"In Deutschland muss man immer ein Schirm dabei haben."

     This is a very short week. Monday was very relaxed. I don't have class until 4:15 on Mondays, so I got to sleep in and hang out. It was my first time in my Schiller class, and Clare, Matt, and Rosie are also in it with me. This is the same professor as the Dürrenmatt class, so I think it's going to go by slowly. At least it only meets once a week! Monday night Matt and I met for a drink. We were supposed to then go meet up with some other people, but they cancelled on us.

     Tuesday was my first Translation Skills course. Though it said that the course is supposed to be taught in English, the entire first class was in German. Of course that's fine, I was just expecting English. The professor is an older, funny guy. During the class he was explaining the course and how we would be tested. We will have two short tests where we will translate some texts. We will only be able to make a combined total of 14 mistakes between the two tests, or we fail the course. At this point, I'm not confident that I'll pass. He also explained how we could only use a one-language dictionary. It was then that I really started freaking out. However, he then pointed to me, and said (in German), "unless German isn't your mother tongue, then you can use a two-language dictionary. Oh, and if you have any questions, feel free to stop me and ask." I wanted to hide under a rock. I had emailed him with some questions before class began, hence why he knew that I was an exchange student. I think that this may be my most difficult course. He let us out 45 minutes early, so I had some time to kill. I ended up turning in my registration form and then sat with Marcella and Matt for a little before I headed to my language course. After my 2.5 hour language course, I headed into town. I wanted to find a good German-English dictionary, as I have left mine in the US, but I couldn't find one. Two bookstores didn't even have anything other than pocket-sized dictionaries, and the other bookstore was too expensive. I did, however, learn that "American" is apparently its own language. In one bookstore, I found a grammar book about "English," and one about "American." While I do understand that British English and American English are different (Clare, Marcella and Matt are constantly reminding me), I do not understand how there need to be a book on the grammar.  I would understand if the books said, "English" and then "American English," but this one just said, "American."

    Today I had my German grammar course, titled "Übung zu Grammatik des Deutschen." This was the first time the course met. I can already tell that I'll like the professor, but I think the course will be challenging. My German grammar is a bit rusty as I haven't done any grammar in years, so learning more German grammar in German will certainly prove difficult. Luckily, Clare and Matt are in the course with me, so that'll help. Today we already began reviewing some basic German like different verb tenses and parts of speech. As exchange students, we don't have to take any tests in this course, just do all homework he assigns and attend every lecture. At one point, the girl in front of us turned around said to us, "Are you American?!" I said yes, but that Clare and Matt aren't. She said, "OH THAT'S SO COOL THAT YOU'RE AMERICAN! I LOVE IT!" I only laughed, as all the British kids do is make fun of me for being American. After class, Matt and I went to buy the grammar book that we needed for class. I splurged and bought a mini German verb book, as well as a book of German poems about the sun. I really just can't help myself. 

    My long weekend has now begun. Tomorrow is a holiday, Tag der Arbeit, which is their Labor Day. Since I don't have class on Friday, I have a four day weekend! I'm excited to see what adventures I'll have in my four days. I'm going to a 90's party tonight. Tomorrow I may be going on a hike a few towns over, as well as a Finnish party showing how they celebrate May 1st in Finland. I may head over to Frankfurt on Saturday too. 

     Also, I found these chips in Rewe. I'm still trying to figure out how the flavor of the entire continent of African can be packed into a single flavored potato chip.

"Ein Heute ist besser denn zehn Morgen."

    I think I forgot to mention in my last post that I finally got my DAAD money! Now I just have to be careful to not spend it all!

     On Friday, I met Clare and Matt on campus and we went to find the Germanistik professor who needed to sign our registration. We had to wait in line for an hour and a half, and then it only took 30 seconds for him to actually sign the form. Sometimes this university really doesn't make any sense. Afterwards, Clare and I headed into town. We went to H&M and the Kaufhaus to get some things, then to the grocery store and such. Though I had wanted to go out Friday night, nothing came to fruition so I just relaxed and went to bed early.

   Yesterday I spent the day in Heidelberg. There was a university-sponsored trip put on by the same group with whom I went to Bad Kreuznach. We met at the Hbf at 9:20am and got on the train around 9:50. We switched trains twice until we arrived in Heidelberg around noon. There was a big soccer match happening that day in the area, so there were many rowdy fans on their way to the game. At one point, a group of them walked through the train station singing their team's song that they sing in the stadium. It was a neat thing to experience. There were also at least 30 police officers on the train, all headed to the game. Since I've been here, I've only seen a few police officers, and all of them were responding to an incident. I see police officers much more often in the US. I guess I just found it funny that the one time I actually see a large group of officers, they're heading to a sports game. Germans really take their soccer seriously.

