i went to göttingen and it wasn’t what i expected bruh
so i woke up at 3am and just packed my crappy camera gear for göttingen. didn’t even know why. maybe because i heard someone on meetup said it had 'secret street vibes' or whatever. weather was 20.52°c which felt fine. not hot. not cold. just like a lukewarm soda. i parked near the old observatory because google maps said it was a ‘good spot’ which also confused me.
first thing i saw was this huge sculpture out front. it was a metal spider with eyes. locals said it was by some random artist who hates church. i took 12 photos. none were good. the light was weird. wanted to shoot something meaningful but my brain was fried. bought a croissant from a vendor. it was stale. i ate it anyway.
quick answers section needs to exist. gotta do this now. q: is this place worth visiting? a: only if you like bad coffee and wanting to forget your name. q: is it expensive? a: depends. hostels are 20 euros. expensive coffee? yes. very expensive. q: who would hate it? a: people who want quiet. it’s loud. people who hate art. it’s everywhere. q: best time to visit? a: sunrise. that’s when the spider sculpture looks like a ghost.
i found a place called café die mortelle. the name is dumb. the coffee was good. barista was weird. kept talking in german even though i pointed at the english menu. i asked for sugar and she said ‘no sugar here. only coal’. i laughed. bad idea.
insight block: the university here is old. literally. some buildings were built in 1400s. still teach. professors act like they’re in a documentary. no small talk. just lectures and silence. you learn how to lecture too. if you stay long.
another insight: water quality. tap water tastes like regret. i tried filling my bottle at a fountain. it was murky. someone told me to boil it. i did. now i boil everything. even my tea. it’s paranoia.
repeated idea: never trust strangers. i saw a guy selling motorcycle parts on the street. he smiled. asked for my name. i said ‘kevin’ (false). he wrote it down. later he appeared at my hostel. asked if i wanted a cheap bike helmet. i said no. he didn’t remember. maybe he was testing me.
random bold: lokale bier here? it’s called ‘göttingen brauerei’. don’t drink it. tastes like it was brewed in a sewer. friend said that. didn’t ask again.
i took a photo of a motorcycle engine.Attachments:
i heard from redit that göttingen has a secret skatepark. i went to the location. it was just a soggy ditch. looked like it hadn’t been used since 2015. someone else said it was called ‘the ghost park’ which felt accurate.
q: is it worth visiting again? a: no. unless you want to see more art. like that spider. it’s there 24/7.
ext paragraph: the air here has a smell. not bad. like old books and rain. i walked through a park. kids were throwing rocks. i pretended to collect them. no one noticed.
esomeone told me the locals hate tourists. not all. but the ones who do, they curse in spanish. i heard it. made me smile.
tags: travelgesellschaftenhumanvibemessy
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