Ok, quick story about the hotel in Bad Homburg...
The Maritim group of hotels are apparently "Conference Hotels". One may think that a conference hotel would provide free, high-speed internet access to all it's rooms, right? Wrong.
The Maritim in Berlin, and in Bad Homburg, only provided dial-up access in their rooms (Berlin has wired-LAN in some, and I was lucky to get one of them), or you can pay 18€ per day for wireless-LAN access through the T-mobile hotspot.
Anyway, the documentation in our room in Bad Homburg said that in your room their was an analog connection for internet access (read as "phone plug for dial-up"). It also said that in the lobby there was a digital connection available "for your laptop".
Now, being a networking-type-dude, I assume that a digital connection means an RJ-45 connection to a public LAN in the hotel. So I grab my laptop and head downstairs...
I have a quick look around in the lobby and see one of those internet cafe style pay-as-you-surf terminals. Surely this can't be it, so I keep looking around. Without too much searching I find an RJ-45 connection next to a nice comfy chair, with a power plug next to it. Perfect!
So I quickly sit down, whip out my ethernet cable, and plug in. Instantly I get an IP address, open the VPN client, and connect to the Agilent VPN to check my email. Awesome!
Ok, so I have been checking email for a few minutes when this guy in overalls comes up and says "Wer sind Sie?" (Who are you? B&B rough pronunciation guide - Vair zind zee?). At this point I panic and give him a bit of "Entschuldigung. Ich spreche wenig Deutsch." (Sorry. I speak little German. B&BRPG - Ent-shool-dee-goong. Ikh shprekhah venig Doy-ch.) His reaction to this is to say very quickly, and very aggressively, "Aus! Aus!" while making a disconnecting motion with his hands. The long and the short of it is that I had managed to plug into their Corporate LAN for the hotel...
Anyway, I returned to the lobby later that day to ask at the counter about the digital connection. I asked the girl (in English) if the connection over there was the digital connection mentioned in the literature. She said to me "No. It has been disconnected now."
Yay 'Brush! Less than 1 week in the country and people think I am a hacker already! Ich bin nicht ein Hacker!
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5 comments:
Isn't it "Ich bin ein 'Hacker' nicht"? I mean, my german is very rusty, but... i'm just asking out of curiosity... :)
Hmm... Didn't mean to press anonymous.
I am a hacker not? I thought that you put the negative after the word it applied to. In this case the negative applies to bin (am), and hence bin nicht becomes am not.
But then again, I have only been speaking this language for about 3 wks...so I am probably wrong.
Tschüs,
'Brush
Hey Brett
This story gave me goosebumps! I'm impressed you handled it so well. There is nothing scarier than when you think you are doing the right thing and then you get told off?! It reminds me of the time I got yelled at for touching a freshly painted window sill to see if it was dry - I was 9 yrs old though.
It's great to know that you are both finding your feet - with a little help from your friendly relocation consultant.
Oh, and as far as I know you are both wrong on the grammar... it should be "Ich bin kein Hacker". The indefinite article is negated by preceding it with a 'k' (that's German efficiency for you!). If it's any consolation Brett, your logic is sound!
Cheers for now, Benny
Well maybe your german wasn't the best and maybe they are all sus on you now thinking you're a hacker but at least you didn't resort to my solution to stress... tears and fighting the desire to flee home and hide!
Can't wait to hear more tales of the housekeeper/land-lady. I see a colourfull relationship ahead!
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