The First Weeks of School, Delightful Trips, and an Enchanting Toddler

Happy Almost-Halloween from Germany!

These last two weeks have been my first two weeks of class, so I have certainly been busy! My schedule stayed just as I thought it would be, except I had to drop one class that couldn’t give me a grade and add American History.

My favorite class so far is the Social and Cultural studies: North America class. On the first day, we watched the “welcome to America” video that is played at airports and such. It was pretty funny to see the way America presented itself…the video was so “American” I could see my classmates physically choking on all the American-ness. Our professor was really excited to learn that I was from Alaska, because she’s from New York!  It’s fun to compare things when we’re literally from opposite sides of the country. There was a scene of brown bear catching fish, which might’ve been meant to represent Alaska, and my heart tugged a little at the scene. When images of snow-covered trees appeared, I felt a twinge of sadness. Our professor asked if I felt like Alaska was well-represented. I shrugged and said some things were super American (like cheerleaders and tractors) and that Alaska had those too, and that the two nature scenes were stereotypically Alaskan. I guess I’ve just always identified more with being an “Alaskan” than being an “American”, but this class has made me realize that I do relate with some “American” ideals and attitudes. Part of the class’ aim is to define what it means to be an American, and I’m enjoying that. I also have realized that I know very little about my own country, compared to the other students! I’ve never been interested in politics or anything so I’ve never taken the time to care, usually I just know my opinions on issues and call it good, but I’m realizing that’s not good enough! After the last election I told myself I would inform myself, and now I really wish I had. I’m learning a lot in this class and the teacher always asks my opinions about things. Last week we were talking about the past elections, so of course Sarah Palin came up…oh Alaska.

Now that I think about it, it’s hard to pick a favorite class! I LOVE my American Gothic literature class! I love the style and the elements of this literature. But at the same time, my creative writing is really engaging and our teacher has challenged us to write every day. I love writing, so that class is right up my alley and the “work” for the class feels recreational!

Last week, which was my first week, my friend from Alaska came to visit me! Morgan was travelling through Europe and stayed with me for about five days, it was so good to have her and be with someone who understands little things, like if I talked about a mile or a foot, haha! Unfortunately she was sick and I had school, but Felix was also with me last week so at least she wasn’t home alone. They got a mini-tour of Bielefeld by my flatmate Kari, too! Felix had come because on Wednesday, the biggest indoor party in Germany was taking place…at our university! There were something like 10,000 people there, it was absolutely nuts! The whole main hall of the university was packed, with two dance floors on opposite ends. After losing each other a few times, we had a big group of us exchange students dancing and having a good time! I know for sure that I will never want to be around 10,000 crazy college students again but it was a good experience.

Westend Party!

When I dropped Morgan off, I gave her a hug and we promised to keep each other updated. As she turned and walked away, looking like a giant beetle with her bright green backpacking pack, she was approached by a man who was handing out some sort of papers. I saw in her a little bit of myself a month ago: her look of apologetic confusion, the way she took a step back and shook her head to indicate she didn’t know German. I still do that, too! But it’s encouraging that more and more often I understand what’s going on around me. Even if they’re just asking for money. :)

As I was coming back from the train station last Friday after dropping Morgan off, I stepped on the tram and took a seat near a woman and her three daughters. The youngest of her daughters, just a toddler, immediately stumbled over to me. She grasped my knee in both of her small hands, wide blue eyes looking intently into mine, and started talking to me with the urgency small children have when their opinion must be heard. It was baby-garble-German, of course, but I was enchanted by her nonetheless and laughed with the small girl. Her mother was embarrassed and apologized, proceeding to tell her daughter “No no, don’t bother the woman, you hang on to the seat!”. I smiled and told her it was no problem. She smiled back, relieved. The daughter laughed at her, finding humor in her mother’s kind gentle chiding. Across the seat from us the only other person on the train, an old man with a rosary in his hand, was smiling too, quietly amused by our exchange. I’m not sure why, but I was really struck by this moment. I was so encouraged by it- the woman had spoken to me and her child in German, and I’d understood. I’d been able to reply, if very simply. The young girl’s openness touched me; she had come right over to me, a stranger, without fear, grabbed me, and talked to me as if it was the most natural thing in the world, as if I could understand her. I was a little jealous too, that this child could form sentences more naturally in German than I could! Everything about the moment has stayed with me for some reason: the girl, the mother, the old man with the rosary. I think what made it so special was that I didn’t feel like a stranger. The four of us, the daughter, the young mother, the old man, and I, had all laughed together and marveled at the girl’s gregariousness. I think we were all inspired by her, too. Part of the reason I’m on exchange is because I hope to be more like her. I hope to be more like the German toddler: reaching out and touching others, sharing with them without inhibition.

