"Inga's home is your home..." Osnabrück, Germany

At 3:45 am on Friday morning, the alarm rang signifying the start of my weekend! Although the late sun here in Dublin hadn't even thought about rising at this time, I jumped out of bed and hopped in a cab at 4:15. My flight arrived in Düsseldorf at 9:30 and Inga was there with a smile to meet me. My first sense of culture shock hit me when I entered the restrooms and was unsure which one to choose (oops!). Needless to say, I was so glad to see her. From Düsseldorf, Inga and I took the train to Köln (Cologne) to meet Inga's friend Uli. Uli also studied in Pittsburgh last semester, and now attends a university in Köln and was able to show us around the city. Our first stop was the Cologne Cathedral, more commonly known as the Dom.


The Dom is home of the Archbishop of Cologne and is absolutely massive, with beautiful intricate architecture. We happened to arrive in time for the noon prayer service, which of course took place in German. The only part I understood was the Our Father, written,

Vater unser im Himmel
Geheiligt werde dein Name
Dein Reich komme
Dein Wille geschehe, wie im Himmel so auf Erden.
Unser tägliches Brot gib uns heute.
Und vergib uns unsere Schuld,
wie auch wir vergeben unsern Schuldigern.
Und führe uns nicht in Versuchung
Sondern erlöse uns von dem Bösen.
Denn dein ist das Reich und die Kraft
und die Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit. Amen

I had a tour of the rest of the city! The rain picked up in the middle of our walk, and instead of letting it ruin our day, Inga decided it was the perfect opportunity for some German cuisine. We split three different kinds of currywurst (pork sausage) and each had pommes schranke (fries with ketchup and mayonaise). The meal was wonderful, and with satisfied stomachs full of German goodness, we headed back outside to see the rain had stopped. (Inga believed this was because we had finished our meals, a fun German belief she taught me.) We took the bus across the Rhein (Rhine) River to an observation tower, where we could have a better look at the entire city. The Rhine River and the Dom

Uli and I


Inga's boyfriend Sebastian met us at the tower and we all headed back across the river for a break. We went to a pub where I had a Kölsch, the traditional beer from Cologne from the traditionally unfriendly waiters, a very interesting combination.

We returned to Osnabrück by train and I found quickly that I was in for a fun surprise. One of Inga's roommates had cooked a delicious lasagna, but I soon discovered that the meal was accompanied by incredible amounts of German conversation. At first, I was intimidated. Here I was in a room with six native German speakers. Everyone around me was speaking a foreign, and slightly forceful language as I sat there speechless (how often does that happen?). They were all so kind and spoke to me in English as well and I soon became very comfortable.

After a wonderful night of sleep, we all enjoyed a delicious German breakfast of brötcheu ("little breads") from the local bakery with butter and jam and eire (eggs). By this point, I had accepted the idea that I would not understand all aspects of the conversation (sometimes, I would understand little if any) but we had fun with that fact. We decided it would be funny for the group to speak in German, only stopping occasionally to say a word in English just to see if I could follow. It was quite the laugh as I eavesdropped on the conversation and soon realized it would take more than one word in English to keep me informed.

That morning, Sebastian responded to a silly question of mine by saying that "Inga's home is your home." It was so sweet that I thought I needed to include it here, and my two wonderful hosts continued to make me feel welcome throughout the visit.

Saturday was spent in Inga's hometown of Osnabrück. Inga and Sebastian in front of Inga's apartment. (I caught them too early in the picture) First, we walked through the old section of the town. Part of the old wall which used to enclose the town. I loved the roofs throughout the town. The Town Hall of Osnabrück, known today as the "City of Peace." This town was home to the resolution of the 30 year war between the Catholics and Protestants of Germany. We walked through the shopping area of town, and decided spontaneously to go to the Osnabrück vs. Dresden football game. Although the game ended in a tie, eins-eins (1-1), I loved it! The energy in the stadium was great, and fans even brought drums to lead the cheering sections.
Here you can see a little of the excitement!

On the way home, I was able to see where Inga works as a Physiotherapist and her University. (I think its safe to say we all wish she was still in Pittsburgh, yet this place looks pretty great as well.)

After a quick stop for butterkuchen (butter cake) from another delicious bakery, we headed home for some tea and warm, cozy socks.

That night, we met Inga's sister and went out to one of the more traditional pubs in town.


Sunday morning started what was by far my favorite part of the visit: brunch with Inga's family. I was overwhelmed with the kindness that they extended to me, and the amount of delicious food that was prepared. When I walked in and saw the table decorated in red, white, and blue, I couldn't help but smile.


Throughout the meal, we talked about everything from Pittsburgh to Germany and in between. I truly enjoyed getting to know them and was so grateful that they took me in so graciously. I hope to be able to see them again in the future.