Germany's Over Yonder

In retrospect it would have been a good idea to clean my room and pack before my mom got here. I felt bad having to finish all my chores while she was patiently waiting in my room when we could have been exploring Copenhagen. I might have worn her out yesterday, so it was probably a good idea to have a relaxing start to our busy week of adventures.

As we were cleaning last night we made it through the email list of what needed to be completed. We didn't necessarily use all the appropriate cleaning brands that were suggested, but we made do with what we had. Throughout the night and morning my mom would practically go behind me cleaning up areas I missed. The level in which she was cleaning was probably unnecessary, but she wanted to leave the place spotless. In my defense, I did an adequate job, but she just couldn't resist wiping down two years of dust behind the door and scrubbing grime that just wasn't going to come out of the bathroom. Even though I cleaned all the dishes the night before, there were still a few left over from our nachos and breakfast of melon. It was approaching 11am when my room was supposed to be inspected and there was one spoon left from the melon we were eating. My mom takes one last bite, rinses the spoon off, and throws it in the cabinet. She didn't wash, dry, or put it in the right spot. I was speechless; I didn't think she had it in her to leave one crumb of dirt. We both went into a fit of laughter as we anxiously awaited the room inspection.

Apparently they really do take the room checks very seriously. The inspector looked over every little surface and even asked me to scrub behind the stove one more time, this was after I scrubbed it once and my mom went back over the same area to scrub again the night before. He turned on the sinks to make sure the water drained, he peeked around the bed, and spent an uncomfortable long time in the bathroom which was a hopeless cause. I did manage to pass, but at the end of the day what would they have really done if I didn't scrub the stove with a toothbrush (which my mom still insisted on scrubbing, but with the back end of a fork).

I took one last look at my empty room and a pang of sadness ran through my body. It was just six short weeks ago that my room looked this way with nothing in it but a suitcase. The only difference was the different person standing there looking upon the space. When I first arrived in Copenhagen, I was nervous, anxious, excited, and unsure what the next six weeks had in store. I was shy, unsure of my own capabilities, and apprehensive about trying something new. I leave Copenhagen a more confident woman. I can navigate public transportation, I'm not afraid to ask when I need help, and I'm more confident in my ability to meet new people and explore new and unknown horizons. I am excited to share the next 10 days with my mom exploring Germany and the Czech Republic and making new memories, but I owe a big thanks to Copenhagen and the people I've met here for living in the moment, having the courage to take risks, and growing with me.


After storing our luggage in the office upstairs, we went out to explore the city and have lunch. When I showed my mom the penguin and elephant coat hangers I purchased for my friends, she insisted on going back to that store. We went to drop off my bike for real this time and made our way to Tiger. As I mentioned previously, Tiger is one big Dollar Store, but with higher quality and higher prices. My mom was lost and in love. I expected to go right to the hangers, get what she wanted, maybe mosey a little, and then head out. We spent at least 20 minutes in the store looking through every aisle. It is an exciting store, but at the rate my mom was going we weren't going to have any space in our already full suitcases for anymore souvenirs the rest of our travels. I convinced my mom to only get the "essentials" which is a word I must use with great leniency. We left with a build your own straw set for one of my best friend's son, animal chopsticks for my cousin who is just learning how to use them, and toilet paper with ducks on them for a family friend who is obsessed with ducks. It was a successful shopping trip and with some maneuvering we might still have some space in our suitcases for treasures we find along the way.

After walking through the main shopping area we met Hannah at the Living Room to have lunch and say one last goodbye. I've been to the Living Room more times than I can count, but I couldn't resist sharing this jewel with my mom. We ordered the famous goat cheese sandwich and a pesto, mozzarella, and sun dried tomato sandwich to try something new. My mom enjoyed the sandwiches and smoothies just as much as I imagined she would, and it was nice sharing some of my favorite places with her. We had some time before picking up the rental car at 2pm, so we relaxed while Hannah told us about her travel plans for the next week. After lunch I got up to use the restroom which unfortunately didn't have any soap, so I had to improvise and use the next bathroom stall. As soon as I return, Hannah gets up to use the bathroom as well. I suggest she uses the first stall because there was no soap in the second and she thanks me for the recommendation. As I'm sitting with my mom I get a text from Hannah that says there is no toilet paper. One stall had toilet paper, but no soap and the other had soap, but no toilet paper. After I offered to bring Hannah some paper from the other stall she responds by saying, "I'm too tired to even get up. Maybe I'll just sleep in the Living Room bathroom tonight." It just wasn't our day.

