Pictures from Thanksgiving/Weihnachtsmarkt

Hey everyone, been a while, eh?

There have been some pretty interesting events these last few days, though I suppose that's no excuse to neglect my blog. In fact, one might argue that it would be a reason to write something. Regardless, I'm writing now, and that's what counts, right?

Let's see, where to begin... Well, for starters, I'm single again. Not a real pleasant subject, so I'll forego talking about that here, heh. Last thursday was Thanksgiving. I have to admit, it was a really strange day. Obviously being an American holiday, Germany didn't celebrate anything. In fact, not only did I not have school off, but I had to give one of the biggest (and hardest) presentations of my life. So that was fun.

In all honesty, my presentation went just fine. I was really nervous- I was presenting to a class of 37 or 38 people, most of whom are native German speakers. What was I presenting about, you ask? Well, I was presenting on the European Union's foreign policy strategy in regards to Russia at the turn of the last century. You know, something Americans learn loads about in school.

I'm really thankful that my linguistics professor let me present during his office hours- he corrected things so it flowed better, and it was a little clearer/specific in German. I did just fine, despite my nerves. Thankfully, my last class of the day was canceled, so it gave me more time to enjoy Thanksgiving! Oddly enough, I spent most of the rest of that afternoon fighting with Airlines, in order to get a seat on a flight. Looks like I'm coming home for Christmas a week early! I think that'll make my parent's a little happier.

Coming at home at Christmas is becoming pretty strange to think about, to be honest. I'm really starting to become acclimated here now, and getting used to all the "german" things that were foreign 3 months ago when I arrived here. It's going to be reverse culture-shock.

But enough about the future. The point of this blog was, afterall, to talk about my past. Thanksgiving dinner was... amazing, to be honest. There was an "AYF" dinner, a dinner for all the kids in our program. Being silly, a group of kids who live in my dorm decided to have our own dinner. Thanksgiving also coincided with Emily's twenty-first birthday, so we had the dinner at her WG (A WG is basically a dorm/apartment hybrid if you're confused). It was amazing. We ate around 8:30. I was given the honor of carving the turkeys. Yes, we had more than one turkey. Well, just two, actually, but that's because they don't have massive 20-some pound monster turkeys in Germany. We had stuffing, mashed potatoes, squash, cranberry sauce, corn, and of course home made pies. But we also added a nice German flair to our dinner by drinking Glühwein. How festive!

Then, to make the night incredibly cliché and wonderful, it started snowing right after we finished dinner and were preparing to eat dessert. It was the first snow of the year... and it was actually quite breath taking, the way everything was covered with a nice layer of snow within a half hour. After some more Glühwein, we decided to celebrate the snow by having a lovely snowball fight.

Altogether, there were 14 of us at dinner. There were students from all over America- Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan. Then there were Germans, from all over Germany. There was even an exchange student from China who ate with us, and another student from India. For all the kids, besides the Americans, it was their first Thanksgiving. It was a Thanksgiving I'll never forget. Maybe I'll even upload a picture of me carving the Turkey soon!

The rest of the weekend was pretty relaxing. I had a pretty stressful couple of weeks, and really enjoyed the chance to just... have nothing to do for the first time since the beginning of September. Saturday was interesting, as well. A group of us went to "StuSie Bar," the bar run by students in our dorm complex. Yes, in Germany dorms have bars. It's a really cool place to meet people from all over the world, actually. We didn't stay there for too long, from about 9 until 10. We then decided, in honor of Thanksgiving weekend, we would play some football. So, about an hour of football later, we were cold, soaked, and incredibly happy. You'd be surprised how quickly the German and the Chinese students picked up the game!

Yesterday was pretty uneventful. I slept in, did homework, and watched a movie (or I suppose I should say attempted to watch a movie) over at Emily and Alex's WG. Their German roommates all gathered in the kitchen as we were eating dinner, and we talked for about an hour, the whole lot of us. Ramona, one of their German roommates, had been home that weekend, and brought an advent wreath back with her. Hard to believe that yesterday was the first day of advent! Crazy.

