Europe Day 5 London to Brussels (Belgium) to Neuss (Germany)
I’m on the Eurostar train going 175 mph as I write this, but let me tell you about my uneventful morning first. We woke up at 5:00 this morning, or at least that’s when the alarm went off. After some lat minute packing we checked out of the hotel, made our way to the tube, and headed toward Waterloo Station. We made it there with minutes to spare, and jumped on the train. The seats on the train are very similar to an airline. After maybe an hour of going normal speeds (under 75 mph) we entered the Chunnel. My GPS kicked in just a couple of minutes before we went in, but has been working fine ever since.
Vanessa slept all of the way through the Chunnel, and with only minutes before we leave France, she will have slept all of the way through France as well. She did wake up for about 45 seconds to tell me that it was “cool” we were on a train going so fast, but I know she just said it for my benefit. In another 45 minutes we should be getting off of this train and eating lunch somewhere near the station in Brussels.
It took us while to get our bearings at the train station in Brussels. Once we realized there was only one ATM in the entire station (big station) we headed over there. Most of Europe uses the same currency now (the Euro). In England they still use the British Pound. We left England with only 6 Pounds (about $11.00), which was really good planning. The best way to get currency when you travel is through ATM’s. If you exchange real money, then they charge you extra or give you a bad rate. Once we had money, we were ready to eat. Vanessa found a place that served sandwiches, so we go a couple to go. They had a nice enclosed waiting area that we ate in and took the things out of our luggage we would need for the next train.
This time we are traveling in first class. It is included on our Europass (except for a small reservation fee for the high-speed train. Fist class is nice because the seats electronically recline, they have an electric outlet (my laptop needed recharging), and you get a small meal with a drink. The seats are also wider and provide a little more legroom. Although this is a high-speed train, we only went full speed for a short time. The rest of the time we have been traveling through small towns and tunnels at round 60 mph. We just crossed the border into Germany and have stopped in the town of Aachen.
Our next stop will be Cologne, where we will call my friend Sebastian. I’m not sure if he is meeting us in Cologne, or if we are taking the train to Neuss (about 30 minutes north), where he lives. The ground outside the train is covered in snow. I am looking forward o seeing old friends and relaxing for a couple of days. I am also looking forward to finding internet access where I can upload the first five days of our trip to my blog. J
Once we arrived in Cologne, I was happy. Everyone around me was speaking German, and I understood most of it. We didn’t see Sebastian, but it a large train station. We set off to find a bathroom and a payphone. Vanessa had some trouble with the bathroom, because it was a pay toilet. All she had was large bills, so I had to ask for change. Once that was taken care of, we set off to find a payphone. We tried calling Sebastian for 20 minutes, but to no avail. For the most part we kept getting error messages, but I couldn’t understand the recording. After a while we decided to catch the next train to Neuss (the city where Sebastian lives).
Once we arrived in Neuss, I was ecstatic. I knew exactly where I was and Vanessa and I walked to Sebastian’s’ parent’s (Mr. And Mrs. Rosen) store. They have a nice hair salon in the heart of the city. When we entered the store I saw Mr. Rosen and my old English teacher, Mr. Bertram. Mr. Bertam was my English teacher when I went to school in Germany. I still remember he gave me a “B” on a paper I turned in. I wrote three times as much as anyone else, but I used the word “inferior” instead of “superior”.
Sebastian’s dad told me (in German), that Sebastian was in Cologne, and he was there to meet us and show us around. Oops. They reached Sebastian on the cell phone and I explained the mistake. Quick note… Sebastian’s parents do not speak any English, nor does his grandmother. So, anytime I am explaining something they said, the conversation will be in German. Whenever I talk with Sebastian it is mostly in English, so Vanessa can understand (Vanessa does not speak German). When we are all together we speak in both and Sebastian or I translate to Vanessa or his parents. Got it?
Anyway, it was going to take Sebastian about an hour to get back to Neuss, so Mr. Rosen took Vanessa and I back to their house (about 10 minutes away). I learned we would be sleeping at there house, which is where I lived when I went to school in Germany. Sebastian has a small apartment over the hair salon. Sebastian’s dad brought us into the house and immediately started bringing out a platter of cookies and crackers, tea, and offering all kinds of food. We had a strained conversation for about an hour. You know how it is when you have nothing to say? Try doing that in another language for an hour. After an hour the doorbell rang and I was so happy that Sebastian was there, but it was actually Sebastian’s sister, husband, and three kids. They were only there for about 5 minutes, before they had to leave, but by listening to the conversation between Mr. Rosen and Sebastian’s sister, I learned Sebastian was not coming to the house, but that we would be leaving in about an hour to meet him, and many others at the salon, where we would then go out for dinner.
