To be honest I cant believe that we are now done with our
second week here. On one hand I feel like I just stepped off the plane that
brought me to Germany; but on the other hand it feels comfortable and familiar
here in Bonn. It is normal now to go about with my daily routine- walking to
class or meeting up with friends around town. It is weird for me to think about
how all too soon I wont be walking these streets anymore. Time has flown by and
I really need it to pump the breaks a little bit. There’s so much more of this
experience that I want to take in.
Some things are still the same as they were the first week
here. For example, my German continues to be horrific. I mean truly terrible.
I’ll keep trying and laughing at myself but I don’t know that I’m going to get
any better by the time this trip is over.
I still eat way too much gelato. I have had more ice cream in these past
two week than I usually have in a year. I know that sounds dramatic but I’m not
kidding. These people really love their ice cream and that love has definitely
rubbed off on my fellow students and me. The walking continues to become more
and more normal. I am going to have a hard time going back to Texas where the
only way to get around is to drive. The walking here is one of my favorite
things about Europe so far. I know that may sound strange but living in Texas
my entire life means that walking 7 miles a day (at least) is not a normal
occurrence. Walking everywhere is a small joy that I get to do every day while
I am here. I also think that it helps you to slow down. To not be in such a
hurry all the time. To stop and smell the lingering cigarette smoke as you make
your way through town—another thing that is still the same here, the smoking.
In the US the culture is trending away from smoking cigarettes. People know
that it is bad for your health and the health of the people around you and it
is therefore becoming something that is not so widely accepted. That is not the
case here in Europe, I’m getting some serious second hand smoke over here. The amount of it continues to surprise me, I
suppose it’s just another difference of a small cultural difference that makes
a big impact.
So what is new this week? Well let me tell you about the two
main highlights. The first is the excursion that we took to Cologne. Stepping
out of the train station and staring up at the cathedral there was
unbelievable. I am in absolute awe of that building; a cathedral that is
hundreds of years old sitting in the middle of this German town. The building
truly is a piece of art. Every section is detailed in carvings and arches. Now
I didn’t get to be a part of the group that got to go inside the cathedral on
this trip but I am looking forward to our next trip there. The Roman remnants
in the town were also fascinating. It is amazing to see artifacts that have
been left over from the past, to see how they engineered their cities and lived
without our modern science and technology. I hope that next time we go to
Cologne I have the chance to go and see the Roman Artifacts museum that is
there. There is also a museum there that houses hundreds of Picasso’s
(according to the tour guide) that I would like to see. Again, there are so
many places and so little time.
The second thing that happened this weekend was our trip to
Ireland. Ireland was always this magical green land that I saw in all the
movies when I was growing up. I remember thinking about how insanely beautiful
it was there and how I hoped it was a place that I would eventually get to see.
Well, dreams really do come true, and it was as beautiful as I had imagined-
probably even more so than I imagined. Our second day there we spent the entire
day on a bus so that we could go see the Cliffs of Moher. An 8 hour round trip
with a bus driver that kept belting our Irish songs, poems and a few
interesting comments, but it was well worth it. Those cliffs were astonishing.
The pictures that you see of them don’t so them justice. Standing at the top
and looking down at the water that is 700 feet below was astonishing. Also a
little terrifying, especially because that happened to be the day that people
in out group decided to stumble over rocks and lose their footing every once in
a while. The bus driver also scared us a little before hand, warning about how
people fall off the cliff every year. Yikes, right? Anyways, the view was
unbelievable. I felt like a character In one of those movies I was talking
about.
Getting to spend time in the Dublin was also quite the
experience. Once again it is a completely different culture from that of the
United States. Lots of fish and chips, Guinness, and music. Oh man the music.
At night every pub had a guitar player who would strum out some classic feel
good songs. It’s the kind of music I could never get tired of listening to.
I still cant believe that I was there this morning. After
sleeping a few hours we woke up for our 6:50 am flight and groggily boarded a
plane. Before you know it I am back in Germany sitting in my Pharmacology
class. Crazy right?
Ireland is a place
that I hope I get the chance to visit again in the future, but until I get that
chance I’m glad that I have some interesting stories and memories to hold onto.
Right now I am over the moon. I still can’t believe that I
am here getting to have these unforgettable adventures.
Life is truly amazing
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