Finally Home!

Okay, so perhaps I should have written this post almost a month ago now.  I keep thinking about it....  but there's this thing called school and (super) senior year that keeps getting in the way.

I know, I know, do I really have to write a blog now?  I'm home, aren't I?

Well, no, it's not required, but it's a place to end.  After reading how many blogs this summer- I know that I want to let all....  my few....  my parents.... know that I made it home all right.  Of course, they already know.

So maybe this post is just for me.  Just for my reflective needs.

To begin with, I'll tell the chronological stuff that needs to be said: all day Friday, all the jet-lag, moving, etc. etc.

The last time I posted I was in Philly on my way back to Detroit, the story left off when I was still in Hamburg.

Took first SBahn from Hauptbahnhof to the airport.  Freshened up in the bathroom.  Went to gate, through security, fell asleep at terminal.  Well, kinda, I was too nervous to get any real sleep.  Picked up a couple of newspapers, plane ride short, don't remember much, Frankfurt.

Had to pick up luggage in Frankfurt, had to wait to check it in.  Guy scared me with questions.  In terminal, no food options, but time to go.  Creepy room with lots of babies (though they ended up being good on the plane....  surprise....), on plane.

This plane ride home was the ride of people all over me in my space.  They were either leaning on me or yeah....  anyways.

My flight from Frankfurt to Philly was surprisingly relatively turbulence free.  Especially if you take into account the fact that we were going through Hurricane Earl. Relatively empty plane.  Movies: "UP!", "Ratatouille" (which I watched auf Deutsch!), tv: "How I Met Your Mother", etc. etc.

Cried as we landed in the US.

The most interesting thing that happened on the way home was the delay in the Philly airport.  At first I didn't bother to check if it was on time, I assumed it was.  Then I heard it was going to be about an hour late.  So I decided to Skype call my parents and tell them what was up.  Afterwords, I precede to check the status of my flight: it said on time!  In only about 10 minutes!  And I had take the bus to the F terminal!  I was freaking out!

Well, I made it over there with plenty off time...  especially since there was a ten minute delay...  Nicht zu schlecht.

My flight from Philly to Detroit had to be the best flight I've ever had.  The people were great and the flight attendant was awesome.  Happy to see my parents again.

Checked out new dorm: North Quad.  Sleep sleep sleep.  Pack and move.  More sleep, more jet-lag.

Now for reflection:

So here is picture of the approximately 20 pounds I left in the Hamburg airport- this is what I had to let go of after leaving 5-6 pairs of pants and numerous shirts at my host mother's house, 3 or four pairs of pants in the Berlin hostel (along with shampoos, dish soap, this and that, more clothes, more trash).....

I've been thinking about what I left behind, and what I managed to bring back with me.  And my analysis has nothing to doing with the tangible material items.

I left behind a inexperienced self traveler; I came back knowing that traveling alone isn't all it's cracked up to be.  I left behind someone who didn't know what she wanted to do with her life.  I came back as someone who doesn't know what she want to do with life and doesn't really care.

I was hoping that I would be coming back with all the answers about what I am going to do with the rest of my life.  However I realized that I just have to take things one step at a time.  The rest will figure itself out.  Besides, how many times do things end up the way we plan them?  So why even bother at all?  That's not to say that I don't have goals- they're just more loosely based on my career choice.

I guess I could go on and on; relive the mistakes I made, and the disappointments.  But those aren't the things I'm going to remember in the end.  I'm going to remember the good.  And learn from all the rest.

2.9.2010: Hamburg told me, they missed me here….

Started at 11pm, Thursday night.
A nice blog post for you guys to read while I travel from Philly to Detroit.

Arriving on the bus from Berlin, about a half an hour late, Hamburg welcomed me into her (?) loving arms again. And wished me well with fireworks and a festival.

So here I sit… about seven hours until my flight to Frankfurt.

Because I’m afraid of oversleeping- I’m pulling an all nighter…. (since I don’t sleep well on planes- an all dayer too). And to top it all off, I haven’t been sleeping well the last few nights either.

So, back to Abenteuring in Berlin- where do I need to begin?

Let’s start with a couple of weekends ago (the 21st of August? Wow…. can you really believe that it’s already September?!)….

