Thursday, March 24, 2016 - Osnabruck/Hagen, Germany
Anyway, back to our story! Fred said hello and, aware that the train was late, and with our ticket printout in hand, went to the conductor to adequately document the DB tardiness. However, the conductor had other ideas and was very reluctant to indicate on the ticket that we were in fact 60 minutes late. Especially given that he had originally indicated it was only 50. Fred’s determination won out and with documentation in hand, off we went to meet Fred’s parents for lunch in Hagen am Teuteburger Wald, Germany. Say that ten times fast!
Pro Tip - The Deutsche Bahn (DB) is required to give you compensation in the form of a partial refund if you arrive at your destination at least 60 minutes late. In order to avoid this conductors may actually write on the ticket that the delay was under the threshold, but stand your ground.
Fifteen minutes later and a welcome phone call from Fabi, Fred’s sister and another dear friend of mine, we pulled up at Landhotel Buller, the #1 of 1 hotels in Hagen a.T.W. according to TripAdvisor. Buller is as picturesque a property as one would image in the German countryside. Very well appointed with beautiful views and crisp clean, and comfortable hotel accommodations, with a high quality restaurant to match. Mom vowed to stay here on another trip.
Pro Tip - The Deutsche Bahn (DB) is required to give you compensation in the form of a partial refund if you arrive at your destination at least 60 minutes late. In order to avoid this conductors may actually write on the ticket that the delay was under the threshold, but stand your ground.
Fifteen minutes later and a welcome phone call from Fabi, Fred’s sister and another dear friend of mine, we pulled up at Landhotel Buller, the #1 of 1 hotels in Hagen a.T.W. according to TripAdvisor. Buller is as picturesque a property as one would image in the German countryside. Very well appointed with beautiful views and crisp clean, and comfortable hotel accommodations, with a high quality restaurant to match. Mom vowed to stay here on another trip.
Although we arrived later than our reservation, and the kitchen would close soon, we were able to choose from an extensive menu of fresh and locally sourced options, and then dine for more than an hour with Fred’s parents. For me, it was like slipping back into a comfortable routine.
Fred’s parents and I had never met but through our sons we’d known each other for years. The conversation never lagged: stories about Fred and Darin, opinions about German and U.S. politics, and the history of the Landhotel Buller.
Fred’s dad, ever the gentleman settled the bill, and we were off to visit their house in the forest for a quick visit. Although a first for my mom, this would be my sixth or seventh visit to their home. A working tree farm up on a hill via a winding lane. It could not have been in a more scenic place. Bucolic. After what seemed like only moments, we had to say goodbye, after all today is a busy day!
Fred’s parents and I had never met but through our sons we’d known each other for years. The conversation never lagged: stories about Fred and Darin, opinions about German and U.S. politics, and the history of the Landhotel Buller.
Fred’s dad, ever the gentleman settled the bill, and we were off to visit their house in the forest for a quick visit. Although a first for my mom, this would be my sixth or seventh visit to their home. A working tree farm up on a hill via a winding lane. It could not have been in a more scenic place. Bucolic. After what seemed like only moments, we had to say goodbye, after all today is a busy day!
We stopped by Fred and Katrine’s recently purchased house. He walked us through the house that would soon be demolished and pointed out what it would look like when the build was complete. The house is located in a small village on a hill overlooking a scenic meadow. Who lives like this? Perfect.
On the return to Osnabruck, we parked, strolled and saw the sights of the town - winding cobblestone streets and ancient buildings. These people live and work every day in a picture postcard! Walking through the quintessentially small old town, we stopped for coffee and prepared to continue our train travels to Berlin. These people live and work every day in a picture postcard! Now, I understand why my son returns to this place again and again - to refresh and reenergize.
It was now 4:45pm and we had another 4 hours of train travel ahead. Remember, we started at 8:15 this morning, in another country. As we (ok, Fred) was checking the train time, there was an “uh oh” followed by a “hmmmm.” It turns out that our train from Osnabruck to Hannover was delayed. Delayed so much that we would miss our connection from Hannover to Berlin. Wheels up, time to fly.
Mom Tip: Be prepared to have your best laid plans go off course. S**t happens. Chill. Of course, easy for us to say - we had Fred.
After a short drive we were at the train station and began to assess our options with the Deutsche Bahn folks. In the end we snagged Osnabruck-Hamburg-Berlin tickets, both segments on an ICE “Intercity-Express” (bullet train), departing only 15 minutes after our originally scheduled train. We would arrive into Berlin later, but hey, it's an adventure.
