Deutschland = Weltmeister!

Studying abroad is opening my eyes to a world that I have not seen before. The more places we travel to, the more I feel that my views and perspectives on life were narrow. I believe that I'm changing and growing as a person while enjoying my time in Europe. I see that there are so many more cultures in the world to explore. I see that there are new experiences, new sights, smells, foods, and people to meet. I see that there is more to life. First and foremost, everyone on our trip is amazing. We're starting to open to each other and I feel that we have a little History of Medicine family growing! Everyone is considerate and look out for each other--I'm blessed to have such an amazing group! 

This past week, we had the opportunity to go up to the Cologne Cathedral, which was absolutely breathtaking. Taking selfies all the way, our group triumphed and reached the top. Seeing Cologne from the top took my breath away. At about 157 m high, it is one of the top 5 tallest cathedrals in the world. For me, the interesting part about Cologne was the contrast between the traditional and modern aspects of the city. Right next to the cathedral is the Cologne Hauptbahnhof, the central station of Cologne. Around the cathedral are also shops like Lacoste, H&M, and etc. For me, the fact that a cathedral is the center of a burgeoning city is incredible. 

Souvenir shopping in Cologne was awful. I bought a 3 Euro Deutschland flag for my apartment back at home. When I arrived at my aunt's house, I embarrassingly discovered that this flag was indeed, a Belgian flag. After much laughter from my aunt and cousins, I finally got to meet my nephew/first cousin first-removed (does anyone actually know what a cousin's son is to me??). His name is Jonathan and is absolutely precious! He's very intelligent, very curious, and very courageous. When he fell running, he did not cry; he just kept running! He's one to watch in the future.

Finally: Weltmeister. OF THE WORLD CUP 2014!!!!!! I am so blessed to have been in Germany as they won their 4th World Cup. Celebrating the victory with my friends at the public viewing of the game was a memory I will never forget. The celebrations had to be cut short as I am now currently in Vienna! I slept in until 4:00 am (not a typo) and madly rushed to be ready by 4:30 am. Oh, by the way, I hadn't packed my suitcase at that point. Somehow, in 30 minutes, I managed to grab breakfast, shower, pack my suitcase and backpack for a 12-day excursion, and brush my hair/teeth/etc. I was proud of myself. My schedule for the next two weeks is as follows:

Vienna --> Salzburg --> Innsbrook --> Munich --> Hannover --> Nordeny --> Bonn --> Switzerland --> Bonn. 

It'll be a crazy two weeks, but I'm excited for these new and exciting adventures. Tschüss from Austria!

Edward Ji '15