The Problem with Locked Doors

I came home on Friday and noticed that Dan's car was parked in it's usual spot- that was a pleasant surprise, since I wasn't expecting him to be home until later. His bookbag and a few other belongings were placed at the top of the stairs, right in front of our doorway.
'Oh, he's getting ready to leave,' I thought to myself.
I opened the door and walked inside, expecting to find Dan at his desk, or standing in the kitchen. He wasn't in either of those places, so I spent the next 5-10 minutes searching the apartment and balconies for him. Then I noticed his wallet and keys on the countertop.

What in the world had happened? I immediately called his phone.


***IN HIS OWN WORDS***

I have a funny story. I was on my way to work, I had everything I needed: phone, lunch, wallet, keys... wait, where are my keys? Yeah, that's the question I asked after I had already closed the door. And the doors here lock immediately. So I couldn't get back inside, I couldn't leave to go to work, I had to make due outside the house for hours on end. It was 7:00 (am) then and Lynette could be home anywhere from 3:00 to 7:00 (pm). So, at least eight hours, and --holy God-- up to twelve. All this without toilet facilities, refrigeration, computer or television.

So I did the first obvious thing. Call Lynette's office. But wait! The number doesn't work? The German-accented voice on the phone informs me that this number doesn't exist. Wunderbar! I'm definitely out of luck now. I call in to work, and naturally they have a good laugh. So I spent the whole day out in the wilderness, away from the comforts of our modern age.

What did I do? I walked. A lot. I estimate, and this is no exaggeration, that I logged a total of six hours walking. My poor legs were liquified when I was liberated from my torment; And I also got sunburned, I kid you not! Here in Germany, where the temperature did not exceed 75 degrees all day. I walked everywhere. I went to the Heide, a nature preserve just outside of town, and spent two hours walking all over it. This is actually the highlight, the silver lining in an otherwise miserable day. It's a beautiful place, and in a future post I'll have to demonstrate that fact with pictures.

The rest of the day involved wandering around Mehlingen (the people must have thought I was a weirdo), and an ill-advised walk to the next town over, where I thought I'd catch a train to Kaiserslautern. I missed the train, and the next one wasn't for an hour, and Lynette could've been home by then. I went home. One hour to walk there. One hour to walk back. I also slept outside our front door on the landing. Surprisingly comfortable, but still lacking dignity. Well, you do what you have to do, right?

Lynette finally made it home around 4:30. I was happy, she was sympathetic. I drank half a bottle of wine that night and just collapsed.

-Dan

*** ***


OH MON DIEU!

In other news...we are planning a trip to Paris next week. Can't wait!

Trier: The Sequel

The first time Dan and I went to Trier, it was snowing; yesterday, it was raining, but the day turned out pretty well, despite the weather. We (Dan, Heidi, and I) put on our raincoats and ponchos and spent the day shopping at merchants' stalls and watching reenactments of Roman battles and Gladiator fights (the latter was actually a play, which we did not see all of; the combination of rain and not understanding the language drove us away).

The Gladiator play was held in the ruins of the Roman amphitheater - there were numerous signs posted forbidding the use of cameras (which were being used anyway), so we didn't get any footage of that event.
Fortunately, however, we (or rather, Dan) did take plenty of video of the Roman-German battle, reenacted at the Roman baths.

DISCLAIMER: EXTREME CORNINESS AHEAD. PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

Tasty Food and Whatnot

A DAY IN THE LIFE (OUR EATING HABITS)

Last week I began craving bread and cheese (specifically, cheddar) again. So Dan brought home a block of cheddar and a pack of his disgusting, beloved cheese, which I thought I had successfully banned from the apartment.

He also brought home two small peaches that he had been telling me about, ones that are grown on the same mountain slope as the grapes of a specific wine (pictured below). I didn't get to eat the peach (I wasn't in the mood, so Dan ate mine instead), but I did hear that they are extremely tasty.

YUM YUM HEALTHY GOODNESS


Wine and Little Peach


Bread and Cheddar

NOT SO MUCH


Gross, Moldy Cheese


Alcohol


Deliciousness


FYI: UPCOMING EVENTS

This weekend we are heading back to Trier (the Roman ruins); there is going to be a parade and reenactments (to include a Gladiator fight in the amphitheater, plus a battle or two) throughout the area.

Luxembourg Recap

We took a trip to Luxembourg earlier this week; Dan planned an excursion full of cathedrals (the Notre Dame Cathedral in Luxembourg), fortresses (Luxembourg casemates and Burg Nanstein in Landstuhl, Germany), palaces (Grand Ducal Palace), and the Luxembourg American Cemetery and Memorial. It was all very interesting and beautiful.

The drive took approximately 90 minutes, and it was very interesting as well:

(Approaching a tunnel)

DAN: Man, this looks like the entrance to hell or something.
ME: (Thinking) Hades is a place, not a person, right?
DAN: What?
ME: Hades? It's a place?
DAN: Haiti?
ME: Hades? Hades. H-A-D-E-S.
DAN: Haiti? What?
ME: Hades! The place! Hades! Hades!
DAN: What?
ME: Hades! H-A-D-E-S! HADES!!
DAN: Haiti? Oh, H-A-D-E-S? (Not thinking) Hay-dez? What are you talking about?
ME: Omigod, Dan...
DAN: Why are you asking me about Haiti? Of course it's a place.
ME: Dan!
DAN: Haiti?
ME: Omigosh...
DAN: Huh?
ME: Hades! H-A-D-E-S. Hades, Dan! Hades!
DAN: Oh, HADES! Ha, ha.
ME: Oh man, you suck!