hour dinner. It was a true celebration.

Ryan and I especially enjoyed talking with Bernard and Eva, friends of Katrin's mom, who were incredibly fun to talk to and who had lots of entertaining stories to tell. Also, they were great at telling us about everything we didn't understand and explaining little cultural things (like the Donald Duck speech). It was great fun.

After dinner, everyone filed out the doors and picked up big torches, which we then carried around in the dark down a winding path around the property. It was lovely and romantic and fun. I mean, fire on sticks?!? Is that ever not fun? Already it was getting cold, so everyone was glad to put the torches down and go to the dance hall, where an open bar offered fruit punch (with real fruit! and lots of good wine and Sekt mixed together), beer on tap, wine, juices, and other beverages.

At the dance hall, the first dance was so classy. They danced a waltz! No schmaltzy sentimental pop song and silly and awkward slow dance! This was a real waltz! No surprise that Katrin looked glamorous as she has trained in dance, but Christian looked like a natural. He was such an elegant partner for his new bride. Others joined in. Clearly, this is something Americans need to do. I mean, the waltz! How romantic. Now if I could just get Ryan to take some lessons with me...

Dancing and talking and drinking... Well, before I knew it, it was almost 2 a.m. We had the best time. We talked a lot with one of K & C's friends who is a high school English teacher. I learned a great deal and enjoyed myself immensely. It got cold. And late. So we went in to sleep. I hardly remember falling asleep, I was so tired.

A whole wonderful wedding with no bouquet toss or awful obligatory garter removal, in fact there were almost no parts of the evening that felt staged or awkward. It was just like a big wonderful dinner party. Probably my favorite part of the evening is when we first came into the dining room and Christian and Katrin went around the room introducing everyone. That never happens at an American wedding! It was just so nice to hear who everyone was and to feel as if everyone had been properly acknowledged. And did I mention the food? Wonderful food--nothing like the dry, tasteless banquet food I've had at some big American weddings. The waiters served us all at once, as if they were one seamless machine. Very classy. And did I mention the part where we carried torches in the dark? How romantic.

The next morning was the biggest, most amazing breakfast spread. Fitting of a German breakfast: cured meats, lox, trout, cheese, spreads, jams, cereals, breads, cake, soft-boiled eggs, yogurts, milk, fruits. I could have eaten all day. The breakfast was like a relaxed version of the dinner the night before. Lots of socializing and relaxing. It was very nice.

After some downtime, we took a taxi-ride back to Berlin with some others who were in town to do sightseeing. It's hard to believe how quickly the weekend went.

Arghh, matey! It's International Talk Like a Pirate Day.

So, I'm apparently a bit addicted to this blogging business. Just a few quick things:

This from NPR for your Pirate Day needs: 'Keelhauled' by Alestorm, a pirate metal band.

Or, better yet, a now-defunct Portland band that Ryan and Chris introduced me to years ago: Pirate Jenny.

My dad has a blog

P.S. My dad said he was inspired to blog after reading our blog. I thought I would share the link with any of you who are fans of my dad or want to become one of his fans. My dad should seriously have a fan club. He is one of the funniest, coolest people I know. He even let Ryan take pictures of his scars, which is so awesome. A total warrior. He also helped my sister and Ryan unearth my grandfather's old photography equipment from the back corner of the garage. If you have ever seen my parents' garage, you will understand what a feat this was. And now that hulking equipment has been set up in my bathroom, where Ryan is enlarging and printing photographs from the Holga. I can't wait for him to share them with you, but you're probably going to have to wait a few weeks for that, since he's still perfecting his technique (and developing about 40-kazillion rolls of film).

But back to the blog thing. I feel like we are experiencing the year 1999 all over again. Is this what happens when tech-slow people catch up on old trends? I've had blogs off and on for years but haven't kept a public one in ages. This is kind of fun. I wonder how long it will last.

Here's what my favorite 59-year-old father has to say about my cat:

Each time I peeked out on the back porch, Charlie was wearing her best demented "wild cat" visage. She would peer out from under a chair, the table, or the gas grill with a wide-eyed, crazed feline look.

This morning when I went out to make amends, Charlie went into "berserk cat" mode. After ascertaining that I was not going to allow her into the house, she went streaking around the back porch, banking off the walls and screens. She did this repeatedly. Finally, I could only find her wild-eyed face peering out from under the gas grill cover. I felt guilty all day long.

