Friday, July 13, 2007
The Sleeper Cell Strikes Munich
Two weeks into my Bavarian vacation and things have been going swimmingly. My coursework has been relatively straightforward, although I have some issues with the assessment strategies that the Schiller Center has chosen to adopt to gauge my language proficiency. Is it really fair to place questions on an exam which are not covered in the assigned chapters of the textbook? Why have I spent time making flashcards on vocabulary words that are never even utilized in any practice dialogs? Do I really need to memorize terms associated with the postal service in order to pass my department's German proficiency exam?
The answer of all of these may be no, but the last of these did have some relevance today, when I realized that I have not sent postcards to my family...or my girlfriend. This would have to be remedied immediately...if not sooner. Fortunately I had thought ahead and purchased some postcards when I visited Heidelberg. All I needed now was some time to actually write them. And lucky me, I had plenty of time this afternoon.
Ok...here's the deal. Tomorrow is my birthday and to celebrate the occasion, I arranged a meeting with my old friend and comrade-in-arms...or at least in-blogging, The Sleeper Cell. Yes, this corner of the Internet's favorite revolutionary finally decided to emerge from his undisclosed location somewhere in Britain to travel to the Continent. Since he would be arriving in Munich around 3:30 and my classes ended at approximately 1:00, this left me with plenty of time to get to our chosen meeting place, the Burger King at the Munich Hauptbahnhof, and work on some postcard writing.
Everything went according to plan so far as the writing was concerned. I had already completed that weekend's homework, so now all that remained was to grab lunch and wait for my rendezvous with the Sleeper. For the first time since I arrived in Munich, I ordered what I would consider distinctly "American" food...a Burger King meal, complete with fries and a soda. The only difference from something I could get in the United States was the choice of sauce on the burger. Who knew that mango-curry was so popular in Europe? (Not I!)
But once I had finished my burger and my postcards, there was not particularly much to do. Rather than leave my post in search of a newspaper or magazine, I flipped idly through my city guidebook to determine some possible activities for the weekend. I looked up every so often, keeping a close watch on the escalator leading to the Burger King. But still, no sign of the Sleeper Cell. It appeared that he was late, but this struck me as highly unlikely. Not only was the Sleeper an experienced European traveler...but this was Germany. The planes and trains always arrive on time and schedules and maps are clearly posted. And if push came to shove, the people frequently spoke English. So why the delay?
What I learned later was that my choice of meeting place was at fault for the confusion. I had assumed, given the very large sign posted on the second floor that there was only one Burger King in the main train station's building. I was wrong. There was another, and apparently the Sleeper had spent some time looking for me there.
By the time he finally went upstairs, I had started to doubt my own senses. After all, I hadn't seen the Sleeper in quite a while. Who knew how several months of living in Europe could change a man? Finally, I saw someone who was either my old friend or some sort of evil doppelganger coming up the escalator. I tried to catch his eye, but apparently he didn't see me and proceeded from the escalator not to the tables outside the Burger King where I was sitting, but rather to a coffee shop next door to obtain some caffeine. It was about then that I decided to take action. I got behind him in line and tapped him on the shoulder.
Thankfully, it really was the Sleeper and not some European copycat otherwise I'd have to practice saying excuse me in one of several different languages.
We traveled back to my dormitory via S-Bahn as the Sleeper recounted some of his European adventures. I should note however, that comparing the excitement of a paralegal's daily routine, even in a place like Britain, which is known for its excitement, to that of a graduate student is roughly equivalent to timing which brand of white paint dries faster. Nevertheless, it was good to catch up some before we went out to Stachus to meet up with our mutual friend Corinna. The Sleeper's family had hosted Corinna as an exchange student during high school, and since she was now living in Munich, it seemed like a good chance to catch up. Besides...it couldn't hurt to have a native German speaker with us as we wandered around the city.
We ended up eating dinner at Andecher am Dom, a restaurant right in the shadow of the Frauenkirche best known for its beer, which the monks at the nearby Andechs Abbey have been brewing since 1455. Corinna and I each ordered a sampler plate of sorts, filled with different meats and cheeses and the Sleeper tried to indulge his vegetarian sensibilities as best he could. We drank and noshed on pretzels, occasionally chatting with some friendly folk sharing the table with us, mostly about movies such as Borat and Das Leben der Anderen. (I continuously screwed up the title of the latter due to my continued bewilderment regarding the proper use of the genitive.)
After a fine dinner and promise to meet up with Corinna the following evening, the Sleeper and I left Marienplatz. I had lost track of the time somewhat because the sun had stayed up later than it would in the United States and by the time we left the restaurant it was nearly 9:30 in the evening. The tentative plan for tomorrow involves a trip to Germany's tallest mountain and a visit to the city's most famous beer garden. All in all, it should make for an exciting birthday.