After the first week of school, we spent our Saturday in Düsseldorf, the capital of our state. We took an early train that was PACKED with soccer fans. Apparently there was a game that weekend and one of the teams in our region, Dortmund, was playing. It was only about 9 am but people were drinking and the morale was high! We had to stand for the first hour of the journey, but after the soccer fans got off, we had a much more comfortable.  It was a wonderful warm day (I was walking around in a t-shirt for a large part of it!). Although I wasn’t impressed by the city at first, as soon as we got away from the modern buildings and industrial part of the city it became a different place. The city is built on the large Rhine River, which lends to its beauty. Along the river were numerous cafes and outdoor biergartens, and on such a beautiful day, the tables were packed as people enjoyed watching the river. A giant Ferris wheel overlooked this part of the city, and a regal church rivaled its height. As we looked for somewhere to eat and rest (we’d already walked a long ways from the other side of town) we turned onto a street where several bars and sportsbars had outdoor tables. The street was crowded with soccer fans on game day, it was so funny to see! It was like the equivalent of Sunday Night Football. Düsseldorf turned out to be spectacularly pretty, with beautiful bridges and fountains. The more we saw, the prettier it became! We just spend the first part of the day in the wrong part of the city. On the way home, I was really tired and looking forward to the two-hour nap. However, the soccer fans came BACK onto the train halfway through…as we pulled up to the station and saw the mob of jerseys and scarves, collective groans were heard from people on the train. They were a rowdy crowd- even more drunk than before, POUNDING the tops of the train and singing their anthem…the usually placid German train scene had turned crazy in the wake of a soccer victory. People were standing in the aisles and in the doorways, it was so packed! A really nice university student from a neighboring town was standing by us and wasn’t drunk like his comrades, so he was more interesting to talk to than the drunk guy who told my friend “Your nose is true…” We were relieved when they got off the train and we left the remainder behind in Bielefeld. They were really obnoxious, but I was amused and it made me excited to go to a professional soccer game here!!

Düseldorf was actually very beautiful.

Packed on game day!

Enjoyed Düsseldorf with these wonderful friends :)

This week was another week of classes, and this week we did more than in our first introductory classes. I could tell you all about the details of every class, but I think you can use your imagination. I don’t have any classes on Tuesdays, which is random but a nice break in the week. I WILL say that if you could see the SUPER STEEP stairs in the lecture hall, you would give me a standing ovation for not tripping and tumbling to my death. Seriously these stairs are at an outrageous angle that shouldn’t be allowed in public places. On Friday we had a Halloween party that the International Office arranged for us. Everyone was supposed to bring a dish from their country, so I made chocolate chip cookies! So many people found me and told me how much they loved them, which made me really happy! Also, tasting everyone else’s food was my favorite part of the night. I had been bummed earlier in the week because I missed TWO awesome tours because of classes (of the Sparrenburg Tower and a nearby brewery…I mean come on!!) so I was really glad to be back with everyone again.

The highlight of my week was yesterday (Saturday). It was another one of these beautiful fall days we’ve been having here, sunny and in the upper 50’s or so!! I can’t get over this weather, the other day I just sat in the park and marveled at this beautiful season that I never have enough time with in Alaska. ANYWAYS, it was a beautiful day and my flatmates and I didn’t want to stay inside! After buying the most useful and random things at a Euro-shop in Bielefeld (everything only costs a few Euros…like a dollar store. Mom you would love it J ) we decided to take a train to the nearby town of Rheda-Wiedenbrück. These random train-takings are fun because it’s different and free to go there!! It’s my favorite thing to do here. 

We knew it was a small town, but when we got there, it seemed to be a GHOST town! It was glorious Saturday afternoon and there was nobody in sight! This was strange because Bielefeld was bustling when we left. As we walked through more of the town, we still didn’t see anyone! It was really uncanny. We stopped in front of the Rathaus, which was very plain and modern-looking, and were musing over the emptiness of the place when the church across the street started ringing its bells. Suddenly, a bride and groom swept out of the doorway and a large crowd spilled out the sides behind them. We laughed, thinking, “Okay, but the whole town can’t fit in a church?!” The church bells continued to ring as we made our way through the old part of the town. The old part, with its traditional German houses, was so quaint and was like walking through the past. I’ve seen many of these old German houses but I still love them and their age. We walked through the neighborhood and across a small square without seeing many people. It was such a sleepy little town! We came across these gardens, however, where many people were spending the day. It was a beautiful area of all kinds of bushes, hedges, trees, flowers, and fountains that were enchanting in fall’s colors. The late afternoon sunlight made the colors bold and fiery, a stark contrast to the plants that were still green. Many people were sitting on the numerous benches. I could definitely have spent a whole day just sitting there. Moving out of the gardens, we found the small Schloss (castle). It was in a beautiful area with a small stream running around it and trees with drapey branches swinging in the slight breeze, brushing the top of the water. As we were leaving, the bride and groom from earlier were walking from the gardens to the castle too, followed by a photographer and her assistant. What a beautiful setting and day for wedding pictures!!

