Revival

Renewal. Regeneration. That seemed to be the theme for the past week. From Axolotls to rest, rejuvenation was certainly welcome.

The first weeks of the program were incredible and fast-paced, but by the half-way point of our trip, I was definitely getting worn out. Then came the third week. We still traveled, but with more experience now. Managing train switches is becoming old news, I’ve finally come to terms with the fact that I’m in another country, and, honestly, this past week was wonderful.

It was very nice to have a few days in Bonn to start the week and recover from our whirlwind tour through Munich, Vienna, and Prague. Having class at the AIB felt more like the normal school routine I’m used to, and what better to relax you than anesthesiology? Really though, meeting Dr. Stoeckel was a complete honor, and being giving a tour of his mostly personal collection? It was unimaginably spectacular. Of course the sugar high from Haribo later that day re-energized us all.

Our visit the Hannover Medical School certainly brought to light current medical techniques used to give new life as well as plans for future revival. Artificial rotors that relieve stress on the heart muscle by pushing blood throughout the body and external filters that remove toxins from the blood when the kidneys are incapable certainly bring about new life, not to mention the actual physical replacement of those malfunctioning organs with transplants.Our glance into the potential future of medicine at the MHH showed us that new life can start anywhere, whether it be in the form of new skin cells encouraged to grow more quickly by spider silk, or the regeneration of entire limbs by Axolotls.

Then of course we experienced the rejuvenating properties of the entire climate of the island of Norderney, including its air, water, and mud. The tour of the clinic showed us how psychological as well as physical renewal can be possible.

Taking day trips over the weekend sounds exhausting at first, but in reality, this weekend was the most relaxing one so far because once in the city-of-the-day, we could walk where we pleased and just enjoy ourselves. Spending Sunday strolling along the Rhine in Cologne was the perfect close to a relaxing and renewing week three.

~Daily Blogs Posted Below Break~

Monday, July 23, 2012

Today we were back in Bonn for what felt like the first time in forever. I was welcomed back by my host family this morning since I came in late last night, and it was wonderful not having to worry about finding breakfast or sharing the bathroom to get ready.

We also had class this morning for the first time in a while, this time about a little of the history of anesthesiology and the background of Dr. Stoeckel, founder of the museum for the history of anesthesia at the Bonn university, and living legend in his own right.

After the quick intro by Dr. Wasser at the AIB, we took a tram and a bus to the museum where Dr. Stoeckel himself gave us a tour. The museum was full of relics and a few recreations that were almost all given to him for his museum. The cases were separated by year and location, starting with a general overview of medicine in the latter half of the 19^th century, and continuing to modern-day anesthesiology equipment. There was a model of the apparatus used in the first successful use of anesthesia in 1846 all the way up to the computerized monitoring system used in the 2000s, with many, many fascinating tools, inventions, and drugs in between. There was even a full mock-up with all original equipment of a 1930s operating theater. That the tour was led by Dr. Stoeckel made the experience all the more incredible because he knew the origins of every piece and had no problems telling us the more fascinating, and funny, histories.

We left Olivia and Dr. Wasser at the Hoptbahnhof to go find lunch before meeting Mira back there an hour later. From there we took another tram to the Haribo store. Inside were more gummie bears, worms, and other creatures than I had ever imagined possible. So, we spent the next 45 minutes acting like kids in a candy store…oh wait, that simile may be a little too accurate.

After Haribo we returned to AIB to meet Olivia and walk to Beethoven Haus. The museum is partially inside the house in which Beethoven was born, as well as in the building next door that is now connected. There were many manuscripts written by Beethoven as well as his viola from when he was a young boy, a string quartet given to him as a gift, and the piano on which he played the last year of his life. There were also some of the ear trumpets he used, or chose not to use, after he went deaf in his late 20s.

Olivia left us at Beethoven Haus, and we then went to the train station to look up information for our trips to either Paris or Brügge this weekend and to Switzerland the next. We found a lot of information, but made no decisions, so we’ll have to discuss it again tomorrow.

I left the station at 6:40 so I could make it back home in time for dinner at 7. It’s so nice to have food waiting. After dinner I started laundry and worked on my overall blog for last week, before writing this and heading to bed.

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Today was just a normal school day…except for the fact that class was in Germany, of course. Dr. Wasser gave three lectures today about the history of medicine starting in the very beginning in the Garden of Eden where pain didn’t exist and continuing until around the first century CE.

