Busy times here in Detmold. I am at an internet cafe and trying to write this journal entry in the midst of searching for a flight to visit Manchester, England and am also looking with my friend Frederika for a bus to Berlin for the weekend of November 24. Being in Detmold for a long time can get to you like cabin fever can get to you anywhere, I think - you just need to get out every now and then and break the monotony of your routine. It will be nice to travel in Europe :) Frederika, Dante, and a Polish flutist, Jagoda, came over last night to watch Amadeus. It's a fun film - not my absolute favorite, as I don't like how they distorted many of the facts about Mozart just for dramatic purposes. I mean, the real story of Mozart's life was dramatic enough! It was fun, though - I cooked miso soup and rice for dinner for everyone...Europeans are not so used to eating rice or any Asian food for that matter, so I had to explain how to eat the miso soup, as comical as that sounds. They liked it, I think, although I was nervous. You never know how tofu will go over with newcomers. We did not have any classes last Wednesday, Nov. 1, as it is a national holiday - Aller Heiligentagen, or All Saints Day, a Catholic holiday that is still celebrated in parts of the world. It is ironic though, as today, Germany is the least religious out of European countries, according to BBC.com. Not that I know how to judge such a thing, but perhaps the less organized and orthodoxically practiced religion in a country, the better. A blasphemous thing for me to say, I suppose, but I just think that everything gets complicated when people try and live their faith too dogmatically. I also met my friend Mathilde's parents and younger brother and sister who came to visit from Belgium for the day. They were all so nice...enforced the fact that I wish I could speak French, though. Not that I have any regrets over the 7 years of Spanish I studied - I am very happy to be nearly fluent in Spanish. But French would be nice as well. I am reading A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy at the moment and I wish I had a Babel fish to stick in my ear so I could be fully fluent in any language. For those of you who have no clue what I am talking about, pick up the book - it is a great read. It reached 4 Celsius here a few days, ago, which is a maybe arond 40 F...but it felt much colder with the windchill. I have a real knack for picking regions of the world with nice climates to live in...Chicago, Boston, Detmold, what is next? Siberia? We also finally found a violist for our Schubert String Quintet, Anton, a Russian. Jagoda says that he isn't such a nice person but is a good violist and is dependable. We'll see how this all works out - 4 ladies and 1 gent in a chamber group is a bit questionable. I also bought a bag of Spekulatius, or gingerbread, from the market here in Detmold...it was so incredible. Arya, Frederika and I finished the entire bag in one afternoon with tea. Whereas I don't really like German food at all because it is way too heavy and greasy for my Indian digestive system, I really like the desserts and pastries here. I plan to bring things like peanut brittle and real American chocolate chip cookies back to Germany so my international friends here can experience them :) Okay 1 minute left at the internet cafe. More later. Be well!