Germany: Part 2

Part 2:
Visiting Fabian:
At this point in the trip I was pretty used to the train system around Germany. Over my first two months in Italy I haven't been asked for a ticket on any form of transportation and things never run on time. In Germany, things are basically the complete opposite. It was nice to get places on time, but taking the trains from city to city is not really cheap...and the attendants checked my ticket every time, without fail.

After Munich I headed to Wetzlar, which is a small city not too far from Cologne. A good friend of mine, Fabian, who is on the German gymnastics team lives and trains out there, so I went to visit him for a few days. Fabian is an incredible gymnast who has had a great deal of success in his career. In Germany he is very well known, and since he lives in a small city he is bombarded by fans and media all day. It was pretty different to see a gymnast get so much recognition out on the street. I got a glimpse into what it would be like if gymnasts were superstars like in major sports.
Wetzlar is surrounded by lots of farmland and after being in big cities the previous few nights it was relaxing waking up in the morning and seeing rolling green hills. Fabian took me to see the Braunfels Castle which is only a few km from Wetzlar. The castle sits at the top of a hill, so as you drive up you get a glimpse of the entire structure in one view. Here’s what it looks like from the road...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Braunfels_Schloss.jpg

We toured the grounds a little bit and some of the little town at the base of the gates. A Christmas market was in the process of being set up, but it still wasn’t open. Every city I went to in Germany mentioned their Christmas market and how they are such a huge part of the holidays. Unfortunately, I arrived a couple days before they all opened and I missed out on the this German tradition.
The next day I went to gymnastics practice with Fabian. He has been training in the same gym his whole life and his father has always been his coach. It was great to be back in a gym again and it made me want to get up and do some real gymnastics...almost. I wish I would have taken the opportunity to go and train with him when I was still competing. It would have been interesting to share techniques and training methods. I had many training camps with the Japanese gymnasts over the years, and those were some of the most productive weeks of my career. Working with other athletes who are at the top level is always fun and motivating.

I left Fabian's place on Friday morning and headed for the last leg of my trip...Cologne. I was hoping to find another great hostel when I got there, but the place I had booked was a tiny hotel and it wasn't quite the friendly atmosphere I was expecting. I walked the streets seeing the obvious sites...Kolner Dom, chocolate museum, shopping district...but I still wasn't really enjoying it as much as some other spots. I did however get a chance to see their Olympic museum. For me, that was the highlight of the city. Germany has a long history of gymnastics, so a good portion of the museum was dedicated to all things gymnastics. They had one of those original pommel horses that had a fake horse head on one end (you can see the pic on my facebook page.) I can't imagine what it was like to swing on that thing!!

To cap off my less than great trip to Cologne, I lost my wallet on my last night! Retracing my steps for a good two hours led to nothing, and so I had to make the most of my last 5 euro. I don't know if it was stolen or what, but it was a pretty disappointing way to end a great trip. I've been getting all my credit card and ID stuff sorted out over the past few weeks, and I have everything finally figured out.

I'm back in Rome now and I've been incredibly busy. I'm working at Louis Vuitton for the month to make a couple bucks and meet some people...but it's a hectic schedule that I trying to get used to. I'll write more about LV in the next entry.

I also have to mention something about my sports teams. At the moment, just about every one of the teams I root for are playing at absolutely pathetic levels. Here's a quick rundown...
1.NY Giants-promising start to the season. Now it will be a struggle to just make the playoffs...but we did beat Dallas both times this year! The Jints haven't been the Super Bowl contender I was hoping for.
2.NY Mets- where do I start! Problems at every level. They were an embarrassment last season. What makes it even worse is that the Phillies and the Yankees were in the World Series.
3.Lazio-haven't won a game since August. I'm living in a city where 75% of the people are Roma fans, so it can be a little irritating listening to everyone telling you to constantly change teams.
4.NJ Nets-just set the record for the worst start if NBA history (0-18)...ouch.
5.NY/NJ Redbulls- Worst team in the MLS.

The one saving grace this year has come from the unlikeliest of sources. The Stanford Football Team led by that bulldozer Toby Gerhart!! I doubt he'll win the Heisman because didn't have too much preseason hype and he won't be playing in a BCS game, but he is as deserving as anybody in the country with the way he has carried the team. Beat USC, Oregon, and ND. 8-4. Our first bowl game in 8 years... GO CARD!!

Oh, one last thing. I'm pretty sure I could eat prosciutto sandwiches everyday for the rest of my life and be completely happy. I'm not talking about a sandwich like in the US that is normally filled with endless amounts of extra toppings...just good fresh bread and thinly sliced prosciutto. Perfect. Maybe not the healthiest option, but oh so good...