After the bathroom fiasco was over with, we said our goodbyes while promising pictures from our travels, texts, and visits in the states. I felt so lucky to have met Hannah, and I hope we are able to stay in contact. From the first day I met her while traveling to Hamlet's Castle, I knew she was a lot of fun. I'm so glad we got to know her better while traveling in Sweden, and I hope to have more adventures with her in the future. She is so real and down-to-earth, and I would be missing out on a great friendship if I let her slip away.
One last pitstop on the way to get our car was at the glass markets. There was a really nice chocolate store next to Smag. Whenever we got lunch in the markets, we would always pass by the chocolate store and take samples without actually buying anything. Looking at the prices, all we could realistically afford was the free samples anyway. With a few kroner left in my wallet and my guilty conscience finally taking its toll on me after all the free samples, I got two containers of chocolate, one for my dad and Jennifer and the other for Oma. I was really mindful when deciding which ones to pick. My dad loves white chocolate, so I got the white chocolate covering some type of nut which was probably one of the best white chocolates I've ever had. For Oma I got a raspberry flavor with a hint of licorice in the center, also covering a nut. One of the first weeks in Copenhagen I got a beer mug for Opa, but I've been unsure what to get Oma, so I was happy to finally find something.

We were finally on our way to the airport to pick up the car. It was a painless journey and we managed to time the metro just right. As we were checking into the rental car ticket counter, the woman working informed us that we had been upgraded. We were expecting a little Toyota IQ or something of the sort, but instead we got a BMW 5 series, a tank of a car. We suspected that the only reason we were upgraded was because they needed the car in Munich at the end of the week, but we couldn't complain with more space and a navigation system. At home my mom drives a Mini Cooper, so this new diesel beast would take some time to adjust to. The first adjustment would be learning how to start the car. Instead of a key ignition, the newer BMWs have a start and stop button allowing you to leave the key in your purse, pocket, or the center console. My dad has a similar button like this in his car, so I started by pressing the button. I pressed the button and even held it down several times, but the engine wouldn't seem to turn over. After looking for a key ignition and pressing the button a dozen times, we finally pulled out the instruction manual. Looking at a car instruction manual was a first for me, and of course it was in a different language, it didn't even have an English section. I looked through the booklet at the pictures while trying to recognize words with similar English counterparts. We tried moving the key to different positions in the car until I finally asked my mom if her foot was on the brake. She insisted that it was the whole time, but I told her to press hard on the break and press the button again. The engine started. My mom says her foot was on the break the whole time, but I beg to differ. After attempting to start the car for close to a half hour, we were rolling out of the parking garage. Luckily we are both easing going and were able to laugh off our technical difficulties. Now that we knew how to the start the car we could be on our way to Berlin.

The travel time to Berlin from Copenhagen is about six hours. The first leg of the trip is two hours of driving followed by two hours on a ferry and finishing with another two hour drive. It would be our longest day of driving, but my mom still needed to recuperate after a long airplane ride and I could use a break after staying up till the sun comes up. I attempted to find a radio station that wasn't completely staticy, but was having little luck. The few stations I managed to find played mostly foreign music. This is what I would have expected in a foreign country, but I was hoping to play music from my phone because there's nothing better than singing along to music on a road trip. The first two hours seemed to go by fast as we chatted about our plans for the week, and by the time we got to the ferry it was a little after 6pm. The ferry runs every two hours and the next one would be at 8:15pm, so we must have just missed the previous one. I knew the trip to Berlin would include a ferry, but how was I supposed to know we needed a reservation to be on the ferry? At the toll booth we were told that the ferry was sold out and that we could buy a ticket for the waiting list, but it was only a 50/50 chance of getting on. We bought a ticket anyway with the hopes of making it on the 8:15pm. If we missed this ferry we would have to wait until 10pm for the next one, but still without a guaranteed spot. Our alternative was to drive an hour in the other direction and take a ferry that runs every 15 minutes, but stops at a city farther away from Berlin. This would add at least two hours to our journey which would be the same as waiting. Considering we were the third car in line, we decided to chance it and wait the two hours for the ferry. Besides, it would be nice to get out of the car and walk around.


We walked down to the waterfront and through the tall grass to reach the water's edge. Along the gate there was a sign that read "Restricted Area," but technically we never passed the gate. The gate stopped where the path dropped down into the weeds before the water, so we were in a gray area in terms of where we were allowed to be walking. We decided to press our luck by walking to the water anyway. I don't think it would have worked to claim that we didn't see the sign or that we weren't able to read it because it was obviously in English, but there was no one around and we went anyway. Occasionally there would be people at the top of the path looking down to us without making the venture through the grass. Maybe they needed some adventure in their lives.

There was seaweed covering the waters edge, so I wasn't able to get my feet wet, but I still took my shoes off to feel the sand between my toes. Out across the water there was blue sky and blue water as far as the eye could see. My mom was busy looking for cool rocks or shells that had been deposited by the water while I just enjoyed the view and the cool breeze. My mom commented how you couldn't see anything in the distance and she didn't realize it was that far across. Unsure how to respond, I finally said in my best German accent, "Germany's over yonder."


