Reflections

 

Big things take time to digest - studying abroad in Germany has been no exception to this. So while it may be surprising to some, it is not surprising to me that writing a final reflection on time spent there has taken 5 months of thinking about in order to write. 

Prior to studying abroad in Germany I had lived overseas before. I had traveled solo internationally before for long amounts of time on-end. I had been in uncomfortable and unfamiliar places far away from home before. I left Texas fully convinced Germany would be no different than the countless other times I had done that same exact thing. I could not have been more wrong. If you can't recall be sure to check out my initial post regarding 'being the other'. 

There were many key takeaways from that experience. Some of which were mundane in the sense that they were to be expected and therefore perhaps considered normal and therefore deemed boring. I'll spare you the repetition on those revelations although I find normal rarely equates to boring. Anyways...

What surprised me most now about this trip since being back is the way in which I interact with people and my surroundings now. After being in Germany and seeing first hand the displacement and broken homes caused by the Ukrainian refugee crisis... suddenly problems in my life like not being able to find parking on campus minutes before an exam suddenly seems small and unimportant. Things have certainly been put in to perspective. I often find myself appreciating the little things and finding joy in the ordinary more than I used to. I've become acutely aware of how much I have taken for granted in life - things like insulated walls and thick socks for example haha. 

I've also become a more understanding and empathetic person. I listen more and make less assumptions. After being exposed to so many different types of people and different backgrounds so routinely while in Germany such a global perspective has heightened my awareness of people's sensitivities even here in Texas. It's made me a better leader, a better follower, and perhaps most importantly a better friend. 

From before we even left we were often told "this will be a transformative experience" at first, if i'm being entirely honest, I doubted the phrase a little. But now after being back for 5 months you are dang right, it is simply transformative. Everyone ought to get comfortable with being uncomfortable - study abroad is the perfect way to do just that. The growth you reap as a result pays back in dividends greater than you'd ever imagine.  

Saying I'm eager to go back soon would be a drastic understatement. 

A look back to studying abroad

During the final week being in Germany, I was so ready to get back home. I could not even imagine going back to Germany any time soon. Now that I am back in the US, I want to be back in Germany more than anything. I still have people bring up in small talk ask me how Germany was and all I can really say is "it was good" or "oh, it was really fun" because it would take way too long for me to really explain it to anyone.

Studying abroad in Germany really changed how I view life and different issues. One funny thing it actually changed in me is it has made me a lot calmer of a driver. I still do not understand how they all drove around and parallel parked on those tiny streets. On a more serious note, it really opened my eyes to viewing America and my own issues in a different light. Being away from Americans and talking to Germans about American issues gave me a new perspective.

I am an engineer so no surprise that I am an introvert. Going into this trip I was terrified about making friends and being able to come out of my shell. I made two lifelong friends who I will forever be grateful for. I learned to be more confident in myself while I was in Germany and not be so scared to be myself which even my friends back home have started noticing and telling me.

Reflecting on the best four months of my life!

 I can't believe almost five months have passed since I was living in Bonn. Although my time in Germany feels like a distant dream, the experiences and knowledge I gained will forever be a part of me. I went into my study abroad with very high expectations, and yet they were still blown out of the water. I got to see so many amazing sights, learn more than I could have imagined, and above all, I got to meet and connect with some truly amazing people. There was never a dull moment while living in Germany, even the challenges and struggles had a nuance that excited me and was appealing to my curious nature. Navigating through a foreign country, language, and culture, forced me as far out of my comfort zone as possible, and this was where the true learning took place.

After having some time to reflect, I have some clear takeaways from the various lessons I learned. I gained a profound ability to be flexible. From having little control over the food I was eating to traveling in a constant state of uncertainty from relying on public transportation, I was forced to accept whatever situation I encountered, and live in a constant state of focusing on what I could control and being at peace with the rest. The second and biggest thing that I learned, and something that has dramatically changed how I view myself and the people around me, is that people can live very differently and disagree on a majority of topics, and that is okay. I feel as though I have always had a very open mind toward other people, but living with a German host family allowed me to be introspective and open-minded about my own life and how I live. That the perception and standard I have built for myself isn't the only way I have to live, that there is an abundance of aspects to enjoy in life and that there is far more to experience than the comfort zone I naturally want to conform to. This was an unending lesson during my time in Germany, from speaking to my family about their values and morals to witnessing them first-hand, I had nothing but time and perspective to help me navigate my own desires and goals. And although some of my goals were even more reinforced, I am without a doubt considering a different life than I was before my study abroad. I now have a firm intention to return to Europe to live, either to work or go to graduate school, I feel that expanding on my short experience will benefit me more than I can explain. My perspective and opinions on people have also changed, as even while conversing with my best friends I've noticed that I have a new sense of patience and observation as opposed to quickly making assumptions and riding my opinions. 

Thankful doesn't do justice to how I feel about my time in Germany and how I benefit on a daily basis from the experiences I gained. I'm excited to resume that life and adventure that I miss so dearly, as well as use what I learned and experienced to continue to grow as a person.

Final Reflection

        After living in Germany for four months, it has encouraged me to live in Europe for at least one year of my life! I have no idea at what point I will do this, nor what country I will move to but this is definitely a goal that I have added to my bucket list! This was my first time traveling outside of the United States for an extended period of time, so this was also the first time that I first-hand got to learn about and become accustomed to the sociocultural norms of another group of people, and this experience was eye-opening. Ultimately, this experience really made me question the values that America holds so close to our hearts. Through this, I realized that, for the most part, everything in America boils down to money. It is so crazy to me (in a good way) how in Germany institutions are put into place so that citizens do not have to pay crazy out-of-pocket costs or procure thousands of dollars worth of bills just to visit the doctor. In America, people will avoid seeking medical attention for as long as they can because they simply cannot afford to see a doctor. Also, it was INSANE how cheap grocery stores were in Germany even though foods were much more fresh and healthy than the foods in grocery stores in America comparatively. It was also incredibly insightful to learn about the values that Germans treasure. I LOVE how Sundays (but honestly the entire weekend) are dedicated to family time. It was a good reminder that sometimes you just need to slow down and be grateful for what you have. Just walking around Bonn on the weekends you could feel the sense of community and love in the air as everyone was outside enjoying themselves with the people they love. After about a month of living in Bonn, one day Katie and I were having a conversation about cultural differences between Americans and Europeans (in our experience) and our working hypothesis was that Europeans are more considerate and conscientious. From our perspective, it seemed like everyone in society was working together or at least towards a common goal. For example, the effort to help conserve Earth’s resources was practiced by nearly everyone! Even if it was just the little things like separating your trash correctly or returning reusable bottles for money, I like how policies were put in place to help heal the Earth; after all, we all live on it. I think about Europe every day both reminiscing on my trip and wondering when I will get to return next. This was a life-changing experience.

Retrospective Post

 

The four months I spent in Germany were the first I’ve ever spent outside of the United States, and the longest I’ve ever been away from home. It forced me to be independent in a way I haven’t fully been able to experience before. College Station is only a two-hour drive away from my family, and moving an ocean away was really scary. I applied and committed to this program in a short period of time, so I didn’t have very long to prepare or learn the language. I struggled with the language barrier for a while, but it really forced me to go out of my comfort zone and be more confident in trying to communicate with other people. Living in another country comes with its challenges, but this pushed me to remain flexible and resilient in my everyday life because I could never predict what I would encounter with every new day.

