I'm sure that many posts will cover what we did this weekend in Amsterdam. Since all 11 of us were together pretty much all weekend, I won't go in to all of that. I will, however touch on some issues we had with transportation. Besides having to walk a mile between our metro stop and our hotel, nothing really was wrong while trying to use the tram system. With a map you can solve anything (or with many different, corresponding maps...especially ones that pop up). The things I took issue with, and the things I will write about all happened on Sunday.
Granted, many people had close calls with cars and with the trams that come in abnormally close to the sidewalk. But Shannon quite literally almost got flattened by a car while crossing the street. That car was just not going to even consider braking. Then, 2 minutes later, I was about to cross another street in accordance with the green pedistrian light. So I started to step off the curb, with my umbrella restricting my peripheal vision. Its a good thing that I heard the shouts of people behind me, because this bike was speeding down the street. No bell, no shout, no slowing down. So I sucked it in like never before and narrowly avoided getting killed by a bicycle by centimeters. It was very startling. In fact, it was really scary to me.
Then, at 1:45, people with Eurail passes were on our platform, waiting for our 2:07 train that never came. Turns out that the train left 25 minutes EARLY from a different track. I have never ever heard of something like that leaving early. Late, sure, happens all the time. But early? So we chilled in the train station for 3 more hours before catching the 5:05 train. An hour outside of Amsterdam we got stopped dead on the tracks for 90 minutes so they could do maintenance on the track. So, instead of getting home by 5:00 like originally planned, or even 7:30 as the amended plan called for, we arrived home at 9:30. Really long day of bad transportation.
Sunday, July 31, 2005
zwischen Himmel und Erde
I took a day trip to Bremen yesterday, a Saturday and one of the few remaining free days before this year’s summer program ends and my students go home. CJ suggested Bremen as a destination, in the north, beautiful and historic, and full of Fachwerkhäuser, half-timbered houses from the Middle Ages. I travel ultra-light, with just my small backpack with a change of clothes, my toothbrush, and raingear.
The trip from Düsseldorf to Bremen takes about three hours by IC and runs you north through Duisberg, Essen, Bochum, Dortmund, Münster, and Osnabrück. I find an empty 2nd class compartment, albeit one for smokers, and settle in by the window. The weather is, as the Germans say, “wechselnd”, changing or varying but mostly overcast with a bit of rain and coolish. Rolling through the Ruhrgebeit I am reminded of how ugly it seems, industrialized, polluted, grey, and poor, although this perception is amplified by the weather and by the area in the immediate environs of the railroad tracks. I also note the massive amounts of graffiti on the railroad track retaining walls and buildings fronting the tracks. Some is quite artistic but much is just hideous. I don’t remember as much of this in Germany in 1991 and 1992, but, of course, I had a car then and traveled less by train. The graffiti-levels here now seem comparable to those I remember from the 1970s-1980s in New York City, until the city government, and particularly Giuliani, cracked down on graffiti artists, street performers, hookers and bums, rounding them up and sending them God knows where, but making the streets of midtown safe again for the good burghers of New York.
I get to Bremen about noon, grab a snack in the market square and proceed to sightsee, but what I really want to describe here is dinner. In all my time living in Germany I have eaten many unusual things. I have always been a fairly adventurous eater and can fairly be described as someone who loves food and appreciates it for more than just its ability to sustain life. And I love wurst, all different kinds and Germany is the land of wurst, it is where wurstloving people go when they die, if they’ve been good!
But there is one wurst that I have never had the nerve to order and then to actually eat, and that wurst is Blutwurst. Just the name, Blutwurst, blood sausage, is enough to make you sick. The Germans are not alone in enjoying this, well let’s say, food item. The Brits have a version as well. But, of course, the English are famous for having the worst cuisine in the known Universe. Its like the famous joke that heaven is where the lovers are French, the engineers German, the police British, the cooks Italian and the administrators, Swiss; and hell is where the cooks are British, the engineers Italian, the police German, the lovers Swiss, and the administrators French.
As I spend more time here, especially in the company of my students, I’m feeling increasingly compelled to submerge myself in a study of German Kultur, both serious and popular. To know and understand the Kultur, is, in many ways, to know and understand the people. So I sit myself down in the restaurant on the Böttcherstrasse in Bremen and order the national dish of the Rhineland (das Rheinlandisches Nationalgericht), “Himmel und Erde” (“Heaven and Earth”). I had learned of this item years ago but never dared to try it until now.
Himmel und Erde (Erde by the way was spelled very strangely in the menu, I believe it was the Plattdeutsch, Ääd) is grilled blood sausage on a bed of mashed potatoes, covered with a layer of fried onion rings (very lightly breaded it seemed to me, not like our robustly coated American onion rings) with apple compote on the side. Mine also had a few sautéed apple rings in the mix and a piece of tomato and sprig of flat-leaf parsley as garnish. I had already downed a Kölsch by the time this masterpiece arrived in front of me (a new brand for me, Sion Kölsch) and had a fresh one brought as I prepared to tuck into the Nationalgericht of the Rhineland.
Blood sausage, it turns out, has a softish consistency, so that when you cut into it, it kind of mushes out into a meat pudding (my Langenscheidts Wörterbuch by the way defines Blutwurst as “black pudding”). It is dark and the color of, you guessed it, blood, and not bright arterial blood either, but deoxygenated, central venous looking blood. I was reminded of one of our Aggie expressions, “My blood runs maroon.” And so did these Blutwurst. Along with the Aggie maroon carrot, Blutwurst could, in theory, be quite popular back home in College Station, and in fact they are pretty tasty. They do taste good and not at all what you might expect form their name, ingredients, and appearance. The onions were very nice and the mashed potatoes excellent. I found that I enjoyed the Wurst best with some of the apple compote and it got harder to continue to eat the sausages when the apple sauce ran out. As is also fairly common here and back home in Texas, they gave me enough Himmel und Erde for the hosts of Heaven and Earth. I was obliged to stop about two-thirds of the way through and had to explain to the waitress that dinner was “sehr lecker” but “genug für zwei” prompting her to ask me if I wanted what was left wrapped up “zum mitnehmen”. I politely declined.
I concluded that it is the consistency of Blutwurst, not the taste that presents an obstacle for me and that while this meal was worthwhile and a noble experiment, I believe that one plate of Himmel und Erde will suffice for one lifetime. Next on the list of exotic north German dishes that I need to check out, stomach willing, grün Aalsupppe, green eel soup.
The trip from Düsseldorf to Bremen takes about three hours by IC and runs you north through Duisberg, Essen, Bochum, Dortmund, Münster, and Osnabrück. I find an empty 2nd class compartment, albeit one for smokers, and settle in by the window. The weather is, as the Germans say, “wechselnd”, changing or varying but mostly overcast with a bit of rain and coolish. Rolling through the Ruhrgebeit I am reminded of how ugly it seems, industrialized, polluted, grey, and poor, although this perception is amplified by the weather and by the area in the immediate environs of the railroad tracks. I also note the massive amounts of graffiti on the railroad track retaining walls and buildings fronting the tracks. Some is quite artistic but much is just hideous. I don’t remember as much of this in Germany in 1991 and 1992, but, of course, I had a car then and traveled less by train. The graffiti-levels here now seem comparable to those I remember from the 1970s-1980s in New York City, until the city government, and particularly Giuliani, cracked down on graffiti artists, street performers, hookers and bums, rounding them up and sending them God knows where, but making the streets of midtown safe again for the good burghers of New York.
I get to Bremen about noon, grab a snack in the market square and proceed to sightsee, but what I really want to describe here is dinner. In all my time living in Germany I have eaten many unusual things. I have always been a fairly adventurous eater and can fairly be described as someone who loves food and appreciates it for more than just its ability to sustain life. And I love wurst, all different kinds and Germany is the land of wurst, it is where wurstloving people go when they die, if they’ve been good!
But there is one wurst that I have never had the nerve to order and then to actually eat, and that wurst is Blutwurst. Just the name, Blutwurst, blood sausage, is enough to make you sick. The Germans are not alone in enjoying this, well let’s say, food item. The Brits have a version as well. But, of course, the English are famous for having the worst cuisine in the known Universe. Its like the famous joke that heaven is where the lovers are French, the engineers German, the police British, the cooks Italian and the administrators, Swiss; and hell is where the cooks are British, the engineers Italian, the police German, the lovers Swiss, and the administrators French.
As I spend more time here, especially in the company of my students, I’m feeling increasingly compelled to submerge myself in a study of German Kultur, both serious and popular. To know and understand the Kultur, is, in many ways, to know and understand the people. So I sit myself down in the restaurant on the Böttcherstrasse in Bremen and order the national dish of the Rhineland (das Rheinlandisches Nationalgericht), “Himmel und Erde” (“Heaven and Earth”). I had learned of this item years ago but never dared to try it until now.
Himmel und Erde (Erde by the way was spelled very strangely in the menu, I believe it was the Plattdeutsch, Ääd) is grilled blood sausage on a bed of mashed potatoes, covered with a layer of fried onion rings (very lightly breaded it seemed to me, not like our robustly coated American onion rings) with apple compote on the side. Mine also had a few sautéed apple rings in the mix and a piece of tomato and sprig of flat-leaf parsley as garnish. I had already downed a Kölsch by the time this masterpiece arrived in front of me (a new brand for me, Sion Kölsch) and had a fresh one brought as I prepared to tuck into the Nationalgericht of the Rhineland.
Blood sausage, it turns out, has a softish consistency, so that when you cut into it, it kind of mushes out into a meat pudding (my Langenscheidts Wörterbuch by the way defines Blutwurst as “black pudding”). It is dark and the color of, you guessed it, blood, and not bright arterial blood either, but deoxygenated, central venous looking blood. I was reminded of one of our Aggie expressions, “My blood runs maroon.” And so did these Blutwurst. Along with the Aggie maroon carrot, Blutwurst could, in theory, be quite popular back home in College Station, and in fact they are pretty tasty. They do taste good and not at all what you might expect form their name, ingredients, and appearance. The onions were very nice and the mashed potatoes excellent. I found that I enjoyed the Wurst best with some of the apple compote and it got harder to continue to eat the sausages when the apple sauce ran out. As is also fairly common here and back home in Texas, they gave me enough Himmel und Erde for the hosts of Heaven and Earth. I was obliged to stop about two-thirds of the way through and had to explain to the waitress that dinner was “sehr lecker” but “genug für zwei” prompting her to ask me if I wanted what was left wrapped up “zum mitnehmen”. I politely declined.
I concluded that it is the consistency of Blutwurst, not the taste that presents an obstacle for me and that while this meal was worthwhile and a noble experiment, I believe that one plate of Himmel und Erde will suffice for one lifetime. Next on the list of exotic north German dishes that I need to check out, stomach willing, grün Aalsupppe, green eel soup.
Amsterdam
I am going to beat the rush and talk about Amsterdam. It started out very nicely and relaxed. We got to see the Anne Frank House which was cool to see. The secret annex was bigger than I expected. The most moving part for me was a quote by Anne saying she was still grateful to God for her gift to write. I am amazed that she was able to have a thankful heart despite her surroundings which were much worse than anything I've ever experienced.
We then ate dinner. Most people had savory pancakes but I had an omelette. It was great. I also tasted some South African wine which some other girls had bought but I didn't think it was very good. It was too strong for me.
On Saturday we ate Chinese for lunch. I enjoyed my duck even though people were giving me a hard time. The duck was actually better than the pork. We then tried to find the red light district but only found dirty stores, not the infamous girls in the windows. We then saw a large tulip selling area and then went to the Heineken museum. It was an interesting experience and I found out Heineken is GROSS. I am glad I had pepsi to mix with the bit I did not give away. We got 3 drinks, either Heineken beer or soda. That's how I know what Heineken tastes like.
After the Heineken we went on a canal cruise which was really nice and very well timed because it turned out to be the only warm dry part of the entire weekend. We then walked around town, did some shopping and ate. Some of us went searching for the girls in the windows. It was definately an interesting thing to see.
Today it has been raining all day. After putting our stuff in lockers at the train station and eating lunch the group split up and I led a group to a place called "Our Lord in the Attic". It was three buildings behind each other which had been converted into a Catholic Church in 1661 when it was illegal to be Catholic in Amsterdam. It was amazing how large it was. The actual sanctuary itself was 3 stories tall, but from the street you would never know there was a church there at all.
We then ate dinner. Most people had savory pancakes but I had an omelette. It was great. I also tasted some South African wine which some other girls had bought but I didn't think it was very good. It was too strong for me.
On Saturday we ate Chinese for lunch. I enjoyed my duck even though people were giving me a hard time. The duck was actually better than the pork. We then tried to find the red light district but only found dirty stores, not the infamous girls in the windows. We then saw a large tulip selling area and then went to the Heineken museum. It was an interesting experience and I found out Heineken is GROSS. I am glad I had pepsi to mix with the bit I did not give away. We got 3 drinks, either Heineken beer or soda. That's how I know what Heineken tastes like.
After the Heineken we went on a canal cruise which was really nice and very well timed because it turned out to be the only warm dry part of the entire weekend. We then walked around town, did some shopping and ate. Some of us went searching for the girls in the windows. It was definately an interesting thing to see.
Today it has been raining all day. After putting our stuff in lockers at the train station and eating lunch the group split up and I led a group to a place called "Our Lord in the Attic". It was three buildings behind each other which had been converted into a Catholic Church in 1661 when it was illegal to be Catholic in Amsterdam. It was amazing how large it was. The actual sanctuary itself was 3 stories tall, but from the street you would never know there was a church there at all.
Weekend trip to Amsterdam
I had a great time with everyone in Amsterdam this past weekend. Seeing the Anne Frank house was really eye-opening. Can you imagine living in that one place for months, much less years. We got some great pancakes at The Pancake House that night. Cherries, ice cream, and whipped cream pancake...yum! The canal tour was great too! Seeing the city by canal gave me a lot better perspective on how it was laid out. What a great trip!
Adventures in Holland...
Well it's our last day in Amsterdam and right now it's Michelle, Kristen, and myself chilling in an internet cafe for a while until it gets closer to the time for our train to leave. Amsterdam was certainly different than anything else I've ever experienced, but it was about what I expected. We all seemed to enjoy ourselves thoroughly minus today's horrible weather. We went through the Anne Frank house which was extremely cool to be in the place where all of the story took happened. It truly was an amazing feeling to be in the house and read actual excerpts from her diary. After Anne Frank we went to eat some pancakes/omelettes which were pretty good. We went to most of the various tourist attractions and all of which I really enjoyed, but I think we all got a huge kick out of walking around parts of the red light district, that was definitely nothing like any of us have experienced before.
Overall it was really fun, save for the weather at times, and we all seemed to enjoy ourselves but I think yet again like in Paris we are all ready to get back to Germany. I just can't believe that our time is over half gone for our trip, because it has gone by so unbelievably fast. Part of me wants to stay, but I'm also getting slightly anxious to be back home, making this the first time I can honestly say I've ever felt even remotely homesick.
Overall it was really fun, save for the weather at times, and we all seemed to enjoy ourselves but I think yet again like in Paris we are all ready to get back to Germany. I just can't believe that our time is over half gone for our trip, because it has gone by so unbelievably fast. Part of me wants to stay, but I'm also getting slightly anxious to be back home, making this the first time I can honestly say I've ever felt even remotely homesick.
Friday, July 29, 2005
Lecturing about the Holocaust
This is going to be an atypical post for me but I want to jot down and share some thoughts and feelings I had during the lecture I presented this morning on the Nuremberg Doctors' Trial.
