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To Travel Or Not To Travel: That Is The Question

Discussion in 'Snippets of Life (Non-Fiction)' started by satchitananda, Jul 2, 2018.

  1. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    All's Well That Ends Well:

    So, after all that Angst in I Love Travel, I Don't Like Travel, I Love It, I Don't ......, here is the sequel.

    Am going to write this totally free style, no fixed pattern. I want to present this just the way I remember it all. And it might be in many parts ..... or it may not! :tongueout: So here goes.

    Is it bad to start from the end? Well, maybe as a language teacher, I might insist on my students presenting stuff in a coherent, logical sequence. But in this moment, I am neither language teacher nor am I writing for an exam. Besides, the end might be relevant to the beginning.

    I am seated in an aisle seat in the plane bringing me back to Bangalore. Announcement: "Please ensure your seat is in upright position for takeoff". I grit my teeth. Why? I like nothing better in life than to be sprawled out. Nonetheless, being a law-abiding person, I look for the button to push myself up straight. No button. Yes, you read right. NO BUTTON. BUTTON ILLA. Button is missing. Air-hostess comes along asking me to straighten up. With a straight face and my heart singing 'tra-la-la, Tulips in Amsterdam', I inform her (trying not to appear as cheerful as I feel and finding my hand twisting the way a child's would when informing the mother that the maths teacher has not come for tuitions :mask:) that there is no button. And like the mother of that cheerful child, she checks out for the button and finds it is missing. She goes calling for help but all help is seated with seat belts fastened and seats in upright position. So she decides if she can't get them off their seats, she might as well join 'em.

    The situation is fair and square. I mean on the outward journey by the same airlines, the seat was in upright position all the hours of the journey to Schipol. There was a button but I could not push myself into 'not so upright' position. I was forced to be one of those reluctantly upright members of the flying fraternity.

    Lesson learnt: Life has a way of balancing itself out.

    ..... to be contd ..... (Please scroll down for further OPs)
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2018
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  2. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    Flying In The Air:

    After hours of sitting upright in my seat, my back wants to throttle me ..... if only my back had hands to reach up to my throat. I am seated in my window seat. It is one of those 2 seat sections. BH next to me has its advantages. I turn around awkwardly in my seat, lean my head on the wall and stretch my feet out across the arm rests of both seats. I feel bad for the BH but I feel worse for my back. This airline has a way of turning up the A/C full throttle and it is absolutely freezing. Their blankets are absolutely flimsy and not quite sufficient. An additional sweater is required to ensure I don't need to be thawed out in the summer sun at Schipol.

    The flight from Schipol to Berlin is much more comfortable. Had to do a cross-country, sorry, cross terminal race to get through from one end of the airport to the other, through passport control and security check ..... they won't let us carry even a sealed water of mineral water provided by their partner airline. The guy at the security screening of luggage is quite amazing. He talks to the person in front of me in Portuguese or was it Spanish? The moment my turns come on, he switches to Hindi. Am absolutely fascinated. This fellow would make an interesting case study - the switch is so quick and no language interference????? We get across to the gate in time to board the connecting flight.

    The take off is beautiful. There is a lovely little stream flowing alongside the runway. Once in the air, one gets a view of pretty little water bodies with boats and yachts, fields, forested land, ..... and ever so many windmills!!! Here I come Berlin! After 14 long years. The orange flavoured cake served on board is delectable, though I can't say the same about the coffee. An avowed 'degree' coffee drinker like me has a hard time coming down to something that looks like ditch water and tastes like turpentine. But no, I don't wanna go home ..... not quite yet. Instead, in a determined effort to stay awake, I keep downing cups of the turpentine. Try to spot any known monuments as the flight comes in to land in Berlin, but can't identify any. Surreal feeling ..... being here again after 14 years of ..... well, can't call my life here a vanvaas, can I? :)

    Arrival at Berlin Tegel and am surprised to see such a tiny airport. Not too impressed, I must say. We hang around outside the information counter for a bit to catch our breaths and to get our bearings, buy the 3 zone, 7 day BVG card (which opens the doors of all means of transport to us for those number of days), check if the international SIM card is connecting to the public wifi, take a selfie. Time to take a cab and get to the hotel. The cabbie is from the Middle East. He asks whether we want to travel by meter or fix a charge. I say we'd like to go by meter. Is it tampered, or does he literally take us for a ride? We end up paying double of what it costs us to get back to the airport on our way back. Hmm... I seem to see a pattern here. He has talked all the way along with us and has been very sweet ... he has literally talked his way into our pockets. Not that we knew it then, though we WERE surprised. Oh well .....