Along the way we talked about how Paleolithic man was actually relatively healthy because as nomadic hunter-gatherers traveling in groups of 30-40 without domestic animals, infectious diseases had little chance to spread. But then the Neolithic Revolution took place around 10-12,000 years ago, and great increases in population density occurred due to the development of agriculture and domestication of animals like cattle, sheep, and dogs. This brought about the epidemics of zoonotic diseases like small pox and bubonic plague 

as well as malaria and typhus that caused great numbers of deaths throughout history and even today.

Next we discussed how healers have been around in various forms since about 13,000 BCE when shamans began using herbs and rituals to heal the sick. Dr. Wasser also pointed out that medicine has developed a great deal over time, and many theories have been proven wrong, emphasizing that we shouldn’t take anything we learn at face value.

In the second lecture we moved on to medicine in Mesopotamia through Ancient Greece, beginning with Ashurbanipal’s library from around 650 BCE that contains about 1000 tablets dealing with the healing arts. We also discussed the Code of Hammurabi which actually contains instructions for charging fees for treatments.

Ancient Egypt also had some fascinating written works dealing with medicine, like the Edwin Smith and Eber’s Papyri. From around 1600 and 1550 BCE respectively, these treatises contain descriptions of diseases and cures as well a list of compound drugs. The most famous Egyptian physicians were Iri, Peseshet, and Imhotep, the founder of medicine. Egyptians believed that sickness was caused by earthly as well as supernatural forces.

Next we moved on to Grecian medicine which was based on the Egyptians’, but was more secular and not as mystic as evidenced by the birth of Hippocratic medicine in around 200 BCE wherein the natural theory of disease stated that illnesses were the result of natural causes. In this era, doctors, or iatron, competed in an open market with bone-setters, priests, exorcists, and others for the trust of patients. Therefore, to gain business, the doctor had to be good at what he did.

Empedoclese brought about advanced physiological doctrines in the 5^th century BCE with his belief in the four basic elements (water, air, earth, fire) that if out of balance made one sick. Alcamaron of Croten in 470 BCE presented his theories that the brain was the organ of sensation and health was a balance between pairs of bodily powers like hot and cold, and wet and dry. He had the right idea, homeostasis, but just the wrong components.

Next we reached Hippocrates who lived from 460-377BCE, but most of what is known about him is all legend. Hippocrates did believe that illnesses were due to natural causes and that man was governed by the same physical laws as the rest of the universe. He also thought that medicine should be patient-centered rather than focusing on the disease, a concept with which doctors today still struggle. Hippocrates knew much about surface anatomy, but little internally as human dissections were forbidden. The cardinal concept though, was that health is equilibrium. Hippocrates also believed in the four chymoi: blood, phlegm, yellow and black bile, and that blood letting would bring these humors into balance. Hippocratic diagnostics was very important with focus on patient history and physical exams, but the most prized skill was the ability to prognosticate accurately. Primum Non Nocere (first, do no harm) was important, but we also learned that the Hippocratic Oath itself from around the 5^th to 3^rd century BCE was not actually written by Hippocrates.

The third lecture was about Roman medicine, separated into two factions: Pre-Galenic and Galenic. Early on was he Methodic sect introduced by Asclepiades’ student wherein cures were by opposites; they would shrink large pores or expand small ones to improve health. They also believed in massages, exercise, cold hydrotherapy, and convalescence. With their motto of “swiftly, safely, sweetly,” they rejected heroic bleeding. This school of thought flourished for about 300 years, until Galen came along in 129 CE.

Galen was the first doctor in his family, encouraged to pursue this profession by his father after a dream-visit from Asclepius. He would eventual become a master of anatomy, medicine, and self-promotion. Galen believed physicians had to also be philosophers with wide bases of knowledge that practiced for the love of mankind and that were good diagnosticians and prognosticators. Scientifically, Galen knew much about the human skeleton, but since human dissections were outlawed, he knew little about internal medicine. He projected his findings from animal dissections to humans, and was widely believed, but as a result, his errors were believed to be correct, some until the 19^th century.

The principles of Galenic medicine included perfecting the Hippocratic traditions and beliefs, a return to the practice of blood-letting, a focus on pulse-lore, the beliefs that blood was from the liver, air was modified by the liver, heart, and brain, and that the nerves were necessary for sensation and movement, but that they were hollow tubes through which spirits moved.