We soon decided to explore the rest of the ferry buildings and discovered what was once a train station and now an information center. Crossing the Baltic Sea has been called "the Royal Route" because of the many royal and aristocratic travelers, especially during the Renaissance period. The trains would bring goods and the ferries would send them off and vice versa.  This is how goods would be imported and exported. Trains have been transporting cattle, mail, and various goods to Copenhagen since 1872. Gedser also played an important role in World War II during the Nazi occupation of Denmark. The Mecklenburg steam Getty reported having engine failure and being out of service, where German troops were hiding. The ferry arrived unannounced in camouflage at 4am, but it was already too late. The troops stormed the station and seized the telephones. I've been consistently amazed at the dense history everywhere I've visited. Europe is full of pockets of history waiting to be discovered.

After 1971, Gedser was no longer a train stop and there was no longer a direct link between Copenhagen and Berlin through Gedser. Today, this route is the quickest to Berlin. After an hour and a half of walking around questioning our path, it's safe to say we're on our way and in the right direction and we made it on the ferry.


The ferry was huge and appeared to be more like a cruise ship. For the first part of the ride we sat on the deck enjoying the view. We made light conversation while watching the waves crash in the distance. When it got too cold to sit outside, we moved to chairs by the window in the panorama lounge which still provided a beautiful view of the Baltic Sea. My mom read and napped as I blogged. At one point an older woman came to sit near us and attempted to talk to us. We weren't sure what language she was speaking and she didn't seem to understand that we spoke English. We tried to tell her that we didn't understand, but then she wouldn't understand and it was one vicious circle. I finally just smiled and nodded when she was talking to me. By the end of the conversation she might have caught on that I didn't understand a word she was saying, but I'm still not convinced.

As we were approaching Germany people began heading for their cars as if they were going to be the first ones out the gate. Everyone has to exit in the same order that they entered the ferry, unless of course your car happened to be a hover car. Regardless, it was a mad rush. Because we were the last group to be let on, there was no hurry to get to our car, but we still were waiting for quite some time. I was always told to never start the car while in the garage if the doors are closed, and I thought this would be the same basic principle. I'm sure engineers considered asphyxiation when designing the ferry, but I couldn't help but to joke about passing out due to lack of oxygen. Asphyxiation is no joking matter, but it was a defense mechanism against my nervous conscience. As we watched a man standing outside his car, I told my mom that as long as he was still standing we would be good. After all, we were inside the car with the windows rolled up and he was just standing outside with all the exhaust fumes. Every once in a while we would see him duck into his car for something and I would tell my mom to prepare to make a run for it. As we were planning our escape route the gates opened and all the cars filed out one by one. Everyone survived, so the engineers must have known what they were doing.

A navigation system doesn't do you any good unless you have the address of where you are trying to go. I wrote down the address of where we will be staying tomorrow night, but for some reason I didn't think to write down the address of the hostel for tonight. I wrote down the reference number and the telephone number, but forgot the address. We decided to stop at a truck stop along the way to get dinner and hopefully connect to the Internet. There was wireless Internet, but you needed a password and the only way to get the password was to get a text message. I attempted to turn my Danish phone on to receive the message, but I had no service and no SIM card for Germany. By getting some food we were less grumpy, but that didn't solve our navigation issues. We decided to try for another gas station just up the road, but we still couldn't connect to the Internet. We finally had some luck when a nice young woman let us use her phone to call the hostel and get the address. It was already proving to be a long night. 

Close to 2am we arrived at the Three Little Pigs Hostel, a former convent. Our tank barley made it through the arches and into the parking lot that was just past the church. There is still a functioning church right next to the hostel, and I'm sure they weren't too keen on all the traffic. 

Because we booked the reservation so late we were forced to stay in two different rooms. I let my mom stay in the six bedroom dorm with a private bathroom and I was in the eight bedroom dorm with a shared bathroom down the hall. We quietly opened my door to find the lights out and everyone fast asleep. I quietly put downy stuff and went to get my mom settled into her room. We quietly opened her door to find the room empty of people, but full of boxers, jeans, tshirts, half eaten food containers, beer cans, hard liquor bottles, and endless amounts of trash. There wasn't one clean surface let alone one clean bed that my mom could sleep in. Messy roommates is part of communal living, but when there is no bed open, that is another problem. We went to the man at the front desk who previously told us the hostel was completely booked with no other availability. After inspecting the room with us to see the mess, there was all of a sudden another room open. We later speculated that the man at the front desk gave us the wrong room number to begin with. The second try we opened the door to find the lights off and sleeping people, much better.

The Three Little Pigs Hostel had a big lobby with pool tables, couches, tables, a bar, and people hanging out, even at 2am. It was a nice cozy atmosphere, but the hallways were a different story. Walking through the dimly lit halls that gave off a green glow made if feel like I was in a horror movie. The lights would flicker on and off and other sections had no lights at all. At any minute I was waiting for the boogeyman to come out and grab me, but luckily he never did.