Ron's Visit & Germany

Okay I know I've left this trip hanging. It's just tough to sort of sum it up in one post how great it was. Well, of course, it wasn't perfect. But the imperfections somewhat made it more interesting and funny. Some things left to think about and laugh about once it's all over.

Firstly, Ron's visit to Ireland was beyond awesome. His company was more than I could ask for. For the first time, I have someone truly Singaporean to share my experiences with first hand. His reactions to things made me feel I'm a normal Singaporean - finding the summer too cold, finding the mountains really awesome, finding the bus rides eventful - the good and the bad that the locals would undoubtedly be immuned to.

On the way to the Johnnie Fox's Pub

And I had someone to back me up when Riyan didn't understand why I react certain ways to certain things. Like finding the need to find ointment for my swollen injured feet. Haha. It's such a Singaporean thing to do to rub your feet or legs with ointment when it hurts, as though it'd quell the pain. Just practices that are instilled and embedded in us by our parents from young.

I got sick the day Ron arrived. Dizzy spells, vomitting. And I injured my legs. So it wasn't really the best time to be travelling around but I wouldn't miss it for the world! So travel around we did. Photos are on facebook. I'll let the photos do the summarizing of the places we went and what we did.

The funny thing that came out of this was how Ron and Riyan were like the best friends during that short week we had together. I turned out to be the independent one, walking off on my own, and the two of them were almost inseparable. Ron clearly took a liking to Riyan's crazy antics and never-ending jokes. So, finally, I got someone to empathise with what I have been having to put up with. ;) Haha. Well, maybe it felt good having my boyfriend off my back for awhile. Hahaha.

It was really fun having Ron in the next room, having our balconies connected and just feeling like we were housemates. Really really cool.

So we finally packed up and left for Dusseldorf. Met up with Tony and headed back to Christopher and Manuel's apartment in Dortmund. They were a nice bunch of people definitely. We got mattresses to sleep on, in a private room. The mattresses were actually sooo comfortable, I had uninterrupted sleep all 3 nights I was there.

Reflection of the Old Town Hall in Dortmund.

We got to see the city of Dortmund, Cologne and Dusseldorf in the 3 days.

Hohe Domkirche St. Peter und Maria, Köln / Cologne

On our fourth day in Germany, Ron left very early in the morning to fly back to London, while Riyan and I took the train to Berlin all the way to the east. It's amazing seeing how the trains are all connected throughout Europe. We saw signs for trains heading to closer countries like Netherlands, Belgium and much further places. The train stations were a bit confusing at first but we got the hang of it in about a day. The metro and railways are all connected so it makes for really efficient commuting to almost anywhere in Germany. The main railway stations are very busy though so it's quite difficult for someone who doesn't understand German, or for someone who is clueless about his/her surroundings because announcements are made quite often about the train changing from track 8 to 27, for example. This is because the stations are so busy that it's not uncommon to see one train approaching the track only to have the next train expected to arrive 3 minutes later.

Supreme Parish and Collegiate Church, Berlin.

Berlin was amazing. It was 'Wow!' the moment I exited the train. I once told Riyan that I love things that are different. Which is why I love seeing the different architecture in Europe because you'll never get that in Singapore. I love the countryside in Malaysia because I'd never get that back home. Which is also why I know I'll enjoy the Indonesian architecture, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, Russia... Just because they're different. But Berlin, was not exactly the typical European city I've envisioned. The main city centre was very modernised. So for a very modernised city to really capture my attention, it has to be far more impressive than Singapore already is to me. And it was. The best part is how well the old and the new seem is fusioned together without looking out of place.

It's kind of torn between two eras. There's the East and West Berlin. East Berlin had some Soviet influenced architecture still left. And the stories that entail from the thin divide known as the Berlin wall, is undoubtedly moving. It reminds us of the same situation that exists today between North and South Korea. Families separated by a wall.

Kaiser William Memorial Church, Berlin.

You even see the occasional war-torn areas, the church completely destroyed leaving only the entrance standing, and buildings broken apart. It's just so rich in heritage, it's tough not to be blown away when you're actually standing at the place where all these history lessons happened.