As Professor Zinnikus pointed out to all of us during his lecture, teaching about the Holocaust is troubling and difficult and the way in which an educator presents this gruesome material has to be carefully planned. How one goes about it depends, of course, on who the audience is—Germans or non-Germans, Jews or non-Jews, young people or children or adults, Holocaust survivors or children of survivors, people who already know a great deal of the history and background or people who only know that something terrible happened but do not really know the where, the how, or, most importantly, the why (always the most difficult question of all).
Those of us who teach also cannot help but bring parts of ourselves into the way in which we research and present our material. This does not mean that we lose scientific or historical objectivity and present false or terribly biased information to our students. It does mean that if the material being presented is important to the presenter, then the presenter’s personal history and temperament will factor into how the lecture plays out. I will admit that this “personalization” phenomenon is very true for me, and it is true regardless of the topic I am speaking about, as long as it is a topic about which I care a great deal. I became a biologist because I fell in love with the material, with the information, fairly early in my educational life and it has been a love affair that has, happily, persisted into middle age. How I do biology and what I do as a scientist has changed but my fascination for the phenomena of life remains. And—as all of you have now experienced first hand—I like to talk about it! History, particularly the history of this place we are living in now, has also fascinated me for some time and the opportunity to combine my disciplines of interest, biology/medicine and modern German history, is an opportunity that I am very pleased to have had.
During my talk this morning, I felt quite carried along by my own narrative of the events of the Nazizeit and the details of what the medical professionals in the dock at Nuremberg were being accused of—what, in fact, most of them were convicted of, and for which several were condemned to death and executed. The Doctors' Trial holds a particular fascination for me (and for many other people) because of the fact that, in Germany and the USA and most of the rest of the world today, and in Germany prior to 1933, the prime directive of a doctor’s existence was to save lives, to alleviate suffering, to help people. During the Nazizeit, this credo was corrupted and altered. Doctors under Nazism were responsible not for the health and well being of individuals, but for the health of the Volksgemeinschaft, the people’s community. The collective health of the Volk, the maintenance of the purity of its bloodline, that was important and what happened to individuals much less so. As I explained in my lecture today, to an SS doctor, it was a far more grievous ethical violation to cause pain and suffering to a rat than to a Jew, or a Gypsy, or a Slav, or a homosexual. The data derived from the concentration camp experiments was needed to help save the lives of German pilots and sailors, members of the Volk who were worth saving and needed if the Reich was, in fact, to last 1000 years. The destruction of individual humans who were not part of the Volk was considered not ethically neutral, but ethically mandated. It needed to be done to safeguard the future and strength of the Aryan “race”.
Next week we will travel to Nuremberg and then Munich and we will see some of the actual places where important events of the Nazizeit took place. The same will be true during our time in Berlin the following week. These trips and today’s lecture were not designed to demonize the German people, either the German people of today or even those of that terribly dark time in the history of this country. To do so, to generalize to an entire, heterogeneous group of people is to make the same cataclysmic error as the Nazis.
In the past few weeks I believe all of you have come to like being here, to like the country and to like the people and I hope I’ve made it clear to you that so do I. My first time living in Germany was a life-changing and wonderful experience for me and I jumped at the chance to come back here last summer with the first group of our biomedical science study abroad program. And here I am again, and, if things work out as I hope, here I will be with a new batch of students next summer and so forth.
Yet this is the place and these are the descendants of the people who committed what can only be described as the most horrific crime against humanity in the history of humanity. Six million European Jews out of a total population of about 11 million were exterminated; several hundred thousand Gypsies (Roma and Sinti people) out of a population of perhaps 2 million were killed; 3 million Poles: 20 million Russians; and collectively several millions more. As you have now experienced for yourselves, Germans are both anxious to think about and discuss these things and hesitant and unwilling. The process of Vergangenheitsbewältigung, coming to terms with the past, is a terribly difficult thing for the people here and it includes coming to terms with their own real sense of victim hood. Millions of Germans were killed or died of hunger and disease; millions were displaced from their homes, their country was bombed back into the Stone Age and then divided by her conquerors into two, entirely distinct nations. The people unlucky enough to be living in the east, having survived the Nazi dictatorship, found themselves living in a new fascist state, albeit a fascism of the extreme left rather than the extreme right. Yet, until very recently, it was not acceptable here to really discuss or dwell on the suffering of Germans during and immediately after the war, only on the suffering they imposed on others.
To think about these things, to talk to Germans and others about them, to see the physical places where the important events of those times took place, is, I believe, enormously helpful both to you and to your German friends and acquaintances. It is the only way that a true Vergangenheitsbewältigung can be achieved. Coming to terms with the past is the opposite of forgetting the past—it is understanding the past in a way that lets you interpret and understand the present and, to some extent, predict the future. The doctors convicted at Nuremberg, while they were in my personal opinion, consummately evil men, were nevertheless men. They were not monsters; they were humans who did monstrous things. Men continue to do monstrous things today. This is not “ethical relativism”. I am not equating or even comparing subsequent genocides and crimes against humanity with the Shoah. This sort of comparative analysis strikes me as fraught with all sorts of historical and philosophical perils. What I am saying is that I feel lucky to be able to come here to Germany and study and to then teach you, or rather to help you to learn. I hope, on the one hand, that my lecture today, and some of the places we will soon visit and learn about, do not upset you too much. On the other hand, I hope that they do.
As Professor Zinnikus pointed out to all of us during his lecture, teaching about the Holocaust is troubling and difficult and the way in which an educator presents this gruesome material has to be carefully planned. How one goes about it depends, of course, on who the audience is—Germans or non-Germans, Jews or non-Jews, young people or children or adults, Holocaust survivors or children of survivors, people who already know a great deal of the history and background or people who only know that something terrible happened but do not really know the where, the how, or, most importantly, the why (always the most difficult question of all).
Those of us who teach also cannot help but bring parts of ourselves into the way in which we research and present our material. This does not mean that we lose scientific or historical objectivity and present false or terribly biased information to our students. It does mean that if the material being presented is important to the presenter, then the presenter’s personal history and temperament will factor into how the lecture plays out. I will admit that this “personalization” phenomenon is very true for me, and it is true regardless of the topic I am speaking about, as long as it is a topic about which I care a great deal. I became a biologist because I fell in love with the material, with the information, fairly early in my educational life and it has been a love affair that has, happily, persisted into middle age. How I do biology and what I do as a scientist has changed but my fascination for the phenomena of life remains. And—as all of you have now experienced first hand—I like to talk about it! History, particularly the history of this place we are living in now, has also fascinated me for some time and the opportunity to combine my disciplines of interest, biology/medicine and modern German history, is an opportunity that I am very pleased to have had.
During my talk this morning, I felt quite carried along by my own narrative of the events of the Nazizeit and the details of what the medical professionals in the dock at Nuremberg were being accused of—what, in fact, most of them were convicted of, and for which several were condemned to death and executed. The Doctors' Trial holds a particular fascination for me (and for many other people) because of the fact that, in Germany and the USA and most of the rest of the world today, and in Germany prior to 1933, the prime directive of a doctor’s existence was to save lives, to alleviate suffering, to help people. During the Nazizeit, this credo was corrupted and altered. Doctors under Nazism were responsible not for the health and well being of individuals, but for the health of the Volksgemeinschaft, the people’s community. The collective health of the Volk, the maintenance of the purity of its bloodline, that was important and what happened to individuals much less so. As I explained in my lecture today, to an SS doctor, it was a far more grievous ethical violation to cause pain and suffering to a rat than to a Jew, or a Gypsy, or a Slav, or a homosexual. The data derived from the concentration camp experiments was needed to help save the lives of German pilots and sailors, members of the Volk who were worth saving and needed if the Reich was, in fact, to last 1000 years. The destruction of individual humans who were not part of the Volk was considered not ethically neutral, but ethically mandated. It needed to be done to safeguard the future and strength of the Aryan “race”.
Next week we will travel to Nuremberg and then Munich and we will see some of the actual places where important events of the Nazizeit took place. The same will be true during our time in Berlin the following week. These trips and today’s lecture were not designed to demonize the German people, either the German people of today or even those of that terribly dark time in the history of this country. To do so, to generalize to an entire, heterogeneous group of people is to make the same cataclysmic error as the Nazis.
In the past few weeks I believe all of you have come to like being here, to like the country and to like the people and I hope I’ve made it clear to you that so do I. My first time living in Germany was a life-changing and wonderful experience for me and I jumped at the chance to come back here last summer with the first group of our biomedical science study abroad program. And here I am again, and, if things work out as I hope, here I will be with a new batch of students next summer and so forth.
Yet this is the place and these are the descendants of the people who committed what can only be described as the most horrific crime against humanity in the history of humanity. Six million European Jews out of a total population of about 11 million were exterminated; several hundred thousand Gypsies (Roma and Sinti people) out of a population of perhaps 2 million were killed; 3 million Poles: 20 million Russians; and collectively several millions more. As you have now experienced for yourselves, Germans are both anxious to think about and discuss these things and hesitant and unwilling. The process of Vergangenheitsbewältigung, coming to terms with the past, is a terribly difficult thing for the people here and it includes coming to terms with their own real sense of victim hood. Millions of Germans were killed or died of hunger and disease; millions were displaced from their homes, their country was bombed back into the Stone Age and then divided by her conquerors into two, entirely distinct nations. The people unlucky enough to be living in the east, having survived the Nazi dictatorship, found themselves living in a new fascist state, albeit a fascism of the extreme left rather than the extreme right. Yet, until very recently, it was not acceptable here to really discuss or dwell on the suffering of Germans during and immediately after the war, only on the suffering they imposed on others.
To think about these things, to talk to Germans and others about them, to see the physical places where the important events of those times took place, is, I believe, enormously helpful both to you and to your German friends and acquaintances. It is the only way that a true Vergangenheitsbewältigung can be achieved. Coming to terms with the past is the opposite of forgetting the past—it is understanding the past in a way that lets you interpret and understand the present and, to some extent, predict the future. The doctors convicted at Nuremberg, while they were in my personal opinion, consummately evil men, were nevertheless men. They were not monsters; they were humans who did monstrous things. Men continue to do monstrous things today. This is not “ethical relativism”. I am not equating or even comparing subsequent genocides and crimes against humanity with the Shoah. This sort of comparative analysis strikes me as fraught with all sorts of historical and philosophical perils. What I am saying is that I feel lucky to be able to come here to Germany and study and to then teach you, or rather to help you to learn. I hope, on the one hand, that my lecture today, and some of the places we will soon visit and learn about, do not upset you too much. On the other hand, I hope that they do.
the end?
It's only about half-way through our program and still it feels like the end because in the next two weeks we will be on the road and we have been having to say our fare-thee-wells. I *hate*, *loathe*, *utterly* can't *stand*(!!!) saying goodbye. My preferred method is to just part ways leaving the question hanging in the air if this is really "good bye for forever" or if it is a "see you some time in the far future." If I am cornered into saying goodbye then I generally do so succintly and try as hard as possible to make the event as short as possible (if I can't stand good byes you can understand why I like long, drawn out ones even less!) Sigh, this is the worst part of any program and it's only the middle of ours!!!! Too soon! It came too soon! Deeper sigh, it always does I fear.
Vet School at Hannover
So I definitely think that the research farm and vet clinic at Hannover were by far the most interesting things we have done so far on our trip. I was really impressed with all the new technology and systems used at the research farm, like the lazor milker. Our guide through the cattle part of the vet school clinis was really good. I had never seen them use a machine to lay a cow down before. Going around the farm really sparked my interest for food animal medicine. I am surprised that there is not a higher need for food animal vets. I would think they would be pretty essential. I know the money intake is on the lower end, but that all depends on who you work for.
A sad day
Today was our last day in class, which made me sad. Even more sad than i am about being miserabbly sick 8-(. Oh well.....
The lecture on the Nuremberg doctor's trial ws chilling, and it makes me wonder what kind of reaction I will have when we visit the actual concentration camp. I know it will be an extremely personal experience for all of us, though each one of us will be moved in a slightly different way.
This past week had been great! Well....everything except for the mini bus- that wasn't so cool 8-). After seeing my second (and last....) rectal ultrasound i am 210% certain I chose the right field for myself - HUMAN medicine. Watching the operation on the ow was fascinating, though, and I was more curious about the details than I thought I would be.
Things seem to be coming to close her ein dusseldorf. Saying goodbye to Olaf yesterday made me realize how quickly our time here has passed!
The lecture on the Nuremberg doctor's trial ws chilling, and it makes me wonder what kind of reaction I will have when we visit the actual concentration camp. I know it will be an extremely personal experience for all of us, though each one of us will be moved in a slightly different way.
This past week had been great! Well....everything except for the mini bus- that wasn't so cool 8-). After seeing my second (and last....) rectal ultrasound i am 210% certain I chose the right field for myself - HUMAN medicine. Watching the operation on the ow was fascinating, though, and I was more curious about the details than I thought I would be.
Things seem to be coming to close her ein dusseldorf. Saying goodbye to Olaf yesterday made me realize how quickly our time here has passed!
A Day at the Farm
Surprisingly enough for as much as I don't like farm animals, going to the Vet School in Hanover has been one of my favorite excursions thus far. I didn't know anything about basic farming and our tour guide for the farm was very interesting and knowledgeable. Lunch was good and I talked to some German girls, but they laughed at our entries in their guest book. Apparently the German thing to do is just sign your name. I really enjoyed touring the small animal clinic and I never realized that animal medicine was so similar to human medicine. I never knew that you could do a CT scan or an MRI on a dog. My favorite part was touring with Katherine at the Cow hospital. She cared so much about her cow patients and she was so kind and enthusiastic. I would like to take these qualities and mannerisms into my human practice. Lastly we watched a cow surgery which was interesting because they only use local anesthesia and the cow is standing up.
Differences....
We've had some good, fun excursions so far on this trip. Each one is good in its own way. But our excursion yesterday to Hannover was probably my favorite. Not including the bus trip to and from-especially the trip to. I was not a fan of the back bench on the short bus. The seats were way too narrow and totally uncomfortable, especially for a 4 hour ride while trying to sleep. But that's not the point of this post.
Once we actually found the farm and stopped being lost, the day picked up. For some reason that I can't really pinpoint, I liked the Hannover experimental farm better than the Bonn experimental farm. While we were touring I was thinking to myself that I didn't really agree with the practice of never letting the cows or pigs or birds (besides the ducks) outside. I understand that keeping them in was practical for hygienic reasons, but it just seems sad that they are stuck in a stable all the time. They seemed content, but that life is all they know. The animals are all trained to eat at the automatic stations, and the cows get milked 3 times a day, automatically and voluntarily. That system, and the milking robot amazed me. It was totally cool to see it in action.
The "Texas BBQ" that the German vet/med students prepared for us was really nice. The food was good and I got to see a Weimaraner!!! I was so excited, I've been looking for them all around Germany. It reminded me of Heidi, my puppy back home. It was interesting to talk to the students and realize the differences between the education systems in the US and Germany. One of the 1st year vet students was my age. 20 years old and already completed the first year. They finish "grammar school" which is our equivalent of high school with more of the indepth/general knowledge of some undergrad courses by the time they're 18 or 19. Then they go straight on into a professional school-vet school or med school or law school or whatever. And they don't have to pay for it. That just amazes me!! They 11 semesters of school, which is 3 more than we do, but they can still get out and be a DVM by the time they're 24. If I'm lucky and get in my first try, I'll just be in my 2nd year of vet school when I'm 24. Its crazy.
Once we actually found the farm and stopped being lost, the day picked up. For some reason that I can't really pinpoint, I liked the Hannover experimental farm better than the Bonn experimental farm. While we were touring I was thinking to myself that I didn't really agree with the practice of never letting the cows or pigs or birds (besides the ducks) outside. I understand that keeping them in was practical for hygienic reasons, but it just seems sad that they are stuck in a stable all the time. They seemed content, but that life is all they know. The animals are all trained to eat at the automatic stations, and the cows get milked 3 times a day, automatically and voluntarily. That system, and the milking robot amazed me. It was totally cool to see it in action.