     Once we got to Heidelberg, we split into two groups, those who would do the tour in German and those who would do the tour in English. Of course, I stayed in the German group. We walked through the city and stopped at some cool places. We admired a fountain that depicted Mary holding baby Jesus above the devil, we went inside in a Jesuit church and an Evangelical church, we stood where a synagogue was destroyed during Kristallnacht, we went into the home of Friedrich Ebert, we stood on the bridge over the Neckar River that was partially destroyed during WW2, and we finally went to the Heidelberg Castle. We were at the castle for the better part of two hours and roamed it freely. The castle was constructed sometime in the 1200s, but by the 1700s it was mostly destroyed. It's amazing to see what 500 years of turmoil and war had done to such a creation. At one point, Clare and I were standing inside the grounds of the castle eating our ice cream and admiring the building. An older woman came up to me and asked me where they could get some ice cream. Yet another encounter to add to my list. After the castle tour, we took the trolley back down to the city. it was 4pm by then, and they gave us 2.5 hours of free time. During our free time, Clare, Marcella, Niall, Matt and I sat at a local cafe and got some food. Matt also had a friend from home who was at the university in Heidelberg, so she met up with us. After eating, we did some shopping in the city. We all bought ourselves some sort of souvenir, as well as some local specialties from a chocolate store and gummy bear store. The 2.5 hours went by rather quickly, and before we knew it, it was time to go back. 

     On the first train, the five of us sat near the bathrooms. This train was newer and therefore had nicer facilities, which included an electric door that opened when you pushed a button. At one point, an older woman went into the bathroom. A minute or so later, a police man came up to the bathroom and motioned towards the button. I knew the old woman was in there, but for some reason didn't speak up to tell the police officer. We all watched as the door slid open, revealing the woman over the toilet. I was impressed with her quick reaction, as the older lady jumped right up to shut the door, not missing a beat. I would have been mortified, but she maintained her cool when she emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later. 

     We arrived back in Mainz around 9:15pm. Myself, Marcella, Niall, Matt, Titouan (France), and Martha (France) headed to Rewe (grocery store), and then to a local bar, stopping for a Kebap along the way. We each had a drink or two at the bar and stayed for an hour or so, until we all decided that we were tired and wanted to go home. Unfortunately for me, the only bus that runs by my place stops at 8:30, so I had to walk. 

     Today has been very low key. I've just been relaxing in my room, procrastinating on some homework. We don't have class this Thursday, as it's their labor day, so I get a four day weekend! I'm excited about all the possibilities. 

Statue of Mary and baby Jesus above the devil.

View of the Neckar from the bridge

Schloss Heidelberg

Birthplace of Friedrich Ebery

Site of old synagogue. 

Jesuit church

Evangelical church

Schloss Heidelberg

Clare, Marcella, Matt, myself, Martha

View from the castle 

More of the castle in ruins. I was amazed by the thickness of the walls.

Just an artsy photo from Clare.

"Übung macht den Meister."

     I didn't have class again on the second day. My only class on Wednesdays, a German grammar course, does not begin until next week, which I did not know until I had already arrived on campus and sat down in the classroom. However, I had much to do on campus, so I spent my afternoon running errands. Clare and Matt are also taking the grammar course, so once we realized that it doesn't start until next week, we headed over to the ZDV (Zentrum für Datenverarbeitung, aka, the data processing building) where we used the computers to fill out our course registration form. Instead of registering online like all the other students, international students have to fill out an actual form, get it signed by a few different people from different departments, and then turn it into the office of our department so that they can register us for courses. It's very frustrating and always annoying. While we were sitting in the ZDV, a girl approached me and asked how to print something, as she had just seen me do it. To the best of my knowledge, I explained it to her in very poor German. After we finished at the ZDV, Matt and I headed to the Mensa and got some lunch. Then, we began the complicated task of finding out who needed to sign our course registration forms. We probably walked around for an hour and a half trying to figure out who we needed to talk to and sign our papers. Most of the professors weren't there, as they didn't have office hours that day, but we eventually spoke to someone who told us who we needed. However, that person wasn't available then, so we had to go back during the professor's office hours.

      Since I'm not a member of an EU country, I had to call the Foreigners Office to make an appointment with them. If you speak a second language, you know that phone calls are one of the most difficult thing to do. Just think about how much trouble you can have on the phone in your mother tongue, now multiply that by 50 and you have reached the difficulty level of a phone call in another language (also keep in mind that German is my third language). After saying, "wie bitte?" too many times to count, I finally was able to end the conversation. I have a meeting with them in a few weeks, and I have to bring some documents with me, though I'm not 100% sure which ones. I'm just glad that I finally called them and took care of that. After this awful phone call, I headed to the bookstore to get a book for one of my classes. Matt and I met up at the Philosophicum to find the right person in the English department so they could sign our course registration forms. As we were waiting, we met two German guys also waiting and had a nice conversation with them.  It's awesome to make friends with actual Germans! I was also approached and asked for directions from a fellow student, yet again. He needed to know where a room was, and it ended up being in another building. Though he was asking me, the girls next to me answered his question and I didn't have a chance to embarrass myself.