After a short drive we were at the train station and began to assess our options with the Deutsche Bahn folks. In the end we snagged Osnabruck-Hamburg-Berlin tickets, both segments on an ICE “Intercity-Express” (bullet train), departing only 15 minutes after our originally scheduled train. We would arrive into Berlin later, but hey, it's an adventure.
Pro Tip - The train stations have maps of the train cars, and their location on the station platforms. You can easily match your train car, with the numbered location on the platform and feel confident that you are at the right place when the train arrives. No hoofing it to get on at the right place before the doors close.
First class on the trains have seating assignments. We were told that due to the Easter holiday, our trains were going to be full, full, full, and were were lucky to get any seats together. It turned out that for both segments our train car was practically empty and, from Hamburg to Berlin, we were the only passengers in our train car. Sure you can fly private, but have you trained private?
The cool thing about the ICE is that it goes fast. Like really fast fast. There were times when we were going 120 MPH. So quickly, the wind whistled. This was an awesome experience, traveling through the darkness, in a bullet train with just mom and me. The signage is in German but train numbers and tracks are clearly marked and we had no trouble boarding our train in Hamburg. By this time, we were old hands at locating our seats. We had a quick connection in Hamburg and arrived in Berlin just shy of 10:30pm.
The Berlin HBF is massive. It is four levels of train platforms and concessions (with additional floors of office space), enclosed in a cavernous and functional modern steel and glass building. Like a JFK for trains, this place is 24 hours. We had no trouble making our way to the taxi stand - comprised of Mercedes and Prius’s - and after a quick 10 minute cab ride we arrived at the Sofitel Berlin Gendermanmarkt.
We were warmly received and made our way to our 2 room, 2 bathroom suite with stunning views of the Gendermanmarkt. We ordered room service (which didn’t arrive until 11:50pm) and then called it a night around around 12:30am. Except I couldn’t sleep.
Our plan was to head to Brussels on Sunday, but with the terrorist attacks on Tuesday, no one knew when the airport would open, or even if Brussels would be manageable. We had been moving so much, this was the first time I had a chance to look at the information and logistics to see what travel options were open to us - so I got to work.
At no time were we ever afraid to go to Brussels. Terror aims to disrupt, and the way to stand up against these vicious attacks is to show they won’t win, and that we will not cower in fear. We discussed the situation and decided if we could get there (and get out), we would go. My Belgian friends said the city was safe and we would be warmly welcomed. Unfortunately, the reality is, we couldn’t get in. The airport was closed for the foreseeable future and train options were expensive and logistically challenging.
Searching for options to leave for home from Berlin instead of Brussels, I called United Airlines via Skype and worked with a very accommodating agent to return to the U.S. on Sunday. True, it would mean that we were ending our trip 3 days early, but it was the right call to make.
Pro Tip - If you have to make a change to your tickets, do your research first! Don’t rely on the airline or booking agent, because they may not be as invested as you are in getting you to where you need to go. They might miss available alternatives, or want to downgrade you to a lower cabin of service. Go into the conversation knowing your options and be prepared to guide them.
Our plan was to head to Brussels on Sunday, but with the terrorist attacks on Tuesday, no one knew when the airport would open, or even if Brussels would be manageable. We had been moving so much, this was the first time I had a chance to look at the information and logistics to see what travel options were open to us - so I got to work.
At no time were we ever afraid to go to Brussels. Terror aims to disrupt, and the way to stand up against these vicious attacks is to show they won’t win, and that we will not cower in fear. We discussed the situation and decided if we could get there (and get out), we would go. My Belgian friends said the city was safe and we would be warmly welcomed. Unfortunately, the reality is, we couldn’t get in. The airport was closed for the foreseeable future and train options were expensive and logistically challenging.
Searching for options to leave for home from Berlin instead of Brussels, I called United Airlines via Skype and worked with a very accommodating agent to return to the U.S. on Sunday. True, it would mean that we were ending our trip 3 days early, but it was the right call to make.
Pro Tip - If you have to make a change to your tickets, do your research first! Don’t rely on the airline or booking agent, because they may not be as invested as you are in getting you to where you need to go. They might miss available alternatives, or want to downgrade you to a lower cabin of service. Go into the conversation knowing your options and be prepared to guide them.
Mom Tip: If your travel plans involve moving every day or two, pack each outfit in a ziplock bag. Squeeze out the air to flatten and open when needed. In this way, you never need to pack and unpack!At about 3am, with our plans in place, I said goodbye to Thursday.
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