The "Texas BBQ" that the German vet/med students prepared for us was really nice. The food was good and I got to see a Weimaraner!!! I was so excited, I've been looking for them all around Germany. It reminded me of Heidi, my puppy back home. It was interesting to talk to the students and realize the differences between the education systems in the US and Germany. One of the 1st year vet students was my age. 20 years old and already completed the first year. They finish "grammar school" which is our equivalent of high school with more of the indepth/general knowledge of some undergrad courses by the time they're 18 or 19. Then they go straight on into a professional school-vet school or med school or law school or whatever. And they don't have to pay for it. That just amazes me!! They 11 semesters of school, which is 3 more than we do, but they can still get out and be a DVM by the time they're 24. If I'm lucky and get in my first try, I'll just be in my 2nd year of vet school when I'm 24. Its crazy.
Die Wildecker Herzbuben!
In my continued researches into German popular culture, my latest discovery is “die Wildecker Herzbuben”, two incredibly huge guys, in traditional Trachterkleidung, who sing Heimatmusik and play a variety of brass instruments (rather beautifully). Die Wildecker Herzbuben (Lover Boys from Wildeck) have been making CDs and appearing on the variety shows popular on TV for some time now. In live performance they inevitably sing their biggest hit, “Herzilein” (see sample lyrics at end of this post). Both Wolfgang and Wilfried have very nice voices and, especially with “Herzilein” cajole their, mostly middle-aged and above studio audiences into singing along with the familiar chorus and gently swaying back and forth in a sort of, kinder, gentler version of beer hall sing-a-longs. Quite nice, actually. They are a couple of good-natured, good-ole-boys, German-style! Naturally, I assumed they were Bavarians, but it turns out that Wildeck is a small town south of Göttingen and east of Erfurt, on the border between Land Essen and Land Thüringen, so very much in central Germany and not Bayerisch at all!
So—here the words to the all-important refrain of the Wildecker Herzbuben megahit, “Herzilein”! Singt mit uns bitte!
Herzilein
du musst nicht traurig sein
ich weiss
du bist nicht gern allein
und schuld war doch nur der Wein
-und du sagst sicher:
Spatzilein
ich werd' dir noch einmal verzeih'n.
Die Hauptsache ist
du kommst heim
- so kann nur ein Engel sein.
So—here the words to the all-important refrain of the Wildecker Herzbuben megahit, “Herzilein”! Singt mit uns bitte!
Herzilein
du musst nicht traurig sein
ich weiss
du bist nicht gern allein
und schuld war doch nur der Wein
-und du sagst sicher:
Spatzilein
ich werd' dir noch einmal verzeih'n.
Die Hauptsache ist
du kommst heim
- so kann nur ein Engel sein.
The Midget Bus
Yesterday we took a very small bus to Hannover. Now, I can't say that my seat was too horribly uncomfortable, but according to the girls in the back, the seats were built for midgets. Haha! The bus ride took about 4 hours, and we stopped along the way at a rest stop. We all loaded up on candy and ice cream... a great breakfast! We also got a little lost, but we eventually made it to Hannover, where we toured the research farm, and the vet school.
The research farm was amazing! My favorite part (and probably everyone else's) was the automated milking machine. The cows could decide when they wanted to be milked, and then the machine would do the rest. It washed and disinfected the teats, milked the cow, and then redisinfected the udder... all using lasers! I could have watched it all day. Seriously. We also were able to see the production side of the farm. We learned how costly it is to produce animal roducts, and how easy it is to lose money in agriculture. The animal rights movement is very strong in Germany, and it was interesting to see how the producers are dealing with the new laws being set forth. We were able to view the new chicken cages and the "toys" they provide for the animals' entertainment. Overall, it was a very interesting trip.
Before we went to the veterinary school, we were able to have BBQ with some of the vet students at their fraternity house. They were very helpful in answering our questions, and the food was awesome! The veterinary school was also really interesting. We were able to tour the small and large animal clinics. I personally thought the large animal clinic was a lot more interesting, and as an added bonus, we got to wear cool, clear, plastic booties! We were able to see how they trim the hooves of cattle, and even got to see a surgery before we left.
The bus ride back to Dusseldorf took a long time on the midget bus. We were relieved to be able to go home and sleep, because it was a really long day. A really good day... but long!
The research farm was amazing! My favorite part (and probably everyone else's) was the automated milking machine. The cows could decide when they wanted to be milked, and then the machine would do the rest. It washed and disinfected the teats, milked the cow, and then redisinfected the udder... all using lasers! I could have watched it all day. Seriously. We also were able to see the production side of the farm. We learned how costly it is to produce animal roducts, and how easy it is to lose money in agriculture. The animal rights movement is very strong in Germany, and it was interesting to see how the producers are dealing with the new laws being set forth. We were able to view the new chicken cages and the "toys" they provide for the animals' entertainment. Overall, it was a very interesting trip.
Before we went to the veterinary school, we were able to have BBQ with some of the vet students at their fraternity house. They were very helpful in answering our questions, and the food was awesome! The veterinary school was also really interesting. We were able to tour the small and large animal clinics. I personally thought the large animal clinic was a lot more interesting, and as an added bonus, we got to wear cool, clear, plastic booties! We were able to see how they trim the hooves of cattle, and even got to see a surgery before we left.
The bus ride back to Dusseldorf took a long time on the midget bus. We were relieved to be able to go home and sleep, because it was a really long day. A really good day... but long!
The Short Bus
Yeah, that's right, we took the short bus to Hannover yesterday. Our driver drove like a maniac, and no one, including Ashley and me, could fit in the seats in the back. But visiting the vet school and the clinics was really neat. They were old buildings but huge and very interesting. And seeing the machine that could identify a cow by its teat pattern and then milk it, all without human direction or intervention, was amazing. We also had some good barbeque! I enjoyed the cow clinic, mostly because of the veterinarian and also because seeing a guy cut into a standing cow and proceed to stick his entire arm up to his armpit into the cavity... wow. The experiences we are having on this trip are amazing.
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Breaking in the AIB
Well, this morning started off in an unusual but interesting way. Adriane and I decided to come to the AIB a little earlier this morning because we wanted to check our e-mails and bolg. So, we got here around 7:50 and no one was in the office to let us in. We patiently waited, and Dr. Wasser showed up about 8:00. We were excited because now we could get into the AIB and get on the computers. Little did we know that the inside door had been recoded and his beeper did not open the door. So, we proceeded to go to the side door and come up the back way. Unfortunately the back door to the AIB office was locked. Then Adriane and I, the brains that we are, suggested that we go down into the garage with his key and use the elevator to get up to the second floor. We were so excited when it worked! It was kind of like breaking into the AIB. Fun Times! We are leaving today to go to Amsterdam. Most everybody is going again. I will report sometime next week about our excursions.
Gotta catch some Z's.....
Well the week is almost over, and it's been exhausting ever since we got back from Paris. Paris wasn't what I really expected. I always heard it's the most beautiful and romantic city in the world, but I just wasn't feeling it. If I had a girl there with me then things might have felt a little different, haha. The Louvre was cool, but oddly enough for me it was none of the "famous paintings" that caught my eye the most and blew me away, but one by an artist I didn't know depicting the death of Christ. It was just an awesome picture to put it simply. The rest of Paris was alright, but I never really warmed up to it until the last night there when we all hung out on the grass infront of the Eifel Tower at night and drank some wine. Needless to say I was dead tired by the end of it. The rest of this week has been pretty cool so far. The Bayer facility tour was pretty interesting, and I really liked visiting the vet clinic/school in Hannover today. I still dont really have much interest in working with cattle or pigs, but working with the smaller animals and horses is still top on my list. It was really cool to hang out with some of the vet students and talk with them when they gave us lunch, which was great by the way...I have a new fondness for curry sausage now. Being able to talk to the vet students and get their perspectives over a lot of different things was really good and enlightening, and even though it was a long day I highly enjoyed it.
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Hamburg!!!!
YAY! I get to be new and different and not even *mention* the P-city like all the other recent blogs, hehehehe (this is Rebecca thumbing her nose at all of you!) ;) Well, I slept all of Satuday, which was nice since it is my personaly philosophy that sleep or jumping jacks will cure most anything. I had/still-am-sorta-congested a cold and so sleep is just the trick to cure that! Then on Sunday and Monday I trundled off to Hamburg to see this Northern Hanseatic Must-See-If-You-Are-Germany (or so I was told) city. I agree. I loved Hamburg, maybe it's my green thumb and the fact that they have a huge planted garden in the middle of the city. Or it could be that I love European cathedrals and they have a Baroque cathedral that is amazing! (And a refreshing and surprising change from the usual Gothic or Romanesque styles.) They also have a church that was ruined in WWII and which they are deliberately not restoring as a tribute to the beating that Hamburg took. It was weird reading the history of that church in the underground exibition. You find lines like: "Hamburg was heavily bombed in WWII by the Allies, but the Germans do not find this odd since they have a saying 'Whoever sows wind will reap a storm.' It's weird because in our history we have always been the good guys and so any damage or deaths or anything that happened to the US (take Pearl Harbour, for instance) was wrong and "They wronged us by doing it." and "We were never in the wrong." This is not the case for Germans who have to acknowledge that although the Allies killed tons of Germans and flattened cities, it was a necessary step to winning the war and "They were right and we were wrong and so we can't bear them any ill will for dropping tonnes of kilos of bombs on us." Eating crow like that is hard for anyone and I can understand better how that has shaped the psyche of an entire coutry's population. I wonder how the collective culture/mindset of USAmericans would change if they ever had to do something like that. Would they become more pessimistic? less patriotic? less smiley? would their news reports actually have important world-affecting stories instead of the soft personal-interest stories? Can you imagine a world with no hypothetical situations? I can't. Guess I'll never be a historian. :-)
Name game—political parties in Germany
Before we all arrived here in Düsseldorf I posted a piece in response to the victory of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) over their rivals, the Rot-Grün coalition (made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Greens) in the state election here in North-Rhine Westphalia. This was a big deal as the SPD had ruled this state continuously since 1966 even when the overall national government was CDU-lead. Furthermore, the loss of control of the most populous Land in Germany prompted Chancellor Gerard Schröder to call for a national election for September 2005, one year ahead of schedule.
All of the parties have now weighed in with their election platforms and the battle lines are set. Polls here still show the CDU (probably with their normal coalition partner, the FDP, Free Democratic Party) with a commanding (although shrinking) lead. So, CDU head, Angela Merkel looks like the odds-on favorite to become the next (and first female) German chancellor.
But here it starts to get complicated. The left wing of the SDP has split off from the main party led by former Schröder supporter and cabinet member, Oscar Lafontaine. Lafontaine forged a coalition with the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS, Partei des Demokratischen Sozialismus) basically the former east German Communist Party (SED, Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, or in English, the Socialist Unity Party). The new party dubbed itself the WASG, Wahlalternative Arbeit und Soziale Gerechtigkeit. This can be translated as the “Electoral Alternative for Employment and Social Justice.” The WASG is calling for the maintenance of the current, excellent level of social welfare support (unemployment and retirement benefits and so on) and are opposed to both the Harz IV and Agenda 2010 programs of Schöder’s government. For them, the “S” in SPD is not being taken seriously enough!
OK—so far so good. But the WASG was just too clunky a name to live with and the PDS apparently wanted to distance itself farther from its Communist origins (and all that entailed in terms of historic baggage from the former DDR and the Evil Empire). So—the WASG is now die Linkspartie (the Left Party) or sometimes just die Linke or sometimes die Linke.PDS. Interviews with supporters of die Linke (or whatever) are themselves unsure about the actual name of their party!
Support for die Linke (or whatever) is modest but visible, especially in the eastern Länder that made up the former DDR. Unemployment is higher there than in the rest of Germany and, of course, the folks there were used to an unparalleled social safety net in the form of the paternalistic aspects of the Communist regime. They did not, of course, have any freedom, nor was there much in the way of consumer goods to buy with their guaranteed incomes, but they did have jobs and they did have salaries and benefits and if they filed the proper paperwork, and waited about 12 years, they could buy a Trabant (see photo).
Interestingly enough, along with apparent support for leftists in the east, that is also the part of Germany where the extreme right-wing party, the NPD (Nationaldemokratische Partei) has its greatest support. Inasmuch as the NPD are basically Nazis (the Nazi Party itself is illegal in Germany) it is a good thing that their overall support is modest. In the interests of objectivity I feel compelled to report that recently, the attempt by the Germany government to ban the NPD as a Nazi party in all but name, was overturned by the German supreme court, which ruled that they were in fact, not Nazis after all.
All of the parties have now weighed in with their election platforms and the battle lines are set. Polls here still show the CDU (probably with their normal coalition partner, the FDP, Free Democratic Party) with a commanding (although shrinking) lead. So, CDU head, Angela Merkel looks like the odds-on favorite to become the next (and first female) German chancellor.
But here it starts to get complicated. The left wing of the SDP has split off from the main party led by former Schröder supporter and cabinet member, Oscar Lafontaine. Lafontaine forged a coalition with the Party of Democratic Socialism (PDS, Partei des Demokratischen Sozialismus) basically the former east German Communist Party (SED, Sozialistische Einheitspartei Deutschlands, or in English, the Socialist Unity Party). The new party dubbed itself the WASG, Wahlalternative Arbeit und Soziale Gerechtigkeit. This can be translated as the “Electoral Alternative for Employment and Social Justice.” The WASG is calling for the maintenance of the current, excellent level of social welfare support (unemployment and retirement benefits and so on) and are opposed to both the Harz IV and Agenda 2010 programs of Schöder’s government. For them, the “S” in SPD is not being taken seriously enough!
OK—so far so good. But the WASG was just too clunky a name to live with and the PDS apparently wanted to distance itself farther from its Communist origins (and all that entailed in terms of historic baggage from the former DDR and the Evil Empire). So—the WASG is now die Linkspartie (the Left Party) or sometimes just die Linke or sometimes die Linke.PDS. Interviews with supporters of die Linke (or whatever) are themselves unsure about the actual name of their party!
Support for die Linke (or whatever) is modest but visible, especially in the eastern Länder that made up the former DDR. Unemployment is higher there than in the rest of Germany and, of course, the folks there were used to an unparalleled social safety net in the form of the paternalistic aspects of the Communist regime. They did not, of course, have any freedom, nor was there much in the way of consumer goods to buy with their guaranteed incomes, but they did have jobs and they did have salaries and benefits and if they filed the proper paperwork, and waited about 12 years, they could buy a Trabant (see photo).
Interestingly enough, along with apparent support for leftists in the east, that is also the part of Germany where the extreme right-wing party, the NPD (Nationaldemokratische Partei) has its greatest support. Inasmuch as the NPD are basically Nazis (the Nazi Party itself is illegal in Germany) it is a good thing that their overall support is modest. In the interests of objectivity I feel compelled to report that recently, the attempt by the Germany government to ban the NPD as a Nazi party in all but name, was overturned by the German supreme court, which ruled that they were in fact, not Nazis after all.
Trabant--as powerful as your lawn mower and twice as loud!
The pride of the DDR. These babies came fully loaded with two-cylinder engines, and frames made of pressed particle board (in other words the same stuff used to make cheap bookcases!). Noisy, dangerous, uncomfortable, and highly polluting, Trabies could achieve top speeds of about 50 mph and, at least back in 1992, could be found tooling across the newly reunited Germany in the extreme right-hand lanes of the nation's Autobahnen.
quite a large blog, but c'mon...it was paris!
Well....i don't really know how to begin my description of this past weekedn, including everything we saw and my feelings through it all, but (rubs hands together) here we go!
