Post-Thunderbird Migration

Cultural curiosities explained: The Bierbike

2011-12-07T10:24:00.001+01:00

If you ask foreigners what comes to mind when they think about Germany, chances are at least 99% of them will say: "Beer". Dig deeper and you might get replies such as "Munich", "Cuckcoo Clock", "fast cars" or "loud and angry", but usually also a mention of "bicycles everywhere!". It is the German love of fresh air, physical activity and an innate need to expose oneself to the elements that led to the creation of one of the finest examples of German engineering and ingenuity - the Bierbike.

German design and technological advancement at its best

This hommage to the cultural richness of our country has been invented to inspire hordes of young men and women to embark on (self-propelled) city tours, during which they soak in the historical monuments and places of Germany's most beautiful cities, all while enjoying a refreshing sample of an ancient brew that for centuries has nurished hard-working Germans. Given the educational and experiencial value of this invention it isn't surprising that the Bierbike was hailed by authorities as a new way to attract visitors and, with them, money to their cities.

Alas, reality soon took over. Of course nobody actually rents a Bierbike to undertake a sightseeing tour of Berlin or Münster. I don't know who ever thought this would lead to anything but an(other) excuse to get wasted in public and annoy everyone in close proximity. Attempt to take a leisurely stroll through any of Germany's picturesque town centers and chances are you'll be nearly run over by an out-of-control Bierbike loaded with 10-15 singing football fans or (worse) a hysterically shrieking hen party. And quite possibly your view of the impressive and glorious Berlin Dome will be impaired by this:

Bierbikes can give the idea of "honeymooning" a new meaning

It now seems that local authorities have caught on to the annoyance. In several cities, permissions for Bierbikes have been revoked and city councils are debating on making them illegal alltogether. In true German fashion, the issue comes down to a technicality. Originally considered a form of transportation (ask any driver stuck behind a swaying Bierbike at 6mph and he'll laugh in your face at the suggestion), there are now politicians arguing that the actual intent of the Bierbike is "partying" - reason enough to have their transportation license revoked.
Of course this has turned into a political issue, and I wouldn't be surprised if it became a deciding factor in the next local election campaigns. People don't like their drinking opportunities taken away!! Personally, I think this whole thing could be taken care of before then if all drivers are given exemption from prosecution for accidentally hitting Bierbikes in the midst of a "vomit stop" on a public road. By the way, I read a rumor that someone is planning a "Glühwein"Bike to tour the Christmas markets. If it comes to that, I may have to move abroad again.

Adult things

2011-11-12T00:58:00.000+01:00

It's here. I have been fighting a long time to try and delay the moment, but I think I have finally reached it. Adulthood. The moment of realization came this morning. I had just come out of a 2.5 hour appointment with a financial adviser, who had done his best to scare the crap out of me with his doom and gloom calculations of how I would be left with...well...nothing at the end of my working life. And as I pondered the various options of life insurances, retirement schemes and savings plans I realized: I'm getting old.

Yes, just like that.

Well, maybe not old, but grown up. The sure signs had been all over recently, even though I tried my best to ignore them. So to avoid this happening to you, here is how you know when you've grown up (for real):

Aside from bills, your mail consists mainly of wedding invites, birth announcements and ads for car insurance
"I will never drink this much again" turns into "No thanks - It's going to take me days to recover. I'll drink water"
The shopping list includes things you actually need (aside from toilet paper)
Your idea of a fun night out is having a drink at a quiet bar with a decent wine list
You refer to most of your friends as "you guys" to account for the fact that they have a life partner (or a baby) attached to them at all times
Vacations are planned around wedding dates (not your own of course)
Your little sister is giving you financial advise - and you listen!
Spontaneous sleepovers seem like a real hassle because you'd much rather sleep in your own, comfortable bed

I'm sure there are many more, but I can't remember them now. Must be an age thing. But anyway, I guess in the end, the thing about growing up is that it's not half as terrible as you first think because you're actually in control. Okay, the thrill of your pay check coming through soon wears off when the short jubilation is followed by 4 weeks of red lines on your bank statement, but at least you know it's all your own doing. And there is something said about coming home to your own place where you can do as you please - so long as you don't annoy the neighbors or break the rules or forget to take the garbage out before going out of town and causing a fruit fly invasion that makes you re-think your boisterous statement about independence and being on your own. Oh well...it's all part of the experience and just like this video says: It's not that bad! :-)

Frisk Fisk

2011-08-24T21:21:00.000+02:00

I just returned from a quick little trip to the Danish coast. Three days of sun, wind and a 900m wide beach with plenty of road space - perfect! Anyway, I'm using this as a way to get into the blogging habit.

Recovering Lucas

2011-05-24T22:22:00.000+02:00

A friend of mine and her husband started a blog about the journey they've embarked on since finding out that their son has autism. Please take some time to read up on their experience and the many ways they are trying to share their little boy's world. Even if you aren't personally affected, they are an inspiring example of how to take on what life throws at you. If you know someone dealing with the same thing, pass their story on. And if you want to support them in affording their son the treatments that will help him, please do so.

Recovering Lucas

False argument

2011-05-23T23:51:00.000+02:00

The other day I was reading yet another article about global warming. Or rather, I read another article where someone argued why global warming wasn't a man-made problem. Fine. Even with the evidence that the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has dramatically increased in the last 50-60 years or that the average temperature curve is pointing steeply upwards or that the layer of glacier ice is decreasing every year - even with all that at hand, I still give you the benefit of the doubt. Say all those nay-sayers and global warming "doubters" are right in saying that mankind only has a marginal impact on all those patterns because there have always been periods of heat and cold in the history of the earth. Because isn't that the argument brought forth whenever some "green extreme leftist" wants something to be done about it?

Don't fall for it. He just wants a free ride!

Either way, the discussion annoys me, because in the end it doesn't matter what causes climate change. Fact is, we're in the shit and if we don't try to change a few things around the house, we'll be roasted off this planet in a few centuries. So I want all environmentalists and climate change believers to start arguing on a level that the doubters can understand: Self interest and money. Instead of trying to reason on a moral level, appeal to people's greed. It works much better!

Take the rain forests. Deforestation causes habitat loss for animals. Soil erodes away so that local folk won't be able to grow anything on it in a few years time. Less green means less carbon sequestration. It's all terrible, but... people don't care. It's too far away and too abstract. However, maybe if people knew that 25% of our pharmaceutical drugs come from rain forest plants and only 1% of all plants have even been tested for their medical use, maybe the 50,000 plants that go extinct each year* appear in a different light. Saving the rain forest could mean curing Great Aunt Millie's cancer!

Pick your poison: Insectophobia or potential cure for infertility

...which one is it?

This makes me think that loss of biodiversity

might have its advantages

Or think about air pollution. People don't like to hear that they shouldn't be driving their car because it's bad for the environment. They won't care. But maybe the fact that asthma rates in the US and Western Europe have gone up 50-60% in the last 10 years* and that this increase has been linked to poor air quality will actually get them to listen. And seriously, you can't tell me that people in LA actually like breathing in all that smog from China*?!?

If you want to have as much fun with an inhaler as this little girl,

all you have to do is keep doing what you're doing

More smog will mean more fun for all those fog lovers out there.

Every place will be like Delhi in the winter - all year long!

In the end, saving a few polar bears from drowning won't be the driving force behind big behavioral change. People need to see that they can benefit personally and directly. Companies need to see that they can actually save money by putting environmental policies in place. And I wish the discussion would move to that level, instead of arguing over something that has absolutely no impact on the outcome. Because even if the climate change doubters end up being right and it's all just a regular old climate pattern repeating itself, humanity will probably not survive long enough to witness their victory dance.

Dear Catholic Church,

2011-05-16T22:04:00.000+02:00

Last week I broke up with you. By that I mean I actually went and excommunicated myself. Believe me, I didn't do it lightly or because I was in a certain mood. We haven't worked out for a long time, and it was time one of us got up the courage to separate the ties before it all went to hell (no pun intended). I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, but...I couldn't keep lying to us anymore.

We started off well together. In fact, I thought this was going to last forever. But for a long time I ignored the signs along the way - like when you wouldn't let me be an altar boy because, well...I was a girl. That really hurt my feelings and yet I kept telling myself that you might change. I always knew your intentions were good and I appreciate the many things you do to make life better for so many people. Many of your members give a lot of themselves for others, without asking for much in return. I always found that sexy.

But as time went on, as I got to know you better, there were more and more questions that you couldn't answer. When I questioned your stand on certain issues, you avoided the tough talk and gave me some lame excuse about historical importance and tradition. When I pointed out that you contradicted yourself in your dogmas, you ignored me or changed the subject. And frankly, you were never able to explain to me how your message of "love thy neighbor" fits with your discriminating opinions about gays or your dismissive attitude towards other religions.

Worst of all, you treated me as if I were the enemy for asking the tough questions. Relationships don't work like that! I guess on some level you were trying to protect yourself. I know these aren't easy times for you and I probably should have tried sooner to make us work again. But you have to shoulder some of the responsibility as well. Bigotry and backwardness may work in your (elderly) circles, but they aren't the way to go in the real world, the world where many people don't care for your pretty robes and golden chalices. They care about finding spirituality and peace...and I think you bury that too deep in your choreographed ceremonies, your political power structure and your patronizing demeanor.

I think you knew this was coming. For years we've been going through the motions without any passion whatsoever. My annual Christmas visit was done for the sake of tradition - I'm sure you noticed I never participated in your "blood and body" ritual anyway. I want you to know that this is not about the money. I do find the church tax idea ridiculous, that's true, but this is not about the 45 Euro a month you take out of my paycheck. In fact, I'll keep giving that money away, but to a cause I can whole-heartedly support.

Please don't get me wrong. I don't wish you ill and I hope we can be friends. I still admire your community involvement, your charity work and the fact that you give strength and help to many people. But it's too late for us. We just don't see eye to eye anymore and I'm saving us both from dragging this on until we're bitter ex-lovers who can't be in the same room together.

So with that, I hope you now understand my reasoning. I wanted you to know because after all we've been through, I think you deserve an explanation.

Wishing you all the best going forward,

24 hours on this planet

2011-05-05T21:01:00.033+02:00

I admit I am stealing this post from a German sustainable and social business magazine called "enorm", which I found the other day at the news stand. But some of the stats were quite mind-blowing if you take a minute to think about them. So please do. And then think some more.

In 24 hours...

...25.000 people die of malnutrition
...62 million people eat at McDonalds
...250.000 tons of fish are caught out of the ocean
...74 types of plants and animals go extinct
...224.640 babies are born, 82% in the developing world
...630.000 tons of meat are produced
...13.200 children die from water-borne diseases
...40 tons of radioactive waste are produced (and, may I add, we have no place to store them!)
...270.000 trees are cut - just for paper towels and toilet paper
...130 million tons of garbage are created
...57.600 soccer fields worth of forests are eroded
...Tiger Woods earns 247.968$. Not sure how this is significant, but interesting nonetheless if you're the IRS trying to figure out his taxes.

So, there you have it. Make of it what you want.

2011-05-01T15:02:00.191+02:00

Royal Wedding Roundup

I don't particularly like weddings. I don't like that you have to dress up or the buffet food or having to sit at the table with all the other pathetic singles. I don't like the cheesy speeches and games nor the big first dance hoopla. Really, the best thing about weddings is the free drinks, of which I try to have lots to forget about the uncomfortable shoes. In addition, I'm not a romantic either. I think all those prince-on-white-horse-kiss-in-the-rain-movie scenes are a conspiracy by a number of industries (candy, beverages and dating websites come to mind) to make women feel awful about themselves and their current love (or lack thereof) situation.

Going British for the big day!

Given all that, you wouldn't think I am the type to get excited about something as show-offish and lavish as a royal wedding. Well, you're wrong. And while it pains me to admits it, I'm not ashamed to say that I get totally mushy-brained when it comes to those occasions. There is no logical explanation for it. Nor am I especially proud of it. But when Kate walked down the aisle I was in front of the TV sipping tea and munching cranberry scones, exchanging fashion opinions on the dress with my mom and sister (in case you're interested, I thought it was lovely, of course). We sniggered at some of the hat and outfit choices (Fergie's daughters need to be locked up, I think), wondered which of the royal relations had gotten plastic surgery just in time for the big event, and stared like big-eyed monkeys to not miss the royal kiss on the royal balcony.

Willy looking like a balding Prince Charming,

Kate wrapped in my grandma's crochet curtains

And then it was over and I started to think about why we all made such a big deal about it. I mean, really. The ceremony was dull, which was probably due to William and Kate's utmost professional (sorry, royal) behavior. No tears, no lovey-dovey looks, no reassuring pat on the arm for the new princess. The castrate choir boys got on my nerves with their high-pitched screetching.And nobody in the royal rows fell asleep or fainted. At some point I thought the whole thing could only be saved by someone's hair catching on fire or Princess Beatrice's antler hat poking her sister's eye out. It doesn't help that Kate has been so well trained in all things royal that you got the sense she didn't dare move her head without thinking it over twice. Or that William looked as if he had accidentally taken a sleeping pill instead of aspirin (though to be fair that could just be because he has the charisma of a dead trout).

The Queen proved her open-mindedness by inviting

drag queen representatives to the wedding

Personally I liked this dress better than

the actual wedding dress. And why is

Camilla wearing her morning gown?

So my only hope was for some tongue action on the Buckingham balcony or at a minimum some serious smooching à la Maxima and Wilhelm Alexander. After all, there was a record to be broken! Well, it wasn't to be. I guess Willy just isn't competitive enough. And really, who cares anyway? Whenever something is so hyped up, it can't live up to the expectations. Still, I'm happy for the Brits who made it a great party. It was great fun and of course sooooooooo romantic and beautiful that I can't wait for the next royal big event of the year - I hear the wedding bells are ringing in Monaco in July.

2011-03-27T22:30:00.000+02:00

Perfect day to post the lyrics to this song. So true. And congrats to the German Green Party for their historic win in what used to be Germany's second most conservative state. The times are changing, for sure.

The Times They Are A-Changin'

Bob Dylan*

Come gather 'round people

Wherever you roam

And admit that the waters

Around you have grown

And accept it that soon

You'll be drenched to the bone.

If your time to you

Is worth savin'

Then you better start swimmin'

Or you'll sink like a stone

For the times they are a-changin'.

Come writers and critics

Who prophesize with your pen

And keep your eyes wide

The chance won't come again

And don't speak too soon

For the wheel's still in spin

And there's no tellin' who

That it's namin'.

For the loser now

Will be later to win

For the times they are a-changin'.

Come senators, congressmen

Please heed the call

Don't stand in the doorway

Don't block up the hall

For he that gets hurt

Will be he who has stalled

There's a battle outside ragin'.

It'll soon shake your windows

And rattle your walls

For the times they are a-changin'.

Come mothers and fathers

Throughout the land

And don't criticize

What you can't understand

Your sons and your daughters

Are beyond your command

Your old road is

Rapidly agin'.

Please get out of the new one

If you can't lend your hand

For the times they are a-changin'.

The line it is drawn

The curse it is cast

The slow one now

Will later be fast

As the present now

Will later be past

The order is

Rapidly fadin'.

And the first one now

Will later be last

For the times they are a-changin'.

A nation of settlers

2011-03-20T19:36:00.001+01:00

I read in an article not too long ago that only a relatively small percentage of Germans feels really happy in their job and that over 60% thought they weren’t being paid ‘fairly’ – whatever that means. A few days later I had a discussion with a coworker about the lack of motivation among employees and why many people don’t seem to have an interest in doing their best at work. On Saturday when I was at the grocery store, I overheard the following exchange between a mother and her daughter, probably around 6 or 7 years old, in front of the dairy shelf:

Daugher (friendly enough): “Mom, can I have blueberry yogurt?”

Mother (appalled by this outrageous demand): “Not today. These are only 35 cent, pick some from there.”

Daughter (in whiny nasal voice): “But they only have strawberry and cherry. I want blueberry!”

Mother (sighing impatiently): “I’m not paying that much, just because you want blueberry. Then you just won’t get any.”

