A long week

Let's see...what have we done this week. Well, on Monday we went to Rhein Biotech and it was incredibly boring. I was definitely disappointed that we sat in a room and was lectured to for three hours and then had a very breif tour. Everyone was falling asleep, including myself. The topics that were discussed were not interesting at all, and the speakers spoke in monotone. That was definitely my least favorite excursion yet. On Tuesday we went to Wuppertal to Bayer Pharmaceuticals, and this was a lot more interesting! I enjoyed learning about the new technology the use to create antibiotics. The fermentation plant was really cool as well, although it did smell a bit. I had fun dressing up in the hard hat, glasses, and lab coat; it made me feel like I worked there. After seeing both those places I realized I don't want to work in either. I don't want to work in labs all day doing research.

On Wednesday we had a play day!!! It was super fun and the weather was perfect! We took a two hour Rhein river cruise and thoroughly enjoyed it!! We went from Bacharach to Broubach, and in Broubach we went to the Marksburg Castle. However, in order to get up there we had to climb up a very steep hill and go up a lot of steps. We were so hot and tired when we made it to the top that I realized why this castle had never been attacked. Also, at the top we saw the tram that can take you up to the castle, and of course Dr. Wasser didn't even mention that option!!! The castle was really neat and pretty, but the tour we were on was way too big and we didn't get to hear all the explanations. The best part of this trip was the private wine tasting! We tried five different wines and I only really liked the last one because all the other ones were too dry. That was the first time in my life that I have ever had that much to drink and I was feeling it!! It was so much fun, and I bought one bottle of the #5 wine! Today has been fun as well. We went to the Experimental Farm Gut and it was really interesting. I loved looking at all the animals and learning about the research there! The saddest part though was seeing the runt of a litter of pigs and not being able to help him!:( Next we went to the German History museum and I was very impressed. That was the most creative, best arranged, and most interesting museum I have ever been to! I had a blast!!