Oh boy. Poor guy. He's been guilted by the fluff monster. Next thing you know, she'll have convinced him to feed her tuna straight from the can. Good thing she's coming home this weekend.

Back in Columbus

It was a long day yesterday. We took the #42 S-Bahn to Beusselstraße, then transferred to the TXL bus, which took us to Tegel Airport, where we went through security and questioning and then had a little breakfast and coffee before our eight-and-a-half-hour flight back to the U.S.

My seat partner was (remarkably--this is my third time in a row sitting next to an unknown academic on a cross-Atlantic flight) an English and Music professor at Fordham. He was reading a Conrad short story at the back of a copy of a Barnes & Noble edition of Heart of Darkness in preparation for an undergraduate English class on--get this!--narrative and modernist literature. Crazy coincidence. I can't wait to tell my adviser, who heard all about my previous encounter with a much less quiet professor of philosophy. Turns out Prof. K. teaches Kermode and Ricoeur and Peter Brooks, but it sounds like classical music is his true passion. Most of his research and scholarly activity is in music now. I should have talked to him about Dr. Renker's classes in nineteenth-century poetry and alternative music. He was quiet, so I didn't want to bother him too much, but we had a very enjoyable conversation before we both got back to our respective reading and movie-watching.

It's so nice to have your own personal TV screen on the seat back of the chair in front of you. I watched several episodes of House on this trip when I wasn't sleeping or reading about science studies in preparation for my upcoming class this fall (Global Studies in Science and Technology). What have I gotten myself into? I think ultimately I will teach it like a narrative theory class with an emphasis on how science uses narrative forms to present its research. Or something like that. Only three days left to prepare. Eek.

Ryan got searched at Newark, which was a little scary, but since we weren't smuggling drugs or farm animals, they let him go. After waiting through security again (I don't remember having to do this in Philly, but if I did, it was not nearly as annoying as the security at Newark). After a little more waiting, we finally got on our plane to Columbus, which was a quick 1.5-hour flight. Then our lovely neighbor and friend and catsitter-extraordinaire Nancy brought the Yanmobile to pick us up and we were finally safe and sound at home.

Kashka seems happy to have her people around, although we hear that she has a new boyfriend. Our upstairs neighbor, a wonderful guy named Dave, has been letting her inside his place to sleep at night. I just hope she'll decide to come around our place at night sometimes... Charliekat comes back this weekend from my parents' place. They are coming to Columbus to pick up a new piece of furniture, which my mom apparently found in the Columbus area. It's a very cool Heywood-Wakefield dresser, which I think means that my parents can finally get rid of the old, falling-apart dressers they inherited from my sister and I years ago. I'll post a picture later.

So, yes, the trip was a success. And we're happy to be back. We'll post more photos and notes after we catch up on some more sleep. Thanks for reading!

Last full day

Ryan said he loves the sound and the feel of the subway. I love the sound of people speaking German. I like the smell of cooking Wurst on the street, the Germans walking their ever-so-polite dogs off-leash and riding their bikes and ringing the little bell to warn you of their approach. I like the little green man that tells you it's okay to cross the street. The bike lanes everywhere. The scarves that people wear to keep their throats warm, no matter the weather. The children playing in the park. The old Turkish women on benches. The little cups of espresso. Even the 24-hour McDonald's around the corner, which has a McCafé that sells Küchen and Lattes. I haven't seen a drive through all week. We only took a car once and yet we went all over the city, even left the city to go to Potsdam and to Schloß Ziethen. I like sparkling Mineralwasser and cheap pizza and cheesecake at every bakery.

Thanks, Berlin. Thanks, Deutschland. It's been a great week. I'm going to miss you. I hope it's not another eight years before I return.

Donald Duck

One of the speeches at K and C's wedding dinner by C's uncle was incredibly difficult for me to understand, although his enunciation was clear. It turns out that what I understood (his humorous, overstated tone and the audience laughter in response) was a Donald Duck speech--full of word play, alliteration, arcane references to high culture, etc. Luckily, one of our table-mates, a wonderful friend of K's mother explained that in Germany, a Donald Duck fascination has long been part of a subculture of people, some of whom have organized themselves into clubs and the like. R told me that C seems to be a fan of the American Disney character, because he had noticed several Donald Duck books on Christian's bookshelves.

