Just Dropping By Switzerland for the Day...

Well time has certainly flown by and I can't believe that I only have three more of my intensive language classes left. I am so glad that they are almost over, but I have to say I will miss things about them. These classes have really focused on grammar, the one thing I really don't like, and I realize that I needed the help and I have learned things, but, unfortunately I just haven't enjoyed all of the time I have spent in these classes. Besides that aspect, the people in the classes have been great and I really have a great time walking to class.

The first day of class, SLI took us there as a big group and they had us walk from the Kursburo to the tram stop. We then waited and packed onto a tram to only take it to the very next stop. We then stumbled off of the tram and then hurried to get on a bus. Once everyone had managed to get on the bus, we rode to the very next stop, got off and then walked a good ten minutes. Everyone was wondering where the heck we were going and then they told us we would have to do this alone the next morning. I think at that point everyon had a look of panic on their faces because we had no idea how to do that alone.

My class has been great though because everyone gets along, there are people from all over the world, and we all aren't that great at German. At this point, even though the class is almost over, everyone has reached a pretty solid level of comfort and we have even more fun and joke around a lot more. It will be sad when it's over and we don't get to see each other as much.

Besides class, I have been having a great time. I went on a "bar crawl" the first Friday night here and it only included two bars. I tried a "cola bier," which was beer and cola (I'm sure you figured that out). A lot of people at my table tried it and thought it just tasted like flat coke, but of course I could taste the beer and I thought it was horrible. At the next bar I decided to play it safe and just get a hot chocolate. It was pretty great.

I did go to the Schwarzwald one Saturday and that was lots of fun. It was the first excursion put on by SLI and we took a bus to a few villages nearby. We got to see Germany's highest waterfall, the first original world's largest cuckoo clock, and a beautiful church. It had just snowed so all the trees were covered in a perfect blanket of snow and it was just breathtaking. I loved seeing that even though it was cold for us. We also went to a glass blowing factory and got to see some man blow a few vases. Our tour guide, who had an English speaking boyfriend, told him on the phone that she was going to "blow some glasses" and he just responded with "what are you going to blow?" She told the four of us (Katie, Jake, Mitch, and I) and we all laughed. I don't think she quite understood what that meant in English, but she was laughing along with her insane laugh. She was pretty funny all day/her laugh was so funny sounding that everyone else laughed just because she was laughing.

That night we went and got ice cream with Liz, Jon, and Rachel. Jon's phone rang while we were there and he answered it with "Talk to me." All of us burst out laughing and what made it even funnier was that the older couple sitting right by us laughed a bit because they could understand him. There was another occassion, just recently, when Jon said something that the people around us understood. When we went to see Slumdog Millionaire this past Friday, we saw a horribly made commercial that was supposed to look like it was filmed somewhere in Hollywood. Well Jon then made a comment, "Aren't they supposed to be Grrrmans?" We all started laughing and then even the old man sitting by Liz and the guys behind us started laughing pretty hard as well. Liz told Jon to be quiet at that point. It was pretty hilarious.

We do laugh quite a lot here. It's been pretty impressive that I have managed to laugh really hard at least once every day. Usually it's at someone's expense, but we all have a good laugh about it. I think Mitch gets the brunt of it, but he's a good sport at least.

Today I went to Basel, Switzerland on our last excursion. It was a beautiful day with clear blue skies and sun. It was just a bit chilly, but I was able to deal with it. We thought we were going to be taking a boat ride along the Rhine, but we were terribly mistaken. All we did was walk down one side of the Rhine, get on a little boat (we had to split into two groups), then we practically floated to the other side in about five minutes, got off, waited for the other group, then walked back down the other side of the Rhine. Now what would have made more sense was to have us walk across the main bridge and never even have tried to get on a boat. We just ended up at the other side of the bridge and wasted time on the boat. I don't know if they were trying to give us the chance to be on the Rhine, but really it wasn't that necessary.

We also got to walk around the city, see the Muenster, walk up terribly steep, narrow, and winding staircases to see the view from the top of the Muenster, and see some modern art. Going up the Muenster was pretty terrifying since I have managed to increase my fear of heights as time has gone by. I think a lot of it has to do with the fact I over think things and make myself think about the possible ways I could die walking to the tops of these churches or anything else high up. It was a great view, but the most difficult climb I have had thus far.

