Exams and Berlin

 

This week was quite interesting. A lot has changed in my life and I’ve seen a lot of new places that I never thought I would ever get the chance to see. After speaking with some locals in Bonn, we decided that it would be better to not stay all three days in Bonn-Koln and instead head to Berlin where we could take advantage of the 3-day weekend. The funny part is that this is the first week where I am not with Jackson and Emiliano as they went to Croatia instead of Berlin. I bet it was a very chill weekend for them where they got to see new things and Jackson finally got his wish of just being in nature.

              Before I get to the fun part which was Berlin, I can say that the school week was stressful as hell. We had 3 exams in a week, and I hated every second of it. I was stressed most of the time and had to deal with it by myself which is always fun especially when you have to do well in them. However, it was also interesting since I finally got to see how hard the exams would be and what I now have to watch out for, regarding the class and the things we see in those exams. Now, I think that’s enough on the class.

              On Thursday, with the start of Karneval, we got to participate in the giving out of candy which at first I didn’t want to do but after seeing all the little kids running around screaming for candy, I began to enjoy it. Throwing candy onto the streets and even throwing candy onto the rooftops and getting cheers from the people on top was something that I will never forget and something that brought me lots of joy. It reminded me of Halloween but on steroids and more of a tradition where the whole culture partook. I really hope that one day I can return and do it again but as a spectator.

              Now, onto the fun part which was Berlin. I’ve always wanted to see Berlin because of its historical presence and the people associated with it. Growing up reading books on World War I and II and the Reichstag and then finally seeing it was something amazing that I will never forget. The one downfall of the entire thing was Hitlers bunker as it was leveled in the 50s understandably. However, being able to stand near where he was, was surreal, and not in a creepy idolization way but as a historians view. The other real cool thing we got to see was the Pergamon museum or at least part of it since it was under renovation. We had to go to a part of the museum and see the ‘Das Panorama’ which had 80 pieces on exhibit as well as the panorama of what Pergamon would have looked like. To be honest, if that is what society used to look like, it looked beautiful and I wish we could go back to that but bring back medicine and health. It would be like modern Sicily. After that part, we ended up going to this Mexican place which at first, I was wary about until I heard that the owners were from Mexico City, and I almost cried speaking with them in Spanish. I got totopos, Birria and a Jamaica and it was amazing. I also ended up getting a michelada and two jarritos which reminded me of home a lot. Another thing we got to see was the Berlin Dom which was kind of weird since it is the first church that has charged us to enter. It was a beautiful cathedral and we got to go to the top which was really cool but freaked me out at the same time. Did not feel very safe heading to the top but got to trust the German Engineering. Got to say my prayer asking for blessings for my friends and family and advice on stuff going on in my life. This week was really cool, and I got to see a lot of things that as a historian, I was very happy and blessed to see.