But most of Germany does not read the same Donald Duck we could read. They read a German version that provides much more than a translation. In fact, Donald Duck becomes something new. For a better sense of what I mean, I recommend this great article in the Wall Street Journal.

Sanssouci and yesterday's dinner with friends

Today we started a bit late, making a trip out of Berlin to the city of Potsdam, where we headed directly to the grounds of Sanssouci, Frederick the Great's palace, which has been designated "a World Heritage Centre of Culture by UNESCO" according to our guidebook. The whole thing was large and full of statues and gardens and palaces. We looked at everything from the outside so as to make it a free day (aside from the two Euros we spent on a more detailed map, the cost of a quick lunch of Wurst and Pommes Frites and round trip transportation via Regional Bahn and U-Bahn and Bus). We walked until my feet ached.

It was a lovely, overcast day with a few sprinkles of rain here and there. We both took tons of photos, Ryan trotting around with his beloved Holga and tripod, me with my digital camera, which Ryan steals every few minutes to check his light settings or whatever.

The digital camera, which Miki and Claudia gave me a couple of Christmases ago, continues to be one of the best things I own. It was very useful today. The park is 709 acres, and we probably didn't see half of it. We did, however, see the Schloss Sanssouci, the Neues Palais, the Chinesisches Haus (Chinese house), the Römische Bäder (Roman baths), the Orangerie, the Schloss Charlottenhof (a small Neo-Classical palace), and much of the grounds between these various places. While Ryan takes pictures with the Holga, I wander around, look at things, talk to security guards, and get directions from old ladies. (I love old German ladies! I need to get one. Do you think I could take one home as a souvenir?) I even had a conversation with an older man about die Artischocken. Seriously. In German. He was a little shocked because when he commented about them to me, he didn't know I was American, so when I replied in my halting German, he tried a word of English, but then I continued in German, so he reverted to his Muttersprache, and we had a nice little chat about how beautiful they are and at what stage they flower and at what stage you eat them. Then I took some pictures of them to remind myself of the encounter.

Lots of people seem to use the grounds of Sanssouci for their daily exercise, since it is freely open to the public. I saw one guy sprinting the big stairs in front of the Schloss Sanssouci and then running back down the sloping side hill; he looked tough and very fit. Another couple women were running around at various points throughout the day. And then many people seemed to just be on their daily bike rides to and from work. The campus of the University of Potsdam is actually on the park grounds, so there were lots of professor-types and college students going to and fro. It must be amazing to go to college there, if only for the scenery.

I'm pretty worn out at this point in the trip. I guess I'm feeling my age? Luckily, Ryan seems to have enough energy for both of us, so I'm just going along with it, enjoying the ride as much as possible. It's hard not to get overwhelmed. I'm getting much less anxious about my German, but making travel plans, catching buses, trains, subway trains, following maps, buying tickets, reading signs, asking for directions, well, it's getting tiresome. I'm ready to come home. I've been very pleased to feel less anxious about speaking and listening to and reading German since the last time I was here eight years ago, but it's hard, and at times I still feel like I'm lost. I can understand about half to three-quarters of any given conversation; still, it's frustrating not to have better command of the language. Luckily, my restaurant and cafe skills are awesome, so Ryan and I have no problem getting fed at the end of a long day. We had pizza and pasta tonight as a quick and filling dinner. It was our second time getting pizza, since it's so cheap and easy.

Last night our food was much more exciting. I finally got to meet up with my former housemate A and meet her new girlfriend, D, who is great--very warm and hospitable and so nice to speak English with us, even though it seems like she is a bit uncomfortable with her English. It is remarkable how many times people go out of their way for us, especially since we're the ones who don't speak enough German to converse easily. We met them at their apartment in Mitte (near Kreuzberg), where A showed off her guinea pigs. A and D lent us their extra bikes for the night, so we could quickly bike to dinner at what A called an "Arabic" restaurant, what the sign described as "oriental," and what their menu described as Moroccan and Egyptian. It was mostly like a mixture of North African and Lebanese food: tabouli, baba ganoush, hummus, pita, red beans, rice with chicken and meatballs, spinach, and some other vegetables. It was great. Then after dinner we went to get beer at a nearby bar because the restaurant was run by Muslims, so no alcohol available there. The bike ride was fantastic. I love riding city-style on cruiser bikes. It feels very civilized.