This program really reignited my desire to learn for the sake of learning. Especially in a world where we tend to study for grades and academic success, it was refreshing to be excited about learning for fun. Living in Germany has also made me more aware of my efforts to continue to grow and learn about the world throughout my entire life. Through high school, I had a teacher who always would say that “different doesn’t mean worse” and I never fully took that to heart until traveling abroad. The world is so much more than the little corner of Texas that we live in and being set in one way of living is severely limiting, especially in engineering. As a biomedical engineer, my goal is to help the world as a whole, which is so much easier and so much more impactful if we truly get to know the world around us.

My Study Abroad Reflection

My study abroad experience was truly the Hero's Journey since being a part of the first program back in Bonn after the pandemic. The hardest part was deciding whether or not to actually go abroad and spend a whole semester away from friends, family, and everything I knew. I was sad about missing my family, friend's birthdays, ring dunks, and another semester in Aggieland. I didn't know anyone else in the program, so I took a leap of faith to live across the world for 4 months. Little did I know, the memories I made abroad were so much better than anything inside the bubble of College Station. The next hardest part was the adjustment period of being in a new country, with new people, and not knowing how to use the public transportation. And I was freezing cold. If I could go back and repack my suitcase, I would bring so many more sweaters and layers, and put back over half of my t-shirts and shorts. I got over my culture shock by realizing there is a different way to do everything and get the same results. Like hanging my laundry to dry, without a dryer machine. A lot of places are closed on Sunday, just like Chick-fil-A. After a few weeks of classes and getting to know my classmates, I became more comfortable living in Germany. I did not have a host family, so my apartment became the gathering place for my friends. We did everything together from studying to cooking dinner to traveling. Everything was new, so there were always new places to shop and eat at. I was constantly learning, whether I was in class, at a museum, or trying to read German. Traveling was easily my favorite part. I was able to see so many historical sights and famous art pieces, go on so many beautiful hikes, meet new people, and eat really good food with my new best friends. It was a learning curve trying to book trains and airbnbs, but it was definitely motivating to get my homework done. I discovered a new sense of freedom by living on a different continent as a young woman in college. I became more decisive and self confident, through trial and error. Literally trying new things to truly learn what I like and what I am passionate about. From my time abroad, I gained a larger world view to be more accepting and loving of people. I am so thankful for my time in Bonn and hope to return someday! 

- Katie Haley Class of 2023

  

Week 17: Finals Week

On Monday, we took a study trip to Bingen and Andernach. We went to the Hildegard von Bingen Museum and Hildegarten, ate lunch at a very traditional German restaurant, and went to the Johann-Winter Museum. After a long day, the BIMS students studied for our physiology exam. Friends came over to hangout and study on our Reading Day for finals. After finals were finished, we watched some of the LMU short films and the bird play! I spent my last weekend in Bonn hanging out with everyone and reminiscing on our time abroad. For our history of medicine final, we took a boat cruise down the Rhine for a beautiful end to the semester. I can't believe how fast this semester went by! I am looking forward to traveling with Jules, Nate, and Richard before I head back to Texas. 

Der Bastei!

On Sunday, we hiked the second stage (Malerweg 2) of the Sächsische-Schweiz Nationalpark, also known as Der Bastei. WOW. One of the most amazing hikes I’ve ever been on. If you haven’t seen it, you should Google pictures of Der Bastei – the rock formations are amazing. Strangely, the topography was kind of like northwestern Arkansas, just stretched high up into the sky. The first leg of the hike, around half an hour, was very steep, but we caught a brief respite at a small café at the top of a hill. The setting was cute, but my favorite part was a small sign that read “Hand in Hand zum Gluweinstand!” Adorable!! By the time we reached Der Bastei itself, the low-hung clouds had started to lightly snow – it was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. We harassed a German couple into taking a polaroid picture of us and headed back down the forest floor. The trees were the greenest things I’d seen in months, and it stayed snowing – amazing. We walked through an adorable village, rolled down a field of frozen kale, and made it to the end of the Malerweg half an hour after sunset. Only, it wasn’t…the end? We’d stopped at a lookout point with views of a sweeping valley, but we couldn’t figure out how to down. It turns out that the only way to get off the mountain was to walk through it, meaning a winding jaunt down metal stairs in the pitch black, in a secluded forest with no one around. The mood was lightened, however, by Jules and Katie absolutely launching a banana peel down into the darkness and screaming. We made it to the real end of the hike, only to discover that Katie’s phone was missing (for the second time that day, I might add.) We scrambled to find it before the bus came, and did, but not before I realized that we were at the wrong bus stop. The right one was three minutes away…the bus was coming in two…and that was the last bus for more than an hour. So we sprinted – I mean really tear-assed it – to the next stop, just in time to see bus lights shining through the trees. The relief I felt and the snow falling around us made it feel really cinematic.

We made it back to Dresden, safe and sound, but not before making a new friend – a Brazilian man named Raphael! He heard us speaking English on the bus and told us that he was lost and totally devoid of any German-language skills – we invited him to come eat with us. However, that later proved to be my demise, as I'm pretty sure he gave me covid. My book for the week was Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, which I read in high school and loved. I had the same feeling this time around – it was great! I think the exploration of what makes a war story a good/true war story is fascinating, and I still am thinking about the chapter where Norman Bowker can’t escape his drive around a lake in Iowa. 9/10 book:

“I was a coward. I went to the war.”

-Tim O’Brien, The Things They Carried

 

Beautiful Dresden

By far the best city I visited in Germany this trip was Dresden. I loved everything about the trip: the city’s Altstadt, the hiking, and the company! The start of the trip, however, was tough. I got up at 4:30 in the morning, missed my breakfast, and took a half-hour bus ride to Bonn Hauptbahnhof. I met Katie and Jules there for our seven-hour train ride to Dresden. After a very sleepy ride, we arrived at around 12:30 and headed to an Italian restaurant in the Altstadt, where I got to try limoncello for the first time. I love stupid, fruity drinks!

We spent the next few hours exploring the heart of Dresden. I was amazed at the architecture: the Katholischekirche, the Zwingerschloss, the Augustusbrucke, and (of course) the Frauenkirche were all beautiful. Next on our sightseeing tour was the iconic, the delectable, Pfund’s Molkerei, a dairy shop that opened in 1882. The shop was decorated floor-to-ceiling with Meissen porcelain, which was a slight to behold. Each of us picked out a cheese to get – mine was something pink and rose-infused – and headed back to the Altstadt to visit the Porzellensammlung, a museum showcasing a former Saxon king’s finest porcelain. It was one of the coolest museums I’ve ever seen! Absolutely exquisite: now I know what I’ll spend my money on when I’m rich and famous. We ended the day with another walk through the Altstadt before taking a tram to our Airbnb. We picked up wine on the way back, prepared a small charcuterie board, and watched the last episode of Love is Blind. The finale was a trainwreck – and so much fun!