Saturday I walked to and from and around the Brandenburger Tor, Alexanderplatz and beyond. In total I think I walked over ten miles (perhaps even 15!). I didn’t really see much that I hadn’t before, but enjoyed the warm windy weather. My original goal had been to peruse Bundestag once more, this time in daylight, but the long line dissuaded me. Again and again I went, and again and again I did not go in. I hear the wait- during the summer, during the weekend, during the daytime- can range from anywhere from three to six hours. Perhaps next time I come to Berlin…. of course with a travel buddy or two…. I will wait in line and go in during the day.

The following day… well, I didn’t do much. I was quite sore from previous day’s stroll.


Monday, Monday, so good to me!

Since the US Consulate is only open from 8:30 to noon (practically the same time as class), I had to get up extra early in order to get there as soon as I could…. Well, let’s just say I hit the snooze a few too many times and was not well liked. I did get to the consulate around 9ish, and to class around 10ish. (Ish. Didn’t write down specific times…. All I know is that it takes over a half an hour from the Zoologolisch Bahnhof to get to the US Consulate. And that the Consulate is not the Embassy, a mere 15/20 minutes from my hostel).

After class I went back to the hostel to regroup and head out to the Olympicstadion…. I think there must have been a nap and/or internet time in there since I didn’t head out until about 3:30pm. After going to wrong way, confusing myself because I took a different UBahn linie then last time, and missing my stop, I finally made it to the historic 1936 Olympic Stadium. The stadium that held the Olympics while Hitler was in power. The stadium that Leni Reifenstahl shot the classic film, Olympia. The stadium where Jesse Owens made history.
If I didn’t know the history of this stadium, I definitely would have been disappointed by the size. Only able to hold a low 70 thousand people, it is definitely smaller than the beloved Big House. But because of the background information, I was able to imagine how it would have been if I had been there over 70 years ago.

That evening I headed to Checkpoint Charlie. Not something that was too important to me to see, but still interesting enough that I had to make it over there to take some pictures. Of course, the guy next to the UBahn sign warned me, if I got him in the picture, he’d kill me. Then he rambled on about something else, but I didn’t catch what he was saying as I broke some traffic laws to cross the street and get away from him.

The rest of the week went by so quickly, somehow I skipped over Wednesday. Unfortunately for me, it meant that I missed free museum Thursday in the Museuminsel.


During my last weekend in Berlin:

I rode around on the public transport system (which, yeah, oddly enough, just riding around is one of my favorite things to do in Europe. Maybe it’s just because we don’t have such an extensive system here in the States. Or it could be just because I’m odd), did some last minute gift shopping for my family, did some more riding around on the U- and S-Bahns and buses. Of course I saw the sites, etc. etc. etc. But I wasn’t inspired to take many pictures…. hmmm…. I mustn’t have been feeling well, huh?

Monday I went Schloss Charlottenburg. Took a few pictures, but didn’t go inside since the old house was closed. Just this past Tuesday- without meaning to, I slept for six hours in the middle of the day. And last night I found the ZOB and then packed. Today I went to my last day of class and rode the bus back here to Hamburg.

Riding the bus was the cheapest option. Changing my flight or riding the train were much more expensive.

Once I got to Hamburg, I headed to the airport to check in my luggage early. I’m so thankful I decided to do this. 1) I do not have to carry around my huge luggage tonight and 2) I don’t have to worry about going through my stuff and deciding what to keep and what not to keep so early in the morning.

In order to check an overweight bag, it costs 5 Euros per kilo (that comes to about $3/lb for those of you who do not want to do the math yourselves). My bag came to a whopping 33 kilos, 13 kilos over the permitted weight limit. Yup, that would have been about $90 to keep everything.

Buh-bye $5 Wal-Mart towel. Buh-bye second hand shirts. Buh-bye all pants but the pair I have on. Buh-bye cheap underwear. Buh-bye any clothes that were too big, or that I had my last trip to Berlin!

Actually, it got pretty tough for the last few kilos…. I know what would have done the trick quicker, but I am not giving up the books and magazines! No! No! I won’t!

And until about right now (2am), I was doing just fine with my decision not to check into a room/bed for the night. Somehow three hours went by quickly, but this last half hour has seemed to last for forever. I really don’t know how I’m going to make it until 4am when the first train heads to the airport.