In Galen’s age, no medical degrees existed, and female practitioners were respected, like Agnodice of Athens who dressed as a man to study and later became a heroine of the women’s rights movements of the 19^th century. Also, plants given as therapies were very important as recorded by Theophrastus and Diosordes. There was a union of science, philosophy, and practical medicine in Galen’s secular medicine, and medical knowledge changed little over the next 1000 years because “a good doctor was one who knew his Galen.”

Finally, we touched on faith and medieval medicine in the west. In 313 CE, Christianity became one of the official religions of the Roman Empire and faith became more important to the practice of medicine. The early Christians believed that soul and body were separate, and with the soul being more important, damage to the body was seen as punishment what didn’t need healing. However, the church did develop a healing mission based on Christ’s acts of healing. Still, though, Galen’s legacy remained as evidenced by the works of Oribasius and Aureliances in which Galen and the Methodic practice are mentioned.

Thankfully, there was a lunch break in the middle of all that history, and most of us spent at least some of it trying to plan out our third and fourth free weekends. After Dr. Wasser’s lectures, Olivia came in and talked to us about our trip to Hannover, Emden, and Norderney. We also got AIB shirts and shoes to wear for the mud walk on Friday.

Afterwards we went to the train station to look up more information about our weekends and try to reserve seats. Unfortunately for me and the others with the same plans, all the trains to Paris this weekend were full, so we were forced to come up with another idea. Eventually we decided on Strasbourg, France, and we’ll have to book seats tomorrow morning before leaving for Hannover. Luckily there are many options, so we should be fine. The other group got their seats to Hamburg reserved as well, and we all got reservations for the train to Switzerland on the fourth weekend before dispersing for the evening.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Today began with an early train from Bonn to Hannover. Since Olivia booked the train early, we were all seated together. The ride was about three and a half hours beginning at 7:22, so many of us took the opportunity to sleep.

We arrived in Hannover a little before 11 and walked to the hotel to drop off our bags. Only one of the rooms was ready, so we all dumped our bags in there before heading back out for lunch. We walked down the street from the hotel, splitting up to eat. Some went to an Asian noodle place while others, including me went to an Italian restaurant.

Afterwards, we met up and went to a gelato shop for dessert. We sat and talked there for a while, until it was time to meet back up to head to the Hannover Medical School (Medizinische Hochschule Hannover) otherwise known as the MHH.

There we met Dr. Jan Schmitto, the youngest chief of cardiac transplantation in Germany. He was Took us up to his office where he was incredibly open in talking with us about some of his recent cases. He also gave us a short lecture on the improvements made in left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) and survival rates of patients treated with drugs only versus those who received LVADs or complete heart transplants. We learned that although the one-year survival rate of LVAD in 2001 was only about 50% it was much higher than the rate for medicinal treatment only at just 25%. By 2009, the second generation rotary pump, which gives continuous rather than pulsatile blood flow, was in use and it's two-year survival rate was almost 70%. 

However, this is still lower than he close to 80% two-year survival rate for heart transplants.

We also learned that there are generally there reasons to implant an artificial pump: bridge to transplant to increase length and quality of life until a donor heart is found, destination therapy when heart transplants are not an option due to reasons like old age or cancer, or bridge to bridge to maintain the patient until the next generation artificial pump is available.

Dr. Schmitto also reminded us that the patient has to be the first consideration in making medical decisions. He told us to ask ourselves if we would do the same if the patient was a family member, and to only go ahead with the procedure of the answer is yes.

Then we got to talk to Mr. R. He is a patient at the MHH who has had a second generation LVAD in place for four and a half years. He told us about living with an artificial implant and some of his medical history. He explained, as an engineer, how he handles the 5-hour battery life of the LVAD how he can feel and hear when he pump starts to have problems due to a thrombosis. He also told us that he can push the limits of the device with his diet and travel. He had an awesome attitude about his life and it was an incredible privilege to meet and speak with him.