Saturday started with a lovely brunch and a photoshoot in front of the Semperoper and Katholische Hofkirche. Then we bought tickets to the Altemeistergalerie, located in the beautiful Zwingerschloss. I love art, but good God am I tired of seeing the same handful of religious scenes in every painting before 1750. However, the museum had a sizable sculpture collection! My favorite was a sculpture depicting two putti – the little babies in Renaissance art – in some sort of conflict, with one savagely whipping the other. It sounds messed up when I put it into writing, but the sculpture was very comically done and a very welcome relief from an onslaught of Adoration of the Magi paintings. We left and headed to the adjacent Mathematical and Astronomical Instruments Salon, where we got a personal tour from a very kindly German guard. He was so excited to practice his English with us! We lunched in a small park near the Augustus Bridge and learned a fun fact from the graffiti on the bench: “Kapitalismus ist cringe.” Then we went to the city history museum. It was okay? I thought there would be a greater emphasis on the events surrounding the Dresden Firebombing, but the museum barely touched on it at all. We used the remaining daylight to visit three palaces (the Albrechtsberg, Lingner, and Eckberg), all about a ten-minute walk from each other. We had a blast! Katie, Jules, and I happened upon a frozen lake, which we promptly threw rocks at to shatter – very palatial, I know. After exploring, we went back to our Airbnb and unwound with the first episode of Dance Moms, a classic. A great day!

As for my book for the week, I read Augustus, by John Williams. The book is structured as an epistolary novel and belongs to the genre of historical fiction. It’s a retelling of the life of Augustus, the first emperor of Rome. The book was so well-crafted (in typical Williams fashion) and was an amazing look at the effects of power on a man and the divergence between people’s perceptions of the same event – 9.5/10. Here’s a quote from a book I really liked:

“Rome is not eternal; it does not matter. Rome will fall; it does not matter. The barbarian will conquer; it does not matter. There was a moment of Rome, and it will not wholly die; the barbarian will become the Rome he conquers; the language will smooth his rough tongue; the vision of what he destroys will flow in his blood. And in time that is ceaseless as this salt sea upon which I am so frailly suspended, the cost is nothing, less than nothing.”

-John Williams, Augustus 

Drachenfels and Vonnegut

 One of my favorite moments of the whole program was when I hiked Drachenfels with Katherine and Julia in mid-February! After spending a freezing six days in Berlin and Rostock, I was desperate to get some sun and jumped at the invitation to hike with them. We set out from the town of Königswinter and made it to the forest after almost getting clipped by a few passing cars. Then began the long ascent up, and though it might have taken a few hours to reach the top, the hike didn’t feel like a trudge at all. I’m used to speeding through hikes – I like to reach the top, fast – but Katie and Jules hike more slowly than me, which I found that I actually liked! We spent the time talking about anything and everything while we explored some caves, jumped streams, and frolicked in a Sound-of-Music field. I had a great time!!

When we got to the small café at the overlook, I was awestruck by the view: North-Rhine Westphalia had never looked so pretty. Texas-style clouds, clear blue skies, Germans in repose, and beautiful landscape in every direction – it was amazing! I got a coffee to reward myself for exercising before we reached the very top, the Drachenfels ruins. The ruins were pretty, and the view was gorgeous, again. After the hike down, we made our way to Brauhaus Bönnsch for beer and Spatzle. A great day! I only wish that I’d found the time to head back before the program ended – I wanted to see the Siebengebirge in full bloom!

My books for the second week of February were Kurt Vonnegut’s Cat’s Cradle and Slaughterhouse-Five. Cat’s Cradle was…interesting? I’m not sure how to put it but I got the feeling that the actual plot of the book was kind of unimportant – that the plot could have been something totally different and I would have gotten the point equally well. And that idea made for a strange experience because I couldn’t quite tell if the whole thing was a big joke on me. Maybe that’s the point? I don’t think I’ll ever get Vonnegut. That being said, I actually liked my second book of the week, Slaughterhouse-Five! I wanted to read it ever since I learned that part of the story of Billy Pilgrim – surviving the Dresden firebombing in a meat locker – was based on Vonnegut’s life. That section didn’t disappoint! It was truly moving to read. I even enjoyed the discontinuous narrative and the alien abduction sections. I just wish that someone else had written it – Vonnegut’s writing is so dry that everything feels like a farce. For the first book, 4/10; for the second, 8/10. Since both were short, I’ve included two quotes for this week of the program:

“God created every living creature that now moveth, and one was man. Mud as man alone could speak. God leaned close to mud as man sat up, looked around, and spoke. Man blinked. ‘What is the purpose of all this?’ he asked politely. ‘Everything must have a purpose?’ asked God. ‘Certainly,’ said man. ‘Then I leave it to you to think of one for all this,’ said God. And He went away.”

-Cat’s Cradle

 “Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt.”

-Slaughterhouse-Five

The final days

 After the majority of the final exams were over we still had to finish out DHF's and I had to prepare for my Genetics final that I was having the same day as our final excursion. On Saturday night we went out for a final hurrah to ensure we ended on a high note in Bonn. I spent most of the weekend, studying, packing, and cleaning the apartment to prepare for our plane ride home, and yet I feel like I did not do enough in advance. Always clean and pack a week before a deadline if possible, because I was running off of no sleep most of the weekend. On Monday we had our final excursion where were going to take a boat up the river and then see a castle later on. We originally got on the wrong boat so then we had to sprint to the correct one just as it was about to take off. I am always sprinting to something in Germany. On the boat we had our history of medicine final exam where we all ended up passing the class by the skin of our teeth. The boat ride was beautiful and we saw several more castles along the way. The hike up to the castle was another battle of wills and once we got there we had to wait a long time before the tours started. The inside of the castle was historically accurate and very well displayed. But, since we had to wait so long to get the tour, we ended up SPRINTING AGAIN DOWNHILL to make our train. I nearly rolled my ankle twice but successfully made it. I sure felt it for the next two days though. On the last Sunday and Monday, our host family cooked for Camryn and I and even gave us some Bonn souvenirs to take home since we forgot to buy some for ourselves. It was a chaotic last day before the plane ride, but everything went well and now here we are, back in Texas again. 

A normal weekend in Bonn

 The second to last weekend was a pretty slow one. I debated taking a short day trip to Rothenburg ob der Tauber but the ride there and back would have added too many hours in the day and I really needed to study. In the last week I hade 4 exams to prepare for, and my Genetics exam was holding a lot of pressure. By this point in time all I could think about was how much I missed home. I didn't think that would be the case while over in Germany but all the stress from school and my future plans were making me crave simplicity and a well known support system. When thinking of home though, I didn't think of my childhood home in Ft. Worth but the hill country of Texas. I missed the rivers and birds and my grandparents and green hills and wild flowers. Germany had most of those, but not in the way that my family did, this slow life that was separate of a city. I really did not think I was as drawn to Texas as I thought. Which then sent me into another crisis of falling back in love with the state I come from and then having to move across the country to go to grad school. The ending of the program was bringing up a lot of extensional dread about my upcoming future and as the days progressed it got closer and closer. To combat this I went shopping one final time in Bonn and a distraction. One last look at the streets on a busy Saturday. 

