I have arrived

So, I made it. After a long, yet comfortable plane ride that included watching District 9 (a pretty decent movie), having insane dreams about my brother and I being in a plane accident and landing in Haiti, and having really, REALLY bad airline food, I landed in Frankfurt at 6:30am. I wasn't too tired and tried to get myself jazzed up to start my adventure. I followed the signs to the train station and bought my rail ticket to Munich. Once on board, all of the doubts started to come back. I understood nothing of what anyone was saying. I kept sitting in other people's seats (I didn't know where the reserved and unreserved sections were until the very nice conductor helped me). I kept thinking to myself, "What the hell am I doing here? This is very wrong. I should be back home." And I still couldn't figure out why I felt this way. I'd been in foreign countries before where English was not the predominent language. This was not a totally new thing for me. And then I started thinking that maybe it was because I didn't have anyone to share it with. Maybe being here by myself is what was making me so nervous and apprehensive. But in typing this, I think I'm having an epiphany. I DO have someone to share it with. Anyone who is reading this blog is sharing in this journey with me. I'm not alone. I'm suddenly feeling much better about this!!

Once I finally got settled on the train, it was a very nice ride. It was incredibly smooth and went through much of the German countryside. I noticed a lot of grafitti everywhere. It was a little disturbing. I wanted things to be cleaner. Didn't they get the memo I was coming? But outside of that, it was really quite beautiful. It did remind me a lot of the town where my dad grew up. Lots of rolling hills, beautiful trees, lush green fields (in December, no less!). I even woke up one time on the ride to snow covered fields. It's funny. Seeing that snow made me feel warm inside. It really did remind me of home.

After arriving in Munich at about 11:30am, I needed to find my hotel. I knew it wasn't far from the train station, so I headed to the nearest tourist shop and bought a map. Within ten minutes I was checked in and laying on my oh so small bed. But, I had my first challenge completed and I felt good. I unpacked, took a quick shower, and headed out.

I decided that since I only had half a day today, I was going to go to Marienplatz. It is a large pedestrian mall with shops and the Christmas market. I just wanted to go out and get a feel for the city. I didn't want to take a ton of pictures and be all touristy. I just wanted to experience the hub of the city. It was very overcast and rainy, but I easily made my way down.

Of course, the first thing I had to do was find food. And what else could I possibly eat as my first meal in Germany but bratwurst!!

I ate at a stall that was next to an ice rink that was installed for the holidays. Santa was skating on the ice and I saw my first German bear.

This Christmas Market was very neat. There are a ton of stalls selling ornaments, decorations, clothing, but mostly food. I haven't tried the Guhlwein yet, but I'll probably get to it later. A lot of people were standing around drinking it, so it seems to be something I need to try. One thing that did spark my interest were a few stalls selling wheat weaving ornaments. This is a traditional German craft. My grandmother actually taught me how to do it when I was a kid. She even grew her own wheat for it. We spent hours going through different patterns and shapes and I still have some things she made. So seeing those stalls made me think of her. People were probably wondering why I had such a big grin on my face.

In the middle of Marienplatz and the Christmas Market is a huge clock tower that chimes at noon with little people revolving around it. I was too late to catch it today, but I definitely want to see it before I leave.

Finally, I got too tired and wet to be outside any more. I walked back to my room and actually took a little nap. Feeling refreshed, I went back out for another evening stroll. The rain had stopped, it wasn't bitingly cold, and I enjoyed a brisk walk on a Friday evening with the hustle and bustle of people milling about. I wound up going in to an Italian restaurant for pizza (listening to Italians speak German was kind of interesting). It filled my tummy up nicely.

So now, I think I'm ready to really enjoy my stay. I have a day under my belt, I've gotten a bit of lay of the land, and I don't feel so awkward about being here by myself any more. I think it's gonna be a good trip.

Today's observations:

Germans smoke a lot.

German women like to wear fur coats.

German boys are cute.

Germans eat sausage anywhere.

Germans are not shy about their sexuality.