Still catching up...

So, I didn't get around to writing anything this morning, so here's an account of what I've been doing. Because you all care so much, ha! I don't care if I'm filling up your feed, I need to remember these things somehow. :)

So, yesterday morning I went into the city. Got a coffee and Olive Bread from Kamps (yeah, I know it's a huge chain and I'm against huge chains, but that olive bread is phenomenal...) and wandered around a bit before taking the train the rest of the way in to town. Went to suss out where the show was, and then back to Balthasar (ok, another chain, but they have soy milk!!!) for an awesome coffee. God, I'm going to miss having someone else make me a nice (always overly-foamy) coffee with vanilla-flavoured soy. I'll never buy vanilla-flavoured soy milk myself, partly because it tastes funny on oats and I'd never use it in savoury dishes, but also because I go for the unsweetened variety. It doesn't taste quite as good as the ones with added sugar, but I like to add a touch of maple syrup to my oats anyway, and tea/coffee is strictly unsweetened. But it's been a nice luxury.

So, I went for a wander around St Pauli and Reeperbahn, but didn't end up with one of the cool skull and crossbones St Pauli hoodies that everyone was wearing. Couldn't find any good ones, actually, just cheap rip-offs. Got a coffee and sweet bun from Backfactory (what is it with me and these fucking chains right now?!) but it was absolutely decrepit. Soggy bread! I'm going to boycott Backfactory. They give me nothing but disappointment... except for the phenomenal panini rolls, but hey, I can live without. Or I can just buy bake-at-home panini from the supermarket.

I did buy a new pair of sneakers - Puma Hi-tops, white with purple trim. They were 45 Euro from a sports shop that had heaps of samples - I think they cost about 90 Euro usually. I also bought a Puma jacket, which is polyester (waterproof?) and ultra-lightweight but incredibly warm. It's like wearing three hoodies all at once, but without feeling like the Michelin Man. And it has zips on the pockets (yes!) so I can stop freaking out about my ipod on the rare occasion that I go jogging. Have to get back into that in Pb. I need to look awesome when I get back to Adelaide in 6 months, as a giant f-you to all the people who forgot about me. hahaha.

Anyway, the shoes are giving me a few blisters while I try to wear them in (with my orthotics - this is what I get for trying to do the right thing!) so I wear them with the orthotics until my blisters hurt too much, and then just remove the inserts for comparitive comfort. I wore my green tigers for the second half of today, and it was something of a relief. I hate wearing in new shoes. So, back to whatever I was talking about. Oh yeah, yesterday.

I can't actually remember what else I ate. I know that I did suss out the giant shopping centre by the Rathaus, and the nice girl with tattoos who made my cup of tea (and probably laughed at my accent, like the girls at Balthasar did, though that did get us into a very nice conversation about cities) gave me a free apple pastry. Mmm. I like getting free things with tea and coffee! I think I was stuffed full of sugar and decided just to have a sandwich for dinner, with the rest of my bread and the capsicum bruschetta spread. Probably ate some fruit too. Anyway, I went back to the hostel to put down my purchases and relax for a while.

Went to the show - the opening act, who I can't remember the name of, was incredibly boring experimental-noise-type-wank. Get off your loop pedal and play some real music. Anyway, rant aside, Red Sparowes were phenomenal. Honestly, so good: dynamic and rocking and really catchy for an instrumental band. Afterwards, I bought their latest CD, and I also bought a hoodie. I really liked the design and they had it in girls' size (though I got the last one, which was a large apparently - god help the fat girls if a Large fits me nicely!)... this is what happens when you have a girl in the band: you finally get decent merch. Tshirts and hoodies and nice designs and things that aren't designed for small boys, and in fact, even fit womens' bodies rather nicely. I was thrilled. The TopMan XS Mens hoodie that I've been wearing forever got retired (in a plastic bag at the bus stop, so someone can pick it up if they want it) with my shoes in Hamburg. Goodbye, red and black Onitsuka hi-tops... you were the best sneakers I ever owned. And probably the oldest.

