USC Upstate in Magdeburg 2009

PEACE OUT GERMANY!

2009-07-02T12:36:00.001-07:00

Our time has come to an end. I think the students’ blogs speak for themselves. A true document of the ups and downs, the pleasures and pains, the monotonies and the thrills, and the life-changing nature of the study abroad experience.

So, Germany and readers of this blog…..Thank you and Peace out.

Andrew

Emily

Jennifer

Amber

Dawn

Kyle

Kel

Herr C

Auf Wiedersehen, Ciao, Tschuess……Good bye.

KYLE: Final Thoughts or…..Eternally grateful

2009-07-02T12:16:00.001-07:00

So, it's officially my last full day (for this trip) in Magdeburg, Germany and Europe. It's been one of the most incredible experiences I've ever had in my life. I've seen and done so much here, and I've learned so much about so many things I wouldn't know where to begin explaining it (I'll try though).

(Kyle at Buchenwald)

First, I've learned lots about the nature of human kind and people. We're capable of absorbing in the environment around us and adapting to it. A baby can learn any of the thousands of languages the world has to offer. As one ages, they become a product of their experiences and the environment surrounding them. The biggest conclusion I can draw from this trip is how very similar people around the world are. I know I may have only had a glimpse into the big picture, but I think that it is evident that humans really are all very alike. Here, I've met people not only from Germany but people from around the world, from Finland, Indonesia, Columbia, and many more. Despite our many cultural, religious and lifestyle differences, we really are all in the same boat. We have the same basic needs and desires but our exact path through life is shaped by our vastly different upbringings, surroundings, governments, etc. etc.

(Kyle with our tour guide Rainer and our tutor Klaus in Dresden)

Another thing this trip has left me with is how lucky I have been to have lived the life I have so far. I've been awarded a fantastic family, friends, education, and so many other things. I've always appreciated those things but I now have a new perspective on them and for that I will be eternally grateful for having the opportunity to go on this trip.

I think if more people around the world were able to experience how much we have in common, perhaps we wouldn't have so much turmoil between us. I can only hope that some day our world leaders will be able to come to the same realizations.

Wishing for world peace,

Kyle

KEL: Final Thoughts or…Welcome to the World

2009-07-02T12:08:00.001-07:00

(At the Marx/Engels statue in the former East Berlin)

We were asked that our last blog be our last thoughts on the trip. What our overall opinion was on the country. Things we liked, things we didn't like and so on. Your basic recap blog. I figured the best way to do this was to wait until the last minute to write the blog because then I've experienced as much of Germany as I can before writing what I think about it.

Right now, as I write this, it is 6:36PM in Magdeburg, Germany. Our train for Berlin leaves somewhere around 5AM tomorrow morning, so we're in the final countdown till take off on the trip back. I've been thinking a lot about this trip, and the things that I've accomplished and the things I didn't accomplish and the things that I wish I had more time for.

I realized, first and foremost, that I'm done with my undergraduate degree. I took my last exam yesterday of my undergraduate life, so I'm now officially a graduate of the University of South Carolina Upstate, and honestly, I think that's what my mind has been dwelling on the most. It's this sick, kind of unsettled feeling that most graduates experience when they realize that they're actually an adult now.

But really, I think this trip has helped me some with the "oh my god, I might pee myself" fear of the "real world." Imagine that you get dropped in this random country where you supposedly know the language they speak, but when you hear it, it feels like your first day of class on the subject. Imagine being able to think clearly, but the second you open your mouth to speak, the words get all jumbled up on your tongue, and then, when they don't, the person responds so quickly that you don't have time to process what was said before you have to invent an answer.

(Kel undoubtedly writing a blog post)

It's a little scary. I've taken class after class of German for 8 years. I've learned about the differences in German culture and American culture. I knew how to order food and answer a phone and count to ten. I knew how to be polite and what not to say to a teacher. I knew how to follow directions and conjugate verbs and what adjective endings to put on which words. I knew all of those things, but living it, breathing it, eating it... Nothing on this planet could have prepared me for that experience.

But now we're in the final stretch to getting back on the plane, and I'm thinking, "Has it been a month? Has it been that long already?" And the answer is always the same, "Why, yes, Kel, it has." And I made it. I know the train system like the back of my hand. I can tell you the humidity and wind speed with my finger or how long it'll take us to get from point A to point B down to the seconds.

I've asked over a million questions, got a thousand dirty looks from various people, ate hundreds of different things, walked tens of miles every day (or at least it felt like it sometimes), and this is just the ONE experience that will stay with me forever: I lived in Germany. For a month. And I survived.

I've experienced a wide range of emotions during this trip. Everything from happiness to anger, hyper to sad, but surviving Germany?

THAT feeling is one that I wouldn't give up for the world.

AMBER: Final Thoughts…the good, the bad and the weird

2009-07-02T11:58:00.001-07:00

Today is my last day in Germany. I am sitting here going over in my head all of the experiences I have had.

(Amber at the interactive museum in the Millennium Tower in Magdeburg)

The good:

Of course I have had a blast here in Germany! I can now have a small small conversation in German with another German, I definitely could not do that before I left the states. I spend an entire summer month in Europe! How could I not have had fun? We traveled to a lot of cites in Germany. I got to see so much history with the old buildings and churches. I finally met my German friend after emailing her for 3 or 4 years now. Last night the weather was perfect and Jay, Kyle and I walk along the Elbe river after enjoying some German beer. It was awesome. This trip was filled with experiences like that. I did not have my cell phone to worry about or work or anything!

The bad:

There were some but not much bad times. When we were on one of the trains, there was a drunk crazy German guy who had a crazy explosion right there near us. That scared me so much. What was worse, was I had my back facing him! I could him going off behind me. I did not want to turn around to see and risk making eye contact with this nut ball but I did not know what he was going to do! Luckily Jay, our German teacher at home, had the idea for us to silently get up and move farther down the train. Another time I got lost because the busses decided to go crazy and not go by the schedule. There is now a creepy American staying at the hostel and creeping my friends out. Kyle sort of forced me to talk to creepy dirty German guys. They were nice but I did not want anything to do with them. I am sure there is a couple other bad times I am forgetting but it was nothing major to ruin my time at all. They will just make great stories for later.

The weird:

Kel and I tried to order a beaker of wine and apparently accidently ordered a bottle. So the waiter showed up with two bottles for us, and thought we were the biggest lushes! Kel and I ended up sharing the bottle! Kyle told me on this trip that the biggest way to learn a German word is to embarrass yourself. Well, he was right! I went in one time to buy a decoration plate, and I forgot the German word for plate. I felt like such an idiot! Well, I will never forget that word again! There were some other times I did that and messed up a simple word, and I will never forget it! My roommate is from Indonesia and she is Muslim. That was a very interesting experience! Their culture is so different from the American culture and we had to share a room together.

I will leave this country with a laundry list of cool things, stories, and memories!!

DAWN: Final Thoughts

2009-07-02T11:50:00.001-07:00

Even though I’m anxious to go home and be by myself for the first time in a month, I also think I’m going to miss hanging out with this whole group. While we’ve been here the whole group has formed kind of a small family. We have tons of inside jokes and we have a lot of fun with each other. Of course, like any family we’ve had our spats but in the end we were stuck with each other for a month and we had to get over it. I think everyone has done a good job of trying not to get on each others nerves and apologizing when they had. If just one person had a bad attitude it probably could’ve ruined the whole trip.

(On top of the Millennium tower in Magdeburg)

Another thing I’m definitely going to miss is the food. I was kind of nervous about eating here because I’ve eaten at Gerhard’s in downtown Spartanburg and everything was served with some form of potato and a lot of meat. First off, I hate potatoes and while the meat was good some of it was too heavy. I thought I’d definitely lose weight while here because of the walking and then again because I might not be able to eat that much. Well, Kel says I have lost weight but I certainly can’t figure out how. The Italian food here is awesome. They have great big pizzas with salami and spaghetti baked with ham and cheese. I’ve eaten like a pig every single night. Not only the dinner but ice cream is another food group here. A meal isn’t complete without walking by one of the ten Italian restaurants and getting a cone of ice cream.

Even though right now I’m tired of them, like Jay, I’ll probably start going crazy without my Brötchen. I’ve had a Brötchen every single morning since we’ve been in Germany. For the people who live under a rock (or just don’t speak German) a Brötchen is like a little roll that goes well with pretty much anything. We’ve put cream cheese, Nutella, jam, salami, cheese, and butter on ours and most days we eat them for lunch too.

Even though the food is only a small part of what I liked about Germany, I’m probably going to go through food and ice cream withdrawals in South Carolina.

EMILY: Final Thoughts

2009-07-02T01:41:00.001-07:00

As our time in Germany is waning and the hectic rush of trying to get our suitcases to close once more begins, a lot has been going through my mind. In these three weeks I've learned many things, built upon the things I already knew, and has some experiences which will stay with me forever.

(Shared experiences—dinner on the Elbe—Fridja from Indonesia, Jennifer, Andrew, Amber and Emily)

I'm not the type to be overly sentimental. I don't cry at airports or at the end of a school year, but in these three short weeks I feel like the seven of us have bonded. On my previous study abroad trip there were forty students and while we became semi close I talk to only two of them now and even that is sparse. But, us seven USC Upstate students have shared rooms, bathrooms, food, and more together, melding into one unit. We have had instances where the words to complete a sentence were easily offered by another and we've formulated an abundance of inside jokes that will be sure to follow us as we cross paths between HPAC and SMTH.

(Melding into one unit……..)

I've seen myself get better at German. Oh, the butterflies are still there, the fear that I won't be understood or that I won't understand is still pretty prevalent, but with the constant exposure I've grown. I can order at a restaurant, complete minor transactions when buying souvenirs, and exchange pleasantries with a passerby on the street. I have even managed to hold a few small conversations with various people, such as the elderly man in the elevator. I can read signs and know what they say, and I've learned a bevy of new words, more than I would looking at a dictionary.

And the culture here, the culture in Germany is so different from that at home. Not quite culture shock different, but different nonetheless. Bikes are a way of life and scarves are a must if you want to leave your home. Ice cream (Eis) is available anytime, anywhere, and the concoctions which arrive when you order are amazingly ornate. The cities come alive at night and there is this laid back sort of atmosphere everywhere. Also, the fact that the trains are punctual is beyond me.

I don't feel like I've been here for over three weeks. The days have seemed to fly together, meshing into one enormous adventure. Night being so short here they are barely separated by sleep, and even the monotony of class is spiced up with daily excursions into a city that is still vastly unknown to us.

Germany 2009, whether in photos or shared jokes across the green, will be instilled in my mind for a long time to come.