Easter Weekend

 Finals week was coming up so the last weekend for fun was Easter. Therefore I made sure to spend that time in as many museums, cafés, and parks as possible. I also made sure to gather the rest of my souvenir gifts for family and friends. I had major exams coming up in the week and the encodes project as soon as we got back so it was hard to keep that from my mind the whole weekend. Between moments of fun and relaxation I tried to study as much as possible. When it came to the two days for the project, it was hell. I haven't done a project like that in my entire college career and I was in my final month of college. It was all about the details and the research and making sure you were informed enough to not sound like and idiot during the presentation. The day came around for our presentations and of course it was the one day the entire trip when I accidentally slept in and was almost late to the buses. The adrenaline allowed me to clear my head before the presentation and not think of anything else that would stress me out. In the end the presentations went well and the encodes people asked questions that kept all of us on our toes and really showed what we had learned over the past few months. 

More Castles and Running Up Hill

 Last 4 weeks in Germany so I'm going to pack everything in as much as possible. That was the thought process behind traveling all the way back to Munich again to go see more castles I missed the last time I was there. The train ride there took forever so we didn't get into Munich until 12 am. It was my first time staying in a hostel and it wasn't too bad of an experience. Sleeping in a room full of strangers is daunting, especially because I snore so I can only imagine how annoying I must be. The next morning, Isabelle, Emily, and I got on a train to go see Neuschwanstein Castle. The closer we got, the more it started snowing, and this was on April 9th. After the train we had to get on a bust o take us closer to the castle, and yet it was not close enough. Because of the bus and train schedule, we were cutting it close with about 20 minutes until out time slot for our tour of the castle. The only problem was that we were dropped off at the bottom of the small mountain side in the town and had to haul ourselves up the hill to the entrance. I was going as fast as I could but it felt as if gravity was pulling me down. By the time I got to the entrance I barely made the time slot and Emily had to sneak me in. We missed the English tour and ended up going on a German one so we had no idea what was happening the entire time. Despite this hiccup, the interior of the castle spoke for itself. It was beautiful and ornate, looked very medical even though it was built in the 1800s. After the tour we enjoyed a hot lunch where the sun came out and nearly burned us to a crisp. The weather was so weird, it would be sunny and warm and then the next minute would turn into a blizzard. We then went to the knights castle down the hill that was much smaller but had an amazing story.  That night we went to dinner with Emily's family friends who moved to Germany from Texas. It was a nice change of pace. On the way back we hit the ground running on our projects and exams to top of the weekend. 

Old Friends in Düsseldorf

 Nearly seventy years ago when my grandfather, Carl, was at Penn State, he became friends with a German exchange student studying there named Harold Lichtendahl. They got along well enough that Harold invited Carl to visit him in Düsseldorf, marking the start of a friendship between my family and the Lichtendahls that now spans three generations. When my mother was sixteen, she spent a few months living with them in Germany. Harold’s son, Tim Lichtendahl, did the same; he and my mother have remained close friends since then. In 2015, Tim’s son, Johann, stayed with me and my family for a semester and went to my high school, where he got to score a touchdown in “American” football! The last time I saw Johann’s family was in 2018 when we visited them in Düsseldorf for Tim’s 60^th birthday party – that trip was one of my favorites that I’ve ever taken. Then Covid struck, and we were stuck on opposite sides of the Atlantic for nearly two years. However, in the second week of February, I was able to visit Johann and his mother, Steffi, at their home in Düsseldorf!!!

Looking back, that weekend was one of my favorites of the whole program. After I arrived in Düsseldorf, Johann and his mother took me through the Altstadt. We talked about everything: how university was going for Johann and for me, what we did in our free time, just how…urinary Kölsch looks/tastes. A classic Düsseldorf conversation. Then we grabbed a few Schumacher Alt’s and enjoyed the sunny weather and a great view of the Rhine. I just loved getting to see them again! We enjoyed a dinner prepared by Johann himself before he and I walked down the street to a small Kneipe, or the German equivalent of a pub. In high school, Johann was a member of Düsseldorf’s soccer team’s (Fortuna 95) Ultras club – for the uninitiated, Ultras are the most dedicated members of a soccer club’s fanbase. When we got to the pub, I realized that all the Germans there – about fifteen of them in a private room – were former members of the Fortuna Ultras. So that was interesting! I got to hear many, many stories from the heyday of their group. The night was long, beer-filled, and soooo fun. I was just glad to get to talk to real Germans – and they were excited to practice their English with me! I only wish I knew more German at the time; I used a semester’s worth of Genau's after just an hour.

We got up earlyish the next day to go watch a field hockey game, and I’ve never felt more German. Johann and his friend picked up a few beers (each) before the match, and I got a bright red mask to celebrate my Gerresheim pride. The game was surprisingly fun! I didn’t expect to enjoy the field-hockey side of it, but I picked up on the rules quickly enough and was rooting against Köln with them. It turns out that the game was actually quite important: Gerresheim was playing for a promotion to the first league, which would mean better equipment, more exposure, and well-earned honor. I had a blast and even made it onto local German TV when our team won! A great end to a great weekend.

My quote for this week of the program comes from one of the best novels I’ve read this year – Stoner, by John Williams. The book is about an English professor in the early 1900s at the University of Missouri. Any synopsis of this novel would fall flat, but mine is: Stoner starts out a poor farmer, falls in love with the written word, and lives his life, for better or worse. It was great – 9/10. So here’s a quote from a book about a man no different than anyone else:

“Now in his middle age he began to know that [love] was neither a state of grace nor an illusion; he saw it as a human act of becoming, a condition that was invented and modified moment by moment and day by day, by the will and the intelligence of the heart.”

-John Williams, Stoner

One All-Encompassing Blog Post Document

 Blog Post Document

 

*Note: I have been keeping a running list of all of my blog posts on a word document (because sometimes I have been without Wi-Fi when writing them), so instead of spamming the chat and posting each blog post one by one, I compiled a list and will be uploading all of my posts in one document.

• Sidenote: My first week’s blog post was posted in a different document, but it consisted of blogging recounting the week of 1/8/22-1/15/22.

        

 

Week 2 (1/15/22-1/22/22)

• This week I got invited over to Jules’ host family’s house for a BBQ dinner (I was invited over after she told her host family that the previous day we got lost together as we tried to make it home). Her host dad made us burgers and fries on the grill and the food was SO good (Editor’s Note: To present day, this is probably the best burger I had in Germany). After dinner, her host mom gave us black misfortune cookies with an unfortunate statement on them. Mine said, “du wirst sehr erfolgreich… mit misserfolgen umgehen.” It did not translate perfectly to English, so I am still not exactly sure what it says. 

• A couple of days after this we went on a study excursion to Cologne. The most memorable part of that trip was when we went to tour the Dom Cathedral and we got the opportunity to go all the way to the top of it. Although a beautiful view from the top, the elevator we took to get up there was without a doubt the sketchiest elevator I have ever been on in my entire life! It looked like a service elevator that had not passed inspection and it made the most perturbing noise. Even as an individual who is not afraid of heights, this elevator had me spooked.

•  On the 21st of this week, Katie, Daniel, and I ventured back to Cologne where we explored the Lindor Chocolate Museum and ate there. We all got dishes that incorporated chocolate in one way or another (mostly desserts), but Katie got Texas Chili with a drizzle of chocolate on top and it was surprisingly tasty. The chili actually tasted authentic, and the chocolate meshed very well with the chili. We then checked out the gift shop where they had basically every chocolate flavor imaginable. We loaded up on this, and my personal favorite flavor was the prosecco chocolate. 

