"The Canadian Identity, it seems, is truly elusive only at home. Beyond the borders Canadians know exactly who they are, within they see themselves as part of a family, a street, a neighbourhood, a community, a province , a region, and on special occasions like Canada Day and Grey Cup weekend and, of course, during the Winter Olympics, a country called Canada.

Beyond the borders, they pine; within the borders, they more often whine."

-Roy MacGregor in his book Canadians, as paraphrased by Kate Beaton.

Trier Photodump 1

Simeonstraße en route to the Porta Nigra

Kornmarkt and Deutschepost Building

Grumpy preußische Musiker

Lovely Luthier-shop that I walk by and drool.

Endlich in Trier

19 Sept
Trier

"Finally in Trier, safe and sound. Arrived back on the 17th after taking the 'milk run' Regionalbahn instead of the slightly faster Regionalexpress from Koblenz. The RB stops at every little village along the way, making for a very slow trip. Had a good conversation with a little old German lady on the train - they make for the best conversation partners on long train rides, when they're not too afraid to talk to a foreigner. Also helped a weeping girl find a train connection in Koblenz to Metz, as she spoke no German at all. Dangerous, to travel in a country where you know nothing of the language - and English wasn't even her first language, I figure."

Trier's Hauptmarkt with St Gangolf's Church in the background.

"Trier is very picturesque, a small/medium sized city nestled away in the extreme west of Rheinland-Pfalz, bundled up against a bend in the Mosel River. There is a large pedestrian zone which contains the majority of the shops, anything that you need really. Luckily this pedestrian zone is only a 5 minute walk from my apartment! My mentor-teacher showed me around on my first day, pointing out all the little grocery stores where I could buy food &c. No roommates around yet: they'll start arriving next week."

After a few days I went on a big walk in the City to see sights, as it were. This included the Kaiserthermin, the remains of a massive Roman bathhouse. Trier is well-known for having the most Roman ruins north of the Alps, and it was even Emperor Konstatin's seat of government for a few years.





In the second photo you see the remains of the main building of the baths, with the old hypocaust tunnels visible. Hypocausts were the backbone of the Roman bath: fires would be lit on the periphery of the tunnel system, and then the warm air would go through the tunnels, heating the basins of water above. These systems could be so complicated and complex that different basins of water would be different temperatures, and you would even have steam rooms. Bathing was very important in Roman culture - your average middle-class or upper-class Roman spent on average 2 or so hours in bathhouses! You can wander down into these tunnels, which I wouldn't recommend for anoyone who is claustraphobic. The entire underground system smells of dank old earth, and is quite eerie.





I also visited the Basilika, which is the former audience-hall of one Konstantin the Great. You might have heard of him. Kinda a big deal, bringing Christianity to the Roman Empire and all.



The actual Basilika is the big brick building in the background. Today a church, the Basilika was heavily damaged in WWII bombing but was quickly rebuilt - it's not that complicated of a structure anyway, just a big empty room inside (albeit a massive empty room). Once again, no photos allowed of the inside of the Basilika. The silly building tacked unforunately onto the front of the Basilika is the former palace of the Duke or Count or whatever it was of Trier. Maybe a prince's palace? I don't know. I like Roman stuff more.

The Basilika, viewed on its own. Imagine the whole thing empty inside like a giant ballroom.

Köln und Altenberg

First visited Köln on the morning of 14 September after leaving Soest. Was initially unimpressed by the place from my short tour of walking around in the brutal rain. Köln was largely destroyed in WWII, so there are few "old" buildings left, besides the Dom. The Dom itself is quite impressive as you can see, strangely reminiscient of the Black Gates of Mordor. German catholics know how to build cathedrals: even as a non-Catholic, I was hit by a strong sense of piety and grandeur inside the Dom. No pictures of the interior, as they ask you not to. There were neophytes or whatever they were in their red robes, telling people to take off hats and nto to take photos.

I was in Köln to meet up with the rest of the Rheinland-Pfalz/Hamburg/Hessen/Nieder-Sachsen language assistants for our orientation (Einführungstagung) in Altenberg, outside of Köln. The idea was that we would all meet up in the Hauptbahnhof on the 14th, then board coach buses for the monastery at Altenberg where we would be staying.