Mr. R has been experiencing thrombosis in his LVAD every four weeks since May, so he is now faced with the choice of going home and hoping it doesn't occur a fourth time, replacing the LVAD now, or staying in the hospital for the next 6 months while waiting on the HU (high urgency) list for a heart transplant. We talked with Dr. Schmitto after Mr. R left about what he would recommend, discussing the pros and cons of each choice in this unique situation. Mr. R is a very knowledgeable and compliant patient, so he would be able to come back in to fix another thrombosis before it caused irreparable damage, so he could conceivably go home and wait until another problem arose to have the implant replaced. He could also get it down now to avoid the risk of a serious complication occurring outside the hospital without enough time to fix it. Then of course he could opt to wait for a heart transplant, which as we learned has a better long-term survival rate, but it would require a long wait in the hospital and taking immunosuppressants for the rest of his life. Dr. Schmitto concluded that there really is no right or wrong answer; it's up to the wishes of Mr. R.

After thanking Dr. Schmitto for his time and shaking his hand, we went back down to the lobby, and while Olivia and Sarah bought and took candy to Mr. R to thank him, the rest of the group and Dr. Wasser talked about how in the German health care system, everything Mr. R has had done and whatever choice he makes will be paid for by the government. It just seems amazing to us Americans, who are used to having to pick and choose medical care based on insurance companies' policies.

We then returned to the hotel to finish checking in and move our bags to our individual rooms before heading out to dinner about an hour later, around 7pm. We ten and Olivia decided to go to the Waterloo Biergarten, which of course led to a discussion of the Abba song “Waterloo.” It's still stuck in my head four hours later.

Dinner here was nice enough, there were many picnic style tables under trees with restaurant stands surround them. We chose a table then went to one of the stands to order before enjoying our meal together.

Afterwards we went back to the hotel again to get some sleep so we can all wake up early enough to be packed and ready to check out by 7:40 tomorrow morning. 

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Today we got to visit the MHH again and it was just as awesome as yesterday. After an early breakfast at the hotel, we brought our bags downstairs to store them so we could check out of our rooms.

We took the tram to a different part of the MHH than yesterday where we visited Dr. Reimers and her Axolotl and spider silk researchers. First we learned a bit about the Axolotls' biology, like that they're neotenic, so they spend their entire life in a larval state. This means that even the adult salamanders have gills.
They also have amazing regenerative abilities. Dr. Reimers told us of an example where an axolotl was attacked and half its head was taken. It was able to regrow every structure and the only noticeable difference was that the regrown eye was a little smaller. It could still move and act normally, which I found amazing. We also learned about their research, which was finding the genes responsive for the regeneration and applying it to human medicine in cases of massive tissue loss.

Then we got to visit the axolotls. They were all on tanks of around four, because they get sad if they're alone. They were all very cute and seemed to smile when we took pictures of them. The young ones were especially adorable.

After taking many, many photos, we went downstairs to the lab where they kept the spiders whose silk they're studying. These spiders' is especially strong in threads of 60 strands and can be used to increase the rate of healing of open wounds. One of the researchers showed us where she has used sterilize spider silk in a burn wound on her arm. The healing time and scaring were both decreased.

Next we took the tram to the hospital part of the MHH where we'd been yesterday to meet Dr. Kielstein in the nephrology department. He first gave us some more insight into the health care system of Germany and even pointed out places where corruption could occur or where the system had other failings. After some very interesting political talk we went to the patient ward where we first learned about peritoneal dialysis. He explained how a concentration gradient is established within the peritoneal cavity with a special dialytic fluid to draw toxins from the blood that can then be removed from the body through the same permanent tube through which the solution entered.

Then we got to go into one of the patient rooms and see hemodialysis actually being performed. Blood is drawn from a shunt where an artery has been sewn to a vein to increase pressure and pumped through permeable hollow tubes through which toxins are exchanged via countercurrent exchange with another dialytic fluid. In this case, they used citrate to prevent clotting of the blood during the procedure because it removed calcium, a necessary clotting factor. I really enjoyed Dr. Kielstein's talks because he was very interactive with us, asking questions, giving physical examples, and making the experience fun.

After a surprisingly good lunch in the MHH cafeteria we went back to the hotel, grabbed our bags, and took the tram to the main station to get on the regional train to Emden. Since we couldn't reserve seats on a regional train and there were a ton of people waiting to get on, there was a mad rush to find seats. Luckily, Alexis led the way and we were able to get two groups of 6 seats for the 12 of us on the top level.