We also ate at the most amazing italian restaurant. After a very long search for something cheap (which does not exist in Switzerland), we went to a nice little Italian restaurant. We all ordered pasta: Liz, Mitch, and I all got tortellni, and Todd and Jen got rigatoni. I think we all almost died with how great our food was. Liz and Mitch didn't want to finish theirs because they knew it would all be over and they would never get anything this good again. Sadly it took some time to figure out the bill because the woman had to put it in Euros for us. We were told that we could pay with Euros anywhere and of course we managed to find the place that didn't really want us to. I couldn't really understand the woman because of her swiss accent, but I thought she said it was going to cost us 87 Euros total. I was really shocked and just hoping that we all had enough money, but luckily I heard her wrong and it was only 60 Euros. Now that came out to 12 Euros a person, which was really expensive, but it was worth every penny.

I do love the fact that I can just go to Switzerland for the day or France. A few people have gone to France for day trips and I want to do that soon. I am going to Paris this coming Thursday for about three days, then my parents will be here to go to Zurich and Salzburg, then I'll be off to Marseilles to visit Katie, and then Rome for Easter. I'm very excited!

Hallo Hallo! Japanese Japanese!

So I realized that I haven't written a blog for a really long time. Unfortunately I don't know how long this one will be, but I want to give you a quick summary of what's been going on so far.

I moved in to my place in Vauban, which is one of the living communities in Freiburg, and it used to be old army barracks. It is actually pretty nice and I have a pretty big room, with a nice sized closet and living space. I live with five other people, four of whom are German and the other one is another international student. Three of the German students will be moving out at the end of March because they are going to be Ph.D. students and they are not allowed to live in Vauban as Ph.D. students. I'm not sure who will be moving in or if anyone will be moving in. My roommate Benjamin asked me if I knew anyone that needed a place, so that sounds like they don't have anyone lined up.

It did take some time for me to get used to living here. It is definitely not the cleanest place I have ever lived, but I know that it could always be worse. The bathroom is extremely small and there is really no difference between the floor and the shower floor. I haven't flooded the bathroom so I think I'll be okay, but there is a giant squeegee in the corner in case something were to happen. The kitchen is a pretty okay size. There is a microwave, very old one, but at least we have one. My friend Liz doesn't have a microwave at all and at my friend Mitch's place, they leave their microwave on the shelf when it's not being used. I have my own drawer and fridge space for my things. The freezer is extremely small and you really can't put anything in there.

I haven't quite gotten my eating habits down. I go to the store and I really don't know what I should buy because I don't know what I will be able to make and I want to keep things really simple. I also don't really like to cook as much here, at least big things, because I don't know that I have the room in my fridge to store the leftovers and I have to wash all the dishes by hand (no dishwasher). I have been eating out probably too much for lunch. It's usually under 5 or 10 Euros, but it adds up fast and I know that I don't need to do that unless I want to be 300lbs by the end of the semester.

I am in an intensive language course right now and I have two teachers. I am the only class that has two teachers and I really don't know why I have two. I like the one that teaches on Wednedays and Thursday. She is really nice, laid back, and helpful. The one that teaches on Monday and Tuesdays is a little crazy, interrupts everyone so often, and just gets on my nerves. I can't stand the days when she teaches and they just feel like they go by so much slower. I have learned a good amount in these classes and I think my understanding of other things is getting better as well. I have a test on Friday and I'm not looking forward to that at all.

I have to say that based on these first few weeks I am really happy with Freiburg. The weather isn't always the best, but these past few days have been really sunny and nice. I think the city is like Bloomington, but there is definitely more to do. I can make my way around the city easy enough and I think I will enjoy living by the Black Forest with big hills and scenic views all aroun me.

The other great thing is that I have met some great people. I already know that there are some people that I am going to be friends with well after this semester is over. This really amazing girl Liz, that I was able to meet through a friend of Alex's in Copenhagen, is someone I love spending time with. She and I are in the same language class and we get along reallly well. We made an agreement that we would have a really good laugh every day and so far we have been able to accomplish it. We are are able to laugh super hard every day with a little help from our friends Mitch and Jon. Mitch is also here with IES and goes to school at Minnesota University. He is really nice and really funny. He always has a sarcastic comment to make or something like that. Then Jon is a guy that always has a story to share. He's really funny and he loves Ketchup. Jon will carry his own bottle of ketchup around because 1) it's not free in Europe and 2) when they do give you some at restaurants, it's hardly enough to satisfy him. I love hanging out with these three and we always have a good time together.

