Goodbye Germany

Well the last few day were kind of a blur. I finished up my classes, said my goodbyes, and embarked upon my 24 hour journey back to Waco.

The flight wasn't so bad, I sat next to a girl from A&M(small world) and had the row that didn't recline for ten hours. I didn't really know how to feel,

I have so much to figure out in the next few weeks that it just seemed unreal that I was actually flying home. Well not even home yet, a quick stop in Waco to graduate was needed!

I can't even begin to describe what this trip has meant to me. I feel like I have grown so much as an individual. I feel renewed and excited about the future. I'm ready to jump into the next chapter of my life. I am finally done with classes at Baylor. Wow.

Never thought that day would come and now that it has, it doesn't even seem like it took me that long:)

I'm so grateful for this opportunity and I cannot express how rewarding this trip abroad was

thanks for keeping in touch...more to come

SIC EM BEARS!!

i can't go on!

Long Prague walking day+ sleepy Jess+ 3 foot railing= impossible obstacle.

Doesn't this remind you of my high school track hurdling days?:)

"maybe it's fog like when you perform on stage?"

We also to experience a riot. Apparently a Czech team a Slovakia team got off trains at similar times and started a little scuffle. A whole mob of police officers fled to the scene and the the bottom level of the Hauptbahnhof which was filled with tear gas.

Prague: 300 for lunch

Prague was beautiful, but almost unenjoyable. The crowds were worse then a day in Rome or opening day at Schlitterbahn. I heard Sunday was the worst day for touring and now I see why. Just herds of people flooding into the nearest souvenir or marionette store. Followed by a chocolate shop, then another marionette store, then a store with masks. But that's just how their touristy sections of a city are and Prague is banking by selling pretty much whatever they want(considering even I bought a magnet, when I don't even have a magnetic fridge.)The money was confusing and felt as if I kept getting ripped off, probably because I was. It was also really important to watch your purse. You could tell the people that were circling around tourist group just waiting to pick pocket. Luckily nothing happened to us.

It's not that I wasn't impressed by Prague, I was. The building were breathtaking and so was the drive over. I just would have liked to invested either more time there or more time over by the castle. I got a little taste of a day trip but I would need to go back again when it wasn't packed with people.

ist das frei?

The train ride back was not a comfortable one. I spent awhile just standing in a holding area with a least 30 other people. I could explain every one of them to you, thats how unsettled I was. I kept waiting for someone to move and say, "Just kidding there are open seats in the other car." But no one said anything. So I stood, and stood and stood.

I spent most of the trip listening to my ipod and observing everyone around me. There was a mother and her little girl, they were playing a magnetic board game, such a good idea. Then there was a kid next to me dressed in all green, from his glasses to his backpack. He was nice, I asked him a question one time and his English was not bad. He even managed to mutter, "Hope you have a very pleasant rest of travels," when he got off at his stop.

The rest of the car was filled with unshowered vagabonds with tattered scarfs and cantines filled with who knows what. The main leader slept most of the ride with his long ponytail sandwiched between a teddy bear and the corner of his suitcase.

I was so hungry.

You really have to be careful when you are catching such close trains, because the full ones do not have food or room for you at the dining car.

I caught my old train with no problem, at least two minutes to spare. But this train greeted me with a similar problem: no seats. It's odd to me that people don't give up their seats for women or the elderly. I guess if you did that every time you would never have a seat.I couldn't help but give an encouraging glare to every young kid who was seated, but it didn't do much. I finally managed to squeeze into the car that held bicycles, and a family of 7+dog, yep that's right. They were so interesting. The mother couldn't have been more than 7 years older than me. She was tough, oh my goodness was she tough. One look from her and the little girls would stop their clapping game and sit on their hands. If you thought that was bad, the enormous tatted up counterpart to her left would make you quiver. His head was shaved on both sides to reveal a freshly crafted skull tattoo..or maybe it was just bleeding for other reasons..then the rest of his hair was in a pony.His hands held on to the most well behaved dog I have ever seen. The brown chained pup had about two feet to move around, but he didn't even bother. He sat me still than I did the entire ride.

I felt so bad for the people standing with their bicycles, it looked so uncomfortable and awkward, every dip they would stumble to either side of the train. I offered the girl the seat next to me but she said she would look after the bike and stand. Finally she switched places with a friend and I offered him the spot with allowed the big man to speak for once and offer to move his huge baby stroller out of the way so they could stack up their bikes in the corner. Within 5 minutes everyone had a seat.

