Every year, the German Fulbright Alumni Association throws a masked ball for their members and current Fulbrighters in Germany (you might remember I went to their welcome meeting in Hamburg in November). So, the weekend after Carnival I loaded myself into a Flixbus (if you are travelling in Europe, this is a super duper cheap service – my trip to Munich, 115 euros by train, cost 19 euros. Granted it was overnight and horrible, but still) on Thursday night and woke up the next morning at the ZOB bus station in Munich. Since my parents were visiting Munich in July, I managed to convince them to let me try out the hotel they wanted to book, so instead of an expensive (Munich is great but the prices suck, y’all), grungy hostel, Susanna I stayed at a Holiday Inn! It was luxury. I met up with her, and we played around the city before meeting up with the rest of the Fulbrighters for the welcome get-together at my favorite Munich brewery – Augustiner.
Still regretting that this wasn’t a purchase
The day of the ball arrived, and I spent the morning with Susanna and Laura before going to my old stomping ground Holzkirchen for lunch. I met up with Thorsten and Uta, host parents of my good friend Michael who have stayed in touch, and I had lunch with them at their home and then went for a walk towards Foesching (another small town near H.). It was great to catch up with them and reminisce. After a lovely afternoon, I took the S-Bahn back into Munich to get ready for the ball! Susanna, Laura, and I popped the champagne and the beer (because Munich), did our hair, put on our fancy clothes, and headed toward the city center. The ball was extremely fun – we danced the night away. At one point there was a dancing master who gave us instructions (in German!) on how to dance traditionally (obviously a super-fun disaster), and there was a conga line to “Viva Colonia”. Yikes. Sunday we went to the Neue Pinakothek (an art museum in Munich – free on Sundays!) and then met up with a Fulbright friend who lives in Munich for coffee before catching a ride back to Bochum.
MIRROR SELFIES. Obviously a must-happen
Marina, Laura, me, and Susanna on the staircase leading up to the ball.
Laufen mit Liz 