Germany Day 4

So last night we went to a place we thought had karaoke.  When we asked the people there if they did, they looked at us like we were crazy.  We found another bar to go to and just had fun hanging out.  This morning we got up and went to the Augustinian Cloister where Luther lived and took his vows as a monk.  An American pastor named Scott works there.  I remembered PJ (my pastor at my home church) saying he knew a pastor in Germany, so I took a chance and asked Scott if he knew him.  Turns out they were in the same class at Gettysburg Seminary.  It's such a small Lutheran world! Anyway we went to church at the cloister.  In the winter they have service in a smaller space because it costs too much to heat the big sanctuary.  We had church in a room where Luther conducted business with the other monks.  It is the only room the whole place not affected at all by bombings, and the floor is the same as when Luther walked on it.  I was nervous that I would fall asleep during church since it was in German, but I was so enthralled.  A sister (kind of like a Lutheran nun I think) led the service, and she broke the stereotype I had of sisters/nuns.  She didn't wear a black robe, had short hair, and even played guitar.  It was very easy to follow along with the service.  We didn't know exactly what was being said, but we generally knew exactly where in the service we were.  They even sang Let Us Talents and Tongues Employ, so we joined in in English.  After church we toured the big sanctuary where Luther led his first service and took his monastic vows.  Scenes from the movie Luther were filmed here.  We toured a small museum there and saw a replica of Luther's cell in the monastery.  The sisters made us coffee and cake as well; they were so welcoming.  Afterwards some of us headed to another church where Luther had preached.  It was supposed to have an amazing organ I wanted to see, but all the doors were locked.  We could hear the organ playing though.  We moved on to the Dome area of Erfurt where the Carnival parade was starting (think German Mardi Gras). We watched the parade for a while, and it was a lot of fun.  Typical floats, bands, and candy, but the major difference from parades I've been to was the alcohol.  Everyone on the floats and in the crowd was drinking, and empty bottles littered the streets.  Stephanie, Caitlyn, and I went to tour the cathedral and another church nearby, and they were so beautiful.  We finally made it through the parade and back to the hotel for a nap.