ANDREW: My Final Thoughts

2009-07-02T01:19:00.001-07:00

(Andrew, Jennifer and Dawn at the VW Autostadt)

This trip was amazing. I wouldn't have passed it up for anything. The class was a little less than fun, having to sit through 4 hours of class a day at 8:30 is not exactly my favorite thing to do. However, i did learn a bit. Well, I wouldn't say i learned anything new, but i definitely improved on what i did know. I can now make really long grotesque and annoying sentences in German.

We learned a good bit about the culture just by being here. Just like the fact that 80% of Germany gets dressed in the dark, and they get their haircuts at night by moonlight. and when they get it dies the hair dresser goes colorblind. It is a very interesting style with an anything goes policy. You could wear shoes on your hands and no one would look at you twice.

The drivers here are insane, but we have yet to see a car accident. Just another mystery in the magical Land of Germany. Although the police sirens run constantly we just cant figure out why. Oh and ricer's exist over here too (kids that trick out unnecessary cars) My favorite here is the Racing Trabi with the words NO AIRBAG really big on the back glass.

I would have to say my favorite thing here is the streetcar system (S-Bahn). You can never get lost, you will never be late, and you can get absolutely anywhere. And if you miss the streetcar or take the wrong one you only have to wait a few minutes... unless it’s night time, then you are in trouble. The streetcar at night in Berlin is scary. There are plenty of drunks and beggars. But as long as you get what you need early and just ignore the people everything is fine. Magdeburg streetcars are much nicer than the Berlin ones. Mostly because there are far fewer people on them.

We didn't have the best of luck with the weather. it was mostly cloudy and sometimes rained. but overall it wasn't bad. the past few days have been stupidly hot though. Overall this trip was a blast. I'm glad i took it and it was well worth the money. Everyone on the trip got along good enough, and we didn't have any major trouble the whole time.

JENNIFER: Final Thoughts or “Going to Hogwarts in a Shiiiiiiaaaaaaatttttt!!!!”

2009-07-02T01:09:00.001-07:00

I hate to leave! This trip has been so much fun and we have so many inside jokes by this point that its crazy. I have definitely improved my German which was the entire point of the trip so I am satisfied. I have been to Germany before and the last time that I was here my German really wasn't that good, I could hardly understand anything that they would say to me and it was the same for them, if I tried to speak in German to them they would just shake there heads at me. So I figured that it would pretty much be the same way this time but I was pleasantly surprised when I could actually understand almost every word that they said to me and I could actually hold a conversation with them this time around.

Its been a blast here, and even though I have missed my family and friends a lot , I've still managed somehow to have fun! We have done so many fun things and experienced so many new things that I will always remember. Especially Seat * its actually a type of car pronounced Shiii iiiaaattt*!! Yea that was an inside joke.

I will definitely miss the food here, mmmm it was so yummy! We have all decided though that Germans must get tired of German food too because there is an Italian restaurant on every corner in Magdeburg! But I am definitely not complaining, because every one of them was delicious! And yes we tried them all.... ohhhh and the Eis, it’s ice cream by the way..... it’s soooo incredibly good.

(Eis ist lecker!!!!)

I think my favorite flavor is a tie between nutella and After 8 which is actually mint chocolate chip mmmm yum yum! And get this it only costs you a whopping 80 cents. Well unless of course you get a huge Eisbecher and that runs you about 4 Euros. Today we took our test and we are all hoping for good grades... well at least passing grades!

I will be glad to go home but I will be sad at the same time, I feel torn at the moment seeing as tomorrow is our last full day in Germany! Magdeburg has been a great city to stay in, it’s cute and pretty and quiet, and very easy to get around in, with lots of tasty food everywhere! The day trips that we have taken were great because all you really needed was a few hours at each place to kind of get a feel for it... and also by that time your feet where screaming that they were going to kill you while you slept!

Oh and also as a side note Germany is magical, because as everyone on this trip knows if you run very fast and then dive and slide under my bed you can get to the Hogwarts express ... me and Emily go there all the time at night! And Kel... well she has Narnia under her bed but who cares.... Hogwarts is soo much better!

So the point of all of my rambling is... if you ever get a chance to come to Germany take it! It will open your eyes up to new things, make you see how different cultures are vastly different and yet still the same, and no matter whether your young or old.... Germany is a magical place!

GUESTBLOG: Herr C fills in the blanks

2009-07-02T00:54:00.001-07:00

Our time in Magdeburg is coming to an end. In less than 24 hours we’ll board our Continental flight back to Newark and then fly into GSP. I hope you have all enjoyed the honesty and enthusiasm with which these 7 very special and unique USC Upstate students have documented their experience and in the process I hope they and you have learned something from it.

In the end, however, there were some experiences and sites that slipped through the documentation cracks and I’d like to share some of them with you:

The 1000 year old Magdeburg cathedral

The Gruene Zitadelle (green citadel) built in Magdeburg and designed by Austrian architect Hundertwasser.

The beautiful Elbe river that flows through Magdeburg.

The Magdeburg farmer’s market and white asparagus season.

Magdeburg is the home of Otto von Guericke whose experiments with two half spheres and a team of horses established the physics of the vacuum.

The beautiful Mueckenwirt beer garden on the Elbe river

The Bauhaus school in Dessau.

Wittenberg and the door of the church to which Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses.

Martin Luther’s church in Wittenberg.

And of course I could post these for days. Even though I had seen most of this before, this being the 5th group of USC Upstate students I have taken to Magdeburg since 2000, the real pleasure comes in seeing the students experience it for the very first time. Not only does such a trip provide a completely new perspective on everything from environmental issues, food, money, politics, history, travel, cultural differences, historic preservation, etc…..it is something that changes each and every student that experiences it, even if just a little bit. Each students comes back changed in some way. They might not know it yet…..but they will.

Hope you’ve enjoyed. Now I’ll let the students speak for themselves.

Herr C.

ANDREW: The food in Italy…..I mean Germany…..is great!

2009-07-02T00:23:00.001-07:00

I am really enjoying all of the wonderful food here in Germany, but frankly there are 2 things wrong with it. One it’s Italian, and 2 it’s somewhat expensive. Breakfast is not that bad. Well not if you like bread.

(Typical German breakfast)

Every morning i have 2 pieces of bread with some Nutella, and i take 2 sandwiches for lunch. There isn't much of an option for my lunch sandwiches, mostly because I'm not supposed to take them. But i get sandwiches with salami and Swiss cheese. They are good enough to get me by. For lunch we really have a few good options. There is a little Asian restaurant where you can get a whole meal for about 4 bucks. Or you can go into the mall and get a bratwurst for 2. Dinner is the more expensive thing. There are a few options with dinner. There is an American restaurant called The Fan. It is fun and has pretty good food, but it's not as American as they think it is. It is definitely Germanized. Even McDonalds is Germanized.

(I’m lovin’ it)

They area all really nice restaurants, oh and guess what guys... No Free Refills!!! Anyway, back to dinner. The other main option is Italian food. There are 4 Italian restaurants within walking distance. One, which is right next to the Hostel is called La Pizza. It is owned by the Italian/German Mafia. The main waiter there i dubbed "Tony" He has a huge gold ring on every finger, huge gold watch and bracelet, massive gold necklaces, and is built like an Oak tree. they also have strange looking Italian guys in suits walking in and out of there everyday. Oh and they take forever to both wait on you and bring you your check. Jay had to walk out on them one day. The other Italian restaurant has this skinny little Italian guy that works there. he is a trip. we pass the restaurant everyday from school and he yells, "Hey America!" then tells us who we are playing in soccer next. he's a really funny guy. The other Italian restaurant is Leo's Its my favorite. It is really good and really cheap, and the waitress there doesn't look that bad either. the weird thing about Leo's though, is that they have pictures of Paris all over the walls, and no one there is Italian. The fourth and Final Italian restaurant is Palazzo's.

(Palazzo’s Eiscafe and Restaurant)

It is also really good and also pretty cheap. They also have a weird theme for an Italian restaurant... Egyptian. But they have some of the best ice cream in the whole city. The waiters in German restaurants don't rush you, in fact you have to rush them. they wont come back with your tip until you go get them. and since you don't get refills, they don't ever come back to your table. Eating over here is quite interesting and enjoyable. But the fact that we have to eat out every day kind of sucks. You spend about 10-20 bucks on food if you buy lunch and dinner. Overall though the experience is good. The Gertalian food is very tasty. I have only found 2 places in this town that sell bratwurst and of course our 4 competing Italian restaurants

ANDREW: Dresden….more steps and even more words!

2009-07-01T15:29:00.001-07:00

Our trip to Dresden was the earliest we had to wake up. I forget what time it was, but it felt ever earlier than it actually was. As soon as we got to the train station our tour guide started. He was really interesting and had tons of knowledge, but i don't think he took a breath the entire trip.

(Herr Coffman and our tour guide in the Semper Opera workshops)

We were on our first train for a long time before we stopped at Halle. We got a history lesson on that train ride about Halle and the surrounding area. We had an hour to kill before our next train so we took a brief walking tour of the city. It was really nice. It had this kind of old meets new aura to it. All of the buildings had the old facades, but a lot of them had modern lighting and some other modern touches.

(Quick stop in Halle)

We got onto our next train and it took us to Leipzig. Leipzig is an end station, which is pretty self explanatory. The trains only go in and out one way, you cant go through Leipzig, just to it. Anyway, we finally made it to Dresden, after more history of Leipzig and the surrounding area.

From there we saw a church that was completely destroyed, along with the entire city, during the fire bombing. They had used sophisticated computer technology however to use as much of the old church as they could. So the old pieces are dark and the new ones are light. Making it look like a giant chocolate chip cookie church.

(The restored Frauenkirche. Notice the old black stones used in its reconstruction)

They did the same thing with a lot of the city. You can catch glimpses of dark parts all over the place. Then we saw the large Porcelain wall. It was really neat looking, oh and there was an Audi R8 parked next to it :). After that we went by the Opera house expecting to just see the outside. But by some strange coincidence, we were there on their open house day. So we actually got to go inside and see the theater. On top of that the Workshops for the sets were also open. So we walked around and got to see them building the parts for the sets and some old things they had made before. That was really interesting to see.

(The Semper Opera workshops)

After all of the opera house touring, we went to a Bier garden. It was right on the river and one one of the prettiest views I’d ever seen.

(Biergarten and View)

However, the meal was a little less than great. Dawn, Emily, and I ordered the Weisswurst, which is a white sausage... boiled. None of us could get it down. Even though i was extremely hungry. I ended up eating some of Jennifer's food. This caused us to miss one of our trains back. So we had to wait another hour and didn't make it home until midnight. Our tour guide parted with us at our stop in Leipzig. I learned a lot from him on the trip, but I also didn't have enough time for my own thoughts. We finally got some quiet time on the train ride back. I think that was the best night of sleep I’d gotten. Simply because i was so exhausted.

