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Published: August 31st 2006
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Well, I am now on the plane to Johannesburg. Fourteen hours of travelling to go before I finally reach Africa. Germany was originally added to my itinerary as a layover, I didn't chose to go and I wasn't very excited about it until I found the Bavarian Alps a couple of weeks before I left. Even then I had trouble trouble convincing myself to be excited. Was I ever wrong.......
Germany was a complete whirlwind. I loved every minute there. There was so much sychronicity in my time there, it was unbelievable. Five days of divine timing. Jordan and I really wanted to go to this place called Partnach Gorge. We headed over there a couple of days ago only to find I did not bring any Euro's again (I must start remembering this money thing). We searched the side of the mountain that the gorge was on for banks but could not find any. Eventually we ended up searching our way right back to our neck of the woods and came upon a street festival. It was very cool, there were shops, and stands, loud music, beer gardens and bull riding for the kids - the atmosphere was
Street festival
This was a very cool little street festival we happened across quite by accident...... so happy and foreign. However, we already had plans to go to the Gorge. Jordan pleaded just to go over across the street and try the mechanical bull - how could I say no. So we went over and low and behold we ran into Howard - again. Somehow I kept running into this guy in Garmisch. He is from England and the last time I met him was at 7:00am in the coffee shop. I couldn't sleep because of jet lag and he was still up from the night before. The first couple of meetings Howard was obnoxious, but now that I had ran into him AGAIN at the street fair, I had to at least sit down and check out why it kept happening.
OH MY!!!!!!!!
I am not kidding when I tell you that we just fell out of the sky........ that was the worst thing I have ever had happen on a plane. The plane just dropped!!!! That was not normal. The man next to me is grabbing the seat infront of him in fear and the collective energy on this plane is panicked. The flight attendants dropped their trays of
My little bull rider
He spent most of the afternoon on this bull - I watched him from the beer gardens........ drinks to the ground and hung on for dear life. Something wasn't right with that. WHAT JUST HAPPENED.......... I swear, you know the feeling when the plane dips in turbulence and it feels like you are going to nose dive for a moment? Well it was that, but it did not stop, we just kept going down........ My god, I want off. LOL, where is a girl to go??????? Wish I packed that parachute. What color is your parachute? ha ha. (inside joke) I shouldn't joke, I thought we were going down. Anyways, on with my blog. We're still up here.
Heart failure was not the ending to Germany I had hoped for............
So back at the ranch, or at least the street festival, I had found Howard again and had joined him in the beer gardens. Howard ended up being very charismatic and intelligent. He also knows how to get what he wants. That was evident in the first few seconds of meeting him, which is why I originally said I had to go. My intuition told me he was trouble, in a harmless way, but trouble none the less. He got police officers to
Howard from England
Howard added a lot of, how should I say......dimension......to our time in Germany. Kept running into the guy. smile and belly laugh, he made this hockey team feel so familiar with him that Jordan felt like they had known him for years, he spoke to most everyone and he would just kind of whistle and motion to what he wanted and people just obeyed him and gave him the things he asked for. Somehow he got this girl to go off searching for menthol cigarettes for me and, low and behold, about ten minutes later they were on the table. The hat that Jordan is wearing was 15 Euro's but over a few hours and a couple of different instances with the place selling the hat, Howard owned it for the low price of 7 Euro's. His energy was very contagious, if not a little on the obnoxious side like I said before. However charming I can tell you it was, there are two sides to every story and I did not feel like being the one manipulated. : ) Howard and I ended up having a very intense six hour discussion about manipulation and getting what you want. It then turned to how to define what you want and if getting what you want and what you
German Polizei
Police man laughing at Howard need are the same thing, or even close in any way. (He thought they were, I thought they weren't - at all) All the while immersed in this conversation, Howard was still trying to use his expertly honed manipulation skills on me and I was still calling bull*!@#. It was hilarious and challenging and unique and intense. Here you have two people that know how to get what they want using all the tricks in the book on each other in a battle of wits. I think I met my match, but so did Howard. I can't really explain it or capture it, but it was pricesless. In the end, I know more about Howard from my time in Germany than I do about some of my own friends. He told me he saw life differenty for meeting me and that it was a great learning experience - what more could you ask for. The ironic thing is that he sent me off with a hand written letter (on a beer garden napkin - mind you) for his brother Glyn who lives....in all places..... West Vancouver. I am to hand deliver it when I get back to Canada. Sometimes it
is a very small world (except when you are on a plane) But for now, he has to go back to England and I to Frankfurt, I will miss him.
Anyways, it was a very long drive back to Frankfurt. Jordan is such an amazing travel companion. I was rather moody and he just put up with me and made me feel better all along the way. That Autobahn can be extremely hard driving, but I loved it.
Like I said before, I am now on my way to South Africa and am very excited to arrive. Mostly because I have had enough of planes to last me a life time. Good thing my next one isn't for 2 1/2 months, I will have forgotten about our little mishap by then hopefully. I asked the stewardess what happened and she said sometimes it can happen if two jets pass too close too each other and get in each others wake. We were in the jetstream of another plane. I know how that feels.......to be flying in the jetstream, not knowing where it takes you. Lots of turbulence, looking for smoother ground.
I am going
Goodbye to our mountain view
I could see myself back here some day. Side note: I always expect to see that little man from "The Price is Right" gameshow that climbs the alps and falls off if you bid too high or low here.
to miss Germany, but I will not miss their food. The first few days were fantastic and then I started to worry that I would get scurvy from lack of vegetables. Jordan and I checked out many restaurants for vegetables, but they always just looked confused when I asked them if they had broccoli and offered us another Austrian weinerschnitzle.
Bye for now,
Heide
Howard, from our conversations, a song for you: Tears and Rain - James Blunt. Remember to take your own advice and build your castle too - just don't forget about that foundation.
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Well, we just had an incredible experience - the Doha, Qatar airport. It was very strange going from Bavaria, Germany to an arabic atmosphere all in a few hours. It is like entering a time machine into another world. It is 36 degress in Doha right now - a little preparation for our time in India.
It's so fascinating glimpsing another world that you can forget actually exists when your sitting at a pub in British Columbia (although BC is always number one on my list). It is
a strange contradiction to see old world arabic clothing combined with a cell phone and an A&W burger. I like it here. I think I will add a layover in Qatar the next time we have to stopover which will be on our way to Kathmandu in November.
Ten more hours until Africa.................... : )
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