Two weeks into my Bavarian vacation and things have been going swimmingly. My coursework has been relatively straightforward, although I have some issues with the assessment strategies that the Schiller Center has chosen to adopt to gauge my language proficiency. Is it really fair to place questions on an exam which are not covered in the assigned chapters of the textbook? Why have I spent time making flashcards on vocabulary words that are never even utilized in any practice dialogs? Do I really need to memorize terms associated with the postal service in order to pass my department's German proficiency exam?
The answer of all of these may be no, but the last of these did have some relevance today, when I realized that I have not sent postcards to my family...or my girlfriend. This would have to be remedied immediately...if not sooner. Fortunately I had thought ahead and purchased some postcards when I visited Heidelberg. All I needed now was some time to actually write them. And lucky me, I had plenty of time this afternoon.
Ok...here's the deal. Tomorrow is my birthday and to celebrate the occasion, I arranged a meeting with my old friend and comrade-in-arms...or at least in-blogging, The Sleeper Cell. Yes, this corner of the Internet's favorite revolutionary finally decided to emerge from his undisclosed location somewhere in Britain to travel to the Continent. Since he would be arriving in Munich around 3:30 and my classes ended at approximately 1:00, this left me with plenty of time to get to our chosen meeting place, the Burger King at the Munich Hauptbahnhof, and work on some postcard writing.
Everything went according to plan so far as the writing was concerned. I had already completed that weekend's homework, so now all that remained was to grab lunch and wait for my rendezvous with the Sleeper. For the first time since I arrived in Munich, I ordered what I would consider distinctly "American" food...a Burger King meal, complete with fries and a soda. The only difference from something I could get in the United States was the choice of sauce on the burger. Who knew that mango-curry was so popular in Europe? (Not I!)
But once I had finished my burger and my postcards, there was not particularly much to do. Rather than leave my post in search of a newspaper or magazine, I flipped idly through my city guidebook to determine some possible activities for the weekend. I looked up every so often, keeping a close watch on the escalator leading to the Burger King. But still, no sign of the Sleeper Cell. It appeared that he was late, but this struck me as highly unlikely. Not only was the Sleeper an experienced European traveler...but this was Germany. The planes and trains always arrive on time and schedules and maps are clearly posted. And if push came to shove, the people frequently spoke English. So why the delay?
What I learned later was that my choice of meeting place was at fault for the confusion. I had assumed, given the very large sign posted on the second floor that there was only one Burger King in the main train station's building. I was wrong. There was another, and apparently the Sleeper had spent some time looking for me there.
By the time he finally went upstairs, I had started to doubt my own senses. After all, I hadn't seen the Sleeper in quite a while. Who knew how several months of living in Europe could change a man? Finally, I saw someone who was either my old friend or some sort of evil doppelganger coming up the escalator. I tried to catch his eye, but apparently he didn't see me and proceeded from the escalator not to the tables outside the Burger King where I was sitting, but rather to a coffee shop next door to obtain some caffeine. It was about then that I decided to take action. I got behind him in line and tapped him on the shoulder.
Thankfully, it really was the Sleeper and not some European copycat otherwise I'd have to practice saying excuse me in one of several different languages.
We traveled back to my dormitory via S-Bahn as the Sleeper recounted some of his European adventures. I should note however, that comparing the excitement of a paralegal's daily routine, even in a place like Britain, which is known for its excitement, to that of a graduate student is roughly equivalent to timing which brand of white paint dries faster. Nevertheless, it was good to catch up some before we went out to Stachus to meet up with our mutual friend Corinna. The Sleeper's family had hosted Corinna as an exchange student during high school, and since she was now living in Munich, it seemed like a good chance to catch up. Besides...it couldn't hurt to have a native German speaker with us as we wandered around the city.
We ended up eating dinner at Andecher am Dom, a restaurant right in the shadow of the Frauenkirche best known for its beer, which the monks at the nearby Andechs Abbey have been brewing since 1455. Corinna and I each ordered a sampler plate of sorts, filled with different meats and cheeses and the Sleeper tried to indulge his vegetarian sensibilities as best he could. We drank and noshed on pretzels, occasionally chatting with some friendly folk sharing the table with us, mostly about movies such as Borat and Das Leben der Anderen. (I continuously screwed up the title of the latter due to my continued bewilderment regarding the proper use of the genitive.)
After a fine dinner and promise to meet up with Corinna the following evening, the Sleeper and I left Marienplatz. I had lost track of the time somewhat because the sun had stayed up later than it would in the United States and by the time we left the restaurant it was nearly 9:30 in the evening. The tentative plan for tomorrow involves a trip to Germany's tallest mountain and a visit to the city's most famous beer garden. All in all, it should make for an exciting birthday.
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