Tempelhof Airport

We managed to visit the exterior of the now defunct Tempelhof Airport, a pre-World War II airport. It's definitely very grand, built during the Nazi era. It's a pity it's closed down recently. I would have loved to see the grand interiors as well. How I learnt to tell which is the East and West Berlin, would be by the traffic lights. East Berlin still uses the Ampelmann, which is the greenman and the redman except with hats on. They reminded me so much of Smurfs, it's hard for me not to smile to myself each time I cross the roads. There's this one interesting area I remember where I was crossing one road in West Berlin (normal greenman), and right after, it was East Berlin (Ampelmann).

Ampelmann

There were also a mad amount of cyclists. There're even special lanes next to the main roads in Germany specially marked as a bicycle lanes, because there were that many cyclists. So that's their trick in staying healthy despite all those sausages they eat and beers they drink. It all makes sense now. Haha.

The people were so friendly and helpful as well. And so trusting. You don't get those machines where you tap your Ezlinks, or farecards before you enter the train stations or metros. There's just an electronic ticket dispenser where you can buy your tickets (if you want to) and then on to the metro you go. The bus drivers don't stare at you waiting for you to pay for your ticket, they just let you on, with that big trust that you already bought your ticket prior. So you can just jump on and off the trains and buses without paying. OF COURSE, that only serves to say if you do get caught without a ticket, you're severely punished for it. So, it's best not to take the risk.

Re-enactment of the border crossing in Berlin.

Got my real passport stamped.

Talking about people, I seem to have kept many locals guessing about my racial background. The guards at the Bundestag tried to "impress" me by speaking Italian, only to get confused looks in return. The student reenacting the border crossing thought I was Spanish and probably wanted to relay the roleplay script in Spanish they prepared. And the funniest one was at the big tent carnival "pub" where two Bavarian-dressed waiters insisted I was Colombian, causing Ron to burst out laughing and Riyan breaking out in a Shakira song. Am I that generic?

The waiters were gay as well. They seemed to be really open to gays in Germany. I felt warm and fuzzy inside, seeing them not hiding their emotions and just being openly happy. It's nice to see people not feeling restricted about love.

Alexander Platz

All that aside, another thing I noticed was that the youths were very well behaved. Rowdiness were kept to a minimum, with only the very rare group of punks in the city centre. Travelling on trains, buses and metros don't really have the annoying group of messers trying to create a scene which I found to be fairly common elsewhere. Even the drunks in Germany didn't seem half as annoying as anywhere else I've been including back home. They were extremely well-behaved, I must say. They drink to just let their inhibitions slip away and have fun, not to get pissed drunk and rowdy. There must be the occasional rowdy ones, but I haven't had the 'luck' to meet any at the pubs we've hung out at.

I'm just very impressed.

Not so impressed with the immigration checks in Dusseldorf though. It was probably just my luck. I had high expectations because my impression of Germany so far is "efficient". But during my hand luggage check, it was quite confusing and rather disorganized. I've never seen so many officers hogging just one bag check area before. Not only that, they seemed to be joking around a far bit, and giving varied instructions to the passengers. We got a bit flustered, not knowing who to listen to, which only frustrated the guards more. So that final part leaving Germany, wasn't so pleasant. They had another passport check just before leaving and I had to be interrogated further because I had a Singaporean passport. According to him, he had to check mine thoroughly because Singapore's the only one which needs no visa to enter Germany. So many Asians try to grab hold of a counterfeit Singapore passport. I was slightly annoyed, of course. But I really needed to catch my flight so I just did as I was told. Thankfully Riyan came to my rescue with his EU passport and I got through easier than I would have.

Of course, I was annoyed initially because firstly, Singapore definitely wasn't the only one who doesn't need a visa from Asia. Secondly, I have the new metric passport, which means it shouldn't take too long to check how valid the passport is. Thirdly, even more people would try to get a counterfeit EU passport. So why not check the validity of those passports more stringently as well?

I said I was annoyed 'initially' because I know they're just doing what they're trained to do. It's just our luck that there are people out there doing silly things during immigration, that created the need for such checks in the first place. Anyway, I didn't want to allow something like that spoil my whole beautiful trip. So I didn't. :)

The trip to Germany was an eye-opening great experience for me and it'll remain that way.