DAWN: Tripped up…

2009-07-01T11:38:00.000-07:00

Kel, Klaus, and I went to school for a workshop that apparently Hendrick “told” us about. We were walking to the Strassenbahn so that we could catch the tram. I was walking fast because I thought that the tram was about to come. Without thinking about it I walked in front of an older gentleman. I didn’t bump him or anything, just walked in front of him. The next thing I knew a foot hooked mine and I tripped. Turns out the man didn’t like me walking in front of him and he stuck out his foot, wrapped it around my leg, and then pulled. I couldn’t and wouldn’t retaliate because not only was a surprised but it was a man that looked like he was in his seventies. My hands had already come up to push him back but as soon as I saw how old he was I couldn’t do it. Jokingly I told everyone else if it had been a younger person they definitely would’ve been pushed.

After he tripped me, the older man kept walking like nothing had happened and I was just flabbergasted. He crossed the street without ever looking back and I just stared after him. I heard Klaus make a shocked noise and behind me I heard Kel say, “He just tried to trip you!” She couldn’t believe what had just happened. I started laughing because honestly it was ridiculous of him to even try to trip me. Klaus looked a little embarrassed and said, “That’s not a good example of German hospitality.”

(Kel and Dawn laughing)

That was just an isolated incident (well other than the guy that licked my ear) and for the most part I’ve found the German people I’ve talked with to be very nice and patient with us. Jennifer’s friends welcomed us all and made dinner for us even though they’d only ever met Jennifer and Andrew. Also, Klaus is very friendly and I’ve gotten to talk to him quite a bit in German. Sometimes at home, I’ve heard people be kind of rude to other people who can’t speak English very well so its good to see that the German people were nice about it because if they were rude it might’ve made me not want to talk as much as I have.

KYLE: Germany is Green. What about us?

2009-07-01T00:30:00.001-07:00

So now that I've discussed money, one of the biggest differences, I think its a good time to talk about another big difference, transportation. Gas here is expensive. We complained when gas was 4 dollars a gallon and were in near riot-mode. Gas in Germany is roughly $6 or more a gallon.

It's reflected in the way they live. All the streets have a sidewalk path specifically for bikes, as well as stoplights at the intersections just for bikes. Then there's the Strassenbahn, which is a trolley system that every big city has. It can take you all over the city in a short time for a reasonable price. It makes me wonder why the trolley system in Pittsburgh isn't more expansive, as there is really only one track and very few split offs and possibilities for places to go. It also makes me wonder why more American cities don't have reliable public transportation or any sort of incentives to not drive so much.

In general, it seems that people here are much more aware of how much energy they are using and more caring towards the environment. Everywhere I go there are at least 4 different garbage/recycling cans for different types of waste.

(Makeshift recycling bins for packaging, leftover trash and paper. Glass and organic matter are also recycled)

Even our hostel has a solar water heater. Every time we ride the train through the countryside there is an abundance of wind mills.

It’s hard to go a day here without seeing a solar panel or some form of alternative energy. Really, I think it just isn't as popular in America because we're lazy. It's easier to just throw things away in one place, it's easier to not care about the environment or about the planet. If there’s one thing I'd like to help our country change that would be it. It might sound like I’m a hippie (to some), but we really need to start caring about what we do to the only planet we have to live on.

AMBER: Submerged in German culture

2009-06-30T09:54:00.001-07:00

A little more on the weekend with my German friend! Saturday night we had her fathers 50th birthday party. It was a really big party with lots of people. Her mother cooked a ton of German food, as you would expect. There was also a good bit of German alcohol. I was completely submerged in German culture!

The food included wurst, goulasch, German bread, red kraut, cheeses, potato salad, fresh salad and for dessert these chocolate corner cake things. The food was really delicious. One of the alcohols I had was called 43 and it is mixed with milk, it taste a lot like Baileys. I do not remember what the other alcohols were, they were some German liquors. I do know it was very good tasting and you could easily drink too much because it tasted so delicious.

She and her family lives in the west side of Germany and it was very interesting to hear them talk about when the Berliner Mauer (the Berlin wall) came down. They also told me many differences in the people. It was very cool to hear and to see some of differences here in Germany. I have learned about the West and East side people in class but that does not compare to actually being in Germany and witnessing it. Something her parents told me, which I find very interesting was that in the east side the older people were taught Russian and on the west side the older people were taught English. That explains why I keep finding so many people here in the east side who do not know English. People on the east side are not fans of Rammstein, which is my favorite band but they are well like on the west side.

(Svenja’s garden)

The view outside of her house was amazing and very Germany looking, as it should be! Svenja has lived in this house all of her life and was very used to how her backyard looks! The two pictures I have included in this blog is the view from her playroom window, which is her backyard.

(Svenja’s backyard)

I absolutely fell in love with how it looks! It was a sight like I have never seen in America! Just to think that she wakes up to this view everyday and it is completely normal to her and her family amazes me!

I really enjoyed getting the chance to spend a weekend with a German family and get to experience a German birthday party! That is a unique experience I get to take away from this trip.

So this leads me to talking about the German food and alcohol! The food here is amazing! The restaurants I have been to have not been too expensive and I get a huge plate full of food! I did not this but Germans also love their sour kraut and bread! With almost every German meal I have gotten it either comes with some kind of kraut or bread and in some cases both! Of course we all know that Germany is filled with Wurst! When you walk down the street you can find some much Wurst to buy and eat! Wurst to Germany is like hamburgers to America. A typical German breakfast must include bread, cheese and meat. Every single day I have been here my breakfast includes at least one of these. I do not think I have heard the words waffle or pancake here once! When you order a soda here, it is in a smaller glass than America serves their soda in. The sodas also come with no ice. If the waiter notices you are American they might try to find a couple of ice cubes to put in your drink. Of course the beer is delicious! At almost every meal I have had a beer. The Germans put a little more alcohol in their beer and it is served in a much bigger glass. This leaves me with only enough room for one or maybe two at a time! One last thing, the ice cream is amazing! Also, everyday I have been in Germany I have had ice cream! When I go back home that is the one thing I will miss the most is the ice cream here! It taste, to me, like frozen yogurt! There are also very exotic flavors here in the ice cream!

KYLE: Geld!

2009-06-30T09:23:00.001-07:00

So lets talk a little about money. First, the exchange rate is horrible. I got 438 Euros at the beginning of the trip for like 700 dollars. I remember when the Euro first came out and it was worth less than the dollar. Why didn't I go to Europe then? Then there’s the many ways money works differently in Germany. One thing I've noticed consistently is that when you pay in Germany you are expected to have exact change, if you don't they act like you have caused them the greatest inconvenience of their lives. Sometimes they won't even allow you to pay, or will lie and say they cant make change. It is bizarre. I would think that Germans must keep some sort of stockpile of change with them at all times because I have yet to see a German not be able to pay. Another strange thing is that the smallest bill they have is a 5 euro bill, worth roughly 7.50 US dollars.

Most daily transactions use 2 or 1 euro coins, which are also hard to come by, as the ATM dispenses only paper money. The only thing I can think of is they much go to the bank and get huge amounts of coins once a month or something, it is truly odd. Just the other day I saw for the first time that a 500 euro bill exists too, this guy at the post office pulled out a whole wallet full of them. I couldn’t help but think about how unsafe I would feel with that and how horrible of a day he would have if he lost his wallet. Having a 100 dollar bill makes me uncomfortable enough, let alone a 750 dollar bill. Germany is a country that runs on cash and coins. I haven't seen a single transaction made by a German using anything but cash. Do they even have cards here?

Feeling Fremd,

Kyle

JEN: Buchenwald Visit

2009-06-30T09:09:00.001-07:00

On Saturday a few of us visited Buchenwald which is a concentration camp right outside of Weimar. After everything that I saw, and having time to think about it for a few days , it was extremely disturbing to me. We took a train to Halle then got another connecting train to Weimar and then took a bus to Buchenwald. Once we got off of the bus , it just looked foreboding , because the sky was filled with dark gray colored clouds, and it was extremely chilly outside. We walked down to the front of the camp which looked like a huge wooden fort surround by barbed wire fences. We walked through his iron gate and into the camp which no longer contained the barracks that the Jews and other people stayed in, either they were destroyed or they where tore down either way they were no longer there but you could see their foundations, and be able to tell about how big they were and how wide they were.

(The gate into Buchenwald. Inscription reads “Jedem Das Seine”—“To each, his own”)

We walked down to the disinfection building which now contains a museum about the camp , which was very interesting and informative but also extremely disturbing at the same time. With pictures and videos of dead people in carts piled high and in the ovens as well, they also had pictures of shrunken heads and skin that they would give to the SS Officers as gifts. We got to see the spoon and forks and plates and bowls that they ate with and we actually got to see there prisoner garb and some of there shoes and buttons and things that they had with them when they had arrived. They had a room near the crematorium where they would tell people they were taking their height only to end up shooting them in the back of the neck, and at the bottom of the crematorium they had a room where they would keep dead bodies or the urns of ashes, and they also had hooks on the walls that were used for strangulation.

(Basement of the Crematorium. Notice the black hooks on the walls)

So if your reading this and are disturbed just imagine what it was like seeing these things up close. After we toured the camp we headed back up to the front where the soldiers’ barracks where and watched a thirty minute long movie on the camp and some of the Jewish people who actually survived and lived to tell their tales. In the video one of the Jewish men said that the Officers figured that the people needed 1.50 a day to live, so in other words $1.50 was used to buy food and other supplies each day for every prisoner, and yet the blood hounds that were used to track down the prisoners when they tried to escape where allotted $3.50 a day for food and materials.

They showed how the Nazi's would make propaganda movies by filming the officers and their children at the zoo that held a bear, which was no more than five feet from the barbed wire fence that enclosed thousands of people. They would also get prisoners to smile and act like everything was perfect, so that they could fool everyone as to what was really going on.

At the end of the video it told that when the Americans arrived they found dead bodies piled high in carts and in the crematorium where the soldiers had left them as they flied the camp so they wouldn’t get caught. The most interesting thing though was that the American soldiers made the citizens of Weimar come and tour the camp and see all of the bodies and the people that were left, it showed women fainting and crying and as well they should have been.

Seeing things like this really give you a greater respect for life, and the hopes that nothing like this will ever happen again.

