Day 7: Goodbye Oldenburg, Hello Berlin

I'm not sure how many of these photos will show up today because of the speed of the wifi here but hopefully, a few will be visible. I'm safely in Berlin so that's what really matters. I wanted to post some pictures of the house where we've been staying in Oldenburg to give some perspective on my weird and I'm sure confusing descriptions of it. We've nicknamed it Karma House because everything seems to follow along in a very fluid but peaceful way. The people here seem to believe that things balance out if you're kind to one another. They're amazingly wonderful and live in a magical German castle town in a very posh neighborhood.

View from the couch at the dining room table at breakfast

More table and part of our opened gift bag

I think the clock here says it all

It was an excellent experience to stay in this house. My stay gave me a new perspective on the type of person I am and how I can be better to others. I think the people in Karma House are kind because kindness is its own reward and I can't quite explain how grateful I am to have had the chance to meet them all. It was a port of calm, welcome, and understanding in a foreign country and even though they didn't have as much time to spend with us as any of us would've liked, my stay was an experience I'll treasure.

Johanna found me through couchsurfing and sort of randomly offered her space to us. We got very lucky to have her as a host and I'm immeasurably grateful. I hope I'll carry the peace and love of Karma house with me into future experiences and interactions with people I meet.

We had to say goodbye today. Johanna gave us her brother's information for our stay in Berlin and we packed up and left a little post card with our thanks on the dining room table, where I'm sure someone will notice it at some point. She invited us to lunch on campus with her but we had a 15-minute window in which to get to her brother's place in Berlin so someone could let us in and give us keys so we decided not to risk the timing.

I took a few pictures and we walked out by the hippie house, which I have yet to mention. It has the most hilariously eclectic mix of objects on the lawn and when we passed it the first time with Johanna, I had to do a double take. Firstly, there was English on the signs on the lawn. Secondly, the house sticks out like a sore thumb in an otherwise very respectable and posh Oldenburg neighborhood.

Then we went to the little park by the house to walk to town. This park, which I'm sure I've mentioned before, is probably my favorite part of Oldenburg. A short walk in transports you to some ancient woods from The Brothers Grimm. It's beautiful and fantastic and I wish I had something comparable back in the states. 

Remember the shoes I bought yesterday? Here they are! Germany shoes. Now with rhinestones.

About two steps from the exit to the park, we found a little bakery cart selling merangues and fresh croissants, so we got a chocolate croissant and a bag of merangues we demolished on the way to the train station, then polished off on the multiple trains we took through the day.

Above are a few views of the city center and the train station, since I didn't post those before. Anyway, what followed was a long day of train rides. We sat behind some British kids, one of whom was attempting to teach the others BS, the card game where you lie to everyone. It was funny to watch. Casey and I played cards, ate merangue, and drank some truly horrible coffee in an attempt to stay awake. I also managed to get some reading done, which is problematic since I only brought one actual book with me and it's a small one. Of Love and Other Demons by Marquez.

The train ride was lovely. Many of the train stations are covered in graffiti like the locals want to decorate even the most utilitarian things with bright, vibrant self-expression. I didn't get any pictures because the train was moving but hopefully I'll get a few good ones while in Berlin, itself.

We eventually got into Berlin at 6:45 or so and we had to be at the apartment by 7:30. I was freaking out. We ran through Alexanderplatz with our enormous backpacks, somehow managed to figure out the U-Bahn in less than five minutes, and called one of our host's roommates on the way to the train with the understanding that we'd be late. It was already about 7:40 by this point. She said someone would definitely be at the apartment until 9 so we suddenly had time. Things tend to work out when you don't plan, there just happens to be a lot of panic in the mean time.

When we got to the station, we realized we still had a ways to walk so we distracted ourselves with checking out the neighborhood. We're in East Berlin, in a very Turkish neighborhood. I saw a few signs in Russian and there is quite a lot of graffiti here. Again, we had a serious time crunch so I didn't stop to take many pictures, but there are so many people here. Berlin so far reminds me of Prague but with a lot more English-speakers. 

After some confusion about the apartment number--we had the wrong one written down--we made it to the place sweaty and crazed and probably looking like we were dragged in by dogs or something. This place also has an impressive collection of shoes and a strange hippie-colony-esque relationship with the feeding and cleaning situation. We're welcome to anything we like in the fridge, can use the bathrooms whenever, we have a private room because one of the roommates happens to be out of town, and everyone knows about us because they have a book where they write down announcements to one another. The difference is there are 8 roommates, with one extra who may or may not be an official roommate. I'm not sure what her situation is but she's very nice and had great suggestions for things to do while in Berlin. She's from Finland and just was accepted into school to get her Masters in Phonetics.

We went out to find some food. I had seen a really cheap falafel place on the way in so we walked there. I took a few dark pictures of graffiti on the way. Maybe some of them turned out decently. I'll post them either way. 

So far, the city is still very hip and interesting. I don't feel like I'm in a particularly dangerous place because everyone we've talked to has been amazingly accommodating and nice. The train worker we randomly asked about rail passes went out of his way to make sure we understood how to use the ticket machine for the metro, some random men having beers directed us to our house, and the German guy from the train helped us get to Oldenburg on time. I don't know where we'd be if it weren't for the kindness of random German strangers.

I got my falafel and Casey tried schwarma for the first time. We sat in this strange kebab place in Berlin and talked and laughed for a long time. Then we found a cafe called the Karma cafe, decided it was fitting considering the sorts of places in which we've been staying, and sat down for a beer and some shisha. I tried a Heineken for the first time. It's delicious here! I've never tried one in the states of course because I've heard they're gross but here, it reminds me of a slightly bitter apple cider. I was very impressed. Matt once told me the flavor of green-bottled beer in America is different from how it is in Europe because we got used to the taste of spoiled beer during the World Wars when the bottles sat out in the sun for long periods of time before being shipped due to trade embargoes. I'll believe it. Anyway, American Heineken is different from European Heineken. It's actually a good beer here. Or good ish, I guess.

After that, it was about midnight so we went back to the apartment and met Fabi, Johanna's brother. He's very nice, polite, and gave us a few tips on things to see while we're here. We talked for a little while about the health care systems in the States and in Germany and also briefly brushed over education. Fabi is working as a tailor but wants to get into costume design back in the theatre. He's very cute and offered to let me flip through his newly-arrived copy of Vogue. I'm slowly realizing that 3 days is a very short stay for Berlin but we'll try to fit everything in and we can always come back to this city, I'm sure.

Tomorrow, I think we're going to try to find a walking tour so we can get to know the important sites in the city and then maybe go for a drink in a cute little lounge Fabi suggested. He was also quite taken with the gift bags and immediately put up the American flag we included because we're staying in the apartment for now. It's adorably stuck in a potted plant on their sky-blue circular dining room table. They also have a disco ball in their living room and a crank-pull hanging laundry contraption that moves to the ceiling when people want to sit and enjoy the sun in that room. Ingenius, practical, and chic.

As it's about 2 here now, I should probably go to bed if you want any adventures for tomorrow.

Peace and love, 

Maria