     Yesterday was the third day of class, and last class day this week for me. On my way to class, I was stopped again and asked for directions. The Philosophicum, the building where my major is housed, it a bit confusing and complicated to navigate. The girl who stopped me didn't know how to get to a classroom, so I did my best to explain to her how to get there. At this point, I'm beginning to think that I radiate confidence. Nothing else explains the sheer amount of people who ask me for directions. My class actually met this morning, so I had my first German class yesterday! The course is only for international students, and we will spend the semester reading Friedrich Dürrenmatt's, "Die Physiker." Marcella and Rosie are in the course with me, so that will help keep me sane. I think this course is going to be tedious and boring. We spent the entire hour and a half reading the first eight and a half pages of the play. Eight and a half pages!! In an hour and a half!!! The professor must have stopped every other sentence to explain or comment on something. He also went around the class and made us read aloud, which was embarrassing enough. I'm just glad that the course only meets once a week. 

     There is also a semester language course offered to exchange students depending on their level. It's like the intensive language course I took. The course is worth 6 ECTS points (German way of giving course credit, ranges from 2-6 depending on how much work is required). For my level, there were two different professors/time slots. I signed up for the one on Tuesday/Thursday, but I was put in the one on Thursday/Friday due to a limited number of seats in the class. Since I refuse to have Friday classes so that I can travel, I decided to take my chances and go to the Tuesday/Thursday course. I talked to the professor before class and told her that I was put in the other course but wanted to take part in hers. She told me that she wasn't sure, but that I could sit in on class for the first half (the class is 2.5 hours long, so they give us a 15 minute break in the middle) and then we would discuss the details during the break. Well, at least 7 people who were assigned to the class didn't show up, so she said that I could be in her course. I was unreasonably happy about this, but it was probably the first thing about classes that had gone my way since I got here. Once I had her word that I would be in her class, my journey to register for classes had ended. I will be taking 24 ECTS points this semester, or 5 courses. And the best part, no classes on Friday!! I met some new people in my class, including students from Serbia, Spain, and Croatia.I already really like this professor. She's funny, concise, and doesn't ramble. I think it's going to be a good semester!

     Last night was also the first campus-wide party, called the Semestereröffnungsfete (SÖF). It took place at four different locations on campus. Thousands of students must have been there. There were bars set up at the locations and a DJ also was at each. Beforehand, Marcella, Matt and I met up at Clare's for some "pre-drinks," as the Brits say. We met Clare's roommate and some of her friends. We played "Ring of Fire" in German! We eventually headed to campus. The party was a bit overwhelming. It was essentially a bunch of different groups of friends hanging out on campus with some music in the background. Marcella, Clare, Matt and I met up with Jenny (England), Ben (Wales?), Toni-Lee (Northern Ireland), and Meeri (Finland). We hung out on campus for a few hours until most of us decided to go home. 

    Today I have to go to campus to finalize my course registration. After that, I'm not sure what I'll do. Tomorrow I'm going to Heidelberg on one of the university-sponsored trips. It's only a day trip and we'll be leaving around 9:30am and getting back around 7pm. I'm sure it's going to be a blast!

"Je toller, desto besser."

    The rest of my Easter weekend was fantastic. Saturday night I went to the theater with Clare, as I wrote in my last post. It was a play about the Grimm brothers. I was under the impression that the play would be some sort of mix of the Grimm brothers fairy tales. Instead, it was about the lives of the Grimm brothers and their family. If I had to summarize my experience in one word, I would say: bizarre. The theater experience was completely unlike any theater experience I've ever had. The acting was very good. That made the play easier to follow. However, it was very hard to understand much of what the characters were saying. Part of it was my lower level of German, but they also spoke very quickly and sometimes not loud enough or when music was also playing. A non-native speaker like myself would find it all difficult to understand. I guess I could say that the play was very contemporary. There were puppets involved, as well as current-day music. Some of the scenes were also weirdly sexualized. It was also quite long, lasting about three hours with a 15 minute intermission. Clare and I really didn't know how to react to it.  All in all, I'm glad I went. I'll certainly never forget it. After the play, I went for a walk along the Rhein. As you may have noticed, I really enjoy walking along the river. It's beautiful and peaceful.

     Sunday was Easter. I didn't have anything to do and quickly grew restless in my room. I decided it would be a good day to go for a walk around the city and take some pictures, as there wouldn't be as many people out as normal. I ended up going on a three hour walk. I walked through the city and took some pictures as I made my way to the river. I ended up running into Marcella and her mom, as well as Jacqui. I also spent some time laying in the grass along the river. Eventually, hunger and blisters overtook me and I headed home.

Here's the old Jewish cemetery near my apartment. The oldest Jewish grave in Central Europe is found here, and it is dated to 1049. 

Hauptbahnhof

Schillerplatz

The Theater

Front view of the theater

Flag of Mainz

I don't actually know what this is, I just think it looks cool.

Piece of the Berlin Wall in Mainz.

My normal perch along the Rhein.

Walkway along the Rhein.

Walkway along the Rhein.

I've seen this graffiti lady a few places around town.