We arrived in the cute little village of Emden about three hours later and took a chartered passenger van to the hostel. We checked in, dropped off our bags, made out beds, made a shower schedule (1 shower and 9 girls...), and headed out for dinner at a restaurant recommended by the woman who drove our van. Called Drei Kronen, it's a traditional restaurant where serve fresh fish from the North Sea and other fantastic dishes. I had the schnitzel, and afterwards almost everyone had a schnapps. These were, according to Olivia, real schnapps that weren't made to taste good, but to help your digestive system after eating a big meal. Therefore, just about all the girls found them disgusting.

We headed back to the hostel after dinner, around 10:30, and there was still a little bit of light. Since our shower schedule started at 10, we were about 45 minutes behind, pushing my shower, the last, to almost 12:45. We have to meet for breakfast tomorrow morning at 7, so hopefully less than six hours of sleep is enough. I think it will be bough because I'm excited to go on the mud walk and see the rehab clinic on Norderney tomorrow.

Friday, July 27, 2012

Today was awesome. The entire experience of Norderney was incredibly perfect.

We started the day by stripping our beds and meeting for an early breakfast at the Emden hostel. We then took a perfectly-sized passenger van to the Norddeich Mole train and ferry stations. We were planning on storing our bags in the lockers at the train station while we went to Norderney, but they were all full. So, we took then with us to the East Friesian island.

The ferry ride from Norddeich Mole to Norderney was fantastic. We all sat up on the top deck, after leaving our bags below for the almost hour-long trip, and enjoyed the view of the Wadden Sea. Dr. Wasser even brought along his binoculars and spotting scope so we could look for seals. It was kind of hard to find room where we could set up and still see while staying out of others' way, but we managed.

We did see some seals through the scope, but, as it turned out, we didn't even need the scope we saw one lone seal swimming and there was a whole group of them on a sand bank very close to the ferry channel. We, and most of the other passengers, were very excited and took many pictures.

Once we docked on Norderney, and took our first breaths of taxed air, we walked the very short, like 50-meters-short, distance to the national park office where we met our mud walk tour guide, who was also kind enough to let us store our bags in his office. Then we took our own private bus to the other side of the island for our walk.

First we walked a ways down the dike to a good spot to leave our day packs before we took off our shoes and socks and climbed down the rocky embankment. After conquering the highest mountain (of about one and a half meters) on Norderney, our guide, Mr. Rahmel, told us about how the ground we were standing on, that which is covered by high tide, is much like a dessert because the water available is salty sea water. He even had us try one of the plants; the cactus-like grass tasted very salty.

Next we did a trust exercise by lining up single file, placing our hands on the shoulders of the person in front of us, and closing our eyes while Mr. Rahmel led the way as we walked. The theory was that by cutting out one sense, sight, we would enhance another, touch. We walked a little ways out into the schlick (clay mud, like silt), and the feeling was very incredible.

We saw some very small shore crabs and then set out farther into our walk. We next stopped to look at some odd star-shaped tracks in the sand. They were actually made by burrowing cockles, and Mr. Rahmel dug one up to show us. We all took pictures of the shell, and then it stuck out its foot muscle like it was waving. It was very cool, and Mr. Rahmel promised it that it wouldn't get eaten today.

We continued our walk, and along the way we saw mounds of sand shaped like thick spaghetti noodles, and Dr. Wasser said it was worm poop, so we were all a little grossed out. Eventually we stopped and the guide confirmed it. The worms take in sand, get all the nutrients they can from the microbes mixed in, and excrete the leftovers. So really, the excrement is "sterile" sand and is therefore much cleaner than the rest of the mud on which we were walking. We all felt a lot better about the walk then. Mr. Rahmel then dug up enough worms for each of us to have one; then we each placed ours in a circle around the cockle from earlier in a race to see which creature would disappear below ground the fastest. The cockle actually won, but Michelle's and Alexis's worms were nearly as fast.

We continued walking over thousands of cockles, mussels, shore crabs, and worms before we reached an area next to a gully with running water that was harder and had a more sand- than clay-like texture under our feet. This is an indication that strong currents flow there when the rice is up and wash away all the clay.
We then crossed the gully to reach an area where the clay layer was much thicker and we all sunk almost to our knees. We had a blast, though, slopping, slipping, sliding, and almost falling. We soon crossed back over the fully so Mr. Rahmel could show us a pair of male shore crabs he'd found. They were much larger than the little ones we'd seen at the beginning, and more aggressive too. But, we still passed one of them around the group, with only one person freaking out. By the time he reached the last person, the crab no longer wanted to move, to Mr. Rahmel put him on the ground and poked at him until he poked back; it was rather funny.

