Oh look! The Mr. Bean car!!!
Some things I have noticed:
-this city constantly smells of sewage whenever near a storm drain or man hole...
-I eat a lot... I mentioned before how cheap meals are here. I have already spent 20 Euro in one week from all the food I consumed at the University in the Mensa (cafeteria). I will need to fence more in order to keep this up!
-on TV and in stories witch characters typically have red hair
-people don't talk on their cellphones in transit --> cuz its annoying
-people don't say thank you very often, or apologize when bumping into people (I know that's a canadian thing)
-I found the mystery cheese I love!! It is called "Frisch Käse mit Meerrettich". Oma and Opa, do we have that at home at Euro-markets?
Random photo of Erika climbing the tree in our courtyard beer garden area. Do you see the kegs?:
Random photo of Erika climbing the tree in our courtyard beer garden area. Do you see the kegs?:
1) Financial Aid said, "No student loans for you!" --> this drove me into a panicked crying frenzy since I had confirmed everything was good to go with Go Global and Financial Aid before I even left. I also made it clear, before I left, that I would not be able to participate in the program without them. So I blubbered away, and made many a late night phone call... and they say, as of 2 days ago, that everything should be taken care of... that the money has been transferred and I can expect it in a day or two... the thing is that it still hasn't arrived, and there is presently $154.00 in my bank account... I hope this fiasco ends soon! I want to get more foooood.
2) May 5th: I met up with Aryane! She is one of the students from Canada who participated in the Canadian Summer School in Germany (CSSG) Program that I had done in 2009.
In Berlin there is an area called the Museum Island where all the museums were shut down and demolished. Just kidding. That's where all the museums are located. On that island-area, I saw the area where the Nazis had burnt the books (there is a little reminder of it infront of another University --> I will go back on a different day and get a photo to show you).
We went to the "Fashioning Fashion" exhibit at the German Historical Museum, discussing clothing from 1750 - 1915, mainly in Europe.
Here is a link: http://www.dhm.de/ausstellungen/fashioning-fashion/en/
It was lovely to spend time with her. She is so smart! She is from Quebec, so she speaks French, German, and English. So many languages! After the museum she invited me to have dinner with her and her boyfriend Alex. We went for "asian food" which is pretty much the category of that every type of asian food fits under. There is no japanese, thai, mongolian, etc. It's all asian. Anyway, it was pretty rainy that day, but I wanted to sit outside and people watch. You're probably not thinking "but how do you eat outside when it is all cold and wet?", but I will pretend you did so I can say, "don't worry! It was covered and every little restaurant seems to provide blankets for their guests. Yes, blankets. I wore 3 of them as we ate away. After we went back to their place for some good ol' rye and ginger. This is how I learned that when you buy (hard) alcohol at the grocery story, you have to call a person over, they come and take it to a till and you pay for it at that till. You aren't supposed to carry it around the store. I guess this is due to theft problems...
Aryane and Alex:
Alex's apartment view:
Where the book burning took place:
3) May 6th: On this day I went with some of the girls from the program (Negar, Fiona, and Erika) for a walk down Müller Straße (near our apartments). We ran into a large portion of the wall! We also saw a graveyard. I was feeling pretty uncomfortable at the graveyard since it was starting to get dark so we left. I don't know why I dislike graveyards so much. The dates on the graves were quite old, but anyway it was along the border of where the wall had gone. Here are some photos:
A nook (graveyard wall on the left, the building below's wall on the right, they met up at a weird angle):
An abandoned building on the... East side?
One side of the wall I saw (the wall has been taken down in most parts, so it was weird to see it):
Me at the other side of the wall:
Tiny church-thing in the graveyard:
This is one of the graves... I really liked the swans because they reminded me of the Swan Lake cartoon that Dad would play for us kids when we were little. It specifically reminds me of the scene where Odette sees Prince Seigfried kiss the Odette imposter (Odiel), she turns into a swan and flys away with Rothbart.
The Canal near my home:
4) May 7th: On this day I went with Fiona to the Brandenburg Tor (Gate), and then to the Jewish Memorial.
The Brandenburg Tor:
The horses:
The Bundestag: (the class dom in the background. I will go to it on a different day)
The gate was packed with tourists, so I much preferred the memorial. It consists of many pillars of varying heights, while being combined with the ground that also changes in depth. I really think that place is neat, and I noticed kids playing Hide and Go Seek in there.
These plants here are all over Berlin. They are saplings (or seeds?) from the Auschawitz concentration camp and are meant to also be a reminder of what happened.
We also followed the Berlin Wall to Potsdamers Platz. In the square we had AMAZING ice cream. I had actually had ice cream at this particular place back in 2009 with Mahla and Kristie. It was still the same: tasty! Now when I reflect upon it, it was actually pretty expensive. I live in the poor area of Berlin, where everything is much cheaper than in the centre.
The inside of Potsdamers Platz:
My Ice Cream (Kiwi):
Fiona's Ice Cream (caramel):
Does anyone know whats up with these bright pink and purple tubes?: I have seen them in the Berlin centre. Are they art? Are they functional?
People put their gum on the wall:
Oh look: It's Amplemann!
Tiergarten:
A guy dressed up as an officer from East Germany (the GDR, or DDR), with his East German flag:
May 8th: I finally went fencing! It was an amazing experience that seems to have bloated my ego... I need it to be deflated! I beat absolutely everyone who I have fenced. They were men (at the police academy) around the same age as me, who have been fencing for about 2 years. This club is just starting sabre, and the base weapon is epee, so it is understandable... but the whole experience was just crazy. The runner of the club told me I was their guest and that I didn't have to pay. He also said "these men aren't the men for you", and I think that is because I beat them all, and they weren't really a challenge. I did promise to return next Tuesday though.
Wow, just a weird day... I had a little girl follow me around (instead of fencing her peers) the entire time I was there. Also, the other girls there were very eager and excited to show me around. In my last bout everyone at the club came and watched me fence and beat their most experienced Sabre guy. Other things happened, but I already sound really snooty (I am annoying myself) so I won't explain them further here, except to say that I left a good impression and they want me to return. Unfortunetally the club is very far from my home (about a 45 minute Straßenbahn and U-Bahn ride)
May 10th: Mostly this week I have been interpreting the Sibelle text with classmates. It has been a time consuming process. Usually someone reads it aloud, while other people look up words to interpret the meanings. Class discussions had started today, and I was glad to be able to participate. After class today (May 10th), I had gone with Marta to the Tiergarten (a giant area similar to our Stanley Park). It was nice to walk through, and she brought her mandolin and played some music while I read. It was 26 degrees today, but it started raining (thunderstorms were in the forecast), so we left.
Hey Jess ... thanks for the many pics.
ReplyDeleteQ1: In the memorial, is there something engraved on the sides of the stone blocks, or are they all smooth?
Q2: What is the Sibelle text about that you're studying in the class. Who's the author?