• After that, we went to a steak restaurant for dinner that was pretty good, and because it was rainy on our way to the restaurant, we all got splashed by the FATTEST puddle of water as an 18-wheeler zoomed through it. :/ After dinner, we retired to our hotel room to prepare for our trip the next day. The next morning, we took a Bla Bla car to Munster and we had the coolest Bla Bla driver named Christine. We mostly discussed cultural differences and she texted us a list of different things to go see around Munster. We went to the zoo where we saw the CUTEST penguins and prairie dogs, and here, is where we noticed how well-behaved all of the dogs in Germany were. Dogs were allowed in the zoo, and the entire time we were there we did not hear a SINGLE dog bark at any of the animals. After the zoo, we explored the town and strolled into a cheese store (aka Heaven on Earth). They had the most exotic and best cheese selection that I have ever seen. They offered an innumerable amount of different cheese flavors like pesto cheese, lavender cheese, and even coconut cheese! After exploring the town, we got dinner at a “Mexican” food restaurant, but it was pretty good! The “queso” mentioned on the menu was not anything like the queso we were used to, but the guac, as well as the flautas, were much better than we were anticipating.

Week 3 (1/22/22-1/29/22)

• This week I fully embraced the European lifestyle and purchased a pair of ELECTRIC BLUE Doc Martens. I have no idea how I convinced my mom to allow me to buy these, but I have never been more content with a shoe purchase. Not only were they super comfortable and I didn’t have to break them in; they also matched PERFECTLY with a blue scrunchie I already had, talk about a match made in Heaven (AND DID I MENTION THEY WERE ON SALE). ;)

• This week wasn’t all good though as I lost one of my favorite perfume scents that I specifically bought to have enough to sustain me for the duration of this trip. After recovering from this tragic loss, a couple of days later our German professor took us to a cute little coffee vendor where we all had to order for our first time in German (don’t worry our drinks were in fact paid for us as this was an assignment lol). It was a lot easier than I anticipated and from that day forward I continued to try to order in German as best as I could, everywhere I went. Although, as a member of the coffee slander and hate club I ordered hot chocolate and it was honestly average, but the vendor put a heart made of cinnamon in my drink, so this dramatically increased my rating of the hot chocolate. 

• After class was over, we had a little bit of time before our next class started so we decided to check out a store called “Rednib”. Daniel had noticed this place and decided he wanted to check it out on the first day we made it to Bonn, but he had never gotten around to it yet. As we were walking to the coffee vendor, a man stopped and complimented Daniel’s A&M hat and mentioned that he had connections to A&M, so if we were to go shop in Rednib he would give us a good discount as he was one of the owners. This prompted us to check out the store and we ended up chopping it all the way up with the two brothers who owned it. One of them (Phil, I believe his name was) mentioned that he had worked with Dr. Wasser and this program in the past, and he even flew out to College Station, Texas for a little bit to help out with the program. He mentioned that he missed how cheap, yet high quality the meat selection was at HEB, as well as The Dixie Chicken. I wanted to buy a beanie from there, but I was already spending too much money so hopefully at some point during this program, I get the opportunity to go back and buy it (Editor’s Note: I am even poorer now than I was at the time of writing this post, so I was never able to make it back to get that beanie :( ).

Week 4 (1/29/22-2/5/22)

• This week we went on a study excursion to Berlin for a week! The first thing we did when we got there was find something to eat. Me, Tati, Katie, and Emily ended up trying this good Chipotle-style restaurant called “Berlin Burrito”. The portions were HUGE and it was the first “spicy” food I found in Germany. I enjoyed it so much that I went back to eat it again on a different day.

• Whilst in Berlin, we visited many different memorial sites as well important historic sites that were relevant to the city. We also visited the concentration camp, Sachsenhausen, and it was an eye-opening experience. We have learned about the Nazi period our entire lives, but it is a much different experience when you actually go visit a concentration camp where everything actually took place.

• During the nights of the program most of us went out and this was the first time I actually got to know everybody. We went to this one bar with super sweet bartenders and the floor was made of sand. Outside of this bar, we were just walking and these two teenagers heard us speaking English and asked if we were British. One was German and the other was Irish but lived in Germany for school. We ended up having good conversations with them for a long time and we taught them American slang like “bet” and “brazy”. Also, at some point during the night I forced Katie to take a picture of me with a Berlin Bear (although I didn't get a great one as my toxic trait is constantly having my eyes closed in pictures) as there are numerous bears around the city and they are all unique and diverse.

• At some point during the trip, a couple of us went to walk around a park where we just got to know each other better. We stopped and sat on several benches and just enjoyed our time together. Eventually, we walked back to the hotel and as soon as we got right in front of the lobby doors I noticed that my hat was no longer on my head (beanie/hat pictured above). I was just going to call it a loss, but Daniel and Katie convinced me to go back to the park and check, and fortunately, we did and my beanie was desolately sitting on a bench right where I left it!! I attribute this to the fact that Europeans are somewhat similar to Aggies in the way they don’t steal, but this could just be an illusory correlation. :)

• On the 4th we had a lot of free time so we dedicated this day to checking out as many museums as we could. My favorite museum (art-wise) was the Alte Nationalgalerie. I don’t know what style of art was hosted here (as I am not super artistically inclined), but this museum had the most beautiful paintings with INCREDIBLE detail.

• After a wonderful week in Berlin, on the 5th we got on a train and left for Rugen for the weekend to celebrate Jules’ birthday!

Week 5 (2/5/22-2/12/22)

• After hours of travel, we finally made it to our bougie AirBnB with a beachside view. It was called the Villa Marie, and this gave us a little taste of College Station that we were missing lol.

• That night, we went to the store to grab ingredients to make Jules’ birthday dinner. When we travel Daniel was always the designated chef, so he sent us off with a list of ingredients. After we finished our shopping spree, we set up a camera timer and had a little photo shoot with the logo of the store because it was cute despite the freezing conditions we endured while snapping the perfect picture. As if our luck couldn’t get any better, when we were getting ready to leave a kitty came up to us looking for attention and we rightfully gave him some.

• Once we got home Daniel whipped up a tasty dinner for us that consisted of a pesto chicken pasta, alfredo chicken pasta, and alfredo-pesto chicken pasta, and we had a birthday celebration with dinner, ice cream, and birthday hats!

• After dinner, somehow Jules and Katie were able to convince me and Daniel to go jump into the Baltic Sea while it was approximately 38 F. It was only a short trek away from the house and not many people can say that they did this, so ultimately we caved. Although hesitant at first I am glad we did this, it was extremely cold, but I know this would be a great memory one day.

• The next day, we got up early and went on a hike to see the chalk cliffs that Rugen is famous for. This was my first actual hike, and it was super fun (and pretty), I see why people go regularly lol! We stopped to take yet another camera-timer picture, and right after the picture, we witnessed a GARGANTUAN mudslide. If we did not stop to take this picture we would have definitely been in the path of this mudslide and got severely injured.

Week 6 (2/12/22-2/19/22)

• This week was not as action-packed as my previous week as we had a lot of school work and tests to complete this week. Although, during this week, we made the time to have a Galentine’s Day celebration, where all the girls in the program got together and had a Valentine's Day party. We had a pot-luck-style party where we all really bonded and got to know each other better. Jules brought her tinsel installation kit where some girls got tinsel in their hair (and she had a plethora of colors, so there was a color for everyone), and Avery brought her different eye glitters and applied that to us. This night was giving very much, “Women in STEM”.