      Yesterday was Easter Monday, which is another holiday here. Germans get a four day weekend for Easter. Most businesses were closed yesterday and Friday (in addition to Sunday, but that's how it is every Sunday), but some restaurants were open. At 3pm I was to meet up with Clare, Matt, Marcella, and Marcella's mom for some ice cream. On my way, I noticed a man who appeared to be lost. As I was walking past him, he stopped me to ask for directions. He was speaking broken German, with some English words thrown in. I started to give him directions, and then I asked him where he was from. He said England. After this, I gave him directions in English to simplify the process. He asked me if I was American, and I said yes. As soon as I said yes, he just started laughing. I'm not sure if he was laughing at me because I'm American, or at the situation because the one person he stops on the street happens to be a native English speaker. Regardless, it was strange. I wished him luck and was on my way.  

     The ice cream place was in the old city, somewhere I had never been before yesterday. I got a scoop of chocolate and tiramisu, and we sat and chatted for the better part of two hours. At one point, I went inside to use the restroom. There was a mom with her three daughters in the one-stall bathroom. Once she finished letting them use the restroom, she pushed them out so she could go. I was standing outside the door waiting, and the youngest girl stayed there and played with her napkin. I would guess that she was around 3 years old. At one point she looked at me and said, "Pipi machen?" I couldn't help but laugh, as she was asking me if I was going to go pee. I'm not sure why she felt the need to ask me this, but it was still adorable. After ice cream, Matt, Clare, and I headed to Winterhafen, a little peninsula on the river. We met Christian and Jan there, as well as some of their friends. Their friends ended up being more exchange/Erasmus students, most of whom were from Spain or a Spanish-speaking country. There were even a few kids who I knew through the Mix Tour or my intensive language class. I met a guy named Will (Columbia), and he proceeded to tell me that I looked very English. I was with the British kids, after all. When I told him that I was American, he was a little surprised. I asked him how I looked English, and he informed me that it was my pale skin and eye color. When I told him that my name is Farrah, he said that I didn't look like a Farrah because I don't have blonde, wavy hair. He's the first person I met here who actually knew who Farrah Fawcett was. Whenever someone says, "you look ____" or, "you don't look very American," I like to ask them what actually looks American. At first, everyone says, "A fat man eating a hamburger," or, "A blonde girl with big, fake boobs." After a minute or so they usually amend their statement and say that there isn't a "typical" American since there are so many subcultures in our country. Regardless, the first comment is always a bit disheartening. We stayed there for an hour or so, and then most everyone left. On my walk home, as always, I walked along the river. I ended up meeting up with Kalle. He was hungry and we were near his apartment, so he decided that he wanted to show me what a proper German potato bake is. His bake included red pepper, zucchini, onion, potatoes, and a sauce made of cream, milk, butter, and cream cheese, He also added some white wine, rosemary, chives, nutmeg, and cheese to the dish. He wasn't happy with the outcome, but I didn't mind it. We also made some broccoli as a side dish, cooked with onions in white wine. I actually ate (and mostly enjoyed) the broccoli, zucchini and onions! (If you're reading this, David, be proud.) We cooked and hung out for awhile, and then I headed home. 

    Today was the first day of class! I was so nervous that I woke up and hour before my alarm. I only had one class today, which is the Translation course. I made it to campus and class was supposed to start at 12:15. At 12:20, a fellow student announced that this class wouldn't actually start this week, but would begin next week. I walked over to the Mensa and refilled my StudiCard and turned in a form to the Exchange Student people. I was almost completely out of food in my apartment, so I stopped at the grocery store and spent most of my remaining money. I still have not gotten my DAAD money, so I hope these groceries can last until the money is transferred into my account.

    I'm not sure what's on the agenda for tonight, but hopefully something. I believe there are some semester-opening parties taking place. Yes, these parties are organized by the university. Drinking is much more relaxed here. The age to buy beer is 16, and hard liquor 18, so everyone is of drinking age by the time they get to university. It is also common to see people drinking a beer as they walk down the street or sit on a bench. It's also not taboo to have a drink or three at lunch, as it might be in the States. 

Bis später!

"Denn die Gier wird euch verderben"

     I must look like I know everything. I was stopped and asked for directions three times in 24 hours. The first time, I was on campus walking to class. A girl stopped me and asked where a building was. The second time, I was folding my laundry in the laundry room. A girl came in and asked if I knew where to go for the Internet. Lastly, an older man stopped me as I was walking to the grocery store and asked if I knew where the cathedral was. I was able to answer the second two with some kind of coherency. 

     After three hours, I finally got internet on Wednesday night. I went down to the basement with all of my data backed up on a hard drive. He told me to come back in an hour since my computer would take awhile. I went down exactly an hour later, and he began. He first did some kind of reinstall of my computer. He went back to the last time that my computer properly operated the security system so he would be able to alter it. Two hours later and after a lot of computer technical stuff that I didn't understand, I had internet. He instructed me to do some stuff to my computer, like constantly check for software updates and get an anti-virus program. I'm so glad that I finally can access internet in my room. Now I don't have to go to campus every time I want internet! The wifi that I use for my phone is pretty spotty in this building. I don't think they have routers on each floor, and since I'm on the top floor, I can only pick up the signal sometimes and it drops a lot, so I'm even more excited to have internet access on my computer!

