madteckhead’s blog

Click on a marker to view photos and articles.

Today we snaked our way from Berlin to our new home in Tubening via Frankfurt and Stuttgart using the Bahn. It was a pleasant journey, looking out the window at the rolling green hills covered in newly sprouted crops at 250km an hour. With towering 80-100 meter tall, 3 blade wind turbines shooting up like giant trunks of trees. It was an inspiring sight for an aspiring engineer and passionate environmental advocate. (Note: I will try to secure some work experience with a renewable energy firm in Germany as part of my degree, fingers crossed.)

Unfortunately we were unable to get into the office early enough to sign up for our 31sq meter apartment somewhere around the university grounds. So we made our way to an overpriced, monopolizing hostel were we will retire for the evening.

Its lovely to know that we will soon have our own space, and a new routine with time to persue our own projects. Its been a monster of a journey, taking 3 months, and just about every mode of transport I could imagine. I’ve sure changed as a person, learnt new skills, experienced a plethora of situations, made new friends and read more books than my whole life combined, amongst nemourous other things.

To all those people who made our journey what it was, although you may never read this and many of you don’t speak English, Thanks from the bottom of my heart. Without your suggestions, help, reassurance, smiles, friendly conversations I’m sure it would have been a lot harder, and less fulfilling. I welcome you to visit in me in my new home in Germany, or my homeland Australia and wish you good health and a fulfilling life.

Your slightly more worldly friend,

Nathan

p.s. A special thanks to all those random strangers who were drawn into our journey for a few frantic seconds as they helped us decipher our tickets as we ran to catch trains and busses throughout Asia and Europe. - You will be pleased to know that is three months of navigating foreign transport systems we didn’t miss one long distance connection!!!

Little green men everywhere. On every street corner, at every intersection… Little green men!!! I was so lucky to even get a photo of one!!! (see photo below).

That’s right we have made it some 20,000km (half the circumference of the world) overland to Germany!

[Berlin, Germany]

Berlin is amazing… Such a breath of fresh air, an inspiring city. (And we are getting pretty good at picking them). The orientation of the city is fascinating, as Berlin was divided into four sections (along with the country) after WWII and then the east and west were further divided by a wall to keep the soviet section of Berlin separate from the capitalist section. The wall was up for 28 years, and when it came down there was more like two cities side by side with different viewpoints. This has led to an open mindedness like no other city in Europe (quoting the Lonely Planet here).

The bahn system (public transport system) stands out and really makes the vastness of the city extremely accessible. With a mesh of criss crossing under ground, on the street, and above the street transport options. Trains and trams wizz into stops every few minutes. Needless to say bikes are also rampid here.

They put Australia to same in term of forward thinking, with recycling everywhere and deeply ingrained into the physic. And much more sensible devision of rental rates, passing on the cost of water, rubbish, cleaning, heating, accommodation, etc to tenets instead of the landlord who lumps it all together in ‘rent’. This has the effect of reducing consumption of these services, making for a more efficient whole system.

After arriving we decided to head out and see a flick, having decided in Singapore to go to the cinemas in every capital city… Although its been a while since any cities have been screening English language films (in English). Afterwards we were standing on the S-barn waiting for our train when Ellie spotted Sam & Leonie…

[Sam & Leonie]

Turns our Sam & Leonie are Australians living and working in Berlin. Ellie’s sister, Jaree, studied with Sam at Tubening. Shortly after meeting Saw whisked us away for a beer in a bar with over 100 types of beer. Quite an impressive drinks menu, with beer from just about every major province in Germany. They after describing the average hostel we stumbled upon to them they were so kind as to put us up in their apartment for the remainder of our stay in Berlin. Which has been an absolute godsend, having even taken us on a walking tour of Berlin! They work all day, so we have been sleeping in and gloating in the privacy of a whole apartment, having spent weeks without a double bed, sleeping on train bunks, and in hostel dorms.

Anyway we are about to go out exploring again, although it does look like rain outside… Yes rain!!! We have escaped the Siberian winter, o glorious rain.

Bis spatter (see you later)

Nathan