KEL: There was blood on the ground

2009-06-29T15:52:00.001-07:00

(The original gate at the Buchenwald KZ)

Yesterday, the group and I went to Buchenwald. It was an Order I concentration camp in Germany during World War II. Order I means that it was classified as a "work camp." This means that the living conditions were supposedly "livable." It was an Order II camp, which means the same as an Order I, just worse living conditions. Towards the end, they tried to change the order rank of the camp, but I pretty sure, from what I've seen and heard, they failed. The only other order (Order III) were death camps, where people were taken to die.

The day was the perfect day to go to a concentration camp: Wet, muddy and raining on and off. When we were on the train towards the city where the camp sat, I got this sudden sick feeling in my stomach. I felt like one of the people who was taken there years ago. It's hard to describe this sudden fear that came up inside me from no where and then the turning in my stomach as I realized I was completely safe, when all those others hadn't been..

No one was really talking on the way there, and I'm not sure if it was because it was early, or if they all felt the same way I did. When we got there, we walked down to the gates. They still had the barbed wire and fence still up, so walking up to the front gates was like walking into the actual camp. Some buildings still stood and if you looked at from the right angle, it looked like it could still possibly function.

We split up. Everyone went straight, and I went left. I saw the monument where Obama had laid flowers, and saw where the brothel use to stand. I read about how the Jews and the Homosexuals had it the worst, and I saw a movie where they said that if you were a Jew or a Homosexual, they could beat you for no reason other than they wanted to.

(The Crematorium at Buchenwald)

The Crematorium still stood. There was a place where the inmates would be brought in to have their height taken, and then they would be shot in the back of the head. There was an a place where inmates had experiments run on them.

There was a small camp towards the back were the sick and others were placed. Staying there was worse than the large camp. At one point, 100 people were dying each day from disease and starvation.

There was a memorial for all the Jews who died, and different ones for the homosexuals, the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Gypsies. After I walked around for awhile and watched the movie, I went into the book store and bought a couple of books. One of them, "The Theory and Practice of Hell," talked about the set up of the camps and how they worked from someone who survived Buchenwald.

There isn't much that needs to be said about Buchenwald, but I'll leave you with two facts from this book:

1) The Jehovah's Witnesses were lined up as a group on a regular basis. The would be asked to denounce their beliefs for their freedom. The Nazis really didn't mind them, but the Witnesses are against war and fighting, which was what the Nazis needed. Every time someone refused to sign the papers, the Nazis would shot ten other witnesses. They did this four times before stopping.

2) The children were placed in their own bunk and not forced to work. They were rationed food and educated by other inmates who were assigned to them, but they got over crowded. One day, the Nazis rounded up all the Jewish and Gypsy children, who were crying and screaming for their fathers, and sent them to Auschwitz to be gassed.

And this was all completely normal.

KYLE: Dancing place of the witches

2009-06-29T15:40:00.001-07:00

(The Bode River near the Hexentanzplatz)

So our next memorable trip was to the Harz Mountains in the southern part of Sachsen-Anhalt near Thale. We went to the Hexentanzplatz (dancing place of the witches) which is a place on top of the mountain known for lots of legendary stories and such. It was an interesting ride up a gondola to the top of the mountain, as some of us are afraid of heights. Normally I would be included in that group but the scenery and beauty of the mountains kept my mind off our tiny gondola held up by a string suspended hundreds of feet above the ground. It also reminded me a lot of home and shared striking resemblance with places I know very well. After getting off the gondola we walked a short trail through the woods up to the dancing place of the witches. Small shops adorned the area selling all sorts of witch and other Halloweenish type memorabilia.

(Halloweenish type memorabilia)

The views from the top of the mountain were pretty breathtaking, but again didn't stand out as being something unfamiliar.

(View of the Bode river from above)

It was somewhat strange, being in an entirely different continent yet not feeling far from home. After taking some pictures and walking around that area we went to go ride a ride.

(Getting ready to bobsled)

It was probably the most exciting part of our trip that day as I wasn't so heavy on the Bremsen (brakes) as we went around the track. It was a little too short but the 2 minutes it lasted was a great time. After that we got back onto the gondola and returned to the bottom of the mountain. We went along the river down a path until we hit a Biergarten next to the river. I enjoyed several delectable Schwarzbiers and then we went back to get on the train to Magdeburg. It was a good day.

Bis Bald,

Kyle

EMILY: Nachtleben

2009-06-29T15:29:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I quite like to fancy myself a seasoned club goer. I´ve been to my fair share of clubs- big ones, small ones, dark ones, well lit ones. I´ve been to clubs with big name DJs and clubs with nobodies spinning for the first time. I´ve been to clubs in London, Miami, Atlanta, and New York City. And now I can say that I have successfully been to a club in Germany.

For as long as I have been flipping through the pages of magazines such as Gothic Beauty I have known that Germany was the place to go for all things Industrial. If you wanted underground catwalks and body modifications to the max than you would have to board a plan and prepare for an 8 hour journey. And so, as our trip starts to wind down I figured that getting to a goth club was a must for me.

Dawn and I prepared to head to The Factory's Depeche Mode party on Saturday night. After throwing on hot pink fishnets, blinding eyeshadow, and a black leather choker, I was ready. Our adventure to the club was one to go down in the books, hinging on epic, but when we finally got there I had mixed emotions.

Maybe my expectations were too high, or maybe the theme of the night just drew in an older and more sedate crowd, but the party's turnout was dismal. Oh, a good amount of people were there, especially as the clock ticked onward, but their creativity was lacking. Many were in their 30s and 40s it seemed and they danced with merely a swayed drugged look. Their outfits were akin to everyday wear- pants and shirts, tanktops and sneakers. Oh, there were a few acceptable people- such as the guy in pvc pants and the girl in a cinched corset.

I had a blast though (and I'm hoping Dawn did too!) and was glad to experience a different side of German culture. So often throughout this trip I have seen the everyday living- the going to school, to work, doing the shopping. Now And in a very small way I feel like I'm beginning to fill in the puzzle pieces of German life.

KYLE: Dresden & Wolfsburg

2009-06-29T15:18:00.001-07:00

(At the Semper Opera in Dresden)

So following our stay in Berlin and our trip to Potsdam, we got on the train and headed to our home base for the rest of the trip, Magdeburg. Almost immediately upon arrival (the day after) we boarded another train and headed to Dresden. We stopped in Halle and Leipzig on the way as well. It seems everywhere we went there were big open cobblestone squares adorned with statues of composers, artists, religious figures, etc. and there was certainly no lack of large old churches and cathedrals. Dresden was particularly beautiful, probably why it was the subject of many famous paintings and works of art. Again, my vocabulary and writing ability falls short of describing such an amazing place, so I won't even begin to try.

(The restored Frauenkirche in Dresden)

Shortly after that trip, we again went on the train to Wolfsburg, the home of the largest automobile factory in the world. We went on a tour of the VW factory and saw the production lines of several of their cars. Unfortunately, we were forced to leave our cameras outside to avoid industrial espionage. After seeing the factory, which was only moderately interesting to me as I'm not too much into car production (though I do enjoy the final product) we went to the Autostadt which was directly adjacent to the factory.

(Designing our own VW’s at the Autostadt)

The Autostadt was much more my kind of place. The first main building we went into had lots of interesting exhibits many of which were about alternitive energy, fuels, transportation and other things. All of them were very interesting to me because I'm a biology major hoping to go to graduate school to study biofuels. After going though all of that we went to explore the many automaker pavilions. My favorite was the probably the Audi pavilion, though seeing the Bugatti and Lamborghini offerings were also pretty awesome. Overall, the Autostadt is another experience from Germany I'll remember for a long time.

Wiederschreiben,

Kyle

DAWN: Auto, Zug, oder Strassenbahn? Antwort: Alle

2009-06-29T15:12:00.001-07:00

(On the train…)

Since I wrote my first blog on walking, I’m thinking it’s a good idea to mention all the other ways that we (or other people) get around here in Germany because the system they got going on is simply amazing. First of all, the way people drive (the reason I’m glad that I don’t have to drive over here) is a bit crazy but I haven’t seen any accidents since I’ve been here. I find that sad because Americans drive in a way that looks a lot less crazy but there’s all kinds of accidents so maybe we’re just stupid drivers and since I’ve been in two wrecks that were my fault, I include myself in that stereotype. Actually the driving here reminds me a bit of Mexico which is a weird comparison but totally valid. Whenever I’d ride in a taxi in Mexico I’d gasp every once in a while because the driver would make up his/her own lanes and get within touching distance of other cars. Also, while in Germany I’ve seen several “almost wrecks” where I watched with great interest in case there was a wreck but I was always pleasantly and slightly disappointed to see when there wasn’t because like a true American I rubber neck with the best of them. As Kel and I were discussing, Germans also have the tendency to make up their own lanes….or instead of lanes…sidewalks. Yep, sidewalks here can be streets. We’ve been casually walking (i.e. stepping German style which means a speed walk) and a car will come barreling down the sidewalk. Barreling isn’t actually that much of a hyperbole, its just plain fact. But hey, it keeps you on your toes and dissuades plugging in the Ipod and zoning out.

(The Magdeburger Strassenbahn)

Another thing that doesn’t happen in America (but totally should) is the Strassenbahn. I know why it isn’t that practical in Spartanburg but even if it were there I get the feeling that it wouldn’t go where you needed to go and it would be a little dangerous. However, here the Strassenbahn has saved my legs a whole bunch of walking and it can take you anywhere you’d like to go (as long as you know the system which I kind of just depend on Kel for that). The trains are also totally awesome because each city (it seems) is connected by the train system and it’s a cheap and easy way to get from place to place. So when we get back to South Carolina we’re all going to demand a cheap, easy, environmentally friendly, and safe transportation system because we’ve been spoiled here in Germany.

KEL: "I caught the part where he said he would rip the kid's skin from his body."

2009-06-28T13:07:00.001-07:00

Earlier on during the trip, a group of people went to the movies to see Star Trek in German. I had been really excited about going up until the part where we actually needed to go, and then I just felt tired. I ended up taking a nap instead. Everyone seemed really excited about how fun the movie had been, so afterwards, I just felt bummed that I hadn't gone. Ever since that day, I've been determined to go to a movie for the experience myself.

That day came on Friday! Herr Coffman, Kyle, Andrew and I went to see Transformers.

I wasn't really sure how the movie thing worked, so I was glad someone went with me who knew what they were doing.. Going to see a movie in Germany is a lot different that seeing one America. I knew what to say to get a ticket, but the only thing that is the same about theaters in South Carolina and here is that you buy a ticket at a cheaper price if you are a student and the film plays on a large screen in a large room filled with stadium seats.

The first difference was the one that worried me the most: the tickets will cost different prices depending on where you want to sit. The seats that people want more will be more expensive, and the seats that are "less desirable" are cheaper. The more expensive seats were all full, so we got the "cheaper seats." Ironically, the seats were were given, which were towards the back and off to one side, were more where people from America want to sit in the theaters anyway.

