The train ride from Berlin to Dresden, Germany was bizarre. When the conductor started making announcements over the microphone, I heard a man screaming and shouting in the background. He was speaking clearly enough that the German people in my train cabin could understand what he was shouting about, but of course I don't know more than ten words of German. I asked the people in my cabin what was going on, as they were tittering to each other about it, but they didn't seem to speak any more English than I speak German.
His shouting got louder as he got closer to us, and finally one of the guys in our six-person compartment went out, and I could hear him talking to the guy in a level tone. Nearly half an hour later, he returned. The other people in our cabin seemed to ask him what happened, and he went into a long explanation, wildly gesturing as the other passengers shook their heads and at a certain point gasped. It is strange and unnerving to be the only one in a room who doesn't speak the language in such a situation. It's an entirely different experience to be the only one out of the loop.
I arrived in Dresden mid-afternoon. I hadn't planned to go to Dresden at all, but I was told it's halfway between Berlin and Prague, and this is the best time of the year to visit because of their abundance of Christmas markets. I found a place to stay on AirB&B, which was my first time using that interface. As a San Franciscan who suffered due to the rapid gentrification of our city, I believe AirB&B is bad for locals. However, Dresden is so popular at Christmas time that even the hostels were out of my price range. It was too good of a deal to have my own room for less than I would pay for a dormitory.
My AirB&B host, Corinna, met me at the train station to drive me to her apartment. She pointed out local landmarks as we drove, such as the Italian-style architecture in Old Town, and the modern bridge that caused the city to lose its UNESCO World Heritage title. Her apartment was in a beautiful and clearly wealthy part of town. I was surprised to find it decorated with Tibetan prayer flags, large framed posters of spiritual gurus, and cabinets brimming with homeopathic tinctures. She told me she's a midwife and a healer, and that I would be sleeping in the room she uses as her office. She told me there was another person from Airbnb there too, but I didn't see him until my last day. I did meet her teenage daughter though, and her poor heart-diseased one-eyed dog, who continued to growl at me even as he cautiously rolled over to let me rub his belly.
I saw much of what Dresden has to offer in those 7 days. I spent a couple of days exploring the Old Town (Altstadt). There's a huge fresco that shows the procession of Saxonian Kings, giving each a name and a description, such as Augustus the Brave, Augustus the Serious, or Augustus the Bearded. The old town is gorgeous and filled with architecture that looks ancient. Dresden, like Berlin, was blasted during the war, so anything that looks ancient was more likely reconstructed.
I also spent a couple of days exploring the new town (Neustadt). It's very hip and there's a hundred shops, restaurants, and cafes. I even got a pretty decent haircut there, as my hair was starting to grow hair. The Christmas markets are what brings tourists to Dresden in the winter, though. Walking a mile in a straight line, I'd come across probably five Christmas markets. Each of them has a variety of handcrafted artisan works, Christmas ornaments, decorations, gifts, warm winter clothing, and lots of special German Christmas foods and hot alcoholic drinks.
Over the weekend I stayed at an old home somewhat closer to the city center. It had no central heating, so I built a fire in a furnace. It was still ridiculously cold, but a rather cozy spot to spend a couple of nights with lots of blankets. On Saturday I went with my host to a soccer game in a tiny town called Bischofswerda, which would not have been my top choice of activities, but my host was determined I attend. The ride there was harrowing because of the hordes of men drunkenly bellowing support for their team. They were closely followed by several police dressed as civilians in case anything went sour. It was pretty sweet though, thanks to a cup of gluhwein and the team my host was rooting for winning 5-0.
On Sunday I had a nice breakfast with my host after packing my bag (my 15th time packing up to carry on to the next destination), and took the train onward to Prague! I stayed awake on the train just long enough to watch the sun set over sandstone cliffs.