And then I had an epiphany:

It’s no wonder so many Germans are disgruntled, bitter and resigned. We are taught, from the earliest days, the art of delaying gratification and small pleasures for the prospect of security and (perceived) prosperity. We settle for things we don’t really want -jobs, boyfriends, hobbies - because giving them up means giving up predictability, stability and control. We are a nation of settlers – and not the fun, adventurous kind!

I mean, that little girl is already learning that the 5 cent saved on yogurt are more important than giving in to her blueberry craving. How sad is that?!? I know people my age who have established themselves in their jobs quite well, but for different reasons aren’t happy there anymore. Yet they don’t leave and, of course, argue very rationally. They’d have to take a pay-cut, start all over again, maybe move or have a longer commute. But I’m asking myself: Are they really planning on sticking with this job for the next 40 years? There is no way they will be productive, motivated employees. Nor will they be happy. Is having a savings account and a comfortable lifestyle worth all that misery and wasted talent?

I’m not saying all Germans are like that. Of course not. And in fact, I’m sure Germany has benefitted from our addiction to savings contracts and our propensity to avoid irrational purchases, especially in times of economic distress. But where half my Indian friends are starting their own companies and a lot of American friends have changed jobs 2-3 times in the last few years, most Germans I know still work at the same place they started at after graduation or are at least planning to stay in their current job for the next….decades.

Another telling statistic to make my point: Quality of food for many Germans is not the most important factor to consider when throwing things into their grocery cart – as long as it’s cheap. Of the Western European countries, Germans spend almost the smallest percentage of their income on food – 12%. In France it’s 17%, in Italy and Spain 20% * (I don’t think it comes as a surprise that the British are even worse than the Germans, given some of the things they call 'food') . I couldn’t find a proper statistic to proof it, but I just get the feeling that if you're willing to forgo a bit of luxury for the pleasure of eating seriously delicious bread with herb infused olive oil to a nice glass of red wine, you're better off!

So I guess my message to Germans is this: Lighten up! We need to learn how to enjoy ourselves now instead of waiting to do it after we retire. If you want blueberry yogurt and it’s more expensive than the other kind – buy it anyway! Maybe it helps you be less miserable in other parts of life. And I’m sure it makes life for your colleagues more fun, too!

A step back

2011-02-15T21:19:00.001+01:00

When I spent the last years preaching and giving (often unasked) advice on environmentally friendly behavior (just one word - Styrofoam at the Commons!), I was doing so for two reasons: One, I actually do care and think it’s time we stop treating our home planet like it’s disposable. And two, because I grew up in a place where recycling, composting and using canvas bags was completely normal. So, when I lived in the US or trawled around Central America, India and who knows where else, I always had the German way of conscious consumption in my head as a beacon of hope – the shining example of how responsible people should live.

Returning back home after a long time, one of the things I was looking forward to was living among people who ‘got it’ and who didn’t think getting a separate plastic bag for each item you buy is perfectly reasonable. But boy had times changed! At first it wasn’t very noticeable at all. People still drive fuel-efficient cars, even if that is often a financial decision rather than an ecological one. Shopping baskets and canvas bags continue to thrive. There is barely a house that isn’t covered in photovoltaic cells. And people still walk and bike everywhere. Yet somehow I feel things have regressed in many ways.

I remember growing up, recycling was a major act with each household having 3-5 different bins for various types of garbage, but it was just what people did. Today, many apartment buildings don’t even offer recycling bins anymore, even if the tenants would want them. When I lived in Hamburg, most of my 40 housemates seemed to have no interest in separating trash, and the few that did were soon discouraged from even trying.

I also get a profound sense that consumption has become the focus of everyone’s life. Compared to US consumers, for whom I feel instant gratification is all that matters, Germans are still less spontaneous and way more strategic about their purchases. But overall, it seems to be about having more of everything more often, and it doesn’t matter if you throw it out tomorrow – there will be something better or cheaper anyway.

Most of all, however, I was stunned by the revival of the plastic bottle. This was pretty much an extinct species when I was little. Schools and kindergartens all but banned them. My mom even remembers notes from teachers asking parents not to send their kids to school with plastic yogurt cups because of the environmental impact. Water and juice were sold in glass bottles only. Getting caught with a plastic bottle or – gasp! – a can was social suicide akin to what an existence without a Facebook account is today. In short, people took their environmental conscience seriously.

So it rather took me by surprise to come back to a country of plastic bottle addicts. Discount markets are full of juice, cola and water packaged in plastic bottle six-packs and people drag entire shopping carts full of them back to their apartments. According to Wikipedia, in 2003 alone, 800 million bottles were used in Germany – and that was before the government-sponsored refund system catapulted the usage back into oblivion! In 2008, 78% of all soft drinks were packaged in PET bottles, compared to 50% in 2004**. That’s a lot of freaking plastic!

So please, Germans, can we go back to the old days? To the times when we could shake our heads condescendingly at the piles of plastic trash mounting in American yards on garbage day? When we could look down our noses at the plastic bags handed out at French and Italian supermarkets while vacationing in Tuscany? Don’t get me wrong – Germans are still doing a lot of things right in terms of being environmentally friendly. But preaching about not getting your lunch boxed in Styrofoam was just more fun without feeling a little hypocritical!

The Nutella Wars

2011-02-05T17:00:00.001+01:00

Today I was laughing out loud when I read this article. A concerned mother has brought forth a class action law suit against the makers of Nutella, claiming that the product was advertised as a healthy and nutritious breakfast food even though it is no such thing. In the article it says that "the complaint alleges that the plaintiff was "shocked" when she learned that Nutella was not healthy and "was the next best thing to a candy bar"".
Oh....really? After buying something that looks (and tastes) like dark chocolate fudge enriched with chocolate, you were "shocked" by the fact that it had sugar and calories in it? Am I the weird one here thinking this is hilarious?

Who wouldn't look at this and think

"wholesome and full of vitamins"?

I'm not saying she has gone completely wonky. Growing up in Germany, Nutella has been (and still is) a cultural icon for which only the biggest of sport stars get to do commercial work for - Boris Becker back in his days, the German national football (soccer) team today. And for decades they've portrayed themselves as a breakfast spread full of healthy things like milk and hazelnuts, which I always found a bit pretentious. But I still don't know anyone who looked at a jar full of Nutella and thought "Hey, here's a healthy alternative to fruits and vegetables! Let's just grab a spoon and huddle around the Nutella!"

German football players conspiring in consumer deception

But I guess my point is this: The whole point of advertising is to persuade consumers to buy something they either don't need or don't want to begin with. Why is it that so often people are surprised to find that advertisements didn't tell them the truth?? Advertisements are not public service announcements. They don't have any responsibility to inform you that devouring a bag of Frito Lays and Whopper a day will end up giving you ten extra pounds and terrible indigestion. Their only job is to make sure you keep buying more, plus some Tums on top of that. If that woman had spent just a few seconds looking over the label on the jar, she would have realized she was buying a heart attack in a jar.
So, how about taking some responsibility for yourself - and your children? What about reading the nutrition label or simply using a bit of common sense? I know that's probably asking for too much in the country where people sue shoe companies for failing to point out that open shoe laces might cause you to fall, or coffee chains for not mentioning that you could burn your mouth on hot coffee. And maybe the problem isn't that people are suing out of (what seems) sheer boredom, but because they actually get away with it and make a poo-load of money off it. But my suggestion is this: When a case such as this one lands on a judge's desk, he needs to have a good laugh and then dismiss it with an official notice for the plaintiff to get a life and learn to take responsibility.

Even animals fall victim to false advertising:

This specimen is under the assumption he is consuming a salad.

And now I'm off to make some very delicious and completely unhealthy Nutella pancakes. And in solidarity with one of my childhood icon brands, I might even lick a spoonful just for the heck of it!

Did you know...? India edition (revisited)!

2011-01-31T23:19:00.001+01:00

As any graduate will tell you, the T-bird degree does give you some (unwritten) permission to forgo political correctness when it comes to making sweeping statements about cultures, so bare with. None of this is meant to be taken too seriously. During my country hopping time in grad school I started doing the "Did you know..?" posts as a way of reflecting on some of the weirder or more intriguing customs or habits I discovered wherever I went. So, here goes the second India edition. Did you know that...
Food is all around you?
No matter where you turn, there is always a chaat stand nearby or someone selling delicious samosas. The whole country is like a 24-hour all-you-can-eat buffet, except most of the food actually tastes good! There is aloo this and saag that and it's all cooked with butter and cream. I really do wonder how a majority of the Indians are so darn skinny because it seems they are constantly snacking on something and ordering appetizers that would easily qualify for a main dish. But then again, maybe the food options just seem so vast because I'm not very selective about where I eat. I've had Indians gasp in horror upon learning that I eat the food on the trains or from some hole-in-the-wall restaurant that would definitely not pass a health inspector's visit. But I find those are often the best meals...or at least the most memorable ones :-).
Honking is an art?
Much has been said about the deafening noise that is Indian traffic. But the overwhelming number and variety of vehicles and an apparent lack of observed rules is one thing. Understanding the art of honking is quite another. There is the "Watch out, I'm passing you" honk and the "Careful, I'm turning left!" honk. Then you honk for people to get out of the way, for cars to move faster (even though they can't b/c they are stuck in an eternal traffic jam), and a few times for good measure in case you forgot to honk earlier. And while many trucks will actually ASK you to honk ("Honk OK please"), those asking you not to are duly ignored. Anyway, in case you're ever in need of a reliable taxi driver, I suggest you look for the ones who have one hand on the horn and the other on the stick - they are bound to get you through traffic the fastest!
Indians are obsessed with Hitler?
Not in a "He really wasn't that bad" kind of obsessed, don't get me wrong. But I was struck by how many people actually asked me flat out what I thought of him and whether Germans still liked him. I'm not implying that Indians feel somehow spiritually connected to Nazi philosophy, just because the Germans managed to turn the ancient religious swastika (a sign of good luck) into something most Westerners recoil from. I just think that maybe to many Indians, Hitler is not much more than an intriguing figure of history, who was able to somehow mobilize millions of people for a common purpose. Now, I wouldn't be making this preposterous claim (you can send me letters) just because a few curious locals inquired about my personal views on the Holocaust. Mostly I was inspired by this window display at a Cross Word bookstore - which I can almost guarantee you will not find anywhere in the world:

Spot the ideological leader guiding his

country to freedom from foreign domination

You don't need a blow dryer?
If in need of quick hair-drying, simply position yourself in the center of the room underneath the omnipresent ceiling fan and...soon you'll look like you've just spent an hour hanging your head out of a high-speed train window. This is due to a common refusal on the part of many Indians to operate the ceiling fan at anything other than full speed, even if that means you have to administer eye drops on a quarter-hour basis to prevent your eyeballs from drying into the sockets. On several occasions, I jerked involuntarily for fear the entire ceiling fan apparatus would rotate itself into oblivion or take off like a helicopter. Then again, it could also be a tactic to prevent the pollution dust to settle into your clothes... who knows.
Queuing is the one thing India didn't learn from the English?
Many Indians will tell you that, despite all the oppression and exploitation, not all things the English brought to India were bad. There's the school system, the English language as a common denominator amongst the multitude of regional tongues, and driving on the left (although I think only left-drivers will see this as a positive - the rest of us are too busy trying to cross the road without getting killed). However, the one thing that Indians did not adapt from the English, and which would have come in very handy in light of the 1.3 billion people on the subcontinent, is queuing. Seriously, if you've never seen a pack of hyenas attacking a buffalo carcass, watching a load of Indians trying to get on a bus will give you a good idea. Forget "respect your elders" or "women and children first". It's each man (and woman) for himself! A similar behavior pattern can be witnessed when trying to obtain one's luggage from the baggage claim. Being a foreigner, you of course have no idea that you need to push your way to the front of the belt WITH your luggage cart, disregarding feet and small children in the process, so you will inevitably end up watching your bag ride around the baggage claim several times until the crowds have thinned enough for you to scramble between legs and arms to haul your suitcase to safety. Don't worry though, it only takes a few missed trains to learn how to play the game...
Life is a musical?
At least in India it is. Malls are blasting the latest Bollywood anthems. Pimped up rickshaws with subwoofers the size of a small child blare Air Supply at full volume. Some truck drivers even upgrade the annoying beeping sound of their reverse gear to a melody (my favorite was Beethoven's "Ode to Joy"). You can't throw a rock without accidentally hitting a loudspeaker. And then of course there's the crazy Indian dancing. And the dancing in the movies. And kids dancing in the streets. It seems Indians find a reason to dance no matter what - and I love it. It's totally catching, whether you want to or not. Try listening to a Bhangra beat without moving any body parts. It's impossible - even for a German!

Delicious Delhi

2011-01-29T12:41:00.001+01:00

Lonely Planet describes Delhi as "medieval mayhem, opulent metropolis, stately maiden aunt: Give it a chance, and this unruly capital will capture your heart. Yes, it's crowded, aggravating, polluted, extreme, and hectic, but hey - nobody's perfect."
Maybe I've been to India long enough to be used to it, maybe Delhi has really gotten its act together, or maybe Lonely Planet has gone mainstream, but I experienced Delhi as anything but aggravating, extreme or polluted. Compared to crazy Mumbai with it's insane traffic or the hustle and bustle of Ahmedabad's narrow streets, I thought Delhi was clean, organized and even fairly manageable where traffic was concerned. I'm suspecting my impression also had something to do with our host Ankit, who made sure we saw the glittering, pompous side of Delhi's shopping malls, hotel bars and restaurants ;-).
So here it goes...a few "snaps" (as they call it in India) from around Delhi...

India Gate (not to be confused with

Gateway of India in Mumbai)

Not sure I get this

Stately Delhi

Red Fort

And again - though barely visible through the constant fog

I didn't want to be the only person in the world who goes to India (twice!) without seeing the Taj Mahal, so despite spending a good portion of the night at one of Delhi's many dance clubs, we took to the road early for the 4 hour drive to Agra. Had I been on my own, it probably would have taken me 8 hours because e of all the amazing picture opportunities I saw along the way. Sadly enough, the one time I wasn't hanging out the window ready to shoot, was when Lauren spotted a so far undiscovered species (not even a google picture search turns up a result), which we appropriately named "Turban Ox". If you ever see one - take a snap for me!
Anyway, the Taj Mahal was, apart from all the tourists, beautiful and well worth the 750 rupees Lauren and I shelled out (our Indian friends paid 20). At least our tickets came with a bottle of water and a free guide who spoke such poor English that only the Indians understood what he was saying. Go figure. Oh well, I'm not complaining and the upside of paying "foreigner price" is that it somehow gets the security people to shove you to the front of the line, no matter how much the 100 Indian women behind you complain and push. Still makes me feel a bit...colonial though.

Out in the country

The Taj Mahal -1-

The Taj Mahal -2-

The Taj Mahal from what I'm sure is a completely

unique and never before seen perspective

A quick hop across the river from the Taj Mahal is Agra Fort. It's really pretty and I wish we had had more time to explore, but the main reason tour buses drop their loads off here is because you can catch an amazing glimpse of the Taj Mahal in the distance. On this day, however, even the view of the Taj was outstaged by an event so spectacular that hordes of foreigners craned their necks and pointed their cameras into the sky. For a moment I thought it was Michael Jackson making a rare appearance dangling a small child off the walls, but alas, it was just a family of red-arsed monkeys picking fleas off one another. Great to see that people pay buckets of money to take pictures of something they can see at any 3rd class zoo across Europe. Oh well...I also took a pic.

Baby monkey wondering what

he's done to deserve all the fame

Agra Fort at dusk

Famous glimpse of the Taj Mahal from Agra Fort so foggy

due to impressive level of pollution that I decided to use Photoshop

filter option to create illusion of high quality picture

Ahm...Ahme...Ahmama...Ahmedabad

2011-01-24T22:01:00.000+01:00

Not quite as complicated to pronounce as Visakhapatnam and conveniently located between Mumbai and Delhi, Ahmedabad was the perfect destination for a little cross-country trip and a good opportunity for me to check off another Indian state visited - Gujarat, the only dry (as in, no alcohol) state in the country. So I boarded the train early in the morning, enjoyed the 7 meals they serve you in 7 hours (all included in the 25$ first class ticket) and hopped off the train fresh as a daisy in the afternoon. Thanks to my T-bird friend Aditya, I was equipped with a place to stay, a local expert to call in need, and a driver to whisk me off to an afternoon at Akshardham. After paying my respects to Lord Swaminarayan, I accidentally ended up in a guided exhibition (in Hindi of course) about the guru along with 60 fourth graders, whose teacher introduced all of them to me by name. I'm pretty sure if they had to write essays about their school trip, the only thing they would remember was the strange, unmarried (gasp!) white lady!

