Dresden, Germany

This entry is copied straight from my journal.



1/18/08
Dresden has been lonely. The old town is grand and imperial but walking through the streets I feel small and invisible. No one speaks English, which at one time I would have liked, but here, alone, it is daunting. All I want to do is sit in the sun and read but I am almost out of books.

I sat in the hostel kitchen tonight while a trio of Australian girls made dinner from food left on the "free" shelf. I was so happy to hear English I just sat listening to them excitedly devise their dinner menu. Then I couldn't think of an intro line. I sat there like I was invisible. Finally I asked them where they were from. All these images of drinking with them in the bar downstairs or walking around with them tomorrow flashed through my head. Our conversation was about 3 exchanges long. My meal finished I had no further excuse to remain there so I retreated to the solitary of my empty room. As I was leaving I imagined myself through their eyes, awkward and uncomfortable. All plans of company dashed. Another lonely night.

DRESDEN DAY 2 1/19/08

It was rainy when I woke up this morning. I got dressed and headed upstairs to the kitchen for breakfast. Upon opening the little fridge I found that someone had taken 2 of the 3 remaining soy yogurts I purchased yesterday. Cursing under my breath I ate the last one with nuts and raisins left over from a larger mixed nuts bag my mom supplied prior to the trip and drank a chocolate soy milk.

I put on my rain jacket over my hoodie and stepped outside. It was only drizzling at that point so I stated down Krospergerplatz. I turned onto Louisestrasse. I had a litte map given to me by the hostel and I planned to visit Buchers Best, a used bookstore, first thing. I quickly discovered that Louisestrasse is a rather hip street lined with skate shops, head shops, boutiques, and restaurants. I reached Buchers Best just as they opened at 11 am and was led to the back room by a tall thin girl with cropped brown hair and an eyebrow ring. She proudly told me that she had just finished the English book shelf yesterday and recommended Herman Hesse and Gunter Grasse. She gave me green tea while I browsed the 5 small shelves. I ended up buying My Century by Gunter Grasse, Seducing the Demons by Erica Jong, Lonesome Traveller by Jack Kerouac, and A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers. I was tempted to also purchase Hard Boiled Wonder by Murakami but I need to conserve funds and not weigh myself down. I had finished The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera the night before so I sold it to Buchers Best for 2 Euros. I liked the book okay. It was nice to read it just after Prague so that I recognized the location and historical references (well, not all of them). I find Jundera to be very preoccupied with sex. Most of his female characters don't seem to enjoy sex while all of his male characters certainly do.

Then I walked a bit more around the neighborhood before eating some Dahl at a veggie restaurant I had sought out before arrival. When I left the bookstore the sun was out and the threat of real rain looked to have passed. After lunch I walked to the old town to check out Grosser Gartens with the hope of spending the afternoon reading in the sun. As I crossed one of the many bridges I could tell this was not to be as the sun had taken refuge behind some ominous clouds. I made it to the gardens and found an open air market taking place across the street. Wandering through I smiled to myself as I watched old German women buy meat, cheese, vegetables, and sweet baked goods from the little stahls. I wanted to buy something myself but I only had a 50 Euro note and didn't want to try breaking it. Finally I crossed the street and walked into the park. I took some random paths off of the main trail and found a beautiful tiled fountain standing in the center of a small clearing. I sat on a bench further on under a large tree I was unable to identify and got started on My Century. After about 20 minutes I had to give up because I was too cold. The sky was still dark, the fun refusing to make a second appearance that day. I walked around a bit more but I was cold and wanted comfort so I began back towards the river with my hostel in mind. On the way I tried to get some money out of a bankomat but was rejected 3 times by 2 different machines. Now I am sitting in the bar at my hostel drinking a beer and a Dandy Warhols song has just come on. I feel quite happy to be just where I am.


THOUGHTS ON DRESDEN

-lots of punks around
-really good stencils and street art
-seems hip but I've run out of things to do far too quickly.
-tons of bikes but I haven't seen any fixed gears