Altenberg was an interesting experience, and I managed to get to know a few of the other language assistants. We were put into dorm-style rooms with people from the same cities/regions that we were moving to, in order to faciliate better friendships &c &c. I was put in a three'er room with Jack and Neil, both of whom are in Trier with me.



Today a hostel, Altenberg was a monastery founded sometime back between the 1100s and 1400s (I can't remember which). Not going to lie, the whole orientation-experience rang eerily of Hogwarts: we were in an old sort of castle/church/monastery tucked away into the woods in the middle of nowhere, with a meal-hall, wooden staircases to dormitories, and we were forever running to and fro to classes with bundles of papers and books under our arms. Yet another surreal experience.


Courtyard at Altenberg, church on the right, meal hall on the left, dormitories in second and third floors forward.



Mostly Brits at the orientation, with only a few Canadians, and even fewer Aussies, Kiwis and Irish. I was the only British Columbian, and it wasn't until the last day that I met a girl from Alberta. The rest of the Canadians were from back East, primarily Ontario and a couple from the Maritimes. Was very odd being surrounded by so many English-speaking people after spending so long among Germans and Dutchmen, and the weirdness was compounded by the fact that these English speakers had different accents. Bizarre.


Waiting for my train in the Koeln Hauptbahnhof. Next stop: Koblenz, then Trier!

14 Sept
Unna
(Bet. Soest & Dortmund)

"Left Thomas' house this morning, now waiting for connecting train in the small town of Unna. Great hospitality at Thomas': his mom washed and ironed my shirts (to my protest, as they were just going into my backpack), and even darned my socks. Furthermore, as I was leaving she stuffed a bag of cookies and a book into my backpack, to keep my occupied on the trip. His father was also very kind, helping me carry my bags to the station (he had driven me from Altengeseke to Soest) and wished me well, saying that he hoped to see me again some time. Difficult to understand, but a very nice couple.

Yesterday went with Thomas and two of his old friends to a Schützenfest in the neighbouring community of Horn. Two brass bands, a few troupes of uniformed men on parade with wooden rifles and oak branches in the barrels, all very bizarre."

"Also helped clean up the hall from Saturday night's Polterabend. A tradition at the Polterabend is for each guest to throw plates and cups at the wall, the mess to be cleaned up by the bride and groom. Well, that didn't happen - and I wound up cleaning up the shards. We then walked through the village and collected the beer glasses that people had taken home with them: I guess people would walk out, still drinking their beer, then leave the glasses on the side of the lane/on the brick walls to be picked up the next day. Very thoughtful and practical.

Ran into a girl from the night before in her boyfriend's old VW Beetle, so she took us for a bomb down the rural back farmroads of Westfalia. Again, quite surreal."

"Hilarious watching Germans dance on Saturday night at the party.* One thing that didn't sit well with me was the Indianertanz ('Indian Dance') which involved the marching band's bass drum in the middle of the floor on its side. The drummer then pounded it with his hands as if he were at a pow-wow, and all the Germans ran up to dance in a circle. Not appropriate at all."

*See the Fliegerlied

Altengeseke

After visiting Amsterdam and Arnhem, I went with Thomas to his parents' place in the little village of Altengeseke. Thomas had invited me to his sister's wedding, and I gladly accepted the invitation to come along.

12 Sept
Altengeseke

"Arrived at Thomas' parents' house lat night. Meant to get caught up with writing on the train, but German trains are very unfriendly to baggage so I had to travel with my backpack on my lap.

Experienced German hospitatily last night at the home of one of Thomas' friends. We had a German style BBQ (grillen) with Wurst and pork loin steaks (beef steaks are a foreign concept here). This friend's parents had spent some time this past summer in Vancouver and Victoria because one of their sons was working at the Backpackers Inn hostel in Victoria - had a good conversation with them about Canada.

