The Culture of Germany...how sweet it is!

So wine tasting is incredible. Now I can go home and act like a pretentious snob in front of my friends about how I know so much about wine! Well the wonderful wine here is posing a problem...the alcohol limit of bringing it back to the states...Dang 1 Liter! I will pay my extra tax and enjoy the wonderful wine that I bring home. It really isn't for me, but my wine loving family! I really enjoyed the Rhine excursion yesterday; however, it would have been nice if it didn't rain. The Castle was really nice as well. It was incredible actually being in a medieval castle as opposed to Neuschwanstein that was built like a medieval castle. But I have to say that Neuschwanstein put this castle to shame. It was so impressive and ornate that I don't think much can compare. The Rhein castle also had a lot of bees...and as we all know very well, I don't get along with bees.

This trip has not had as much medical observations as I imagined; however, I am still very grateful for the experiences that we have had and will have. I am very excited about the heart and diabetes center. I have never seen a heart surgery and I am looking forward to it so much. I also had never seen a lung transplant, so that was pretty amazing as well (to say the least). All I know is that if I am ever a surgeon, my operating room is going to be ice cold. All of the operating rooms we have been in have been pretty warm. After you combine that will all the robes and accessories you have to wear, I feel like I am going to pass out. I love observing surgeries, and it's not the sights that make me squemish, it's the heat! So cold or none for me! Let's hope tomorrow's ORs will be cold!

So I hate the Euro...it is kicking not only the dollars butt, but my wallet's butt as well! I just wanted to buy some new running shoes because mine are getting worn out, and they are so expensive here! People say that Europeans are healthier than Americans...I beg to differ! Maybe the average of all Europeans is healthier than the average of Americans, but so many Europeans smoke, don't work out, but just walk everywhere! I think that's why the running shoes are expensive...because no one runs here! I think my host mom and maybe the two other people I see in the morning are the only people in Dusseldorf that run....so it makes the running shoes really expensive! Yay for a lot of Americans that like to run to increase the demand, which increases the supply, and lowers the price! Whoop!