Everyone else that I have met has been great. I don't think I've met too many people that I don't enjoy being around. Everyone here is in the same position of being abroad, alone, and looking for friends. It is great to have people that are so open to meeting new people and wanting to do things and just have fun. I will definitely have a great semester here in Freiburg.

Oh and to explain my blog title (I know this isn't a great transition), when Liz, Jon, Mitch, and I were walking to the Tram after class, this homeless man spotted me as I walked by and said "Hallo hallo, japanese japanese" in this really creepy, but funny way. I really don't think you get the full effect by just reading it, but if you ask I think I can try to re-enact it. It was really uncomfortable when he did it, but I cracked up after we passed him. Sadly no one else heard, but I promise it happened.

I will be writing more, hopefully within the next few days, with more funny stories and good times in Freiburg.

Bis dann!

I'm not sure I should admit that I can't read...

So when I first got to Germany I really had never had any problems when It came to reading signs, understanding what people say to me, and my communication skills weren’t great, but I could definitely survive. Well I guess that wasn’t as true as I thought it was based on my two fairly significant mistakes since I’ve been in Berlin.

Both of these mistakes are related to ordering food and subsequently ordering the wrong thing. The first time was while Katie was here and we went to this restaurant/bar called Treffpunkt Berlin. It was a nice place that had menus is multiple languages, so naturally we got a German menu and an English menu. I decided to go with fish for lunch and I looked at both menus to make sure I knew what I was getting and I wasn’t translating anything incorrectly. I thought I was ordering two filets of fish with onions (I figured they would be cooked) and bread. Well when it came out it was definitely not what I was expecting. There were two things of fish, but the fish wasn’t cooked. It was more like another version of lox and there were a bunch of raw onions on top, four slices of rye bread, which I don’t like, and then a salad with some sort of yellow, dill dressing. Needless to say I was glad that I at least liked lox and was able to eat the fish. It wasn’t exactly something that hit the spot, but I was able to stand it and choke it down. The bread I couldn’t do and luckily Katie liked it so she ate that. The salad I just ate the stuff that didn’t have dressing on it. I honestly thought that was one of the worst lunches I had ever had in Germany and I just felt stupid for ordering the wrong thing. I do think though that the actual dish didn’t translate because there was no mention of raw/smoked fish on the English menu and I think that you just know what that type of fish is in German.

Well I thought that was one of the bigger mistakes I had ever made, but I was mistaken because I made a worse mistake on my last night in Berlin. We all went out to dinner at this nice Italian restaurant we had been to earlier in the week and I thought I would get something different. I decided that Spaghetti Marinara would be good and I looked and I knew I saw mention of tomato sauce and I just figured it was like spaghetti with marinara sauce. When the waiter/ober brought it out, I saw stuff sticking up along the sides and I couldn’t imagine what that was. Then when he put it down in front of me, I realized that they were mussels and I had ordered seafood pasta. Jeannine asked me if I liked mussels and I just said that I had never had them before. I looked in the pasta and I thought there were some mushrooms in it so I ate those first and they were definitely not mushrooms. I never really figured out what they were, but I managed to eat them. There were also little shrimps, some octopus or squid in there, and I think something else. I really don’t know what all was in that pasta bowl, but I know I was very nervous about how this meal was going to turn out. The good news is that I was able to eat most of it and it wasn’t the worst thing I had ever eaten. The mussels weren’t eaten and neither was the squid that I could still see the tentacles. That meal then took over the spot for one of biggest mistakes I have ever made.

Katrin asked me after dinner if I enjoyed myself and I said I did. She then asked if I enjoyed the food and so I just explained that I had misread the menu completely and thought it was only pasta with tomato sauce. She laughed and I reassured her that I did still like it, but it just wasn’t what I was expecting. During the meal I did have to try not to laugh because I was pretty amused by the fact that I had managed to misread the menu for a second time and I knew I should have stuck with what I had eaten last time. I knew my dad would laugh hysterically at me like he did when I told him about the first menu mistake I made. I really worry myself sometimes with my horrible comprehension skills.

