Amazing time this last weekend with Stacchetti, Elsner, Carl and a few others.
This past Friday we flew from BCN to Dusseldorf, took the train to Elsner's home town of Dortmund, checked into a hotel, then headed out into the city for some schnitzel, Krombacher, carnival and one hell of a Dortmund vs. Cologne football match. I've never seen 44,000 fans of anything so fired up. The crowd didn't stop singing and setting themselves on fire the entire game, and then late night out in a Dortmunder club was also a terrific time. I'd forgotten about their little drink punch-tickets.
Saturday morning Thomas and I get up and grab some schnitzel (yes I know why I'm fat) at Cafe Alex, then jump on the ICE to Cologne. Which we apparently weren't supposed to do. I guess we had tickets for the more regional RE train, so the nice conductor politely kicks us off in Bochum. Where we get on the wrong train again, getting ourselves kicked off in freaking Duisburg of all places.
After being there back in early 2008 with such a different life and perspective on the world, it stuns me how much a universe can change in 32 months. On the train the day before I'd said to Elsner, "The weirdest thing that happened to me in this area? Fog coming in during New Year's Eve a few years back so thick you couldn't see the road if you were standing on it." And he remembered the exact night, having been only a few dozen kilometers away.
The random coincidences never seem to stop. And for that, Life, I love you.
Anyway, we finally get the right train from Duisburg to Cologne, and the thing is packed to the balls with carnival-goers. The "ladies" in the first pic below have fake'uns filled with schnapps, and were willing to pour shots from taps on their nips. We make it to our hotel in Cologne, get in costume, then rage straight through from Saturday night through to Monday until finally passing out on the plane back to Barcelona. Never shown up to a security gate that lit. But man, such a good time.
There's really nothing about Germany that's not to love. A few lessons learned:
- Everyone is just nice as hell. Fifty people must have stopped to ask if I wanted to come with them to a party.
- Maybe it was just Karnival, but Cologne people seem happy and productive, concerned with their future and careers, yet definitely know how to kick back.
- Though maybe not the healthiest, I do love the food. Those guys are döner ninjas.
- The women really are wonderful.
- There are still no laws about drinking in the street or on the Ubahn (metro). Carrying a couple Erdingers into the U at one point, six Bavarians got all excited telling us what a good choice we'd made. Carrying a couple 'nother Erdingers in the U later, a Cologner tells us what a bad choice we made, but in such a very nice way.
Cannot wait for Oktoberfest.
Comments