The next morning I was off on an early morning walking tour through the old part of Ahmedabad. At first I was a bit put off about having to get up at the crack of dawn, but seeing the narrow streets later in the day made me appreciate not having to try and stay in a group through the chaos. The tour took us through small back alleys and into a number of different temples - and I loved it, although my favorite sight was definitely this:

Here are a few other pictures...

Spice market!

Courtyard

Laundry day

People put these religious tiles on their houses to

keep people from peeing on them. Nice, eh?

Kite festival preparations

Love this shot for some reason

Courtyard 2

The rest of the day I spent walking, walking, walking through old town, visiting the Ashram where Gandhi used to hang out and more walking. Another delicious dinner with Aditya and it was off to Delhi the next morning...

Mumbai impressions

2011-01-23T18:50:00.000+01:00

Just a few pics from Mumbai. I always try to capture the every day stuff rather than snap away at things I can buy postcards of, although of course I do have the obligatory tourist pics as well. Nothing wrong with that, right?

This guy is taking care of his taxi. I love the cabs in Mumbai - so cool looking!

This delicious south Indian Thali cost 65 Rs. That's 1 Euro!

On the way to work

Roadside paan stand

Colors everywhere

Mumbai harbor

Glance at Dharavi slum

Intersection

One of many creative public service announcements around town

Beautiful Mumbai

India in a nutshell

2011-01-23T02:05:00.000+01:00

On the plane from Dubai to Mumbai, I sat next to an Indian bloke who lives in South Africa and was on his way back to the 'motherland' for a visit. We had a nice chat, his kid took a nap on my lap, and as we got off we wished each other a pleasant stay. It was one of those random encounters that you don't really spend much time thinking about - especially not if you're on vacation and hanging out with some of your most favorite people. A week later, as I boarded the Shatabdi Express train from Mumbai to Ahmedabad, it was definitely the last thing on my mind - until that same guy showed up and sat in the seat next to me. I mean, this isn't some small European country the size of Mexico City we're talking about. This is a subcontinent crammed full with roughly 1.3 billion people. What are the odds of that happening? And yet, somehow that's just fitting because, well, India is just like that: Never at all what you would expect.

Having been there before it wasn't as overwhelming this time but it's still a place that leaves you gawking in surprise or shaking your head in disbelief. Where goats wear sweaters while some people wear rags and Bentleys are parked next to ox carts. If you're lucky the ox might even wear a turban! It's where you can eat the most delicious Thali meal for a buck and spend 15 Euro on a drink next door afterwards, where traffic lights are only observed when a horde of policemen staff the intersection, and where "how many Indians fit in a rickshaw" appears to be a new form of national sport (9 was the record I witnessed). You see extreme poverty next to extreme wealth and you sometimes wonder if things will just have to be like this, but then you get invited into a slum dweller's house with no running water or toilet, but a laptop and a TV and where the daughter is updating her Facebook profile. It's a country where your senses are constantly under attack and you actually look forward to a bit of peace and quiet in the evening, only to find that the traffic noise doesn't stop at night and the ceiling fan sounds like a landing helicopter. And then you head to an ashram or stroll through a (nice smelling) street market or have an amazing meal at a cozy little place and suddenly you ask yourself why you found it all overwhelming just a few minutes earlier.
So, I guess this long winded attempt to sum up India was my way of saying that I had an absolute blast on my trip a couple weeks ago. I will be posting pictures and impressions over the next days, so... stay tuned!

I'm back!!!

2011-01-11T17:40:00.000+01:00

After what turned out to be a longer than intended hiatus, I'm back into the swing of things with the blog. Stay tuned for some upcoming posts about my latest travel adventures in India and more curious discoveries from the world of cross-cultural experiences - along with pictures, of course :-).

Leftovers

2010-09-29T16:14:00.002+02:00

I found these rummaging through old pictures. Took them on a walk through Harbor City. Sigh... I miss Hamburg.

The Ice Cube Rant - revisited

2010-09-28T14:14:00.001+02:00

It's been a year of trying to re-acclimate myself with the German culture. I've learned to call people by their formal names again. I have adjusted to inconvenient store hours and no Sunday shopping. I even got used to expensive gas and men in fitted jeans again (okay, that one wasn't hard :-)). But as much as I'd love to, I simply cannot get over the German ice cube phobia!!!
Seriously, if you ask the waiter to put a lot of ice in your soda, he usually stares at you in such horrified stupor that I sometimes wonder if I've asked him to drop his pants on accident. After you reaffirm him that he indeed understood you correctly, he shuffles off, only to come back moments later with your diet soda in a tall glass....with 3 lonely ice cubes bobbing on the surface. This, by German standards, is the amount of ice appropriate to cool an entire village pool in the summer.
I've only once tried to ask for more ice after my drink was delivered. Big mistake. I was lucky not to be escorted out the place. So then I've attempted a new tactic. Instead of ordering my drink with ice, I ordered my Diet Coke and then (ha!) I ordered a second glass with only ice cubes. This seems to work fine most of the times, even though they sometimes forget your ice cube glass completely, which resulted in me sipping Diet Coke at room temperature - an insult for which I believe Coca Cola should start sending our sniper troops to offending restaurants. Still, my tactic was playing out - until one place actually (I'm not making this up!) tried to charge me for the glass full of ice cubes. Rest assured that they have lost my business for life.
Anyway, in my quest for decently cooled soda, not even the fast food restaurants are much help. Several times now I've attempted to order "extra ice" on a drive-through mission and got (you guessed it) NO ice. Now I usually park my car and walk inside to order, so I can properly supervise the ice cube administration. The key is to order a big drink, tell them to fill it up with ice, and then instruct them to fill it with only a medium amount of soda. Make sure you answer the suspicious "But you know you'll have to pay for a big drink if you want the big cup?" with a resounding "Yes, I know. It's okay!" and if you're lucky, it works. Personally, I now only visit establishments of the fast food kind if they have a "do it yourself" soda fountain.

So, what is it with all this disturbed relationship to ice cubes over here?
I think there are a number of issues at play. First, ice cube makers are energy-sucking machines that hike up electricity costs and are bad for the environment. Second, Germans just aren't used to drinking cold drinks - probably because it's always so darn cold here. And finally, and most importantly, it's because Germans are tight as fists when it comes to their drinks. Germany is the only country I know where there is a law to assure that restaurants and bars fill their glasses up to the required volume mark. There is even a Society against Dishonest Pouring that does random sampling in bars to make sure that bartenders are sticking to the rules.
So I guess the ice cube boycott is so firmly in place because people would bitch about getting only 0.48 liters of soda, even though they are paying for 0.5 liters. And, as the Society against Dishonest Pouring points out on their website, there is serious cause for concern: During Oktoberfest alone, the beer tent owners rake in up to 4.2 million Euro simply by not complying with the fill volume laws!
Obviously that's the problem, not that during the span of 3 weeks, 6 million liters of beer are being consumed. But this is an entirely different issue... for now, I better fill up the freezer with some ice cubes. If I put them in to-go baggies, I can just take them to the bars myself.

My Life in Lyrics - Part 1

2010-09-21T11:15:00.002+02:00

"Snowed Under" by Keane

There's a cold voice on the air
You've been looking everywhere
Someone to understand your hopes and fears
Well, I've thought about that for many long years

So I walk through Mansers Shaw
I don't see you anymore
We love to think about the way things were
But the time has come and I'm glad it's over

I don't know why i waste my time
Getting hung up about the things you say
When i open my eyes and its a lovely day
You know sometimes i feel like i'm
Getting snowed under with the things you say
When i open my eyes and its a lovely day

Now you think that you're alone
So you make your way back home
I'd love to greet the weary traveller
But your time has gone and i'm glad its over

I don't know why i waste my time
Getting hung up about the things you say
When i open my eyes and its a lovely day
You know sometimes i feel like i'm
Getting snowed under with the things you say
When i open my eyes and its a lovely day

Small things do matter

2010-09-20T00:08:00.001+02:00

As you will all know, I'm a very low-maintenance person and don't have a lot of requirements when it comes to eating, drinking and sleeping. Give me some bread and cheese, a glass of wine, a bed and a clean bathroom, and I'm happy (at least for a while ;-)). However, due to the generosity of some very special people, I was able to spend a few days in one of the (or possibly THE) nicest hotel in Berlin - the Adlon Kempinski. Really, the trip was about catching up with some of my favorite people in the world and walking my heels off in the city. But it soon got me thinking:
How is it that the Adlon (and other nice hotels I've stayed at, by the way) can charge an unspeakable amount for a Latte and a bagel with cream cheese that costs not more than 1/4 of that around the corner, and yet people seem to be running their doors in? I mean, don't get me wrong - they do have great coffee and super comfortable beds, but still. I could do with much less luxury and still have a wonderful time. Besides, I probably wouldn't feel permanently under-dressed somewhere else in my jeans and comfy shoes.
And then my internet stopped working.
Crisis time! Ignore the fact that they charge the astronomical fee of eighteen Euros (that's 1-8!!!) for a 24-h internet pass, but if I need to check my emails, I just need to check my emails. I tried restarting the laptop. I re-set the router. I disabled and enabled the wireless. I begged, pleaded and (almost) cried. Nothing. The most frustrating part was that my laptop was telling me I was connected, which I clearly wasn't, but that phenomenon probably deserves an entirely separate blog post.
I was desperate. So I called the operator, not having high expectations. Within 5 minutes I had a technician in my room fixing the issue - at 10:45 on a Sunday night! If that's not worth spending a small fortune on a Latte, I don't know what is.

Taking inventory

2010-09-13T18:57:00.000+02:00

Last week I turned 30.
Shocking, I know! I wasn't exactly dreading the experience, but...it's still a milestone of some sort. Luckily, I was well prepared thanks to a number of "elderly" friends who have been there already and my own experiences of successfully navigating my Quarter Life Crisis" (luckily I heard about this on TV a few years back - I didn't even know I was suffering from it!).
Anyway, I thought it was time to take inventory of my life so far by comparing it to peers, societal expectations and statistics. Turns out - I'm a failure. I mean, a complete and utter failure.
How so, you ask? Well, here's a list of all the things I'm failing in:

I live with my parents.
I have no job.
I don't have a retirement plan NOR any home-purchase savings (by German standards that makes me an irresponsible loon!).
I am single and not married (to be honest, this isn't uncommon in Germany, but I should at least have what we call a life-stage-partner).
In many cultures I would be considered an old maid with no prospect that puts her parents to shame. Here, I'm just the pitiful single that ruins the even seat number at the dinner party.
So really, turning 30 was just another step on the ladder of patheticness.

And then I thought - forget that. So what if I have hit a hard spot at an inconvenient time? I've never been one to followed the "normal" pattern anyway, why start now? So here is a list of the things I have done in my 30 years that those following "the rules" may not have a chance to do:

I have lived in 5 different countries on 3 continents.
I have an MBA.
I have friends on 6 continents and always a couch to sleep on.
I can eat spicy food that would make any German's eyes water.
I moved so many times that I only own what's really important.
I learned to make tough choices.
I have done things most people never will.
I still have my sense of humor.

Looking at it that way, I guess being 30 isn't all that bad after all.

Pre-World Cup round up

2010-06-05T17:48:00.001+02:00

Time to update the blog before the world stops turning in 6 days and I'll be too busy cheering on any team trying to beat Italy. World Cup time is always fun. Sadly enough, this time around I will be nowhere near the big fan parties, the public viewings and the victory rallies that take place all over the country. Instead, I'll be stuck in the vast nothingness of southern Germany, where I once again ended up after my internship in Hamburg ended a few weeks ago. Back at Mom and Dad's. Oh well. Hopefully it won't be for long as I am busily writing applications.

In light of that, the World Cup is a welcomed diversion. Draw sheets have to be filled out. Flags have to be hung. War paint has to be applied. World Cup cheering is serious business! I'm not a big football fan. I only get interested when Real Madrid plays in the Champions League final and I do gloat a little when Bayern Munich loses. Other than that, I don't care. I don't even know what teams are participating in the World Cup, although I have memorized the teams in Germany's group. That being said, I don't even really care if Germany wins. In fact, I want Spain to win - or any team where players are good-looking and wear tight shirts.

Still, you can't really escape the hype and it's actually nice that for those few weeks, Germany turns into a big happy place where people forget to complain (except about the team, the tactics and the selection of players of course). It's also a time when Germans can finally prove that they are party people and not as uptight as they are thought to be. Best proof: The many entertaining musical performances of the German football teams over the years.

Now there was a tradition worth keeping up. Whenever a World Cup came around, it was some sort of unwritten law that the German players team up with the cheesiest German singer / entertainer around and "perform" a song. This usually consisted of the singer being up front and center, yoddeling along to some pop melody while the players stood (stoically) in the background and mouthed the few words they remembered to terrible playback. Sadly, in recent years it seems that the national teams have decided it was a trifle too embarrassing to record their own song and, what can I say. We're being denied some truly entertaining treasures!!!

So to re-live the glorious years - the best of the worst German football anthems:

1974 - Fussball ist unser Leben

1982 - Olé España

1986 - Mexico Mi Amor

And my favorite...

1994 - Far away in America

A lovely cooperation between the German team, the Village People and (who else?) David Hasselhoff!!!

Bummer I couldn't find any actual video - it's all been removed. Someone from the German Football Association was probably worried that it might dampen the Germans' reputation as tough and rough :-).

Now you tell me if that's not something worth repeating every 4 years???

Funky Hamburg

2010-04-11T10:58:00.001+02:00

Impressions from a walk through St. Pauli and the Karolinenviertel.

Fish in Eppendorf

Backyard

Art against violence against women

Creative plant pot

Cool graffiti house

More flowers

At the flea market

Old house turned climbing wall

Apartment windows

Creative living

Graffiti against nuclear waste transports

"Motorcycle self-help", open Mondays

Spandex overload!

2010-04-07T23:27:00.000+02:00

Today I managed to leave the office and still catch a glimpse of daylight. That in itself would have been reason enough to celebrate, but on top of it, the weather was awesome! A perfect spring day with plenty of sun and just warm enough to convince me to ignore the bus and walk the few kilometers home. As it happens, the walk home takes you along the Alster (water) and through some of the nicest neighborhoods in Hamburg. I picked at least 3 places I want to live in ... some day :-).
And so as I was strolling along, cursing myself that I hadn't brought my camera in light of all the blooming trees and spring flowers, I suddenly began to realize: Germans love Spandex! Now, some of you might say that's a given, but I had never realized just HOW MUCH we love Spandex. It's everywhere! Some of it might be due to the fact that Hamburgers (that's people living in Hamburg, not the food!) are obsessed with jogging. No surprise then that on this fine day, the nice stroll through the park became a bit hectic as I was trying to jump out of the way of ridiculously fit people running at high speeds. And they all wore Spandex. Even the ones that shouldn't.
I think I've been cured off Spandex for life. Really. One more middle-aged man squeezed into Spandex pants that leave nothing (and I mean NOTHING) to the imagination and I may have flung myself into the water.I guess as an athletically challenged person I don't understand the appeal. I mean - everyone looks like crap in them. But hey, maybe they...keep things in place, right? Either way, I'm still not quite recovered from my Spandex overdose. Next time I walk home I will definitely take the camera. For the flowers, not the Spandex!

Winter impressions from Hamburg

2010-03-27T10:24:00.004+01:00

Long time no talk

2010-03-27T10:01:00.003+01:00

Sooo...it's been WEEKS, I know, but lots of things happened. Let's see:

I moved to Hamburg.

I survived the worst winter in many years.

I fell twice in public places due to inadequate shoes.

I nearly lost my car under a pile of unexpected snow.

