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My Bratislava photos are up.
(from my holiday)
In Vienna, I primarily spoke German (Austria is a German speaking country), other than at the tourist information office and Australian pub I patronized. It didn’t always work, though. I started off in German when I got to my hotel and the receptionist responded in German. However, after seeing my USA passport she switched to English. The other time it didn’t work was at a kiosk. I bought something and then asked for a bag, but had had no idea what I had said (I said it the same way in Germany and know it’s correct). I then asked him (in German) if he spoke English his skin was the colour of someone from India or Sri Lanka so I was fairly sure he did) and I asked him in English. He gave me one and then switched back into German and apologized and told me that he had only been in Austria for seven months. I later found out that there’s a totally different word for ‘bag’ used in Austrian German (as opposed to the German spoken in Germany).
I had no idea which language to use in Bratislava, so I gave people a choice, ‘Do you speak English or Deutsch?’ I purposely used the German word for ‘German’ because there was a good chance that if they only spoke Slovak and German, they might not know the English word for ‘German’. After a couple hours of listening to the Slovak language, I realized that there were many similarities between Slovak and Polish, so started using what little Polish I remember as much as possible. When that didn’t work, I switched to German because I found that more Slovaks spoke German than English (very few spoke English).
In Budapest, I only spoke English. I started off giving people the same choice as in Bratislava, but none of them spoke German so just limited it to asking of they spoke English. Most of the people who dealt with tourists (postcard sellers, etc) spoke at least ‘money English’.
I did have a couple of interesting experience in Slovakia. I was in a pub on 27 March and was sitting at a table when two men who appeared to be in their early thirties came in and sat at the table next to mine. They were speaking German at first and then switched to Russian when the barkeeper came over (Russian is a bit similar to Slovak in the sense that it’s a Slavic language) to which he understood and replied to, brought them Russian menu, etc. He left and they switched back to German again. This pattern continued until one of them grew suspicious that I was listening and then they switched to mostly Russian. However, it was clear that they were both more comfortable in German because of the German that occasionally crept back in (the reflexive the use of the German version of ‘okay’ and things like that).
As they were leaving, one looked at me and I said ‘Auf Wiedersehen’ (German for ‘Good-bye’) and one gave his friend an ‘I knew he understood us when we were speaking German’ look. It turns out they were ‘Russian Germans’ (people of German descent who were born in Russia but immigrated back to Germany within the last fifteen years). They both said ‘Good-bye’ to me in German and left.
Immediately after that, a Slovak sitting behind me who had heard us speaking German asked if he could join me. He sat down and said that he was a university student who had lived in a town in Germany that is twenty kilometers from Koblenz! We chatted for a while more and then parted ways. As he was leaving, he smiled and said, ‘Tell people about Slovakia,’ and I assured him I would.
That was yet another day I was glad that I’m not monolingual.
How has my first day back gone so far?
More random bike violence
Between the times I got home last night (21h) and left this morning (8h45) someone had done things to my bike. Luckily, after the first incident, I bought a very long cable lock and between the old and new locks (I use both), they weren’t able to do much to it. It’s hard to tell what they wanted to do, but it looks like they actually wanted to steal it. It was positioned in a way that made me think they tried hard to get the locks off. They also stole the cover to the bell so that it doesn’t work. Little did they know that I really hated the bell and had been meaning to take it off. They’ve actually done me a favour.
So much for the dream of buying a better bike (until I have somewhere safe to store it).
Bank
I went to the bank to take out some money today and found that the ATM thought I had a zero balance. I went home and checked my balance online, and found that I have €181.35 in my account. Yes, I used my debit card a bit on holiday, but not €181.35 worth. Good thing I didn’t need money badly.
Lunch
Matt and I went for lunch at the Chinese place again.
Off I go cycling in the rain back to work.
I arrived home at 21h last night on the mystery train. Why the mystery train? According to the Deutsche Bahn timetables at the Cologne main train station, it doesn’t exist. The two I checked on the lower level didn’t have it at all, and the one upstairs said it was an IC train, not an ICE train. That’s okay, at least it got me home.
A few notes from my trip:
Vienna - Beautiful, but entrance fees to the major sights are very high.
Bratislava - lovely and has a charming castle.
Budapest - As majestic and exquisite as ever, but a lot more expensive than when I was there in 1998.
| Good | Bad |
| Lots of sightseeing | Very sore feet |
| Four new stamps | Austria and Germany refused to stamp my passport |
| Collected more coins | Missing a few Forint coins |
| Sunny weather | Raining in Germany |
Here’s something from the Vienna train station last Friday:
J: ‘I’d like a ticket to Bratislava, please.’
Attendant: ‘What time do you want to go?’
J: ‘I don’t know, what time do trains leave tomorrow?’
Attendant: ‘Go to the information desk and get a schedule.’
J: ‘You don’t know when they leave?’
Attendant: ‘No’
J: ‘If you don’t know when they leave, then why do you need to know what time I want to go?’
The attendant glared at me as I went to the info desk.
I’ll be travelling for the next six days. I don’t usually use the internet when I travel, so don’t look for any new posts before next Tuesday evening or Wednesday. However, I do occasionally make audio posts.
according to Entertainment Weekly
20 Argument Clinic (Monty Python’s Flying Circus DVD 9, Episode 29)
A troupe hallmark and a paraphrasing of what Python fans are thinking now. ”That’s not one of the top 20.” ”Yes, it is.” ”No, it isn’t.” ”Is.” ”Isn’t!”
