Days Thirty through Thirty Six - Finishing up

Hey, I've been catching back up to life in the US of A, 

but I'd like to finish this off solidly.

So let's jump back into it.

Whether or not you read this, I don't care.
Writing this for me now.

Okay, Saturday. Slept in super late, then chilled with R and my brother until about midday (which for us is like six-o-clock). My brother had been playing a game called Antichamber, which to him was entirely mind-boggling. This of course meant that he insisted I play it, which I did. I hope my mind grasped it pretty well. Then my sis came in and commanded us to come to Keinstress with her, which I was interested in since before the trip. So we headed out, in the car with my german mom and Ca, through some gorgeous country roads to an isolated campground, which was filled with the booms of 90bpm trap. My kind of crowd. We made our way through the scent of pot, smoke, maze of graffiti-ed metal to a campsite int he back of the festival (super small compared to the last, only 600 or so people). Here lounged the various youthful residents of Lebensgarten, roasting bread and cheese, and I was introduced to the few remaining member I had not yet met. Apparently, this festival actually originated in Lebensgarten, so it's no surprise they were among the attendees. I talked with El, then accepted some strangely cooked cheese from T, and then we headed out to hear the finals of the freestyle battles. It probably would've been a lot more impressive if I understood what they were saying... but in any case, I understood the game. Eight guys dueled off at random, picked from a hat by a crowd member. Sometimes small prizes were offered, and one guy in the back continued cooking pudding throughout the matches. Then, the finals, where the final four paired up in teams, and went two on two, for a two full extended rounds. Their flow was good, and, judging from the reactions of the crowd and the vague translations my sister provided, so were their attacks. Eventually two held the trophy, and a bowl of pudding, and we headed off to a small dance floor. We jived with the slow-tempoed rhythms for a little while, and then off again, back to the campsite. We opted to go for a walk with T, after checking for our stuff, and denying his offer to bring us to the forest hot tub, which was supposed to be pretty cool. We danced a little more, and saw some rap performances, and then it was the walk, out of the locale and onto the moonlit street. After a little while, we flagged down our ride, and headed home. Life was good.

The next day brought with it a new appreciation for my surroundings. First, we walked in a large group down onto the main road, skipping over to T's house to pop in and ask if he'd join us for cake at the local cafe. Then we walked down the dirt, tree-enclosed path that led to the main building. Or so I thought. These paths were usually ringed with seemingly impenetrable bushes, so I was mildly disconcerted when my german mother stepped into one. That was, until I followed them, and realized that hidden in the greenery was a spacious enclave, complete with tables and chairs and a flowering tree. We went into the side of the adjoining buildings wall, and there was an adorable little cafe, with the most stunning spread of cakes and tarts, all made fresh (some even made by T's brother, as I learned later). We sat in one of the benches outside, and I watched the leaves part as more villagers joined us. It was peaceful, and beautiful, and all those things you want in your backyard (minus the lawn, mostly dirt ground).
We returned to the house, just in time to grab our fancier clothing and drive off near Neinberg for a classical concert. I was intrigued, but I can't say particularly excited. That was, until I saw the interior of the stone chapel the performance was going to occur in. Arching pillars and ceiling that stretched up to the sky. Rainbows thrown by tinted glass mosaics as walls. I'm not religious, but I appreciate the beauty held in belief, and this was one I enjoyed immensely. We filed into nearly the back row, as the choir+orchestra prepared to create a modern rendition of several of Bach's works. I was hushed by my sister, and then they began, voices ringing about the church as I leaned back and let it sink in. Several soloists graced the front row, backed up by a string section and a squadron of voices, and they were brilliant. Churches echo like an empty train tunnel, and so classical music was made to accommodate this. To put it in short, it was made for playing in these spaces, and it was another experience entirely. At one point the lead (a low tenor (or something) as was explained by R) began changing pitches with in causal succession, and I realized he was harmonizing, but not with the orchestra. No, he was making chords with the reverberations from the walls. Dude was singing a duet with himself. I mean, dude. We left with my german mom crying at the stark music of it, and we went to get icecream at a temporary transparent inflatable dome cafe (actual icecream this time, cones and whatnot). We saw several of the singers afterward, several of which were nearly unrecognizable. Then home, and eventually sleep. And that was Sunday.

