Take a look at the sentence again:
Given 1,000 dollars as a graduation gift, Kris wavered between putting the
money toward a new computer or going to
Germany to visit his sister, finally Fräuleins and beer won out over modems
and megabytes.
Putting money toward a new computer is one item in a series of two. Going to Germany to visit his sister is the second item in the series. When you have only two items in a series, you need only a coordinating conjunction like or to connect them.
Go back to the sentence to try again.