Day 111

The past months have been insane. A good insane, but insane nonetheless. I feel like I have become a much more independent person, which I had hoped for. Something I didn’t expect to happen was that I’m now a bit of a cheese snob. My host parents always had the best cheeses that were served with dinner, and I’m going to miss those so much. American cheeses taste powdery and weird in comparison to what they always would prepare. Another thing I didn’t expect was the religious aspect of this trip. Visiting all of the cathedrals and learning about how much work was put into them always astounded me. People would dedicate their entire lives to completing an altarpiece, statue, or stained-glass window, all for their Lord. The fact that somebody could invest that amount of time into something and get little to nothing in terms of monetary compensation in return was so strange. It made me appreciate their work and their motivation. It's hard to put into words what this meant to me, but it made me feel closer to my own religion and deity. My host parents were pescatarians, which I was initially concerned about. I’ve grown up eating meat with every meal and was never the biggest fan of vegetables. Now, I like them and will incorporate them into my diet more. I also feel like I have a much deeper appreciation for Germans. Germany has a very controversial, troubled past, yet the people choose to face it head on and hold themselves accountable for their actions. If you mention slavery in America, people handle it much differently and less tactful than how Germans deal with World War II. During this trip, I realized how much I liked history and I'm now getting a minor in it! If I hadn't have gone on this Hero's Journey I would most definitely not be getting a minor in that subject. I learned that I really like snow in small amounts and love living next to a river, I had low expectations on how many people I would befriend and really enjoy hanging out and traveling with, and that was one of the biggest surprises of all. Nearly everybody that I had class with was so fun and I'm happy to call most of them my friends. I know that some of the people that I met on this trip will be my friends for many years to come, and that makes my heart happy. Germany was a beautiful, welcoming country and I can't wait to return. 

Day 74

On our last day in eastern Germany, we spent our time viewing the two large palaces in Potsdam. The Neus Palais and Sans Souci were both gigantic and breathtaking. The Rococo decor was extremely intricate and very extensive. Every room we entered had a theme and elements of it were present everywhere you looked. The architects and artists paid such careful attention to all the detail in each room, and the care they took while decorating did not go unnoticed. I had never seen a Grotto room prior to visiting Neus Palais, and it was the most impressive hall I had ever been in. All the structures, ceiling, floor, and wall were covered in aquatic pieces ranging from sea glass to shells. It was definitely my favorite. The dance hall in Neus Palais was constructed out of solid marble. It lies directly above the Grotto Room, which proved to be a problem. The emperor didn't want any beams in the Grotto Room because he felt like it would take away from the Grottoish vibes. He then proceeded to ignore all of the engineers and architects who told him that it was ridiculous and he needed some type of supports beneath. This has caused decades of problems for those in charge of maintaining the palace. The wood beams that lie in the floor and hold up the marble floor can't withstand the weight and pressure from the stone, causing them to crack and break. The floor began to sag and the threat of it collapsing was major. So, really smart people have figured it out a way to replace all the beams through one hole in the floor. They have since done this three times, and will have to continue to do it if they wanted to preserve the floor. In Sans Souci there was a bedchamber bearing the title of the Voltaire Room, despite the fact that Voltaire never stayed there. It was jungle themed and had yellow walls decorated with fruits, squirrels, monkeys, and tropical birds. Before heading back to Bonn, we had a mini snowball fight in front of the RV.

The RV park we stayed at bordered a beautiful lake

Neus Palais + group photo

The Grotto Room

The room was covered in shells, corals, sea glass, driftwood, and fossils.

The Rococo decorations always incorporated elements of nature. This specific design was meant to resemble a spider web.  

This was the bed chamber of the head of the estate. The chandelier alone cost more than my life and was taller than me.

This was one of the few rooms in Neus Palais that had silver embellishments. It was appropriately named The Silver Room.

All of the wooden floors were laid by hand. This took multiple master craftsmen to create and used over seven types of wood.