Our fun started on our way out of the Dusseldorf Bonhof, where our entire group was just a little grumpy and tired, myself included. Our first class train ride raised our spirits, however, especially the nice french steward who seemed to want to bend over backwards to help us out! :wink: those of you who were there know what i mean. As an example for those who weren't, when i asked for a glass of red wine following our complimentary dinner, the man brought me four mini bottles of wine and proceeded to explain in detail the benefits of each!
By the time our train pulled into the paris Nord station, i had just about driven Lindsay out of her mind with my excited prattle about meeting matt (my boyfriend) there. i can't remember a time in my life when i felt more of a rush than when i steppe donto the platform anxiously anticiptaing the most romantic moment we would find one another. Within a matter of seconds, i was filled with the greatest fear i think i have ever felt: it became overwhelmingly obvious to me how large that trains station was, and how it would be virtuously impossible to find someone in it. As i listened to monotone French on the loudspeakers and that most ominous three tone melody "du Du DU", i felt completely out of my element and helpless. for the next half hour, the group was nice enough to humor me and my frantic search for someone who ws obviously NOT THERE. i feel terrible about making them wait, and I want them all to know how much i appreciated it. 8-)
Needless to say, my first impression of Paris was not great. Not only was I worried about matt, but we also had a bit of trouble with the directions to the hotel, and once we got there and saw the city streets up close, i began to think that Paris was a dark, dingy, completely unfriendly place. But then again, maybe i was just a little biased at that point. 8-) When we got to the hotel, and i found Matt waiting there, everything suddely seemed better, and I decided to give Paris a chance.
Saturday was a jam-packed day. we had our first real french breakfast, and toured the Louvre. i think i walked around that museum for about four hours, and i'm sur emy jaw was hanging open the whole time! The museum building itself was a work of art, whcich contained even more spectacular works of art. I wish i had a few days to comb through it thoroughly. oh, and i wish some of the descriptions had been in English. 8-) During the afternoon we set out to look for the Moulin rouge, and found ourselves smack da in the middle of the red light district of Paris. Seeing what i saw there completely disgusted me, and all i really remember feeling was the overwhelming urge to LEAVE the area as soon as possible. Seeing that place was sad and almost nauseating. Luckily, we did find our way to Montmartre, where we able to see a great view of the city. The area aroud there, with all the shops and street artists, fit the image i had always had of Paris.
Sunday was another early day, and we headed first for breakfast, and then to Notre Dame. mass was in progress during the time we visited the cathedral, and that made the experience really special. i don't consider myself to be extremely religious, but the sights, sounds, and smells (insense), moved me to tears. After lunch, matt and I went off to spend the afternoon together. First, we went and walked along the Champs amidst the crowds waiting for the Tour, a dream come true for matt, sicne he's a serious cyclist. Seeing Lance ride by at the head of the pack was amazing, and i will never forget it! Leaving the area though, was a little a scary, since the crowds created a bottleneck, and i felt smothered by so many people trying to push their way through body-to-body crowds. We finished the afternoon wth the eiffel tower and anice romantic dinner for two. 8-)
Seeing everything we wanted to see in paris was fantastic, but there were so many details of the weekend that i will smile about forever. One of my favorite memories will be of our last night in Paris, when matt and i took the late metro back to the hotel, and we were surrounded by ten or twelve young french men. At first, both of us were on edge, but they turned out to be very friendly, and even started rapping for us in French! Opening my first bottle of Champagne, being with Matt in one of the most romantic places in the world, learning to navigate the metro system, and watching the crazy Parisians go about their daily business are all things that i will never forget.
thanks so much guys, i had an amazing time!
Our fun started on our way out of the Dusseldorf Bonhof, where our entire group was just a little grumpy and tired, myself included. Our first class train ride raised our spirits, however, especially the nice french steward who seemed to want to bend over backwards to help us out! :wink: those of you who were there know what i mean. As an example for those who weren't, when i asked for a glass of red wine following our complimentary dinner, the man brought me four mini bottles of wine and proceeded to explain in detail the benefits of each!
By the time our train pulled into the paris Nord station, i had just about driven Lindsay out of her mind with my excited prattle about meeting matt (my boyfriend) there. i can't remember a time in my life when i felt more of a rush than when i steppe donto the platform anxiously anticiptaing the most romantic moment we would find one another. Within a matter of seconds, i was filled with the greatest fear i think i have ever felt: it became overwhelmingly obvious to me how large that trains station was, and how it would be virtuously impossible to find someone in it. As i listened to monotone French on the loudspeakers and that most ominous three tone melody "du Du DU", i felt completely out of my element and helpless. for the next half hour, the group was nice enough to humor me and my frantic search for someone who ws obviously NOT THERE. i feel terrible about making them wait, and I want them all to know how much i appreciated it. 8-)
Needless to say, my first impression of Paris was not great. Not only was I worried about matt, but we also had a bit of trouble with the directions to the hotel, and once we got there and saw the city streets up close, i began to think that Paris was a dark, dingy, completely unfriendly place. But then again, maybe i was just a little biased at that point. 8-) When we got to the hotel, and i found Matt waiting there, everything suddely seemed better, and I decided to give Paris a chance.
Saturday was a jam-packed day. we had our first real french breakfast, and toured the Louvre. i think i walked around that museum for about four hours, and i'm sur emy jaw was hanging open the whole time! The museum building itself was a work of art, whcich contained even more spectacular works of art. I wish i had a few days to comb through it thoroughly. oh, and i wish some of the descriptions had been in English. 8-) During the afternoon we set out to look for the Moulin rouge, and found ourselves smack da in the middle of the red light district of Paris. Seeing what i saw there completely disgusted me, and all i really remember feeling was the overwhelming urge to LEAVE the area as soon as possible. Seeing that place was sad and almost nauseating. Luckily, we did find our way to Montmartre, where we able to see a great view of the city. The area aroud there, with all the shops and street artists, fit the image i had always had of Paris.
Sunday was another early day, and we headed first for breakfast, and then to Notre Dame. mass was in progress during the time we visited the cathedral, and that made the experience really special. i don't consider myself to be extremely religious, but the sights, sounds, and smells (insense), moved me to tears. After lunch, matt and I went off to spend the afternoon together. First, we went and walked along the Champs amidst the crowds waiting for the Tour, a dream come true for matt, sicne he's a serious cyclist. Seeing Lance ride by at the head of the pack was amazing, and i will never forget it! Leaving the area though, was a little a scary, since the crowds created a bottleneck, and i felt smothered by so many people trying to push their way through body-to-body crowds. We finished the afternoon wth the eiffel tower and anice romantic dinner for two. 8-)
Seeing everything we wanted to see in paris was fantastic, but there were so many details of the weekend that i will smile about forever. One of my favorite memories will be of our last night in Paris, when matt and i took the late metro back to the hotel, and we were surrounded by ten or twelve young french men. At first, both of us were on edge, but they turned out to be very friendly, and even started rapping for us in French! Opening my first bottle of Champagne, being with Matt in one of the most romantic places in the world, learning to navigate the metro system, and watching the crazy Parisians go about their daily business are all things that i will never forget.
thanks so much guys, i had an amazing time!
Paris Excursion
This weekend we went to Paris. Amazingly we were able to see it in only 2 days thanks to tour guide Barbie and tour guide skipper. There were 6 of us who mainly traveled together and I thought it was great how we each used our individual strengths to get the most out of our trip. We started at Versailles, which was absolutely amazing. I couldn't believe that someone was crazy enough to build a place like that. Then we continued on to Notre Dame, the Arc, and the Eiffel tower. I thought a lot of these things were overrated, but it was one of those things that you "had to see." The second day we went to the Louvre, Sacre Cours, and the ending of the Tour de France. It was amazing being able to witness a record being broken. After the race we went out to eat at a tiny French restaurant and I have decided that the only French food worth eating is Crepes. My favorite part of the trip was sitting at the Eiffel tower at night drinking wine, it was the perfect ending to our trip. I can't wait to see how much fun we have in Amsterdam this weekend.
Close call
Here's something I forgot to mention. We were on the train from Koeln back to Duesseldorf yesterday. The conductor came to check our tickets and asked Kathryn for ID with her ticket. I started searching for ID (I already had my ticket out for him to see). Kathryn showed him her ID and then he turned to me. I showed him my ticket but continued to frantically search for my card holder which carries all my cards including student ID and driver's lisence. Luckily he just waved it off and said it was okay. Good thing because it turned out I did not have my cards with me. I had left them at my host mother's house. That was a very close call. I am glad he did not see me ticket first because I would not have been able to produce ID. I seem to have ID problems. While we were in Paris I left my driver's license in the hotel room (they were apartments so they were not cleaned daily) because I did not want to lose it while out. In Germany they always had discounts for students so I had my student ID with me. Turns out in Paris they do it by age, so they wanted to see ID that showed when I was born. Luckily the lady believed me when I said I was 20 and I got the discount. It happened twice. WHEW. I''ll make sure to have all my cards with me at all times from now on.
Paris
If it is not clear now, Paris did not make a good first impression on the group. Luckily things improved and I think overall we all had a great time. Here's a list of the things I saw: Louve, Montmatre, Moulin Rouge, front of Sacre Coeur, "The Black Cat" restuarant, Notre Dame, Sainte Chapelle, Panteon, The Tour de France, Musee d'Orsee and Eifel Tower at sunset. It was a very full but wonderful weekend.
I liked different things for different reasons. I loved seeing the Venus de Milo and Winged Victory in the Louve. It was also cool to see real Monet's and Rembrants and the crown jewels of France. I discovered I really like Monet. I would see a picture in a room and really like it and only afterwards realize it was done by Monet.
It was really cool to see the Moulin Rouge even though it was smaller than I expected. I also liked walking around Montmatre because it is the setting of the Moulin Rouge movie and it was cool to just walk around. We also had dinner there and it was wonderful. The french really have wonderful food. While I was at the Panteon I was able to go up to the top and got a wonderful view of Paris. Unfortunately it was cloudy but I could see the hill of Montmatre. I used our video camera and zoomed in like the beginning of the movie. Others saw it and were really impressed. I am convinced it was from up there that they got the scene for the movie. It was totally great to actually be there in person.
It was wonderful when we saw Notre Dame. Most people said they prefered the Dom in Koeln, but Heather, Matt and I were able to see Notre Dame working as a Cathedral. It was a cloudy day, and they were having Mass since we went on Sunday morning. They had Mass in the middle but tourists were able to go around the edges. I'm surprised they allowed it considering it was very distracting. The three of us couldn't bring ourselves to take pictures or anything like that. Some tourists were very disrespectful though. That wasn't nice. It was cool to be in there though. I was able to walk around by myself and meet the others at the exit. Since they were having the service we could smell the inscence (however you spell that), and a man and women were singing descant. It was beautiful. I could also see how they got the idea for the Hunchback because it was gloomy and they eyes could play tricks.
Saint Chapelle had beautiful stain glass windows. I thought it was interesting how the French Monarchs requested some current events to be put in the windows along with the Bible stories to represent the French Monarchs as continuing the line of the Biblical kings.
Seeing the Tour was fun. I originally did not want to go because I figured we wouldn't be able to see anything and it would just be crowded. Kathryn convinced me to go with her and I am glad she did. We were able to see Lance Armstrong and all the other riders. There were fewer riders than I expected but it was still great to do once. It was miserable because it would drissle, but it was worth it in the end.
I liked going to the Musee d'Orsee even though Kathryn and I basically ran through it. It confirmed for me that I like Money and Renoir, but I do not like Van Gogh. I feel very sophisticated knowing more about these famous artists. Kathryn also introduced me to Degas. He's not bad either. It was fun to be with Kathryn because she had taken an art history class so she knew much more than me about the art, but as she said, at least I appreciate the art even if I don't know much about it.
We finished our trip to Paris by most of the group going to the Eifel Tower and sitting in front of it during sun set. It was a very relaxing evening and I think everyone had a good time even though they were tired. We had a little wine, talked and enjoyed the tower lit up. It was also cool when it would sparkle on each hour.
Yesterday we went to the Bayer plant but unfortunately it was not what we had expected. It was not designed for pre-med pre-vet students. It was still interesting to see the plant though and how they are trying to save the environment. We then went to a horse breeding farm. I am allergic to horses so it was not my favorite trip but I am glad I went. The horses were attractive and their stables were very nice. It was interesting to at least see.
This weekend we are off to Amsterdam. I think that will be an interesting trip.
I liked different things for different reasons. I loved seeing the Venus de Milo and Winged Victory in the Louve. It was also cool to see real Monet's and Rembrants and the crown jewels of France. I discovered I really like Monet. I would see a picture in a room and really like it and only afterwards realize it was done by Monet.
It was really cool to see the Moulin Rouge even though it was smaller than I expected. I also liked walking around Montmatre because it is the setting of the Moulin Rouge movie and it was cool to just walk around. We also had dinner there and it was wonderful. The french really have wonderful food. While I was at the Panteon I was able to go up to the top and got a wonderful view of Paris. Unfortunately it was cloudy but I could see the hill of Montmatre. I used our video camera and zoomed in like the beginning of the movie. Others saw it and were really impressed. I am convinced it was from up there that they got the scene for the movie. It was totally great to actually be there in person.
It was wonderful when we saw Notre Dame. Most people said they prefered the Dom in Koeln, but Heather, Matt and I were able to see Notre Dame working as a Cathedral. It was a cloudy day, and they were having Mass since we went on Sunday morning. They had Mass in the middle but tourists were able to go around the edges. I'm surprised they allowed it considering it was very distracting. The three of us couldn't bring ourselves to take pictures or anything like that. Some tourists were very disrespectful though. That wasn't nice. It was cool to be in there though. I was able to walk around by myself and meet the others at the exit. Since they were having the service we could smell the inscence (however you spell that), and a man and women were singing descant. It was beautiful. I could also see how they got the idea for the Hunchback because it was gloomy and they eyes could play tricks.
Saint Chapelle had beautiful stain glass windows. I thought it was interesting how the French Monarchs requested some current events to be put in the windows along with the Bible stories to represent the French Monarchs as continuing the line of the Biblical kings.
Seeing the Tour was fun. I originally did not want to go because I figured we wouldn't be able to see anything and it would just be crowded. Kathryn convinced me to go with her and I am glad she did. We were able to see Lance Armstrong and all the other riders. There were fewer riders than I expected but it was still great to do once. It was miserable because it would drissle, but it was worth it in the end.
I liked going to the Musee d'Orsee even though Kathryn and I basically ran through it. It confirmed for me that I like Money and Renoir, but I do not like Van Gogh. I feel very sophisticated knowing more about these famous artists. Kathryn also introduced me to Degas. He's not bad either. It was fun to be with Kathryn because she had taken an art history class so she knew much more than me about the art, but as she said, at least I appreciate the art even if I don't know much about it.
We finished our trip to Paris by most of the group going to the Eifel Tower and sitting in front of it during sun set. It was a very relaxing evening and I think everyone had a good time even though they were tired. We had a little wine, talked and enjoyed the tower lit up. It was also cool when it would sparkle on each hour.
Yesterday we went to the Bayer plant but unfortunately it was not what we had expected. It was not designed for pre-med pre-vet students. It was still interesting to see the plant though and how they are trying to save the environment. We then went to a horse breeding farm. I am allergic to horses so it was not my favorite trip but I am glad I went. The horses were attractive and their stables were very nice. It was interesting to at least see.
This weekend we are off to Amsterdam. I think that will be an interesting trip.
