I had a silent conversation today
I got back from Berlin this afternoon, and instead of waiting for a tram to take me directly home, I decided to jump on an U-bahn so I’d have 2 or 3 minutes less waiting time. These are the liberties that Frankfurt allows me, and I take them when I can. I got to Bockenheimer Warte and waited for the tram that I had raced with my U-bahn. While I was waiting, a pidgeon was bobbing along the path in front of me, as is normally the case. This time though, an old man, very German (of there is such a thing) walked slowly towards me, looking at this pidgeon all the while. He stood beside me and we both watched this bird peck the ground for crumbs. It was when I caught him with the corner of my eye that I knew he was going to say something to me, but I knew that he would be difficult for me to understand, being an older man in Frankfurt because he was likely to have a Hessen accent - quite difficult for a non-native. As he turned a few degrees to half face me, I took a small step back, still focusing on the pidgeon. I knew his gaze from my peripherals and he knew my please-don’t-speak-to-me plea from my gentle step. We were slow and precise in our movements, but we both silently agreed that he was from Frankfurt and I was not, and a conversation however small was to be a confusing ordeal for both of us, though we could both enjoy the sight of a bird working hard for a meal on a crowded platform. The tram I’d beaten to the stop arrived then, and I lost my silent conversational partner on a sea of busy travellers, young and old, natives and foreigners alike.
