Don't say ich liebe dich: November 2011

What could be worse than a 22 hour flight from Berlin to Doha, Doha to KL, KL to Melbourne? A six hour stopover in KL, that's what. I should also mention that in my packing madness, I managed to forget to store my glasses in my hand luggage. Therefore, with only 14 hours down, my over-worn contact lenses, the dryness from the flight and a solid 30 minutes of sobbing into my chicken and rice after watching 'Bridges of Madison County' on the inflight entertainment, has rendered me a red eyed and very cranky traveler.

I normally don't mind long haul flights. What better excuse to be served food continuously while watching four movies back-to-back? However, this particular flight has lost any sense of glamour. Perhaps because the great Berlin adventure is now over and I must return to a life of alarm clocks, tram passes and meetings. This would also suggest it's time to revisit my earlier goals and draw some type of conclusion from this very indulgent time away. To quote myself from way back in July, come November, I hoped to;

1) Have the ability to conduct a basic conversation in German
If by 'conversation' you mean I can say I'm from Australia, I'm unmarried, my favourite colour is red and I have two brothers, I think I can give this one the thumbs up. (Though it does read rather like a terrible first date).
2) Prove or disprove that I'm essentially German in my attitude
This one is much more difficult as, after two months in Berlin, I don't feel any closer to really understanding the German psyche. Not even the stereotypes are satisfactory. For example, while the public transport is frighteningly efficient, the language is not. It just takes many more words to say something in German than it does in English. Similarly, while I encountered many blunt and opinionated people (refer to my earlier post about Frau Postal Worker), I've met many more considered, interesting, bright, kind (dare I say witty) Germans.
3) Meet interesting people
As per above, this one can also get the thumbs up. From the New Zealander couple I befriended on my first day, to the friends of friends I forced my company upon, I can safely say that the world is full of good sorts and I'm privileged to have met a few of them.
4) Look at art and not associate it with work.
Double thumbs up. So many highlights it would take up the entire post to list them all.

So the wrap? It's been a whirlwind, wonderful ride and I'm glad I took the (small) risk to get aboard. My time away has helped me to appreciate the bevy of excellent friends I have in my life and writing this blog has forced me to do some self-analysis and actually get genuine joy from writing. So thank you to everybody who has been so encouraging, not only of the blog but of the whole adventure. There has even been a request for a continuation of the blog (in some from or another). I'm not sure I'll have enough content once I'm back to regular life, but thanks for making the request.

And, whilst I don't normally like to inflict my holiday photos on anybody (please never invite me to a slide night), here are a few slightly interesting ones from the collection;