Afternoon coffee

Not too much going on in Deutschland this Tuesday. It was a beautiful afternoon, and even though we have a test tomorrow (yes, a test. It's summer, right?), I thought I'd grab a book and find a cafe.

Cafes seem to be popular in Germany, and I'm sure throughout Europe. In order to experience Germany properly, I thought I'd do my part to try out what seems to be a popular pastime. Before coming to Germany, I always heard a lot about "cafe culture" and heard of the famous intellectuals and artists getting their starts in cafes. I figure if I'm going to access my inner famous intellectual, then I better head to a cafe. There don't appear to be too many in my neighborhood, so I went back to Wilhelmsdorfer Strasse where I have class.

I found a small cafe and ordered a coffee and some cinnamon pastry. I found a table outside, got my book out (Honor and Slavery by Kenneth Greenberg. Not everyday German cafe reading, I'm sure), and started to take in the atmosphere. I got about 10 pages in and realized that I couldn't just sit there. I kept looking up, eavesdropping, watching walkers, and just staring off into space. I managed to read all about Henry Clay's duel with John Randolph, but after that, I just couldn't focus. I don't know if I'm still on sensory overload from Germany or what it was, but as it stands right now, I clearly cannot produce my best work in the cafe atmosphere.

Maybe if I had a cigarette and a croissant then I'd absorb my reading a little better. Maybe if I had an avant-garde cadre at my table that included a failing yet talented artist, some depressing nihilist, and a rich benefactor then Greenberg's words would fly off the page and lead me to some cutting-edge breakthrough. Perhaps a plain coffee isn't enough--maybe an espresso or a macchiato or something that comes in one of those baby mugs would really get the juices flowing. Or maybe, just maybe, my attention span is too short.

Don't worry, nation. I'm not giving up on this cafe stuff. No beginner's luck this time. But with the right cafe and the right time, who knows what could happen? I think what lies behind it all is that I don't want to just sit in my house and read. Reading is great; it was something that I was looking forward to doing here in Germany, but I don't want to do it in my room. Especially on a day like today. Being in a cafe and just being out in Berlin means a lot of different things. I get to try different foods and different drinks. I get to see and encounter different people. I get to practice my German. I get to see new places in town that I haven't seen before. I couldn't do all of that in my room. I really want to get out there and experience it all. That definitely means taking in the cafe atmosphere. But don't worry--I'll leave the cigarettes to others.

Take care, one and all.

Deutsches Wort des Tages:

die Ablenkung -- distraction