Hannover

My weekend in Hannover was by far the most amazing time that I have had in Germany so far. Probably because it was the most social I have been so far, hah.

I left for Hannover Friday after work and arrived at the Hannover Hauptbahnhof at 11pm. Paul picked me up from the train station and we both went back to his apartment and talked for a really long time. Having never met Paul, I was nervous that the whole weekend might be awkward or we wouldn't have that much in common, etc., but it was exactly the opposite of my fears the whole time. Turns out we have a lot more in common that we both would have ever thought and he's a really cool guy.

Friday I woke up and met Tobi, Paul's roommate and best friend of 16 years. Tobi is just as awesome as Paul is and we got along great (which is good because we spent the whole day together). Paul let me borrow his bike so Tobi took me on a biking tour of the city of Hannover. We went to the Rathaus (city hall) where you can go on the roof and see the whole city - that was really cool. For lunch we met up with Paul and some of his graduate school friends that he is writing his thesis with. We ate at the Mensa (student cafeteria) and, like all other student cafeterias, the food wasn't the best. After eating Tobi and I headed off to the Herrenhausen Gardens - these huge gardens that the city owns. We walk around them for an hour or so - they were so beautiful. Hannover is a really green city, which is nice. After the gardens we stopped at a small restaurant and grabbed a Döner. Döners are these amazing thing they have in Germany. It reminded me of a falafel, but with more meat and no cabbage. Very delicious - it definitely made up for the not so appetizing lunch. After eating again we decided to take the scenic route back home, where Tobi ended up getting a flat tire. We still took the long way home and everything went well.

I can't really recall the last time I rode a bike. It must be in late elementary school or early middle school. I don't know. Either way, my biking skills were definitely lacking, hah. I only almost hit a few people. A few different times. Whatever. It was a lot of fun though. After the first day riding my bike with Tobi my ass was so sore. Ridiculously sore. Saturday sucked riding the bike, but I managed somehow.

Friday night Paul took me to a Biergarten. It was really cool. It was a giant outdoor place packed with people chilling at tables and a small "hut" where you go up and order your drink. Paul introduced me to Weißbier - it was definitely the best stuff I've had thus far. It's a Bavarian (southern Germany) thing, but hopefully I'll come across it again. The beer naturally has hints of banana in it due to the ethers that are produced when they brew it, but they also add some banana juice in it which makes it taste even better. I hope I can find some in Cottbus. Else I will just have to suck it up and take the 8 hour train ride to Münich in July and visit the friends I have that are studying there for the summer : P It would be worth it to drink some Weißbier once again.

After the Biergarten we stopped a café that is famous for its cake. Paul was right - it was delicious. We also stopped by his mom's apartment so we could pick up a map for me so I could find my way around the city on Saturday. His mom was oh so nice. She used to be an English teacher so we could both talk to each other. She was also recently diagnosed with type II diabetes, which is really sad. After we were introduced and we talked about how much I liked Hannover and much I disliked Cottbus, she immediately asked me if I like Barack Obama. I told her I was a Hillary fan, but now that she lost I'll be supporting Obama. She told me to "Please help end the war. It's so bad." I wanted to hug her.

Saturday I ate lunch with Paul and his friends at the university then set off by myself to do a little exploring. I found a few great places to read my book (A Thousand Splendid Suns) which was nice. I also took some more time to walk around downtown and stuff. Tobi and I walked around really quick so I took it slower and went in a few book stores and found some traditional dancers and bands performing.

Once Paul go done working on his thesis, Paul, Tobi, and I headed off to the river. Both Paul and Tobi are in a rowing club and they are both really active. We got out a three person boat and they taught me to row. We went up and down the river that goes through the city. At first it was really difficult to get the hang of it - it's definitely not as easy as it looks, hah - but after a few beers I found that it got better (surprisingly). By the end I was a rowing beast ; )

We had steak and potatoes at the house that night. Paul is a great cook so we all ate well anytime we stayed in for food. Friday's dinner was three different chinese dishes. Amazing! Paul lived in China for 6 months and can speak cantonese fluently (very impressive). He also learned to cook over there, which is a blessing to anyone who stays over for dinner.

While Paul got a nap in (he was tired from being in the library all day) Tobi and I hung out and talked for an hour or so. He's a great guy and we both learned a lot about each other. We promised each other that he would come to Atlanta and I will host him, so I can't wait until that day comes. After that we all headed off to check out some clubs downtown. I had a great time. Most of the places played music from the 90's or earlier, hah - it was awesome! I love that music and I'm glad that Europe still does too. We got back at around 3.30am and Paul and I stayed up and talked til 5.30am or so.

Sunday morning came and Paul, Tobi, Tobi's brother Andy, and I went out to a delicious brunch buffet. We all ate a ton. Very good food. After brunch Paul and I were too tired to do anything so we both took naps before Paul took me to the train station at 4pm. My train came at 5pm and I got back to Cottbus at 9pm.

This weekend was absolutely amazing. I'll be seeing Paul in Berlin later this month and he has many friends in other cities that have offered to let me stay with them while I'm about traveling. I'm really excited. I'll see Tobi again, too, when he comes to Atlanta in a few year. I'm glad we'll all cross paths again.

Thanks Kathy for getting in touch with Paul for me! Without your help I wouldn't have had such an amazing weekend!

Next weekend I'm off to Dresden, which I'm excited about. I need to find a person to stay with - I begin looking for a Couchsurfer tonight. Every weekend from now until the end is planned out so I think that my time here in Germany will definitely be more enjoyable. I'm excited.

Random side note: I really want my boss to shave her armpits. They gross me out. Really. That is all.

I posted the pictures from this weekend on the link to the right - check them out! I also updated the Cottbus album as well with pictures from researching in the field.

Until next time.