Rheda-Wiedenbrück is actually the area of two small neighboring towns, Rheda and Wiedenbrück, and we had been in Rheda so we decided to take the “nature trail” to Wiedenbrück. The trail was really popular with cyclists on such a beautiful day. Along the way, we found an adorable biergarten. Actually, we found its petting zoo first! The goats in the pen were hilarious and one jumped RIGHT up on the fence to stick its face next to mine! I felt a little like a child, delighted by something as silly as goats, but I will happily admit I’m a child when it comes to animals ( I was walking with Felix in Hannover when I was there for Oktoberfest and a frog jumped in front of us, like a normal-sized frog and not like the small ones I’ve seen in Alaska, and I basically freaked out and squatted down to watch it). There was a really fat pig too, who was SO adorable and was shuffling through the mud with her nose, searching for something and wagging her tail. Kari and I went into the petting zoo (it was free and completely unsupervised) and played with the animals before finally making our way to the actual biergarten, although it was really hard to get out when the goats didn’t want to get more than four inches from us.

The biergarten was a little kiosk selling food and beer amid this really pretty garden area. There was a playground and a little pond with boats shaped like barrels to paddle around in. It was a really cute place to rest, and I’m always in the mood for currywurst for lunch!

Can I live in this adorable house?

And live on a street like this?

In the gardens, so many colors!

The pretty gardens with the church in the background

Beauty surrounding the castle! A little stream running around it

Small Schloss

Well HELLO there!

Pleading goat expression...

CUTE PIG :''')

Kari took this picture of me and the goats! :)

As we walked around the rest of the biergarten and made to leave, the sun began to set. Suddenly, brilliant orange and fiery coral colors filled the skies behind the trees and reflected off the small pond. The leaves on the ground and still on the trees were bathed in this surreal light. With the sun setting and darkness approaching, we made our way back to the nature trail and continued on to Wiedenbrück. Along the way, it started to rain for a few brief moments, catching us by surprise. When we looked up, however, a full rainbow stood in the sky, bathed by the glorious sunset. It was truly a beautiful day. A large playground stood at the end of the nature path where many parents and children were spending the last hour of daylight. It was a perfect playground, with a giant climbing rope construction in the middle! It was the kind of playground I would’ve loved as a child, to crawl all over and play Pokemon on. The clouds in the distance were pink and an incredible shining orange color that I don’t really know how to describe besides saying that it reminded me that our God is an awesome creator.

The Biergarten

Cute Biergarten!

Incredible sunset

Sunset behind the biergarten

A rainbow and sunset colors! 

At the playground

Epic playground

Since night was falling, we agreed to come back to Wiedenbrück another day. When we found a bus station, we saw that we’d just barely missed the last bus, and that the next was coming in an hour.  We knew we could walk back to the train station in less than an hour, so our tired foursome started the trek back.

Even the train station is adorable, looks like a pleasant old grandmother's mansion that smells like freshly baked cookies. 

Sitting on the train on the way home, it felt so good to sit and revel in my awe at the way the day had turned out. With the gardens, the castle, the petting zoo and spectacular sunset with a smaller group than previous day trips, I think this day was one of my favorite trips, rivaling Detmold. I think the town was small because it’s not so tourist-y, but I think it was unexpectedly beautiful, more beautiful than the larger towns in our region. This is another place I’d love to come back to.

Halloween is next week, and although it’s a largely American holiday, my friends still want me to show them how to carve pumpkins! We don’t have school on the first, which in my mind makes me think what a perfect night for trick or treating! Which of course doesn’t exist here.

We have been having random cloudbursts at the end of the day here, so that at night I suddenly hear rain pounding on my window. It is oddly very comforting and reminds me of home, but mostly of Juneau (sporadic torrential downpours are kind of Juneau’s “thing”). I am so content being inside while listening to a downpour and whistling wind.  It is STILL fall here! Loving this season. Happy Halloween!

In German, They Spell October With a K, and I Think That's Wonderful. Oktober.

Hallo friends!

I’d like to share a quote that I found the other day that I have fallen in love with: “I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”

 I haven’t read or seen the book/movie this quote comes from (Anne of Green Gables apparently...but SOME of you already know that) but I have found it to be so true. We’re only 12 days into October here, but I am loving this month. Actually, I think I’m really just enjoying the fact that fall is lasting for more than a week or two! The weather is cooling down, but not plummeting as it tends to do in Alaska (I’m looking at you, Palmer). In the morning, the air is crisp and there are more and more puddles of leaves underneath the trees every day. I love it because it’s slooooow-fall isn’t here and gone! The colors are slowly changing, the leaves are falling, the wind is blowing and I am enjoying the gradual transition. Someone actually asked me today (Wednesday) if this is nice weather to me, and I replied so enthusiastically and joyously that I think I may have weirded them out a little bit.

Friend: “Is this nice weather to you?”

Brittni: “YEAH!  *Gush gush gush gush about fall*  I LOVE THIS SEASON!”

Friend: “Oooookay keep your pants on, it’s 8am.”

They didn’t actually say that but it’s probably accurate. And now my gushing continues to all of you. I’m definitely a summer person but I have always loved fall too.

A wonderful tree that is right outside our dorm. Green, Red, Yellow...fall colors.

The view from my window.

Walking to class...IT'S FALLLLLLLLLLLL

It has been a couple weeks since I last posted, but to give you a play-by-play of each day of every week would be really exhausting for all of us. I ended the last post at the beginning of my second week here, and as of today I’ve been in Germany for a month!