We then walked out to the edge of the sea, looking at many of the bivalves along the way. We washed our feet in the sea and then four of us were asked to wear special blind folds to simulate being caught in thick fog. The chosen four were asked to line up orientated to a pole in the distance, put the blind folds on, and walk a straight line to the pole. Two boys and two girls tried, but only Mario was able to continue walking straight for the around two minutes they were allowed to continue. Dr. Wasser said in all his groups, he'd never had a student do as well as Mario, serving to prove to us that walking on the mud flats in bad weather is dangerous not only because you'd be the tallest and most likely thing to be struck by lightning, but because with limited visibility, it would be nearly impossible to find your way back to shore without a trained guide with a compass. Mr. Rahmel also pointed out that fog can roll in very quickly because of the temperature difference between the sea and the land, so it is never safe to walk out there without a trained professional.

On the way back to where we left out packs, Mr. Rahmel found three oysters for the group to eat with the help of Dr. Wasser's oyster knife and glove to get them open. Two of our group volunteered to eat one, but only Michelle managed to swallow hers...Alexis not so much. Mr. Rahmel ate the final one with no problem. Eventually we made it back to the dike, scaled it, and left the mud behind. Our inner kids were sad to go, but the whole experience was awesome.

We took another private bus back to the town center, dropped Mr. Rahmel off at his office, and then continued on to Klinic Norderney. There we were met by Sonja Bähr and taken to a lovely "snack" (I would have called it a meal) before going to a conference room where Dr. Raschke and more treats awaited.

The doctor first gave us a brief history of the island, like how the Wadden Sea became a World Heritage Site in 2009. He then talked to us about the German health care system, pointing out that health insurance, at least against sickness has been mandatory in Germany since 1883. He next brought the focus to the role the Norderney clinic plays in the system, which is to assist in recovery of patients who don't immediately respond to normal treatment or as preventative care. The main goal of the clinic is to return their patients to work. To do this they have people from all sorts of medical professions available as well as the climate therapeutics of the island itself. This includes using things like the mud, clean air, nearly constant wind, and cold water as therapies. He proceeded to give us many examples like walking in sand or mud where your feet sink used more energy than walking on grass and that the wind almost always come from the northwest, where there's nothing but ocean, so there are very few pollens or pollutants in the air on the island. He also showed us that the longer you stay on the island, the longer its effects on your body will last. Unfortunately for us, only spending one day there means the effects will be all but gone by tomorrow.

After the lecture we split into groups of six and followed either Dr. Raschke or Sonja to tour the facilities. My group went with Sonja to tour the Health Training Center first. We saw a computer lab, library, and education room where the patients could research or learn about their diseases, exercise rooms with all sorts of machines, and the gym with medicine balls we got to try to balance on, which was harder than it sounds, and therefore even more fun.

We then met back up and switched leaders so I was following Dr. Raschke. He showed us the physical therapy and massage section of the clinic where they have many different massage techniques available along with the same mud we were walking in for heat wraps and a warm pool for water gymnastics. Next we saw some of the laboratories where diagnostic tests are performed and examined as well as the sleep lab where practically every bodily function can be measured.

After thanking Sonja and Dr. Raschke, we took a group photo and walked out to wait for the city bus back to the ferry station. While we were waiting, Olivia led us all in a stretching session right there on the sidewalk. Norderney is an island where people go to get healthy, so it wasn't weird, really, and no one stared at us at all…Not!

We finally made it back to the ferry station, well stretched, and collected our bags from the national park office. We boarded the ferry again, but this time we all split up to find places on the top deck. We didn't use the spotting scope, and it rained, but we still had a good time, waving posing for some Titanic-esque pictures.

We eventually arrived at the Norddeich Mole station where we stayed for a few minutes before boarding the train. We were all together at first, but split up at the Emden station. Some stayed on the train, heading to Hamburg, while Alexis, Jooy, Michelle, Morgan, Olivia, Dr. Wasser, and I got off to switch trains to head back to Bonn.

After two more very easy switches, we finally reached Bonn and headed home for a few hours of sleep before Michelle, Morgan, and I head to Strasbourg.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

After about 3 hours of sleep I got up to go to the Bonn hauptbahnhof to take the tram towards Siegburg, meeting Morgan and Michelle along the way. We reached Siegburg in plenty of time to make the first train of three we would ride on our way to Strasbourg, France. It was still early in the morning, so we slept on most of the trains, but the switches were all very easy, as in all we had to do was walk across the platform to get on the next train. It was awesome.