I did not get any hair tinsel, but this was the glitter in question.

• Also, on the 19th, Daniel and I went to go see the movie, “Uncharted”. This was our first experience with the German movie theater system but it was a more preferable system than America’s. We chose to watch this movie because it was the only one being shown in English, but most of the people we heard speaking in English were British so that was a fun experience. 

• SIDE NOTE: I never thought about it (as the egotistical American that I unconsciously am), but it makes sense geographically that Europeans learn and utilize British English when speaking (rubbish, coloUr, etc.) because they are closer to the UK than the USA.

• The price of the movie ticket was cheaper than in America (about $11 per ticket), and the concessions were cheaper too. This movie theater had a Subway inside of it, but we ended up getting the traditional movie refreshments. We got a combo that consisted of two 1-liter drinks, a big fat bag of popcorn, and a nachos box that came with nacho cheese and guac for $18. I thought it was interesting that when ordering we had the option to get either sweet or salty popcorn. We got salty and asked the lady working if they had a butter machine and she laughed and informed us that salty popcorn was not super popular in Germany.

Week 7 (2/19/22-2/26/22)

• This was a big test week for BIMS students so to start off the week Daniel and I went to a cafe to study for our physiology exam. Although a good environment, we kept getting distracted so we went out and started looking for a library to study in. After visiting multiple libraries, we were unsuccessful in getting into any of them. We could not get into the first library as we were not students in Bonn and this was a COVID regulation. The second one was available to the public, but we had to pay a small fee and apply for a membership, but the librarian told us this would take a couple of days to process. We ended up filling out a membership application, but we never heard back from them. We then went to BackWerk and studied there for a little bit since it was much quieter than our first destination. If you are good friends with me, you would know that my favorite drink when I am looking for something slightly sweet to drink is CapriSun. At BackWerk, I tried my first European CapriSun and it was EXTRAORDINARY! It was much better than the ones in America because it tasted less artificial and more fruity. Although better, I was a little bummed because Europe did not sell my favorite flavor, Pacific Cooler, RIP. :(

• This week I also had my first European hair appointment and it was strikingly similar to my hair appointments in America. I met the hairdresser’s children and started playing with them for a little bit until it was my turn. Although a language barrier, we were still able to play and have a good time together. When it was my turn to be styled, the hairdresser put on her 2000s R&B playlist to make me feel at home. Her playlist was actually SO good and she put me on some music, she had me Shazaming songs on my phone on the low lol! 

• This is just a random side story from this week, but when I was grocery shopping in my local Edeka, I came across a section of American-themed foods. Although not completely inaccurate I think it is so funny to see the European perception of Americans especially when it comes to health and food. I noticed a lot of the products that were branded as American had words like “jumbo” or “large” on them and I found this hilarious. I even took a picture of my favorite “American” product, since it made me audibly laugh when I read the name.

Week 8 (2/26/22-3/5/22)

• This week was the week of Karneval in Germany! It was fun to see everyone, especially older people, out in the streets in their costumes. Two women even came up to me, Daniel, Katie, and Jules, and offered us Kamela or candy as this is one of the Karneval practices. In order to accurately participate in this cultural experience, after class Isabelle and I went shopping at a Karneval store called Deiters to get a costume. Isabelle ended up dressing as a fairy and I dressed as Cupid. Later that night we all went out and watched the Germans get down for this holiday! However, this celebration was modified due to COVID, so we could not attend an actual parade.

• Later this week, Katie and I went to check out a steakhouse in Bonn. This steak house was unique in that they served your steak rare and gave you two lava stones, one hot and one cold. If you wanted to continue to cook your steak further you would put it on the hot stone, and if your hot stone ever got too cool they would come and trade it out with a new one for you. Not only was the steak moderately priced, but it was also juicy and appetizing. In addition, Katie and I both had our first Caesar salads since coming here, as this is not as popular of a salad type, and it was super tasty.

• This week, the clubs in Bonn opened and anyone could go with the requirement that you had a negative COVID test from the day you planned on attending. We ended up going to see what a German club was like and I was shocked at the vast amount of American songs that were played as well as by the fact that clubs close at 5 AM instead of 2 AM. I also was actively introduced to the concept of pfand here. Pfand is when you pay an extra deposit on plastic or glass containers that house your drink, but once you return your drink containers you get your money back. I knew that this was a thing when buying reusable containers from grocery stores, but it was interesting to see it implemented in a bar setting. When you would order a drink, it would come in a glass cup and you received a chip with it. When you were finished with your drink you would give both the chip and the glass back and you would get your euro deposit back.

Week 9 (3/5/22-3/12/22)

• This week I finally got to check out the Haribo store! It is so insane that the company, Haribo, was established in Bonn, but after visiting the storefront I could definitely tell by all the different candy products they possessed. They had so many different candies that I had never seen before and that did not exist in America! I got a little box and you could put any candy you wanted in there (as long as it fit) without being charged by weight as it was a predetermined price. I tried SO many different candies, but one of my favorite ones that I tried was called “Pico-Balla”, and these were basically bi-flavored gummy bear rings. I also went to the second floor of this store and took a picture with the mascot!

• This was also a week for trying new things as I tried a restaurant by my house that I always pass. It was called, “Rheinbrücke”. After Googling pictures of most of the dishes on the menu I ended up ordering, Käsespätzle with pork pieces on top. This was one of the best German dishes I had eaten, thus far. It was similar to a super cheesy egg noodle casserole with these pork pieces on top, with a side of fried potato circles. I was so satisfied with this restaurant that maybe one day I will go back again and try another dish because there was so much on the menu that sounded good!

• This week, I also rode with Daniel out to his house to both see what his house looked like and to go with him while he picked something up that he forgot. I only saw his house from the outside, but he lived in such a cute area with modern-looking houses and he lived about a minute away from the Cotton Forest, so the nature there was beautiful. I also got to have a first-hand experience in sharing his hatred for Deutsche Bahn. Daniel's train is CONSTANTLY late or getting cancelled completely, and to top it off, it already only comes like every 30 minutes. While I was there, trying to get back home, two of his trains were cancelled and I spent over an hour waiting at his train stop, and it was much too far away to just walk back.

• Earlier this month, Rike informed us of the magic of spaghettieis. After hearing the description of it I knew I would have to try it as soon as the ice cream shops reopened for the warmer season. Spaghettieis is regular vanilla ice cream that is pressed into a noodle shape with strawberry syrup on top that makes it look like spaghetti. Fast forward to now, I finally got to try this product and I was not disappointed! This ice cream looked EXACTLY like spaghetti! It was a little bit sweet but 10/10 would recommend for the cultural experience!

Week 11 (3/19/22-3/26/22)

• This week was not super eventful as it was a test week, but I still managed to have fun and make good memories! For Avery’s birthday, her mom sent her Chili mix (along with other gifts), so she made us Frito pie for dinner one night and we were not disappointed! Some of the ingredients in the store did not permit us to make it with all of the same ingredients, so we improvised where we could, but this dish did taste like home! Surprisingly, when I came to Germany I was shocked to see that chili was such a popular dish here! I saw it on many restaurant menus, and my host family even made it for us for dinner one night! The chili here is pretty similar, but instead of having a slight element of spice, it tastes more marinara sauce-based.