One kind of exciting thing I’ve done in the last two weeks is finally bake “American” cookies! This was quite the accomplishment. Finding the ingredients in the supermarket wasn’t easy, but I had just learned the verb “to bake” the day before so I found the right aisle after some searching. The ingredients weren’t really the same either- the brown sugar I bought was basically white granulated sugar that was brown…which wasn’t really what I wanted for chewy, soft cookies. I played with the recipe until I was convinced the cookies wouldn’t be dry, and they turned out pretty good! My friends here liked them anyways. Cookies and brownies are really “American” to them, so they were excited that I baked them. I’m guessing that my flatmates liked them too because they didn’t last long.

 As I’ve said before, during the week, we have German class from 8:30-12 every day. My German  is slowly but surely coming along, and our class is MUCH better than it was in the first week. Oxana has stopped rolling her eyes at us (although she hasn’t stopped batting her eyes at some of the boys in the class). I understand most of what I read and a lot of what is spoken to me (depending on the vocabulary used…I’m sure I would be right at home in an elementary school classroom) but when I speak, I have to put a lot of thought into my sentences and the sentence structure.  But my vocabulary is building every day, and I think it really helps that I have no choice but to listen to German spoken around me all day long! When I think about it, we’ve really learned a lot in the last month. This week (the week of the 7^th) is our last week, and I can’t believe it! Some people don’t really like our teacher, Oxana, but I think she’s kind of funny, and she isn’t a bad teacher. She’s always very interested in our lives, maybe too interested, but all in all I like her. Our teaching assistant Yu Fu, however, is another story. Every time she teaches, even for a short amount of time, I have to look around the class to make sure I’m not the only one who feels like I’ve somehow been slipped a crazy pill. Sometimes I really can’t tell if she’s speaking Chinese, German, or English! When she speaks German, it sounds like garble to me: monotonous chatter. She speaks German with a very Chinese accent, if you can imagine that. You should ask me to imitate her when I get back. She’s very accommodating and nice! But when she teaches a lesson and asks if we understand, we all kind of look at each other and then at her with really pained expressions and say “Wie bitte?” (literally “how, please?”, like “come again?”).  Usually Oxana comes back and re-teaches the lesson, like on the day Yu Fu was teaching us to talk in the past tense (you can imagine how well that went).  Our class on Wednesday  was particularly hilarious. After having a small lesson from Yu Fu, Oxana was teaching us how to talk about what we want to do/be in the future. She asked Juan if he wants to get married. He said maybe, to which she replied, “Why not?” (this is all taking place in German by the way) and he said that he didn’t have a girlfriend, which he would need first to get married. She laughed and waved his answer away, saying “Oh, no worries for that. You should have no problem finding a girlfriend- du siehst so gut aus!” At that last part, I cracked up because I got it immediately. She’d said “you are so good-looking!”, and when he said “Wie bitte?”, she didn’t just brush it off or just tell him to forget it, she actually wrote it out on the chalkboard and explained “Oh, it means you are so HANDSOME, so GOOD-LOOKING, so BEAUTIFUL, etc…” and at that point, we were all laughing. This woman is about as subtle as a dump truck. 

So anyways, I have really enjoyed my intensive German class- my teacher, my classmates, the coursework, everything-and it’s sad to think it’s the last week. During the semester we won’t have it every day, only one day a week (but for 4 hours) and we’ll have a different teacher. I did very well on my final exam, so I was really pleased with my progress. I also was assigned a Tandem partner for the semester, I’m very excited to meet her and start practicing with her! I've also been listening to worship music in German, and learning the songs (not that anyone but me will ever hear them, but it's good practice!).Felix has let me borrow the first Harry Potter book in German, I hope to try to make it through it, even though I know I'll need to look up most words. I might read it later, when I have a larger vocabulary, but I'm excited to start it! I also have met a girl that is studying abroad with ISEP in America next year, I’ll see what I can do to convince her that Juneau is the place to be.

Another important aspect of life here is, obviously, food. These last two weeks were the first weeks I’ve been able to eat in the Mensa, the student cafeteria. Before that, we had to eat in the Cafeteria (they’re different) because we didn’t have student ID cards. The Cafeteria has lots of different things to eat every day, it’s basically just like any cafeteria. They have hot stuff, cold stuff, salads, pastas, drinks, A FREAKING PASTRY BAR (sorry it excites me every time), so you can eat however you want. The food isn’t terribly priced, either, and it’s pretty good. In the Mensa, however, you choose a meal (yes, an entire MEAL) from one of 4 menus: a regular menu, a vegetarian menu, the saladbar, and a soup and it costs a grand total of 2.50 Euro (except the saladbar). A meal for 2.50 Euro! The food isn’t usually bad and different every day, and it’s so cheap that it’s more popular than the Cafeteria. The food is kind of “heavy” for me, so I’m finding that instead of eating a bigger meal in the evening, I’m eating that at lunch, so my eating is kind of backwards. That hasn’t stopped me from eating Nutella like it’s my job, though. When Oxana asked me one day what I’d eaten for breakfast and I said Nutella, she thought I was joking. I wasn’t. I seriously shouldn’t be allowed in the candy aisle or within 10 feet of a jar of Nutella. And I’m not even a “candy” person back home! But put a package of any kind of German gummy candy in front of me and it turns into a scene from Jurassic Park.

