Koln't stop. Won't stop.
Hmmm.... it's been too long...
A few days after a cloudy, depressing Geneva christmas, Brandon Mary Hil and I braved the European cold to board one of the most beautiful and speedy looking trains these eyes have ever beheld. The bullet-train esqe German machine of pure mechanical genius moved along at roughly 200km/hr, breezing past trashy Eurovillages and midwestern-US-looking countryside in an almost futuristic trip....
Aside from terrible ABBA albums and German news stations clogging the in-trip radio (very American Airlines), the trip was nice- pretty posh, nice german magazines and an LCD screen set the mood for an amazing trip to Germany and the blossoming city of Koln....
Koln is dramatic, beer-crazy, and picturesque. Our first step from the train station was amazing. Three feet from the exit, the Koln (Cologne) Cathedral towers above the station, and we walked into the shadow of one of the most beautiful cathedrals in Europe.
We wandered the city, ate terribly German Chinese food (can you say all you can eat sushi?) and got lost several times before Brandon (and his intrinsic understanding of directions) saved us from certain death in the tragic cold.... Again, the city was overflowing with H&Ms, Colours of Beneton, and strange Kebab shops....
Another terrible nigth of sleep (a trend slowly developing, after an amazing track record of passing out in strange situations) left me tired and irritated as we discovered our trip to Paris would be much more confusing and expensive than we thought..... A quck trip to the overly expensive Jerkins (ok, German Perkins, actually called Monodero, and not as Perkinsy as you would think....)
The girls were lollygagging as usual, and we decided (a collective BrandoKevin decision) to split ways and meet up with them later for a nice BruHaus dinner. To edit and censor the results of our day on the town, i'll use some word association: 2pm. 4 hrs later. 4 bars. Coaster Collection. Giggly rendevous with girls. trip to Bruhaus.
get it? thanks.
Our trip to the Bruhaus was again, as our previous trip in Munich, painfully cultural. A preist led some drinking songs, we downed a few .4 L Sions, ate some lengthy sausages, cabbage, and stumbled through German in hopes of not being ripped off....
Our last night in Koln I went for a refreshing walk with Hil along the Rhine, and we saw the Lindt Chocolate Factory along with some amazing views along the bridge....
Another sleepless night (something about listening to 354 songs on your ipod is both physically draining and not so good on the battery), and our trip to Paris began a day earlier than expected....
In Paris: Anna, Alex arriving from Des Moines (kickass), and a chance to reconnect with Ems and meet her sweeet friend Keri....
New Years in Paris.... no beating it....
Merry Swissmas (Swissmiss)
Sitting in a crowded trainstation in the middle of Geneva, the Christmas spirit has overwhelmed me. Maybe thats an exaguration. The Christmas Blend Venti Starbucks has stirred my bladder. Maybe thats more realistic....
Christmas eve in Geneva was a cultural experience. Kate and Brandon arrived safely (Kate more or less found in the girls' room in a fetal position under her coat, not wanting to disturb the nicely made beds...) It was great to have the group back together, but a strangely unseasonal feeling still kind of hangs in the chilly Swiss air...
I really wish i had pics to post, but this internet place doesnt allow uploading from unknown devices, so ill let it wait until Koln or Paris....
Most of our eve was spent wandering the city, a beautifully artsy but somewhat lacking town- after coming from war ravaged Czech and Austria, the awkwardly pacifist and isolationist Swiss have a clean, almost steril cultural identity- what kind of country doesnt even have a national language? The swiss speak French, German, Italian, English, and god knows what else.... I cant even begin to conjure up a Swiss stereotype... Heidi? Skiers? Swiss Miss? Swiss Rolls? Geneva was not what we expected snow and Christmassy wise, but its again nice to be with friends again.
We discovered a park with a huge Reformation memorial (Luther suspiciously absent), and tons and tons of comically large chessboards and checkerboards. Mary reins supreme. We met at Starbucks (the atheist barrista- touting Tradition and Christmas yet joining only McDonalds and other random deli-breadlike places and theatres as the only consumer oasises (plural?).... Long talks, travel plans, future ideas, flat drama. What else is there to talk about?
We congregated at the hotel for some Sports Bloopers via Eurosport, along with some awesome Torino highlights, and headed into the night in search of cheap, open restaurants before Brando arrived.
Brandon's arrival brought stories of travel, flat togetherness (minus Ryan and Emily, tear), and a possible trip to the Bond movie..... long story short, Bond movie was a bust (still a possibility for today), and we ended up wandering around the city in awe of well lit streets, parks, the university, and an amazing protestant church.
Sooooo... Church is boring. French is boring. Church in French for midnight mass is what could be considered the ancient predecessor to dremamine. It was cultural, it was a beautiful cathedral, but far too confusing in French for me to get any message out of it. The opera singer acompanied by organ blew my mind, and christmas caroles in French were awesome.
TV is pumping Wonderful Life in German, Goofy Movie Christmas, Sister Act II in italian, and other Christmas favorites. Still no Christmas Story, but im looking forward to a possible trip to a Chinese restarant (Fa RA Ra Ra RA) for dinner.....
No stockings, but a nice letter from Emily made it feel like at least i opened something, and yet another trip to Starbucks (as previously mentioned) added a Christmassy taste to my palate, and today's impending (right usage?) Bond movie is an exciting Christmas possibility.
We leave early tomorrow, and Iàm looking forward to changing things up Language wise and group wise. Im looking forward to NewYears in Paris, and the three Canadian grad students at our hotel seemed impressed with our choice of destination (although Barcelona sounds nice too...)
This was entirely too long, but i have 17 minutes still remaining on my 'net card, and nothing to do.....
Happy Christmas, hugs and all that....