We're going back to A and D's tomorrow for dinner, which they are cooking. I'm so looking forward to it. It's been much too long since I'd seen my old housemate, and we had a great time reminiscing last night.

Things the Germans do better than Americans

Strap-ons, originally uploaded by skee zix.

7. Strap-ons.

We got off the U-Bahn (the subway) at Alexanderplatz to go find the 100 Bus to the Zoo and found these two gentlemen, selling their wares, Berlin-style.

Gay and Lesbian Memorial

Gay and Lesbian Memorial, originally uploaded by skee zix.

We almost didn't visit this interesting memorial, located just across the street from the Holocaust Memorial. There is no large marker telling what it is, and the memorial doesn't show up on any of our tourist guides. The small description sign located just in front of it is in German and English and describes how gays and lesbians were targeted and murdered by the Third Reich and how important it is that we remember their particular sufferings.

As we approached the memorial itself, three German teenagers were looking at it, giggling and commenting on how funny it was. It clearly made them uncomfortable, just as it would make many American teenagers (and adults) uncomfortable. Inside the large metal structure, which looks like a chunk of stone cut into an angular boxy shape, is a moving picture projected on the back wall. It is silent. Two men embrace, then kiss. The kiss is intimate and involves their mouths and lips entirely. It is sexual, sensual, perhaps even provocative. Then the man on the left leans over to the other man's right ear and whispers something which we cannot hear. Then he touches the man on the right's arm, they embrace, and again begin kissing. The film loops again and again. Endlessly.

Things the Germans do better than Americans

Outdoor seating, originally uploaded by skee zix.

6. Outdoor seating

Things the Germans do better than Americans

Little cars, originally uploaded by skee zix.

5. Live economically. Plus, little bitty cars are very cute.

Dixie Attack

Dixie Attack, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Christian has been playing music with a group of male friends from his school days since they were in maybe fourth or fifth grade. After high school they formed Dixie Attack and played 1920s and 30s-era Dixie music for 50th and 60th birthday parties and anniversaries, making obscene amounts of money for playing what Christian called easy, mindless music for the enjoyment people of all ages, but especially the older crowd. After three years of not playing together, they reunited for a special Hochzeit (wedding) performance. It was such joyful music for the pre-dinner hour and everyone got a kick out of the stories they band told, especially one about how Christian's band teacher marveled--on stage and in front of an audience--that Christian's little fifth-grade fingers could play such beautiful music on his bass guitar. His friends have apparently mocked him for this embarrassing experience ever since. Luckily for his friends, who clearly love him, he is a man of tolerance and wisdom and takes all the gentle ribbing with good humor.

I have now decided that all weddings should involve some amount of live music. It makes people so happy to be able to sing along and even just dance in their seats. More to come about the incredible wedding events. It's going to take quite a blog post to share all of the amazing events of the day. Just one quick preview: it involved a four-and-a-half-hour dinner, balloons, and torches.

Church

Church, originally uploaded by skee zix.

The little old church in the tiny village of Groß Ziethen (ironically named) was the setting for K & C's nuptials. I managed to follow along with the songs and prayers and even understood most of the sermon. The sermon was nice but also ended up being part of joking comments the rest of the evening because the minister had said that most people cannot expect to be happy more than 51 per cent of the time. The idea of being 100 per cent joyful was a preposterous and foolhardy proposition for this man of the cloth, but even with a more pragmatic (pessimistic? German?) view of life, the minister emphasized that K & C should remind themselves often of what makes life good for them as individuals and a couple: music, friends, family, conversation.

The church was tastefully and minimally decorated with ivy and white flowers. K wore a creamy high-waisted, floor-length gown with small straps and jewels adorning the empire cut of her gown. It was simple and yet also elegant. She looked like a ballerina with a perfect tiny figure and pale skin and green eyes. And best of all, she looked happy. So did C. It was just so wonderful to see them happy.

K at the reception

Katrin at the reception, originally uploaded by skee zix.

The bride at the celebration after the wedding. It was a perfect day for a celebration with friends and family.

Where is Mr. Mouse?

Where is Mr. Mouse?, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Saddest but cutest photo of the day was a sign posted for a child's lost stuffed animal.

"Wo ist Herr Maus?" (Where is Mr. Mouse?)

"Trauriges Kind sucht seine Kuschelmaus! Hoher Finderlohn!"
(A sad child seeks his stuffed mouse. Generous finder's fee!)