After that, Mr. Rosen disappeared for about 30 minutes. I figured he was hiding from us, but once he came back it was apparent that he had changed into a jacket and tie for dinner. Oops. I had a feeling that might happen, so I told him that Vanessa and I had to change and that we would be back in 10 minutes. We rushed downstairs and changed into some nicer clothes.
We drove to the salon and as we pulled up I saw Sebastian. Mr. Rosen parked on the sidewalk (no this is not allowed) and we all got out and greeted each other. Within minutes, Mrs. Rosen, Mr. Rosen, Sebastian, and his grandmother were all ready to get into the car. One problem, it is a hatchback and only fits 5. So, Mr. Rosen drove, I was in the passenger seat (because I am so tall), Mrs. Rosen, grandma, and Vanessa were in the backseat, and Sebastian crouched behind the backseat (he is 31 years old).
We went to the Skihalle, which is actually pretty cool. It is a huge indoor skiing park. The slope is almost ½ mile long and maybe 50 yards wide. It is all build on a giant ramp. It’s too hard to explain, so you should check out the internet site to get an idea. Upstairs they had a nice restaurant. After a stein of beer, we headed upstairs for dinner. We had to wait a bit for Mr. Bertram (the English teacher), Sebastian’s sister, and her husband to join us. We had a great time and the food was fantastic. Vanessa tried two beers, but only ended up drinking a little (maybe one stein total). Sebastian and I had about 5 steins of beer, plus a shot of something really strong. I was drunk.
We were at the restaurant for a good 3 hours. On the way out of the restaurant Sebastian and his sisters husband approached Vanessa and I and Sebastian said, “We have a rubber made”. What? Sebastian’s English is normally really god, but he actually meant to say, “We made a robbery”. They had swiped the beer steins for us as souvenirs. The sisters’ husband thought his mistake was hilarious (even more so when Sebastian pulled a rubber out of his wallet).
On the drive back to the Rosen’s house it was just Mr. And Mrs. Rosen, Vanessa, and me. Fortunately, my German is 10 times better when I’m drunk. Unfortunately, I was so drunk that everything was spinning. That stopped after a couple of miles, and I was able to impress the Rosen’s (and myself) with my use of the German language and my ability to remember where everything in town was. One we got back to their house we sat in the living room for a little bit. The framed print I had mailed arrived earlier in the day so they opened it. They were very happy and said I had done too much. If I only had the time to tell you everything they have done for me in the past. I could never do enough to thank them.
After some small talk Dad brought out the Uzo. This stuff is deadly. I told Vanessa this moment would come. For those of you who don’t know, Uzo is super-strong liquor from Greece and it tastes like licorice. Vanessa hates the taste of licorice, but she was polite enough to do the shot. Afterwards, she promptly washed it down with water.
That’s enough writing for one day! After that we went to bed. Long day.
Vanessa slept all of the way through the Chunnel, and with only minutes before we leave France, she will have slept all of the way through France as well. She did wake up for about 45 seconds to tell me that it was “cool” we were on a train going so fast, but I know she just said it for my benefit. In another 45 minutes we should be getting off of this train and eating lunch somewhere near the station in Brussels.
It took us while to get our bearings at the train station in Brussels. Once we realized there was only one ATM in the entire station (big station) we headed over there. Most of Europe uses the same currency now (the Euro). In England they still use the British Pound. We left England with only 6 Pounds (about $11.00), which was really good planning. The best way to get currency when you travel is through ATM’s. If you exchange real money, then they charge you extra or give you a bad rate. Once we had money, we were ready to eat. Vanessa found a place that served sandwiches, so we go a couple to go. They had a nice enclosed waiting area that we ate in and took the things out of our luggage we would need for the next train.
This time we are traveling in first class. It is included on our Europass (except for a small reservation fee for the high-speed train. Fist class is nice because the seats electronically recline, they have an electric outlet (my laptop needed recharging), and you get a small meal with a drink. The seats are also wider and provide a little more legroom. Although this is a high-speed train, we only went full speed for a short time. The rest of the time we have been traveling through small towns and tunnels at round 60 mph. We just crossed the border into Germany and have stopped in the town of Aachen.
Our next stop will be Cologne, where we will call my friend Sebastian. I’m not sure if he is meeting us in Cologne, or if we are taking the train to Neuss (about 30 minutes north), where he lives. The ground outside the train is covered in snow. I am looking forward o seeing old friends and relaxing for a couple of days. I am also looking forward to finding internet access where I can upload the first five days of our trip to my blog. J
Once we arrived in Cologne, I was happy. Everyone around me was speaking German, and I understood most of it. We didn’t see Sebastian, but it a large train station. We set off to find a bathroom and a payphone. Vanessa had some trouble with the bathroom, because it was a pay toilet. All she had was large bills, so I had to ask for change. Once that was taken care of, we set off to find a payphone. We tried calling Sebastian for 20 minutes, but to no avail. For the most part we kept getting error messages, but I couldn’t understand the recording. After a while we decided to catch the next train to Neuss (the city where Sebastian lives).