The ballroom with solid marble floors

Day 72

My parents came to Germany! Ever since I told them that I was going to Bonn to study abroad, they knew that they were undoubtedly going to come visit. My parents both have close relatives that lived in Germany and heard a fair amount of Deutsch growing up, so this country has been on their bucket list of places to see for a while. They, along with my grandmother, landed early Thursday morning. Once they got the rental vehicle, they drove up from Frankfurt and slowly made their way to Bonn. They stopped at Cochem and did a quick town visit before taking their chariot to my house on the Rhein. My host parents were extremely excited to meet my actual parents, so my host mom had spent the entire evening before preparing desserts and breads for their arrival. Math class was cancelled by some miracle, so I managed to make it home earlier than I expected and got to help Gitti put the final touches on dinner. The time it took for my family to arrive crawled along. I ran to the door when I got the “We’re here!” text and my mother hugged me so hard that I thought I would suffocate. After spending five minutes trying to park the camper van, my dad and grandmother followed the both of us inside. It was very weird to see both of my worlds collide when my actual parents and host parents started conversing. Gitti had made a favorite of her and mine, sauerkraut suppe, and she was excited for my parents to try an authentic German dish. My family had no problems eating the delicious soup and accompanying vegetables, which they washed down with Karl’s favorite kind of beer. After catching up on the past months, we all decided to go to bed because we knew we had a long weekend ahead of us.

The next day our class had the chance to get a guided tour of the Horst-Stoeckel-Museum für die Geschichte der Anästhesiologie. We were even lucky enough to have Horst Stoeckel, the founder of the museum, there and he answered many of the questions we had. Once the museum tour was over, Camella, Lois, Deanna, and I joined my family and began the drive to Berlin. Since we left so late, we ended up staying the night in a McDonald’s parking lot somewhere in between here and there since we’re classy. The next morning, we made it to the RV park in Potsdam. After freshening up, we took the shuttle to the train station which would ultimately take us into Berlin. There was a little bit of confusion on our part while trying to navigate the Potsdam Hauptbahnhof, but we eventually made it to the capital. Camella had family friends that we planned to have lunch with near Bikini Cathedral. Katrin and Jonas and their two children, Karl and Ida, were all so sweet and a lot of fun. We enjoyed hanging out with them, and decided to spend the following day with them in Potsdam instead of Berlin. After lunch was finished, we parted ways and got on a bus that was headed towards the Reichstag. Once we got there, all of us rushed off the bus and my mom went into tourist mode. She took pictures of everything we saw, which is good because I like remembering things and my phone was very dead. From the Reichstag we walked to the Brandenburg Gate, where a protest against guns in America was taking place. The Germans we saw were very passionate about gun rights in America, despite being from not America. 

When we finished admiring the massive gate, we decided to go to the Holocaust Memorial, per Dr. Wasser's recommendation. I had no idea that the memorial was so large, and we each took turns trying to interpret what the artist might have been trying to portray. We then went into the museum that was located underneath the monuments. It was an emotionally draining experience, and made me appreciate how lucky I am. The things that the Holocaust victims had to endure are unimaginable, and it's important to remember them and not let them just become a page in our history textbook. Once we finished walking through the museum, we decided to go towards Checkpoint Charlie. It was really neat to see the former border and where the wall used to lie. We hung out around there for a little while before deciding to go to the Ritter Sport store. On our way there we saw some weird modern art, creepy graffiti, and impressive street performers. Ritter Sport Schokowelt was amazing. They had every kind of chocolate and combination imaginable. My parents stocked up on some to bring back to my siblings, and I bought a couple of squares for myself. Once we all satisfied our sweet tooths, we got on the train and headed back to Potsdam. 