I started my internship.

I learned lots of things I didn't know I didn't know or thought I knew but realized I didn't know.

I went to see Diana Gabaldon in person.

I have increased my DCD (daily caffeine dose) to 3 espressos.

I never get enough sleep.

I met many wonderful new friends at the Bleibe.

I got excited when the first spring flowers appeared.

I have gotten re-addicted to Boston Legal.

I need new shoes.

I'm off to get a haircut!

Rant: Roger that!

2010-02-01T21:56:00.006+01:00

Warning: If you are a Roger Federer fan, don't read this. Actually - yes, read it.

Admittedly I am a wee bit biased when it comes to tennis players and (yes) also somewhat bitter after ‘my’ guy is once again injured and had to retire from an important match in the first month of the season. So please don’t take this the wrong way, but it has to be said:

I do NOT like Roger Federer.

Granted, the guy may be the most talented man to ever wave a racquet and ballet-dance around a tennis court. He’s also got a wicked angle on his crosscourt backhand and can hit a winner from every position. On top of that, he has great hair and never seems to sweat. That being said, I think he is a pompous, self-loving, smug-faced, split-tongued, arrogant piece of work if I’ve ever seen one. And I’m not even sure I’m more annoyed by him or by his fans and the TV commentators who seem to think he can walk on water and are probably waiting for him to ascent to the heavens any day (would be fine by me!).

Luckily there are people out there who are committed to uncovering the truth :-). Find below a small selection of things Roger has said over the years. Please take note: This is the man who is widely described as ‘gracious’, ‘humble’ and ‘down to earth’. I do realize most of the stuff he says is not false, but every article ever written about him says those things – does he really have to repeat them?

“I just don’t like the ring of it when I’m being introduced on Centre Court saying, ‘and this is the No. 2 in the world’. It just sounds wrong. Either I’m No. 1 or I’m a Grand Slam champion, but I’m not No. 2.” – Roger about losing his #1 ranking to Rafa Nadal

"I already have done so many things and achieved so many great records. I'm just adding (it) up, you know, which is scary to some degree, even for me, you know." – Roger in a normal press conference.

“Well, look, it's always been my big strength. Once I get on a roll it's hard to stop me. It's always been like this. Even in my young days, you know, as a junior, I was always so talented.” – November 2007

“When you talk about golf, you talk about Tiger; when you talk about tennis, you talk about me.” – I wonder if he would still say that today…lol.

“It’s extraordinary for me because you figure everybody would like someone else to win, but maybe it’s the way I react to winning, the way I am respectful to the others and how fair I am because the players have voted for me five times to win the Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award. What I can say is, ‘Thank you very much, thank you for being happy for me.’” – Roger on receiving congratulations for his RG win. The year before he lost the Wimbledon final to Rafa and said that more people were sad for him than happy for Rafa. Just saying...

"I have actually helped more the other players than they have helped me to improve, because I put tennis in a different league." – Roger after being asked how it pushes him to play better when he has to compete with talented opponents.

"I didn't ever expect to be this successful. I knew I had something special in me, more talent than other players." – Bleeh.

"Well, quite honestly, I don't know - maybe, I mean, I obviously have more raw talent than him.” – Roger on his victory over Lleyton Hewitt in Jan 2010 (after which Hewitt went to have hip surgery)

“Yeah, look, there's no secret behind it. You know, I mean, definitely a very talented player. I always knew I had something special, but I didn't know it was like, you know, that crazy.” - Roger, Jan 2010

"I have a great record against anybody right now, so it doesn't really matter who I play in the final. I'll be in there as the big favorite. But I play my best in the finals, in the important matches. That's why I'm number one. There's no secret...I'm not overconfident, but very confident."

No. Not at all Roger. It’s your humble nature that makes you talk out of your ARSE like that.

Edited to add: Apparently I'm not the only one thinking along those lines! Read more here

Creativity

2010-01-28T18:24:00.002+01:00

Sir Ken Robinson is talking about the lack of room for creativity in school systems around the world at the 2006 TED Conference. Funny speech but very thought provoking but probably true. Very much worth the 20 minutes, I promise!

Cultural traditions explained: Fasnet

2010-01-23T17:51:00.005+01:00

Once a year, southern Germans set out to prove that they are not as rational, cold and calculating as many believe Germans to be. In fact, for a short time of the year, people of all ages act exactly the opposite - and sometimes come to regret it the next day ;-). The southern "Fasnet" happens to take place at the same time as Mardi Gras and carnival in Brazil, but has absolutely nothing in common with them, except that people dress up and get completely trashed.Historically, "Fasnet" used to be a symbolic means to "drive out" the winter and with it the spirits of death and illness AND an opportunity to indulge in fatty foods and drink before lent started on Ash Wednesday (roughly 40 days before Easter). Today, it's mostly an excuse to get completely shit-faced, to take off work for a week and to make out with random people you'll never see again (if you're lucky).

A long time ago, some poor dudes had to dress up as evil spirits or devils and were chased through the streets with brooms and whips. Today there are official "Fasnet" groups with a long wait-list to join and a lineage of historical relevance. Most towns have their own figures, many of them based on stories or legends about local ghosts or witches and membership in the clubs are often family tradition (my family's tradition is not to join any!).

Here an example of the local "Hex" (witch) and an interesting looking thing called a Ditzelede for which there truly is no English translation, although I would suspect it had it's origin in a court jester:

Decide for yourself if these joksters are wearing masks or not...

Starting on January 6th, the members of the "Fasnet" groups begin to breathe "Fasnet" and spend just about every weekend at "Fasnet" parades in various towns of the region. I'm thinking the reason why so many families join the groups is because it's the only way you get to actually see each other during the season. Anyway, the parades attract large crowds and usually end in a school gym with cheap drinks and loud music of the "apres-ski" or "Mallorcan dance party" kind. Some groups do take their performance at the parades very serious and bring equipment along to harrass the spectators (FYI: getting put through one of those machines they use to bind Christmas trees is an experience everyone should go through at some point).

"Hex" group with cauldron (assumed to contain alcohol of some sort)

A "Hex" displaying the very attractive Granny pants that are worn under the skirt

Parades and such aside, the main event of the "Fasnet" is the week before Ash Wednesday. Starting Thursday, there are "Fasnet"-related events scheduled every day and from my own experiences I can only say - it's a lot more work than you think, having to get sloshed every day and having to stay up until the wee hours of the morning. The whole thing ends on Tuesday night with a good-fun witch burning to symbolize the successful elimination of all things evil.

On Ash Wednesday the "Fasnet" groups stage a funeral march through the town to official bury the "Fasnet" and to hand back the key to the townhall, which they've taken from the mayor on Thursday. And then it's back to normal...until the official "Fasnet" season begins on November 11 at 11:11.

So there you have it - an attempt to explain the German Fasnet. Of course, if you are ever in Cologne, you'll find that their "Fasching" or "Karnival" is completely different from the rustic "Fasnet" down south. And don't even think about running through the streets dressed up as a witch in the north - they'll have you locked away in a minute. For now this will avoid you totally embarrassing yourself if ever talking about "Carnival" with a German. And later I might just explain why one day a year the Swabians run around the streets with old-fashioned night dresses on.

The wheel hath cometh unstucketh

2010-01-23T16:50:00.002+01:00

After a few months in the rural depths of south Germany, the time has come to return to civilization. No offense to my lovely home town, but I'm in serious need of a diversion, a bit of culture and, most of all, people. Just as life wants it, I was able to score an internship in Germany's second coolest city - Hamburg (right now Berlin still takes the cake in coolness, but that might change in the next months).

The internship is really like a dream job without the pay and I'm hoping to learn as much as I can in the short span of 3 months. If anything, it's a great opportunity to get used to working again and a chance to add something to my resume while searching for a "real" job. It also doesn't suck that I will be living in one of the nicer parts of town in what they call a "multi-cultural living experiment" and only a quick subway ride away from my dear sister and her boyfriend (I will come knocking to use the Wii!!).

Hence, I don't mind at all joining the vast pool of poor interns and will even survive missing southern Germany's craziest week of the year - Fasching. Which brings me to my next post...

Cultural traditions explained: Sternsinger

2010-01-06T13:37:00.007+01:00

Lately I've been thinking a lot about the many fun, regional and sometimes obscur traditions we have. This was mostly inspired by a heated discussion about the appearance of "Santa Claus" in the German christmas season - something I had never heard of during my youth when I still believed the presents were brought by a spirit version of "Baby Jesus". It made me think that it could be fun to share some of those quirky things us southern Germans do year-round.

One of those things is a very old tradition called "Sternsinger" (literally translated to "star singers").

As some of you may know, Jan 6 is the day (supposedly) the three kings arrived in Bethlehem to bring gifts to the freshly born Jesus. Believe what you want, but if you live in our part of Germany, you'll be visited by a group of kids dressed up as the three kings. They are sent out by the Catholic parish, sing a little song, say a blessing and vandalize your front door by writing a mathematical equation on your door frame:

20 * C + M + B + 10

While I always thought the letters stood for Casper, Melchior, und Balthasar - the names of the three kings, I now learned that's complete rubbish. Apparently C.M.B stands for "Christus Mansionem Benedicat" ('God bless this house' in Latin), which gives the whole thing some real sense that I've never understood. The star stands for the star of Bethlehem (which the Sternsinger also carry around on a stick) and the 2010 for...well, 2010. The "Sternsinger" collect donations for charity and I guess it does it's part in convincing some of the kids that door-to-door sales is their future dream job.

In any case, the Sternsinger are so popular that even the German Chancellor Merkel invited them to her office to celebrate the official start of "Sternsinger season", though I'm not sure they were allowed to scribble on her door frame. She probably envied them too - I reckon walking from door to door, singing and drawing are much more fun than being responsible for the German government at the moment.

Chancellor Merkel daydreaming about being a Sternsinger.

Please also note the (politically very incorrect) "colored" Sternsinger - a tradition that must have originated in times when Germany suffered a distinct shortage of "properly pigmented" Balthasars.

So there you have it - the mystery of "Sternsinger" explained. Next I'll attempt to explain the nature and reason of German carnival - a feat I've yet to master properly.

Happy 2010!!

2010-01-05T13:31:00.008+01:00

I hope you all started off the new year in style and with a significant amount of gusto. Yours truly also managed to slip and slide into 2010 after an adventurous trip up north to Hamburg that had us stranded in a place called "Nordstemmen" when ice rain froze the train lines. Luckily we managed to de-tour a bit and eventually, around 1am, arrived at my sister's apartment.

New Year's itself was rather quiet being that it was bone-shaking cold and we were not in the mood to be crushed by the masses or thrown into the harbor down on the water. Instead we went for a lovely Indian Thali dinner, spent the rest of the evening playing Wii and making fun of German party music, and then watched the firework from the rooftop window - much better viewing anyway!

The return trip on Jan 2 was even more adventurous than the way up. Cheap tickets is all good and well, but after missing our connection twice and being unable to ride the highspeed trains because of our discount tickets, we eventually dead-ended in Frankfurt - still a good 4-5 hour ride home. The logic of institutions such as Deutsche Bahn (German rail company) escapes me more often than not, and this was no exception.

Trip through some rough land parts of Germany where you would never find yourself otherwise

From Frankfurt we had to travel to Stuttgart and there take a local train to our hometown. However, getting to Stuttgart via snail train would have put us there around 8:30 in the evening - too late for the last train home. In my mind, the logical conclusion would have been to give us a free "upgrade" for the highspeed train to Stuttgart, in which case we would have easily made the connection. Doesn't cost them anything either since the train is running regardless of whether we are on it or not, right?

Stuck at night on a lonely train station in Neudietendorf - not exactly a bustling metropolis

Instead, the DB told us we had to take the snail train to Stuttgart and would then qualify for either a hotel voucher to spend the night in Stuttgart or a taxi ride home (a good 100km). Maybe it's me being thick, but doesn't that seem to be stupid? Surely having two extra people riding on the highspeed train without paying would be much more cost effective than having to pay for a hotel room or a taxi halfway across the state. But alas...reason does not apply here.

Long story short, we ended up paying for the upgrade tickets ourself and will now pray to get the reimbursement from the train company. Fat chance, but it'll make me feel better to write a letter of complaint (along with a suggestion of "logical thinking") - and at least that way we made it home in time for my mom's midnight birthday celebration!

All aboard!

2009-12-29T23:48:00.003+01:00

I must be crazy. No, really. I think I am. If you are disagreeing, I appreciate the vote of confidence, but listen to this and you are likely to change your mind.

New Year's Eve is on Thursday and because the celebratory opportunities in our little town are limited to...nothing, my youngest sister and I decided to invite ourselves to our other sister's apartment in Hamburg. Big city = big entertainment, right?

The trick is: We're both poor. She's a student, I'm not working yet, so money is tight and flights or train tickets are expensive over the holidays. However, behold! There is a solution. For about 20 bucks a person we are going to travel across the country via train. It's a steal - with a small catch. Being allowed to only use local trains, we'll be spending 15 hours on a journey that normally takes about 6 in the high speed trains. 15 hours during which we'll be changing trains 6 times in cities I've never even heard of. Then again, what's life without a little adventure trip? So we're heading out tomorrow morning with bags full of sandwiches and snacks (no food service on the local trains!), ipods and books for entertainment, and a big thermo of Gluehwein to keep the spirits up.

If all goes well, we should arrive in Hamburg close to midnight. There are a lot of IFs because the weather forecast predicts snow and ice, the local trains are known for being late or cancelled, and a missed connection means we'll be likely to spend the night on a cold train station in some godforsaken town somewhere in Germany. You tell me if that's nuts or not!

December 24

2009-12-29T23:38:00.003+01:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

Okay, so I'm a few days behind and I could pretty much add a "happy new year" and not be too far off, but I've finally managed to roll off the couch after the past days' eating frenzy. I hope you all had a wonderful time with friends, family, Santa, the Christmas goose/turkey/whatever and your new toys. I reckon if you are reading this, your presents were LAME and if you're not - you probably got a Wii or an iphone. Since I am here writing, I obviously didn't get either one of those...haha. But no harm done - I've been treated to quite the collection of lovely things, including a subscription to my most favorite magazines of them all - The Economist. Look out for me starting to throw around geeky economic stats shortly...

On top of it all, I'm happy to report that the Christmas bonanza took place without the annual family feud that usually breaks out by the third day of being stuck in the house together. I think it's the eggnog - makes us all happy and without a care in the world and even made me forget my dismay at the melting snow mess outside just in time for the holidays.

All in all, it's been a great Christmas season and I'm hoping for a repeat next year!

December 23

2009-12-27T00:03:00.002+01:00

Of Raw Eggs and Sugar

December 23rd is always Eggnog Time at our house. Since my parents adopted the cherished Christmas Eggnog tradition from the Ohio clan, they've been throwing a Christmas party every year to create a demand market for the "liquid gold" that is real, old-fashioned eggnog. This stuff is the real thing. No preservatives, none of that 'no-alcohol-so-the-kids-can-have-it nonsense. This concoction of sherry, rum, whiskey and brandy, mixed with egg yolk, cream and sugar, folded into beaten egg whites, and sprinkled with ground nutmeg, is nothing for the weak-kneed. It's a creamy delight with a serious kick, a bit like melted ice cream in a bucket of liquor. The cat got a hold of a little rest in a glass tonight and has been staring dreamy-eyed into space all night - that's how potent it is.

But really, it's just very, very delicious. Nothing you can have a lot from or would want to have every day for the rest of your life, but around Christmas it's the perfect little night cap and one full of history at that. And for all you worried souls out there who have already thrown your hands in the air at the mention of consuming raw eggs, do not panic: Nobody I know ever got sick from it - I think the salmonella are too busy bathing in the cream to form a harmful thought. Which is kind of the same effect the eggnog has on the brain. It's all Merry Christmas from the first sip!

December 22

2009-12-26T23:50:00.003+01:00

Weather update for Southern Germany:

The nice layer of white fluff that has accumulated in the past days of "artic frost", is beginning to show signs of recession. In fact, all that snow has now turned to a wet, muddy and unpleasant mass of mush - the kind that splatters up the windshield and creates that irritating kind of 'rain' that always has you switch between the wipers and the windshield wash.