• This week Jules mentioned that her undercut was getting too long and that it needed to be reshaved (as she regularly does this since her hair is so thick). She brought the electric razor that she upkeeps it with, but she is unable to do it by herself. Daniel thee Barber stepped up to the plate and offered to shave it for her. This was a fun class bonding activity as all of us drew designs that we felt should end up in her buzz cut. Ultimately, she ended up deciding to get a lightning bolt shaved into it and Daniel was off to work. Isabelle cut the long strands of hair with scissors (as Daniel wasn’t gentle enough), and Daniel worked the razor. The lightning bolt was coming out well, but about halfway through it, the razor died and we did not have the batteries to replace it, so she was left with half of a lightning bolt design on her scalp.

   

This was prior to the lightning bolt design.

• After Daniel’s barber session we all played soccer with Lakka (Dr. Wasser’s puppy) and Meatball (the soccer ball) for at least 45 minutes lol. Meatball was gifted to us one day as he fell out of the sky, into our courtyard (no exaggeration). After we got him, we played soccer with him every day during lunch as a little brain break and cool-off exercise.

• At the end of the week, Avery and I finally tried the Chinese restaurant that we pass every single day when coming home. This restaurant is called “China Restaurant” and is unique because it was designed as a boat that floated along the Rhine River. On the weekends this restaurant turned into a buffet-style restaurant so we just happened to get lucky on the day we went because otherwise, our food would have been a little pricey. We ate our food and it was pretty good, and the restaurant had a great ambiance associated with it! We left with food babies so you could say we got our money’s worth.

Week 12 (3/26/22-4/2/22)

• This week was our study excursion to Vienna. It took an eight-hour train ride to get there, but we made it in one piece. My favorite part of the trip was going on an excursion with Dr. Schnabel. He was a plague doctor from the 14th century. He gave us a tour around Vienna regarding the significance of plague in his full plague doctor attire. In order to keep us safe from the disease, he gave us a variety of remedies. This included herbs to chew on as well as piss to drink (iykyk) as these were common plague treatments from the time. Whist receiving this tour the Vienesians gave us weird looks the entire time, but no one cared because everyone was having such a great time!

• I also really enjoyed the tour of St. Michael’s Church Crypt as well as the classical concert in St. Anne’s Church. This was my first time going into a crypt and I thought it was very interesting to see the burial procedures for the rich at the time. We also saw a couple of mummies and it was shocking to see how well preserved they were! One of the mummies still even had visible fingernails as well as clothing that was mostly still intact. On the 3rd, we went to the classical music concert and the church that it was housed in was absolutely BEAUTIFUL and extremely ornate! The music was lovely and it was a fun opportunity for all of us to dress up!

• On the last day of the program we were given free time to do whatever we wanted, so, Bridget, Jarrett, Daniel, and I decided to go grab something to eat before our train ride back to Bonn. We went to this place called “Wien Naschmarkt” and their slogan was “Meat and Beer on Rails.” We got there but found out that they would not be opening for the next 30 minutes so we looked around the nearby farmers/flea market. Here I saw the most INCREDIBLE, potent, and prettiest blue tulips that I have ever seen in my life. I regret not buying them. :(

• After looking around the market for a little bit we headed back to the restaurant and ate. This restaurant was unique in that every single seating area had a train track in front of it, and when you ordered food or drinks the food would be delivered to you by the train. This was such a fun experience, and I would recommend people to eat at this restaurant when visiting Vienna to get a change of pace and see something new. :)

• After Vienna, it was time for us to go back to Bonn, and on the train,  it was me, Dr. Wasser, Marcus, Rike, Bridget, Tati, Jarrett, and Daniel who headed back. We left Vienna at 3 PM and did not get back to Bonn until 3 AM. Mind you, it was only supposed to be an 8-hour journey. It was quite an adventure. Initially, our train kept getting delayed and we assumed it was due to the bad weather, as it started snowing on the ride back. At one point, at Oberwesel Bahnhof at approximately 12:55 AM, our train was stopped on the tracks for two hours because there was a broken freight train on the tracks and they were trying to figure out how to remove it. During this time period, they let us get out and walk around the platform just to stretch our legs, etc. They even gave us chocolate and water bottles (in a cardboard box ofc, bc plastic is bad) for free. When we got back to Bonn it was around 2:30-3:00 AM and Dr. Wasser instructed us to take taxis home and he would reimburse us for them later that week. 

Week 13 (4/2/22-4/9/22)

• On April 9th, 2022 we had the most eventful day. Me, Katie, Daniel, and Jules met at Katie’s house, watched a little bit of trash reality TV (the Ultimatum ofc), then decided to go out that night. We all left our belongings in Katie’s house; then went out. After going to a club we decided to call it a night and head home. Once we got back to Katie’s she realized that she left her house key inside, and both Daniel and my belongings were inside (including our house keys). We quickly came to the realization that we also would not be able to enter the apartment because Isabelle and their other roommate (Christina) were out of town. We then called the AIB Emergency Hotline number and most definitely woke the kindest AIB student worker, Emily, out of her slumber to demand assistance. After causing her trouble by being a nuisance she told us that she could contact a locksmith for us and she relayed the information to us that the locksmith was on his way and would be there in 30-50 minutes. About 45 minutes into our wait Jules left and offered for us to spend the night at her host family’s house (because she had her key on her) but we declined as the locksmith was almost there. We waited on the curb outside of her apartment from 1:00 AM to about 2:30 AM until we called Emily back and asked for an update. She contacted the locksmith and then informed us that it was a busy night for him so it would now take him another hour to come and it would cost €500! We promptly cancelled his services and Emily gave us Nuki Code access to one of the buildings AIB owned that was used for emergency situations. It looked like a building that would be used for art students, and on the very top floor, there was a loft that had two full-size mattresses. I was super thankful that we got a bed to sleep in for the night, but this was not the most ideal situation. This was the coldest I’d ever been going to sleep whilst being inside. We slept in our jackets and used the pillows as covers, and at one point in the night, I even woke up, put my tennis shoes on (because my feet were so cold), and went back to sleep. We woke up at 7 AM the next morning and called a different locksmith and he showed up in 20 minutes. His name was Johan and he only charged $60. He got us in, in less than 10 minutes and left us a cute receipt.

Week 14 (4/9/22-4/16/22)

• This week the cherry blossoms in Bonn blossomed!! Around this time of the year, the tourists start flooding into town from everywhere to witness these cherry blossoms. This was the most I ever heard English spoken here in passing. I visited the Aldstadt because this is where the main concentration of cherry blossom trees are located. The day I checked this area out everyone was super active and lively outside. There were a ton of people taking pictures with the cherry blossoms as well as dancing in the middle of the cherry blossom-filled street. I’m not sure if it was an organized thing occurring or if people just felt like dancing to the music so they did precisely that, but it was a great experience to stumble upon.

• This week Jules, Daniel, Katie, and I also went to the Bonn carnival and had an amazing time! It was very similar to an American carnival based on the food and rides they had, but it was well worth the visit. A picture of our favorite ride will be inserted below. Although a fairly basic-looking ride, it was more fun riding it here than in America because they added a little twist to the ride. This ride spins you in circles, but halfway through it the worker comes by and hands you a full cup of water, and the goal is to make it through the rest of the ride without spilling the water, but this task is nearly impossible. When I saw these waters being handed out for the first time, I initially thought they were for drinking, but I watched the group in front of us and realized they were trying their best to keep their water full. This made the ride extra fun for us because this was such a new and interesting experience.