    Collage - Schipol to Berlin.jpg
    .....to be contd.....
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2018
  3. Thyagarajan

    Thyagarajan IL Hall of Fame

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    7:hello:so far so good with smooth take off with and without button. Nice selfies.
    Yes sometimes epilogue first can be better intro to prologue. Great idea to begin with a la HAROLD ROBBINS. - stone for Danny fisher.
    2. Looking forward to fly the other part.
    Thanks .
    Regards.
    God keeps enough oxygen at high altitudes.
     
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  4. GeetaKashyap

    GeetaKashyap IL Hall of Fame

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    Satchi, welcome back! Lovely write-up. I am sitting upright and reading your travelogue.can't get enough of it; shall go back to the first line again. :wave:
     
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  5. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    There, Slap Bang, Right In The Middle Of It All:

    So here we are in "Stadtmitte" or the centre of the city. Our lodging has been arranged for us by BIL, bless his soul. It could not have been better located. The hotel is located right between the two entrances/exits of the "Stadtmitte" underground (U-Bahn) station. That is literally the centre of the centre.

    We arrive around 1.30 pm. The room will be available only at 3. It's BLAZING hot. So much for all the dooms day predictions of a week of rains from the meteo dept. For almost 10 days before our departure, I have heard about the bad weather on the hour, every hour from the BH, till I had to tell him to stay back in India. I can kill those weather folks for getting it wrong. Not only did I get an earful for so long, now I feel cheated too!!!

    So we toddle off to the nearby Berlin Mall, have a look at "Saturn" - the shop for all of BH's tech toys - and end up having lunch at the mall itself. I get my vegetarian fix - a potato tart and BH opts to go to the vegetarian Falafel shop next door. The portions are really HUGE. Top it up with an icecream downstairs to cool down a bit.

    Vegetarian food - Berlin Mall.jpg
    An interesting little tid-bit here would not be out of order. Berlin is the vegan capital of the world

    Slowly we decide to get back to the hotel - our luggage is in the reception. We need to get to our room. But just our luck. The roads are blocked. There is some protest against AFB (an extreme right-wing party) on both the roads on either side of the hotel. I can't hold myself, my back or my rucksack up anymore. The police tells me cheerfully that the road is shut. I groan loudly and inform him that the other road is also shut and we need to get back to the hotel. He probably senses that he will have to handle a 'death due to exhaustion' case here if he ignores me and sends a lady constable with us to escort us to the hotel. What's the show about, I ask her. Unlike the UK police who would treat a dying rat as a top secret not to be divulged to the public for fear of CONSEQUENCES, the lady merrily tells me what it is all about. We are pleasantly surprised at the forthcoming and helpful police force here.

    Once in the room, I go onto the balcony facing the road and get a ring side view of the protest. Interestingly, there are about 5 AFB members and a whole mass of people along with police escort staging a counter demonstration. I hear 'We shall overcome' being sung. What a photo opportunity to be used sometime in class!!!

    Demonstration und Gegendemonstration.jpg
    Demonstration and Counter Demonstration
    Would love to go take a walk around, but I am totally done - fix and fertig - and kaputt as the Germans would say. Besides we have to leave early tomorrow morning to go to Wannsee which has been high on my bucket list. So some good sleep is called for. Tomorrow is going to be a loooooong day again.

    .....to be continued.....
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2018
  6. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    The German Holiday:

    Now that is the closest I can get to the Roman Holiday. :) Neither was I a run away princess, nor is my name Audrey Hepburn ..... but well, why can't I do a parody, eh?