The second interesting thing about theaters in Germany is that the seats are assigned. That's right! We had assigned seats, so when you go with a group to buy tickets, you have to buy them together or else you won't get to sit next to each other.

The movie started, and there were 5,000 previews beforehand, but some were movies that had been out and some were new movies yet to be released. None of the previews stated when the movie would be released though, which I found a little confusing. They all said, "Next in the Theater!" If they're all coming out next, this small theater isn't going to have enough screens for everything.

Once the movie began, I realized that this was going to be a lot more difficult to understand. I had seen the first Transformers movie, but seeing the second one without seeing it in English proved to be a little more difficult than I originally thought it would be. One thing that became VERY apparent was that Germans can speak a lot faster than I originally imagine possible.

The Germans would laugh in all the right places, and I laughed too. But I laughed because I had no idea what was going on rather than getting the joke. There was one point, where Sam had a girl in his car (not by his own will) and Bumblebee started playing "You Cheating Heart." The song was in English, and the four of us started laughing. Unfortunately, we were the only ones in the theater that got that joke. I get the feeling it was for the same reason that we weren't getting the German ones.

I would catch certain words and paste them actions and other words and come up with a story in my head. There was one line that stuck out in my head where one character said to another that he would rip the skin off of [Sam's] body, and we also came up with our new catch phrase for the trip, "Kuss das, Schlumpe!" (Kiss that, slut!)

Eventually, the dubbing didn't even bother me anymore. Then, suddenly, in the middle of an action scene, the screen went black and the lights suddenly came up. Across the screen came the word "PAUSE." There was an intermission in the middle of the movie and everyone got up and left the theater to either get more drinks or snacks or use the bathroom. We used the time to recap and figure out what was going on before our eyes, and I was really excited that I was catching most of everything.

The movie began again and finished in what felt like three years. It was really good, the experience was a lot of fun... but there is only so much of clashing robots I can take before I get bored, especially if I'm not 100% sure of what I'm actually seeing.

DAWN: Two-Steppin’, Russian Fish, and Licked Ears

2009-06-28T13:00:00.001-07:00

So yeah, Emily and I decided it would be fun to go to a Depeche Mode night at a local club last night. Actually Emily decided and only because she’s awesome I felt the need to go and be babysitter/protector but I knew that since it was Emily and I, we would have fun because that’s just what we do. So when we hopped off the Strassenbahn, I immediately was concerned. The part of the city we were in was definitely sketchy to say the least. Although Jay and the lady at the front desk of the Jugendherberge had assured us that it would be obvious where the club was as soon as we got there, Emily and I had no idea where to go. There was absolutely no one on the street and all around us were boarded up old factories.

Emily and I ended up walking down the street to a Russian convenience store that was still open even though it was pretty late. Inside they sold fish and alcohol and that was about it. The fish inside the counter looked all dried out and their eyes and mouths were still opened. Emily leaned over to me and said, “This is pretty scary.” I agreed but I asked the clerk for directions. He gave me directions in German of course but I could understand them. The only problem was his directions consisted of this, “Go past the building turn right and then right.” Unfortunately there were lots of building and Emily got a bit lost on those directions. Then we saw a woman walking her dog and I stopped her to ask her for directions. They were about as helpful as the other directions, “Go to where the wall is and the club is right there…or go around the wall and it might be on the other side.” Emily and I walked back towards the Strassenbahn and passed about 3 walls on the way there. Luckily we saw a girl dressed in “clubbing” attire and we followed her and she led us straight to the club.

The club was pretty small but was clean inside. At first not many people were dancing but after a while more people were on the floor. I’ve got to stop here to describe German dancing because it’s awesome. First spread your legs apart like you’re straddling a curb or something, put a beer bottle in your hand, then shift back and forth on your legs to any beat (whether or not it’s the one you’re dancing to) and occasionally run your hand through your hair or down your body…that was the German dancing we saw last night. Emily and I started calling it the German Two Step. There was an older guy there with a braided pony tail down his back. He was doing his own version of the German Two Step but he was mixing the Greek “hold your arms out like Jesus on the cross and snap your fingers” move. Emily and I got some Becks Ice to drink but then I switched to Beck Lemon and then promptly back to Becks Ice because Lemon tasted pretty gross. When it was getting a bit later, two German guys decided to hit on us. Unfortunately they were speaking “Drunkerman”(Drunk/German) so we couldn’t understand what they were saying. It was fine because they were really drunk so we weren’t holding it against them…until…one licked my ear. Totally put out we decided to leave. We arrived at the Jugendherberge thirty minutes too late and were kind of wondering what we would do since they apparently lock the doors at 2:00am but luckily the doors still opened and we got inside. All in all, it was a fun adventure.

AMBER: Finally meeting an old friend

2009-06-28T12:50:00.001-07:00

(Amber and Svenja have been internet penpals for 4 years. She finally got to meet her)

I am currently spending the weekend with my German friend, Svenja, in a small small town outside of Fulda. I am staying with her and her boyfriend, her parents, her brother and his girlfriend. It is really cool to be with a German family for an entire weekend. I am seeing how they live and what kinds of things they do.
    The houses here are so so different than American houses. All of the rooms are separated, and not open as it is in America. The structures are different, too. I find it really cool! The neighborhood she lives in is small, cute and well, German looking. When I look out her window I see a bunch of little white houses, with red tile roofs, with fields all around and a mountains ever so close. The view is like something I have never seen in America. Svenja has lived in this house her entire life so it is nothing new to her, but I tell her it is so cool to me. All of this is very new to me.
    The food that was made for dinner was basically the same thing! Bread, meat and jellies. The only difference is they eat more for dinner, and what you drink is different. Besides that, it was the same. Very interesting to me.
    Germans scare me to death with their driving!! All of them!! I have ridden with Svenja, her dad, and her brother. They all drive so fast, drive in the wrong lane, pass people on curves, tailgate and you name it! I feel like i am going to die! When I ride with them I just go to my happy place and wait until we get to where we are going! Apparently the accident rate is lower in Germany than in America. I do not understand this!
    Last night all of us except for her parents played Nitendo Wii! Today, we all went shopping and were going to go swimming if the weather was not rainy. My point to this is that so many things are different in Germany but many many things are similar, too. We all hang out and do basically the same things as American young people do.

KYLE: My day with Heinz

2009-06-26T07:54:00.001-07:00

So I'm going to interrupt the typical telling about places I've been and things I've seen to share an interesting story that occurred just yesterday. The group had left slightly earlier than I'd anticipated and I had misunderstood exactly where we were going but the mistake led to one of my most memorable experiences in Germany so far. I was under the impression that we were going to the park for the day. When I think of going to the park I think of bike paths, trees, grass, etc. apparently when they said we're going to the park they meant going into a building with science experiments and such and riding a bobsled (???).

(Herr Coffman on the bobsled)

So hopefully Herr Coffman understands why I wasn't there. Anyways, everyone went to a park called Elbauen park, which is next to the Fachhochschule where we have class everyday.

(What everyone else did…)

During that time, I was across town in the Stadtpark (city park) which is the more normal kind of park, with trees and grass and such.

(Where Kyle went)

For some reason I thought we were supposed to meet under an arch somewhere in that park so I asked a few people and no one knew where one was (because there wasn't one I guess I just made that up in my head). The last guy I had asked was an older man walking his dog. After I had concluded that we weren't meeting under an arch I figured I would walk around and try to locate the group. So I asked him if he wanted to walk and talk with me and we did, for 2 hours. We discussed lots of different things and he shared lots of interesting stories with me. He said that my German was good for the most part and when I didn't understand he would explain in another way until I understood. He taught me a few interesting German proverbs and sayings as well. There’s no doubt Ill remember my day with Heinz for years to come.

Bis Später,

Kyle

JENNIFER: 13 miles in 6 hours

2009-06-26T07:44:00.001-07:00

Well there are other blogs about this but today my blog is going to be about our lovely experience in Potsdam. Well first off let me just say that I personally would like to kill Herr Coffman for this one! I am a very short person so its rather difficult to find bikes and are a good size for me, so when we arrived at our bike rental place they had to give me one of the smallest bikes that they had which was still a little too high seeing as i could only touch my tippy toes to the ground whenever I tried to straddle the bike. Let me just say this for all of my family and friends who are reading this and smiling waiting for me to say this one little line.... I DID NOT FALL OFF OF MY BIKE!!!! I got on that thing and rode it like a champ.... ok well not really .... I was always really wobbly starting off but hey I didn’t fall!

We rode down this one really nice neighborhood which houses that cost more than my whole entire neighborhood is worth but really they weren’t that pretty. We rode all over, seeing various sights and got historical insight into them by our lovely tour guide who's name escapes me at the moment but he was extremely nice and funny! As Kel said in one of her blogs about Potsdam the bicycle seats where not made for humans! By the end of the tour I was most definitely walking bow legged through Berlin..... what a sight. And there was also more than one occasion where I literally thought that I wasn’t going to make it, and I was going to have to stop and get left behind but my tiny little legs kept on trucking and didn’t poop out on me thank God! We stopped at one little bakery in the center of Potsdam and got some water, which turned out to be a nice little lesson in how grumpy some German old men can be when people don’t move their bikes out of the way quick enough... although our tour guide did thank him for his kind friendship....it was a wonderful example of sarcasm. Then when we all looked like we might pass out or even die at that point from exhaustion our tour guide took us to this nice little hole in the wall restaurant that served Russian and German food which was absolutely fantastic!

After we had recharged as we like to call it we went on our merry little way, finally heading back to the bike rental shop which took oh say another 45 minutes to an hour. All in all I believe that Herr Coffman and our tour guide said that we had rode 13 miles over a 6 hour period..... that is why we will now go back to my second statement about killing Herr Coffman.... can you see why I would want to now. Although I never could do that to him , because like he told us in the train station heading back to Berlin its just one of those things that are better remembered!

KYLE: Stalin, spies and sauerkraut

2009-06-26T07:30:00.001-07:00

(Kyle in Potsdam)

So, Potsdam. It was a long and busy day biking through what I would think is a large portion of the city. We met up with our awesome tour guide and began our trek through Potsdam. Our first few stops were along the riverfront where we saw several multi-million euro homes, a few of which famous leaders like Stalin and Truman had stayed in.

(Josef Stalin stayed here during the Potsdam Conference)

Our tour guide called it the 'Beverly Hills' of Potsdam. We also had a good view of a bridge we would see later on in the day. During the war the bridge was used to exchange spies as the river was used as an east west border. Upon a closer look it can be seen that the bridge is two different colors to this day, one slightly more blueish green than the other. During spy exchanges, snipers would be set up all throughout the riverbank and adjacent buildings to ensure a successful exchange.