• This week also consisted of our bike tour to Remagen. However, everyone biked from Bonn to Remagen, but I can’t ride a bike, so AIB bought me a train ticket and I was told to meet up with the group. After arrival, we went and toured the Peace Museum Bridge and learned about the significance of this bridge during WWI and WWII. After the tour, we got to see the remnants of the physical bridge and it was an extremely informative yet polarizing experience. 

Week 15 (4/16/22-4/23/22)

• This week was very academically rigorous. For many days in a row, we stayed after hours (until about midnight) at AIB to work on and finalize our ENMODES project as we presented to them on Thursday of this week. To ensure that we were maximizing the time we got to spend on our product Dr. Wasser ordered us lunch and dinner at AIB, so we would not have to break our concentration when we would leave to go get food. We spent multiple hours and days presenting our mock presentations to Dr. Wasser, Latifah, and the minions, receiving constructive feedback and revising our presentations until they were perfect, but this process was very helpful. One eventful moment during this time period was when Bridget removed a tick head from Madyson’s back. Madyson had gone hiking, noticed a tick latched on to her, tried to extrapolate the tick herself, accidentally detached the head from the body, and got the head stuck in her. The tick stayed in her overnight and she began to feel sick, but the next day Bridget offered to remove it for her. After practicing good sterile techniques, Bridget tediously removed the tick head from Madyson. 

• After many days of hard work, Thursday finally rolled around and we traveled to Aachen to give our presentations to ENMODES. After the presentation, it felt as though a weight had been lifted off of all our shoulders, and are out of whack circadian cycle started to catch up with us and we realized how exhausted we were. We ended up getting a group lunch at a burger place with everybody and were instructed to meet at the Bonn Theater later that night so we could view an operetta.

• That night we watched an operetta called, “Die Fledermaus”. Although we could not understand anything most of us had a relatively good understanding of the plot. The vocals, as well as the performative aspect and the sets, were INCREDIBLE! I would really like to rewatch this in English to make sure I fully understand everything and did not miss a beat. This was also my first time watching an operetta, and I really enjoyed this style because it was like a mini-musical! 

• On Friday of this week, Daniel, Nate, Jules, Richard (Jules’ boyfriend), Katie, and I decided to take an impromptu trip to Freiburg im Breisgau for the weekend to hike the Black Forest. We ended up finding this farmhouse AirBnB that had bovine on their property, it was so cute! They left this adorable note and picture, but despite our translation efforts, we could not fully understand the message that was being conveyed.

Week 16 (4/23/22-4/30/22)

• On our way to hike the Black Forest, we explored some areas of their town. We saw their cathedral as well as their Marktplatz area. They also have these little above-ground water streams throughout the city and we saw little kids racing their sailboats through them and it was the most endearing thing to watch. Here is what the little canals looked like.

• We ended up hiking throughout the Black Forest, unfortunately, we did not make it to the tallest peak as this would have been an 8-hour hike in both directions. We ended up completing a 6-7 hour hike (I believe) and made it to one of the lower peaks. Early on in the hike, we came across a swing set and every single one of us took turns swinging lol! We spent like 40 minutes here just fooling sound before we actually got into the thick of the hike. We trekked on, stopped for lunch, and kept moving after that. After a couple of hours we ended up reaching a nice clearing, there was a big bench that we relaxed on in the sun for an entire hour. The hike was beautiful and I had a great time bonding with everyone!

• The highlight of my week this week was petting and playing with the cows on the farm! I have never pet a cow before, and this was something I have wanted to do my whole life (it was even on my bucket list lol), and I finally accomplished this, this weekend! Cows are just basically bigger puppies and deserve just as much love! The cows were extremely docile and were not even spooked when we approached them. They were extremely good sports throughout the entire petting process haha.

 

• This weekend we also went to our first and last Biergarten. We felt like culturally this was an important thing to experience, so we went to fully immerse ourselves in it. This was a fun experience and we got to sit outside and watch the sunset while we were in a beautiful field drinking beer, it was perfect!

Week 17 (4/30/22-End of Program)

• Our last week in Bonn consisted of mainly reminiscing on the things we loved most about this amazing city. Initially, we tried to go to the Bonn merch store to get some last-minute souvenirs for our loved ones, but it was closed on the weekends so we ended up checking out what the market in Munsterplatz had to offer. This market had an abundance of little shops that sold very diverse, niche, mostly handmade items. We saw people selling many different things like personalized stamps (which he would make in front of you), paintings that consisted only of circular shapes, quilted cat toys, custom wooden figurines, custom musical instruments, and many more products! There was also a food section and after working on the DHF and the booklet all day Daniel, Katie, and I all decided to get a pizza that prior to this, we did not know this pizza would change our lives. We all ordered a kartoffel mit speck pizza (potato with bacon pizza) because none of us had tried this combination and it seemed very interesting. We all agreed that THIS was the BEST pizza we had eaten in Germany. All of the ingredients tasted super fresh and the uniqueness of the combination really took that pizza to the next level!

 

• After all of our final work was submitted on Saturday (4/30), we all decided to go out as a group one last time as a final “hoorah” to the program. We had a great time and it was fun getting to hang out with everyone for one last time outside of an academic setting. It is crazy to think that I saw these people every day for the past four months, and now I will see everyone significantly less frequently! We have to do at least one reunion in College Station to check in on everybody. :) After parting ways with everyone Nate, Daniel, Katie, Meatball, and I all headed back to Katie’s apartment. We were playing around with Meatball and kicking him through the streets and this was fun because a bunch of locals were also joining in and kicking him with us. Little did we know, this was going to be the last time we saw Meatball. Daniel and Katie were fighting for Meatball’s attention and somehow he was accidentally kicked under a construction fence and was in an unreachable position, so we had to leave him, RIP Meatball. :( After continuing our grief-stricken walk back we noticed a bunch of groups of teenage guys walking around with birch trees in their hands. After doing a little bit of investigating we found out that on the night of April 30th, if a guy has a crush on a girl, it is a tradition that he goes and cuts down a birch tree and decorates it, and puts it outside of his crush’s house so that it is visible from her window, so she can wake up to love on May 1st. This tradition was the cutest thing and I am glad I got to experience people taking part in it!

• On May 2nd, we went on our final day trip to Marksburg in Braubach. We went on a Rhine cruise where we were given our oral History of Medicine final and everyone passed with flying colors. We also went to the castle, Marksburg (aka my first castle), and it was interesting to see how this castle operated as a living quarters back in the day. I found it humorous that only the wealthy had indoor bathrooms, so they would put the bathroom in the most populated spot of the house where the most people would see it. For most castles, this spot was typically the great hall where royal dinners were served. We also were taught that in order to not miss a beat and stay involved in all the conversations most people would use these bathrooms with the door open! Although this was a great excursion, it was also a harrowing experience because this would be the last time we would see everyone all together. At the end of the day, we all said our final goodbyes before we parted ways with each other and got ready for our flight back to Texas in the morning. I am so glad I got the opportunity to participate in this study abroad experience.