Once we arrived in Neuss, I was ecstatic. I knew exactly where I was and Vanessa and I walked to Sebastian’s’ parent’s (Mr. And Mrs. Rosen) store. They have a nice hair salon in the heart of the city. When we entered the store I saw Mr. Rosen and my old English teacher, Mr. Bertram. Mr. Bertam was my English teacher when I went to school in Germany. I still remember he gave me a “B” on a paper I turned in. I wrote three times as much as anyone else, but I used the word “inferior” instead of “superior”.
Sebastian’s dad told me (in German), that Sebastian was in Cologne, and he was there to meet us and show us around. Oops. They reached Sebastian on the cell phone and I explained the mistake. Quick note… Sebastian’s parents do not speak any English, nor does his grandmother. So, anytime I am explaining something they said, the conversation will be in German. Whenever I talk with Sebastian it is mostly in English, so Vanessa can understand (Vanessa does not speak German). When we are all together we speak in both and Sebastian or I translate to Vanessa or his parents. Got it?
Anyway, it was going to take Sebastian about an hour to get back to Neuss, so Mr. Rosen took Vanessa and I back to their house (about 10 minutes away). I learned we would be sleeping at there house, which is where I lived when I went to school in Germany. Sebastian has a small apartment over the hair salon. Sebastian’s dad brought us into the house and immediately started bringing out a platter of cookies and crackers, tea, and offering all kinds of food. We had a strained conversation for about an hour. You know how it is when you have nothing to say? Try doing that in another language for an hour. After an hour the doorbell rang and I was so happy that Sebastian was there, but it was actually Sebastian’s sister, husband, and three kids. They were only there for about 5 minutes, before they had to leave, but by listening to the conversation between Mr. Rosen and Sebastian’s sister, I learned Sebastian was not coming to the house, but that we would be leaving in about an hour to meet him, and many others at the salon, where we would then go out for dinner.
After that, Mr. Rosen disappeared for about 30 minutes. I figured he was hiding from us, but once he came back it was apparent that he had changed into a jacket and tie for dinner. Oops. I had a feeling that might happen, so I told him that Vanessa and I had to change and that we would be back in 10 minutes. We rushed downstairs and changed into some nicer clothes.
We drove to the salon and as we pulled up I saw Sebastian. Mr. Rosen parked on the sidewalk (no this is not allowed) and we all got out and greeted each other. Within minutes, Mrs. Rosen, Mr. Rosen, Sebastian, and his grandmother were all ready to get into the car. One problem, it is a hatchback and only fits 5. So, Mr. Rosen drove, I was in the passenger seat (because I am so tall), Mrs. Rosen, grandma, and Vanessa were in the backseat, and Sebastian crouched behind the backseat (he is 31 years old).
We went to the Skihalle, which is actually pretty cool. It is a huge indoor skiing park. The slope is almost ½ mile long and maybe 50 yards wide. It is all build on a giant ramp. It’s too hard to explain, so you should check out the internet site to get an idea. Upstairs they had a nice restaurant. After a stein of beer, we headed upstairs for dinner. We had to wait a bit for Mr. Bertram (the English teacher), Sebastian’s sister, and her husband to join us. We had a great time and the food was fantastic. Vanessa tried two beers, but only ended up drinking a little (maybe one stein total). Sebastian and I had about 5 steins of beer, plus a shot of something really strong. I was drunk.
We were at the restaurant for a good 3 hours. On the way out of the restaurant Sebastian and his sisters husband approached Vanessa and I and Sebastian said, “We have a rubber made”. What? Sebastian’s English is normally really god, but he actually meant to say, “We made a robbery”. They had swiped the beer steins for us as souvenirs. The sisters’ husband thought his mistake was hilarious (even more so when Sebastian pulled a rubber out of his wallet).
On the drive back to the Rosen’s house it was just Mr. And Mrs. Rosen, Vanessa, and me. Fortunately, my German is 10 times better when I’m drunk. Unfortunately, I was so drunk that everything was spinning. That stopped after a couple of miles, and I was able to impress the Rosen’s (and myself) with my use of the German language and my ability to remember where everything in town was. One we got back to their house we sat in the living room for a little bit. The framed print I had mailed arrived earlier in the day so they opened it. They were very happy and said I had done too much. If I only had the time to tell you everything they have done for me in the past. I could never do enough to thank them.
After some small talk Dad brought out the Uzo. This stuff is deadly. I told Vanessa this moment would come. For those of you who don’t know, Uzo is super-strong liquor from Greece and it tastes like licorice. Vanessa hates the taste of licorice, but she was polite enough to do the shot. Afterwards, she promptly washed it down with water.
That’s enough writing for one day! After that we went to bed. Long day.
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3:24 AM
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