“Hey there,” I greeted after he was done with his transaction.
He had a blank look on his face, and I instantly regretted my decision to approach him. “Oh…hey there…Jillian.” He immediately perked up once he realized who I was. “Sorry, different country, different people, lack of sleep…it takes my brain a minute to register.” He chuckled.
“That’s okay. So, did you get anything good?”
“I did.” He nodded. “Well, at least I think I did. It’s for my nephew, when he gets a little older of course. But it’s this really brilliant handmade wooden puzzle. They just don’t make things like that for kids anymore. Everything these days is electronic. It’s kinda sad, don’t you think?”
“I do.” I nodded in complete agreement.
“So, I guess you’re not into The Sound of Music or seeing where Mozart was born either?”
“Afraid not. I don’t even think I’ve ever even seen the movie.” I covered my mouth. “Is that terrible to admit?”
He chuckled. “Not at all, neither have I. My sister, on the other hand…”
We stood in silence for a few moments as people maneuvered around us until we were in the middle of a large crowd that had assembled all looking up at the sky with their phones in hand, waiting for the perfect photo op.
“The Glockenspiel.” Theo titled his head back and pointed up to the large clock tower that had everyone’s attention.
How could I have forgotten? Evan had a weird hobby of collecting clocks, big, small, it didn’t matter. The more unique the better. He was fascinated by them. So, this humungous structure before us that had everyone so engrossed was one of the huge highlights for him to see during our stay in Munich. “It’s the largest one in Germany and the fourth largest in Europe.”
Evan would ramble on while I half paid attention as I plugged away on my laptop, working on a last-minute campaign. Why did I always do that? In the last few years of my marriage, the only thing I wanted to talk about was getting pregnant, never giving much care for anything else. Instead I’d bury myself into my work, thus in turn causing Evan to bury himself further into his, then I’d have the nerve to get mad at him for it. I was such a hypocrite.
The clock struck eleven and the music on the clock tower began to play in unison as the life-sized figures came out on display. Would this have lived up to Evan’s expectations? That was a question I’d never know the answer to, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel as if it were partly my fault. The music was still playing and the figures still moving about when I looked over at Theo, who seemed to have had his fill of the display, the same way I had.
“I guess this is nothing when you have Big Ben just a train ride away.” I spoke loud enough over the crowd and music so he could hear me.
“I don’t know, this is pretty impressive too.”
We stood in silence for a few moments as people passing by maneuvered around us and the music from the Glockenspiel continued to play. I tried to think of something intelligent to say, but I was coming up empty. I was never good at small talk, and I certainly wasn’t going to suddenly become versed in those few seconds under pressure. The crowd of people were closing in on us and Theo and I stepped back to break away from it.
“So, what did you think? Were you more impressed with Big Ben…that’s assuming you saw it on your trip to London?” Theo asked as we started to walk away from the onlookers.
I laughed as if that was a no-brainer. “Did I see Big Ben while I was in London? That’s like asking someone if they’ve seen the Empire State Building in New York. Besides, Evan would’ve never—” I stopped and cleared my throat. “Yes, I was very impressed with Big Ben.” I switched gears, hoping he didn’t catch on to the mention of someone I wasn’t ready to discuss with anyone, especially anyone on this trip.
“How about some glühwein?” Theo asked after we took a few more steps into an opening from the crowd.
I didn’t particularly care for the glühwein when I had tried it the first time, but I was willing to give it a second try. Theo talked me into ordering feuerzangenbowle, a glühwein but with the addition of sugar caramelized by burning rum. I only knew this thanks to Theo, who was somewhat versed in reading German. It was nice to have someone who actually could tell me the ingredients that were in what I was ordering instead of taking a chance and hoping I’d like what I ordered. I wasn’t sure if a lot of the people here spoke English as well and just didn’t like to speak it, or if they only spoke German. If they did speak English, I could kind of see their reluctance in speaking it. It’s not like we in America went out of our way to learn a different language for tourists.
After we got our drinks, we stood around a small round bar table that another couple had just vacated. There was just enough sunlight to provide a little more warmth and I was certain the warm wine I was drinking would offer me some more. Theo and I split a Bavarian pretzel and struck up conversation like we were old friends, much like I had with his sister the night prior. As much as I craved my alone time, I also yearned for company from time to time, perhaps to keep me from being alone with my thoughts and having too much time to imagine who I should’ve been here with. So far this trip seemed to be the perfect balance.
“Kate showed me a picture of your nephew last night. He’s adorable,” I remarked as I loosened my scarf.
Theo’s face lit up at