This is German Breakfast

Breakfast, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Frühstück is an important meal for Germans. Katrin fed us on both Wednesday and Thursday mornings, so we got the homemade version first. The store bought version is pretty good, but not as plentiful as Katrin's. Nevertheless, it's filling.

For 2,50 Euros you get:
2 rolls (Brötchen)
1 hard-boiled egg (gekochte Eier)
2 pieces of meat
2 pieces of cheese (Käse)
3 small slices of cucumber (Gurken)
1 cup of coffee (Kaffee)
jam and butter (and the jam is tasty! we had apricot and peach/passionfruit

We also got an excellent apple turnover for an additional 60 cents (Euro). What a deal!

Tuna-fish Pizza

Today was our first day on our own after two days with Katrin as tour-guide-extraordinaire. We went to a couple of bookstores, visited Käthe-Kollwitz-Platz, found a comics bookstore, took the U-Bahn (subway) back after a long day of walking, went to a grocery store, ate tuna pizza, and drank Berliner Weiße (grün).

I'm glad I remembered the thing about tuna-fish pizza today. We were passing by one of the many omnipresent pizzerias today when I was reminded that Germans have a funny thing about their pizzas. Some of them like it was tuna on top. Like tuna-out-of-a-can tuna. I'd never tried it all the times I'd been here before, so I ordered it tonight for a late dinner. It was actually okay. Weird because, well, it tastes like pizza with tuna on top, but not half bad actually.

At the pizzeria, Ryan tried his first (and probably only) Berliner Weiße, which is the most disgusting drink I can think of. It's a beer (probably very cheap) flavored with a shot of sweet syrup in either green or red. Ryan chose green. I tasted it, too. We agreed that it should be renamed an apple-beertini. It is seriously disturbing. Luckily, it comes with a straw so that you can feel prissy while drinking it.

Ryan has been enjoying the crazy cheap cost for beer. At the supermarket, we bought a couple bottles for less than the cheapest, nastiest Natty Light or Budweiser that you could buy in the U.S. And, as Ryan can tell you, it's damn good beer. They are not joking around. The pilsners are excellent. We had a couple for late lunch at a cafe K & C recommended. It was an outdoor cafe with umbrellas to shade the sun. I had fish (again--I'm on some kind of weird fish thing lately) and a wonderful carrot-ginger soup. Ryan had this arugula salad with a wonderful baked cheese side that you eat together for this peppery/warm/crunchy/soft combination. Also, our waitress was nice. Most of our interactions with Germans are actually quite good. They bear with me and my halting German, answer questions, give directions, etc.

We got directions from the shopkeeper at the first bookstore we visited to a comics store on Weinmeisterstraße. We talked to a shopkeeper in a fancy designer clothing store about her beautiful wares. We chatted with the shopkeeper at the comic book store about German comics. Along the way, I flirted with every baby and dog owner that crossed my path. There are lots of babies. I think this neighborhood (Prenzlauer Berg) is very young, hence the babies. Also, people walk a lot more, so they walk with their babies in carriages. It's really amazing. Also, some people put their babies on their stomachs in the carriages so that the baby can work on their back muscles (?) -- this is clearly my interpretation. I've never seen anything like it. I like talking briefly with the various young moms about their beautiful children, all of whom seem to wear the most adorable clothing, all very German of course. Also, we visited the absolute best paper/stationery store I've ever seen. I wanted to buy everything. Germans are obsessed with good design, and therefore, stationery is everything you could wish for. Sadly, my budget does not allow me to purchase all the beautiful paper and blank journals I wish for. We did pick up a nice new Moleskine in red. That will make for excellent note-taking as I prepare for Autumn quarter and my exams.

Tomorrow is Katrin and Christian's wedding at Schloss Ziethen, so we will be checking out of our lovely little fifth-floor-walk-up apartment (no elevator!) on Paul-Robeson-Straße and taking our bags to Katrin and Christian's apartment on Gleimstraße, where we will meet their friends Rebecca and Samuel and their little son, who will take us via car to Schloss Ziethen, which is outside of Berlin about 50 kilometers. Apparently German weddings are all about staying up late to celebrate. Katrin was disappointed when the manor house owner told her that the party needs to end at 3 a.m. She told me that celebrations often go on until 5 or 6 in the morning! We are going to be dead tired because we have to leave the hotel at 11 a.m. to catch the train back to Berlin.