    On Thursday, I finally went and got some desperately needed groceries. I got bread, bananas, chocolate, pasta, cookies, salami, cheese, butter, and pudding for only 12 euros! In the afternoon I headed to campus. There is a class that I will be taking that is only offered to exchange students. For some reason, I had to actually go and meet the professor to sign up for the class. He asked us which German books/authors we had already read. I suppose this was to gauge how well prepared we are for the class. He offered two classes, one about Friedrich Schiller and one about Friedrich Dürrenmatt. I'm taking the class on Dürrenmatt and his comedy, "Die Physiker." Afterwards, I headed into town. There was some shopping I wanted to do. I went to H&M and also the Kaufhaus, which is a department store. Since I had mostly walked everywhere, I was exhausted and beginning to get some blisters, so I opted for the bus home.

     Yesterday was fantastic. I went on a walk along the Rhine in the afternoon. It was nice to get out of my room and enjoy nature. In the late afternoon I met up with Kalle. We sat on the river and chatted for awhile. We eventually parted ways, and I went home. I quickly ate and then headed back out to meet up with Matt. Our friends from the Mix Tour in Bad Kreuznach, Christian and Jan, were throwing a party and Matt and I wanted to go. Upon arrival, Jan asked us if we wanted to speak German or English. We said German. I then continued to speak German for most of the night, with a little English here and there when I didn't know how to say something in German or couldn't understand something. (Side note: It's not easy trying to figure out how to tell someone that your dad is a rocket scientist in German). About 15 people ended up showing up. It was myself, Matt, a few girls from Spain, and then the rest were German. All the Germans were very nice and patient with me. Sometimes they even corrected my grammar! I was also told that my German is quite good, but I'm not sure I believe that yet.  We left the party around 3am and I walked home along the Rhine.

Here's a picture from my walk along the Rhine. 

    Today has already been fantastically eventful. At 11, I met up with Clare. We also met up with some of her friends from England, Northern Ireland, and Finland. They have big outdoor markets here from time to time. I'm not sure how often they happen but I think it's fairly regularly this time of year. It's essentially what we would consider a farmers market. There are a lot of tents, each selling meats, cheeses, flowers, produce, etc. We walked through these markets and then down to the Rhine, where there was more of a rummage sale type of market. The walk way along the river was lined with tables of things like childrens toys, books, household items like lamps, clothing, etc. I ended up buying two books, one about dinosaurs and one of fairy tales. After the markets, we walked on to the theater. My friend, Kalle, works in the theater and told me about a play that is currently taking place. It's a play about the Grimm Brothers fairy tales. The theater here is also free for students, so Clare and I decided to go. Kalle warned us that it may be a bit difficult for us to understand, but it's free and about fairy tales, so I figure that it's perfect. Clare and I got our tickets with just our student cards and a picture ID. We then continued to a Dönner shop and got lunch. I had my first Dönner Kebap! After some grocery shopping, I headed home. I'm going to take a quick nap before I head out to the theater tonight. Hopefully this play will be fantastic!

They're making a beach along the Rhine. They essentially just spread sand over a parking lot.

Not a great picture, but this is the market place.

This is the fountain in Schillerplatz. I just think it's really neat and intricate. They also light it up in different colors at night.

Clare and I wanted to take a selfie with our theater tickets. Excited is an understatement!

Pictures

     And finally, some pictures!

Wiesbaden

Coming down the lift into Assmannshausen

More of Assmannshausen

Rhein River tour

Loreley Cliffs

Niederheimbach

End of the Rhein River tour

The view from Colmberg Castle

Entrance to Colmberg Castle

Colmberg Castle

Colmberg Castle

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

Rothenburg ob der Tauber

I can't remember the name of this one.

At the Orangerie in Ansbach

Reading the Newspaper Is Not A Quiet Activity

     On Saturday (April 12) we had a nice breakfast in the hotel before we left for Ansbach, which is in Bavaria. After having some trouble figuring out which train we were to get on, we were finally on our way. We took a train to Aschaffenburg, then transferred to a train to Würzburg. In Würzburg we transferred to the last train that took us to Ansbach. On one of the trains, there was a bachelor party group walking through the train. They were selling small trinkets like flowers, inflatable balls, and so on. This type of activity is a tradition here. The point of this is for the bachelor to make some money to pay for his last night with his buds. This particular bachelor was also dressed up like Captain America. We bought a tulip for €0,50. Three trains and four hours later, we were in Ansbach. 