Really... after two hours of trying I was the only one who spoke up to help these people( and I can't even speak German) and one word from him and the whole room clears?! Well at least I started the revolution but it took Mr. Gruff to clear the floor. Unbelievable, so incredibly uncomfortable. He had a mild sweetness to him though. And so did she. Although they looked absolutely terrifying, I caught her a few times tenderly scratching her dogs neck or holding hands with her littlest girl. He also didn't mind being squished in a seat behind the stroller for an hour.

Oh my goodness they had so much stuff. At the next stop the big man got out of the car and picked up the dog, the stroller, and the bags one by one with his right hand and threw them off the car..then when we pulled away I saw them both leaning out the next train with a cigarette in hand.

Such an odd perfectly matched absolutely terrifying power couple.

Bayern

Bavaria is so gorgeous I can't get enough of it. Unfortunately it was raining but it didn't take away from its character. We were able to see a part of Germany that felt like home. A very stark contrast from big cities such as Berlin or even Prague for that matter. People just seemed happy and comfortable. I guess who wouldn't be when you live in such a beautiful place.

HELFE!

Lesson learned:

Never ask anyone for directions who may potentially be creepy.

On the train we were lucky enough to get a little room by ourselves but once we sat down some guy decided it would be okay to join us. A few minutes later we realized he smelled very offensively and was not a nice person. A minute after that we has trying to put his arms around us. Thank goodness for police on trains because I ran out and tried to find one which scared him off.

After consulting a few Germans, young and old, the advice was unanimous. I guess it is okay to just punch someone in the face when they do that and you will not get in trouble.

Apparently I need to continue to work on my right hook.(thanks Ali)

We had a two hour layover, but at least we had hairspray

Mama Jess tease til you please meets Hof hauptbahnhof.I know, I know, but we were so bored.

As I was walking I saw three little boys playing in their side yard. They used their mothers clothing lines as soccer nets. It was adorable. I spent more time then usual at the grocery store, usually I am pressed for time, but on this rainy day I had nothing better to do. I like the idea of having to pay for plastic bags. Germany does such a good job of being "green"as we would say it in the US. I remember with interior design it was such a catch phrase "go green"or "leed design," but here it is just a way of life. You can't drive very far without seeing huge windmills to generate electricity or walk down the road without passing 6 different recycling bins. You are expected to return plastic bottles at different locations and reusable grocery bags are pretty much required. I think the states need to do better job of being less wasteful and refrain from patting themselves on the back when choosing to refurnishing their apartments with Teragren bamboo flooring or illumination by Northstar glow.

Heute, gehe nach REWE. Ich kaufe Brot im Supermarkt, weil es dort billiger ist. Das Kind war im yard gespielen.

Group dinner at Brazilian Steakhouse.

I think I have eaten more Mexican food here than when I am back home.How is that so? I guess it's what you sign up for when dining with Texans:)You can't take the tex out of tex mex for too long.

So I suffered from "these must be cool because I found them in a foreign country" thought process. I thought since I am in Germany these glasses(found at a discount grocery store for $2 Euro) would aid in my 'cultural experience'

Instead they made me look like Elaine and were a +2.00 not the -2.00 that I needed.

I left them on the sidewalk in hope they would grace some lovely old mans face later that night...and to my surprise the next day I noticed that they were gone:)

kebabbing

If you ever though eating a doner kebab was a good idea...it isn't, and don't let any bit of that sliced meat fool you. I can't tell you much about Monday or Tuesday because my roommates and I were suffering from death by kebab, formerly known as "kebabbing"

BEWARE!!!

Munchen Freiheit

I love this station it because it reminds me of the Buzz Lightyear ride at Disney World..doesn't it:)??

But I despise it because on this fine traveling Sunday my sweet motion sick Katie misplaced her bag..with her passport and her train ticket on a bench just left of the claw(kidding.) Only about the claw though, the rest, totally true and completely stressful!! Luckily Jen is a superhero and ran all the way back since we had already reached the Hauptbahnhof. What a day, that could have been the end of us!

Police Cars and Gas Prices!!

Just a little bit different from Delafield.I could really get used to the public transportation, but I think the only thing I won't miss about Germany is the sirens these cars make...right outside my window..all night...and all day

Traditional Bavarian food:

Weisswurst

and pretzel with huge cheese ball

so delicious!!

