My Year in Deutschland: What I've been up to

This post is a bit long, but you will all get to know some of the things I've been doing. Hopefully that makes up for not posting last week.

I started back at school a few weeks ago after three weeks off with a new rejuvenation to participate in class more, actually do some homework, and try to not let my mind wander in class. I am comfortable doing this now because I now feel more confident since my German has improved. Now that I have at least a basic understanding, I know (from experience) that if I apply myself at school, my German will get even better faster.

The past couple weeks I've had quite a few days off because the 12th grade have had these practice exams for the Abitur in May. I have used these days off to overall relax, read, finish up all my college applications, watch TV/movies, and generally just getting things done that I need to do. In my defense of all the TV, it really helps my German listening comprehension. I also really enjoy going on bike rides.

Earlier in the week, I got a letter in the mail from the representative in the Bundestag (Germany's national government) for the area where I live. It was inviting me to meet with him at the Bundestag, get a tour of the Bundestag, and eat lunch there. I am very excited, and my host mom and I called and made the appointment for late January. Meeting with your representative is just one of the many perks of the CBYX scholarship I'm here with, besides studying abroad in Germany for free, of course.

On Wednesday, I got my hair cut in the morning (I only got a few inches cut off), then I went to my friend's house. She cooked me this 100% natural and 100% Vietnamese dish called Pho. It's basically noodles with some chicken, coriander, onions, and green onions. Then you put this liquidity soup over it, and it was delectable. I even ate it the proper way with chopsticks and a spoon. We hung out for the day, and we also went into this Russian store. It's a small store in the main plaza that sells food and little gifts and trinkets. We got some chocolate, and it was quite yummy.

Last Thursday, my host family and I went on a cultural outing in Berlin to see the Blue Man Group perform. It's basically these three men who are painted blue who don't speak and they do different pranks and activities. They also play the all these different types of drums. Very messy and loud, but it was seriously so great. It was super funny and wildly entertaining.

Saturday I spent the day in Berlin. I walked from central station to the Bundestag, Branderburger Tor, and the Holocaust Memorial to get some photos (I've already visited these places, I just wanted to snap some pictures). I continued on my way to Potsdamer Platz to meet up with my area representative from my program and another exchange student who lives in Berlin. Afterwards, I took the metro to Checkpoint Charlie and then walked to a museum called "Topographie des Terrors" (I assume you can all figure out what that means). It was a museum about the SS, the police, and their institutions before and during WWII and their crimes throughout Europe. Where the museum stands was actually the headquarters of the Secret State Police, Reich SS Leadership and Security Service of the SS, and after 1939, it became the Reich Security Main Office. In layman's terms, it was "Terror and Persecution HQ of Nazi Germany." It was very interesting and I definitely learned things that I didn't know before. The best part; however, was that I was alone because if there is one thing I truly despise, it is going to museums in a group. Someone is always waiting on someone and it is virtually impossible for people to go through the museum at the same pace. Unless said museum is about Art, then I'm that person who is taking her sweet time and reading everything. Naturally, I feel guilty for being slow, but I also don't want to feel rushed. Moral of the story, this is the second time I've been to a museum alone (well, the first time I ~half~ consciously separated myself from the group, so not sure if that counts), I don't know how I'll ever be able to enjoy museums in a group. Sorry for that digression. Anyways, I wondered around the city, successfully mastered the metro station, and then went back to Potsdamer Platz where I met up with my host sister (she had been in Berlin for the past few days for a MUN conference), and we took the train home. I had a wonderful and eventful day by myself, where I was able to tour and explore the city at my leisure.

On Friday, I leave for a week long trip to Turkey that I have mentioned in previous posts. It is a joint research project between Turkey and Germany on the enviroment and our topic is Wind Energy. I only signed up because it was a cheap trip to Turkey, but there is a lot of research and work involved. I'm nervous not only because of the workload and seriousness of the project, but because the enviroment, energy sources, and all that science stuff are all topics I know very little about and to be frank, have low interest levels in (sorry Germans, please don't be offended by my lack of passion for the enviroment). Regardless of all that, I know I'll have a great time, visit one of the largest cities in Turkey, and learn some of the Turkish culture by living with a host family. I'll do this all while learning something about a topic I had little previous knowledge in, a wonderful added bonus.

Because I will be gone next week, there won't be a blog post on next Monday.

Please enjoy these photos.

Shannon