We finally arrived in Strasbourg a little before 11 in the morning. The train dropped us off at a small platform about 100 meters from the main platforms, and at first glance, the city was a little bit dingy. However, once we made it inside the train station itself, our feelings about the city vastly improved. The entrance hall was very nice, and there was even a tourist office where we were able to talk to a woman working there and get some suggestions on where to go, like the street fair that was going on all day, as well as purchase a map. I suppose it just goes to show that you shouldn’t judge a town by its train station.

The areas of Strasbourg we wanted to visit were all relatively close, easily within a 20-minute walk, so we decided to skip buying a public transportation pass and just walk. Besides, many of the tram lines were closed due to the street market, which we walked through almost immediately after exiting the train station. It was literally less than three minutes away straight ahead of the station.

The market was still getting set up when we walked through the first time, so some of the shops were just opening. We saw everything from clothes to bags to cosmetics to electronics to toys for sale all within the city center. It was slightly overwhelming; there were even booths with microphones and speakers set up so live demonstrations of the European As Seen on TV products could be given.

To avoid the mayhem for a while, and to get what we called “brunch,” we stopped in a little café, Winter, for some quiche and coffee, or in my case, hot chocolate. Morgan also got an éclair, and everything we had was delicious. While we were sitting at the café, we made plans to visit some of the places we’d seen when googling Strasbourg or that were listed in the tourist guide we got at the train station.

The first place we decided to go was the historic wine cellar beneath the hospital. We made it to the hospital just fine, and it was incredibly beautiful. Its architecture was very French, in my opinion, with probably hundreds of small windows in the roofs of the huge building complex. Finding the wine cellar, however, wasn’t as simple as following the map. After wandering the beautiful hospital grounds for a few minutes, we finally stumbled upon the cellar’s entrance. And it really was an entrance to the cellar. There was no door at ground level like I was expecting, but instead a staircase down to the entrance to the shop where you can buy the wine.

Behind the shop was the actual historical wine cellar, but we somehow took a wrong turn at first and ended up walking down a dark and damp tunnel…It dead-ended fairly quickly, so we knew to turn back, but it was still pretty cool and creepy at the same time. The real tourist part of the cellar was across the room from the tunnel entrance, and inside were rows of huge barrels of wine. They were fashioned in mostly 19^th century style, but at the end of the row was a special display of wine barrels from the 15^th century. All the containers were wood, but some had extravagant carvings and others had detailed metal work.

After Michelle and Morgan made a few purchases at the shop on our way up, we walked out to explore the city some more, shop, and find the docks for the boat tour. Again, we pretty much wandered around until we found it, but we actually wandered straight there…with a few stops at souvenir shops along the way.

We waited in line to get our tickets, and then waited in line to actually be let on the boat, but it really didn’t take that long, and I passed the time by taking pictures of the beautiful flowers everywhere.

The boat tour itself was pretty interesting; there was a set of headphones on everyone’s seat, and you could program which guide you wanted to listen to. There were about ten languages to choose from, and kid versions of each language as well. We, of course, listened to the English version, but switched back and forth between the adult and kid versions because the pirate was fun to listen to. The boat pretty much mad a circle around the island on which Petite France is located, and we heard much of the history of many of the buildings we passed. We even had to go through a lock twice to adjust to the change in water level. It started raining about two-thirds of the way through the boat ride, but since it was covered, sort of like a glass dome, we stayed dry (even if there was a crack in the glass above my head). The only problem was that any pictures we tried to take through the glass were blurry due to the water runoff.

After the boat tour we walked back to the city center to view the cathedral. It was very nice inside, but the highlight was the dance recital that was going on outside its doors. It looked like a dance school was putting on the show with many different acts that were cool to see.

Next we walked along the river towards Petite France, a small section of Strasbourg that consists of the half-timbered style buildings that I think of when I imagine a small French village. There were a couple swans along our way, so we took some pictures with them and then pictures of all the beautiful buildings when we reached them.

We ate dinner at a restaurant in Petite France that was down on the river. It was called Au Pont Saint Martin, and was very lovely. Their table settings even matched the flowers.