     Some old friends from Kwaj, the Martins, live in Ansbach. Gail picked us up at the train station and then we met up with Dick for a late lunch. There is a really cool piece of the Berlin Wall near where we ate lunch, and I'll post that picture later. Once we finished eating, the four of us drove to the Colmberg Castle. It's a private castle that is also a hotel and a restaurant. We didn't stay for long. We then drove to Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a really awesome city in the Franconia region of Bavaria. It's part of the Romanic Road that goes through southern Germany. This medieval city dates back to the 900s, and it remains as a walled city. We walked around and went into some shops. Mom and I also went up to the top of the Roedertor Tower, which was 200 feet above the city. The view was spectacular. We could even see an old Roman bridge on the edge of the city. We stayed in the city for awhile, but we left around the time the sun was setting. We went back to the Martins and had dinner. 

    Sunday was less action packed, but still quite enjoyable. Gail and Dick showed us around their little village and the surrounding areas. We ate at a restaurant called Storchennest, or The Storks Nest, which has an actual stork's nest on the top of the restaurant. This is a sign of good luck here. We then walked around Ansbach and finally got to see Eddie, Gail and Dick's son. We got some ice cream and walked around the Orangerie and a garden. We finally sat down and had a drink at a local cafe. We left the cafe and headed back to the train station. Our train left to come back to Mainz around 5:15pm. On the first train, we befriended two young Mormon men who were on their Mission in Germany. We talked to them for awhile. They were very interested in my choice to study languages and also my birth place. Aside from talking to them, the ride back was pretty boring. We got back to Mainz around 9:15pm and we both went home from the Hbf.

    Monday was my fifth day of the intensive course and the second to last day with my mom. We had breakfast in the morning and then I went to class. After class, I brought Mom to campus and also showed her my dorm. For dinner, Joe came over to Mainz and took us to a restaurant he liked. It was quite enjoyable. After dinner, I hung out with Mom in the hotel for a bit. Around 10pm I left to meet up with the British kids. We enjoyed a drink and talked for a few hours.

    Yesterday was Mom's last day here. As usual, we had breakfast together and then I left for class. I went back to the hotel after class, and we left to go find the Roman ruins in Mainz. We went to the museum that my mom thought contained the Roman ruins, but instead had old Roman boats. The man behind the desk showed us where we needed to go, and then we jumped on a bus to get there. Well, we ended up getting on the wrong bus. We hopped off at the next stop and go on what we thought was the correct bus, but ended up going the wrong direction. We ended up getting on another 2 or 3 incorrect buses, either going the wrong direction or the wrong bus number. Eventually, we gave up. The Roman ruins museum was to close at 6pm. We got to see much more of the city, just not in the way we expected. We didn't get back to the Mainz city center until around 6:30pm, and we were hungry. We walked through Kaufhaus, a department store, and then found the restaurant where we wanted to eat. After dinner, we had a drink in the hotel and hung out for a couple hours until Mom wanted to go to bed. Her flight left at 10:15 this morning. We had an awesome week together. Although I spent a lot of time in class, she walked around and was able to explore Mainz on her own. 

     I also got my debit card and health insurance yesterday! Hopefully my DAAD money will transfer soon and I will be able to buy as many groceries as I want. I should also get my internet problem solved tonight, so I will be able to post pictures from this week in the next few days. 

    Today was the last day of my intensive course! We took our test and it lasted an hour. This course was not at all what I expected. I thought we would be spending most of our time working on grammar. Instead, we did listening activities, reading comprehension, some dictation, and a lot of group work. I discovered how difficult it can be to communicate in a language that is the third language for most of us. I don't think I learned much in the course, so I'm hoping the semester language course will be more beneficial for me.

     Keep posted for some pictures! 

There Are Grumpy People Everywhere

     What a week! My mom has been here since the 9th, so I've been busy hanging out and traveling with her. I also still don't have internet in my room, so this past week my internet access was limited to when I was on campus or at the hotel with my mom. She left to go back this morning, but we had quite the busy week.

     On Tuesday night (April 8th), I had an interesting experience. I was out with Kalle and we were watching the end of a big soccer match through the window of a bar. We were just up the street from the Hbf. As we were watching the game, an older woman at the payphone started screaming in the phone. She was clearly intoxicated, as well as very angry. I couldn't really understand any of it, so Kalle informed me that she was saying, "You fucking DDR cunts, you fucking left me there!" Excuse the vulgarity, but that's exactly what she was yelling. She just kept going on and on about it. Once she hung up the phone, she walked past us and a few others and kept screaming. Kalle thought it was pretty funny, I was mostly just shocked. If you don't know what the DDR is, it's the "Deutsche Demokratische Republik," or what we anglophones would have called the GDR (German Democratic Republic) when Germany was split. The DDR is also known as East Germany. History in action, folks.

