October, a direct continuation--The more fun side

Every year for the last 976 Ischa Freimarkt has happened in Bremen.  Freimarkt is a huge festival that has an Oktoberfest vibe, but is much smaller and visited by many more Germans than tourists—that’s a point for Freimarkt.  Freimarkt started out as what it phonetically sounds like—a free market.  This market was free from several normal restrictions imposed by the emperor and was held twice a year.  The October date became particularly successful because of its proximity to winter and eventually more entertainment populated the market.  Now the only vendors to be seen are those selling potato puffers (Kartoffeln Puffers), which are shredded and fried potatoes served most traditionally with apple sauce (Apfelmuss), stir-fryed mushrooms (Champigons…which smell unbelievable), bratwurst, roasted almonds (gebratene Mandeln) or practically any amazing-smelling food your heart could ever desire.  Needless to say, part of the lure of Freimarkt is eating.  There are also large tents that sell beer and have live music, like at Oktoberfest, and of course a whole host of rides.  Like American festivals, many of these attractions travel and the ferris wheel is the largest mobile ferris wheel in Europe!  Despite my fear of heights, I did ride it, allowing for cool views of Bremen. 

            Freimarkt is ripe with tradition. (as anything would be after 976 years!  Everyone close to my family knows how many traditions we have for Popham Beach and we’ve only been going 18 years…).  On the second Saturday of Freimarkt was the  Umzug (parade).  On the beautiful fall day I went to the Umzug with a small group of friends and watched for two-and-a-half hours as float after float after float passed by and literally bombed the onlookers with candy…another Freimarkt tradition!  We stayed for 140 floats and there were still more as far as I could see.  I forgot to bring a bag to collect all the candy (or Bönchen), but most of the little kids did not.  It was so sweet to see the little kids with a massive clothing shopping bag more than half full of bonbons.  As I left the Umzug I was very grateful I am not responsible for those children and their candy consumption for the rest of the month.

            Another highlight of October was going to Munich with my friend Nadine, her mom and her mom’s best friend for the “Vereidigung” of Nadine’s brother.  Nadine’s brother is the Luftwaffe and after the first three months the soldiers must decide if they want to continue along that path.  The Vereidigung is when they publically declare that they will serve and protect Germany.  Very few people get to go onto the Luftwaffe base and the Vereidigung is one of the few exceptions.  It was a completely fascinating and unique experience.  I know very little about our own military, which that weekend showed me, but to me it is, on the surface, one of the most patriotic things one can do for their country.  Germany is not a country that puts much value on patriotism; therefore I found it very interesting to watch this ceremony from an American’s perspective.  If one were to ask me, I would say being a part of the any military, despite one’s reasoning, is a patriotic act.  One thing that I was questioned about in October was American patriotism.  I believe many non-Americans find our patriotism strange, but upon reflection, I don’t think it’s a bad thing.  Patriotism to me is appreciating what American citizenship has given me and that is so much more than many countries can ever hope for.  Yes, along with patriotism should come humbleness and self-awareness, but I do think it’s important to take pride in your country and recognize, with humility, the fortune we have as Americans. 

            One last crazy thing about October—my bike got locked in the center of the city.  I was eating dinner with a couple of friends and when I went to ride home I could not unlock my bike—the key could no longer go into the lock.  Most people in Bremen worry about the opposite problem—bike theft—but on this Monday night (actually the Day of German Reunification), I was faced with the opposite problem.  To make it “funnier,” my host parents were in Italy.  After three days of thinking, I finally had the time to go to the police station and explain my problem.  Here’s a sample of the conversation:
Me:  Um, yes, hello.  My bike is locked in the center of the city—by the pigs.  [There is a pig statue]
Police:  Really, hmm.  Well, you need to cut it off.
Me:  Yes, I know, but it’s a really big lock.
Police:  A pair of lock cutters should be enough.
Me:  No, I don’t think so.  It’s a really big lock, and my host parents aren’t here so I don’t have a pair.
Police:  Do you have neighbors??
Me:  Yes, of course I do…but’s a really, really thick lock.  It’s, like, probably 5 centimeters thick [this was after anxiously estimating what I can remember of how big a centimeter is].
Police: OK [sounding exasperated]...Stay there, we’ll send some people.

I was vindicated 10 minutes later when the police came with the lock cutter (which I could instantly tell was too small), took one look at the lock and declared, “Wow, that’s a properly thick lock!!”  After 10 more minutes of unsuccessfully cutting through the lock another police office completely apparated and magically had the ability to cut through that “properly thick” lock.  Within two minutes I was cruising on my way back home, one lock down, but luckily not one bike down. 

            October was not a month of loud, exciting adventures, such as Amsterdam and Oktoberfest, but I think it was an extremely important month.  Being abroad is not supposed to be easy, despite how cool it seems.  Yes it is cool, but it’s not easy and I think it’s important for one to acknowledge that.  I understand that to observers it might be hard to believe me when I say it’s hard—I do make it seem pretty glamorous through the pictures and blog posts.  But it really is the craziest roller coaster I have ever been on and my prior international experience did not even prepare me for this.  Along those coaster tracks were great moments, moments that made me want to scream and moments of balance and relative peace.  The ups-and-downs of October undoubtedly came with the international territory, but what really matters is how you feel when you arrive back in that roller coaster station—Are you eager to rejoin the line for the second (or fourth) ride, or do you need to get off and get the heck outta there?  Luckily, for me I don’t have much choice and all the positive moments are enough to make me want to choose the former.