Empty Nutella jars...someone stop me.

Anyways, about things that are more exciting than class and food.

At the end of my second week, I found myself doing quite a bit of exploring!

On Friday after German class, the sun had finally come out and it was a warm, sunny fall day. My flatmate Kari and I spent the afternoon walking around Bielefeld-all around the city! It was really fun and I liked not being rushed by a tour guide. He had been in a different tour group during our city tour, so we had some different stories to tell.  Plus, he actually knew quite a bit about the history of various buildings and Bielefeld so he was a great companion! He can read German pretty well, so he was able to translate the different educational plaques found on some buildings. We visited the church I hadn’t been to yet and walked through a couple of the city’s parks.  Outside of one of the churches was this statue of Jesus being carried from the cross. It struck me because it depicts Jesus’ body  well- his skin is raked and ragged, there are jagged gouge marks in his feet…it is a picture of pain. I was kind of captured by it, I stood there running my fingers over the carved holes in his feet, and I couldn’t even imagine what it would’ve been like to be there at the crucifixion. Then I was kind of bewildered, stuck by the realization this statue is something people can walk by without really noticing every day, just like the beautiful churches. I am always so overwhelmed when I think of Jesus’ trial and his pain, that when I see something like this statue it commands my attention. I wanted to turn to the casual passersby in confusion and say, “Did you even see this? Do you know this was done for you?!” It makes my heart a little heavy but at the same time, a little hopeful that I will get the chance to share.

 It was while taking pictures of this statue that I realized that my camera actually didn’t have a memory card in it-so unfortunately I don’t have any pictures from my afternoon walk around Bielefeld. One thing I also liked visiting was the old part of the city. Little remains of the old part because it was bombed in WWII, but I still like to see the old next to the new. I think Bielefeld is a very green city-lots of trees and some parks. I’m going to romanticize fall again- seeing the changing leaves throughout the city was really beautiful in the later afternoon sun. I think Bielefeld is a good size too, at first I was a little intimidated but I have been able to recognize certain parts. Although I still had those moments while walking when Kari would ask, “Do you know where we are?” And I could confidently say I had no idea where we were or which country we were in. That night, some people went to the city center for some excitement, but some friends and I decided to stay home and watch Despicable Me 2 because we had a daytrip on Saturday morning.

This daytrip is my favorite thing we’ve done so far!! Our international office arranged a trip for us to go to Detmold, an adorable little town about an hour away from Bielefeld. Specifically, we went to a museum. You’re probably all thinking, “Wow, Brittni, you’re really excited about a museum, yawn, time to find some cat pictures” but this was a museum unlike any I’ve been to before! The museum collects HOUSES….entire farms!! They started more than 50 years ago, collecting these old German farmhouses from all over Germany. It’s an open-air museum of sorts, so you basically just walk around all over this square hectare of land checking out the farmhouses and old villages, it’s like time travelling! The way the museum is arranged is really cool too. The north part of the museum has the buildings from the north of Germany, and so on. They’re also arranged by date too. We had a guided tour in English, and the tour was so informative! Our tour guide didn’t really want us to stop and take pictures, since we would have time to explore on our own. She was very knowledgeable though, I loved the tour and all the history behind the buildings. She explained that unfortunately the majority of their buildings were rich farmhouses, of rich farmers, so we couldn’t get a real good idea of how poor people lived. This was for a couple reasons. Firstly, because poor people’s houses weren’t really made to last and weren’t built as well, and secondly because when the museum was being founded, nobody cared about the poor people and they mostly wanted to preserve the pretty, rich buildings. Our tour guide lead us through various houses and buildings that would have been found on a farm back then. Since none of us were studying architecture, she mostly focused on the social and cultural aspects of history. I LOVED it! Some complained that our tour was too long, but I was all over it. I wished I’d had a notebook! It’s taking some serious self-control to not launch into a nerdy re-telling of the entire tour, but I’ll keep it short and say I really loved learning about the family/farm life and duties from those times. I also thought that their superstitions were very interesting (there was a house dedicated to showing what happens when someone died). I was really fascinated by the museum and the history, and we saw only a SMALL part of it! I definitely want to go back, I’d even pay for another tour (maybe) so that I can pester them about every little detail…I’d be that kid. I guess my alternative would be to kidnap one of the tour guides and march them around the museum demanding answers from them. Like I said, it’s a very large museum, so I could definitely spend a day checking out the rest of houses. At the end of the tour, we ended up in a little village where we could see old houses. It was funny because the facades of the houses were really nice, but the sides and backs of the houses weren’t decorated at all-it was all about the outward appearance. Great value was placed on how you appeared to others, which I found interesting.  After the tour was done, we checked out the old bakery where they were still making bread, but decided to eat currywurst instead. I felt so German, eating currywurst surrounded by the buildings of the old German village. I wanted to time travel back to the old days, marry a German farmer, wear a floor-length dress, keep a cute little garden, and bake bread. (I know, I know. Shut up Brittni. I won’t go all “Little House on the Prairie” on you).

