Culture Shock?

Guten Tag! Just as a warning, this post is quite long (and a little late)! It’s weird to think that I’ve already been here for two weeks. Right now I’m relaxing in my room with an amazing breeze blowing through my window. The weather here is great! These past two weeks have been busy but so much fun. I’m staying in an old monastery (built in 1253, I think) in a little town called Hedersleben in eastern Germany.

Here are some parts of the monastery:

 I’m here with 50 other (almost all American, besides my roommate) students, getting used to German life. My roommate is from Taiwan, so it’s really cool to have the opportunity to learn about her country and culture as well.

To be honest, I don’t really know what I expected Germany to be like, but it wasn’t as different as I thought it would be. Besides the distinctive architecture (I’ve already seen a castle and too many old churches to count, and the houses here are so cute!) and the fact that everyone’s speaking a different language, I could still be in the U.S. So besides the helpless feeling I have when someone speaks to me in German, I’m pretty comfortable here, and I think the culture shock aspect of this program was a little played-up. But, I have now experienced jet lag, and I can say that it’s as bad as it’s made out to be. I was barely coherent on the bus from the airport to Hedersleben and I think my bus-mates got some goofy pictures of me with my eyes half closed. But thankfully, I got over that fairly quickly.

I’ve really enjoyed the German food so far, to the point where I think I’m going to have to be a lot more careful with what I eat! Curse you, Nutella and Brötchen. We eat a LOT of potatoes and meat, along with the best bread and pastries I have ever had (besides yours, of course, Mom!). There’s also coffee/tea/cake time every afternoon, and I think I’ve exceeded the amount of cake any person should eat in two weeks. Oops!

I have 6 hours of German classes a day, and it can get kind of boring. I’m learning a lot, though, and I’m glad I’m able to be at this language camp to at least get the basics of German down. We are also required to watch the news every night, and I’m proud to say I’m starting to understand more and more! There is an hour of free time every day and a popular thing to do is go to the supermarket. I’m not sure why. But it’s a good excuse to get out and walk through Hedersleben.

The streets here are very picturesque, narrow and cobblestoned with very German-looking houses lining both sides. While walking, we’ll often see little children or sometimes elderly people leaning out the window, looking at us, and sometimes they say hello. All in all, Hedersleben is a very cute town. I'll take pictures this week and upload them soon!

Last weekend, all the students took a trip to Leipzig. It was definitely the highlight of the past two weeks. We all went as a group to see an old church where Johann Sebastian Bach played and composed some of his music. We also got to visit a museum about the Soviet occupation of East Germany. That wasn’t something I have spent much time learning about, so it was interesting to hear about what life in the DDR was like. We had some free time, so the students all split up into groups to explore the city. I had a great time at H&M, which I’m sure I’ll be visiting quite a lot in the future.

 I was also introduced to a popular Turkish dish(?) called Döner. It’s basically warm, buttery pita stuffed with MEAT MEAT MEAT. There’s also some lettuce and dressing in there, but the meat is the main part. They have a huge chunk of lamb meat rotating and they just shave off slices. It’s kind of like a gyro, I guess. Whatever it is, it’s delicious! I'll probably eat some more in the future, and I'll take a picture next time.

I visited Quedlinburg (a larger town close to Hedersleben) this past Thursday with my beginner German class and again on Saturday with a group of friends. It’s pretty stereotypically German, with cobblestone streets, some very old houses, a castle, multiple timeworn churches, and great food. We saw treasure at the Stiftskirche St. Servatti (a sort of church/castle frequented by Ottonian emperors that dates back to the 900s), played Count the Crucifix at the Marktkirche St. Benedikti (we got lost around 27), bought delicious warm waffles with fresh raspberries, and had possibly the best ice cream ever. I also visited a cute little bookshop in Hölle Strasse (Hell Street). There was a box of books, all from the 1920’s and 30’s for only a Euro each. I picked up 4 with interesting covers and I think I’m going to make something out of them…stay tuned to find out what! 

Quedlinburg:

Last night, we had a talent show. There are some very talented people in this group of teenagers. There was a girl who sang/played her own song on the ukulele, a group of girls rapping about our time in Hedersleben, and a guy who recited a Japanese poem, along with lots of other acts. My class and I performed “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes” in a variety of languages. We sang in English and German together, and then each of us sang it in a different language we were familiar with. There was Japanese, Finnish, Turkish, Spanish, French, American Sign Language, Chinese, and I sang in Russian. It was a lot of fun.

I haven’t really felt homesick yet, but I want to bring everyone here so that they can see the awesome things I’m seeing! Seriously, if any of you ever get the chance to travel in Europe, I would strongly suggest visiting Germany.
One more thing: I really don't like mineral water.
Also, I bought pink pants. Woo!

Now I'm off to class, wish me luck while I'm struggling to conjugate verbs!

Tschüs!

-Scout

First post!

Guten Tag! Alright. So the time has finally come for me to start this blog. It still hasn't hit me that I'm actually leaving!
In case you don't know why I've made this blog, here's a little background info:
I was selected to be a part of the Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange program (you can find out more about that scholarship here). Basically, I'll be spending the next 10 months in Germany, learning the language and becoming a part of my German community. I'll be living with a host family and going to a high school (called a Gymnasium).
I leave today from Washington, DC, and I'll arrive in Frankfurt tomorrow (there's wacky time zone difference stuff involved). Packing was no easy task; I had to pack and re-pack and rearrange all of my clothes, shoes, and other items that I'm bringing (including a massive jar of peanut butter) at least 5 times. Eventually, though, I was able to fit everything that needed to be fitted AND stay under the weight limit! I gave myself a pat on the back.
I'm extremely excited to leave the U.S. for the first time, only a little nervous. I've got my Euros all ready in my wallet and my scarves are packed; what more do I need?
I don't know German yet-and this could be a bit of a problem. I'm not entirely without hope, however, because the first month I and all the other scholarship recipients are in Germany, we get to go to a language camp. Also, I have my trusty book, The Complete Idiot's Guide To Learning German, which I'm sure I will be relying on heavily.
There is one negative aspect of language camp, though; I won't have much Internet access. I may be able to post once or twice over the next month, but I wouldn't get my hopes too high if I were you. :)
So, this is me signing on to my blog, and, just as quickly, signing off for a month.
Auf Wiedersehen!
-Scout
P.S. my next posts will hopefully have pictures!