     My mom arrived Wednesday morning. She arrived at the hotel around 10am, and I went over to see her before class. After class was over, I went back to the hotel. We had a nice dinner at a cute local place. I had to leave her early because I had to go to the internet genies in my basement to try and finally get internet. I made it back to my dorm by 8, and the other international kids were already waiting. We enjoyed chatting while we anticipated being reconnected to the world again.  They opened their doors at 8:30, and the process began. When it was finally my turn, I signed the appropriate papers and had to buy an Ethernet cable. They were having trouble getting my computer to do what they wanted to do, so they handed me over to the guy who apparently knew everything about computers. Long story short, my computer is really messed up (my Dad has renamed my laptop the "Craptop"). Apparently, there is an error occurring on my computer every single second that it is on, even if I am doing nothing. When we were looking at it, 21,000 errors had occurred. Apparently this is also related to my battery. I was under the impression that the battery on my computer wasn't working well because my laptop is old. My computer uses so much battery to do nothing, so the battery doesn't last long. Though this seems like it is not related to my internet problem, just wait. I have a security system on my computer and therefore use that firewall. They need to disable the firewall of the security system so that I can use their firewall. However, my computer won't allow them to open the program. In order to disable the firewall on my computer, they have to re-install my computer. To do that, I need an external hard drive to save all my data. Obviously, an external hard drive was not on my packing list. If I were to go and buy one at a German appliance store, it may not work once I get back to the States. The computer guy advised me to go buy one on base. I'm supposed to do that tonight with Joe. I'll go back to the internet genies tonight and see if they can get my computer working. I never knew it would be so complicated to get internet in this day and age!

    On Thursday, I met my mom at the hotel in the morning again. We had breakfast and then I went to class. After class we took the bus over to Wiesbaden where we met up with Joe. He showed us around some of the city and then we went to dinner. Once we got back to the hotel, we hung out for a little until I left to meet some friends at a bar.

     Friday is when our weekend adventure began. We took the train over to Frankfurt where we were to begin our Rhein River tour. In a group of about 20, there were several nationalities represented. There were several Americans, Canadians, Brazilians, and Iraqis. We first drove out to Rüdesheim. We took a lift down from the top of a mountain to the Rhine. The bus then came and picked us up and took us to Assmannshausen, where we had lunch at a local place. After lunch, we got on a boat to do a tour of the castles along the Rhine. We must have seen 15 different castles rich in history with some dating back to the 900s. At one point, Mom said, "That's not a very big castle." Some of the people in our group were not very interested in the history, and instead chose to talk loudly the entire time we were on the boat. Mom and I weren't happy about this, as we were trying to listen to the history. I guess I just don't understand why you would pay to go on a tour and then pay it no attention. Despite this, we enjoyed the sights. We were on the boat for about an hour and a half and ended somewhere up around Saint Goar. After the boat tour, we went to a wine tasting at the same place we had lunch. We tried four different kinds of wine, my favorite being the Eiswein, a specialty of Germany. Once this ended, they put us back on the bus and we headed back to Frankfurt. We ended up getting off the bus at the Frankfurt airport, where we jumped on a train back to Mainz. For dinner, we tried to find a local place that the hotel had recommended. It was getting late and we couldn't find the restaurant, so we opted to just try a Bratwurst place. It ended up being quite gross. After dinner we went back to the hotel and then I went home. We went to bed early, as the rest of our weekend adventure was to begin on Saturday.

     I'm still not yet used to people speaking to me in German. If someone randomly speaks to me, like a waiter or someone on the bus, I'm still expecting it to be in English. Due to this, I always have to ask them to repeat them selves. I'm hoping this will change soon.

"You're a machine on that thing!"

     This post comes at the request of my dad, who told me he was waiting for me to post again. 

     My intensive course began yesterday. I tested into level B2.1, which now feels inaccurate. The levels are from the Goethe-Institut, something we don't use in the States. Many of my friends use those levels at their university, or had been tested using those levels before, so they had an idea of what they may test into. I had absolutely no idea what level I would test into, but I was assuming I would be in a higher one. After sitting through two days of the intensive course, I'm come to the conclusion that, 1) I'm not a B2.1, I'm higher, or 2) My professor really is just that boring and slow. The professor is a small, goofy woman. She takes about 15 minutes to explain something that should take 2 minutes, and has a way of repeating herself. Today I actually fell asleep during class. Yesterday, she kept us 25 minutes late, and today 8 minutes late. The class was supposed to be 3.5 hours yesterday and today and will be 4.5 hours tomorrow and Thursday. Next week the times are a little different as well. Luckily, Rosie is in my class. There are probably about 25 students in it, and Rosie and I are the only native English speakers. There are kids from Taiwan, South Korea, Bolivia, Poland, and so on. After this weekend, I really began to notice the German accents of different nationalities. It's fairly easy to pick out a native Italian or Polish speaker now. The next five class days are going to be just as brutal as the first two. Somehow we manage to accomplish almost nothing in 3.5 hours. Alas, I digress.

     After my intensive course yesterday, I ate a very late lunch in the Mensa and then headed home. I met Clare and Marcella at 7:30pm and we went searching for a bar to get a drink. After walking around aimlessly for awhile, we finally decided on a German chain restaurant that was having happy hour. We sat there until they closed at 10.