I HATE that kind of weather. Hate it. I'd take months of snow cover or rain, but not that mush that ruins every pair of pants because you keep brushing up against the grimy car. Or where you are sure to step into a puddle of dirty ice water that will run into your shoes and splash up your pant leg.

In retrospect Christmas was not white but green (global warming!!), but we did get a few teensy snow flakes on Christmas day and it's now at least cold enough to pass as winter. Fingers crossed it'll stay like that for New Year's!

December 21

2009-12-26T13:37:00.003+01:00

Catch up

Okay, so the "24 days of Christmas blogging" were a bit ambitious. I should have known that once the family starts pouring from the trains it would be nearly impossible to find time to update the blog. But - I shall not be deterred. Here is my attempt at catching up... (post 1 done!!)

December 20

2009-12-21T00:08:00.003+01:00

I *heart* the Cincinnati Bengals

As I'm sitting here on a Sunday (late) night, trying to watch a game of NFL Football (that's American Football or what many call "whimpy man's rugby" because of all the body armor), I've come to reevaluate my relationship with the Cincinnati Bengals - the team that is currently getting it's butt whooped by the San Diego Chargers (I have no shame in admitting this!).

I don't really like football. I don't follow the season, don't read the team website. Heck, when one of the team members died last week after a tragic (and awkward) accident, I didn't know about it until, ironically, a San Diego fan told me. So, you can't really call me a fan.

But somehow, when I do happen to stumble upon a bit of news or catch a game on TV (which doesn't happen here in Germany), I become very much a BenGAL (witty wordplay here to refer to the team's cheerleader group). And I always root for them, no matter how horrific the season is going - and they are usually going very poorly! So here I am tonight, at 12:30am, trying to decipher the score by watching a ridiculously complicated ESPN game graph that seems to require a nuclear science degree to read.

When I lived in Cincinnati, I was able to attend games every now and then. I think that's where my 'love' comes from - particularly from this one afternoon in January...some years ago.

Picture the scene: After many (many!) seasons of disappointment, the Bengals managed to play their way to the NFL play-offs (sort of like the Champions League of American Football), largely thanks to their invaluable quarterback Carson Palmer and his throwing arm.

Game 1 is against the arch rivals from Pittsburgh- the Steelers. It's January and freezing cold, but the stadium is packed to the brim. My friend Sonja and I were lucky to be given tickets and had sufficiently warmed up with drinks and a wool blanket. The teams come out...the crowd goes wild...this is as close to European football as you can get.

And then the following happens: On the first offensive play, Carson Palmer throws an incredible 66-yard pass to Chris Henry - and gets mowed down by a Steeler who, oh the irony!, is a former Bengals player! Carson is driven off the field on a stretcher, the Bengals lose the game and their best chance in 20some years to win the Super Bowl. That day, the whole stadium cried. I think Sonja and I cried too. And I became a Bengal fan at heart - even if they stink and probably will never win the Super Bowl...ever. Doesn't matter -

Go Bengals!!!

December 19

2009-12-20T23:59:00.004+01:00

Winter Wonderland!

I went on a walk with the parental units today. After surviving the artic frost of last night (my Dad's weather station says it was -22.5 Celcius!), today was just too beautiful to not go outside. Granted, it was still a bit nipply and you wouldn't want to be stranded out in the wild either, but the sun was shining and actually made the -11 degrees seem fairly reasonable.

Besides, I bought winter shoes last week that needed a serious test and I can't ever resist that crunching sound the snow makes under your feet. In short - it was worth getting a bit of frost bite on your nose!

December 18

2009-12-19T00:52:00.003+01:00

At 12:15 am Dylan the Cat rang the door bell to be let inside. No joke. Lucky for him my mom and I were still up, otherwise he would have had to sleep in the cow shed again - his second most favorite place after the chair in front of the fire place. In fact, judging by his smell, that's where he spent a good amount of time today, being that it was -11 degrees (Celsius, not Fahrenheit - but still damn cold!).

That got me thinking how Dylan the Cat is really not so much different from your average loser (human). He likes to stay out until the party in the cow shed ends and all the hot lady cats go home. He comes home, heads straight for the food and then moves to the couch without interruption. Earlier today his on/off girlfriend stopped by. They have a 'difficult relationship' since he got her knocked up and didn't show any interest in taking care of the offspring. He doesn't seem to be able to fully commit himself. He likes her to be around when he feels like it, but Dog forbid anyone pets her instead of him, he gets jealous and acts like a jerk until she leaves frustrated and (I'm quite sure) in tears.

So really, Dylan the Cat is a pretty exact replica of the guys you see in your daily trash talk show. Only - he is SO much cuter and he purrs. And that's why we don't mind so much that he wakes up the house by ringing the door bell in the middle of the night. I guess it's time he gets his own key....

December 17

2009-12-19T00:26:00.002+01:00

An Ode to the Ugly Christmas Sweater

December 16

2009-12-16T22:47:00.002+01:00

Nothing.

After spending all day re-installing my laptop's operating system, MS Office, re-loading all my programs, drivers, and who knows what else, AND re-configuring my freaking Outlook accounts, I am done with computers for the day. Maybe even tomorrow.

December 15 (already??)

2009-12-15T17:49:00.003+01:00

Customer service? – Not with us!

On my latest Christmas shopping adventure today, I realized why the German economy is holding on so tightly to its engineering wonders, its metal products and production plants: We suck at everything else!

Every other great industrial nation (or formerly great I guess) has realized that in the long run, competing with low wage countries is impossible. The US has understood that the future of business is in services, innovation, etc. and they are making the necessary transitions. Not the Germans. I never understood this, until today.

My mom and I were in a store buying *** (can’t say, it’s a Christmas present!) and the lady ahead of us in line was buying a sweater. The tag said the sweater was on sale for 29.95, but when the cashier scanned it, the price showed up as 34.95. The cashier sent her colleague to check the other sweaters on the rack and she came back with this: “The sweaters are 29.95, but this one (*points to the sweater the lady is buying*) is not on sale because it’s a size XXL. The bigger sizes are more expensive.”

Okay, so besides the insult of shouting across the store what size sweater the lady was buying and the ridiculousness of the pricing policy in itself, the crowning comment was this: “Well, it seems we made a mistake in the price marking. I’m sorry, you’ll have to pay full price.”

Excuse me? Because the STORE made a mistake and falsely advertised the price of the sweater, the customer now has to pay the full price? Is it really going to kill the store to give a 5 Euro discount but preserve the prospect of that customer coming again and buying something at regular price?

I hate to sound like a miserable git, but: This would NEVER happen in the US. Never. And it sure doesn’t make me hopeful about the prospect of the German economy – with that attitude it’s probably best they stick to designing cars (and leave the selling to others).

December 14

2009-12-15T17:45:00.003+01:00

Do you want to know what the biggest conspiracy against mankind is?

Computers. I’m serious. Forget climate change, terrorists, or Simon Cowell’s feeble attempts to control our TV program and (with that) our minds. These innocent looking machines are far more technologically advanced than they lead us to believe and they are secretly planning to annihilate our species. How? By pretending that they are helping us, when in fact all they do is create anxiety, anger, and nervous breakdowns. Their plan is to have all of mankind committed to a mental institution by the end of the century and then they’ll take over – because we’ll tell them to. It’ll be a bit like what the Americans did with the Taliban – we arm them, teach them and then they’ll turn against us.

How can I be so sure, you ask? Because I may just be the next victim of their evil plan. My trusty laptop, which at this point has become more precious than my first born (figuratively speaking- I don't have a first born), is just a few freezes short of sending me to the loony bin. Here it is, working perfectly fine for months. And then, out of the blue…random crashes, freezes, wireless meltdowns. I basically have one finger on the “power” button at all times now, always expecting a complete shut-down.

I’ve deployed all weapons I can throw at it – virus scans, disc clean-up, defragmentation, reset to a prior date, uninstalls, reinstalls, etc. etc. … to absolutely no use. It’s psychological warfare now – and the lappie is winning! Every time the little “hour glass” shows up my pulse jumps to 210. When a program seems to take a fraction of a second too long to open my palms start to sweat. I think next time my pointer stops working I may just start to cry.

Oh, I know what you are saying. “Should have gotten a Mac book” or “Mac’s never freeze!” Yeah yeah, whatever. What you all don’t know is that Macs are really the ultimate commanders in this hostile takeover mission. So I guess as a Dell user, that just means I am resisting the evil force – even if it lands me in the psych ward.

*hurries to post this before the next laptop crash*

December 13

2009-12-14T00:27:00.002+01:00

Bubbles....bubbles....bubbles!

Thanks to my sister Lisa for this link: nice procrastination and de-stressing exercise if there is no real bubble wrap around..haha.

Get poppin'!

December 12

2009-12-12T23:59:00.003+01:00

Oh Tannenbaum...

You know you're in for trouble when you are sitting at the table on Saturday morning, enjoying your breakfast, and your dad suddenly jumps up and declares that he feels like getting stuff done. Today was that day.

Knowing what this entails, I tried to sneak upstairs and quietly disappear from view. Of course it all went to pits when I was lured back down by the arrival of a package with Christmas presents - I was trapped and ordered to accompany my dad on probably the most important errand of the year: The purchase of the family Christmas tree.

It's not as easy as it sounds. I remember, as a kid, going with my parents to pick out the tree and getting Christmas tree envy when other families schlepped off the lushest, greenest, and most voluminous of trees. I always dreamed of having an expensive, elegant looking blue spruce, but alas... We usually got there late and had to pick between a few sad leftovers. Naturally, this whole thing always ended in an argument in which my dad complained about the price of the tree and insisted on getting the cheapest one. Therefore, our tree usually looked a bit like he was the lone survivor of a forest fire or one of those growth-inhibited shoots that never get enough sun light. With ornaments and a lot of imagination, however, we managed to disguise the few branches as an actual tree. But every year we went out with the intention of getting a better one than the year before.

Luckily, my parents (even if it takes years) do learn from experience. This year, my mom decided to sit the tree selection process out in hopes of preserving the family peace. So it was up to me to secure a tree with more than a couple hundred needles. For a short second I got this romantic idea about going into the woods to hand-select a tree right off the farm, but then I went outside into the snow and cold, and I was happy to settle for one that was already on the tree sale lot.

In the end, the whole thing was anti-climatic. We went into the shed, looked around the couple dozen trees hanging here, saw one we both liked (lucky for my dad they didn't have a blue spruce!) and it was cheap enough, not even my dad had any objections. I guess my traumatic Christmas tree years are over - unless, come Christmas Eve, we put the darn thing up in the family room and realize it's lost all it's needles. Maybe then I can get a blue spruce!!!

December 11

2009-12-12T23:42:00.005+01:00

I really want one of those today...

December 10

2009-12-11T00:19:00.003+01:00

Just got back from a nice evening with the local "English Speakers" group - mostly people who want to practice their (less than impressive) English with a few native Brits or Yanks thrown in. It was quite fun, actually and I got invited back for next week - must be my Midwestern, easy to understand, accent.

A few random thoughts on this:

1. Germans really can't make a proper "th" sound. I must have foreign genes in me from somewhere.

2. Coming out of a Greek restaurant without reeking of garlic is like Santa without a beard.

3. German English teachers actually can't speak English.

4. Trying to teach Germans "12 days of Christmas" is impossible unless they've all had too much to drink and you don't care what it sounds like.

5. The German version of "Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer" is "Rudolf ze reddnose RENNTIER"

December 9

2009-12-10T23:56:00.004+01:00

Facebook Heroine

I just got back from tending to my sizable estate on the virtual heroine that is Facebook's Farmville application and once again I am asking myself why in the world this darn thing is so addictive. I get that it's a waste of time, a distraction from all things important, and just... pointless. But 69 million (that's 69,000,000!!!) users surely can't be THAT misguided and I swear - I can't stop. And I don't even like farms!

I incessantly check on my fruits and grains. I keep mental track of when which fields need to be harvested before the crops wilt. I publish stupid notifications on my Facebook wall to advertise free 'bunches of perfect tulips' or the fact that a lost cow showed up on my farm and is up for adoption. I get giddy when new seasonal decorations are up for sale and I can finally cover my farm buildings in snow and Christmas lights. I check at least once a day to see if any of my friends have joined Farmville so I can add them as neighbors. I calculate which crops give the best returns for investment (how is that for using my MBA skills?). Farmville has become the first website I visit - even before Facebook itself.

And the worst part is - I'm not even half as bad as other people. I know people who set their alarms in the middle of the night so they don't miss harvesting crops. People spend actual money on buying 'Farmville cash' to buy special limited item decorations. Others have created Excel spreadsheets to manage their farm investments properly. There is a rumor that a famous British tennis player got dumped by his girlfriend for spending too much time on the computer - I'm pretty sure he must be a Farmville user!

In short - this stuff is dangerous! For all you people out there who are thinking about joining the cult: Don't do it! Turn away before you get sucked in! Do NOT drink the punch! Ruuuuuun!!!!!

I would love to get going on this, but my friend just posted on her wall that a lonely bull showed up at her farm - I have to make sure I get him before somebody else does. My dairy cows need a mate!!!

December 8

2009-12-08T23:41:00.003+01:00

Leaves

I've been craving baby spinach.

Okay, not the most profound of all things to say, but it's all I can come up with. And I really do (miss baby spinach). I've tried to compensate with other leafy greens, but it's not the same. I think there is a niche market to be explored. People need to know that there are other ways to eat spinach than to let it grow until it's too droopy looking to be eaten fresh, which is of course why the only way Germans eat spinach is by cooking it to death and adding cream to it. Way to kill the nutrients!

And since I'm rambling...why is it that pine nuts are basically a staple food in the US and apparently luxury goods over here? I mean, we have pines over in Europe! How can it be that European pines produce nuts that are 4 times as expensive as American ones? Is there a European Pine Nut Lobby that pushes for protectionism and drives the price up?

Don't get me wrong, I do understand that cuisines are regional and it would be a boring world if you'd get the same food everywhere, but really...they could make an exception for baby spinach and pine nuts. And green asparagus.

December 7

2009-12-07T22:28:00.005+01:00

Cookies

After nine years of American holiday bliss, this is the first Christmas I am spending at home and with lots of free time on my hand I'm throwing myself head first into what I consider family traditions (nobody else thinks they are, by the way). The caroling bells are getting on everyone's nerves already and the stockings are hung up, waiting to be filled. The season doesn't officially start, though, unless the big cookie bonanza has begun.

And so, after I managed to ignore my mother's annual "we're not baking this year" long enough for her to get excited about it as well, we put on the aprons and fired up the ovens, ready to produce enough cookies to feed a small army. Like every year, we looked through a library of baking books and magazines and, also like every year, ended up with a long list of recipes we 'might' end up using. Then there was the usual (and unsuccessful) attempt to remember which ones we had tried before and didn't like, followed by a promise to finally start taking notes this year.

The thing is: my mother views holiday baking as a kind of chore. Likable enough, but still only a chore. I, inspired by a marathon viewing of the Iron Chef, aspire to greater things. I'm not satisfied with making plain old star-shaped cookies with sprinkles. Oh no! There is an entire cookie universe to be discovered - Almond Clouds with Chocolate Drizzle, Pistachio Macaroons, Marzipan-stuffed Cinnamon Pretzels...the opportunities are endless!

My enthusiasm, I admit, is great, which is not what can be said for my baking talents. And so the adventure is always set to end in disappointment. What looked in the magazine like a fluffy bit of sweet almond-heaven with delicate chocolate shavings or a delightful Pas de Deux of marzipan and cinnamon, usually ends up looking like something the cat may have accidentally left behind on the carpet. In the meantime, my mother's plain old star-shaped butter cookies are deliciously golden and basically melt on your tongue.

It's highly frustrating but at least I'm learning from my mistakes. After yesterday produced only mediocre results on my part, I have decided to stick with the basics - butter cookies it'll be. However, I've just found a very interesting sounding icing recipe that I may need to try.....

December 6

2009-12-07T20:51:00.005+01:00

What I did this past weekend...