Monday was the day we were supposed to head into Bremen. Only, my brother woke up early, and as I rolled over to face the stabbing morning light, he returned, casually shaking his head and saying 'Just go back to sleep'. I complied with enthusiasm. Later, we woke up, and I decided that it was going to be a productive day. I worked on the business cards, did a little website design, made a massive number of blog posts, and danced about a bit. Also, I just got to do some solid hanging out with my favorite brother. It was a peaceful day.
Oh I also went to this local food co-op that day, where my german mother perused a variety of organic goods, including chocolate, jams, and peas, plus the whole rest of the large room. I inspected the various German labels, trying to soak in the some of the foods (I think it worked (I can read German ingredient labels now...)). The co-op was called Ledi, a combo of Le (shortened word for food) and Di (same for co-op). Exciting, I know. But they made some good puns on the walls ('My fair Ledi', 'Ledi's first', you know). It was cool. and there was the freestore again, where R found a cute wool sweater and kept it.

Tuesday was probably when it started to hit me that this evanescent state in Europe wasn't going to exist perpetually. I woke up with a bit of start, and much earlier than usual. But my brother and I had made plans for the day, which involved an 'early' start (10 or something). So we printed out a folder of papers, then headed out onto the main road, me with the foldr and my bro with his backpack of camera equipment. We turned off the road after we'd gone some ways, and stepped up into the forest. There is no poison oak, or sumac, or ivy, so you could walk barefoot through the forest with no worries except for the rare nettles. And the pokier pinecones, I suppose. But my brother showed me his sit spot, far in the trees, where nothing was around for half a mile except for the forest. We reached a tree, and fiddled around a bit as I tried to hang the folder on one of the branches. Then the camera was rolling, and I recited poetry into the forest. Recorded by my brother, I did a variety of pieces I'd been working on since the last time I'd been with him (in america). Then came the rap, where I strode along the path, yelling out my lines into the silent forest as loudly as possible, for the camera had terrible audio adjustment. Last was a piece I'd actually written while in Europe, where I tried to capture the feeling of being here. I think it turned out well, and my brother agreed, saying 'that feeling your putting in here, it only gets stronger the more you're here'. I tended to agree. I laid in the grass for a while, and let my cameraman take some artsy shots. He'll be editing them soon, and you guys'll probably get to see them (only if you want (duh)). Then we walked back to the house, and switched into swimsuits, so as to run about in the sprinklers. Which we did, playing tag and spluttering at the water. My brother grabbed the hose, and then my sister, and I wrestled it away from them, lauging and diving and rolling to avoid the spray. Which I utterly failed at. Then Te and El joined us up on the deck, and we washed off. We chilled that night, out on the deck with friends and a fire and fabulous smores. It was childlike, and enthralling, and enchanting.

Wednesday. The last day. I wasn't prepared for that feeling. We decided to head into Neinberg, to buy souvenirs and get pictures of my siblings for passport updates. We headed into electronics stores, and then did a secret thing, and got pictures, and got some special bread for dinner. I bought my female warden some special tea found semi-exclusively in Germany. Miss NYC would receive a small journal, which my german sis and I had plans for. For my male warden, I got a packet of gummy frogs. Then we went home, only to head out to an ALDI supermarket, which was pretty intensely low priced. You know, Walmart tried to make it in Europe once, but was beaten out by the undercutting of ALDI, and similar chains. It's ridiculous. I bought a stack of variety chocolate bars for everyone back home, and packet of Jaffa Cakes for my best friend. At home that night, I finally got to spend some quality time with my german father. I showed him the variety of projects I'd been working on over the past three years (he hasn't come back to america after leaving three years ago). He and I discussed the future, and I still feel empowered by what he said to me. We affirmed that we'd keep in contact, hugged, and then I returned to my brothers room, where R, my sis, Te and my bro were all hanging out, my brother and Te trading off controls in Surgeon Simulator. As the night wore, on, my sister went to bed, and then R went to pack, and Te left. I was finished packing, and we were going to be getting up at six the next morning to leave, but R returned with a heavily overweight bag, and I moved some of her stuff into mine. Her art stuff required packing that went until 3 am, after which I slept briefly until dawn.