So here I am today, laying in bed, considering actually sleeping as opposed to sitting up and writing. Today was alright- long, as mondays usually are. In less than three weeks I can sit in my own bed at home and update this blog! There's some food for thought. I have to admit, it's weird looking at Facebook and seeing everyone's lives going on. It'll be nice to catch up with people in a few weeks.

Sorry for not updating in a while!

I guess now that school has started, I've been pretty neglectful of writing in my blog. I should do this more often, since I always have so much going on- it's nice to retain the details of every day, since they're beginning to slide by fairly quickly.

I gave a presentation today, in my German History class. It went fairly well, so I'm pleased. It's still nerve racking though, to stand in front of the class and have to give a lecture for a half hour. Granted, I did work with someone else, so it wasn't like I talked straight for thirty minutes. Despite the occasional presentation, classes are going well. Tomorrow is thursday, however, which means my busy day, though I'm lucky to report that linguistics is canceled due to my professor being sick. I'll take it, it'll be nice to have a break!

I can't believe it's already November... I've been here officially over two months now, and I'm approaching the magical number that falls towards the end of November, marking one month until I return for christmas.

But I shouldn't get too ahead of myself. I'm actually kind of torn about coming home, in many ways. I'm really starting to feel at home here, things are starting to click... I can see why people would say that studying abroad for only one semester would be painfully short... Just when things are going good and you're making friends, you'd be thrust back home!

I have to say, I'm really enjoying Freiburg. I need to get out and explore the city more often, however. There are so many little things here to discover and enjoy, it's going to take me the whole rest of the year to learn Freiburg's many secrets! Last week, I met with my tandem partner, Charlotte, (have I talked about her at all yet?) and we hiked up to Schloßberg, a giant tower on top of the "mountain" in the middle of Freiburg. The tower is a giant metal contraption that is ominously high, and shakes rather unsteadily in the wind. Alright, so I have an ever so slight fear of heights. You would too, though, if you had to climb up over a hundred steps in a shaking metal tower that looms above the surrounding tree tops! Am I glad I did this, though? I'll let my breath taking photos do the talking for me:

As you can see, my afternoon endeavor was completely worth it! I'm thankful to have signed up for the "Tandem" program, where a german student here teams up with me, allowing us both to practice our language skills. Charlotte is an english major at Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, and she's in her third semester. She's helping get to know the city better and better in our weekly meetings. It's nice to have someone to show me the ropes.

I have to admit, seeing the Black Forest every day is something I might never get used to. Even if it's a long week, full of presentations, homework, stress, what have you... I get to stare fixedly at the Schwarzwald every day as I take the Straßenbahn (street car) into town. I can't wait for a little snow to fall so I can go hiking through the Black Forest again- it was absolutely breath taking last weekend.

Everything is going well for me. I'm beginning to settle in here. Time is passing more rapidly than I'd like, however. I'm excited for Christmas and all that, don't get me wrong. But this is an amazing time in my life, and I am not looking forward to this year ending next August. That's way too far off to contemplate, though! It's not even time yet for the Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market). I'm really looking forward to advent- because that marks the beginning of the Christmas market season. Nothing like some warm Glühwein (spiced wine) and ginger bread cookies, while shopping for Christmas presents!

Before we all get there though, we have to get through Thanksgiving. Which, of course being an American holiday, they don't celebrate in Germany. Yup, that's right, I'm expected to go to classes. And what's more, I might even have to give a presentation that day. So as all of you are gathered around your turkeys, eating your mashed potatoes, and flipping between football and cliché holiday movies, remember me, poor David in Germany, hard at work. It won't be all bad, however; one of the girls from StuSie, my dorm complex, is celebrating her 21st birthday on Thanksgiving, so we're going to put together a meal at her apartment. It'll be a good day, regardless! Plus, not having class on thursdays, I can sleep in, just like everyone in America. Oh wait, everyone in America will probably be up before me, despite the six hour time change, waking up early to buy cheap stuff from Walmart. Ah, good ol' America.

"Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence."

-Hal Borland

Quite the writing drought I've been experiencing! Time to remedy that now.

Today marked my second week at university classes. My classes, however, are not all at Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg. I have two classes that are through the Academic Year in Freiburg program itself, namely a German history course and a language course that has been focusing on teaching us the finer points of German, particularly in the area of improving our competence in our classes. The class aims to help write our semester paper, or "Housearbeit" as they are called in German.

Life is going well in Freiburg. The one thing that bugs me sometimes is just how fast the time seems to slip away from me. Now, for those of you who are excited to see me again at Christmas, please don't take this the wrong way. I suppose the best way to phrase how I'm feeling is, I'm realizing more and more that my days in Freiburg are very numbered. There are still a lot of days left, certainly, but you can't use that as an excuse to procrastinate experiencing Germany. If I kept saying "I'll get to that part of town next week," I may never get there. Being proactive is a must. On the other hand, I am here to do homework and go to class too- so you have to balance your time on living and working. It hasn't been too hard before, but now with classes starting up, I'm noticing just how busy everyone is becoming, myself included.

Regardless though, this time of year has been absolutely infatuating in Freiburg. The air smells so heavily of autumn, it's enough to make you want to rake a pile of leaves for the sheer thrill of jumping in them, pretending to be eight years old again. Unfortunately I have neither a yard or a rake, so this is most certainly out of the question. But the way the sky looks, with an almost constant overcast look, the way the cold air feels on your warm skin as you walk out the door... it makes me glad that I chose to live in a country that experiences four seasons. I'll tell you what, the Black Forest changing color is something I am glad I had the opportunity to witness. I don't think I'll ever tire of the forest sitting off in the not-so-distant background of the city, looming peacefully.

But enough adjectives! Now that I've infuriated and/or made several people jealous, I'll switch topics. Life is going good here in Freiburg, outside of classes. I'm really glad to have met all the american students that I have, and I'm really glad to have met a lot of the Germans that they live with. The stereotype is that Germans are very cold, distant people. One trip on the Straßenbahn (street tram) into town might convince you that the stereotype has merit. A lot of the student's I've met, however, seem to dispel this stereotype very quickly. Many of the German students I've met seem to enjoy talking to me, seem to want to get to know me, have a genuine interest in talking to me- but always in German! They insist that all of the Americans, when we are together, we need to talk more German. I'm bad about doing this sometimes- I mean, in my mind, we're all fluent in English, so it's just much simpilar to communicate that way. But... I am here to improve my German. I want to get back in mid-August and be completely confused, overwhelmed even, by how much english I'm hearing. That's the feeling that I first got here in Germany, overwhelmed. I mean, I obviously knew that everyone would be speaking German when I got here, but it's as if subconsciously my brain was working harder than it was used to just to listen to simple conversations. Things like going to the store were sometimes a little more stressful than they probably should have been. Going the bank is never fun- technical monetary terms in German such as "international routing number" are still a bit foreign to me. But through it all, every nerve-racking experience, every rough encounter at a restaurant, ever miscommunication on the street teaches me something. I don't like making mistakes, and I never have, but when learning a foreign language, they're going to occur. They're going to occur a lot, I've found out, and you will be corrected by some people. My big thing is, I sometimes use words that I think I understand the concept of, but actually misuse it for the situation. Oh well, time will remedy this, I just have to keep speaking, keep practicing, and keep listening.