Gatehouse to one of the German farms. I could tell you about the history behind it if you want! 

At the museum

At the Museum

more of the museum

It was a very sunny, beautiful day. The museum was built on these lovely green farm fields complete with old windmills and tilled dirt. It was so green, with tinges of fall color starting to appear, and wide open fields…it was just a really beautiful place. I loved the landscape! I made the comment “Wow, this would be a beautiful place for a wedding” (seriously…it would be my dream wedding setting) but my wishful thinking was shot down with raucous disapproval from the [independent, don’t-need-no-husband, very European-thinking] girls I was with. I can dream though!

such a beautiful place!!

We were free to stay at the museum and in Detmold as long as we wanted, since the International Office staff left after the tour. We decided to explore Detmold. Surprisingly, it was already 3pm! But we started out as a giant group navigating to the city center. We found a really fun shop in which everything cost 1 Euro (like a dollar store). We kind of broke off in little groups after that though. I was in a group of all my Italian friends, Federico, and Kari. We lost Kari though, since he was charging through town like a conquering general and we were being rather slow. Our main goal was to find the castle that Kari had told us about. On our little exploration, I fell in love with the little town. It was really such a cute “litte” city! In the fading sunlight, it was beautiful. There was a lake and canals by the street and more joy-inducing old German buildings. I literally can’t wait to go back! I want to go back at Christmastime, when there are the German Christmas markets set up. We found the park with the little castle and fountain (apparently two people live in the castle?! I’m not sure if that’s true). It took us quite a while to find our way to the train station on foot, and we kind of walked around like lost ducklings until a nice lady pointed us in the right direction. It had been a long day of walking (in addition to my Bielefeld walking tour the day before) but I really didn’t mind because I wanted to see as much of the town as I could. It was an adorable little German town and I can’t wait to go back!

Exploring the city!

Beautiful Detmold.

The castle and park

My friends and I in Detmold!

After such a magical Saturday, I was ready for a Sunday of rest. However, Sunday evening found me in yet another new town! Since we are students at Bielefeld University, our ID serves as a ticket for free transport all over our region! Which means we can take trains in our region for free, which is awesome for exploring! So on Sunday evening, my flatmates Momoko, Kari, and I caught a random train to a city we’ve never been to! We went to Gütersloh, a town which is only about 10 minutes away by train. In Gütersloh, we walked to the city center, where there was some kind of event going on. It was some kind of special day because the shops were still open too, and usually on Sundays all the shops and supermarkets are closed. Music from a flute-like instrument drifted through the square and the smell of currywurst was in the air. There was a makeshift stage of sorts, and a voice spoke over a speaker system (not that I knew what was being said).  We found the church, but there was a service of some sort going on. We wandered around, passed a little café/ice cream place and through an alley by the café found the old part of the town. The houses there were typically German (and cute)! I love that the family information is written above the doors on the old houses and buildings.  We didn’t stay too long, just long enough to walk around a bit. It was a nice way to pass the evening.

Our Sunday evening adventure

the old part of town

Love it.

Momoko, Kari, and I!

The church, there was a service going on but it was pretty from the outside.

Monday (we’re up to the 30^th by now!) was a really long day for me. Oxana had been urging our class (but really just Juan and Giuseppe) to come to the fitness class she goes to on Mondays. Laure, a fellow international student, and I decided to go just for fun. Our teacher was super excited that we were coming!! It was kind of cute. Before we went, however, I had to buy running shoes since I left my pair home after dealing them the death blow on Thunder Mountain this summer. I went with some of my Spanish friends to some kind of sports outlet store that was LITERALLY on the other side of town…we took a tram, switched trams, and then a bus, and then walked a short distance-I was mentally exhausted by the time I got to the fitness class. The class was really good and actually pretty challenging! It was like soccer conditioning with aerobics thrown in.…but the motivation is greater when your instructor is a super-fit, intimidating 60-year old German man! It was like soccer conditioning with aerobics thrown in. I will definitely need to keep attending this class if I maintain my current diet…especially after seeing my teacher killing it.

The next day was also pretty long and also involved traveling! This time we actually left Bielefeld, though. Some friends and I went to the nearby city of Dortmund to check out a store I had never heard of before. It was a store called Primark that I thought was a little like TJ MAXX but with not as many things, and maybe not as good quality. It was a long way to go for not so great shopping. It was still a fun trip, but after the group separated in the store I was completely lost. I was the first one who was done, so I waited for what seemed like hours. After finally meeting back up with one of the girls, my friend Tena, we waited again for the French girls. Our waiting was useless, however,  because we got a text saying they’d already taken a train back to Bielefeld because they couldn’t find us!! It was pretty humorous. Tena and I stayed and looked around in Dortmund, just shopping and looking around. When we were done, we hurried to the train station (after a quick trip to subway) but JUST missed the train. The next train got us back to Bielefeld at around 10:30, and I was dead tired. The reason we had been so sad that we missed the train was that our friend was having a pajama party in her flat, and now we were two hours late. When we got to the pajama party, there was a mattress on the floor and Tena and I collapsed on the mattress imdediately! It was a really relaxing and fun way to end the night (pajama party-what a great idea!!) because it was very low-energy and we were all lying around in pajamas.