And now that I’ve started to think about how late it is, I’m getting that jittery feeling. Ugh, this is not good. But it’s better when I walk around…. except that my backpack is very heavy.

Home again, home again, jiggity jig.

I'll be home in just a few short hours.... not. Spending the whole next day and a half on the road, in the air.... going crazy. Wish me luck!

Ooh, and I'll be out internet reach until I get back home.

So, bis bald!

Pictures say a thousand words v2.0

 Gedächtniskirche.

Schloss Charlottenburg

Pretty ornamentation.  Unfortunately the old part was closed so I couldn't go inside and see the pretty inside ornamentation.

Home sweet home.  Cheap, kinda close to school, close to a major SBahn station, a few monuments and I could pay with credit card.  Ooh, and interesting people.

Really, I'll write a full post soon.  Really.

31.08.2010: Pictures say a thousand words

Since pictures say a thousand words, and I can't seem to think of any, here you go....  some pics from the last week or so.

View in the park where I sat and crocheted last week.

I walked about 10 miles on Saturday.  Just cuz.

  Bubbles.  Kids Playing in the park.

A statue of some significance.  If it wasn't significant, would it have been built?  Kinda looked like our merman in Ingalls mall....  but totally different.

Olympic Rings.  I finally made it to the Olympic Stadium while it was open!  Woohoo!

Olympic torch.

Some more statues inside the Olympic stadium place.  Oh, and my hand....  just wanting to prove that I was actually there.

Swimming pool.

Ubahn sign.....  aka, where I got a death threat.  Yeah, that was interesting.

The famous Checkpoint Charlie sign.  Just about the only thing to do is take a picture.  But last time I was here in Berlin I hadn't gotten a chance to do even that, so I had to go back.

So there you go, I'm alive and am a tourist.

Baby- it's cold outside!

The weather here in Berlin has been cold and wet.

Add snow and slush and it would be just like the last time I was here.

Well, sorta.

I'm in the midst of writing a complete blog entry....  the words just aren't coming.  And I've been busy.  I really do promise to write soon!

Tschüss!

The Untold Stories

I have many stories about this trip that I have not yet shared. Many I probably just forgot at the time…. Or well, (for some of these at least) hoping to forget.

Mein schlechtes Deutsch

Yes, this has been a common theme in many other posts.

But that’s not to say that I didn’t improve at all. (It was just taking a lot longer than anyone would have liked.) If you compare some of the things that I said, did not know…. and all in all just screwed up, you would definitely see some improvement too.

Like, for example, on my second day of work. People kept asking me if I would like to see the Werbung. Not remembering what this word meant, I answered with the response: I have to work this weekend. For some reason, I was thinking it had to do with the theater or a concert or some other happening the next weekend…. After I got home that evening, it popped into my head.

Werbung=advertisement.

They were wanting to show the ads for next week’s sales.


Yeah, go ahead and laugh, but save some air for this next tale:

I was (like usual) up in Obst und Gemüse helping Frau Wulf. I was unpacking some Eisberg Salat when a costumer came up and asked a question. At this time, I was still quite new and my response to everything was: “One moment, let me go ask my colleague.” I proceed to fetch Frau Wulf and tell her that a customer had a question.

The customer was puzzled. All she wanted was the particular head of lettuce that was in my hand.


There are other stories of the like.
Like, I thought I had to work 7 days a week for the first couple of days….
Sonnabend = Samstag (Saturday). Sonnabend ≠ Sonntag (Sunday).

Or the time that a customer was just making a joke at my expense and I asked a coworker for help because I didn’t understand. And when people were talking about Pappe (papier-paper), I thought that they were referring to Papa (Vati, dad). Nope, just the cardboard and waste paper.

Gees, I really was a burden, huh?

Though, I swear, I did improve. I was so excited during my first week when a shopper asked where the Erdnussebutter (peanut butter) was, I knew exactly what she was saying- and where it was!

By the end, most of the time I was asking for my colleagues’ help not because I needed help with translation, but because I didn’t know the answer.