Oooh this is interesting

I've noticed throughout Germany during construction, a huge drape of what the building will look like covers the structure until it is completed.

I like their idea of progress. Germany has had to see a lot of change. To reach a certain kind of "normalization" there can be an inherent hesitancy to change or keep things the same,which is often times revisited and renegotiated. Such collective memory defines history for a certain period, event, person, etc. Public memory is cherished in memorials from something such as the Holocaust memorial. Germany as a nation chooses to memorialize that in a physical monument. At the same time, what not to memorialize can also be an example of collective memory.“The reconstruction of classical monuments promotes the visual enactment of collective memory as a motivating force for post-reunification identity formation…”(Goebel.)It is understandable that there is a desire to recover after such traumatic events such as the allied bombings and the night of 13-14 February 1945. A city such as Berlin is representative of the entire nation as a whole, thus seeking “normalization” after events of WWII and division of the country. Not to say every building under construction is being revisited due to collective memory, but it is something to keep in mind that this constant revisitation and reflection may allow the country to recognize, remember, but also move on while keeping inherent cultural flare and regional memories.

Just a thought, I like the hope the drape gives. I also wouldn't mind being the one who has to render it:)

Englischer Garten

Tour guide Tianyi gracious showed us through the Englischer Garten!

It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon. People were doing everything from volleyball, sunbathing to chasing ducks and playing with their dogs. Everyone looked so casual and relaxed. Tianyi explained the laid back culture, I'm starting to think I may have been born in the wrong country. Who wants the hussle and bussle? Give me green grass, ducks, dogs, guitars, a blanket and I am set.

Marienplatz!

Freitag- The streets were filled with people! I enjoyed seeing the occasional dirndl and lederhosen:) Although my friend who showed us around was a Munich native, we suggested the Hard Rock Cafe. Surprise, it looks like the one in Australia, Dallas, and Philadelphia!! The people were interesting. One in particular. I think his name was Dennis. He insisted he had lost his group and perhaps he could join ours. He later begged for a picture of all of us for his iphone to send his mother, to show her he had made friends...such an odd, annoying creature, he would be at Hard Rock. We quickly learned our tourist lesson.

ich bin nach Munchen gegangen!

Der Zug ist auch aufregend, aber es is weit entfernt! Der Leute sind alles verschieden. Sehr schön und grün!Ich glaube Bavaria ist fantastisch!!After class we embarked on our 6 hour train ride to Munich!

We had to move at least three times because we kept sitting in reserved seats, finally we got the hang of it and plopped ourselves into a four seater. We were not going to get in until 8:30 so we decided do our hair on the train, i know, i know(see botton half teased picture.)This caught the attention of a lonely 5'4 19 year old red head boy wearing a tan suit...

Lonely tan suit sat right next to us and

immediately wanted to converse.

The things I learned about him:

1. He visits his grandmother every Friday

2. He is a bouncer at Deep Space Night

http://www.deepspacewhite.net/

-at one point in the night darth vader comes out and asks if you want to "come to the dark side" and join a darker/louder portion of the club

ahh so weird.

3. He found a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow

-Now I'm not sure if some of this got lost in translation, but he literally told us he mapped out a rainbow with his friend, traveled across the country...and found the pot of gold at the end. Is he a real life leprecon? ?? He said there were three italian gold coins that were worth over $6,000 Euros each....

Do I believe him? It's hard not to believe such a ridiculous story from a 5 foot bouncer, but I'd like to.

ich liebe white ginger

Musik spielen??!!

Janglin soul

I found a music store in Dresden!! I spent so long in there I felt it was completely necessary to buy a Kalimba:) I bought the less cool one without an opening, but if you put it on top of a snare drum it sounds lovely. They had so many, apparently it is native to the area(or she told me that so I would fall in love, which I did.)My parents are just lucky they cleverly purchased luggage that makes it impossible to fit more than 50 pounds in..because I almost came back with a wooden frog whistle and a 3 ft rain stick.

I've noticed music stores here have more percussion and less electronic toys. The guitar selection seems to be about the same, except very few of them are kept in tune. Perhaps they too know all the real jems are found on craigs list:)

http://www.kalimbamagic.com/newsletters/newsletter2.08.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwhOHl1ZbUY&feature=related

Regional train group trip

No, it is not your speakers that was really the air flow in the car!

featuring: Jen, Suzanne, Katie, Bill, Alex, and Susan

Maybe we are in a scary part of Dresden right now?..Yes, I believe we are.

where I come from, this is not a good morning.