Lots more pictures and stories to follow.

Things the Germans do better than Americans

Bier, originally uploaded by skee zix.

4. Pilsener

Things the Germans do better than Americans

Street art, originally uploaded by skee zix.

3. Street art

Want a hat?

Want a hat?, originally uploaded by skee zix.

"That hat? It'll be 5 Euros, a quart of vodka, and a pint of your mother's blood."

Things the Germans do better than Americans

One must love the courtyards, originally uploaded by skee zix.

2. Courtyards

Things the Germans do better than Americans

Art., originally uploaded by skee zix.

1. Public art

Crazy bicycle

Crazy bicycle, originally uploaded by skee zix.

You kinda need to see these things to appreciate how odd they are. Everybody pedals, and it is completely unclear how they are steered. Apparently, they are street legal.

Verboten

No pervs in safety helmets?, originally uploaded by skee zix.

This was posted outside a park for children. We've been trying to figure out the last one. Our best guess is "no pervs in safety helmets."

Dear Berlin, I love you

Yesterday I asked Christian if birds ever flew into the house. He said they do not. Listen, I'm just saying. No screens? I forgot about the no screens thing. And apparently Germans are not cursed by mosquitoes or lots of flies. Although we did get a monster fly this morning, which I used a magazine to shoo away while yelling "Draussen, bitte!" Get the heck out. It went back out.

Dinner with K & C was fun again. We went to a restaurant called November in a gay area of town. Our lovely gay waiter was adorable and spoke perfect English with us. He asked R why he was the only one who didn't speak German. I told our waiter R was in training. R had Schnitzel--super German! I had pumpkin risotto, Seelachsfilet, and salad. And of course, we drank more Berliner Pilsner. Dear Berlin Bier, you are tasty!

We saw every major German government building, plus most of the major museums on Museumsinsel. We also saw where Angela Merkel lives. K is a great tour guide and should probably quit this lawyer business to open her new tour business. The best parts of the foot-tour around Berlin were the Käthe Kollwitz statue in this old watch station and the Holocaust Memorial. Also, the smell of chocolate in this famous chocolate store was killer. If the world smelled like that, I would never get work done.

One more thing before we go get coffee. I am obsessed with this crazy show on TV at night in which a half-naked woman tries to get people to call in to answer a quiz question. I knew the answer yesterday! And no one called in to win the 1000 Euros! The question was: "which feminine name has exactly four A's in it?" Caveat: Anamaria doesn't count because it's actually two names. I knew the answer! But we have no phone in our room, so I couldn't call. All I could do was yell at the TV. Sad.

R and I think German infomercials and German Home Shopping Network are also hysterical. Maybe not as good as late-night half-naked quiz shows, but close. Germans are just like us. They like juicers and purses, too!

Oh, the dinner pictures

Dinner with old friends

Our hosts "invited" us to dinner last night. This is German for "treated" us to a wonderful meal at a nice restaurant called Frau Something-or-other Manger. Food was excellent, as was the pilsner. We talked about how Brits get ridiculously drunk and how American college students are crazed football fans. Then Katrin told us about her Oxford/Cambridge college's silly drunken cheer that involved waving one shoe in the air and yelling about Trinity College. I had gnocchetti with pork and Ryan had something made with beef and tiny potatoes. It was lovely. Tasty. I like the Germans. And their food. And their beer.

The weather is perfect, and we've already seen a lot of Katrin and Christian's neighborhood, including a nearby park. Today, we go to Museuminsel, the "Museum Island."

Running tally of angered Germans

Volkspark Humboldthain, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Total: 3.

An elderly German man was angered at Volkspark Humboldthain when Katrin very nicely asked if he would consent to be photographed.

Inside the apartment 1

Inside the apartment, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Stairs, stairs, stairs, and stairs to the apartment.

Stairs!, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Paul-Robeson Straße

Paul-Robeson Strasse, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Running tally of angered Germans

Total: 2.

Two Angered Germans. The apartment manager people gave us the keys to our apartment earlier than scheduled.  The cleaning people came right after we had flung our belongings all over the place and were less than pleased to see us here. Guten Morgen!

Sad money

P.S. It feels dirty to exchange dollars into Euros. The exchange rate is 1 Euro = $1.60. Sad.

Newark Pit Stop

Newark Pit Stop, originally uploaded by skee zix.

We've made it out of Columbus and are now refueling in Newark at a taco place.