An American in Paris
Yeah, I haven't checked the blog to see if anyone else has already used this title. Maybe everyone else was too embarrassed because it's so darn cheesy. Anyway, we spent this past weekend in Paris. The train ride over and trying to find our hotel on Friday night was not so fun, but after that the weekend really took off. My group went Saturday to Versailles, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Champs de Elysees, the Arc de Triomphe, and the Eiffel Tower. Then Sunday we spent at the Louvre, the Sacre Coeure in Montmartre, the Tour de France seeing Lance Armstrong win yet again, and then I went to the Musee d' Orsay with Michelle. I was glad she asked me if I wanted to go with her because I had been told by a friend back in the U.S. who studied in France that she enjoyed Orsay more than the Louvre. I discovered that I really like Monet paintings (as did Michelle) and Renoirs. Then she and I met the others for dinner in a French restaurant (I had chicken in basque sauce - spicy and really good - and chocolate glaze and custard for dessert.) Then we all went back to the Eiffel Tower to watch the sun set and the tower light up. It was relaxing and quite nice.
On Monday morning, I decided to stay by myself in Paris for the morning, taking a later train (and one which took about twice as long to reach Duesseldorf!) I stashed my bags in a locker in the train station and took the Metro over to the river. I wandered for a little while, eventually stopping in a little bakery I found to buy a chocolate croissant and a cappuccino, and then I sat outside in the cool breeze by a fountain, looking at Notre Dame across the river and eating my breakfast. I was even mistaken for a Paris native and asked for directions in French by a tourist! Then I took my time going back to the train station, even stopping in a little French boutique, and I ended up buying a cute dress. I made it back to the train station in plenty of time and then ended up next to a 12-year-old French girl on the train with whom I played cards and made conversation with (using my French dictionary quite often!) I'm glad no one else was there to see and hear me attempting to imitate this twelve-year-old as she taught me French words - some of the sounds are quite awkward for my American tongue! So, despite returning later and probably more exhausted than the others, I am glad that I stayed for a little while to just enjoy the city of Paris.
By the way - what is "An American in Paris"? It's a movie, right? I am such a dork. :P
On Monday morning, I decided to stay by myself in Paris for the morning, taking a later train (and one which took about twice as long to reach Duesseldorf!) I stashed my bags in a locker in the train station and took the Metro over to the river. I wandered for a little while, eventually stopping in a little bakery I found to buy a chocolate croissant and a cappuccino, and then I sat outside in the cool breeze by a fountain, looking at Notre Dame across the river and eating my breakfast. I was even mistaken for a Paris native and asked for directions in French by a tourist! Then I took my time going back to the train station, even stopping in a little French boutique, and I ended up buying a cute dress. I made it back to the train station in plenty of time and then ended up next to a 12-year-old French girl on the train with whom I played cards and made conversation with (using my French dictionary quite often!) I'm glad no one else was there to see and hear me attempting to imitate this twelve-year-old as she taught me French words - some of the sounds are quite awkward for my American tongue! So, despite returning later and probably more exhausted than the others, I am glad that I stayed for a little while to just enjoy the city of Paris.
By the way - what is "An American in Paris"? It's a movie, right? I am such a dork. :P
A Love Hate Relationship
Well, I will have to say that Paris was amazing! If you would have asked me my opinion about it at 10 am on Saturday morning, I would have said that it is the armpit of Europe. When we first got to Paris, we had trouble finding Heather's boyfriend. She promised that he would be there, but out of the masses of people and the numerous overhead calls we failed at finding him. We all finally convinced Heather to go to the hotel, saying that her boyfriend was probably already there. When our cab driver stopped the cab and pointed to our hotel I was just a little worried. It seemed like it was not too great of a neighborhood. As we had promised her boyfriend was waiting in the lobby. Then we had to wait for the second group to get there. Jean had the voucher, hence we could not check in. We waited a couple of hours and they never came, so we started to worry. I decided to go up to the receptionists desk and beg for them to let us into our rooms. Luckily, they were very nice and let us into 2 of the rooms. After about 10 minutes of being in the rooms, the second group showed up.
The next morning a group of six of us decided to go to Versailles. We woke up really early so we could be there when it opened. On our way there we had train problems and we had to take a different route that ended up being longer. When we eventually got there, it was packed and we had no clue where to go. There were extremely long lines and it was frustrating.
After this, everything improved!! Tour guide Barbie(Beth), and tour guide Skipper(Ashley) came to the rescue. They got us a great tour and it let us cut in front of the long lines. Then the rest of the weekend improved! We got to see everything that we wanted and more. It was the most cram packed 2 days that I have ever experienced! I ended up loving Paris. So, you could say that Paris and I have a love-hate relationship!!!
The next morning a group of six of us decided to go to Versailles. We woke up really early so we could be there when it opened. On our way there we had train problems and we had to take a different route that ended up being longer. When we eventually got there, it was packed and we had no clue where to go. There were extremely long lines and it was frustrating.
After this, everything improved!! Tour guide Barbie(Beth), and tour guide Skipper(Ashley) came to the rescue. They got us a great tour and it let us cut in front of the long lines. Then the rest of the weekend improved! We got to see everything that we wanted and more. It was the most cram packed 2 days that I have ever experienced! I ended up loving Paris. So, you could say that Paris and I have a love-hate relationship!!!
Paris!
I had a blast this weekend in Paris! We were able to see everything, despite the rain... I spent most of the weekend with Shannon and Julie, my roommate from back home. It was great to be able to see Julie, and even better to be able to be in Paris with her! We saw all the basic touristy stuff, like Notre Dame, the Arc de Triumph, the Eiffel Tower, etc. Since I've been to Paris before, this was all a repeat, but was a lot of fun nevertheless.
On Saturday night, we were able to sit outside on the lawn and watch the Eiffel Tower light up... it was amazing, and something that I didn't get to see the last ime I came to Paris. I loved how it twinkled every hour for about five minutes. We took tons of pictures, of course, because we're Amercians! We also were able to walk the streets of Paris at night, and they were beautiful... even if a bit stinky. We enjoyed wine at a cafe that night, and went to bed exhausted.
On Sunday morning, we got up and went to an outdoor market where the vedors sold a little of everything. I bought all sorts of random souvenirs, like a purse, some earrings, and some coasters. (Like I need coasters?) It was fun to just walk around and see everything they were selling.. Although Shannon and I were aproached twice by a drug dealer... a little scary. There were vedors from Africa and India selling drums and scarves. There were a lot of shoe booths and exotic jewelry. Overall, it was a girl's paradise! After the market and visiting the surrounding area, we went back to the hotel to change into warmer clothes... and promptly fell asleep for several hours. We were disappointed that we wasted the afternoon, but felt very rested when it was time to go to dinner. We ate gourmet, since it was our last night in Paris. Yum Yum!
Although Paris was great, it was wonderfult o get back to Germany. I actually missed my host family, and the comfort I have found in their home. I also missed the food that I've become used to here. Overall, it was a great trip!
On Saturday night, we were able to sit outside on the lawn and watch the Eiffel Tower light up... it was amazing, and something that I didn't get to see the last ime I came to Paris. I loved how it twinkled every hour for about five minutes. We took tons of pictures, of course, because we're Amercians! We also were able to walk the streets of Paris at night, and they were beautiful... even if a bit stinky. We enjoyed wine at a cafe that night, and went to bed exhausted.
On Sunday morning, we got up and went to an outdoor market where the vedors sold a little of everything. I bought all sorts of random souvenirs, like a purse, some earrings, and some coasters. (Like I need coasters?) It was fun to just walk around and see everything they were selling.. Although Shannon and I were aproached twice by a drug dealer... a little scary. There were vedors from Africa and India selling drums and scarves. There were a lot of shoe booths and exotic jewelry. Overall, it was a girl's paradise! After the market and visiting the surrounding area, we went back to the hotel to change into warmer clothes... and promptly fell asleep for several hours. We were disappointed that we wasted the afternoon, but felt very rested when it was time to go to dinner. We ate gourmet, since it was our last night in Paris. Yum Yum!
Although Paris was great, it was wonderfult o get back to Germany. I actually missed my host family, and the comfort I have found in their home. I also missed the food that I've become used to here. Overall, it was a great trip!
Germans and Americans
Today in our German Language and Culture class we did a lot of comparisons between the German, European, and American ways of life. (We also learned about the past tense!) Frau Pillartz gave us vast amounts of statistics regarding differences in the amounts of patriotism in Germany and the United States. We already knew that Germans do not feel a lot of national pride when asked about their country. This is due to the guilt surrounding World War II and the Holocaust. It seems that it has been carried through the generations, even to the children. What was more surprising about the ranking of patriotic countries was that Italy was ranked even below Germany! When we asked about why that is so, we learned that the Italian government has changes 63 times in the past 60 years... that's enough to make anyone feel exasperated with their country!
Another topic that we discussed was the nnumber of hours of work that the average person put in each year from different countries. It wasn't surprising that the United States lead the race, followed closely by Japan. The countries that logged the least amount of hours at work were Norway and Sweden. What was surprising about these numbers was that the countries that worked the most had the worst dispersion on money throughout their counties. Japan and the US were at the top of the list when it came to inequality among the social classes.
Our favorite topis that we discussed was the amount of vacation time allowed to the average person in the US and Germany. In Germany, it is common to get 6 weeks vacation time!! In the US, only 12 days is customary... makes me want to move to Germany! haha... overall this was a very interesting class, and my eyes are opened wider with every ounce of culture that I am soaking in. I love it!
Another topic that we discussed was the nnumber of hours of work that the average person put in each year from different countries. It wasn't surprising that the United States lead the race, followed closely by Japan. The countries that logged the least amount of hours at work were Norway and Sweden. What was surprising about these numbers was that the countries that worked the most had the worst dispersion on money throughout their counties. Japan and the US were at the top of the list when it came to inequality among the social classes.
Our favorite topis that we discussed was the amount of vacation time allowed to the average person in the US and Germany. In Germany, it is common to get 6 weeks vacation time!! In the US, only 12 days is customary... makes me want to move to Germany! haha... overall this was a very interesting class, and my eyes are opened wider with every ounce of culture that I am soaking in. I love it!
Monday, July 25, 2005
Americans
Before we came on this trip we were given so much information on what the typical American tourist looks and acts like and we have been trying so hard to not stand out. But no matter how hard we try we still do. On our way back from Paris this afternoon I was discussing this with Michelle. Americans are known throughout the world to be the loudest and Texans are even louder. On our train we were talking as a group and it didn't seem that loud. Michelle and Heather were sitting a few rows down from us and said that they could hear everything that we talked about clearly. But as I was sitting there I thought we were being relatively quite. Apparently the rumors are true :)
Another thing that I know that we have all had trouble with is the perception that all Americans are fake with our big smiles and constant eye contact. I've found it especially hard coming from a university that is so friendly where everyone says Howdy! to each person the pass on campas (Well, at least I always say howdy). Michelle did bring up a good point that what they see alot of the time is Hollywood with the beautiful homes on the outside and caos inside. Even I can admit that is fake. I've decided that it's just our optimistic nature and we'd rather pretend to be happy than be pesimistic all of the time.
Finally, I've been having a lot of discussion with my host family lately about the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and in London. My host mother Kerstin is British so it's been really interesting seeing her reactions to everything compared to how I reacted 4 years ago. When New York and D.C. were attacked the States shut down. People were sent home from school and from work. I stayed home from school the next day and and watched the news. We were devasted and we had and have every right to be. Americans are not used to being in the middle of war. Not since the Civil War and Pearl Harbor have we ever had to deal with being attacked on our own soil, so just that fact was devasting. Europeans handle it so differently. I hate to put it this way, but they are used to it. They are more prepared and know how to put themselves back together quickly. After London was attacked the tubes were running again within hours. I find that so amazing that they can be so strong.
Another thing that I know that we have all had trouble with is the perception that all Americans are fake with our big smiles and constant eye contact. I've found it especially hard coming from a university that is so friendly where everyone says Howdy! to each person the pass on campas (Well, at least I always say howdy). Michelle did bring up a good point that what they see alot of the time is Hollywood with the beautiful homes on the outside and caos inside. Even I can admit that is fake. I've decided that it's just our optimistic nature and we'd rather pretend to be happy than be pesimistic all of the time.
Finally, I've been having a lot of discussion with my host family lately about the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and in London. My host mother Kerstin is British so it's been really interesting seeing her reactions to everything compared to how I reacted 4 years ago. When New York and D.C. were attacked the States shut down. People were sent home from school and from work. I stayed home from school the next day and and watched the news. We were devasted and we had and have every right to be. Americans are not used to being in the middle of war. Not since the Civil War and Pearl Harbor have we ever had to deal with being attacked on our own soil, so just that fact was devasting. Europeans handle it so differently. I hate to put it this way, but they are used to it. They are more prepared and know how to put themselves back together quickly. After London was attacked the tubes were running again within hours. I find that so amazing that they can be so strong.
Long weekend in Paris...long post about it :)
Well I think this weekend was probably taken at the fastest pace ever! The Paris trip was very fun all in all, especially since there were 12/13 of us there. (We missed you Rebecca!) However, and I'm sorry Dr. Wasser, Paris absolutely was not a city that I fell in love with as soon as I got off the train. In fact, I could barely tolerate it until about noon on Saturday. It was smelly, it was dirty, the people were rude, we had a bad experience getting to the hotel on Friday night, our hotel was in a bad neighborhood, and random lines on the metro were closed. Oh, and I had a couple of run-ins with dirty, sleazy French men. But all of the sights really were awesome...and we did get to see all of the sights in two days!
Ashley and I received the nicknames "Tour Guide Barbie" (me) and "Tour Guide Skipper" (Ashley) for all of our planning, map-reading, and guide-book carrying. But all of that paid off because we got to see Versailles, Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Sacre Cour and Montmatre, and Lance Armstrong at the Tour de France. We spent a good amount of time at each spot too, and got all of it in during the 48 hours we were there (counting from Saturday morning until Monday morning). Pretty impressive if you ask me. Who needs sleep? Just kidding, we could have definitely used some sleep. But its Paris, and personally I'm not going back for awhile (if ever). So sleep wasn't a high priority.
After the 2 hour-long trip out to Versailles...which was longer than it would have been since one of the RER lines was randomly closed with no warning...we walked waiting in a huge crowd until Ashley and I found a cheaper, cooler way to see the palace. For 14,50 Euro we got an English guided tour through the King's Private Apartments and the Opera, plus entry into the public rooms by skipping the long line. The private apartments, and especially the Opera made it totally worth the money. A little opulent, but I could totally be ok with living in a place like parts of Versailles. Just give me pretty dresses, heels and a tiara and I'll fit right in. =)
The train back from Versailles to the city wasn't too long, although we had to get off the line at one point because it was closed, so we tried out the bus system to get to Notre Dame. Notre Dame was pretty, but honestly no match for the Dom. Too bad we didn't see it before the Dom so we wouldn't have been biased. I mean, how can you top the 3 Wise Men??
We attempted to walk from Notre Dame to the Arc de Triomphe, but we broke down a few blocks down and used the Metro. By then the "horrible Paris metro system" was getting better. Just give me a map and I'm golden. We had some adventures running across the Champs-Elysees a couple of times, trying to snap good pictures of the Arc and the famous street. Turns out there's a good view from a sidewalk directly across from the Arc and all the running in front of cars was unnecessary. Who knew.
The Eiffel Tower was probably my favorite place in all of Paris. I feel like a huge tourist when I say that, but I don't care. We eventually made it all the way up to the top and tried to watch the sunset. Too bad it was raining and the sunset wasn't too pretty. The views of the city were amazing though, but with no zoom my pictures show what could be any city. My favorite view was from the ground, looking up at the Tower. Especially when it was all lit up and sparkling. Hanging out in the grass under the Eiffel Tower on Sunday night was relaxing, beautiful and fun.