After dinner we again wandered back to the city center and through the market, making some purchases, 

before we had to return to the train station for our ride back to Bonn. We got to the station early, so Morgan and I had time to buy a huge baguette (for only 90 cents!) at one of the station’s bakeries. Even though it was the end of the day, the bread was still warm, soft in the middle, and very delicious.

The train ride back was much easier than the one to Strasbourg; we only had one train switch about 30 minutes into the journey, then we had an ICE train all the way back to Siegburg. At the very end of our trip, a bachelor party entered our wagon. We walked the other direction to stand by the door, since our stop was in a few minutes, but they walked all the way through the car to talk to us instead of any  of the other people there. Apparently they’d heard us speaking English… Even though they were all a little drunk, they were actually pretty nice, so we all signed the bachelor’s shirt and they sang us a song. Morgan gave them two euros, and then we jumped of the train as soon as it stopped, waving a quick good-bye.

We took the tram back towards Bonn, and Morgan and Michelle got off at their stop while I rode it back to the hauptbahnhof before walking home and going straight to bed; it was an awesome but very long day.

Sunday, July 29, 2012

Today I got to really sleep in for the first time during the trip so far. It was so nice not to have to set an alarm and just wake up when I felt like it. I got up around 10:45 and then spent some time on my computer before heading out to meet Alexis, Michelle, and Morgan at the hauptbahnhof. I grabbed an awesome turkey sandwich at Back Werk for lunch and then met Alexis on the platform where we waited for Morgan and Michelle, sharing stories from our days yesterday.

We took a regional train to Köln (it’s still amazing to walk out right in front of the cathedral), and walked around a bit, stopping at the Roman history museum gift shop so Morgan could find a Caesar-related gift for her father. We then went to a lovely café for everyone else’s lunch, and I tried pommes with mayonnaise and ketchup for the first time. It was actually pretty good, although I think I just overpowered the mayo with extra ketchup.

Afterwards we walked around some more, just wandering the alleyways visiting small shops and ended up in a convenience store-type place were Michelle found a corkscrew, and we talked to the cashier about Texas things like Dallas and George W Bush.

Then we walked along the Rhein, where many people were laying out on the grass soaking up the sun, toward the chocolate museum. We got to the island on which the museum is located, and found ourselves amidst an African festival with many tents set up selling traditional or traditional-looking items as well as some street performers preforming amazing acrobatic feats.

We also saw that the Olympic sports museum was right next door to the chocolate one, so we wove our way through all the people to the Olympic museum just to see what it was. We decided not to actually pay to get into the museum, but we did sit down to watch the 2012 Olympics live in a nice little niche they had set up.

Next we headed to our original destination—the chocolate museum. This time we actually paid to enter, and got a free little Lindt chocolate for our trouble. The museum itself was much more elaborate than I’d expected. They had a section about harvesting the cocoa, including a little rainforest room with double doors forming an air lock to keep the hot, humid air separate from the air conditioning of the rest of the building. 

There was also some information about chocolate consumption around the world and the effects chocolate can have on the human physiology. On the upper level they had machines actually transforming the raw ingredients to the same little chocolates we got at the beginning. There was even an area where you could fill out a form and have your own chocolate bar made with whatever mix-ins you wanted. There was also an exhibit on the history of the regions from which cocoa comes. We ended our stay at the museum at the gift shop where they had all sorts of chocolates shaped or flavored in dozens of ways. There were even models of the Köln Dom.

After we’d had as much chocolate as we could handle, we back to the mainland, through alleys and along the river, until we made it back to the Gaffel restaurant where Michelle and Alexis purchased another case of kölsch glasses. We then took them over to the lover’s lock bridge so Morgan and Michelle could take their Forever Alone pictures with a bottle of wine they’d bought yesterday.

Then we went to steps near the bridge, overlooking the Rhine were the other three made use of their Kölsch glasses and we all watched the same African performers we’d glimpsed before. The ways they could contort their bodies were absolutely incredible.

When they’d finished, we headed back to the train station to return to Bonn. We bought dinner in the station (I ended up with pizza and cheesecake). We took the train back to Bonn, and then walked through the city looking for an anime convention Alexis had seen yesterday. Unfortunately, by the time we made it there, it was over, but Morgan did get her picture with a couple of the people dressed up in costume.

After that we split up, and I took the bus back to the hauptbahnhof and walked home. My host family was nice enough to leave me a snack (more cheesecake!) that I devoured before writing and heading to bed at the end of another week.