    Next morning, we wake up and ensure that we get to the U-Bahn station in time. That is quite an achievement considering the BH and time have nothing in common, but I guess after 21 years together he is learning. Or may just be??? Wait and watch. Anyway, one more phenomenal achievement is that this is the first time in all these years that we have managed

    1. an entire week of holiday
    2. without any conference for him or any calls from work
    3. together .

    Am going to discover a few things about this person whom I have been with since the last 21 years. We step into the U-Bahn station. He's as excited as a kid and wants pics of himself here, there, everywhere. :) The been there, done that phenomenon. :-D Which of us does not go through that? This is his first visit to Europe. Although he has been to New York, he has never really travelled on the metro. So he wants to try out every variety of the German railway system that exists.

    Midway we have to change to the S-Bahn which is really a system of short distance trains - something like suburban trains. What do I say about the scenery? It is like travelling through the forest. I am told that Berlin is the greenest city in Germany. I can easily believe that. It is amazing to see so much of construction in the city without really destroying nature. Add to the beauty, it is a delight of seeing the BH enjoying himself so much. I hope this experience will make him want to travel more in the future.

    We get to Wannsee. It is a lake not far from Potsdam. We have booked tickets for a 7-lake cruise. The road outside the train station leads down a slope through a park to the pier. The scenery is breath-taking. It turns out the cruise is more for locals than foreign tourists. Maybe not too many people come for this??? Am just guessing. The commentary is all in German. After some time of constant translating, both of us decide to just damn the commentary and enjoy the scene. There are some old ladies on the boat and I get into conversation with them. They explain stuff about the east, west, various castles ..... Wannsee is a very rich area with villas belonging to the who's who of the world. I guess from here on, the best way to share our journey will be through photos.

    One of the things that struck me was the sheer numbers of sparrows!!! Looks like all the sparrows in India have migrated there.

    Collage Wannsee.jpg
    At the end of the cruise, had lunch under a tree. It was so comforting to rest against the trunk and stretch out one's feet. The heat was relentless.

    From there it was onward to Potsdam. Took a city bus ride. Met an Indian student who was working with the sight seeing agency in his free time. Was nice to have a chin wag. :) Visited the usual places - Palace Cecilienhof where the big 3 met after the second world war to discuss the demilitarization of and power sharing in Germany, and Sansouci castle.

    Sudden rains brought down the temps a bit.

    Collage - Potsdam.jpg
    .....to be contd.....
     
  7. Srama

    Srama Finest Post Winner

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    Dear Satchi,

    I am sure you are happy to be back home! I have to be honest, have not yet read all that you have posed, but for taking a look at the pictures. I am sure you had a lovely time!

    Now coming to this, haven't you ever told your students "To do what I say and not do as I do?"

    If not, you must! My students once a day groan a "is that do as I say and not as I do assignment, Mrs.S?" and oh the joy I get when I assure them with a yes followed by a 'you will have a chance to do the same thing some time later in life!'.

    More later!
     
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  8. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    Tourist in Berlin:

    The last time I was in Berlin 14 years ago, it was for my teachers' training and I spent 1 month in Berlin and 2 months in Munich. Coming to Berlin from quiet, peaceful Munich was a bit of a shock to my system. Besides I missed my hosts in Munich - a very sweet old couple. Berlin was a whirlwind of impressions and we were taken everywhere by the institute. Somehow I did not feel I got to experience 'living' in Berlin.

    This time around was different. Living in a hotel where we had a kitchenette gave me the opportunity to go shopping for stuff in the supermarket, eat out, see the place, play guide to BH, explore some more places and relive some moments from the last visit. I enjoyed sharing this experience with BH. I have always wanted to share my experiences of travel abroad with family but it could never be - whether with parents or with BH. My sis, bil and nephew visited me when I was studying in the UK. So this was a wonderful holiday.

    Of course we did the touristy thing like visiting the houses of Parliament (we went up the glass dome which was built in the 1990s), Brandenburger Tor (the symbol of Berlin), Potsdamer Platz which has been rebuilt after the war, going for a ride on "Linie 100" a bus which goes from the Zoologischer Garten station to Alexander Platz (which once was in East Berlin and where the famous TV tower stands), Sachsenhausen and the like. We did a 1 hour cruise down the river Spree through the central government district of Berlin. Took pictures. Unfortunately did not have enough time to visit the Pergamon Museum or to go up the TV tower at Alexander Platz.