(The Guernicke Bridge)

After seeing the houses and the bridge we traveled down the river to see an specifically asymmetric palace/home built for an intolerable queen. We made our way to a few other palaces and churches along the cobblestone roads, which combined with our bike seats caused some uncomfortable feelings. So eventually we made it to a very unique place to eat, a Russian place where i had my first taste of something truly different. I had Bratwurst and sauerkraut. The sauerkraut was something completely foreign to my palate. It tasted like the acetic acid in the vinegar was replaced with battery acid. The bratwurst though was delicious. The more interesting part of this place was that it doubled as an art gallery, something I’d never seen before, and doubt I will ever again, unless I return to the same place. Unique experiences have been occurring on a daily basis during this trip and I’m excited to see what else this trip has in store for me.

Loving Deutschland,

Kyle

EMILY: Just like riding a bike….

2009-06-26T07:21:00.001-07:00

When I found out that we were going to do a bike tour of Potsdam I collapsed into a full fledged panic. A bike tour? On a bike? I hadn´t ridden one in years and despite the old adage that one always remembers, I seriously doubted that I could still ride one. For starters, I had only ever ridden in Florida, which is beyond flat. Also I don’t have the best of balance. But, knowing that we were going to go on one regardless, I journeyed into my basement to find my old bike and give it a whirl before departing for Germany. It was a disaster- an absolute disaster. I had issues with the hills (which don´t look like hills when in a car) and I wobbled so much that I was sure I was going to take a plunge into the sidewalk.

But, when we got to Potsdam and mounted our bikes I quickly seemed to remember everything. Maybe it was the surrounding landscape and the moviestaresque houses, or maybe it was the fact that the wind when riding kept me in a pleasant state, but either way the 13 miles (20km) was highly enjoyable.

(Harry Truman stayed here during the Potsdam Conference)

Potsdam was picturesque in a film sort of way. Its houses were large and constructed in a grand style and the expansive park with bike paths and the occasional castle structure along the way helped add to the feeling of being implanted directly into camera action. And, like most of Germany, history dotted the land. Meetings of great importance had been held here during WWII and spies were exchanged on a large bridge. Everywhere we rode there was another point of interest or interesting site to see.

(Sans souci palace in Potsdam)

Our ride was long, over five hours, coupled with a stop at an eclectic restaurant and some short breaks to wander through an old church or an important building. And, while I´ve never been on a bike tour before, it is something I would do again (but only in cool weather of course). Much more personal then riding on a bus, the tour of Potsdam was perhaps one of the most unique things I have done here.

JENNIFER: Witches, gondolas and a sadistic Herr Coffman

2009-06-24T13:29:00.001-07:00

This past Saturday we had the thrill and the pleasure of being able to go to the Harz Mountains, which contains the Hexentanzplatz or the witches dancing place in English. We took about an hour and a half ride or so to Thale from Magdeburg that morning which was nice, then we got out and trekked up to a gondola station.

I thought I was going to pee my pants when I got into the gondola and started being pulled up a wire hundreds if not thousands of feet up in the air. It really didnt help any that Andrew and Herr Coffman kept telling me that if we died it would be quick or that maybe we would just drop and roll all the way down the mountain.... so for the most part I just kept my eyes shut and tried to focus on something else and not listen to those two.

By the grace of God somehow we made it to the top and as quick as lightning I jumped out of that gondola and was relived to be standing on solid ground. Then we trekked up to the Tanzplatz and took group photos and looked out over railed cliffs at the beautiful mountains and valleys below.

We all got to do our own little thing as far as looking around went for about thirty minutes then we were to meet back at the Tanzplatz so we could start the next phase of our day, but me and Dawn got bored of the waiting and decided to act like kids again. Seeing a playground we ran over and she told me to hop onto what I can only describe as a metal teacup which you sit in but there’s a metal circle in the middle that you turn to spin yourself around with. Well of course I jumped right in and what do you know but a little German boy of no more than 7 or 8 years old decided he wanted to ride to. He hopped in and looked at Dawn who was going to actually push from the outside without me having to spin the circle in the middle and said " Gehen Sie nicht so schnell" Which means Don’t go to fast..... well Dawn just looked at him and smiled and said " Oh well little kid we are going fast!" then she began to spin us around and around .... faster and faster until I thought I was going to permanently go deaf from a German child screaming " NICHT SO SCHNELL ,NICHT SO SCHNELL!!!! " in my ear. After Dawn stopped the metal teacup and I got out feeling very dizzy we all laughed like crazy and wished we had gotten it on camera.

After that incident we went to a bobsledding ride that everyone rode but me which was fine because someone had to watch the bags and Julia which is Klaus´s Jack Russell.... the poor thing whimpered and cried the whole time he was gone and every German that went by looked at me like .... ummm what is that crazy girl doing with that nutso dog.... but it was ok because the ride didn’t last long and I got to had Julia back over to Klaus. Next we headed down this dirt path next to a river that took us to a small cafe which was nice

... but had expensive spaghetti that tasted like it had come out of a Chef Boy R Dee can ( if that’s how you spell it). Then after we stuffed ourselves we head back to the dreaded gondola station and the nightmare started all over again although the going down part wasn’t as bad as going up. Plus sadistic Herr Coffman wasn’t talking about my imminent death on that ride because I rode with Andrew, Klaus and Julia. All in all though it was a very great trip, very laid back and relaxed... which in our condition helped a lot!

KEL: The Birds and the Bees

2009-06-24T13:12:00.001-07:00

If there's one thing I've learned on this trip, it's that Germany is not the United States. Things in Germany are a lot more laid back and relaxed than in the United States, and I've gathered quite a few stories.

For one thing, bikes are the way to go. We went on a bike tour of Potsdam. I was told that the trip would last a few hours (and that the wind speed was 5 miles SW with humidity at 60%). The back story to this epic experience started with the fact that I hadn't been on a bike in almost five years. Kyle kept telling me that this was what the statement "Easy as riding a bike" meant, but I wasn't completely convinced.

After getting to Potsdam and meeting up with our tour guide, we started off. Everything went smoothly. We saw a lot of really expensive houses and learned about a bridge the city was going to make to go around the private property of the landowners who claimed their property extended down to the water. Our tour guide was very informative, but I soon realized that his amazing stories came with a price. The seats on the bikes were not designed for people to sit on. Well, at least, not in my opinion.

The area was beautiful, and we got to eat in a German/Russian Restaurant when it started to rain heavily. The place was hidden in a corner, so no outsider would have been able to find it easily. I love going to places like that here. You get to really see the "real" Germany, and not just the hot tourist attractions. This place has some amazing art on the walls as well. It was very refreshing.

After the rain passed and our stomachs were, we continued on our way. The four hour tour turned into six hours, and the small hills began to look like the Alps towards the end, but by the time we finished, I knew one thing for sure: Lance Armstrong had NOTHING on me. I could take him any day of the week!

Now we're in Magdeburg, and things are more relaxed. My butt and legs have fully recovered from the biking trip, which, as Herr Coffman pointed out, a lot more fun remembering. It was another well-worth-it boot camp experience.

Things here are a lot different than at home. Daily life takes a lot more calculation and punctuality. The train system runs the same every day, and if you don't make the train, you don't make it to class. But outside of the trains, everything is "take your time. Enjoy the moment. Just live." But on Sundays, everything shuts down except the bakery.

This past sunday, I bought an extra roll and Kyle and I went to a bench where we were suddenly surrounded by 30 small birds and a few pigeons. I gave them some of my roll and had them practically eating out of my hands. Even the birds here are more relaxed and calm, unless they're fighting over my bread. As Kyle said, "Now I understand why old men love feeding the birds in parks so much." We made a plan to do it again soon.

Life in Magdeburg has been very nice. It consists of getting up, going to school, and then doing whatever our hearts desire. For me, this consists of going to the bookstore or trying a new place to eat. I'll take random trains in search of interesting new places in the cities or take long walks and explore new buildings, like the old churches or the Hundertwasser house.

I wake up every morning with a smile on my face, excited about getting to spend another day in the beautiful city. Even if it is raining.

EMILY: Gepierct in Deutschland

2009-06-24T13:05:00.001-07:00

The fear I get when stepping into a piercing parlor is second to none. I walk up to the door, terrified, feeling the bile rise in my throat and the trying to keep the feelings of foreboding at bay. And, in all honesty, my mind isn't made up until I'm sitting on the table with a needle through my flesh--when there is no going back. So needless to say when I decided to add another piercing to my collection I was, once again, faced with this insatiable feeling. What made this event all the more scary was the fact that the piercing parlor was German.

Being faced with my constantly changing mind as well as a language barrier (which I've been steadily working on) made what should have been a simple outing into something equivalent to walking on a tightrope above a lake of alligators. Terror is the only word to describe my state of being at the time.

By the time I was called in I don't think I could even utter a sentence in English, let alone running through the process of formulating a German one. All communication at that point on my end was head nods and smiles. My piercer clipped the clamps against my skin, flattening the curve of my ear. Then he proceeded to spray this icy liquid on my ear (something which we should start doing in the US) and the next thing I know there were four punctures in my cartilage with a bar running the length of the top of my ear.

I wasn't off the hook yet, because as I murmured a "Danke" to the septum-pierced man, he turned on me. Cornered I wanted to escape, but there was no where to go. What followed was a long winded lecture on speaking German more in public, to which I answered that I would try. I promised that I would try more. Seemingly satiated by my answer he let me out of the room, extracting another promise to return and visit him, speaking only German.

Despite the trepidation I felt throughout the two hour excursion, I am now the proud owner of an industrial piercing from a German piercing parlor.

ANDREW: Magdeburg—My kind of town

2009-06-22T13:54:00.001-07:00

I like Magdeburg much better than Berlin. Some of the people liked the busy city, and how much stuff there was to do there, but it was a little too busy for me. Magdeburg has enough to do without having to worry about crazy drunks and beggars. This is a cute little town. everything here is within walking distance, and if it isn't, then it has a train system just like Berlin had, only simpler. There are 2 shopping centers with all kinds of food and stores to choose from.

There are also a few parks around here. I haven’t had the time yet to go and enjoy the parks yet, but then again the weather hasn't been the greatest either. I would like to just sit in the park with my puzzle book for a few hours. The school here is nice too. The campus is small enough to navigate without any trouble, and there is alot of green here. I could compare this place to a smaller version of Greenville. The main difference is that everything is within walking distance.