Sunday morning we were up and in line at the Louvre before it opened, so we beat most of the crowd to the famous works like the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo. As a result we got cool pictures with no heads blocking the view. In the 2 hours we spent in the Louvre we saw everything we especially wanted to see, plus so much more. I love the painted and decorated ceilings!
We almost keeled over climbing the steps of Montmatre up to Sacre Cour, but we did it and it was beautiful. Almost got in a fight with the vendors with the string on the way down, but we avoided it and didn't get anything stolen.
Waiting at Champs-Elysees for the end of the Tour de France was an experience. Despite the crowds we could see fairly well. Ashley got on Josh's shoulders to take still pictures, and I used my long arms to try to go over heads to get video of it. Somehow peoples heads and arms still got in the way though, but I'm hoping the video isn't too bad. We stayed for the first 3 laps around, but left before the official end and victory lap. It would have been really cool to say we saw Lance's last victory lap, but I was ok with it being cool to watch him bike in his last Tour de France. Besides, the crowds got pushy and worse every time the bikers circled around, and I had already gotten groped by a random, dirty, sleazy French man while waiting for the bikers to make it to the Champs-Elysees. Gross.
So Paris was an experience that was totally cool once, but I don't really want to repeat any time soon. We saw everything that I cared to see and all had fun together. That's what made Paris for me.
Ashley and I received the nicknames "Tour Guide Barbie" (me) and "Tour Guide Skipper" (Ashley) for all of our planning, map-reading, and guide-book carrying. But all of that paid off because we got to see Versailles, Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Sacre Cour and Montmatre, and Lance Armstrong at the Tour de France. We spent a good amount of time at each spot too, and got all of it in during the 48 hours we were there (counting from Saturday morning until Monday morning). Pretty impressive if you ask me. Who needs sleep? Just kidding, we could have definitely used some sleep. But its Paris, and personally I'm not going back for awhile (if ever). So sleep wasn't a high priority.
After the 2 hour-long trip out to Versailles...which was longer than it would have been since one of the RER lines was randomly closed with no warning...we walked waiting in a huge crowd until Ashley and I found a cheaper, cooler way to see the palace. For 14,50 Euro we got an English guided tour through the King's Private Apartments and the Opera, plus entry into the public rooms by skipping the long line. The private apartments, and especially the Opera made it totally worth the money. A little opulent, but I could totally be ok with living in a place like parts of Versailles. Just give me pretty dresses, heels and a tiara and I'll fit right in. =)
The train back from Versailles to the city wasn't too long, although we had to get off the line at one point because it was closed, so we tried out the bus system to get to Notre Dame. Notre Dame was pretty, but honestly no match for the Dom. Too bad we didn't see it before the Dom so we wouldn't have been biased. I mean, how can you top the 3 Wise Men??
We attempted to walk from Notre Dame to the Arc de Triomphe, but we broke down a few blocks down and used the Metro. By then the "horrible Paris metro system" was getting better. Just give me a map and I'm golden. We had some adventures running across the Champs-Elysees a couple of times, trying to snap good pictures of the Arc and the famous street. Turns out there's a good view from a sidewalk directly across from the Arc and all the running in front of cars was unnecessary. Who knew.
The Eiffel Tower was probably my favorite place in all of Paris. I feel like a huge tourist when I say that, but I don't care. We eventually made it all the way up to the top and tried to watch the sunset. Too bad it was raining and the sunset wasn't too pretty. The views of the city were amazing though, but with no zoom my pictures show what could be any city. My favorite view was from the ground, looking up at the Tower. Especially when it was all lit up and sparkling. Hanging out in the grass under the Eiffel Tower on Sunday night was relaxing, beautiful and fun.
Sunday morning we were up and in line at the Louvre before it opened, so we beat most of the crowd to the famous works like the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo. As a result we got cool pictures with no heads blocking the view. In the 2 hours we spent in the Louvre we saw everything we especially wanted to see, plus so much more. I love the painted and decorated ceilings!
We almost keeled over climbing the steps of Montmatre up to Sacre Cour, but we did it and it was beautiful. Almost got in a fight with the vendors with the string on the way down, but we avoided it and didn't get anything stolen.
Waiting at Champs-Elysees for the end of the Tour de France was an experience. Despite the crowds we could see fairly well. Ashley got on Josh's shoulders to take still pictures, and I used my long arms to try to go over heads to get video of it. Somehow peoples heads and arms still got in the way though, but I'm hoping the video isn't too bad. We stayed for the first 3 laps around, but left before the official end and victory lap. It would have been really cool to say we saw Lance's last victory lap, but I was ok with it being cool to watch him bike in his last Tour de France. Besides, the crowds got pushy and worse every time the bikers circled around, and I had already gotten groped by a random, dirty, sleazy French man while waiting for the bikers to make it to the Champs-Elysees. Gross.
So Paris was an experience that was totally cool once, but I don't really want to repeat any time soon. We saw everything that I cared to see and all had fun together. That's what made Paris for me.
I'd be so lost....
I don't know what it is but for some reason I just can't seem to understand European maps. In the states I can get you anyway. As my daddy is a navigator he prides himself on his family having a good sense of direction. My sister was born with nonw so I have it all, but here I'm compleletly lost. I'm sure if I had to I'd be able to find my way around better but for now I'm content to just follow everyone else. Thank Tour Guide Barbie (or what do you prefer? The Goddess of Traveling?) and Tour Guide Skipper. Without you two I'd still be in wandering around in the Paris Metro. :)
Bonn
So, I have a little catching up to do here... On the academic side of the trip, my favorite thing so far has been the cardiac surgery. That is what made me want to come on the trip in the first place. I was so scared that I wasn't going to be able to go into the surgery because I was sick (sorry to those who are now sick as well). The day before I was so determined to feel better and make it into the surgery that I drank five HUGE bottle of water. I had to pee pee machen every 15 minutes that day, but by the next day I was feeling better and held my cough in long enough to appear healthy and was able to see the surgery. It was amazing. I've done rounds with doctors before but had never been in a surgery. To have this man right in front of me with his heart right there was so overwhelming. I've never experienced anything like it. I will never foget it. When I get back to the states I get to be in the delivery room with my aunt for her 3rd child. I'm very excited about that as well.
Paris
So most of us went to Paris this past weekend. Paris was nice, but I don't think I think I would have appreciated it more if I had stayed for four or five days. I saw the Louvre, Notre Dam, Eifel Tower, Sacred Heart, and Arc de Triumph. My favorite thing was sitting out on the lawn in the evening watching the Eifel Tower light up. Adriane and I met up with our friend Julie and spent most of the weekend with her. It wwas really nice to see a familiar face. On Sunday morning we went to an outdoor market. We had a guy come up and try to sell us drugs twice. The weird thing was it was the same guy both times. Odd! Also, I was almost struck in the face by a pidgeon. I definitely felt feathers on my face. A little scary! Sunday we spent the afternoon napping. I really just think that the past three weeks had caught up to me and I was exhausted. I guess at least I was rested for the beginning of the week.
Tour de France
I had the best seat in the house at the Tour de France. I got to sit on Josh's shoulders and be the "official picture taker." Lance Armstrong is the one in yellow in the middle with the yellow/black helmet. Go Lance!
Our weekend in Paris
Most of us spent the weekend in Paris. We only slept about 4 hours each night but we saw EVERYTHING. Beth was referred to as "Tour Guide Barbie" and I was "Tour Guide Skipper" since we are both huge planners and ran the group all our Paris during our 2 days there. The one thing that got all of us through the day without passing out was definately the crepes. Of the smaller group I toured with, each of us probably had about 4 crepes in 2 days. The sites were all gorgeous and being there was just so amazing. Some things I didn't like about Paris were that the city was really dirty and the men were too! Also, our service by one waiter in a cafe was horrible. He took 2 breaks between bringing all our food out to lean against a wall and smoke. It was so digusting! Now I know why people think Americans are germ-a-phobes. He completely grossed me out! Going to the Tour de France was really neat. How many people can say they were there the year Lance Armstrong won for the 7th (and final) year in a row? Well, actually, by the crowd, I would say alot of people will be able to say that. But it was still so cool! The most relaxing thing we did this weekend was laying out in the grass by the Eiffel Tower and watching the sun go down. Just amazing! I'm so happy I had the opportunity to go to France but I am glad to be back in Germany now. I love this city!!!
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Just when you start to think that Germany, as a culturally and technologically advanced western nation is just like the good ole USA, a quick comparison of pop culture iconography, as exemplified by what’s on TV, quickly disabuses you of this silly notion. Now, don’t misunderstand me--we have an amazing amount of unbelievably weird and I’m sure to a foreigner, incomprehensible stuff in our own pop culture idiom. I’m not making a comparative value judgment here—just pointing out two examples that have struck me this summer as both, hilariously funny and consummately strange.
“Hausmeister Krause”, a sitcom of sorts here featuring as the main protagonist a sort of bumbling concierge and his family. In the episode I caught last week, Krause is attending a meeting of his dachshund fanciers club—I’m not kidding. Now I’ve known since my first time living amongst the Germans that der Dackel was the dog of choice. Not the deutsche Schaeferhund, not the Doberman Pinscher, but rather the wiener dog is top dog in these parts and don’t you forget it! Germans enjoy a wide variety of wiener dogs with the, rare for us in the States, wirehaired dachshund seemingly the most popular of all (unofficial survey conducted by me). I am by no means the first amateur sociologist to make this observation. In fact, some former dweller in my apartment in Düsseldorf (a fellow Ausländer, I presume) left a rather funny little book behind, “The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs” by Alexander McCall Smith (a Zimbabwe born Brit now living in Scotland and author of the “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” series).
Back to Krause. In this episode, Krause meets his Dackel buddies, all men, for their regular meeting and there they are. Large, middle-aged German men, in their Dackel club uniforms, lots of medals, you get the picture and each is holding his personal Dackel. Some are of the wirehaired sort, others the smooth or longhaired (the dogs, not the men). Their club leader rules with an iron hand and, on command, all the members rise, their Dackels in their arms, and proclaim “Alles für die Dackel, alles für die Gruppe!”, “All for the Dachshunds, all for the Group!” I just about plotzed it was so funny and so completely alien.
Perhaps even weirder, no wait, definitely weirder is Bernd das Brot. Bernd is sort of a German Muppet, except that he is a walking, talking, singing, loaf of bread. I suppose he is intended to appeal principally to children but I’m not sure. Saturday nights he shows up on TV with his buddies, a sort of giant, animated Brussel sprout and a sheep. Bernd also like to sing and performs regularly on the show with a full band and backup singers and dancers. Only a picture does this concept justice and I‘ve included one with this post. Now we all know how much the folks here love their Brot and their Brötchen, and their Kuchen and I do too. It is one of the many pleasures I enjoy when in Germany, I go on the ultra-high carbohydrate diet! Perhaps Bernd springs from the carb saturated collective unconscious of the German Volk. For myself, Bernd, who speaks in a rather resonant baritone, reminds me disturbingly of the current governor of California. Bernd’s tag line, however, is not “I’ll be back” but rather, at the end of each episode, “Geh nach Hause!”, “Go home!”.
“Hausmeister Krause”, a sitcom of sorts here featuring as the main protagonist a sort of bumbling concierge and his family. In the episode I caught last week, Krause is attending a meeting of his dachshund fanciers club—I’m not kidding. Now I’ve known since my first time living amongst the Germans that der Dackel was the dog of choice. Not the deutsche Schaeferhund, not the Doberman Pinscher, but rather the wiener dog is top dog in these parts and don’t you forget it! Germans enjoy a wide variety of wiener dogs with the, rare for us in the States, wirehaired dachshund seemingly the most popular of all (unofficial survey conducted by me). I am by no means the first amateur sociologist to make this observation. In fact, some former dweller in my apartment in Düsseldorf (a fellow Ausländer, I presume) left a rather funny little book behind, “The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs” by Alexander McCall Smith (a Zimbabwe born Brit now living in Scotland and author of the “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” series).
Back to Krause. In this episode, Krause meets his Dackel buddies, all men, for their regular meeting and there they are. Large, middle-aged German men, in their Dackel club uniforms, lots of medals, you get the picture and each is holding his personal Dackel. Some are of the wirehaired sort, others the smooth or longhaired (the dogs, not the men). Their club leader rules with an iron hand and, on command, all the members rise, their Dackels in their arms, and proclaim “Alles für die Dackel, alles für die Gruppe!”, “All for the Dachshunds, all for the Group!” I just about plotzed it was so funny and so completely alien.
Perhaps even weirder, no wait, definitely weirder is Bernd das Brot. Bernd is sort of a German Muppet, except that he is a walking, talking, singing, loaf of bread. I suppose he is intended to appeal principally to children but I’m not sure. Saturday nights he shows up on TV with his buddies, a sort of giant, animated Brussel sprout and a sheep. Bernd also like to sing and performs regularly on the show with a full band and backup singers and dancers. Only a picture does this concept justice and I‘ve included one with this post. Now we all know how much the folks here love their Brot and their Brötchen, and their Kuchen and I do too. It is one of the many pleasures I enjoy when in Germany, I go on the ultra-high carbohydrate diet! Perhaps Bernd springs from the carb saturated collective unconscious of the German Volk. For myself, Bernd, who speaks in a rather resonant baritone, reminds me disturbingly of the current governor of California. Bernd’s tag line, however, is not “I’ll be back” but rather, at the end of each episode, “Geh nach Hause!”, “Go home!”.
Friday, July 22, 2005
Tap tap tap-a-roo!
This week went by ten times faster than the first week. I am still learning all kinds of new things everyday about all this country has to offer. We are having a lot of fun, but I think that we are keeping a good balance of enjoyment and business.
Story:
A group of us were on a train back after spending a few hours in Cologn with Olaf one night this week. As we got onto the train, I wasn't paying any attention to who I was sitting behind. After riding for a few minutes, I noticed a girl who I thought was in our group, sitting in front of me with long blond hair and a pony tail. Being in my normal somewhat annoying nature, I decided to gently tap the top of the head of the girl in front of me. To my surprise, the person wasn't part of our group, or even a GIRL! It was a man that we didn't know that probably didn't appreciate me tapping on his beautiful blond hair. Thank goodness he did not react in a harsh manner.
Lesson: Don't tap strange people on the head while on a train in Germany.
Story:
A group of us were on a train back after spending a few hours in Cologn with Olaf one night this week. As we got onto the train, I wasn't paying any attention to who I was sitting behind. After riding for a few minutes, I noticed a girl who I thought was in our group, sitting in front of me with long blond hair and a pony tail. Being in my normal somewhat annoying nature, I decided to gently tap the top of the head of the girl in front of me. To my surprise, the person wasn't part of our group, or even a GIRL! It was a man that we didn't know that probably didn't appreciate me tapping on his beautiful blond hair. Thank goodness he did not react in a harsh manner.
Lesson: Don't tap strange people on the head while on a train in Germany.
Rush rush rush (and my arm up a cow's rectum)
Well, this week has been exciting...especially since we are finally doing medicine-related stuff. It has also been a roller coaster of highs and lows.
My highlights from this week were (in no particular order):
1. playing with a German kint on the Rheintour (I love little kids!)
2. sticking my arm up a (pregnant) cow's rectum
3. sleeping on trains
4. going out for drinks
5. taking 'shortcuts' to get up to the Marksburg
6. good long conversations on the train rides :)
Some lowlights were:
1. Fainting in cardiac ICU and then missing out on the open heart surgery
2. Getting a bummer of a cold and sniffling my way through the Thursday and Friday
3. Having to pay for a taxi to get to the Hauptbahnhof in time because I overslept
4. Not getting tickets early enough to go somewhere this weekend
5. The smell in Bacharach (really, now, that town *stinks* on trash day!)
Today, Frau Pilartz talked to us about her personal experience of the era after WWII...and that was very very interesting. She basically told us the same thing as the professor who lectured to us, but it was an intimate look from her eyes and her feelings. All I can say is powerful, very powerful. This was aprpopo also since on Thursday we got to see the Haus du Gershishta (tut mit leid about the butchering of the German spelling). The history of Germany after the Third Reich is something that I have studied in less detail than the history leading up to and including WWII.
