Just arrived at Freiburg

I just got to Freiburg, but barely. At Mannheim, where I switched planes, I almost missed my connection because I had to use the bathroom. I finally found it, paid the attendant to use it, and got back to the platform just in time. In the process, though, I found out that a German urinal is at "Pissoir" which made me laugh because it's just like the American word "pisser", so it'll be easy to remember.

Last night , I met with the girl, Gudula, I've been IM'ing for almost a year. She was a gracious host of the city, put up with my terrible German, and did me the favor of completely ignoring me if what I said didn't even begin to make sense. I took the cue that she remained staring off in one direction to change courses and either repeat what I said in English or just drop the subject completely. Nevertheless, she was completely helpful, new her was around the city perfectly, and we hit three of the Christmas Markets. Crazy fact -- she parked under the cathedral. They have this massive structure and they decided to build a parking garage underneath it! Apparently , as Gudula let me know, it was then the Kölners found many of the relics which are now in the church. I'm very grateful I am currently reading Ken Follett's Pillars of the Earth which is giving me a much larger appreciation for cathedral building than I ever would have.