I was kind of disappointed to find out that we are the only school in the program. I was looking forward to meeting new people. Not that the ones I’m with are bad, its just easy to get sick of 7 people in a month. Oh well, I’m here now and I’m gonna have to make do.

AMBER: Living in Magdeburg

2009-06-22T13:49:00.001-07:00

I have learned more German here by just going out in the city and communicating with the German people. Before I left the states I was under the impression that most Germans new at least a good bit of English. Well, I was kind of wrong. I have encountered more Germans that do not know English versus Germans that do. It forces me to communicate in German, if I do not know the word I have to talk around it. Therefore, I have learned a good bit of communication skills and random words and sayings. My German grammar is still pretty bad, but I can get my ideas across. That is the biggest thing that matters. The teacher today said most German students also have bad grammar. So I do not feel so bad!

I love how Magdeburg is a laid back city. It is clean and pretty. I feel safe when I go walking the city, I do not have to worry about creepy people stalking me or being crazy weird! Magdeburg is much different than Berlin. Berlin being the massive city it is, people are always on the go, do not show much patience and there is much more English around. Being that is is a touristy type city. Even though we only stayed 3.5 days in Berlin it shows me the differences in these two cities. Magdeburg not being quiet as big of a tourist city there is not much English. It helps me get more of the ''German experience'' so to speak.

Part of the group took a small side to Quedlinburg Germany.

This town is one of the typical small German cities, with the cute little houses, red tile roofs, and wood in random patterns up the sides. I thought is was amazing to see, because we have not experienced too much of that being in these bigger cities. Even though is was a small town, most of the architecture was connected to each other. You see this more in the bigger cities in America. I found that really cool!

Basically I am a saying that visiting so many different places in Germany is helping me get the full north Germany experience!

KYLE: Berlin continued…

2009-06-22T10:28:00.001-07:00

So, I'll begin where I left off. Techalase. It is a building that was in the former eastern (soviet) part of Berlin and it was abandoned after the wall came down. So eventually groups of artists and musicians claimed it to be theirs and its remained that way ever since. I went to it several different nights and it seemed to be completely different every time I went. Some doors would be open certain nights and not others. Sometimes there was different music and dance floors and such on every different floor and sometimes only one floor had a DJ type deal. The top floor which was the 5th I believe, had an open window side which you could see over a lot of the skyline. Its hard to say which floor in part because in Germany the floor system is different. What we would call the first floor is called the Erdgeschoss which means ground floor. So what we call the second floor is the first floor in Germany. So outside the building there was a big beach bar thing where there was sand on the ground and adjacent from the bar was a stage that would have different bands playing. But back to inside. There are tons of rooms in which there are different types of artists, every different kind of art one could imagine. Sculpture, collage, drawing painting, abstract, impressionistic, anything you could imagine and more so art that could only be seen in this building. The stairwells were filled with graffiti and people playing different instruments. I can't get even close to describing how cool this place was. I went there just about every night we were in Berlin. Unfortunately it wasn't really the type of place one could take a camera so I'll have to be satisfied with my memories of it. The first night we went there we stayed mostly on the floors with music so I had to go back to see all the unique artwork. It's honestly one of the most interesting and unique places I've been in my entire life. I could go on forever trying to explain it but its just ineffable. So on to the next subject.

We went to a smaller German town one night to visit the friends of two of the people we're with because they threw a birthday party for one of the girls that is on the trip. We ate some dinner and then we played an interesting German card game called Werwölfe where each person plays a role, for example there were 3 werewolves some villagers, a fortune teller, a witch, a hunter...etc. The werewolves would be able to chose a person to kill and the game ended when all the villagers were dead or when the wolves had been killed.

Again, a difficult thing for me to describe in writing. It's been an ongoing joke though about the Willigers (villagers) and darth wader. For some reason when Germans are taught English they teach them that in English a v is pronounced as a w. Just yesterday there was a commercial on the tv for an English learning program where a kid came on the screen and said ´Learning English is Wery easy`. So when one of the guys at the party was speaking English he was always say willagers and darth wader and the willage people, which we all found really funny.

So another interesting story would be about my sunglasses. I have a pair of sunglasses that has colored lenses in a sporty kind of frame, sunglasses that would be totally normal in the US. Within the first 48 hours in Germany it was pointed out to me several times and easy to see that they made me stick out like a sore thumb.

So a little about the hostel. It was called the heart of gold hostel and was themed after the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy so there were a lot of 60's/70's type decor and such. We stayed all together in a room with bunk beds and there were floor shared shower and toilet rooms. My favorite part was that in the lobby there was a bar that served Berliner pilsner from the tap, along with other bottled German beers. Outside there was a medium sized courtyard with tables and sun umbrellas. Techalase was only a 3 minute walk away so that was nice as well. The S-bahn (trolley) was also pretty close along with the Hauptbahnhof (the main train station), so traveling around was pretty easy (at least without my heavy bags). I took lots of pictures everywhere we went taking over 1000 in a few short days. Berlin was just an amazing city and im sure one would have to stay there for years to experience all it has to offer. From Berlin we also went on a short trip to Potsdam, which is where I'll begin my next blog.

Until then,

Kyle

KYLE: Getting There and Berlin Part 1

2009-06-22T10:22:00.001-07:00

My trip to Germany and experience with German people and language began even before I left the US. I've been learning about German things since I was very young so this trip is especially interesting for me. My first time speaking German with a native German didn't take very long, I met two girls from Germany during our layover in Newark, NJ. I sat and had my last American meal (chicken fingers and fries) and had my first conversation with the two girls. One spoke very good English and the other not so much, so a mixed conversation in German and English took place. One of the girls was going to Texas to see her boyfriend (why she spoke such good English) and the other was going to Mexico City. At first I was definitely worried about my German, as I haven't had much experience speaking with native speakers but she understood what I was saying and it would sometimes require English clarification and she would then explain to her friend what I was saying. The girl going to visit her boyfriend had to catch an earlier flight so she left and it was just me and a German that didn't speak much English. At first it was very difficult for me to remember certain words so our conversation was very limited. It made me a little worried that I would struggle when I got to Germany but I would soon find out that wouldn't be so true. So I said my goodbyes to her and boarded our flight to Tegel airport in Berlin. Our plane was nice and had touchscreen entertainment on the seatbacks with games, shows, and movies, so I was well occupied during the flight. So my sleepless venture began with the flight, as its nearly impossible for me to sleep on planes with so little space.

Once the sun had come up, I was able to view some of the European landscape and it looked surprisingly familiar. Once we arrived in the airport my excitement to experience Germany became overwhelming. After picking up our bags I went to exchange money and was surprised the rate was so high, around 1.50. When I received my money it was somewhat strange to think about how much value we give pieces of paper and how Euros at first seem like monopoly money or something. So after we exchanged our money we began our journey to the youth hostel. I was foolish for packing a bag without wheels because after taking a bus and a trolley I had a long trek with about 100 pounds of baggage to carry. By the time we got to the hostel I was dripping with sweat and was exhausted from not sleeping and carrying half my body weight in bags 5 or 6 blocks. Almost immediately after we got to the hostel we went out into the city and went to several different places. First we went to the Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate) and it was incredible to be there. My first impression of the city was that it was very similar to New York or a large American city. At the gate there were lots of people dressed up, face painted and in pose similar to places in New York, and there was a group of Germans doing a break dance show.

Then we went to the Reichstag (the German parliament building) which was interesting because the top of it has a large mirrored structure that was on the front of one of our German books and I never thought I would have the chance to see it in person.

After that we went to have our first German meal (which was actually Turkish). There are lots of stands around Germany that are Döners which offer a selection of cheap on the go type food. So I ate a Döner Kebab which was like a pita pocket with gyro type meat, it was good. Needless to say I'd already bought 3 or 4 German beers at random stores and enjoyed them throughout our tour of the city. It was interesting to immediately notice that Germans are very stringent on having exact change for purchases. They'll give you change but they sort of roll their eyes about it, and occasionally you have to round up. So after seeing the city we returned to the hostel for sleep (at least everyone else). I met a few guys from Michigan and Texas so we went out with one of the workers at our hostel to a place called Techalase. Techalase and the rest of the Berlin trip requires much more explanation so that’s it for this blog. Hopefully its understandable and forgive my choppiness there just is so much that's happened and so much to tell its hard to organize my thoughts, and those of you who know me well, know that I hate writing because its impossible for written words to encompass all that is in my mind.

So until next time,

Kyle

DAWN: On walking….

2009-06-21T08:28:00.001-07:00

On the plane to Berlin I thought I’d be brilliantly clever and take some Tylenol PM to help me sleep *disclaimer: this blog doesn’t endorse or condone taking drugs in order to sleep at all but I was really going to be tired* Unfortunately even the best plans go awry and I arrived in Berlin with about 15 minutes total sleep to cover the past like 24 hours. Normally for a college student that’s not a problem at all but I’m one of those college students that really enjoys sleep and then we also had to jump right off the plane and start going. If we’d slept it would’ve screwed up the sleep patterns so it was best to just start hitting the pavement of Germany hard core style.

(At the Berlin Wall)

While my feet, knees, and mind rebelled severely against all the walking, it was totally worth it. Berlin has some beautiful buildings and it was amazing to see them all. When we got to Berlin all the people running around speaking German and being all….well, German… was a little bit of a shock. But since that day I’ve decided I thoroughly love everything about this country. Being here has made me understand how unhealthy a lot of American lifestyles are (definitely including my own). While German food is not necessarily the most health conscious (what with the bratwursts and whatnot) they definitely make up for their food by the amount of walking and biking they do. Everyone walks and bikes…everywhere. I think I made a comment to Herr Coffman that, “In the next war that Germany is in they’re probably going to ride their bikes into battle instead of tanks because it’s more friendly for the environment.”

So the walking tour of Berlin set the tone for the rest of our trip and got me prepared for what the rest of the trip was going to be like. Now I actually *gasp* don’t mind walking and quite enjoy it. Although I wouldn’t go crazy with that and say I’m going to give up on my car when I get back to America because quite frankly in South Carolina its madness to say, “Oh I’m going to walk to the mall.” Especially when the mall is twenty miles away and uphill most of the way. But while here in Germany walking to the mall isn’t a big deal and it’s quite enjoyable.

Bis Spaeter,

Dawn

ANDREW: The car guy at VW

2009-06-20T13:26:00.001-07:00

This blog is going to be about my trip to the Autostadt in Wolfsburg. It felt like the earliest we had ever woken up, but i was so excited i didn't care. I think i was the most excited about this trip. No one else is as interested in cars as I am. The train ride there was pretty hectic with all of the little kids that got onto the same train as us. I was so happy to get off of the train, thinking it was time to tour the Volkswagen factory. However, i was wrong. We still had an hour before the tour started. And after listening to the heated politics discussion between Herr Coffman and Jennifer I was more than ready for that tour.