On Wednesday, our international office arranged a karaoke night for us in an Irish pub in the city. I didn’t sing of course, but it was still fun to watch others. Some of my friends are so talented! Felix had also come out for the day, although he didn’t sing either. Thursday was a German holiday so we didn’t have school, which was weird to have a random Thursday off but I won’t complain.

And Friday I was super German and went to Hannover to go to Hannover’s Oktoberfest!

My flatmates and I had been trying for almost a week to make plans to go to the most renown and famous Oktoberfest in Munich. It was really hard to plan though, when nobody knew who was coming or what they wanted to do. It was also VERY expensive, just to get to the Oktoberfest, and all the hostels are full so we would’ve been staying at a tent-camping place. Then, the beer in the beer tents at the Oktoberfest are really expensive and you have to wait to get into them. Needless to say, our planning for Munich definitely didn’t work out. When my fellow international students started planning for a different day trip to Cologne, I really wanted to participate, but again the planning was really bad and I wanted plans that wouldn’t fall through. I made my own plans to go to Hannover for the weekend and check out the Oktoberfest there with Felix. I also liked the idea of being with a real German. I really LOVE our group of exchange students, but when we go somewhere, be it a café, pub, a city…we kind of walk in like an invading army. I thought being with a German might be different than being with a massive group of foreigners.

Oktoberfest!

I think I made the right choice, although I WILL say that I didn’t have the typical crazy Oktoberfest experience (which is fine with me). We actually went to the Oktoberfest on Saturday evening. It was a warm, foggy evening that I thought was a perfect fall night. Surprisingly, it wasn’t full or busy at all! I had no idea what Oktoberfest is like, so to situate those who are like me, I’ll explain. The Oktoberfest was basically like the Alaska State fair, but smaller, and with a lot more beer. There were food booths everywhere, selling all kinds of sweet-smelling candies. There were these giant iced cookies that said things like “Ich liebe dich” on them (apparently they weren’t really cookies but made out of glazed nuts??) There were rides just like at the fair, but some of them were really elaborate or crazy! One ride looked just like Splash Mountain at Disneyland. Felix and I went on a ride that spun you around, while the carriage while whirling around the other carriages AND flipping you upside down! I was literally being thrown around in the ride, I don’t know if it was because I wasn’t locked in tight enough but I felt like a ragdoll and was definitely anticipating some whiplash. But I loved all the spinning and upside down turns, of course!! After that, we went on the much tamer Ferris wheel.  I loved riding the Ferris wheel because it gave me a great aerial view of not only the Oktoberfest, but the city. I had the pumping music and crazy flashing, neon lights from the festival on my right and the old, pretty Rathaus and taller churches on my left.  I love the feeling I get when I see the older buildings here next to the new, it’s history and the present all at once. After we did the rides, we went to one of the beer tents. Usually they’re very full but on that night it was just one other party of people and then Felix and I. We drank Hannover’s beer (many German cities have their own beers) and listened to the music the DJ was playing. In Munich, most everyone dresses up in the traditional German dress, but I didn’t see many people dressed up in Hannover (but we did see a group on the train). Sadly, nobody was dancing on the tables and singing German drinking songs, but it was still fun to see. After we finished our beers, we ate German sausage, of course! I had Schinkenwurst and felt very German. We walked around the Oktoberfest once more, ate some sugary treats, and left. I know it’s not the crazy Munich stereotypical Oktoberfest but I really had a great experience there.

The ride we went on!

The Ferris Wheel!

Oktoberfest

Cheers! :)

Cheers! :)

After the Oktoberfest, we went to a huge bar. A HUGE bar, it had a couple of club/disco rooms in it and everything. What I loved about the bar was the music they played! It was all German, and I think the best way you could describe it was that it really inspired a happy mood. Kind of like ABBA. According to Felix, it was "beer tent music". They were upbeat but also kind of silly, one was a song that had motions that go with it. It was a really fun song, it had motions that went with it and was saying:

“And I fly, fly, fly like an aviator

I'm so strong, strong, strong like a tiger

And so big, big, big like a giraffe

So tall, oh, oh, oh

And I jump, jump, jump again and again

And I swim, swim, swim over to you

And I take, take, take you by the hand,

'cause I like you

And I say

Today is such a beautiful day

La-la-la-la-la…”

You can probably imagine the motions that went with it.  I liked the music and the atmosphere in the bar so much! The other parts of the bar, in the disco parts, played the usual hip hop music, but I thought the bar was much more fun.

Here is the song, so you can listen for yourself: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-_xXfjB3AM

Before leaving Hannover on Sunday, I had dinner with Felix and his parents. It was traditional German food, so German that its name is from the old German that few people speak anymore ;) It was a sausage called Bregenwurst (brain sausage) but it isn’t made with brains anymore. I really liked it!