In the same vein, classes are going to be a learning experience too. I'm hopefully going to write another blog update on Thursday, the day that I have the majority of my classes. Fridays are going to be a nice day to get some rest! But I usually meet with my "tandem partner," a girl by the name of Charlotte, who was assigned to me by the University. We met the weekend of the sixteenth, and had a lovely conversation. She practiced her english, and I think I was talking a little to fast. Her english was really quite good though. It amazes me just how good some of the Germans can speak english! Makes me jealous, actually. America has a lot to learn in terms of language education. America has a lot to learn in education as a whole, I believe. I have been meeting so many people here that are studying to become teachers, and they're all very excited by it. It's seen as a very noble profession, working for the State to shape young minds. My internship this past summer in Stuttgart really engrained that into me. The students seemed to respect the teachers a lot more than I remember students doing in America. Parents would actually take turn helping at the cafeteria, so as to keep prices of food down for all the children. 1,80€ got you a full meal at their cafeteria! My professors are also very well dressed, something I have not always witnessed in american professors. To me, it all feels so much more professional, like there is an understanding that the learning that is going on here holds a place of importance in the lives of the students. There are no "Freiburg University" sports teams to talk about- the newspapers only cover matters of politics and world/local events.

Alas, my rant must come to an end, however. I cannot say for sure yet how I find the German University system; I have only just had one week of classes! But I must observe that although German and American culture are similar in a lot of degrees, the culture of education (particularly higher education) seems to differ.

Well, I'm doing well, feeling good, and enjoying my time here immensely, though that does not mean I miss everyone in America. Though I miss you all, I wake up everyday to find myself remembering that I awake in a foreign land, full of opportunities, education, and even that elusive act some call fun. And don't worry, I'll get back into the habit of writing more frequently! (At the very least, it'll give some of you something to do at work if you get bored...)

"Education is a social process. Education is growth. Education is, not a preparation for life; education is life itself."

-John Dewey

Vacation is soaring by. I only have a few more days left until I start classes at the University- the semester officially begins on the 18th, which is Monday. Five more days of trying to get my life in Germany completely figured out before classes and homework and studying resume. Feels almost strange, but at the same time a little exciting too.

Today has been a busy day. I've been working on applying for an internship- it starts next spring, and runs from April to the end of June, but the deadline for applicants interested is quickly approaching. I don't want to miss the deadline, so I'm trying get all my duck's in a row. It's not easy from Germany, I'm discovering, but I'm managing just fine. I also applied for the "Tandem Program," which is where I'll be assigned a tandem parter. This partner (could be male or female) will be fluent in German, and I, being fairly good at English myself, will be the english speaking party. I got my tandem parter assignment today! I'm rather excited- though I have yet to respond to her email and tell her when we should meet. Oh well, I guess I needed something to do after this blog update!

I need to spend this last weekend before classes adventuring more around Freiburg. It's all to easy sitting at home and finding things to do in StuSie during the day... For those of you who still aren't sure what StuSie is (or means, rather), it is simply the abbreviation for Studenten Siedlung, which simply is the group of dorm buildings that I live in. For a Western equivalent, it would be something like "Valley I," or in terms of an equivalent for MSU, it'd be like saying Brody Complex. They're pretty hard to compare, but that's the best I can really come up with. Regardless, I love where I live. There is a nice little "community" building not too far away that has music practicing rooms (I need to ask my Hausmeister if I can get a key, so I can start practicing the piano again), pool tables in the basement, and other things on the weekend (usually a bar of sorts). The lake is gorgeous. Did I tell you guys that I live by a lake? If I haven't yet, sorry I forgot. It's really nice, though people usually tell me not to go swimming. Not that their comments have stopped us silly Americans, of course (though I'm an exception).

Well, I'm about to head over to my friend's for a while. More and more Germans are arriving by the day, as their vacation is almost over. My floor is getting to be really quite busy- which I confess is nice. My first few weeks here it was an absolute ghost town.

Before I head out, though, I'd like to take a moment to wish my Aunt Char a speedy recovery. It's hard being in Germany and getting news from my family a little later than everyone else, but I'm sure they know I'm thinking of them. And if they didn't, they do now.

Ciao!