Wednesday 13 July 2011

Going Home


Today, Marco and I will be road tripping it to Northern Germany, in order to spend a few days with my family. And also to fetch some stray boxes that will give me some old possessions to sort through and my folks back some long-lost attic space.

We had to get up really (read: REALLY) early to catch our ferry, and when this post publishes, we will probably be somewhere afloat the English Channel. The whole trip should take about 10 hours. Here's a map of our approximate route:




I love long car journeys, always have. As a kid, I used to like watching the landscape go by, listening to the music from the car radio or my walkman and stopping for picnics en route. We invariably used to have a cool box in the trunk, filled with sandwiches, Frikadellen, potato salad, apples, and treats like chocolate bars and sodas, which my brother and I usually were not allowed to have.

As an adult, I like the soothing sensation that driving on the highway gives you, the sense of going somewhere exciting, the strange feeling of empowerment that I get from the combination of being the master of a machine (my car) and the speed. And I love to crank up the stereo and sing along to whatever comes on. Sometimes now, I even manage to get Marco singing.

I also find traffic jams quite thrilling. Weird, I know. But that's when you are treated to some A-grade people-watching. Watching people in their cars is like watching people in their homes. Because everybody (including me) feels like their car is their castle, so you always seem to gain a private peak into people's lives. You might catch drivers singing, passengers snoozing, parents fighting with their children, people moving house, naughty kids on a bus, and you have time to read all the bumper stickers.

These are a few things that are already planned for our time in Germany:

- an excursion with a horse wagon that my family gave my Opa for his birthday
- a barbecue with family and friends (an excellent way to catch up with everybody at the same time)
- a visit to the Schnitzelbüffet (all-you-can-eat escalopes, how German is that?!)
- a big grocery shop (after all, I can lug stuff home in a car this time, instead of being worried that Ryanair might decide to charge me  for excess baggage...)
- gelato

I will be back in London early next week and I'll tell you all about how it went. Best case scenario: there will be photos of me strolling along a sunny beach, eating Brötchen and having Kaffee und Kuchen. Worst case scenario: there will be photos of me clad in a rain jacket, eating Brötchen and having Kaffee und Kuchen. 

Photobucket

P.S.: Does anybody want anything from Germany?

P.P.S.: Thanks once more to the lovely Eva, for looking after the kids cats while we are gone! 


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6 comments:

  1. Enjoy your break. Hope it is sunny for you.
    And what could be more fun than riding the Autobahn with Frikkadellen!!!

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  2. Such a beautiful, nostalgic description of car trips! I get horribly car sick as a passenger, yet you've got me wanting to pack up the car and disappear!
    Have a wonderful time xx

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  3. that would be an amzing road trip! have a great time!!

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  4. Ich habe so herzlich gelacht bei diesem post!so schön geschrieben;) und wie ich sehe kommt ihr an Münster vorbei, meiner (fast) Heimatstadt (bin dort zur Schule gegangen und ganz in der nähe großgeworden)..falls ihr ein Päuschen machen wollt, es loooohnt sich, Münster ist so wunderschön und hat wundervolle Restaurants!..hab da ein paar tolle Geheimtips;)

    ganz liebe Grüße und eine gute Reise!
    JenMuna

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  5. Oh you lucky, lucky thing. Even though getting up *REALLY* early to catch the ferry was probably exhausting, it's all part of the fun isn't it? Have a wonderful time! xo

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  6. What a wonderful trip you have planned Annika! I love road trips myself. In fact, when I was backpacking around Australia, N.Z. and Europe years ago, rather than go by train, I always used a bus. And in America and Italy, a car and motorcycle is the way to go....it's awesome. Ever see Thelma and Louise...?

    xoxo

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