Adventures in Düsseldorf and its surroundings

First, before I relate my experiences in Düsseldorf, I feel the need to share the fact that tonight (after living here for almost 2 months) I got the first whiff of cannabis on my floor. I was just minding my own business going to the bathroom when I got the distinct smell of marijuana. To make sure I stuck my nose out my door a couple of minutes later and sure enough the whiff was still in the air. Of course it's impossible to determine who exactly is smoking the stuff, but I've suddenly got a new respect for my floor mates...floating the law like that;-)

Düsseldorf was great! I really liked the city centre, since that was mostly where I hung out. On Friday after I'd finally convinced myself it was a good idea to venture out in the rain I was rewarded by meeting a very interesting American and her lovely 3 week old baby. Joan is a physician, who moved to Germany with her Bavarian husband. We met as we were getting off the tram to Düsseldorf and spent the next three hours together: looking for Christmas cards and enjoying the lovely food at the Christmas market. Well, after I'd spent all that time with Joan and her adorable Shasha, I just had about an hour of daylight to explore Düsseldorf's inner city. I acquired a map of the city and pursued the Düsseldorf in an hour walking tour. I believe I saw (and took pictures of ) all I had to see and even managed to sit in on an orchestral practice in one of the churches.

Düsseldorf is more or less known as the fashion capital of Germany - a fact one wouldn't know if one weren't living in Germany. It has a very well-known street (Königsallee/Die Kö) where absolutely all the top international fashion brands (Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Tommy Hilfiger) have a store...where dresses are marked down from €4600 to €3700 (multiply by 9 for value in Rs). Very interesting stuff, but just too rich for my blood. Otherwise Düsseldorf is also the capital of the federal state of North Rhine Westphalia.

On Saturday I also got onto a bike for the first time in yonks! In the morning Nenske and I cycled to the bakery to pick up some fresh rolls for breakfast. It was a lovely experience since the sun was shining and I was fully protected (beany, gloves and coat) from the cold. The afternoon we went to the centre of Düsseldorf again to see if we could go ice-skating there. We never got round to ice-skating since there was a ice-hockey tournament for six year olds being held on the ice-rink. However, we weren't fazed since it was great fun watching these pint-sized ice-hockey players acting as if their match was the real thing:)

The next day and my last one in Krefeld we went to check out the Burg Linn...a small castle close to where Alex and Nenske live. The blue skies and sunshine just made the experience that much more enjoyable. Nenske and I were also allowed to live out our inner kids on the great playground and a very climbable tree on the grounds surrounding the Burg. We also visited the local Christmas market in the area and found it very refreshing and real after the professional and uniform Christmas markets we'd visited the previous day in the city. The items on sale all seemed hand-made with love and care - there were even craftsmen showing how one makes a glass mosiac.

What was the cherry on top of a great weekend was the fact that after almost two months of this strange (read: unfamiliar) existence as a student I was allowed to be part of something akin to a normal life. Of course I camped out on Alex and Nenske's living room, but it was a living room which came with a (as yet non-existent) kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. It's the kind of thing one takes for granted at home, but when it's not there one really notices it. We also had meals at regular intervals together at a table...something I'd also not done for a while.

So, thanks Alex and Nenske for your hospitability and the fact that I could share in your relatively normal life. I greatly appreciate it although I hadn't known that the absence of a normal life had in any way affected me.

Ciao