When we returned from spring break, we hit the ground running. Engineering homework kicked up with a time crunch before our next systems and signals test and a couple fast approaching deadlines for the 253 Toothbrush Teardown project. I procrastinated with my work this week and only realized towards the end how much I really had. Despite this, I got it all done in time with relative quality I think.
Also this week, I went to visit the Uniklinik with the intent of shadowing surgeries. However, the first time did not go as intended. Instead of shadowing the anesthesiologist, we followed a medical student around who took us to the break room and talked about her schooling, the customs of Germany, and generally found ways to "entertain" us and keep us occupied. The most blatant waste of time was a tour of the hospital and a description of where the best coffee was on campus. We were clearly in the way and wasting everyone's time that took part. Eventually, we talked to the anesthesiologist and got see the last 30 minutes of a surgery where they were closing the wounds. Since we didn't get to experience the shadowing in a complete fashion, Dr. Wasser arranged for us to return the following day and shadow again. We almost returned to the same surgical ward, but it was children's day so we were redirected to renal surgery. I got to see a man get his urethra cleaned out and expanded endoscopically and then a woman get a tumor removed endoscopically from her kidney. I got to ask all the questions I could think of to the anesthesiologist and to the doctors. Both also took the time repeatedly to make sure I had a good view and a good understanding of the process. It was really interesting. Some people had a changing experience during this day in that they left sure they wanted to be doctors, but I still don't have that desire. I want to do engineering and I am sticking to engineering.
I set out this weekend's travels with Darby, Deanna, Camella, Darby's parents (Michelle and Roudy), and Darby's Nanna in an RV that Michelle and Roudy rented. The first night we stopped by a McDonalds to submit homework and ended up camping in the parking lot. The second day we made it up to Berlin for lunch with a friend of Camella. Next we got to see the Brandenburg Gate, with a protest happening in front of it. Ironically, from what I could tell the protest was against the amount of guns in the US and the NRA. I was actually mildly offended by this; although, I agree there needs to be action taken against the amount of gun violence in the US, I think it is an internal affair for the US. We don't protest about what Germany does wrong. I understand that my take on this event was skewed by how little I could understand of the protest (it was in German) and many other factors and therefore was not necessarily my permanent opinion of the matter. We also got to see Checkpoint Charlie and a piece of the wall. We stopped by the Memorial of the Murdered Jews of Europe also. This was incredibly sad. One of the pieces of information that stuck with me was a testament I heard about a Nazi who went home to his family and told the story of his day at the dinner table to his wife and children. That day he had been at a concentration camp shooting the women and children coming off the trains. He said the first load his hand was shaking, but by the third or fourth he was steady and they had made a game. The Nazis would shoot the women and the babies would go flying up in the air, which they would then pick off like pigeons. He told this to his wife and kids as casual dinner conversation. When I heard it, it made me want to throw up a little and this was "normal". I found that horrifying.
The second day of our travels, we got to see Potsdam and Sanssouci Palace. Sanssouci was a beautiful palace. It was the summer palace of Frederick the Great in the late 18th century. It was really intricate and gorgeous. Also, the garden was massive with so many other places for workers and servants and gardeners and other structure to get away. Just overall, I was incredibly impressed with the infrastructure and design. The US just doesn't have the same history of nobility and extravagance that gives Europe its' historical beauty.
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