Rhineburg to Dusseldorf (then back to Essen) - Day 64

Date: October 21st, 2009
Distance: 60km
Country: Germany
Song of the Day: What If - Coldplay

I woke up and said goodbye to my hosts. A big thanks to Ivan and his family. Then back on the road. More headwind, but it wasn't as bad today. I have started accepting that I just won't be going very fast. The terrain is still fairly flat. The farm fields are frequently interrupted by giant factories and chemical plants though. It is easy to see why the Rhein river valley is quite a center of industry.

After a few false turns, I crossed the river into Dusseldorf. On the far side of the bridge I was shocked to see a statue for a Saint Nipomuk. I am sure my family remembers this guy quite well. We were playing a game and couldn't believe that it he was a really a saint. Nipomuk. What kind of a name is that? Well, I guess he is real. So here is a picture of the statue. I don't know why it is there though. He was supposed to have been drowned in the Vltava river in Prague...

From there I went into the center of town to pick up a map at the tourism office. I was actually on my way out of town (hoping to get to Koln) when I ran into five guys. Actually, they came up and started talking to me, but in German. Once they realized that I didn't understand, they switched to English. They were students starting of the semester with a party. On a Wednesday. (Welcome to Germany. Welcome to Wednesday.) They had brought along a suitcase with wheels. In the suitcase was beer and Jagermeister. On top they had strapped a boom box and were playing music. On the outside they had taped pictures of semi-naked ladies. These guys were prepared.

They ended up inviting me to come and hang out with them. They would even give me a place to stay for the night (in Essen). At first I was a bit reticent. Mostly because I was still hung up on getting to Koln. But this was the experience that I had come for right? To meet people and hang out? So yeah, I joined them.

We went to a brewery just down the street. Yes, I did have a beer with them. No, I still don't like beer. I can tolerate it though. We just stood around talking, drinking beer and having a pretzel. Pretty cool.

From there we got on the train to Essen. They were drinking beer on the train, which everyone accepted. Even when they were inviting other people to have shots of Jagermeister nobody seemed to mind. One old lady just looked at them and smiled, as if to say "Ah, youth." I was pretty interesting. If that had been the US, everyone would have been upset. In Germany it seems that people understand it is just young people having a good time.

After we got to Essen we headed to the Flat of two of the guys (Timo and Daniel). Also met a third roommate, Martin. We sat around talking for a bit. I got a primer on the mysterious "ß". They even gave me some good German bread. I also had some meat that Timo's grandmother had given him. (She apparently thought he was getting to thin.) I don't remember what it was called, but it was like a tiny meatloaf in the form of a hamburger patty. Boy was it good. Baked onions, mmmm. I even had a quick shower while the guys watched some football.

From there we went out to a place to play some "kicker", or, as Americans would know it, Foosball. I was on a team with Dennis. We were facing off against Christian and Andy. We lost the first three games. But then came from behind to win the 4th and final game. The one that really counted. ;-)

Then it was off to a club down the street. It wasn't very packed when we went in. But it started to fill up soon after. By 11:00 the dance floor was packed with people. Most of the people there seemed to dance like I do, which is badly. So really I fit right in. Anyway, it was a blast. Really a lot of fun meeting all those guys. So to Timo, Andy, Christian, Martin, Daniel, and Dennis, thank you. I had a blast. Good luck this semester!

-Dravis