Retreating, Part II

On Tuesday I drove around six hours to Kassel, where I couchsurfed with a Buddhist family, the wife being a piano teacher who let me play her Steinway baby grand. It was an amazing experience. Gorgeous instrument. Had some really interesting discussions about life, the universe, entheogens and everything.

Then on Wednesday I continued on to my final destination, a little village north of Görlitz in East Germany, near the border with Poland.

Everything went well until the final turn-off. The village is very small, and not signposted anywhere, so I ended up driving up and down the same stretch of road five times before eventually admitting defeat and pulling into a petrol station to ask. At which point the lady behind the counter smiled and said ‘yes, it’s just up the road, on the right’.

So near and yet so far!

It was raining and dark by the time I arrived, but the lovely neighbours were great and really helped me to settle in – showed me where everything was. And the house is fantastic. The perfect writer’s retreat, complete with three bedrooms, a living room, large kitchen, two bathrooms and its very own creepy cellar!

The kitchen.

The living room.

The scary cellar steps...

Cougar Car having a well-earned rest.

Pretty cart in the garden.

Can’t believe my luck.

On Thursday I did a food shop, then drove into Görlitz to buy an internet connection. It’s a USB modem and, shockingly, the connection is worse than Rwanda! Never thought I’d say that, what with their infamous Missing Telephone Network. But it really is pretty bad. Still, almost better than none at all. Not that I want to waste this precious writing time communing with the outside world – but I resent being charged by the day when most of the day I can’t connect.

Boo hiss phone company – poor show ;o/

So – here’s to productivity! I’ve spent the past two days tippety tapping away like a good’n’. I'm also hoping to pop over to Poland at some point, as I’ve never been before.