My highlights from this week were (in no particular order):
1. playing with a German kint on the Rheintour (I love little kids!)
2. sticking my arm up a (pregnant) cow's rectum
3. sleeping on trains
4. going out for drinks
5. taking 'shortcuts' to get up to the Marksburg
6. good long conversations on the train rides :)
Some lowlights were:
1. Fainting in cardiac ICU and then missing out on the open heart surgery
2. Getting a bummer of a cold and sniffling my way through the Thursday and Friday
3. Having to pay for a taxi to get to the Hauptbahnhof in time because I overslept
4. Not getting tickets early enough to go somewhere this weekend
5. The smell in Bacharach (really, now, that town *stinks* on trash day!)
Today, Frau Pilartz talked to us about her personal experience of the era after WWII...and that was very very interesting. She basically told us the same thing as the professor who lectured to us, but it was an intimate look from her eyes and her feelings. All I can say is powerful, very powerful. This was aprpopo also since on Thursday we got to see the Haus du Gershishta (tut mit leid about the butchering of the German spelling). The history of Germany after the Third Reich is something that I have studied in less detail than the history leading up to and including WWII.
Too few words
So much has happened that requires digestion. We went to a farm and saw animals, a reproductive research facility, and a cow ultrasound. We cruised down the Rhein and toured a castle. We went wine tasting. We went to a history museum and this all just in the last 2 days.
On Wednesday we cruised the Rhein. The area was beautiful. My favorite part was seeing the Lorelei. We had to memorize the poem by Heinrich-Heine in my High School German class so actually seeing the cliff was very moving for me. It is a poem about a Siren who sits at the top of the cliff and sailors would crash into the bottom because they were distracted by her. It is like the Sirens in the Odessy.
We then toured the Marksburg which was a fort. It had 12 gates before one got to the actual fort so it was never successfully attacked. They did everything for defense. They made their spiral stair cases rotate clockwise going up so that attackers could not ascend because their swords would hit the wall, but defenders could come down (this is assuming you are right handed). They made the windows smaller after a few centuries to protect themselves more. They also kept the door open when they went to the bathroom incase someone attacked from underneath, but closed the door when the bathroom was empty so that if a person did come up to the bathroom they could not enter the main area. These people were paranoid but I guess it worked.
After that we went for a wine tasting. It was a lovely experience. We were in a cellar and had wine glasses. We tried 6 types of wine. I discovered I prefer sweeter wines. Heather and I bought a bottle for our host mother. It was a very pleasant evening.
Thursday we went to a farm and I am even more sure that I do not want to become a vet. We saw pigs and one was the size of a pony!! It was HUGE. I have never seen a pig that big. We also saw piglets, calves, cows grazing, sheep and chickens. We then saw a research facility that deals with reproduction experiments. I had seen pictures of a sperm and egg, but actually looking through the microscope and seeing the egg and watching the screen of the slide for the sperm was an amazing experience. I never knew that a few drops of liquid can contain 20 million sperm. He had to dilute it about 150:1 to get it thin enough to see on screen and then 150:1 again to see the sperm individually on the screen. It was truely amazing. We saw a cow having an ultra sound and I am glad I am doing human medicine. That will be an experience I will never forget.
We went to the House of History museum which is the history of Germany from after WWII to the present. It was the first time I had SERIOUS trouble understanding what was going on so we all tried to stay near Olaf to hear what he had to say.
We are off to Paris this weekend and I am very excited. I think it will be a lovely trip.
On Wednesday we cruised the Rhein. The area was beautiful. My favorite part was seeing the Lorelei. We had to memorize the poem by Heinrich-Heine in my High School German class so actually seeing the cliff was very moving for me. It is a poem about a Siren who sits at the top of the cliff and sailors would crash into the bottom because they were distracted by her. It is like the Sirens in the Odessy.
We then toured the Marksburg which was a fort. It had 12 gates before one got to the actual fort so it was never successfully attacked. They did everything for defense. They made their spiral stair cases rotate clockwise going up so that attackers could not ascend because their swords would hit the wall, but defenders could come down (this is assuming you are right handed). They made the windows smaller after a few centuries to protect themselves more. They also kept the door open when they went to the bathroom incase someone attacked from underneath, but closed the door when the bathroom was empty so that if a person did come up to the bathroom they could not enter the main area. These people were paranoid but I guess it worked.
After that we went for a wine tasting. It was a lovely experience. We were in a cellar and had wine glasses. We tried 6 types of wine. I discovered I prefer sweeter wines. Heather and I bought a bottle for our host mother. It was a very pleasant evening.
Thursday we went to a farm and I am even more sure that I do not want to become a vet. We saw pigs and one was the size of a pony!! It was HUGE. I have never seen a pig that big. We also saw piglets, calves, cows grazing, sheep and chickens. We then saw a research facility that deals with reproduction experiments. I had seen pictures of a sperm and egg, but actually looking through the microscope and seeing the egg and watching the screen of the slide for the sperm was an amazing experience. I never knew that a few drops of liquid can contain 20 million sperm. He had to dilute it about 150:1 to get it thin enough to see on screen and then 150:1 again to see the sperm individually on the screen. It was truely amazing. We saw a cow having an ultra sound and I am glad I am doing human medicine. That will be an experience I will never forget.
We went to the House of History museum which is the history of Germany from after WWII to the present. It was the first time I had SERIOUS trouble understanding what was going on so we all tried to stay near Olaf to hear what he had to say.
We are off to Paris this weekend and I am very excited. I think it will be a lovely trip.
James Doohan, the Canadian actor made famous by his portrayal of “Scotty”, the chief engineer of the (original) starship, Enterprise, died yesterday at the age of 85. As an original “Trekkie” from way back (we’re talking the 1960s here!) I mourn his loss as I did that of Deforest Kelly (“Dr. McCoy”) several years ago.
“Star Trek” has become an icon of American popular culture and an industry, spawning spin-off shows (ST the NG, ST Deep Space Nine, ST Voyager, and finally Enterprise, the prequel series) and a pile of movies that ran (in my opinion) from laughably terrible (the ones directed by William Shatner) to quite good. My favorite with the original cast, “Save the Whales”, actually titled, “Star Trek IV, The Voyage Home”, directed by Leonard Nimoy (“Mr. Spock”). Classic lines from this film include Kirk, after having landed their spaceship in Golden Gate Park, reminding the crew to “…remember where we parked.” Or Scotty, after “beaming” the two humpback whales onto the ship exclaiming “Admiral, there be whales here!”.
But of course, Scotty’s own contribution to American English was spoken to him and not by him, “Beam me up, Scotty!”. Nerd Trekkies will rush to tell you that these lines as written are never spoken by anyone in ST the OS or the movies, but so what! They now belong to the ages, as does James Doohan aka Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott!
I’ll leave you with these lyrics from the Tom Rush song, “Beam me up Scotty”:
“Beam me up Scotty! Beam me aboard.
I’m just a poor old Trekkie, in a world he can’t afford.
All my life supports have failed,
All the other ships have sailed.
So,
Beam me up Scotty! Beam me up!”
“Star Trek” has become an icon of American popular culture and an industry, spawning spin-off shows (ST the NG, ST Deep Space Nine, ST Voyager, and finally Enterprise, the prequel series) and a pile of movies that ran (in my opinion) from laughably terrible (the ones directed by William Shatner) to quite good. My favorite with the original cast, “Save the Whales”, actually titled, “Star Trek IV, The Voyage Home”, directed by Leonard Nimoy (“Mr. Spock”). Classic lines from this film include Kirk, after having landed their spaceship in Golden Gate Park, reminding the crew to “…remember where we parked.” Or Scotty, after “beaming” the two humpback whales onto the ship exclaiming “Admiral, there be whales here!”.
But of course, Scotty’s own contribution to American English was spoken to him and not by him, “Beam me up, Scotty!”. Nerd Trekkies will rush to tell you that these lines as written are never spoken by anyone in ST the OS or the movies, but so what! They now belong to the ages, as does James Doohan aka Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott!
I’ll leave you with these lyrics from the Tom Rush song, “Beam me up Scotty”:
“Beam me up Scotty! Beam me aboard.
I’m just a poor old Trekkie, in a world he can’t afford.
All my life supports have failed,
All the other ships have sailed.
So,
Beam me up Scotty! Beam me up!”
Smiling...
So according to almost everyone, smiling at a German is bad. First we get told that making eye contact for too long with a stranger is considered a come-on. A smile in Germany is the same as a wink in America-forward and an invitation to flirt. A wink is an even higher level of an invitation. Which is obvious. Anyway, my point is smiling at strangers is bad.
In Texas we consider smiling to be friendly. You smile at everyone-people you know, people you don't know, people who open doors for you, people you pass on the street. Especially at A&M, where smiling and saying "Howdy" is why we're considered a very welcoming campus.
According to Frau Pillartz, if she sees someone smiling at her she thinks they're ridiculous and fake. In the morning at least. She said that in that case a smile is just a cover over a normal attitude, like you're trying too hard. I don't know if this has anything to do with what we've heard about Germans being traditionally pessimistic while Americans are traditionally optimistic, but I personally don't think that a grumpy attitude is normal. It definitely isn't for me at least. Unless I'm really hungry, I'm usually generally optimistic and in good spirits. Yes, even in the mornings. And if I'm not having a good day, laughing and smiling usually makes me feel better. As most of you have figured out, I'm only grumpy when I'm hungry. I do my best "mean German" face when I'm hungry. So I guess by Frau Pillartz's standards I'm only 'normal' and not 'fake' when I'm hungry. That's weird.
I'm practicing my "bored European" face so I won't stick out so badly as a smiling, optimistic American. But I do have to say, one thing I miss about Texas is being able to smile at people without thinking about it.
In Texas we consider smiling to be friendly. You smile at everyone-people you know, people you don't know, people who open doors for you, people you pass on the street. Especially at A&M, where smiling and saying "Howdy" is why we're considered a very welcoming campus.
According to Frau Pillartz, if she sees someone smiling at her she thinks they're ridiculous and fake. In the morning at least. She said that in that case a smile is just a cover over a normal attitude, like you're trying too hard. I don't know if this has anything to do with what we've heard about Germans being traditionally pessimistic while Americans are traditionally optimistic, but I personally don't think that a grumpy attitude is normal. It definitely isn't for me at least. Unless I'm really hungry, I'm usually generally optimistic and in good spirits. Yes, even in the mornings. And if I'm not having a good day, laughing and smiling usually makes me feel better. As most of you have figured out, I'm only grumpy when I'm hungry. I do my best "mean German" face when I'm hungry. So I guess by Frau Pillartz's standards I'm only 'normal' and not 'fake' when I'm hungry. That's weird.
I'm practicing my "bored European" face so I won't stick out so badly as a smiling, optimistic American. But I do have to say, one thing I miss about Texas is being able to smile at people without thinking about it.
surgery excitement
Today’s visit to the hospital was quite an experience for me! On the way there I was amused by some of my fellow Aggies, as they came straggling into the train station looking a little worse for wear 8-).
It was so great to be able wear the scrubs, and the mask, and the hair net, and those special green clogs. I was a little nervous about going in the operating room, to be honest. I was really hoping that I wouldn’t get queasy, because, how would that look if an aspiring surgeon couldn’t handle blood and guts? Luckily, I surprised myself by being really enthusiastic in the operating room! I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the procedure, and I hope that my steady stream of questions wasn’t distracting for the anesthesiologist. I don’t thnk I’ll ever be able to forget that pivotal moment in the operating room when I realized I was staring at a living, pumping human heart.
In trading off prime viewing spots with Lindsay, I got a chance to speak with the anesthesiologist about his experience as a doctor here in germany. After a few minutes of conversation, I found out that he had actually practiced in several other places, including Houston, Texas! When I asked him about the primary differences between the US and Germany he immediately listed respect and cooperation between anesthesiologists and surgeons. He actually said he felt he was more respected here in Germany, and he like dbeing able to be in control of his working hours, instead of being at the disposal of the surgeons (as he put it). When I brought up the subject of malpractice insurance in the States, he repeated what Dr. Penner had said, which was that malpractice suits in Germany are far less common, and that he felt is was much more expensive in the states to be insured.
One interesting thing I noticed about my time at the hospital in Bonn was the lack of female doctors, at least in the three operating rooms we were observing. I wonder if the medical field here (specifically the surgical specialties) is even more male-dominated that it is in the US….?
It was so great to be able wear the scrubs, and the mask, and the hair net, and those special green clogs. I was a little nervous about going in the operating room, to be honest. I was really hoping that I wouldn’t get queasy, because, how would that look if an aspiring surgeon couldn’t handle blood and guts? Luckily, I surprised myself by being really enthusiastic in the operating room! I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the procedure, and I hope that my steady stream of questions wasn’t distracting for the anesthesiologist. I don’t thnk I’ll ever be able to forget that pivotal moment in the operating room when I realized I was staring at a living, pumping human heart.
In trading off prime viewing spots with Lindsay, I got a chance to speak with the anesthesiologist about his experience as a doctor here in germany. After a few minutes of conversation, I found out that he had actually practiced in several other places, including Houston, Texas! When I asked him about the primary differences between the US and Germany he immediately listed respect and cooperation between anesthesiologists and surgeons. He actually said he felt he was more respected here in Germany, and he like dbeing able to be in control of his working hours, instead of being at the disposal of the surgeons (as he put it). When I brought up the subject of malpractice insurance in the States, he repeated what Dr. Penner had said, which was that malpractice suits in Germany are far less common, and that he felt is was much more expensive in the states to be insured.
One interesting thing I noticed about my time at the hospital in Bonn was the lack of female doctors, at least in the three operating rooms we were observing. I wonder if the medical field here (specifically the surgical specialties) is even more male-dominated that it is in the US….?
Can We Sleep Now?
What an exciting week! We did everything from cow rears to river cruises. I can't say we have slept very much but we have seen more than I could have even hoped for. The Experimental Farm was one of the best things I think we did this week. I never knew pigs could get so huge! Also, the chickens were so clean. The chicken coops I have seen before have always been really dirty and stinky so I was very surprised that this one was so immaculate. The farm did make me want to not eat meat anymore. I thought it was sad that the animals were in cages their whole lives and weren't allowed to go outside or even move around that much. The farm didn't push me over the edge to being a vegetarian but it did really make me think.
I also really enjoyed the Marksberg Castle. I love looking at old, huge castles so this was just my thing. The hike to the top was hilarious and definately a memory that I won't forget. Hiking through the trees and mud up a hill - not exactly the easiest task we have ever had. Poor Lindsey - she fell in the mud and had dirt all over (and in!) her pants. Overall, it was a great experience!
This week has been so much fun and I can't wait for Paris. Go Lance!
I also really enjoyed the Marksberg Castle. I love looking at old, huge castles so this was just my thing. The hike to the top was hilarious and definately a memory that I won't forget. Hiking through the trees and mud up a hill - not exactly the easiest task we have ever had. Poor Lindsey - she fell in the mud and had dirt all over (and in!) her pants. Overall, it was a great experience!
This week has been so much fun and I can't wait for Paris. Go Lance!