Went to the civic-portion of the wedding today at the townhall in a neighbouring community. Large group of people turned out, and as the party exited the townhall firecrackers were lit and glasses of Champagne handed out. I'm proving to be a good conversation piece, as Thomas or his brother Stefan can introduce me as 'that guy from Canada.' So far everyone has spoken to me in German, partly because many people here speak very limited English. Only one condescending fellow who translates things into English for my 'benefit'.

After the ceremony we went with the two families for a 'traditional' German meal of Schnitzel, Salat and Pommes.



Idyllic 'little' farmhouse here, just as I was expecting. Rolling fields in all directions, the horizon punctuated by the occasional grove of trees and churchspires, with tall windmills rising up or the occasional ghostly image of a cooling tower.



'Polterabend' party tonight for the wedding in the nearby village of Altengeseke."

Amsterdam

While visiting Thomas in Holland I took a slight detour to Amsterdam. I had planned on perhaps seeing a few cities in the Benelux (Brussells, the Hague, Antwerp, etc) but because of the delay in my flight I really only had time to visit one before Thomas and I were to go to his home village of Altengeseke.

I had no pen in Amsterdam, so I was unable to keep a travel log while there. I did however take notes on my iPod Touch, which I will flesh out into more descriptive passages:

* "Awesome." Of the places I've been so far in Europe, Amsterdam was by far my most favourite city. Gorgeous weather, gorgeous buildings, gorgeous people. Wonderful. Totally not a depraved haven of slimy British tourists, coffeeshops or brothels. These elements do exist, but they are not focal points for anyone who actually wants to see the city.

* "Amazing cyclits." Everyone cycles in Holland. Everyone. Amsterdamers are particularly skilled in that they can text, hold umbrellas, and even hold hands while cycling. Unbelievable.



* "Not as many burn outs as expected, but women in kammers were a big surprise, even on the boarders of the Red Light District."

* "Everyone is an average, middle size. No large people, no overly small people. Girls always complain back home, "Where are all these tall, lean women for whom all clothes seem to be made?" I've found the answer: they're in Amsterdam."

* "Loud German schoolgroups should not be allowed in the Anne Frank Huis. They ruin the visits of others."

* "Important Dutch words/ones that I remember: snal, geen, winkle, dank u, straat, plein, bruiken, let op, stroop." Dutch is a very tiring language to speak, especially long-words like Centraal.

* "Clothing is the same price as in Canada, but in Euros, not CND." This is true of Germany as well. Really depressing.

* "What in any North American city would be a 4 lane highway, is in Amsterdam a canal." People chill on the canal in the nice weather (which I had heaps of in Holland!).

Traffic jam in a Gracht near the Red Light District.

I had two highlights for Amsterdam (besides just seeing the gorgeous buildings/people): visiting the Dutch East Indiaman Amsterdam and visiting the Rijksmuseen.

Beware: There be Boats Ahead



The Dutch East Indiaman Amsterdam is the modern reconstruction of an Indiamen built in the early/mid 1700s. Didn't get very far from the Netherlands, though: on her maiden voyage she ran aground on the English coast, where she was later refloated and assimilated by the English into their flotilla of East Indiamen. The reconstruction is fairly faithful, or at least as faithful as a non-sailing replica can be. As with all reconstructions, the builders neglect to properly ballast the vessel: see the black strake closest to the waterline? That's where the waterline should be, because of the stores/goods that the vessel originally would have been loaded with: today's reconstructions don't carry stores, so the ship sits higher in the water. Furthermore, much of the rigging is only for show and would not properly support masts/spars/sails, and the heights below deck have been skewed with the main deck favoured in terms of headroom at the expense of the captain's cabin.

I bump my head in the captain's cabin so this hoser can squat to take photos of the maindeck. Lame.

Tourist

Since Amsterdam was one of the major ports of Holland, the city has a strong Naval/trade-based history. Among the many historic buildings on the bay is the former Dutch Admirality, now the Dutch Martime Museum (renowned for its massive collection of ship models). So excited to go visit!

Former Dutch Admirality building.

I walked over to the building's entrance, and what did I see?



Amsterdam, you break my heart.

