My second blog entry :)

Still backdated, but written in advance so I don't forget all the juicy details :) The second day started differently compared to my first – since I was already in Berlin, I did not have to catch a plane :) I met with the new colleagues, who also joined my current employer just this Monday, and we tried to figure out how to find the same U-Bahn (Metro) we took back to the apartments again. We got in quite early, no-one of the local team was there yet to give more instructions – which wasn't so bad, of course. Then Andree, my “mentor” arrived, and showed us how to set up the development environment. Well, this introductory session was at least more in depth as the one the day before, but still, Andree replied with most questions with “I don't know, it's best to copy and paste” :) The other guy, Luis, who is originally Spanish, but has already lived in the US, France and the UK for longer periods, knows things a lot better. And he speaks English a lot better, too, his accent is a pleasure to listen to after all the tortures the German guys put Shakespeare's language through :) I hope I can work a bit more with him, his explanations are always very good and he is always glad to answer questions. Anyways, I got my first tasks, too, which were officially described a pain in the ass :) I don't know yet, how long and boring they would be, but since I have to code in some special language I don't know yet, it might be interesting to find out how things work :) Though I really hope I can get my hands on some Java soon enough...
So anyhow, after getting the task I left the offices for some sightseeing :) I decided visiting the Charlottenburg castle would be a good idea, since it's quite near our offices, and I didn't think I could do a lot more walking before it got dark. I was only half way to the castle, when it started to rain... That's not really a problem, as I like it a lot more to take photos in rainy water than in very bright sunshine, but it's quite difficult to hold the camera straight while balancing the umbrella with one of my hands :) I'm glad no-one took a photo of me while I was juggling with my things :) I was there at the castle just on time, as the guard closed the gate right after I left, but I managed to make photos of this mounted statue and the mounted statue-shaped hole next to it :) A bit to my surprise I found there was also a castle park – I didn't do much reading beforehand on what I'd find here :) The park was quite nice, though the flowers were a bit neglected, maybe because it's autumn already. I wanted to cross the whole park, but it was already turning dark and I was not sure if I would be able to cross the river Spree at the other end of the park to get to the U-Bahn station. So I just made a small circle, and walked to the station on a shorter route. Thursday evening is not the busiest time in Berlin, that's for sure. Even though I met some colleagues on the U-Bahn on the way home. Small city, eh? :)
The evening looked the same as the one before – dinner, a beer and Prison Break :) I really should spend some time outside in the city at night...maybe on Saturday. It's not easy to get started for a night out if you don't know anyone. But more about this in tomorrow's entry :) I don't want to spoil you with all this information :D
Over and out,
M.