Sunday, February 12, 2012

Wait…I’m in Germany?? [written Tuesday, December 27]

It’s strange how you can be in a completely different country, on the other side of the world and feel like everything is exactly the same. As we drove from the airport today to the AIB dorms, the German countryside reminded me quite a bit of the Texas countryside that lines highway 21 on the way from San Marcos to College Station. No joke. It was greener, for sure, but something about the familiar construction of the highway with its intermittent exits and its signs and the land, empty for the most part, but speckled here and there with houses made it all seem not so foreign…or perhaps this is still my disbelief at actually being in Germany. I don’t think I’ve fully processed it yet.

After setting up shop in our AIB dorm rooms, we walked down to the river (the Rhine, that is). It is somehow incredibly peaceful here—quiet and calm. People were running, biking, walking their dogs along the river, and we took a few semi-awkward pictures of ourselves since we were too afraid to venture some German in requesting a passer-by to do it for us.

Right now, I’m all settled in our room after a grand dinner of jagerschnitzel and beer. That’s right, beer. I’ve never liked beer, but it wasn’t so bad. Next time I will have to try a dunkel.

Tomorrow, we go to the University Clinics. Day 1 in Germany, concluded.

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