December 5

2009-12-05T18:43:00.003+01:00

Alibaba's Nuts

This is a recipe for Christmas cookies, so anyone who thought anything else... shame on you!!! We've made these cookies many a years and I love them. And, they are easy enough that even a culinary challenged individual like myself can make them without needing to redecorate the kitchen. Happy baking!

For the dough:

150g butter (soft)

75g powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 pinch of salt

1 egg

4 egg yolks

50g bitter-sweet chocolate shavings

75g ground hazelnuts

300g flour

For the icing:

60g almonds (no peel)

8 tbsp instant espresso powder

1 egg white

180g powdered sugar

1 tbsp vegetable oil

Combine butter, powdered sugar, salt, egg and 4 egg yolks until foamy. Add chocolate shavings, hazelnuts and flour. Mix well until you have a smooth dough. Pack dough in foil and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Once dough has cooled, make hazelnut-sized balls and arrange on cookie sheet (use paper to keep cookies from sticking). Bake in pre-heated oven at 175 degrees (C) for about 20 minutes. Let the cookies cool off.

Roast almonds in a pan (no grease). In a separate bowl, mix egg white with powdered sugar, vegetable oil and instant coffee powder. Cover the cookies with the icing and add a roasted almond on top. Let cookies dry.

December 4

2009-12-04T19:58:00.006+01:00

Still need an idea for a gift? Feel like sharing your (meager) Christmas bonus? Is the Christmas spirit getting to you and you're dying to do something good? Maybe you are running a race and need a good cause to sponsor?

Check out Global Giving

You pick the country or issue of your choice and select the project(s) you want to support. Whether you donate 10$ or 1000$ doesn't really matter, because the idea is that every contribution, no matter how small, helps. You can read about the specific project you're supporting and even have an option to receive project updates. You can also see how many people have donated money to your project and how much is left to reach the donation goal. Overall, it's a cool and fun way to support small charities run by locals, who would never get funding through the 'regular' channels.

So instead of buying your mom another boring set of smelly candles she doesn't need or ordering another DVD for your brother he'll never watch, spend your money on something that actually does good beyond increasing the national GDP by 20$. 'Tis the season after all...

December 3

2009-12-03T16:18:00.003+01:00

I know it's an old joke by now, but funny every time :-). Holiday cheers from the fam!

December 2

2009-12-03T16:11:00.003+01:00

Greetings from the Stuttgarter Weihnachtsmarkt!

December 1

2009-12-03T15:39:00.002+01:00

First act of business: Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

"Advent Calendar" blog challenge

2009-12-03T13:11:00.000+01:00

Okay, so I am already a little late, but I thought it was a fun idea - I am going to (try) and post a blog bit every day from now until Christmas, much like the German Christmas calendars. My last attempt to win the 18-day blog challenge failed miserably, but times were different then and I think I'll have plenty of material to share over the next weeks.

So keep your eyes peeled!

20 years ago today...

2009-11-09T22:22:00.001+01:00

PS: I couldn't resist the song...You know all Germans LOVE The Hoff :-)

Pickles

2009-11-05T12:05:00.000+01:00

We Germans love rules. Maybe that’s why we are so good at engineering. We love to standardize, organize, and regulate. We even have a word for it – ‘kleinkariert’. It translates to ‘small checkered’ and means particular, narrow-minded, and nitpicky. The English dictionary also brings up the term ‘pettifogging’ – I love it!

Anyway, Germans like rules for everything. There are rules to dictate how steep the angle of your house roof can be. Laws regulate when it’s okay to mow your lawn (not between 1 and 3pm) or when you can practice your instrument (no more than 3 hours per day). Heck, I’m sure Germans were the ones that brought forth the EU legislation on the Pickle Curvature. In case you didn’t know, a pickle is not considered a pickle if it bends more than 10mm for each 10cm in length.

For the most part, we are okay with those rules. We complain, we moan, and we laugh at the silly ones. But this time, I’m at the receiving end of them and it’s not fun. As you all know by now, my little car followed me across the Atlantic, survived the journey without a problem, and is now eager to be let loose on the streets. Only, the German TÜV, which is the agency that determines your vehicle safe for the streets, thinks his American parts are a danger to the German public and won’t give him the go-ahead to get registered.

Mind you, this is a German car, assembled in the UK along with the same cars that are shipped to Germany. Only, some parts in the US models don’t have the “E” seal of approval needed to be allowed in Germany. This is a problem because the “E” seal on headlights, for example, guarantees that the light beam hits the target 50 meters away at a 15% angle if the light is no more than 1500mm above the ground and the strength of the light beam is no more than 1.15lx. But only where this is applicable. Or something like that….

And this is only the headlights. There seems to also be a problem with the brakes, which are working just fine I might add. The car maker says I need to ask the TÜV what to do, the TÜV says the car maker needs to give me the appropriate data but that I can drive the car on my US plates for now, and the insurance company says it will not insure the car until I have the proper car ID, which I can only get if I have the appropriate data, which the car maker will not give me without the necessary paper work from the TÜV. You see, I’m in a pickle (or not, depending on the curvage!).

The crowning insult in this all is the fact that the TÜV wouldn’t even care what type of headlights or brakes my car had if it was older than 15 years or if it had been registered in my name for more than 6 months before shipping it from the US. In that case it apparently doesn’t matter that your headlights cause everyone coming towards you to blindly swerve off the road or that your brakes are unable to bring the car to a halt when needed. I would simply be able to get a “permission for exemption” - easy as that.

Well, I guess this is the price we pay for having pickles that don’t curve more than 10%.

Welsh Getaway

2009-10-12T16:26:00.001+02:00

A quick hop and a skip over the Channel and I was off for a long weekend in rural, green, and surprisingly dry Wales. My friend Yves has moved to a new apartment (sorry, flat) and so it didn't take much to convince me to stop by and check it out. Some of the other girls came along as well, and so we spent a very entertaining weekend strolling through quaint little beach towns and reminiscing about our recent trip to Madrid.

Of course there was always time for a little refreshment stop ;-).

This is beautiful little Tenby where we ended up in a Wine Bar that we all deemed VERY cool until a guy with an accordion played the worst version of "Time to say goodbye" you have ever heard. Bad enough that the restaurant owner asked him to leave...haha.

St. David's Cathedral. It doesn't look like it, but it's quite the hike from the town center down to the cathedral. And here I thought those were always built on TOP of hills for defense purposes.

Tea time. Well, it IS Britain after all. So tea and Welsh cakes it was.

Brand Integrity?

2009-09-17T21:59:00.000+02:00

It's not every day that I feel obliged to write a blog entry about fast food chains, but my recent experiences have left me rather dumbfounded. From what I remember in business school, the secret to success for global companies is often to maintain brand integrity across countries and cultures - meaning they offer the same product and same quality no matter where you are in the world. I always thought McDonald's was one of those companies.

Apparently not.

Check out these pictures I took at two random McD's on our way to Bayreuth. Ever seen any like these in the US???? They are seriously nice AND you get real coffee cups! Oh yeah, they also sell veggie trays and dip...go figure.

One down

2009-09-02T10:44:00.000+02:00

My wish list of "Bands I Want To See Live At Least Once" just got shortened by one!!

On Sunday, I went to Winterthur, Switzerland to see one of my all-time favorite bands KEANE live in concert. And it's been a long time coming - for three years Keane have been on the "Anywhere But Here" tour (as I've come to call it), by principle always playing in places where I wasn't. When I was in the US, Keane toured in Europe. When I was in Europe on vacation, Keane were playing in the US or Siberia.

Well, I finally caught up with them...and it was well worth the wait!

My sister and I took a short but expensive (A 27Euro annual highway vignette (pass) for a 800 metre trip on the Autobahn is quite the rip-off, don't you think??) roadtrip to Winterthur, a quaint little town where Keane were playing in the middle of the old town square with historical houses all around. An awesome setting crowned by what more experienced fans call one of the best Keane concerts ever - and we were in the third row! At a standing room only concert that means something, you US readers ;-). Of course I forgot my camera, so I have to 'steal' some from those more organized than me...

I'm suffering from PASD

2009-09-01T22:52:00.001+02:00

Post-American Stress Disorder:

Definition:

This still little known disease affects individuals who have spent a significant amount of time in the geographic regions of the United States of America and are returning to their original habitats. Generally, symptoms will be more prominent, the longer a patient has been exposed to the USofA, in severe cases causes halluzinations, disorientation, and frustration that will make normal functioning difficult and might put the affected in physical danger. PASD is a sub-condition of "Reverse Culture Shock".

Symptoms include one or more of the following:

unbalanced daily routine with unpredictable sleep and eating pattern (see also: Jet-lag)
inexplicable lusting for Twinkies, Corn Dogs, and Starbucks
dangerous driving manoevers (right turn on red) and general dissatisfaction with traffic regulations
incessant demands for additional ice cubes and perpetual re-organization of refrigerators to accommodate water bottles for cooling
inability to watch USofA original television series due to incompatible voice-actor relationship
annoying habit of beginning sentences with "In the US..." or "Over there we do things this and that way..." whenever an opinion is asked (or not)
bouts of claustrophobia in enclosed rooms, stores, and parking spots, along with a general feeling that everything seems smaller than expected
general avoidance of interaction with the environment outside the current habitat and signs of hermit-like behavior
stubborn rejection of the new environment, including refusal to adjust laptop language, time zone, and Word spell check to the new language
involuntary fallback into USofA speech at random and often inopportune moments

Symptoms of PASD should subside as the affected individual succumbs to the new realities of the new life situation and accepts the changes in the environment as permanent. Forced interaction with familiar individuals as well as exposure to activities, foods, and entertainment well-liked before the USofA exposure began will speed up the recovery process. If symptoms persist and the psychological health of the individual is deemed in danger, professional health should be sought.

The journey continues

2009-08-11T06:03:00.000+02:00

All good things must come to an end and don't people always say you should leave while things are still fun? Well, I've decided that nearly 9 years in the US was enough fun for now and that new things are on the horizon...in Europe. Hence, I'm moving back at the end of the months.

What started out as a year-long adventure in the States quickly evolved in a life-changing whirlwind of events and it's all been leading up to what lies ahead. I have made friends for life, have collected unforgettable memories, and learned a ton about all sorts of things. Now it's time to take all this and start a new life somewhere else. In true spirit of how I've managed things so far, I have no specific plans and not really any clue as to what I'll do once I get to Europe, but as always, things will work out how they are supposed to.

I will miss a lot of things about the US, most of all the people that have paved roads and taught me important lessons, but my heart belongs to Europe and as much as I'm going to complain about the lack of 24/7 grocery shopping, I am excited about good coffee, recycling, and a more relaxed outlook on life. And if homesickness for drive-through banking and cheap gas sets in, I'm just a plane ride away.

Thank you mom and dad!

2009-07-20T00:30:00.001+02:00

We've had some embarrassing family pics taken over the years (side ponytails with polka-dot scrunchy is all I will say to that), but nothing quite compares to these I found on AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com. Wow. Just....wow.

Things I miss about Thunderbird *

2009-07-19T05:50:00.000+02:00

* unexhausted list

* My daily lunch of chicken-bacon wraps with lettuce, tomato and chipotle mayo
* Meltdowns and laughing attacks after 12-hour Econ meetings in the prison-like Snell rooms with the funniest Econ team ever!
* The Indians playing cricket on the tennis courts
* Finding Nemo quotes
* Unwinding at the ThunderPub on Thursday nights with the strongest $4 vodka cranberries you will ever find
* "Stir-Fry Guy"
* Study breaks at Starbucks (or Target)
* Last minute all-nighters at the Commons with a bottle of wine for support
* The Data Analysis S(t)imulation project
* Regional Nights!
* Hearing the word "global" at least 3 times per lecture
* T-bird nights at "Bombay" in Prague with buckets of mojitos
* Milka!
* The "negotiation experiment"
* Global Gala 2009
* Roadtrips with the Indians - Las Vegas and Sedona
* Finance classes with Prof. Petitt and the inexplicable passing grade on the final
* The Beer Game in operations management and Prof. Brown's whip
* Watching Grey's Anatomy with Lauren on Thursdays
* Our Istanbul "sugar daddy"
* Taking finals at the TAC
* The Indians storming on the dancefloor to the first notes of "Beware of the boys"
* Wine, candles and Spanish guitar by the Fish
* Anky Monkey's complaining
* Ben's breakfast spreads to bribe us into agreeing to 7:30am meetings on Saturday
* ThunderLove, ThunderLust, ThunderGossip, ThunderEverything
* Being able to talk "global" and "diversity bug" without being looked at like you're crazy
and most of all, of course
The T-Birds!!!!!

"No Baby" zone

2009-07-19T04:46:00.000+02:00

A couple days ago I got back from a short trip to see a friend and her (fairly) new baby. I really had a great time and I loved getting a good dose of “baby time”, but as much as I enjoyed the drooling, squawking and toothless grins I still don’t want one of my own (baby, that is - not a toothless grin, although I don’t want that either of course). I guess there is always some expectation that the motherly instincts will kick in the second that little pudgy hand reaches out to lovingly yank your hair from your scalp, yet apparently my biological clock (which definitely should be ticking loudly at this point) is either out of batteries or simply doesn’t work. My ovaries do not go into overproduction every time a child’s laughter floats through the air and I certainly do not longingly stare after every stroller passing by like Charlotte from ‘Sex and the City’ on PMS. I guess I would just much rather be the cool aunt (err…hint, hint!) and I actually don’t think there is anything wrong with that.

In fact, with my rather cynical lack of trust in mankind’s motivation to solve this planet’s problems I think I’m better off sparing the world yet another oxygen-consuming, pollution-producing human. And if anyone is now thinking “but your child could be the genius with the answer to all our problems” I will just say this. Yes, you’re right. But there is an equally big chance that my kid will be the troubled teenager who drives drunk one night and runs over the one person who actually COULD save the world. Now I wouldn’t want to be responsible for that, would I?

Long time no post

2009-07-03T05:13:00.000+02:00

Wow....time flies when you're busy doing, well, not much. After taking a few weeks off to 'recover' from my Spain trip, moving myself plus all my stuff halfway across the country, and getting settled into what turns out to be a rather dull routine of sleeping, job searching, playing Guitar Hero, and watching Boston Legal (my new favorite show!) I'm going to get back into blogging habit.
At the moment I am somewhat computer-handicapped as my good old lappie has given up the fight with a vicious virus that nearly cost his life during finals week. This means I have a small collection of files on the 'house computer' but there just isn't that same level of intimacy I had with MY laptop. Internet favorites, saved emails and contacts, picture archives, my itunes library,... I am constantly longing for that familiar desktop layout and file directory. Just goes to show how close a relationship I had to my computer. Sad, I know, but if you think that during grad school I spent more time staring at my screen on any given day than I did sleeping, it's really no surprise.
Needless to say, I can't wait for Dell to get their act together!!! Seriously, when did it ever take them 4 weeks to ship a computer??? *sigh* Good thing Facebook is still there to give me that much needed feeling of belonging.

España for beginners

2009-06-04T02:15:00.000+02:00

With another week of Spain time at our disposal, Jenna and I ventured outside of Madrid and, traveling stylish in our litte Citroen Diesel, buzzed through northern Spain for a few days to soak in some non-metropolitan Spanish culture.

First stop on the itinerary was Bilbao, and if it wasn't for Jenna's phone and the excellent English skills of our hostel owner, I'm sure we would still be circling the city trying to find our way. I do think Jenna was ready to jump out of the car and into the river towards the end because we kept passing our street or taking a wrong turn and with all the wretched one-way streets we had to circle all the way around the old town. What fun!

Bilbao is not all that exciting, but the old center is very quaint and if we had been there during the day, I'm sure I would have done some damage in the shopping department...And of course, no trip to Bilbao would be perfect without a visit to the Guggenheim Museum.

On we went along the Atlantic coast to pretty little San Sebastian, famous for its tapas, noisy nightlife (where is that NOT the case in Spain?) and the beach. Of course it rained most of the time, the nightlife was rather subdued because we were there in the middle of the week, and the tapas restaurants closed because of some religious holiday. BUT, it was still cute and pretty and there were plenty of opportunities to go tapas bar hopping and wine drinking.