Example of improvement: One day I was working alone in the Mopo (Molkerei- milks, butters, yogurts, quarks, cheeses, etc.) and I was on a fifteen question winning streak. Every question a customer had, I answered all on my own! Where was the sour cream (not with the other crèmes like you would think, but next to the quarks), where was the margarine, where was the frische Hefe (live yeast)?

The question that ended my streak was one about the prepared meats…. which was an area I had never worked. So did that really count and end my streak- since I had never worked with meats?


My Fiancé

Have I told you guys that I have a fiancé?

Yeah, I don’t know his name, but I know he works at the Döner stand outside the Schlump UBahn stop in Hamburg. I guess I don’t have to worry about knowing too much about him (and never returning to that Döner stand) since he only wants me so he can receive a green card.

Turkish men seem to have a thing for me (yeah, I know, it could just be because I’ve been eating a lot of Döners). Right now I have one guy that keeps winking at me every time I pass by.


Jazz Music

The second to last Friday night I was in Hamburg I ran into a little jazz concert in an art gallery.


So yeah, there's plenty of other little stories like that that I can share.  I'll work on getting more of them up later.
Tschüss!

16.8.2010: Rommates

Ugh...  unfortunately I have to complain a bit.

Smokers. gah!  Why don't they understand that they're not the only ones in the room and that it is against the rules to smoke inside the hostel??!

Okay, that's all the complaining.

Just wanted to say that I have been getting ready for the new school year....  meetings, schedules, craziness....  and I'm not even back in the States yet.  I still have to pack, repack and buy new clothes.

That's the worst thing about losing weight- the clothes you had, don't fit anymore.  I guess I can't complain too much since I have saved some of my skinny clothes from before.

Ooh, doesn't Little Caesar's pizza sound good?  Or how about BDubs?  I know, I know, eat as many Döners now while I still can, because soon enough comes cafeteria food.  meh.

Oh, but I am going to say, that my goal for the year is to write and communicate with everyone who knows German completely in German.  And I think I'm going to start that next Monday.

Here is where I would put an interesting picture....  but I can't decide on one, so I guess you'll have to wait until next time.

11.8.2010: I am an American

Today, when I was in the kitchen- cooking my delicious meatballs (let me repeat that: DELICIOUS)- I was identified as an American, not because of my accent, looks, etc....
but because I was cooking with butter.

Yup, because of my non-sticking methods, someone could guess that I came from the US.  Oh, and cooking spray is totally American.  Who knew?

This led into a conversation about "The Daily Show" and how mental Americans are....

I guess if this Englishman was basing his views on only this show....  I guess he might have a point.

But I did have to mention that "The Daily Show" and "Colbert Report" (which I prefer), are indeed satiric takes on the daily news, and not the views of the typical American.

(And what about other American shows viewed in other countries....  There's many of them I don't think can translate well....  For instance, take "The Simpsons".  Another show that makes fun of society [often American] and all that it entails.  How does that translate, even when the words don't need translated?)

Though I have to say I think that these shows have their place.  Any show that gets people thinking, even amongst the laughs, especially young people, deserves some mention.

Our conversation continued with how often we say the pledge and sing the anthem in the States.  He compared it to a religion.

Is the US really more politicized that I thought?  The conversation continued to mention Bush (don't blame me, I wasn't old enough to vote), Palin (why do some people like her?) and Obama (of course I had to bring up the fact that I've gotten to see him in person).  Of course, I had my opinions on them all.  Maybe I'm more politicized than I thought.

There's been a lot of things that I've come to know about myself, my country and the differences between others.  There's some things that I've known- at least on paper- that I now know.  Like how different the American school system is.  How school sports are so important to Americans, but soccer is the sport everyone else plays.

And yes, I could definitely mention my issues with the internet again...  Though the worst thing I've experienced so far is actually paying for it, and then it doesn't work.  Gah!

But that's enough for now....  since I do need to get to bed....  Class comes early.  Well, okay, not really, but for me it does.  I'm a college student, give me a break! 

Three weeks left until I head home.  And school starts.  And life becomes crazy again.

10.8.2010: Substitute Teacher

Today we have a substitute.

No one seems to like her.

She is kinda dull.  And class has been going slow today.

Though she is speaking a lot faster than Miriam does.

It has made for an interesting group dynamic.  It's changed.

It's Tuesday.  I'm still in Berlin.