The tour was awesome. We got to see the production of the Golf from start to finish. everything from stamping sheet metal to painting. They took my camera from me at first though, so sorry, no pictures. Oh, and our tour guide looked like the monopoly guy, without the monocle. When we were done with that we got to go to the Autostadt. It is a huge showroom of the different models of cars that VW makes\owns. The first one we went to was the Skoda Pavilion. Amber and i got yelled at here, because we opened the hood to their racing car. But not before i got a few pictures ;) We then went around and saw other cars like the Audi R8, the Lamborghini Diablo, and a few older Porsches. I even bought a Porsche book that i could only find for 60 bucks in America. I got it for just 20 Euros. On the trip home we took this God awful placement test that basically did nothing, since our class inst big enough to split up. After that was done i just put my headphones back on and enjoyed my train ride back home, well back to the Hostel. Not home yet. Still got a good little while before that happens

AMBER: Impressions so far

2009-06-20T13:21:00.001-07:00

Staying in Germany has taught me so much about different world culture. I find it so amazing to see architecture from a country that is many thousands of years old! America is such a young country in comparison. America does not have anything like I have seen here in Germany. I enjoy seeing a how the people that live here are so much more involved with being outside and fit. People here ride a lot of bikes and walk everyday to where they are going. The food here is more whole foods and not at processed as American foods. I do not see as much trash on the ground, and recycling is a normal thing here in Germany.

I am learning a lot as far as the language goes, also. Just being here and listening to the Germans speak to each other. I never realized how different the pronunciations were than what I was speaking. I sound like such a crazy American when I attempt to speak German. However, the Germans here are very good with helping us with our words and grammatical structure. I absolutely love it.

I find it absolutely amazing that the Germans are our tutors and tour guides. They take us to all the good stuff and cut out the crap. Even though I almost killed myself on the bike tour of Potsdam, that is way more than most Americans can say for themselves.

The last night I was in Berlin, I went out with Kyle to one of the German club areas. It was really cool seeing that side of the German night life. There were street artist selling their art for super cheap. I ended up purchasing some of it. The art they produced was nothing like I had seen in America. The music played was much different than I have heard in America, also. It was just a great experience that I can chalk up in the memory book.

Germany is amazing so far!

JENNIFER: My Birthday in Berlin

2009-06-20T13:18:00.001-07:00

I recently just had my birthday on June 14th, which was while we were in Dresden after we had reached Magdeburg, which was totally amazing to be in Dresden on my birthday but since I have already been to Germany once before I have German friends who live not far from Berlin. My friends wanted to meet up somewhere so that we could hang out but wouldn't let me in on the where or when part. So the second day that we were in Berlin we hopped on a train at around 6 pm and headed out to the middle of nowhere. When we finally reached out destination and I exited the train there were my two best German friends standing around the corner waiting on me! My friend Sophia was the first to hug me, actually I think that she hugged me twice, and they were the kind of hugs that really say I missed you! Next came a hug from my friend Sara, then we headed off to a bus station and when I tried to find out exactly where we were going they were like ummm we can't tell you that. So after a 10 minute or so bus ride we got off and started walking down a random street until we came upon what looked like a house and entered it. I of course had worn flats and didn't think of wearing socks with them because I didn't realize that we were going to a house because Germans always take off there shoes and leave them at the door when they enter a house sooo I had to borrow a pair of very comfortable white cotton bed slippers. Then we trekked upstairs and into a room with multiple windows and lots of decorations and poppers going off in my face and people yelling Happy Birthday!

We had steak and bratwurst to eat along with macaroni salad and potato salad which was all very tasty.

Following all of that they had made me two cakes, which were delicious but huge! Then I opened presents which I thought was very sweet and thoughtful. Sara had actually gotten a picture of me from the last time that I was in Germany and had drawn it and it was absolutely gorgeous! After the gift opening we all sat down to a game of Werewolves which was totally fun and played in the dark with candles lit around a table. It was a game against the Werewolves and the "Willigers" as to who would kill the other the fastest. After we tired of that game we started playing of guess what's written on a piece of toilet paper that is taped to my head !!

It was hilarious! Before we could finish that game however we decided that we'd better get back to the train station so as to not miss our one and only train back into Berlin! As we reached the train station everyone hugged everyone else and said their goodbyes. So all in all it was a great night for everyone I believe, and a night I will never forget, so the moral of this blog is.... make great German friends like me!!!

EMILY: Thoughts on a Jewish cemetery

2009-06-20T13:11:00.001-07:00

Perhaps what stirred me the most, throughout the duration of the trip thus far, was the old Jewish quarter of Berlin. The reconstructed synagogue and the cemetery seemed as though they rippled with what was, as well as what is. They radiated a history that is stronger than anything in the United States, and yet, by default, part of it.

Maybe it's because my family has deep Jewish roots, though I don't call myself Jewish and was never raised as such, or maybe it was because history has a way of digging its talons into me, but either way I felt that if I closed my eyes I might just hear the silent sobbing of family members or the shattering glass during Krystallnacht-- The night of broken glass. And for that very reason I didn't close my eyes, didn't succumb to the pull of history around me. I merely observed, soaking it in without becoming apart of it.

While the synagogue reflected gold and intricate designs and a 'look at me' attitude, the cemetery maintained a modest air, hiding itself from prying eyes. The yarmulkes provided for male visitors, be they Jewish or not, and the well maintained gravesites all highlighted the mourning which permeated the area. Even the single tombstone, for a certain Herr Mendelsohn, cracked and withering, had a sort of resigned grace. And the stones placed on its top, to show respect, seemed to breathe a collective sigh, as if to say, "Thank you. You remembered." In perfect juxtaposition the two structures, the temple and the graveyard, brought their own personal histories, and the histories of thousands of people, full circle.

Those two places, seemingly inconspicuous in the whole scheme of things, in the whole scheme of Berlin and the remnants of WWII, left such a lasting impression on me that I don't think I will be able to forget them for a very long time to come. And, while the other ruins--the Berlin Wall, the various bombed out churches and darkened stone--grasped and clawed their way into my understanding, they remained a mere shadow to the hypnotism of the old Jewish remnants.

KEL: Adventures in Berlin

2009-06-20T13:05:00.001-07:00

Berlin is one of those experiences that I would imagine would be a lot like boot camp. I've never been to boot camp, but I have been told that while you're there, it hurts physically but teaches you a lot about teamwork, a positive attitude, and mental perseverance. Then, after it's done, you feel like you've accomplished something that few people will get to experience in their life time.

When we got here after being up for nearly 24 hours, we immediately started to look at the city. We saw a lot of architecture that I think may have been as old as God, as well as learned a lot about the history. I'll be perfectly honest here, I'm jealous of this country for the amount of history that's mixed in everything they have and everything they do. Everywhere we went, we were being told stories of Martin Luther, the war, and reconstruction. You can't help but respect the people and the places.

The Hostel that we stayed in had a seven person room, which everyone on the trip stayed in together. I'm glad we got that experience because it forced us to get to know each other. It was very close living quarters with all of our luggage in a small room that was maybe the size of two dorm rooms in the average college. Everyone looked out for one another. We made sure that everyone was ready to go at the right time. We worked as a team, and that important when you're working on seeing the capital of a country.

After getting acquainted with the city, we were able to strike out on our own some. My parents both told me repeatedly to go to the zoo, so the last day we were there, I decided I would go on the way back to the hostel from part of the infamous Berlin visit. When everyone got off the train to switch to the next one, I stayed on the train to take it three stops up to make a different connection that would take me back to the zoo. The train got to the second of the three stops before breaking down. The train that followed it broke down as well, and no other trains were coming through that station that was in the middle of no where.

I stood on the platform, staring at the broken train and wondering what I was going to do. I was very alone, and still not very comfortable with my ability to speak German. I felt a little lost, but I took a deep breath and read the train map four times before heading back in the direction I had come from to catch a different train. It took 45 minutes, but I finally made it to the zoo after making three connections across the city By the time I got to the Zoo, it was closed, but the adventure on my own is one of the experiences I'm glad I was able to get.

We had day after day of walking and bike riding that made my legs scream for rest more than anything else I have done before in my life, but looking back on the experience, I know for an absolute FACT that I would never do it any different. I got to see sights that most people will only see in textbooks, and that is something I will never forget.

USC UPSTATE STUDENTS HIT GERMANY!

2009-06-20T13:01:00.001-07:00

Very few students get or take the opportunity to study abroad. It really takes a special student to chose to spend their hard earned money (or their parents’ hard earned money) on a study trip to another country. 7 such students from USC Upstate have chosen to experience what so many don’t—a month long study abroad trip to Magdeburg Germany (from June 9- July 3).

The following will be blog entries by each of the individual students studying in Magdeburg. They will be telling you about their study abroad experience: the different cities we visit, the experience of living in another country, personal tales, triumphs, hardships and basically anything they wish.

We hope you enjoy what these 7 very brave and excited students have to say. But first let me introduced them.

This is KYLE:

Kyle is a member of the USC Upstate Track and Field team. He likes to argue with me about the validity of the assignments I give him. But he’s ultiimately a team player who is game for anything. He was so excited when we arrived in Berlin that he only slept 4 hours in three days.

This is JENNIFER:

Jennifer has been to Germany before. Her friends in Berlin invited us over to celebrate her birthday with them. It was a wonderful experience. Jennifer’s German accent is the bomb.

This is DAWN

Dawn seems quiet, but she’s not. She’s very good at German and has been practicing it quite a bit since she’s been here. She used to sell pretzels in the mall, which for some reason fascinates me.

This is ANDREW:

Andrew’s all about cars. Mostly Porsches. Ironically he fell asleep during the VW factory tour. But so did I. The car they drove us around in was extremely soothing.

This is AMBER:

Check out the pose! Amber has 5 different versions of this same outfit. Pink and black and stripes. While possibly the most inexperienced of the German students as far as language is concerned, I totally heard her work a problem out with the director of the youth hostel in German. Go Amber!

This is EMILY:

I’m completely convinced that Emily’s interest in German began with KMFDM and Rammstein. She’s a quiet one, but I’m sure if I got her in some German industrial music club her head would spin around and she’d start spitting fire.

This is KEL:

Kel has a totally infectious laugh. And she’s game for anything. Any new experience she’s up for it. But she wants to know how long it’s going to take to get there, which streets to turn on, how long it’s going to last and what the wind speed and humidity will be once you get there.

And finally this is ME:

For the life of me, I cannot fathom why all these parents have trusted me with their children.

So enough from me. Let’s hear from the students. We hope you enjoy…