Great Second Week
Well, this week was really great. I liked this week because it was a GO, GO, GO week! We went a lot of different places and I can actually say that I enjoyed them all. I have already writted about my favorite which was the heart surgery but the experimental farm was pretty cool too. I can say that I will NEVER look at Rebecca the same way after seeing her stick her hand down the cows rear end. And I will also never forget the look on Heather's face as Rebecca did it. We also went on a boat ride down the Rhine River. It was so beautiful!!! Then we HIKED up a mountain to see a castle. The castle was great, but it was a really long walk to get there. Then we had a wine tasting which was REALLY funny!!! Overall we had a really good week. Now I am leaving to get on the train to go to Paris!!! It is going to be an exciting weekend!
Finally...
Ok, so we finally figured out how to get me on the blog! Wow, it has been a crazy two weeks. First, I ended up in a house by myself instead of rooming with Jean, so I am staying with a lady named Helga. She is super sweet. I have the whole upstairs to myself, and she stocks my refrigerator up there with pudding and yogurt and chocolate (I think she has a sweet tooth like I do!). She makes breakfast every morning (with coffee - an absolute necessity!) and sends me off with snacks every time we have a weekend trip or an excursion. She doesn't speak fluent English, but we have been understanding each other beautifully overall - with the help of some hand motions! And I have learned some German from her, which is fun. She also likes to make pancakes for dinner. Of the two dinners she has cooked for me herself, both have been pancakes! Or, actually, a pancake. Singular. These things are as big as a dinner plate! The first one was an apple pancake that she made because her grandchild said it's her favorite thing Grandma makes. I think there was an entire apple in it! Last night was a different kind of pancake, something she said was an Austrian specialty. It had raisins in it, and that's all I recognized, but it was good. So I am enjoying staying with Helga, although this morning I discovered a bad side of living alone - there's no one to wake you up when you sleep through your alarm!!! (Sorry guys!)
Last weekend, Shannon and Adriane and I took a trip to Vienna. I have to admit, I wasn't sure it was going to be worth the time (an overnight train, about 12 hours!) and money. I had been to Vienna before and loved it, but I still wasn't sure. I got to the train station early Friday morning, packed for Vienna just in case but not even sure I could get a train there. Luckily I did, but on a different train from Shannon and Adriane going over. Like Adriane said, I ended up in a sleeper car, which was quite nice and meant that I definitely got more sleep than they did, poor things! So I thought everything was taken care of, and then I realized later during class that I didn't have Austria on my Eurail pass, and I had forgotten to ask about arranging for that! It ended up ok, I just bought a ticket from the border of Germany to Vienna and back. As far as Vienna itself, we three enjoyed it immensely. It's an absolutely beautiful city with huge decorated buildings. I enjoyed just walking the streets and looking around us. We saw St. Stephen's Cathedral, the Opera House (which is AMAZING), and the outside of a few museums, the Parliament building, and the City Hall. And I found ice water at a Starbucks in Europe!!! (Those of you who have never been here have NO idea how hard that is, nor how exciting. Leave it to Starbucks to have ice water. And leave it to me to be at a Starbucks even when I'm in a foreign country!) We spent the evening in a hostel that only cost us 15 euros each for the night, and it was clean and provided towels and everything. The next day (Sunday), we went to Schonbrunn Palace, which is absolutely amazing as well. The rooms are so decorated in Rococo style that by the end you're kind of tired of gold. But the rooms decorated in Chinese style were beautiful, the dance hall with its chandeliers was amazing (I need to find a new word), and the room done in all blue and white to look like the walls were decorated porcelain was intriguing. We took the overnight train back to Duesseldorf, showing up at the AIB in the morning tired and dirty and desperately trying to clean ourselves up in the bathroom before the others arrived! It was worth it though, and Shannon and Adriane, you guys are a lot of fun! Thanks for letting me come with you! :)
That's probably far more than anyone wants to read right now, so I'll hopefully post again Tuesday, after our trip to Paris this weekend. Here's hoping I won't get run over by Lance Armstrong on his victory lap. ;)
Last weekend, Shannon and Adriane and I took a trip to Vienna. I have to admit, I wasn't sure it was going to be worth the time (an overnight train, about 12 hours!) and money. I had been to Vienna before and loved it, but I still wasn't sure. I got to the train station early Friday morning, packed for Vienna just in case but not even sure I could get a train there. Luckily I did, but on a different train from Shannon and Adriane going over. Like Adriane said, I ended up in a sleeper car, which was quite nice and meant that I definitely got more sleep than they did, poor things! So I thought everything was taken care of, and then I realized later during class that I didn't have Austria on my Eurail pass, and I had forgotten to ask about arranging for that! It ended up ok, I just bought a ticket from the border of Germany to Vienna and back. As far as Vienna itself, we three enjoyed it immensely. It's an absolutely beautiful city with huge decorated buildings. I enjoyed just walking the streets and looking around us. We saw St. Stephen's Cathedral, the Opera House (which is AMAZING), and the outside of a few museums, the Parliament building, and the City Hall. And I found ice water at a Starbucks in Europe!!! (Those of you who have never been here have NO idea how hard that is, nor how exciting. Leave it to Starbucks to have ice water. And leave it to me to be at a Starbucks even when I'm in a foreign country!) We spent the evening in a hostel that only cost us 15 euros each for the night, and it was clean and provided towels and everything. The next day (Sunday), we went to Schonbrunn Palace, which is absolutely amazing as well. The rooms are so decorated in Rococo style that by the end you're kind of tired of gold. But the rooms decorated in Chinese style were beautiful, the dance hall with its chandeliers was amazing (I need to find a new word), and the room done in all blue and white to look like the walls were decorated porcelain was intriguing. We took the overnight train back to Duesseldorf, showing up at the AIB in the morning tired and dirty and desperately trying to clean ourselves up in the bathroom before the others arrived! It was worth it though, and Shannon and Adriane, you guys are a lot of fun! Thanks for letting me come with you! :)
That's probably far more than anyone wants to read right now, so I'll hopefully post again Tuesday, after our trip to Paris this weekend. Here's hoping I won't get run over by Lance Armstrong on his victory lap. ;)
Pre Paris departure
This week was even better than the last in my opinion, because we actually got to do alot more stuff related to medicine. The cruise down the Rhine was extremely cool, and I loved the scenery, I'm a sucker for the green hills and forests. Lunch at the small restaurant was really good, and also my first opportunity to taste schnitzel (however it is spelled) and it was really good, mainly because it just tasted like a pork chop. After lunch and going on an awesome tour of the Marksburg castle which I extremely enjoyed we went on my little wine tasting trip. I had a great time at the castle, because I love any kind of medieval sort of thing with a passion. I do have to say the greatest part of the Rhine cruise was watching Olaf climb onto one of those wobbly horse toys you find in playgrounds for children under 5. The wine tasting was really good, and I think everyone enjoyed it, what made it even more hilarious was watching some of the people afterward we had all had some wine to drink, I dont think I have to say much more on that subject than that. The next day we went to go to the university hospital and take a small tour of the ICU as well as watch open heart surgery in the operation room. I had seen open heart surgery as well as a few other types of "serious surgery" before, so it wasnt something extremely new to me, but I love watching it regardless. Eric and I also got a little lesson of anatomy/anesthesiology from the anesthesiologist in the room as he used Adrianne as a prop. The only thing more fun than watching surgeries is doing it yourself, which personally I really enjoy though it can be a bit nerve racking at times. Yesterday we went to the research farm which was really cool as well, mainly because that's more my field of focus at the moment, though I'm leaning more towards small animals and/or exotics or possibly specializing in some field of canine medicine. The only "typical" animal I would want to work with would be horses, so I'll more than likely stick with small animals.
Well that about sums it up for the week, and we will be heading to Paris in a few hours, so I'm extremely hyped and ready to get on the road.
Well that about sums it up for the week, and we will be heading to Paris in a few hours, so I'm extremely hyped and ready to get on the road.
Animal Farm...
On Thursday, we took an excursion to Frankenforst Research Farm to learn about the types of animal research that they do there. Upon arrival, we were given an overview of how the farm-half of the farm operates. We got to visit the cattle barns, the sheep pens, the chickens, and to Olaf's great delight, the pigs! Everyone was amazed by the size of the pigs in Germany. We asked about the use of growth hormones in Germany, but apparently they are outlawed in most of Europe! Olaf wanted to hold one of the piglets, and keep it as a pet, but unfortunately it didn't work out. We learned all about the breeding systems that they used at Frankenforst, and the progeny tests that they conduct. It was reall cool!
After learning about the animal side of the operations, we went to the research facilities and talked to the veterinarians and researchers that work there. We were able to talk to one of the veterinarians there about reproduction cycles in cows. To demonstrate, he brought out a plate full of ovaries that had follicles in different stages of development on them. We got to touch them, and even got to witness instant ovulation when he squished one! It was sort of disgusting, but he got his point across! We aso were abe to witness frozen sperm "coming back to life" under the microscope, which was fascinating! He even took us out to one of the barns to use sonograms to test if the cow were pregnant. Rebecca gets a special award for palpating a cow...
Overall, it was a great learning experience and I think that all the students got a lot out of it, even the human medicine people! Although, I think they were a little grossed out by a lot of what went on during the day. I loved Frankenforst, and I definitely recommend that it be included on next year's trip to Germany!
After learning about the animal side of the operations, we went to the research facilities and talked to the veterinarians and researchers that work there. We were able to talk to one of the veterinarians there about reproduction cycles in cows. To demonstrate, he brought out a plate full of ovaries that had follicles in different stages of development on them. We got to touch them, and even got to witness instant ovulation when he squished one! It was sort of disgusting, but he got his point across! We aso were abe to witness frozen sperm "coming back to life" under the microscope, which was fascinating! He even took us out to one of the barns to use sonograms to test if the cow were pregnant. Rebecca gets a special award for palpating a cow...
Overall, it was a great learning experience and I think that all the students got a lot out of it, even the human medicine people! Although, I think they were a little grossed out by a lot of what went on during the day. I loved Frankenforst, and I definitely recommend that it be included on next year's trip to Germany!
Thursday, July 21, 2005
Today's Discussion
Today's discusion with Frau Pilartz was very interesting. A few points I idn't know were how the schools are not very good in Germany because the children are not taught respect so none is given to the teachers and the classrooms are very loud and unproductive. Also, in the US a school teacher's salary is not so hot, but here it is the opposite. As a result of WWII the culture tries to get away from the authoritarian mentality, so the children call the parents by their first names to avoid their parents as sounding like the authoritative figure.
Passport Problems and Wine Tasting
So when I woke up on Tuesday morning I was getting my wallet out of my bag and I realized that my passport was not in my bag. After comming home from Bonn I went on a desparate search for it with no avail. I was so afraid that I wasn't going to be able to go to Paris with everyone or worse yet that I would not be able to get back into the US. Lucky for me though when I went into the US Consulate this morning they had it. Apparently some one found it and the German police turned it into the Consulate.
Yesturday we went on a Rhine cruise and wine tasting. We started out in Baccarach and we boarded a boat and set out on the river. At first we were all sitting on the top deck of the boat watching the castles and small towns pass by. These towns were what I thought of when I thought about what Germany would look like before I got here. We eventually got to the stop for the Marksburg castle and we had a really great lunch at this small German restuarant. Luckily we toured the city for awhile before we hiked up this huge hill to Marksburg castle. We took a nice castle tour and afterwards we went to the wine cellar of this nice German family. When we went into the cellar there were nice tables all set out for us and we had the chance to taste five different wines. After the wine everyone was feeling pretty good and Dr. Wassser even sang to us. We loaded up on cases of wine to bring back to our families and went home because we were so exhausted.
Yesturday we went on a Rhine cruise and wine tasting. We started out in Baccarach and we boarded a boat and set out on the river. At first we were all sitting on the top deck of the boat watching the castles and small towns pass by. These towns were what I thought of when I thought about what Germany would look like before I got here. We eventually got to the stop for the Marksburg castle and we had a really great lunch at this small German restuarant. Luckily we toured the city for awhile before we hiked up this huge hill to Marksburg castle. We took a nice castle tour and afterwards we went to the wine cellar of this nice German family. When we went into the cellar there were nice tables all set out for us and we had the chance to taste five different wines. After the wine everyone was feeling pretty good and Dr. Wassser even sang to us. We loaded up on cases of wine to bring back to our families and went home because we were so exhausted.
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
What a cool group!!
Hey guys! I just wanted to post these pictures from our Rhine trip today. The first one is in Bacharach right before we got on the Lorelei. Luckily it didn't smell as bad down by the Rhine as it did in the town. The second one is everyone at the Rheintal restaurant for lunch. I think Dr. Wasser was setting up his computer to play the opera music to set the mood. The last one is all of us in front of the old, random door in Braubach on the way around the town before the climbed up to the Marksburg. Its been really fun to hang out with everyone and get to know each other! The first week and a half have absolutely flown by-we'd better make the rest of them count!!!
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Heart Surgery
Today was one of the days I was looking forward to the most. We were able to go into the surgery room and watch open heart surgery. The patient I saw was 77 and having her aortic valve replaced. It was fascinating seeing the old valve which was calcified and the new valve which was actually a pig valve. Each flap comes from a different pig. Our anesthesiologist was extremely friendly and spoke to us in excellent English. I was amazed that he knew all the technical terms in both English and German. He explained what he was doing as he was doing it. I really like watching surgery. I saw a knee scoping while in high school and that was great. Now being able to see the heart beating in the patient was very powerful. It was also fun putting on scrubs. I'm glad I got a picture in them. I hope it is a flash into the future :-).
We then went to the ICU and saw some patients there. They were all elderly and had had complications with their cardiac surgery. The most amazing and yet difficult thing for me to see was one lady in the ICU who had a zip in her chest so she could be opened up very quickly. It was a REAL zipper, like you have on your pants. It was extremely strange to see. It made her almost look like a doll because it was hard to fathom that there was a real person with a zip on her chest.
I really liked Bonn, or the parts we saw of it. We had a nice lunch and it was funny having lunch with half the table enjoying a beer. We met some students from A&M who were here for the Engineering program and I must say I am glad I am on this program. The engineering program was very regimented with tests and quizzes and lecture time. I am glad we are able to go out and learn first hand instead of learning in a classroom which we could do for cheaper in Texas.
Yesterday was not so fun because I went to the airport to talk to Lufthansa about my damaged luggage. We had faxed them but we were just having trouble talking to people who knew what I wa ssuppsoed to do. I missed what sounds like an interesting night at a bar, but I'll get over it. I am just glad my luggage is finally getting assessed and hopefully I will find out soon what is going to happen. I really have had bad luck with luggage. My main suitcase was broken on the plane and then my small backpack for day trips broke while we were in Heidelberg. Hopefully I no more problems because I am running out of bags.
We then went to the ICU and saw some patients there. They were all elderly and had had complications with their cardiac surgery. The most amazing and yet difficult thing for me to see was one lady in the ICU who had a zip in her chest so she could be opened up very quickly. It was a REAL zipper, like you have on your pants. It was extremely strange to see. It made her almost look like a doll because it was hard to fathom that there was a real person with a zip on her chest.
I really liked Bonn, or the parts we saw of it. We had a nice lunch and it was funny having lunch with half the table enjoying a beer. We met some students from A&M who were here for the Engineering program and I must say I am glad I am on this program. The engineering program was very regimented with tests and quizzes and lecture time. I am glad we are able to go out and learn first hand instead of learning in a classroom which we could do for cheaper in Texas.
Yesterday was not so fun because I went to the airport to talk to Lufthansa about my damaged luggage. We had faxed them but we were just having trouble talking to people who knew what I wa ssuppsoed to do. I missed what sounds like an interesting night at a bar, but I'll get over it. I am just glad my luggage is finally getting assessed and hopefully I will find out soon what is going to happen. I really have had bad luck with luggage. My main suitcase was broken on the plane and then my small backpack for day trips broke while we were in Heidelberg. Hopefully I no more problems because I am running out of bags.
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