Read one last time, feel fake rich one last time.
We pay a lot of money for the privilege of not being allowed to park our own car. It's not like there is another parking option; you drive up, hand one of the many men your key, and they drive the car away. It’s a long process, and it takes even longer when you ask for your car back. It’s meant to feel exclusive, like having staff take care of something for you. It just feels impractical and inconvenient.The elevator to the 22nd floor moves so fast that I have to pop my ears. I’m impressed by the view from my room, by the number of floors, by the speed of the elevators.
The next morning, I take the elevator down. It’s rush hour. The elevator stops on every floor. On the lower floors there’s no space left at all; the doors open and you look into groaning faces. It takes me five minutes to reach the ground floor.
The next day, I decide to take the stairs down. They’re dirty and it feels like I am not supposed to use them as a guest. When I open the door on the ground floor, I end up in some kind of linen storage room, with swinging doors to the kitchen right next to me.
What are you doing here?
Sorry, I just took the stairs. Where do I need to go?
This is for service personnel only.
Sorry, I just took the stairs! The elevators are so full.
Please take the elevators next time.
He walks me to the lobby, friendly but firm. At the valet parking, I wait ten minutes for the car. For the first time in my life, I find myself fondly reminiscing about the Berlin U‑Bahn.
We have our final reading. One last time, I silently recite the beginning of Mücahit’s text in my head, and like every time, I’m happy that I actually know it by heart. One last time, we answer the same questions as always. One last time, we try not to make our answers sound exactly the same, even though the content is identical. One last time, we receive compliments, good conversations, and sincere gratitude. One last time, we eat cheese from a generous buffet. One last time, we walk to the car afterwards, tired and relieved. We high‑five.
We are done. Oh my god, we are done. I can’t believe we just did all of this.
The views expressed in this text are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the Goethe-Institut.