i kissed mensa goodbye

Mensa means canteen and/or cafeteria. Affordable food, drinks, snacks are served. 
Schnitzel, salad, soup, pasta, pizza, fries, chocolate pudding, cakes, asian wok meal and a lot more.

Clockwise: bistro lamps, hobbit-like door, mensa

Most of my classmates knew that I am no mensa fan. As much as possible, I prepare my own food for many reasons. I cook better rice than mensa rice to name one. But if I don't find time to prepare my lunch, mensa provides many options for me.
Mensa is not just a place where to find something for our hungry stomachs, but also a safe venue to exchange our thoughts on different things.


-Extension of discussions cut short during the morning class
-Experiment time for german and other 'European'-named dishes (and criticism to soggy pasta and salty soups)
-Catching up from each others' weekend trips, last night's party, papers and exercises due
-Laughing and chill breaks from class

Last meal together in mensa? I had that pizza right there with onions and pesto.

Towards the second semester, mensa then became more meaningful for me because I found a Filipina friend working there, Ate Neneng, to whom I can always connect. Our short hi-hello-ich muss bezahlen-tschüss were enough to link me to the Philippines. As I learned more about her, I found out that she cooks very, very well. Unfortunately, she is not mensa's cook. It could had raised the bar of asian food served in mensa.

Ate Neneng and her birthday treat. Das ist besser als mensa. Looks, smells and tastes better than mensa.

It saddens me to leave my university and thus, in my last day in Technische Universität Darmstadt, I kissed mensa goodbye.
I had my last meal (for now) in mensa 
at the last day 
of my last month in Darmstadt 
as the last customer to order, pay, and eat in mensa. 
The cashier lady actually talked to me that I have to finish my food as fast as I can because they have to wash the dishes.

Last meal: Seelachs fillet with lemon and sour cream dressing, mixed vegetable, chocolate pudding

It was an awkward feeling to have the lasts in mensa. See you next time, 
I hope to go back and 
eat again in mensa, 
and relive our Mundus Urbano moments.