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Dusseldorf
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Yesterday Steve and I spent most of the afternoon wandering around Dusseldorf with all of my luggage trying to find a hotel for the night. The fancy place he's been staying in downtown Cologne was sold out last night and so we were forced to stay in Dusseldorf. So, Steve dragged 100 lbs worth of suitcases while I carried an 18 lb back pack as we walked through the city dodging trains, busses, cars, and bikes everywhere we turned.
We walked forever it seemed and just when we thought we knew where we going, we realized we had made a complete circle. We learned rather quick that the streets in Germany do not run in straight lines but rather weave in and out leaving you know idea where you are going. And asking for directions...forget about it. Not only do the Germans not speak English but they have no idea where you are asking to go. And so we walked and walked and walked. After about an hour (and probably 3 miles) we finally found the hotel we were looking for.
We checked in and I was surprised to find that the hotels in Germany are way different than the U.S. All lights operate with a key card and you can't turn the lights on without one. You can't even use the bathroom with a key to turn the light on. And then the biggest bombshell of all...no American stations on the TV. I mean none. CNN was the only thing even close. I felt culture shock in the biggest way and that is when the panic really set in.
Once we were settled in to the hotel, we left to get something to eat since we hadn't eaten all day. Desperate for some sort of "peace of mind" in all of this madness, we went to a Mexican restaurant nearby. The waiter spoke some English and part of the menu was even in English...thank God! What we didn't realize was that the price was person. In a nutshell...we ended up paying $60 for the two of us to share an order of fajitas. Steve was so pissed!
The evening only got worse from there when we stopped at this cozy little bar on the way back to the hotel. It was dimly lit and had candles on all of the table. I ordered a glass of wine and Steve had a Kolsh. Kolsh is the beer that everyone drinks here. It's cheap 1.20EU in some places and it's strong. Anyway, we sat and sipped on our drinks and there were hardly any people inside. I got up to go to the bathroom (with change in hand expecting to have to pay like I would have in the train station if I went). But it was free. What surprised me was the fact that there were no locks on the doors. Strange. I went back and reported this to Steve and he thought it was strange as well.
He said that when I was gone, several old men came in and the bartender did the hug/hug, kiss/kiss thing to all of them, like you see in the movies. Well, I explained that wasn't strange because we ARE in Europe. I did mention that it was kind of weird how everyone was staring at ME. Anyway, Steve got up to go to the bathroom next and when he came back he looked like a "deer in headlights". He says, "Now I know why everyone is looking at us funny...we're in a gay bar!" I laughed and laughed! We paid our bill and got the hell out of there!
This morning we are taking the train back to Cologne and I'm pretty excited about it. I've never ridden on a train before and I'm sure it will be quite the adventure. I'm not looking forward to the 3 mile hike back to the train station with my 18 lb backpack again but at least this time we have some idea of where we are going. In addition to this, Steve has assured me that Cologne is nothing like Dusseldorf...that it is so different and so much better. I sure hope he's right because if Dusseldorf is what I have to look forward to the next 6 months, I'm in big trouble!
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