Thursday was travel day. I ate Amaranth that morning, which was a first, for sure. Then I grabbed my bags, said goodbye to everyone not coming to airport. Leaving my brother and german father was certainly the hardest. We hugged each other tightly. I came into the airport with my sister, german mom, Ca, and R, the last two who were both leaving an hour after me. I checked in, then cuddled with my sister, in a slow goodbye. Whenever we're with each other, it's as if no time has passed at all, and with this in mind, I was able to keep our parting from being too hard. My german mom I would be seeing in a week, she was coming to Cali soon enough. Then I went through security, only to be turned around and told I had to empty a water bottle. I did, after asking two security guards where a trash can were, and then having to have a janitor loosen the top for me. So that happened. Curse my teenage arms. Nah, they're pretty sweet. Anyways. The first flight passed quickly, and I spent the time conversing with a young man from Kansas about women and relationships and such. I actually got his contact details, which was sweet, and I'm sure we'll keep in touch. Then I was dropped off at Zurich international, and I thought my flight had been changed, so I headed straight for the terminal instead of taking the two hour delay. I also wandered into the VIP line at one point, which made for a very confusing explanation as to where I was supposed to be. Turns out there was a two hour delay anyways. Hmm. Then I was on the next flight, next to a Swiss woman who taught Humanities near SF. We chatted for a bit, I watched the Hobbit, they served two very oily meals, and then I got to work writing in NYC girls journal, detailing my experiences in Europe as if I were a squire, striving to be a knight. She was the princess I returned to, granting the journal as a dragon scale, from the foe I'd slain. And at the very end, I put 'The rest of that story is hers...'. We arrived, went through customs (they had a fingerprint scanner, but I was like the only one who didn't get scanned). I knew the warden wouldn't be at the terminal immediately, but I didn't know where to go to meet them. eventually I decided on waiting for the car. And y cellmate/NYC girl came out to hug me, my female warden in tow. One of the strangest feelings on the drive back was the moment when I realized I could read the signs again. You just learn to ignore them, but suddenly: 'The Journey of the Blue Whale...hmm. Wait. Mom! I can read that!'. You get the idea.

I met my male warden sometime later, and they immediately declared my sentence over. My mom and dad, and my sister were overjoyed to see me, plus the candy I'd brought with me back.

I suppose I should give a brief summary of how I've changed now. And that's going to to be difficult. There have been a lot of firsts on this trip. First time traveling alone. First time traveling outside of America (not counting Mexico and Canada). First time living without my parents. First time using an ATM. First time being dragged along the beach by a random kite. First time being totally naked in front of my friends. There's plenty more, I'm sure. I've seen much more than I can ever express with words, and I'm okay with that. Sometimes the experiences you have are very personal.
I've learned a bit too. I've learned that the is indeed life outside of CA. I've learned that I love travel, even the tough parts. I've learned to trust myself to know what to do. I guess I've learned a bit of independence too. I've learned that those bikes actually do have brakes. I've learned that saunas can be hot. Big whup.

I've been home for just about two weeks now, and things have changed. There's something in the way I look, or the way I perceive myself looking. I'm not sure what it is. Nothing's different, and yet a lot has been altered. I know now that the world is smaller than it seems. And that makes me want to see it. It also makes me want to change it. for the better, I hope. And maybe I'm just young and naive enough to believe that I can.

From this trip, and my life up to right about now, I've learned that things can push you beyond anything you were ever comfortable with, and if you've got an open mind, a willing heart, and a wacky grin, you can do just about anything.

I'm 17, Caucasian, male, and whatever else you're supposed to fill in on those application forms.

The name's Noah.
And this is me, signing off.

Except for pics. I'll probably post those.