"And I was included in that experience," Emcee chirps, at which the bartender laughs.

"Well, in Germany there is something for everyone," he says, taking a glass with a stout bowl shape from the shelf and moving to the beer tap. "How about a nice Berliner Weisse? A white beer that Napoleon's armies allegedly dubbed the champagne of the North."

Emcee's interest piques. This man seems to know his regional history. He's already brimming with questions but doesn't want to seem too eager.