Gutscheine zum Vernaschen!

Otherwise referred to as the stand that sells waffles with whip cream on top:)

caught in the cultural crossfire

Test DAY, bum bum bummm

We all gathered in a large auditorium with wooden creaky seats. We were about to be tested over our knowledge of the German language, as if walking around for two weeks feeling completely inadequate did not give me an accurate representation of my German oration.I used to think I was good at foreign languages..good at foreign language? what does that even mean? I have come to realize it means, I memorize and recite vocabulary fairly well in an American college setting. But I've never been so mad at the United States school system before! Why do we only know English!!?? Why didn't anyone sit me down and say, you think Geometry or Word Skills are hard..try being bilingual...or trilingual OR funf lingual! OK ok, I suppose multi-lingual is the proper term. Anyways, I am amazed by everyone I meet. Their English is as good as mine, yet they also speak Russian, French, and German!

For as much time I've devoted to "Communication Studies" I feel like I can't communicate at all. We are all so similar yet so different. There are so many people to meet, bridges to cross, stories to hear!! But there is this irrevocable communication barrier, that frustrates me I cannot break through...

Strangers and Blessings

Still restless over playing tourist and struggling to fit in with the culture, I reread Smith Carvill's observations. As a student studying abroad, and a follower of Christ, I am called to be a blessing to locals. Efforts such as attempting to speak German(no matter how stupid I sound) as much as possible, or attentively listening to their stories followed by asking good questions shows a visitor is learning from their surrounding by comparing and contrasting what is known with the unknown. While studying abroad is a privilege with it’s own beauty and mystery in cultural enrichment, there are difficulties being a stranger in foreign area. As a guest in another country, my values, tastes, and thoughts will be completely different to people of that region. I am surrounded by positive and negative stereotypes based on the limited information or excess information associated with an American. In my culture, I get through awkward situations or varying displays of conflict by injecting humor into the conversation. Unfortunately, very few people laugh at my jokes or get my humor, probably in English and especially in German.

What gives me comfort is my relationship with God “frees me from ultimate dependency on my location and culture.” How awesome is it that Christian strangers are already a part of a worldwide community of believers? With that comfort, I am trying to use every situation as a cultural illustration, which explores different values and behaviors within the area I am visiting while allowing me to reflect upon the country I call my own.

Völkerschlachtdenkmal

The Monument to the Battle of the Nations- a monument in Leipzig dedicated to the Battle of Leipzig 1813

when? completed in 1913 for its 100th anniversary

cost? approx. 31 million Euro

how big is this thing? 91 metres tall

does that make it the tallest monument in Europe? yes.

WOW!

how many steps to the top? over 500

did you climb it? well...not really.

I know, I know. SAVE IT!

Here's my logic: it is astounding, yes. Why must I admire it from the top when I have a perfect view down here? If I remember correctly something entirely too similar was featured on LOST, and I believe this may be a trap. Wait,how many stairs? I wonder how much my classmates will pay me to stay at the bottom and hold their bags?

So yes, I know I didn't climb it. But I had that much more time to admire the exterior and miss the graffiti ridden-claustrophobic staircases..although it was simply breathtaking!!!

someday this will be Huck...laying in a department store as I check out:)

if only!!!

Ich komme nach Leipzig, an den Ort, wo man die ganze Welt im Kleinen sehen kann

"I come to Leipzig, the place one can see the whole world in one" – Gotthold Ephraim Lessing

Being the largest city in Saxony, there was far too much to see in just one day.

Highlights:

1. Johann Sebastian Bach 1723-1750

2.Völkerschlachtdenkmal

3. Auerbach's Keller

4. Thomas Kirche

Leipzig

During the separation of East and West Germany, Leipzig was the sight of many Montags demonstrations. It was hard to imagine the political tension within the church as it offered such ornate decoration with swift pastel interior elements. At one time it held 600 police officers and citizens in the church in a tense stand-off.

2 August-Alles Gute zum Geburtstag Cat!

Today I got to see my happy little family on skype...minus Joe:(

My parents decided to just stop already with the home improvements and assume residency on the store roof...kidding:)

But apparently it is my son's new bird's eye view. Some may call him 'lion, king of the jungle' but now he is 'huck, the watchful eye of upper darby.' He better not get too excited and chase a bird off the roof, I am waiting for that phone call!!!