Anyway, after the show I had that slightly-awkward I-don't-know-what-to-say chat with the bassist (Greg) and one of the guitarists (Emma). They were both really nice. I walked back to the train station for the S3 back to the hostel. My feet were killing me, and my shoes were making funny squeaky noises that I drowned out with my ipod. If I can't hear it, then no one else can either, dammit. I got back about one. Got up this morning about seven, then got ready and packed all my stuff up again. Paid for the hostel and caught the bus to the bahnhof. Had a coffee and a bun for breakfast, had some trashed and probably homeless guy sit next to me while I tried to have my food in peace. I generally ignored him, but it made me uneasy to have him babbling away to me. I tried the "I don't speak German" thing but he just babbled in half-English after that. Ugh. Get a fucking hint, drunk asshole. He said some nice things about my hair and made slightly creepy comments when I left, and I got to make an alarmed face at the woman who was watching the scene.

Waited for the train, then got on the train. For some reason it arrived at the station half an hour before it left, which was a pretty long layover. Anyway, it departed on time and arrived in Bremen on time. I wandered around trying to find the hostel, which was incredibly badly signposted. I think the problem was that number 50 is across from about number 17 on the other side of the street, and the streets can be badly signed. Also, the building number was about 5cms high, and recessed so that I walked straight past it. And it's the only building on that side of the street (it's really long) so I had no point of comparison. Either way, I found it about half an hour later, with aching feet. Got an internet password and discovered that the art museum here is closed until Spring in 2011. Good one, Bremen. Got into my green tigers and walked into town. Checked out the Dom, which I didn't get to do on the awful Eurobiz trip here. Checked out the crypt under it, which had 8 preserved bodies. Blackened, papery skin and eyeless sockets and modesty cloths. I enjoyed it thoroughly. :)

I went to a museum (I think it was the Kunstsammeln) on Boettcherstrasse (Anglicised spelling of a German name, it looks so wrong) and that was okayish. Only three Euro, so whatever. No photos allowed and I had to carry my bag - not allowed to have your handbag on your shoulder. It's a rule I've only ever encountered in German museums. Wandered around, checked out the zig-zag of a lake / moat / whatever. Got a cup of tea for 80c. Walked through the nice green bit along the lake-thing and eventually wandered way out of town to find a vegetarian restaurant... it wasn't open. I'd even checked the opening times beforehand. Devoed. Oh, and I did go to Rewe on the way, to get some fruit and bread and salad stuff. Also found some vegan burgers (unrefrigerated!) so bought those, so I'll be having burgers for dinner tomorrow! They also had a fantastic selection of vegan stuff and TVP, so I'm tempted to go back tomorrow and get some, just for old times' sake.

So, I walked to the sister-restaurant of the place that I wanted to go to, which wasn't too far away. The restaurant was light and airy, and the little teacups and the plates they used were fantastic. But the food was lacking. I got the day's special, because it looked good. Sadly, it was only average. Oh, it came with soup: sauerkraut soup, which I didn't like, but I was starved so I ate it anyway. I don't like sauerkraut. Give me cabbage in each and every form except for sauerkraut!

Anyway, my main was a dish with hokkien noodles, 'vegetables' (heaps of onion, some leek, and a couple of bits of carrot and bean sprouts) in a peanut sauce, with 4 mock-chicken nuggets on top. I guess it only cost 6.50, so whatever. The peanut sauce was good, but the noodles were overcooked and had broken into short lengths, which made them hard to eat. They weren't soggy, but they didn't have that satisfying chew that a good hokkien noodle should. I had a Sencha (green) tea with rosebuds, which was tea leaves and roses in a cup of boiling water, and was utterly delicious. Not bitter in the slightest. The rosebuds floated and the tea leaves sank, for the record. Because you need to know that. It came in a lovely giant tumbler, white and ceramic, with bamboo wrapped around the base for heat-insulation. I should have taken a photo - it was a marvel of minimalist design.

I caught the tram back into the city (didn't pay) and wandered through the town back to the hostel. Climbed the 4 flights of stairs, again, and ate some bread in the kitchen. Oh yeah, I was still hungry after my meal. So I had a few slices of my pumpkin seed loaf (addicted to pumpkin seeds since that pretzel) and a cup of rosehip tea. When the hostel says free tea and coffee, they mean instant coffee and rosehip tea. I'll take what I can get... but I won't be drinking the coffee. So, I've pretty much seen everything I wanted to in Bremen. The street that I walked down to get to the restaurant was actually really awesome, so I could potentially go back there tomorrow to suss it out. Or I could go to Primark... hehehe. It's the only one in Germany, so I feel a bit obliged. ;)

I'm exhausted from my lack of sleep. I think tonight will be an early one.

PS. 49 page views in the space of an hour recently... and most of them from Russia. WTF?!