Saarbrücken

Sprechen Sie Englisch?

20th August 1991 I woke up in Crouch end having had a wonderful Algerian meal with my friend's sister in London. I was terrified. I filled in the ticket departing from London Victoria to Dover. The crossing was little over an hour and as we boarded I could clearly see the cliffs of France and I felt excited and terrified at the same time. I had to make my way to "Faarbrucken". I had a scrap of paper with me, my friend Joe would be in this place at a conference and said I was welcome. I unfolded the map "Its close to the French border" he had told me. I never found "Faarbrucken" but figured it must be "Saarbrücken" and decided to take my chances. The boat shuddered and shook creating a minor local earthquake so that all the bottles in the duty free clinked and clanked and we left Dover. I stood on deck and watched the English white cliffs disappear from view and the the coast of France approaching slowly. The engine turbines increased there intensity with a loud thump thumping sound belching black smoke into the air I quickly tried to rehearse some French to ask for a ticket to Saarbrücken.

Oui Madame

I was now speeding through the French countryside, and I as using my schoolboy French. It had been 5 years since achieving a C in honours French, but I was able to navigate my way around. I remember the heat being overbearing for me. But as I travelled south it got even more intense.

Scheisse!

I changed in Metz in Lorraine, and the journey across the German border was interrupted by the German police checking passports, this was before the Schengen agreement. Once in Saarbrücken I ran into problems as nobody spoke English. I didn't speak any German but was able to tell the taxi driver "Universität" and he told me "Zwanzig Mark Bitte". I only had 50 so he started screaming "Scheisse!! Scheisse!!". We drove around the campus asking people for change and he dropped me off, and I said "Danke". Yeah, first myth "you can speak English anywhere" was broken. I wandere into a lecture theatre and by fluke found my friend Joe. I am not sure who was more shocked. But with the misspelling, no German and no mobile telephone I managed to find him!