The brave travelers

The brave travelers, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Ready to leave Columbus

Why we named our blog Paul-Robeson-Straße

Well, that's where we're staying for the first part of our trip. We thought it was pretty cool that Berlin had a street named after one of the most amazing people to live in the twentieth century. He might have been the best person to have ever lived. If you don't know about Paul Robeson, please get your learning on: on PBS's American Masters site and everyone's favorite encyclopedia.

Twist

Enjoy the video while it lasts, when we hit the 100MB Flickr max this will sadly be the first thing to go.

Twist, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Chris & Kate triumphant

Chris & Kate triumphant, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Only 24 hours to go!

We still have a long list of stuff to do, but we're back from our weekend adventures in northern Ohio. We had a wonderful time at the first wedding. Our friends Chris and Kate are beautiful people. They have a great sense of humor as individuals and as a couple. It was one of the first times that I've been to a wedding where I knew both the bride and groom well and knew they were meant to be together in that way people seem suited to each other. They seem right for each other--quietly and calmly right. They met several years ago in graduate school and since then, it's just been right. The wedding was lovely--not a single wrong note. Even the Catholic mass was good; the priest was remarkably warm and genuine in his homily. I did the first reading from Paul's letter to the Philippians. It is a wonderful passage: poetic, quiet and firm, reassuring.

Brothers and sisters: Rejoice in the Lord always.
I shall say it again: rejoice!
Your kindness should be known to all.
The Lord is near.

Have no anxiety at all,
but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
make your requests known to God.

Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters,
whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious,
if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise,
think about these things.

Keep on doing what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me.
Then the God of peace will be with you.

The emphasis on kindness, prayer, and peace is calming to me. This line is my favorite: "Have no anxiety at all" but, you know, keep on praying to keep the anxiety at bay. It's wonderful to think that someone is watching over us, and I feel reassured by the idea that we need only persist.

And, you know, Chris and Kate seemed to embody the words of this passage, which is nice.

Then I got to make my annual attempt to dance the Electric Slide (and fail miserably, as always). It made me laugh until I was out of breath.

After the reception, we headed to my parents' house for my dad's birthday celebration. We had overnight french toast for brunch on Sunday, and my sister's present made everyone cry. It was an excellent love letter to my dad in the form of a This I Believe essay. Now the pressure is on for me to come up with something... My dad has written several drafts of different essays, all of which are great. Not sure I can come up with something as good. We'll see.

All right. Back to packing and cleaning.

Fancy enlarger

Fancy enlarger, originally uploaded by skee zix.

This classic Beseler (Model 23 C Series II) waits at home, hungry for innumerable rolls of masterfully composed and expertly exposed Tri-X. We hope not to disappoint.

Holga and tripod

Holga and tripod, originally uploaded by skee zix.

This cheap plastic camera and cheap flimsy tripod bear the burden of producing the Artistic documentation this voyage so richly deserves.

The day before

The day before, originally uploaded by skee zix.

Clearly these seasoned travelers understand the importance of organization and careful planning.

Berlin Map

View Berlin Trip September 2009 in a larger map

Plans for Berlin

We leave on Tuesday at 1 pm. First leg takes us to Newark, second leg to Berlin. We arrive Wednesday at 8 am. Before we leave, we need to clean the house, get the cats' food and litter ready, clean out the fridge, finish laundry, choose books for the trip, and decide what else to bring (electronics adapter/converter, fancy clothing for the wedding, walking shoes, jacket). Oh, and then we have to pack.

But first we're going to our friends' wedding (first of two that we'll attend in the next week) and my dad's birthday celebration. We need to leave in about an hour and a half to go to the wedding. I'm still waking up and drinking coffee.

Plans for the trip include Katrin and Christian's wedding at Schloss Ziethen, hanging out with Katrin and Christian before their wedding, and hanging out with Alex after their wedding. Other than that, I just want to see the Reichstag and walk around Berlin. We'd like to eat some Wurst and good German dairy products (Quark!) and tasty bread and cakes. Also, I hear Berlin has an excellent reputation for brunch. That should be fun. We're staying in an apartment near Katrin and Christian's for the first half of the trip, then staying at their apartment when they leave for their honeymoon. I hope we'll rent bikes, since that really is the classic way to get around a German city. We'll see how it works out.

Okay, off to clean up for the day. More about the trip to come.