Finally we headed back south towards Madrid and spend the last night in Zaragoza. You may have guessed what I am about to say - it's so pretty there! It is definitely much more "big city" than San Sebastian but because they had the World Expo there in 2008, all the plazas and churches are clean and recently renovated.

Well, and that was it. We headed back to Madrid for a last night and while Jenna jetted back to the US the following day, I was off to the next part of my vacation - London! Spain, however, is now definitely on my 'most favorite countries' list and I'll have to go back sooner than later for more - there are some types of ham that I haven't tried yet!

I love Madrid!!!

2009-06-04T01:53:00.000+02:00

Of course watching tennis was not all we did while in Madrid. Since I had never been to Spain before (shameful, I know) I made sure to take advantage of my time there and explored just about every corner of Madrid in the few days we didn't linger around the tournament grounds. The city is beautiful and so...European as demonstrated by this important looking building below.

Streets bustling with people, cafes and cute restaurants at every corner (and always full of locals, which brings up the good old question of when these people actually do any work?) and everything is in top shape. Even the street signs are pretty!

Oh yeah, and then there is the jamon - ham. It's what the Spaniards seem to live for. That and wine. At first we were laughing about the fact that there is an entire museum dedicated to ham, but then we figured out that it was a chain of stores/restaurants that offered jamon in forms you've never seen before (usually hanging from the ceiling with the hoove of the animal still attached). It's good stuff, but seriously - how much ham can you eat in a day?

In any case, I thought this picture sums up our time in Madrid rather nicely. My poor street map was shredded at the end of the week from overuse and there was a rapidly growing collection of vino bottles stacked up in the kitchen (I do believe Yves has documented our progress photographically, so I may be able to provide evidence soon). Add Madrid to the list of cities I would love to live in!

Still to come...more adventures in northern Spain...

Mayhem in Madrid

2009-05-20T23:21:00.001+02:00

After over a year worth of planning, sleepless nights over ticket bookings, and countless MSN conversations to work out the details, the PPs (synonymous for something that is better not written out to maintain the PG rating of this blog) descended onto Madrid, Spain. Our little group of tennis (okay, Rafa) fans met online and has been developing friendships over two continents and five countries - and now we were finally going to meet in person (even though two of us couldn't make it) to catch some exciting clay court tennis and a few glimpses of our favorite player.To get us in the right mood, we decorated the apartment accordingly...

Then it was off to the tennis...

...where we spent much of the days doing this:

Much to our demise, our favorite player decided to practice behind glass and at the most inconvenient hours of the day with regards to sunlight, which meant we were straining our eyes against the glare, hoping to catch a peek. Oh yes, we also did see some tennis along the way...

...but our seats were so far up in the nosebleeds that Yves and I developed a serious case of "lens envy". I think next year I need to bring one of these beasts! :-)

In the end, all the sunburns, sore feet, and tired minds were well worth it. Rafa gave us an acknowledging nod...

...and hit one of his autographed balls straight into Seb's fast-reacting hands! We knew the Mallorcan flags would come in handy at some point ;-).

And in the end, the whole trip was more about meeting up with good friends and sharing a ridiculous number of laughs. Tennis provided just the excuse. Thanks for some wonderful memories, my beloved PPPs ;-). Here's to the reunion in 2011!!!

Done!!!!!

2009-05-20T16:24:00.000+02:00

A little delayed after a hectic two weeks, but better late than never, this is the official "I'm dooooone!" blog entry that is long overdue. After roughly two years of insanity, thousands of miles traveled, 13 different countries visited, and countless hours spent studying, writing papers, and in team meetings, my MBA career came to a conclusion on May 1st.
My parents and youngest sister, along with the Cincinnati crew came to spend the weekend and to experience both the graduation ceremony as well as the big Graduation Gala that same evening. It was a bittersweet weekend, however. After calling Phoenix home for nearly 2 years, it was difficult to fathom saying goodbye to all the great people I had made friends with. Even though I'm sure I will see many of them again in the future, saying goodbye had some sad finality - it won't be the same. Still, exciting things lay ahead for all of us - least of which will be to find a job!

So here is to Thunderbird, some of the funnest times I've had in my life, the amazing experiences I had and the wonderful people I met. Oh yes, and not to forget, of course, the useful things I've learned and life lessons I was taught along the way. It was a crazy ride and I will probably never be on such a roller coaster ride again.

Bye T-bird - hello reality!

ThunderWedding!

2009-05-05T02:11:00.000+02:00

Amidst preparing for final exams, writing last-minute project reports, and preparing to move to wherever their jobs are taking them next, some T-birds have enough time to take care of some other business...like marrying the love of their life. Last Wednesday, two of my good friends tied the knot in what can only be described as the most unconventional wedding I will probably ever see. The T-birds came out in costumes and the bride and groom themselves wore a wedding dress from Ebay with a fake baby belly and green shorts with a jacket and tie.

Like I said, not your typical wedding, but more than representative of the couple's characters and personalities. The whole thing was hilarious...from the costume parade through downtown Phoenix to the expression on the faces of the judge and everyone else working at the courthouse. But in the end, it was mainly about making a lifelong commitment and celebrating the relationship of the bride and groom.

Congrats guys and all the best!

Approaching triple digits

2009-04-22T00:51:00.000+02:00

Close the blinds, hide your children, and take precautions for a prolonged hibernation period. The Arizona summer has arrived!!!

A mere three days ago we were enjoying lunch outside, frolicking in the pleasant weather of late spring, and sighing contently about the advantages of living in the Southwest while other parts of the country were suffering from rain, cold, and sometimes even snow. The mornings were still a little "chilly" (a goosebumpy 65 degrees), the afternoons gorgeous, and the evenings pleasant enough to sit outside with a sweater and maybe a picnic blanket.

And then it all changed in an instant. I woke up on Sunday and the second I set foot outside my dorm room I could tell that it was all different. Where we used to stroll blissfully across campus from one class room to the next, we are now darting and dotting from one shady spot to the next, trying to avoid sunlight like a vampire runs (or flies I guess) from a clove of garlic.

Getting in the car now requires a first-aid kit to tend to all the burns you’ll suffer from actually touching something and accident rates will skyrocket because people do everything in their power to steer with only one finger touching the scorching hot wheel.

Okay, so maybe I’m overreacting, but really, it’s not fun. I was not ready to give up spring, or sitting in the sun without obtaining a heatstroke within 10 minutes, or praying for the air conditioning to finally kick into high gear. And in the end it’s just another sign that my time at Thunderbird is coming to a rapid end. A week from tomorrow I will be finished with my MBA and I guess if I had any inclination to maybe stick around for another semester or so to avoid reality, that’s gone out the window with the prospect of sitting through an Arizona summer.

Maybe I should start job-hunting in Sweden.

Celebrating the 80s!

2009-04-18T00:54:00.000+02:00

As if we had nothing else to do these days, the T-birds gathered last night to celebrate the decade of leggins, big hair, and shoulder pads. It was 80's Night at the Pub! I am still astonished that people would actually leave their houses wearing some of the things that were popular back then...in terms of fashion the 80's were definitely the most embarrassing thing the world had seen up to that point. The music, however, was brilliant and so we raided the local thrift shops for some shiny polyester outfits, sweatbands, and legwarmers and danced away to Michael Jackson and Madonna. Just the distraction from projects and papers everyone needed!

Of course the Germans had to proclaim their love for the most popular American in Germany during the 80s. I've been looking for freedom...that's for sure!

Same procedure as every Thursday

2009-04-12T23:10:00.000+02:00

I was banned from bringing my camera to the Pub by some of our friends - apparently I have a talent to catch people at the most inopportune (and unflattering) moments. Haha. Oh well, there's always Lauren and judging from those pictures she's got quite the eye for Kodak moments as well.

Thursday was just another night at the Pub, preceeded by a wine tasting put on by the Wine Club. Following a week full of work and knowing that the weekend would be more of the same, we got a little carried away and yes, had a lot of fun. I think you'll be able to tell by the pictures.

I made up for it yesterday with a marathon team meeting that started at 9am and didn't end until almost 12 hours later. So there, we DO work in Grad school!

And before I forget:

Happy Easter everyone!

Random thoughts

2009-04-11T08:12:00.000+02:00

Wow. Things are moving along quickly - too quickly for my taste. Three weeks from now I will be recovering from Graduation and the preceeding days of dilirious partying at the Pub. I can't believe how fast the last 18 months have gone by and as much as I'd like to be in denial about having to leave here, I guess I can't argue with reality. Yes I'm glad to be done with classes and papers and stressful weekends, but still...I'm also not quite ready to leave. Things might look different if I actually had any idea what the future holds in store. Oh well, it will work out how it's supposed to work out, right?

In the meantime we are trying to make the best of our remaining time at Thunderbird. We finally managed to go to the Ethiopian restaurant we wanted to visit since the first semester! There are still some parties to be held, including a wedding on the 29th!

Oh yes, and of course there are still three big research papers to be written, two project reports to be prepared, two major presentations to be given, a video to be filmed, a strategy report to be submitted to the President of Thunderbird, and a few chapters of a book to be edited. The next two weeks will be interesting.

Dark is Cool

2009-03-31T06:52:00.001+02:00

Here is how some of the world's major cities celebrated Earth Hour. Pretty cool pics, although in the original version here, you can just click on the picture and it turns the lights off. Since I don't know how to save that type of file, this will have to do. Haha.

Shanghai

Los Angeles

London

Hong Kong

Paris

Las Vegas

Earth Hour

2009-03-26T22:20:00.000+01:00

On Saturday, March 28, 2009 at 8:30PM millions of people, schools, and cities in countries all around the world will make a bold statement of concern about climate change by doing something quite simple— turning off their lights for one hour. Earth Hour.
Las Vegas is turning off the lights on The Strip. Broadway in New York City is going dark. The Golden Gate Bridge, Sydney's famous Opera House, and the Washington Memorial will shut off their lights. Berlin is the largest city in Europe to participate. We have convinced Thunderbird to participate and on Saturday evening, the entire campus will turn off its lights and be in (near) complete darkness for one hour.
Pretty cool, huh? Earth Hour is trying to get close to 1 billion people to participate. Do your part and turn your lights off for one hour at 8:30pm on Saturday.

Show off

2009-03-23T18:20:00.001+01:00

As you all know, I went to Indian Wells last weekend to enjoy some fun days with my good friend Jenna and to (of course) watch some serious tennis action at the ATP tournament. Besides having a tremendous time, meeting loads of nice and interesting people, and even managing to get a bit of a tan, I was also testing my new camera to see how it would hold up under extreme demands - all in preparation for my upcoming trip to Madrid :-).

Not being a professional photographer in any sense of the word, I prescribe to the "click and go" type technology, but I did experiment with some settings now and then and here are the results (please excuse the distinct lack of diversity in the models - you know me :-)).

Jenna will probably kill me for putting her picture up here, but I am only trying to show off how beautiful Indian Wells is. Palm trees surrounded by snow-capped mountains...not an every day sight as you may guess.

Here is Mr. Fernando "Hotsauce" Verdasco coming back from practice. With this new hair-do he looks even more like a peacock when he walks around, but who cares. But he's still my second favorite Spaniard.

And, naturally, no trip to a tournament would be complete without catching a few glimpses of the world #1 himself.

I was pretty happy with a lot of my shots and was even reassured of it when during one of the practices, the lady next to me told me that she was working on an article about Rafa Nadal for a men's magazine (forgot of course which one) and said that she might contact me to use some of my pictures. Hmm...maybe I should consider quitting my day job and becoming a professional tennis groupie???

Time Out

2009-03-12T08:52:00.001+01:00

It's the middle of the semester, my half-classes are done and over with, new classes will start next week. After finals, exams, and loads of projects due this past week, I'm taking a few days off to take a little trip to Indian Wells, CA. We get cheated out of Spring break so we kind of have to schedule our own. No worries, I will not be missing any classes. We are off Friday anyway and I will be back in time for my 1pm class on Monday :-).
I'm going to see my friend Jenna for the first time since August 2007 and of course we've managed to sneak in a few days of tennis watching as well. Just coincidence...I promise! Well, maybe not entirely, but it would be kind of silly to be within 4 hours of a major ATP tournie and NOT stop by for a visit, right? If anything I'll be able to work on my tan this weekend!
I know...Grad school life is tough :-).

Back to the Pub

2009-03-10T20:52:00.000+01:00

I noticed it's been a while since I last posted pictures from the ThunderPub. I can't have you thinking that I'm not having any fun, so here's the visual proof. Of course I was only able to hang out at the Pub after looooooong hours of studying and slaving in the library :-).
And of course no good night at the Pub is complete without the traditional after-hour festivities. And while the Indian parties from the first tri have become less frequent, there's always a late-night snack to be found somewhere in the B dorms (also known as the Indian Hub). There's no hangover prevention quite like a delicious plate of rice and egg burji!

PS: If you haven't seen it yet, go watch "Slumdog Millionaire". Best movie in a loooong time!!!

Blog challenge

2009-03-05T00:08:00.000+01:00

The other day, my friend Lauren proudly informed me that she had posted her 101st blog post. That, of course, got me to check my own tally and I am stuck at 93 (make that 94 with this one). And we started on the same day!!! Unbelievable! I've obviously slacked off quite a bit, so I now have to at least catch up with her.
I've got to be realistic- I will never be a once-a-day blogger, nor would anyone want that because really, who has time to check my blog all the time? But I am now going to make a concerted effort to post more (but no less 'meaningful') posts. And in that spirit...read on for a bunch of VERY random things I need to get off my chest:

Congrats Ally and Shaun for their baby boy!!
I bought my graduation cap and gown today (56 to go)!
In 8 days I'll see Jenna!
US visa regulations stink.
I can't wait to not have 8am classes anymore!
I'm in the mood for Starbucks!
I'm late for another meeting.

A day in the life of...

2009-02-28T02:17:00.000+01:00

After getting emails from friends and family commenting on the fact that my life seems to consist of nothing but parties at the ThunderPub, trips to exotic parts of the world, and a whole lot of fun, I thought it would be appropriate to negate any such rumors and demonstrate that I do - indeed- work every now and then. Granted, we only have class from Monday to Thursday, but that doesn't mean we automatically get 3-day weekends.
For example, here was my schedule for today:
2:30am: Go to bed after a long and exhausting night at the Jordanian BBQ, wine tasting, ThunderPub
8:30am - 9:30am: Crawl out of bed slightly hung-over, shower, and get ready
9:30am - 12:00pm: Team meeting to plan upcoming client meeting (but at least there's breakfast at the meeting!)
12:00pm - 1:00pm: Write follow-up emails resulting from team meeting; prepare and send out meeting minutes; prepare for TSG meeting
1:00pm - 2:00pm: Student Government (TSG) meeting
2:00pm - 4:00pm: Meet with first trimester student to discuss involvement in and strategies for TSG sustainability activities
4:00pm - 5:00pm: Catch up on emails; do research on items discussed in meeting and send follow-up emails; prepare for ThunderGreen meeting
5:00pm - 6:00pm: ThunderGreen (student club) meeting to discuss upcoming events and activities; promote TSG activities with club leadership, etc.
6:15pm - 6:45pm: Write silly blog entry (fun activity)
6:45pm - 8:45pm: Proof-read Prof. Brown's book chapters and create example answers for teaching materials
8:45pm - 9:45pm: Find some place in Glendale that still serves dinner
9:45pm - midnight: Work on various other piled up work
midnight - 1:00am: to be determined (probably bed though)

Saturday:
Start over again.
Of course I might also decide to throw it all into the wind and go to the mall tomorrow, but we'll see... :-)

67 days and counting

2009-02-24T05:35:00.000+01:00

The other day I realized that it is now just a bit over two months before we are graduating from Thunderbird. Then, once I recovered from the panic attack, I became rather sentimental about the last 18 months. I'm not ready to leave. Seriously, I'm not.
I know, I know...this whole thing about growing up and getting out in the real world has its attraction and don't get me wrong - I am excited about that as well. But as much as I've complained about Glendale, the heat, my exams, etc. I'm not quite ready to leave it all behind. Believe it or not, there are still things I want to do before leaving and I'm starting to feel like I am completely running out of time to do them (Lauren, we seriously need to schedule dinner at that Ethiopian restaurant we've been talking about for a year!!) .