Not only is it bad that I ordered that horrible seafood pasta, but the first night in Freiburg we went out to an Italian Restaurant with our program. Well I ordered something that was not called Spaghetti Marinara and the people around me knew about what I did the night before because I said something. Well they brought out my food and it was exactly the same thing from the night before. I somehow managed to order the same meal, mussels, squid, something else fishy tasting, and little shrimp. I seriously thought I was going to die. Everyone laughed and I think they did something wrong. I stared at that menu to make sure I got something I would want. Apparently I failed at life yet again :( I was lucky though that Noah, another IES student, was willing to trade with me so I didn't have to eat it. It was pretty embarrassing though.

Those three mistakes have definitely taught me to read the menus as closely as possible and to make sure I understand everything. I will always point now to what I want and say the number and get things that I know what every single word is. Never assume! You know what they say about assuming…;)

And then a horse and pig appeared on stage

As you may or may not know I have been in Berlin for about ten days now and I have done quite a lot. My friend Katie came to visit for about five days and we went and saw a lot of the city. We took this great walking tour on the first full day we were here and I really enjoyed it. Sadly it was really cold, but we saw a lot of the city and I saw a number of things I had never seen before. I learned a lot too. We also went to Madame Tussaud's wax museum one day and saw lots of famous people. It was really neat to be able to go and even though it was small, it was really fun.

I also got to see old friends, which is always nice. I went to the school that participated in an exchange program with my high school and surprised a number of people. The classes were a little boring, but overall it was a good time.

This past Saturday I went to my first German disco with some of my German friends. I was a little hesitant about it because I didn't know what to expect and I wasn't sure if I would really like it. They picked me up around 10:15 on Saturday night and there were about seven Germans and then me. We piled into our two cars and were off. It was a little bit of a drive and we ended up over by Alexander Platz and the East Side Gallery. There was a very long line to get in and one reason was because the doors had just opened, I think. We were a little concerned about one of the girls getting in because she had to use the ID of one of the girls with us because she wasn't 18 yet. Besides that when we went up there the guy was really looking at the IDs and not just glancing. Another girl waited with this girl for a bit to let some other people through and we just waited inside and hoped she made it in. Luckily she did.

Once we were all in we checked our coats at the coat check (naturally) and then we went in. There were three rooms: one that played techno, one that played hip-hop, and one that played rock. When we first got there and entered the techno room the first thing that came to my mind was that this was just like a Homecoming dance. There were a few people dancing, but it just seemed like really awkward dancing that you do with your group of girlfriends and then there were a few guys dancing, but not with girls. I thought it was going to be a long night with a depressing end.

When we walked into the hip-hop room there were more people in there and it was a little less awkward. We began to dance there for a while and it was fun. It took a while to get into the "groove," but I managed to get there. I was surprised by the number of guys that were there alone or in groups and would dance, but without a girl. I haven't really seen that before. I did keep my eyes peeled for any creepers and there were a few.

After a little while we went to the rock room and it was probably the loudest. People were dancing a lot in there and it was fun. I just know that I quickly realized how loud it was in that place. As the night went on more and more people appeared and the dance floor became much more crowded. I did notice one guy in the techno room that seemed like he was trying to dance with one of us and it was kind of awkward. I think I was the only one keeping my eye on him. There was another guy that had a shirt with the different bars on it that you would see move when the music increases or decreases in sound (I hope that makes sense) and the bars were actually moving! His shirt was animated! It was great!

Later that night when we were in the rock room a band appeared on the stage. This was no ordinary band but there were guys dressed in animal suits with different heads. One was a pig and another was a horse. I think the third was something at some point, but took his head off. They were mainly on stage just pretending to play the drums, or maybe he was, and the others were just running around. I honestly think that was one of the most random things I could have seen at that disco.

Eventually we left around 2:30 or so and drove home. I passed out in the car from exhaustion and smelled horribly of smoke. I just wanted to sleep, but being me I had to take a shower and then I could sleep. It was a great night, but I don't know how often I'll be frequenting the discos...