      I went to the bank this morning to open my bank account. When the bank man introduced himself, he asked if I wanted to speak English or German. I said German. I had to bring my passport and the piece of paper from the Bürgeramt. My bank account was free to open because I am a student. At one point when he was explaining something to me, he reverted to English. He went back to German because he said that my German was "very good." When he saw the look of hesitation on my face he said, "It really is." I'm having trouble believing him at this point, but it's nice that a random German man thinks my German is good. I understood most of what he told me which only makes sense, as bank vocabulary is not something I would use on a daily basis. I'll have my German debit card in one week, as well as my online banking information. I was also finally able to exchange my remaining USD! I'm really excited that my bank account is set up now. I'll finally be able to get my scholarship money from DAAD and therefore be able to go buy real groceries!! I've been living in almost constant hunger since I arrived. Sometimes I only get to eat two meals a day. 

    After the bank, I had to take something to be faxed. Apparently the bank did not have a fax machine, so I had to go to an Internet Cafe up the street.  Then I finally headed to campus. There was an info sessions for students studying Germanistik at 11, and that was helpful. They essentially gave us a list of classes that we could take. However, the man who gave the presentation spoke incredibly fast. He kept saying that we were international students, yet he spoke like we were Germans. He spoke fast and without many pauses. It was hard to understand him. We had to rush to get to class at 12, and then the torture began. Now I'm sitting in the Philosophicum on campus using the Internet. I believe that I will finally have internet in my room tomorrow evening. I have to go to the internet genies in the basement between 6 and 8 and they will set it up on my computer. I'm excited to finally be reconnected to the world when I'm in my room. I've been avoiding spending much time there, since I really have absolutely nothing to do there. 

    My mom also arrives tomorrow! I won't be able to pick her up from the airport, so she'll have to take the train to her hotel. Unfortunately, I believe she will have to spend a lot of time by herself. I have class five of the days she'll be here. However, I'll be interested to see what she discovers when she explores Mainz herself. She's always been excellent with directions, and that skill will undoubtedly come in handy here. 

Reflections

     Since I'm American, other students like to ask me a lot of questions about the USA and what it's like there. They'll tell me all of their misconceptions about the States and ask me what it's actually like. One girl from South Korea said, "Everyone lives in mansions in America." Sometimes I'm just completely baffled by the opinions they have about us. Several students have expressed surprise when I tell them that I'm American AND that I speak German and French. They always tell me about how they think all Americans are uninterested in learning languages and traveling. Though most Americans are relatively uninterested in mastering another language, it's sad that this is how the world views us: uncultured. I'm trying to do my best to alter their view on Americans, and I hope it's working. Sometimes, they ask me about things that they have no experience with, like tornadoes. Something so normal to me is so exotic to them. 

    It's also been interesting talking to the students from England. At one point, I opened my wallet and they saw my USD. They thought the USD were the coolest things and said that they looked like "real" money, yet also monopoly money. It's fascinating how different the English language is just between England and the USA. There have been many, many moments when we've misunderstood each other because of differences in vocabulary and phrases. For instance, I was talking about how I needed to do laundry because all my pants were dirty. Apparently, "pants" is their word for "underwear," as they would call pants "trousers." Languages will forever fascinate me. 

     Being around all the international students is a bit discouraging most of the time. Everyone that doesn't speak English as their mother tongue began learning English around the age of ten, or sometimes much earlier. They also speak German (obviously) and sometimes a fourth language. Their English is always very good, as well as their German. Being around them has made me realize exactly how my German is lacking. I've also become a little angry towards the education system in the US. I did not even have a chance to start learning a language until I was 14, which is very late in your developmental years and makes it harder to acquire languages, much less two like I chose to do. This experience has only solidified my desire for my future children to start learning a language in Kindergarten. It has been proven that languages increase intelligence, and the earlier you start, the better.

    Mainz is a large city, and most people get around by public transport. Coming from Mississippi, public transport is almost non-existent. Yes, we do have buses on campus at MSU, but they are very simple and easy to navigate. Here, everything is much more complicated. There are buses, trams, and trains. I think it will take me awhile to really learn how to navigate them. Now that I have my semester ticket, I can use all of the public transport for free. Most of the time, they don't even check for a ticket, especially during busy hours. Although it's only a 30 minute walk to campus from my dorm, I don't think I'll be wanting to walk that every day twice a day, especially considering that campus is quite large and that I'll also be walking around campus. Once it gets in the middle of the summer it'll be too hot to walk everywhere. I've considered buying a bike, but I'm a little frightened of the roads here. Their traffic rules are different and I don't know them all. There are also some laws about what equipment you need to ride your bike on the roads, and I don't have the money for that right now. 

     I went to the bank this morning to try and open a bank account, but there was no one available at that moment to help me. I made an appointment to go back tomorrow. I did all this in German, too!! I also went to the book store and bought a notebook and cover for my student ticket (it's simply a paper card and therefore is easy to destroy). I did all of this in German as well! At this point, I've got to get past my fear of not understanding and making a fool of myself so that I can really improve. 

    And finally, some pictures. 

There are quite a bit of vineyards here. I've seen many, many fields of grapes already.

Our youth hostel

Nahe River

Looking over Bad Münster