BVG wird bestreikt

These three words have caused me about six hours worth of walking back and forth between my home and the nearest train station... BVG is the Berlin train service that operates the U-Bahns and busses. Bestreikt means that they have gone on strike... I think I said that I needed some exercise in one of the posts before this; I guess my wish is coming true... The strikes that are occurring in Berlin are occurring simultaneously with many others across the country. It seems like everyone in Germany is going on strike lately. From kindergarten teachers to trash collectors to airport workers and train operators, the strike across Germany has most definitely hit all areas of the German public sector. And because public transportation the primary form of transportation for Germans, the strikes have also caused chaos on the roads forcing hundreds of people who almost never drive to get out their cars and use the roads. When I was walking down Unter den Linden the traffic was backed up from museum island to Brandenberg Tor (that's a long way if you don't know). And this Monday there is a good chance that the other train union GDL will also go on strike effectively shutting down all of the trains in Germany. This means that there will be neither any inter-city trains or s-bahns that typically bring me to work... Since I work about an hour away from the city by train I don't really have any idea what I'm going to do if this happens. I guess I get a day off?

Hertha BSC - Nur nach Hause

This weekend I attended my first ever German Fussball match in Berlin. The game was Hertha BSC (Berlin's soccer team) versus Duisburg (an apparently not-so-hot team ranked very low in the German Bundesliga). The games are held in the Olympiastadion that was built for the 1916 summer Olympics and just recently was host site of the World Cup. Although I didn't make this video, it pretty much sums up the atmosphere... Thousands of Hertha fans, who call themselves the Ultimas, remained standing the entire game, singing songs, waving flags, cheering, chanting, and just plain being crazy supporters of Hertha football. Before I went, I bought a blue Hertha scarf with their slogan on it:

"Nur nach Hause geh'n wir nicht"
(Translated: "Only home, we don't go")

I sang along with all the songs as best as I could and drank some German beer and pretty much had an incredible time. Hertha won the game 2-0, ending a 10 game losing streak at night games in the Olympiastadion in Berlin. I'd like to think think that it was because I was there to support them... Also, I found out that Hertha BSC is actually a friend of Karlsruhe's soccer team so when I go to University in Karlsruhe and suddenly become a Karlsruhe fan everyone won't hate me for supporting Hertha.

Now if only I could be attending some Purdue basketball games right now (Big Ten champs?)...