This last week of October 7^th was, as I said, our last week before our semester starts. Monday was my flatmate Kari’s birthday, so we threw a mildly-surprised birthday party for him. It was really funny because we were doing the preparations and decorations while he was in his room. He kept asking if there was something going on that night, but we denied having plans several times. When people started coming to the door and telling him “Happy Birthday!”, I think he realized the party was coming to him!

Happy Birthday!

The rest of the week passed with the usual German classes and daily routine. All the classes had an exam, so many people spent their time studying. I did very well on my exam, only making some spelling and sentence structure mistakes, so I was pleased and relieved.  On Friday, we had a very nice “International Welcome Dinner” in the university’s restaurant with free food and free beer, so of course we had a good time. The Rektor (the president of the university) welcomed us to the university in a German/English speech. I couldn’t believe I had already been here a month!! I sat surrounded by my new friends and was a little overwhelmed by it all. A month ago, all these faces were new. I didn’t know and couldn’t pronounce anyone’s names. And now, we play, study, and live together. We encourage each other while learning German together.

Friends. 

Yesterday, the 12^th, some of us went to nearby Münster to spend our Saturday there. This was another beautiful city that I loved! It had beautiful churches and an impressive cathedral. The shopping area was modern but also really pretty too, built into old structures and a huge church overlooking it. It was an overcast day that was kind of chilly, but that didn’t stop us from eating delicious ice cream. While looking at one of the churches, my friend asked if one day I would tell her “the Christian story”, she wanted to know “the whole story about Jesus”. Since there is literally nothing I would rather do more, I of course told her I would love to, and I really hope I get the chance to. It started to rain pretty hard during our trip, but we still made it to the castle! And afterwards we took refuge in a super hipster café.   The old part was much prettier and bigger than Bielefeld’s, which is probably why I liked it so much. I loved that the city looked so old and comfortable. It’s another place I would love to see at Christmastime.

There was a really beautiful walking trail in Münster!

This what I mean by the shopping district being old and modern: modern shops in old buildings. Love it! the church is on the right.

lovely square next to the church

There was a captivating clock in the church that told the time, day, month, etc. 

 little cafe in a picturesque place with delicious ice cream!

The cathedral

There was a little path with trees and leaves...of course we threw them :)

We found the castle! And it's pouring rain! Jump!

Today is Sunday, and tomorrow our winter semester starts. This first month was exciting, fun, overwhelming and went by so fast! I’m excited , but also a little nervous. I haven’t had actual classes since May (or honestly, late April if we don’t count Finals Week) so I hope I can get back into the school groove. I’m really excited for my classes though! I’m taking American Gothic literature, Social and Cultural Studies: North America,  a class on analyzing and interpreting texts from American literature (and its tutorium), American Modernism, Creative Writing, British literature, and continuing my German course. This schedule should be my final schedule but we’ll see at the end of this first wee. I’m especially looking forward to Social and Cultural Studies: North America because it sounds so interesting! This is the class description:

“This course will attempt to give you a broader understanding of how various Americans in the United States think about their nation and themselves and how they participate in shaping and passing on its culture(s). Of course, with over 300 million inhabitants representing all the races, religions and ethnicities on our planet, the existence of a common culture is a problematic and contested issue. Nevertheless, there are certain beliefs, values, ideas, and experiences that have played a central role in how Americans have interpreted their history and that continue to influence contemporary public discourse.

We will take as a starting point the challenges facing President Obama in his second term. We will evaluate the conclusions that can be drawn from the 2012 election and try to place these insights in the context of recurring themes and motifs in American culture. This will also lead us to examine the structure of government, the role of founding documents, and a range of historical and contemporary political issues, including gun control, immigration, and imbalances in wealth distribution. We will also explore questions of diversity in terms of attitudes towards race, immigration, religion, regional differences and cultural geography, as well as the cultural dimensions of education in schools and universities. We will be concerned with some of the things Americans have in common with each other, what divides them and whether and to what extent the United States can or should be regarded as an "exceptional" nation.”

I don’t know about you, but I was hooked! I don’t really follow much politics and such, but I’m excited to hear so many other views. This class isn’t really going towards my degree at UAS, but I think it’s such a unique opportunity. When else can I take a class that talks about America, but from a different vantage point, surrounded by opinions and people from all over the world?! The teacher is also from America, I believe. My favorite part about my schedule is that I don’t have any classes before 10am…which is truly beautiful.

I feel like it all gets “real” tomorrow…the “studying” in “studying abroad” is finally happening! It’s been a great month, but I’m looking forward to what is coming. Especially tonight, because our Hungarian friends are making Hungarian food for us!

 I hope I’ve managed to catch you up without boring you!

P.S. I’ve achieved my goal of being able to take public transportation by myself! I don’t even get nervous! Of course, the flip side of this is now I have nothing holding me back from going shopping and buying too many clothes and too much Nutella…

P.S.S. Did I mention I'm loving the fall here?