In the end though, the worst part of leaving T-bird will be leaving all the awesome people I met here, m any of whom I will, realistically, probably never see again. Being at a 'truly global' school is great, but it makes visiting classmates a real pain! :-( I guess it all wouldn't be so bad if I had any idea where I was going to after Thunderbird, but being as things are, I don't even know what continent I'll be on. Oh well, as a true T-bird I am supposed to take such situations in stride, so I am not going to complain.

Anyway, there is no point of getting depressed about this right now - it'll just ruin the rest of my time here. I'm sure there will be plenty of tears shed once it gets closer to the 'big day' - May 1. For now, I think I'll just start writing out a list of things I still want to do here in Phoenix and surrounding area. That way I can manage my leisure time (errm...what's this again?) better AND it's a good distraction from reading tomorrow's Strategy case ;-).

Water... again

2009-02-14T05:59:00.000+01:00

Seems I somehow can't get away from the water-theme when it comes to internships or projects. My favorite class this semester (Business Consulting) is not only teaching me tons of stuff, but I also get to work with some truly amazing and inspiring people at the Seawater Foundation (and some really awesome Thunderbirds as well). Check out this video about what the organization has worked on for the last 30+ years and has now turned into a for-profit company. The founder, Carl Hodges, was named #10 of the Top 25 environmentalists in the world and is a CNN Principal Voice on all things Climate Change. From everything we hear, he is one of those people that can easily inspire others with his passion and has a vision to truly change the world. It should make for a truly memorable class project!

Food poisoning?

2009-02-14T05:36:00.001+01:00

I have to comment on this rather disgusting topic because it totally reminded me of several conversations I've had with someone in Cincinnati. In the past couple weeks, a rather nasty stomach flu has haunted Thunderbird campus and surrounding areas. So far, I've managed to stay unaffected even though my poor roommate was one of the 'victims' (Peg, I'm always following the "wash your hands often and don't touch your face" rule!).
Anyway, I just had to laugh because earlier this week there was a big discussion going around campus about the 'food poisoning' that people supposedly had caught eating at the Commons. Now, the food isn't great there, but they also don't generally poison half the student body, and even the health center confirmed that it was indeed the stomach flu and NOT the coleslaw. Still, people continue to insist that they aren't contagious but rather had a bad plate of lasagne or something.
Sound familiar?
Whatever it is, I'm keeping my distance and I didn't share my cup with anyone at the Pub last night. Fingers crossed!

Motivational problems

2009-02-10T23:33:00.000+01:00

I admit it. This blog post is basically serving one purpose: To keep me from doing work.
I have about a trillion meetings coming up this week for which I need to prepare, have loads of case studies and book chapters to read for class tomorrow, and a few assignments to hand in the next few days...and yet I can't seem to get myself into gear.
I blame the weather. I'm not joking. I think it's the spring weather...reminds me of spring back home when it was finally warm enough to maybe sit outside for half an hour. It just puts me in this "do nothing and enjoy the day" mood - which is great for my disposition but does nothing for my productivity. I'm even doing laundry (laundry!!!!) to escape homework!! You know it's bad when...
But since I'm on here wasting time I might as well take care of some business, right? So...here's a shoutout to my friend in Cincinnati who just last week announced (to me at least) that she's pregnant. Congrats!! (and don't worry, I will not post another blog entry about baby showers :-)). If you need any advise, please don't come to me, but I'm always willing to babysit...provided you produce a bairn with hair! :-) Also, I'm always available in case you need name suggestions - just ask Ally. (I still think Huehnebrecht is a great name!)
I've also been pacing the mailbox because I'm waiting for my Indian Wells tickets to be delivered. I'm going to take my car on a little roadtrip to California (he's never been there) where I will meet up with one of my online buddies for some serious weekend entertainment - at the BNP open. That's a tennis tournament, not golf. Please, you should know by now. I haven't seen Jenna in...almost 2.5 years, so it'll be a fun reunion!
Okay, now I'm really running out of things to say and my laundry will need to be moved to the dryer in a minute, so I won't bore you any longer. Thanks for listening. This was very therapeutic.
:-)

Did you know...Jordan edition!

2009-02-03T00:46:00.000+01:00

After starting this little series whenever I return from an abroad stint, here is another installment of some of the small things you observe when you're traveling abroad. They generally don't have enough significance to deserve their own blog entry, but I think this is a fun way to share some insights about places I've visited.
Hence, did you know...
...that Jordanians love to discuss politics?
Everywhere we went during our time in Amman we were asked to give our opinions about Bush, Obama, the Palestinian conflict, the world economic situation, and probably would have also been quizzed about the latest escapades of the French President if the car ride had been long enough. Of course we were advised not to bring up any of those subjects ourselves, but we figured there wasn’t much harm in giving unidentifiable grunts in recognition. Overall, people were pretty much open to hearing what we had to say, although I think during the Obama inauguration it was better for all Bush supporters to gracefully ignore the enthusiastic “Bye-bye Bush” chants of our Jordanian hosts. Not that I disagree with them…
...that Jordanian food is hard to find in Jordan?
Okay, that may be an overstatement, but on our lunch excursions in downtown Amman, it was rather difficult to actually find a place that served anything other than burgers, pizza, and a rather interesting dish called ‘fajita’ that was usually the same as one of the other chicken dishes but at twice the price. Once we asked our coworkers to recommend us a local place nearby and got in return a confused stare and a very emphatic “Well, there is Papa John’s around the corner!” Hence, we settled in for pasta and pizza lunches and enjoyed local food on our frequent restaurant outings or when we were graciously invited to the homes of some locals. There isn’t anything better than home-cooked Mansaf anyway!
...Jordanians are rude?
Well, at least if you ask them. We found them to be extremely nice, very hospitable, and excellent conversation partners with good senses of humor (and very humble, right Qusai?). You know you’re in a great country when even the taxi drivers don’t try to rip you off! And after all, how can there be anything wrong with a country where a poor Westerner gets pulled over by the police and instead of being issued a speeding ticket is sent off with a warm “Welcome to Jordan”?
...that shisha equals hookah equals narghile?
In Jordan it is usually written as Arghelee and any attempt to order a hookah or shisha ended in waiters giving us blank stares until we resolved to pointing to the menu or to a customer nearby who was eagerly puffing away on his own model. Jordanians smoke hookah everywhere and any time, but apparently with special preference for lunch hours. I personally could never quite get used to mixing hookah with eating, but I guess I’m just not a sophisticated enough smoker. We tried to smoke our way through the various flavors, but after a rather dubious “lemon mint” experience I tended to stick with the better known fruit flavors and made sure I was never even close when someone braved into the licorice territory. No thanks!
...that we had a wonderful time in Jordan and can't wait to go back?

Wadi Vrooom!

2009-01-27T19:48:00.000+01:00

Following our Petra adventures, we were back on the bus early the next day, making our way across mountains (don't ask me which ones) to Wadi Rum, one of the most famous desert places in Jordan. The weather cleared up for us by the time we switched from the bus to off-road jeeps, in which we were driven around in by a group of friendly Beduin drivers, all of which seemed to enjoy racing each other along the plaines and around the dunes.

The landscape was seriously breathtaking, even though you would think that desert and sand and rocks can only provide so much visual entertainment. We stopped at several different places to stare at rock formations or climb up sand dunes, made friends with a bunch of camels, and had tea at a Beduin tent (where they probably drop off all tourists on their way through the desert), and tried to soak up as much sun as possible.

Wadi Rum was definitely one of the highlights of our tourist explorations, and the consensus was that we would love to come back and spent a night under the stars. This time around, there wasn't time for that, but it's good to have a reason to come back, right?

Petra-fied

2009-01-18T11:42:00.000+01:00

Petra is supposed to be the one thing you have to see while traveling through or around Jordan, and so the expectations were high when we set out early on Friday morning for the 3 hour drive down south. Eventually, the bus dropped us off at the visitor center, and we embarked on the rather substantial but pleasant walk down into the valley, foregoing a ride on the ridiculously pathetic looking ponies. It would have been more appropriate for us to carry them!
Once deep into the valley, our guide asked us to close our eyes and lead us around the corner, until the famous front of the Treasury was visible between the walls of the canyon - an amazing sight for which the pictures are not doing justice. But still, they may give a hint of how impressive the entire place is. We spent a good couple hours walking around the vast compound, which was both a burial place and a city, hence the rather interesting mix of tombs and theatres carved into the solid rocks. It's amazing to think that people almost 2,000 years ago were able to create something that lasts for centuries, when we- advanced as we are- can't seem to build anything that survives a minor tropical storm!

The rest of the afternoon was spent wandering about the various sites, climbing up to the top of rock tombs and palace-like fronts. Eventually we made our way back through the valley and to the hotel, where the T-birds quickly recovered from some of the more strenuous hikes to the hills atop of Petra and went out for a collective drink and pizza - although some might have been tempted to order some of the more...interesting items on the menu.

Liberal Germans

2009-01-15T21:15:00.001+01:00

Here's the proof: The Germans DO have a sense of humor. This is a campaign poster for the Social Democrats, playing on the fact that there were 5 million unemployed people in Germany at the time of this campaign.

Roughly translated to: Sex at the office is awesome! It's a pity that 5 million Germans can't enjoy it.

For old times sake...

2009-01-14T15:21:00.000+01:00

Remember this one?

For all non-German speakers: "Maschendrahtzaun" = chain link fence aka chicken wire.

Thanks to Elena for reminding me how much I used to like Stefan Raab!

This blog sponsored by: USAID

2009-01-13T09:36:00.000+01:00

As some of you may already know, my trip to Jordan isn't all just fun and games. In fact, the majority of our time here is spent working with small Jordanian businesses and helping them expand their business or operations either within the country or abroad. The trip was organized by Thunderbird and co-sponsored by USAID, which is foreign aid arm of the US government. In Jordan we are working through the Business Development Center, which was orginally funded by USAID and is now an alone-standing entity trying to give business support to Jordanian businesses.

As a result of this high-profile program, we've been paraded around quite a bit and even met the US Embassador last week, who spent an hour chatting and having tea with us. See below for a screen shot of the US Embassy website this week. We've also been features in a number of Jordanian newspapers, but since they are all in Arabic, there really wouldn't be much point in posting the article :-). I know, I know... I may be underestimating your language skills!

Anyway, what I really wanted to do was to report to all you Americans out there about what good work your tax dollars are doing over here in Jordan: They are sponsoring a country! I am not even kidding, USAID has its hands in everything. They sponsor roads, buildings, business loans, education programs, hospitals, internships for US students, etc. etc. In fact, I swear every other thing our tourguide pointed out last weekend was somehow financed by USAID - the restoration of the mosaics, the road that is being cobble-stoned, the tourist police that protects all attractions. It's like the entire country is running on USAID - and Jordan is only the third largest recipient of US foreign aid (the other two being Israel and Egypt, well yeah, and Iraq of course).

Now before you get mad and think that this money could be better spent at home...it's worth a lot to have at least one or two friends in the region, don't you think? Even if you have to buy their support... Besides, if there's ever been a country where people deserved getting all this support, it's Jordan. I swear, I've been to a lot of friendly places, but the people here are definitely a cut above the rest! In that sense, I'm putting on my Jordanian kefiyya to show some solidarity and then back to work!

All roads lead to Rome

2009-01-11T13:38:00.000+01:00

Day 2 of our sight-seeing adventure took us to the northern part of Jordan, to the castle of Ajloun and later to Jerash. Ajloun was build a looooong time ago, some time around 200 AD if I remember it correctly (but then again, I may be inventing things). In any case, the castle is pretty well maintained and the views from the top are breathtaking. So we crawled around the stairwells for a while and posed for pictures with the costumed guards before heading on to see some serious culture in the Roman ruins of Jerash.

It has to be said: I've seen a LOT of Roman ruins in my life, given that they are sprinkled all over Europe to the point that you can't walk across a field without accidentally tripping over a bit of vase or urn, or whatever those things are. Still, aside from Pompeii, the ruins of Jerash are some of the coolest ones I've seen so far. The hippodrome is one of the best preserved in all the world and is still used for chariot races (the show being the equivalent of Disney's World's Indiana Jones stunt show, without the special effects).

Along our walk across the vast remains of a Roman city, we were treated to a rather curious spectacle. A traditional, Jordanian display of...bagpiping! Not quite the same without the Scottish kilts, but still rather entertaining, this interesting mix of cultures is a leftover from the fact that the Jordanian army, in its early days, was trained by the Brits.

The rest of the afternoon we spent strolling around the vast grounds, craning our necks to see the intrecate decorations on an endless supply of columns and pillars (I still don't know the difference between the two), and giving moral support to Prof. Wetzel, who nearly expired with a heart attack when a bunch of T-birds decided to free-climb to the top of a temple gate. No injuries to be reported though! Then it was back to Amman, where we fell over the prepared dinner and gathered in the lounge to watch "Slumdog Millionaire", which I can only recommend to anyone looking for a good movie.

It's good for the skin, or so they say

2009-01-10T20:58:00.000+01:00

After a week of hard work on our respective projects, the T-birds gathered bright and early in the morning and headed West towards the Dead Sea - the lowest point in the world. On the way, we stopped at a church that holds one of the oldest maps of the Middle East in mosaic form. Very neat to see, even though much of Egypt and Syria have been destroyed over time.

On we went to Mount Nebo, the supposed death place of Moses. As you can tell I am just a tad bit suspicious over all these "that person did this or that here" claims, especially since any spot having that type of fame to its name is guaranteed to receive a dramatic increase in tourist visits, but oh well...the view was great!

Eventually though, it was down, down, down on curvy roads until we hit the Dead Sea, somewhere around 400 meter below sea level. In my hurried departure and my Pub-inspired packing I had forgotten to bring my bathing suit, and since skinny-dipping was (for various reasons) NOT an option, I took on the role of photographer. If anything it gave me another reason to fiddle around with my camera settings and a good excuse to use my zoom lense!

Then, after some good fun and about 200 pictures of mud-covered Thunderbirds, we headed back towards Amman, but not without stopping at our tourguide's favorite tourist trap. I scored some Dead Sea mud for home use (should be interesting in my little dorm room shower!) and a nice smelling hand lotion. Upon our return, a group of us ended up going to a local restaurant on recommendation of our classmate Jalil, who is a Jordanian local. YUM!!!!

Impressions from Jerusalem

2009-01-07T16:56:00.000+01:00

Amongst all the historically important sites in Jerusalem, it's difficult to pick a few to showcase and not bore everyone to death with old stone buildings. Nevertheless, here's a selection of some of the things we saw.
The Wailing Wall is where the Jewish community comes to pray. If I remember it correctly the reason why they picked this wall is because they believe that the Temple Mount (for which the Wailing Wall is a support) is holy, which is why they cannot set foot on it. Mind you that in Islam, the Temple Mount is where Mohammed ascended into the sky, so they built a mosque and the Dome of the Rock on top of it. Just one of the many reasons why the two religions are having...issues with each other.
No idea what this is, but I'm sure it's incredibly old and really, really important. Mainly I just like the shot because it gives you an idea how quaint Jerusalem is. Same for the second one.

The old ruins below are where the Pool of Bethesda was (or is believed to have been - nobody really knows). Lauren and I definitely do not have enough knowledge of biblical events to fully appreciate the historical significance of many of the monuments, but we found them impressive anyway.

The Church of the Nations on the Mount of Olives. One of the many stops on our way up the hill. Don't laugh, it is steep enough that any break is welcome. But the views make up for the pain!

More old stuff in the Old City, on our way to Mount Zion, which turned out to be easy to miss, believe it or not!

The weather was finally nice enough on the last day to make for some gorgeous pictures. By the way, thanks to some very generous people, Jerusalem was the inaugurational trip of my new Nikon D60 camera. I'm sure I haven't figured out half the things I can do with it, so I am sticking to "aim and click" at this point. The pictures are still nice, I think. I can't wait to take it out to the Jordanian dessert where we are heading tomorrow. Stay tuned for more Jordan blog posts!