Scott Tepper: Making the World a Smaller Place (aka. Snapshot of Köln)

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so today’s column is going to read like adulation of Jeff Allers work.  Since I was busy getting ready for my impending trip to Essen, Germany this past week, there wasn’t time to get any gaming in, but that’s not to say I don’t have anything interesting to recount on my Journey to Essen this year.

During my two previous trips to Essen, I had virtually no time to do any sightseeing.  I flew out on Monday, arrived sleep-deprived on Tuesday, and set up the booth and ran through the games on Wednesday to be ready when the show opened on Thursday.  So other than a couple of late night runs into Essen’s city center when everything was closed, I wasn’t able to see much of Germany other than Essen’s Messe (the convention center).  This year, upon the nudging of my friend, Heidi, I changed my flight to leave on the Friday night redeye to Frankfurt.

With the boon of having a couple of days at leisure in Germany, I decided to spend one of them in Köln. (in the US, it’s referred to as Cologne).  During the two previous train rides from Frankfurt to Essen, as we passed through Köln, Jay said that I should see the beautiful church at the center of the city.

So, with the goal of staying one night in Köln, I hit the internet to find a hotel. After checking about 20 different hotels, I was just about to resign myself to the fact that I’d have to spend over $200 per night for lodging in Köln, when I remembered something my friends Sarah & Karl had told me.  They once mentioned that they belonged to a website that allowed them to offer up their home to foreign travelers who needed a place to stay.  When I expressed my surprise at their having done this, they expounded on how it was a wonderful experience that enabled them to meet several people from all around the world.

When Sarah and Karl told me about this hobby of theirs, it sounded a little kooky and maybe even a little risky to me.  They reassured me, though, that they could be very choosey about who they let stay with them, and the rewards were immeasurable.  With their glowing recommending in my head, I decided to check out twww.couchsurfing.com.

The Couchsurfing credo is all about making the world a smaller place by allowing people from different areas to stay with each other and exchange cultures.  To reduce the potential danger inherent in uniting complete strangers, Couchsurfing requires its members to do a few things.  First, potential Couchsurfers are required to pay a $25 fee via credit card.  This way they will have information about you that can be traced back to your residence. 

Next, you are encouraged to make a profile that other members can use to learn something about you.  Your Couchsurfing profile can include anything from your worldview to pictures of you and your home.  The goal is to provide information about yourself so that others can decide if they would feel comfortable staying with you or inviting you into their homes.  In this case, more is definitely more.

Lastly, if you do end up staying with someone through Couchsurfing, the people you meet are allowed to give feedback about their experience with you.  This feedback encourages members to be good houseguests and hosts since there is a measure of accountability.  Skimming through different profiles, I wasn’t able to find any negative feedback for anyone.  Granted, some were more effusive with their praise, but it appears that for the most part, people who do this are on their best behavior.  As people continue to Couchsurf, they receive more references and gradually “unlock” their profile.  Basically, they become less of a risk.

My cursory search for hosts in Koln turned up about 150 people who could offer some sort of hospitality.  I ruled out people who hadn’t been on the site for a while, and also those who were in their early 20’s.  It seems that a good percentage of Couchsurfers are younger, which is to be expected.

My constraints narrowed my potential hosts to about 10 different people.  Some people on Couchsurfing don’t have the space to offer up a couch, but are willing to meet you in your destination city to act as a tour guide.  One couple, a woman who taught German as a second language and her husband who loved to play chess looked like an ideal match for me, but unfortunately, they live more in a suburban area as opposed to the city proper, and that would limit my ability to sightsee.

My next choice was Christian, who lived in the city and had hosted a few people in the past, all of whom left positive feedback on his profile.  So I made a profile for myself(that detailed my love of boardgames) and sent off a Couchsurfing email to Christian. 

I have a hard time asking people for anything, so requesting an invitation into the home of a stranger was not an easy task for me.  I tried to cover the important points in my letter; how long I’d be staying(1 night), why I was coming into town(to see the city on my way to the game trade show in Essen), how much assistance I’d need (not very much, as I’m pretty independent and can find my way around with a map), that I would not be much trouble and how I would greatly appreciate the chance to stay with him.

My letter explained that I was learning to speak German, and my profile showed that I spoke English, French and a little bit of Spanish as well.  I sent off my request and then waited.  Two days later I received an email back from Christian, in perfect English, that said I was welcome to stay with him in Köln.  We exchanged emails over the next couple of weeks and I gave him contact information in case anything happened to me while I was in Germany.

After the flight to Frankfurt, and while waiting for the train to Köln, I received a text message from Christian asking if I had arrived.  I wrote back that I had just boarded the train and would be arriving in about an hour.  Actually, because I recently purchased a new cell phone that I’m not 100% used to yet, I ended up sending my response in about 6 separate emails, some of which only consisted of one, or part of one word.

A short, 8 minute cab ride later I was at Christian’s apartment.  He lives on the 3rd floor of an older building with an architecturally beautiful oval-shaped spiral staircase.  His apartment looked very modern, although, Christian explained, that the management company had changed hands and the new managers were not taking care of the building.