    Collage Berlin I.jpg

    1. Reichstag - German Parliament from the top of a Linie 100 bus 2. A model of the "Trabant" or Trabi (a car from DDR times) 3. An ominous promise on one of Berlin underground stations :) 4. A piece of the Berlin wall 5. Entrance to the Berlin Zoo 6. Berliner Dom 7. Cycle taxi 8. Brandenburger Tor 9. The German post

    Collage Berlin II.jpg
    10. Sony Center, Potsdamer Platz 11. DDR Museum seen from the cruise 12. TV Tower at Alexander Platz 13. E-Bikes for rent 14. The Spree from one of the bridges 15. The Gedächtnis Kirche (destroyed in bombing and left unrestored partly as a memorial and partly due to high restoration costs) 16. The gate of Sachsenhausen camp (Work makes free) 17. A hooded crow 18. The memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe

    Collage Berlin III.jpg
    19: House of World Cultures (referred to as Jimmy Carter's smile :) or as the pregnant oyster) 20: Palace of tears - Friedrichstraße station which was the last station between East and West Berlin and where families were separated 21: Unter den Linden - an avenue in the style of the Champs Elysees in Paris 22, 23, 24: Checkpoint Charlie (The board is self-explanatory) 25: The glass "Kuppel" of the Parliament (referred to fondly by Berliners as "The egg warmer") 26: Up inside the Kuppel 27: Metal memorials in pavements outside buildings from where Jews were transported to concentration camps. To be found all over Berlin and many other cities.

    It was wonderful to be able to roam around till late evening because sunset would be around 9.45 pm. I never imagined I'd enjoy the warm weather even though it did get hot and sultry from time to time. Two of our days there were very wet, windy and chill. I suppose Vivaldi was thinking of just such weather when he composed "Four Seasons". :)

    There are 100s of pictures, but obviously it is not possible to share all of them, and they could easily be found on the internet.

    One ride we did, though, was an unusual one on Tramline 68 which is a heritage tramline. One can easily know which part of Berlin was in DDR and which in BRD. Tramlines existed only in the DDR and to date no new tramlines have been built in what was West Berlin. Tramline 68 was going to be closed down due to lack of sufficient users, but then it was saved by citizens who contributed financially to keep it running. Had a pleasant chat with the driver who informed me that now there are plenty of people who use it. The tram passes through thickly wooded areas with lakes on one side. We just took the ride to the end station where there were a few houses and came back by the same tram back to the city. Not a typically touristy activity. This line has made it to the Top 10 trolleys of National Geographic.

    Collage - Straßenbahn 68 - IL.jpg
    It was a whirlwind holiday and as all good things come to an end, so did our holiday. BH returned home after a week and I moved in as a guest in a private home (arranged by the institute) and stayed with an elderly lady - a maths teacher.

    I stayed on for 2 more weeks and revisited some of the places. Witnessed a demonstration at Brandenburger Tor demanding an end to borders between European countries.

    United Europe.jpg

    The rest of that day brought more adventures - though not quite as I would have liked it. Once more I gravitated towards gravity, enabled in the process by a shove from another pedestrian, literally having 'fallen' in love with Berlin. Doctors, clinics/hospitals and I have some unavoidable karmic connection and so had to spend a few hours visiting a doctor. Quite literally experienced 'applied cultural studies'. So after a last week full of anxious moments, was quite relieved to return home and the moment the flight entered Indian territory, I heaved a sigh of relief knowing full well that no matter what happened now, I would not have to worry about which hospital, doc I could go to or about insurance etc.

    All's well that ends well and it was a memorable 3 weeks and I am quite content to rest for a while before considering my next set of adventures!!! :blush:
     
    Last edited: Jul 3, 2018
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  9. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    Thanks Thyagarajan. Glad you enjoyed reading.
     
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  10. satchitananda

    satchitananda IL Hall of Fame

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    Thanks for that lovely feedback Geeta. Nice to get such a warm welcome. Have finished it, but must admit - it was really hard not to go on and on - though am sure most readers must feel they had quite enough!!!
     

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