From Maryland to Hamburg: Two Days of Chaos and Friendship

Huge Turkish Plane

Travis getting off our Turkish flight

            I have just awoke from a 5-hour nap, still in disbelief that 48 hours ago I was in the Dulles Airport. When my parents dropped me off three hours before my flight (plenty of time), I met with my friend Travis Whaley. We spent approximately an hour or two in the check-in line, waiting for the Turkish Airlines system to be fixed. While waiting in this line of grumbling Turkish folk, we made friends! A man named Toni asked Travis and I to watch over his friend Ali, who could only speak a little English. We were to call Toni if the flight was cancelled or when Ali arrived at the gate. Of course, Travis and I cared for Ali with great care, making sure he had time to use the bathroom and made it through security okay. Toni was highly appreciative. Good deed!
         Since our flight was delayed by an hour, we only had an hour in the Istanbul Airport before boarding our Berlin plane. This hour slowly dwindled to about a half hour, so there we were again, scrambling to stay calm and get on a plane. The Turkish Airlines themselves were great! We got meals on both planes, including 6-hour naps on the flight over the Atlantic Ocean. One frightening incident did occur on the flight from Dulles to Istanbul. One of the features on the plane was that you could view footage from cameras located in front of and below the plane. While we landed, Travis and I were looking at the front view and clearly saw a problem. We were not coming in straight on the landing strip (and this was a huge plane!). The pilot quickly redirected the plane, jolting all of its passengers, to straighten out. This was pretty scary since we could see it all happening. We made it though!

Me for the past 48 hours

          In Berlin, we finally got our bags and headed for a taxi after getting some Euros. We eventually arrived at the Main Station Hostel, where we stayed in mini-apartment. I think I went to bed around midnight and had to wake up at 3:30 am to get ready for my set of trains to Hamburg. Around 4:30 am, I left the hostel and walked for five minutes to the S-bahn train station. Of course, I couldn't figure out the ticket machine, even with the instructions being in English. Thankfully, I asked this guy Phillip for help in German. I made it to Südkreuz on time; however, once I got there I had asked a worker how to activate my Eurail Pass. Language barrier led him to believe I needed a ticket and he directed me to wait for the Information desk to open, meaning I missed my train. I waited for fifteen minutes just to have a grouchy man tell me you just get on the train. Needless to say, my first ICE train experience was a little nauseating (due to lack of sleep or food), but I did see some awesome wind turbines! No pictures of them

ICE Train

because it was in between naps, but they sure were calming to watch. I had to take several more trains to get to the apartment I am staying at now. 

Candy on my Bed

          When I finally found Claudia's place, I was low on food and heavily sleep-deprived. She welcomed me and invited me to sit down with her for tea. Upon entering my room, I found a little chocolate bar on my bed. "Ist das für mich?" (Is that for me?), I asked her and of course it was! Yay chocolate! We had tea filled with much laughter and good conversation. She knows English fairly well, so we chatted in both English and German. When, I told her I wouldn't be coming in after dark (because I wouldn't feel safe), she offered to take me anywhere at night, especially to go see the harbor. Her oldest daughter is coming in for a couple days, so this weekend I am on my own for the most part. 
        Tomorrow, there is a Jazz Festival going on at Hamburg's Harbor! My Steinway & Sons factory tour is this Monday.

My Room for the Next Week

Cultural Differences to Note: 
            People do not smile at you if you make eye contact ..unless they're being flirty. Only young guys have smiled at me (not all of them mind you), but mostly people just look away. I find this strange and have tried to work on my not-smiling technique. This does not mean people are unfriendly. Many have helped me find my way from Berlin to Hamburg...at least ten people. One couple even pushed me on my ICE train because they knew it'd be leaving soon (Thank you!).  I do miss the gentlemen of U.S. very much. So many people have just watched me struggle to lift my suitcase up and down stairs, which is not rude because I'm the one who brought the suitcase. I just know American men would've helped me carry my bag or open the door for me. 
            People wear practical clothes that look fairly worn. Of course, I just bought new clothes and a new luggage set for this trip, so I stick out a lot. Pretty sure everyone knew I was an American. 

Cultural Similarities to Note: 
             People do not like to talk early in the morning or on trains, just like in America. I was almost thankful for this because I am still a little nervous about carrying a conversation in German. I'm glad I am not shy about asking for directions. We practiced this a lot in class, for good reason!