But no matter, I didn't let that get me down. I decided that I ought to drown my sorrows in culture, so I hoofed it over to the Rijksmuseem to get me a full share of art. All summer there had been an exposition at the Vancouver Art Gallery with pieces from Rembrandt and Vermeer, and I had a mild interest in going to see it but I reasoned to myself that it would be better to see a full collection of these guys in Amsterdam. Well, there was a problem: why do you think these works were able to go on a touring show to Vancouver? Because the Rijksmuseem was under renovation. Lame. Did manage to see quite a few pieces though in their reduced exhibit, and I tagged on along behind some German student-groups to hear their teachers' discussions of the paintings. Massive highlight was seeing Rembrandt's Night Watch, one of my favourite paintings of all time. You don't quite realize how big it is until you actually see it, and it takes up an entire wall to itself (and this is after parts of it were cut off in the 19th century!).

Arnhem

7 Sept
Arnhem

"Slept for 14 hours last night. Thomas woke me up because he had to go to school at noon. Visited with friends of his last night for tea, and I was quite beat afterwards. One was a girl from Toronto: it was already weird to hear a young Canadian's accent!

So far the Dutch have been a rather interesting set of people; not only is their language ridiculous, but they all also look slightly off, with a certain sense of Eurotrash Fashion and a strange desire to be inordinately tanned, regardless of how orange they appear or how much their skin resembles my favourite pair of oxford wingtips. Almost all stores are closed on Sundays as well, although Thomas assures me that the same is also true in Germany.

Funny how all the internationals I've met so far in Arnhem dislike the Dutch!

It keeps reoccuring to me that I'm in Europe, and that I'll be living here for 8 more months! Quite exciting.

Student accomodation is interesting here, and slightly less social than the Canadian equivalent: for instance, though they were home, none of Thomas' roommates wanted to meet me. As well, at the friends' apartment the roommate didn't come out to see who was visiting. Thomas' apartment: Two floors of rooms, with four bedrooms upper and 2 lower, with a galley-style kitchen and seperated bathrooms (toilet in one, shower in the other). No oven in the kitchen, but there is a washer and a microwave. Everyone seems to keep more or less to themselves in their rooms, with little social interaction."

Street near Thomas', in Arnhem.

Destroyed after 14 hours of sleep.

As written in my travel journal,
6 Sept.
Between Utrecht & Arnhem

"Arrived Heathrow yesterday at 7.45pm. Was then shuttled off to the hotel after whizzing through immigration (border agent didn't want to see my documents as they were all in German).*

Sat next to a pleasant couple from Courtenay on the plane. Was unable to sleep beyond a certain shallow level, so I spent the time watching Gladiator, O Brother Where Art Thou, and the Hangover until everyone else started waking up.

Hotel in London and the dinner there was a let down, especially compared to the lush accomodation given us in Vancouver (Sheraton, Marriott and Fairmont). Also no free WiFi at this hotel. Have no properly slept since the Wednesday night before I left**, so I am fixin' up to crash something awful.

Was up today at 4am for a 4.30am shuttle to the airport for my 7am flight. Have been very impressed with British Airway's handling of the situation. Spent the morning wait at Heathrow Terminal 5 talking about BC with a Dutch couple, who would later help me organize my border crossing into Holland my first European train ride. Wound up sitting next to the Dutch couple on the plane for the short jump over the Channel to Schiphol.

No problem with immigration at Schiphol: fellow didn't even ask for any documentation when I told him I was staying in Germany for 9 months without a Visa.

Currently hurtling between Utrecht and Arnhem on a Deutsche Bahn InterCityExpress train. Very comfortable. Conductor asked me for my ticket, but said something to the effect of, "I've fogotten my ticket-clamper", and then wandered off. Probably for the best, as I'm unsure if my Dutch railticket is good for the ICE (NB: It wasn't)."

Shortly following this entry I arrived in Arnhem, where I was met by Thomas. The idea was that I'd ring him when I arrived, but he decided to stop by the station simply by chance - no need to struggle with Dutch telephones then!

* This would prove to be a lot more difficult in October when I fly to visit Alana in Exeter.
** Three days at this point.