ROLDUC, Netherlands—The bedside clock told it me it wasn’t even six in the morning, but it was no use. Jet lag seemed a stronger force than the alarm that had consistently failed to wake me up in time for my 9:00 a.m. lectures. So I got up, got dressed, and decided to walk to Germany. With help from the twilight filtering through my window I studied Rolduc on Google Maps, grabbed a sweater, and headed out the door.
Rolduc is the location of a monastery in the southernmost part of the Netherlands where I spent the first week of my summer course. Besides medieval architecture, spacious rooms, and a deer park, Rolduc’s attractions include its location on the Dutch-German border.
A walking trail led around the outer wall of the monastery, and I set off at a brisk pace. Besides a light rain, barely perceptible under the thick forest canopy, everything was eerily still in the early morning. The path led through a tunnel formed by trees; ducklings swam in ponds on either side. Rolduc loomed like a giant castle behind me, and I felt as though I had stepped into a Disney movie.
Ten minutes later, I began to think I had set down the wrong path. Germany was nowhere in sight. Or, for all I knew, I had already crossed the border—there wouldn’t be a big Willkommen! sign in the middle of the woods. Suddenly I stumbled out of the path onto a paved lane and, turning a corner, found the marker I was looking for.
The white block letters spelling Deutschland weren’t quite as welcoming as I’d imagined, but no matter. I snapped a few pictures and planted my feet firmly on German soil. Then, noticing the rain was really starting to pick up, I scrambled back to the land of legalized hash.
Jorge A. Araya ’14 is an editorial writer in Dunster House.
Read more in Opinion
The Neighborhood PetRecommended Articles
-
The Sound of SilenceHarvard Square, a place typically inhabited by high-powered urban professionals, academics and anxiety-ridden aspiring world-rulers, has a little-known softer side.
-
Visa Troubles Keep Monks From Visiting Lowell BellsVisa problems prevented a delegation of Muscovite monks from coming to Harvard this weekend on a quest to reclaim their
-
Russian Monks To Visit, Seeking Return of Lowell BellsA delegation of monks from Moscow’s Danilov Monastery—including the spiritual leader of the Russian Orthodox Church—is due to arrive in
-
Lowell's Russian Bells Set to Head HomeAfter nearly 80 years in the Lowell House belltower, Harvard's historic Russian bells may be heading home to a centuries-old
-
Lowell Plans Return of BellsA Harvard delegation visited a Russian bell foundry last Thursday, as University representatives and Russian officials prepare for the return