19 Kilimanjaro Expedition (MPFC DVD 3, Ep. 9)
Who did an explorer who sees double hire to find a crew he sent to build a bridge between Kilimanjaro’s two peaks? ”The Arthur Brown twins, two botanists called Machin…and a couple of the Ken Spinoza quads. The other two pulled out.”
18 The Restaurant Sketch (MPFC DVD 1, Ep. 3)
A polite complaint about a dirty fork riles a cleaver-swinging cook and suicidal manager. Highlight: John Cleese’s gasping moan, ”Oh, it makes me mad.”
17 Mrs. Premise and Mrs. Conclusion Visit Sartre (MPFC DVD 9, Ep. 27)
Who better to debate Jean-Paul Sartre’s philosophy and burial methods for live cats than two shrieking housewives? The best of the sketches with the Pythons’ drag alter egos, the Pepperpots.
16 The Visitors (MPFC DVD 3, Ep. 9)
The rudest drop-ins ever, including Arthur Name (”What’s brown and sounds like a bell? Dung”), Mr. Equator (”[The seat's a] bit lumpy…ah, no wonder, I was sitting on the cat”), and his incontinent, beans-gobbling wife.
15 Every Sperm Is Sacred (Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life)
Terry Jones’ directorial high, this rousing musical number about the perils of masturbation from the 1983 film is Python irreverence at its most elaborate.
14 Interesting People (Monty Python’s Flying Circus DVD 4, Episode 11)
A goofy TV panel features a hypnotist who puts bricks to sleep and a man whose cat flies across the room into a pail of water. (”By herself?” ”No, I fling her.”)
13 Spam (MPFC DVD 8, Ep. 25)
Thanks to this operatic, Viking-sung ditty, the jellied canned luncheon meat will always be synonymous with classic comedy.
12 Self-Defence (MPFC DVD 2, Ep. 4)
What’s a fruit-obsessed instructor’s advice for dealing with an assailant attacking with a banana? (1) Shoot him. (2) Eat the banana, thus disarming him.
11 Crunchy Frog (MPFC DVD 2, Ep. 6)
Crunchy Frog, Cockroach Cluster, Ram’s Bladder Cup with lark’s vomit: This candy selection yields oddly tasty humor.
10 Stoning (Monty Python’s Life of Brian)
You may be humming ”(Always Look on the) Bright Side of Life” after the 1979 film, but the beard-wearing, rock-hurling women make the movie sing.
9 Eric the Half a Bee (Monty Python’s Previous Record)
A rousing ode to a bifurcated bug from 1972: ”I love this hive employee/Bisected accidentally/One summer afternoon by me/I love him carnally.”
8 Nudge Nudge (Monty Python’s Flying Circus, DVD 1, Episode 3)
”Nudge nudge, know what I mean? Say no more!” Eric Idle’s winking insinuator is the ultimate perv, even if the sketch ends, ”You’ve slept with a lady…. What’s it like?”
7 The Lumberjack Song (MPFC DVD 3, Ep. 9)
A barber longs to be a macho woodsman, because ”I cut down trees, I skip and jump/I like to press wildflowers/I put on women’s clothing/And hang around in bars.” During some live shows, fans Tom Hanks and George Harrison both slipped into lumber gear to sing backup.
6 Fish-Slapping Dance (MPFC DVD 9, Ep. 28)
John Cleese and Michael Palin prance about, slapping each other with fish, naturally. Fifteen seconds of sublime silliness.
5 The Funniest Joke in the World (Monty Python’s Flying Circus DVD 1, Episode 1)
A British joke so funny its audiences die laughing becomes a critical weapon against the Nazis during WWII. Not so the Germans’ failed retaliation: ”Der ver zwei peanuts, valking down der strasse, and von vas…assaulted! Peanut.”
4 Dead Parrot (MPFC DVD 3, Ep. 
”If you hadn’t nailed it to the perch, it would be pushing up the daisies…. This is an ex-parrot.” The legacy of John Cleese’s complaint to Michael Palin for selling a stuffed pet is marred only a bit by a listless reprise on a 1997 Saturday Night Live.
3 Guy de Loimbard’s Castle (Monty Python and the Holy Grail)
”Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries” from the 1975 film remains the gold standard of verbal abuse.
2 The Ministry of Silly Walks (MPFC DVD 5, Ep. 14)
Cleese’s giant steps are equally hilarious on the TV show and in the ‘82 concert film Live at the Hollywood Bowl.
1 The Spanish Inquisition (Monty Python’s Flying Circus DVD 5, Episode 15)
Red-caped crusading cardinals threaten torture with (gasp!) the comfy chair! Unforgettable for one reason: torture by kitchen drying rack, and Michael Palin’s inability to count…two! Two reasons!
I went out cycling after lunch and cycled a total of 20 km. Not very far, but not bad for my first time out this year (other than going to work and running errands). I cycled along the rivers and took breaks to sit in the grass and enjoy the mostly sunny weather. After that, I came home, had a shower and went to work. My classes went well, but they always do on Wednesdays. After work, Matt and I went out for a beer and talked.
A great day.