Christian kindly offered that I could take a nap if I was tired, but I was in Köln to see the city, and I could always sleep later, so 10 minutes after I walked into his apartment, we were outside and heading into the city center. 

As the public transportation in Köln is so efficient, Christian had sold his car years earlier and instead subscribed to a car sharing service.  The cars are used and parked throughout the whole city, so when you want a car for a particular date you just put it on a request and the service will tell you where to pick it up.  So we ended up taking a bus to the business area of the city.  Just like trains, the buses are on a very tight schedule.  At each bustop you’ll find a digital sign that let’s you know exactly how many minutes till the next bus arrives.  This took some getting used to for because I come from Chicago where you basically have to buy a lottery ticket to see if you will “win” a bus actually stopping at a busstop.

One interesting thing I witnessed was a woman getting on the bus with her dog.  The dog wasn’t on a leash, but when the woman entered the bus, her dog walked right on without any prompting and immediately curled up on the floor underneath her seat.  No one batted an eye.

Christian showed me all around the city and told me about its history.  We went to a large bookstore where he bought a book to bring as a present to a party.  I headed over to the language reference section where I wanted to find a book to help me with my German.  I was overwhelmed by the huge selection of German teaching books in front of me.  It was like going to the malt shop in search of chocolate ice cream and finding out they had 100 different chocolate-flavored variations.  Christian suggested that instead of getting another grammar book that I start with some children’s literature.  So five minutes later I walked out with Die geheime Treppe (The Secret Staircase).  It’s one of the very popular “Die Drei ???” series which Christian explained was about 3 boys who solve mysteries.  I replied that it sounds like the Hardy Boys, which Christian had never heard of.

After the bookstore, we went to a coffeeshop where we sat and exchanged stories about our countries and our lives.  While we were talking, I was startled by something that made me think we were being filmed for a Benny Hill episode.  A bar, like the kind you’d find in a pub, rolled right past us in the street.  Seated around the bar were about 15 men who were all pedaling the wheels that were at their feet.  This group of men were actually powering this bar contraption while they were drinking pints of ale.  At this sight, Christian let out a groan and asked me not to take this particular event as an example of the high culture in Germany.  He said it was common for bachelor parties to rent one of these mobile bars and hoot, holler and drink as they drove around the city.

After the pub, we went to dinner and then headed out to several bars around the city.  Even though Christian had told me this before we got there, I was still a little surprised to find that the bars in Köln were exactly like their counterparts in the US, even down to the music.  Every bar that we went to was playing songs in English.  I felt right at home.

At about 2:00a Germany time (5:00p US time), my body started complaining that I had been up now 36 hours with only an hour nap on the plane, so we headed home.  The next morning we had a traditional German breakfast of fresh bread (Christian ran to the market while I was in the shower), cheese, jam and cold cuts.  Much too soon (noon!) my bags were packed and I was in a cab back to the Köln train station.

All in all I had a fantastic Couchsurfing experience.  I honestly can’t imagine how my experience in Köln could have been any better, other than it being longer.  After arriving at my hotel in Essen I checked my email and found a notice from Couchsurfing.  Christian had already left a positive reference about me on my profile.  I of course immediately did the same for him.  Hopefully he’ll like the surprise gift of a little glass Christmas ornament painted to look like the world, and thank you card that I left behind for him to find when he gets home from work.  My card thanked him for his Gastfreundlichkeit (hospitality) and praised his efforts to make the world a smaller place by sharing his home and friendship.

I’m going to pass it on.  How about you?

© 2007 Scott Tepper

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Comments:

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I am flattered, Scott:) Thanks for sharing your impressions of Koeln--well done! It’s fun to read someone else’s impressions of Germany, and sounds like your first couchsurfing experience went well. I’d love to do something like that, but our Berlin apartment is a bit crowded.  I am going to be showing Eric Martin around town in a week, though--does that count? Posted by Jeff Allers on Oct 15, 2007 at 01:24 AM | #

What a great experience you had Couchsurfing, Scott. I’m currently checking out home exchanges, which is the same only a bit bigger. :) The Die drei ??? series is called “Alfred Hitchcock and the three Investigators” in English. I have very fond memories of reading them all as a child, and recently scored most of the series on eBay as a gift for my husband. My 9 year old thinks it’s the best gift her dad ever received ;-) Posted by Melissa Rogerson on Oct 15, 2007 at 02:53 AM | #

Nice column.  It’s nice to have the chance to escape a bit from an early Monday morning. Posted by Kevin Wood on Oct 15, 2007 at 08:25 AM | #

I loved reading about the car sharing service and the bicycle-bar.  That’s the kind of sightseeing I find more attractive, rather than touristy locales.  Great article, Scott!  And have fun in Essen! Posted by Larry Levy on Oct 15, 2007 at 09:51 AM | #

I read The Three Investigators after I had run through the entire Hardy canon. Good books for the type. Great article, Scott. I like the idea of making the world a little smaller by allowing people of different cultures to glimpse inside each other’s lives. Thanks for allowing us to glimpse inside yours. Posted by Steve Bennett on Oct 16, 2007 at 04:32 PM | #

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