Checkpoint Charlie

Holocaust Memorial

Day 82

The sun warmed my faee as a woke up this morning. I was thoroughly thrilled at the idea of an excursion to Bingen. I did my normal morning routine and met with the friendly neighborhood hipster from Seattle, AousTeen. As we made our way to the Hofgarten, we purchased some rather splendid black kaffee from a quaint, little coffee stand at the entrance to the park. AousTeen and I started back on our adventure to the bus stop, when all of a sudden, a gust of wind blew us away! Startled, I yelped and turned to see my good, tall, old, and maybe Australian, friend Kate whiz past me. Then in the blink of an eye, her ENTIRE LIFE -which to University students is your laptop- flew out of her bag and slammed into the ground with a tremendous thump that was comparable to a sound made by stampeding elephants. Flustered by all of the sudden events -I am very jumpy if you haven't guessed yet- I just turned face and went to the bus stop. Upon arrival at the bus stop, I saw all of my wonderful friends faces and it filled me with joy. We boarded the bus and talked about our Easter weekends. It was nice seeing all the friendly faces, especially Corey's. We talked about who was the messiest eater and a certain somebody's drool problem. I tried to sleep, really I tried, but all of them were just way too loud. I love them all to death, but seriously guys, if you see a girl trying to sleep, LET HER SLEEP! Anyways, enough of that nonsense. We finally got to the Hildegard Museum and

------------------- all of the text above this line was created by Corey Khanhkham -------------------------


ANYWAY once we arrived in Bingen after a very long drive, we stood next to the Rhein and Dr. Wasser began his lecture about the historical significance of Bingen. From where we were standing we could see a tiny tower in the middle of the river that used to be a trading watchtower and has an interesting history. This is the tale, courtesy of Wikipedia:

The story of how it came to be called the "Mouse Tower" comes from a folk tale. According to this popular, but unsubstantiated, legend, Hatto IIwas a cruel ruler who oppressed and exploited the peasants in his domain. He used the tower as a platform for archers and crossbowmen and demanded tribute from passing ships, firing on their crews if they did not comply. During a famine in 974 the poor had run out of food, but Hatto, having all the grain stored up in his barns, used his monopoly to sell it at such high prices that most could not afford it.

The peasants became angry and were planning to rebel, so Hatto devised a cruel trick. He promised to feed the hungry people and told them to go to an empty barn and wait for him to come with food. The peasants were overjoyed and praised Hatto heartily. They made their way to the barn to await his coming. When he arrived with his servants, he ordered the barn's doors shut and locked, then set the barn on fire and burned the peasants to death, derisively commenting on their death cries with the words "Hear the mice squeak!" (This quote exists in several slight variations.)

When Hatto returned to his castle, he was immediately besieged by an army of mice. He fled the swarm and took a boat across the river to his tower, hoping that the mice could not swim. The mice followed, pouring into the river in their thousands. Many drowned, but even more reached the island, where they ate through the tower's doors and crawled up to the top floor, where they found Hatto and ate him alive.

Fun stuff. After hearing about this, we entered the Hildegard von Bingen museum. Brother Jeremy led us on our tour, and even sang a hymn for us. He never fails to impress us with his many talents. After learning all about the life of Hildegard, we went outside to look at the medicinal garden. Each of us was assigned to plant to find and stand by. Brother Jeremy then went around and told us about the medieval and current medicinal properties of each one. Once our botany lecture was concluded, we all followed Nick to the chosen restaurant for lunch. The red wine that they served us was very dry, but good nonetheless. I'm going to miss being able to legally have wine with my food. When we finished eating, we headed back to Bonn. Us 308 noobs had math class, which was a huge bummer. After math, I went home and went straight to bed. Sleeping is extra fun when you're really tired.

Fun Quotes

• "I want the value of my house to be half house, half chandelier"
• After visiting the Rathaus in Vienna, we saw some giant, expensive chandeliers. Camella, Lois, Deanna, and I have plans to purchase one, cut it into four pieces, and place it in the corner of a room in each of our houses. This will be known as the Friendship Chandelier. 
• Do you think giants take care of this garden?
• The gardens at Schönbrunn Palace have very large shrubs. They were all immaculately trimmed, despite being taller than a small house. Obviously, the only explanation for this is that giants take care of them. 
• Wow!!!!!!! Prague!!!
• After getting to Prague in the middle of the night, we settled into Deanna's friend's room. She had a large window overlooking a bunch of foliage. Camella opened the window, looked out at nothing, and excitedly proclaimed this statement. It has since been quoted many times. 
• Who wants to play a game with me? Let's play count the spires


• We were having breakfast atop the Television Tower in Prague. We had a beautiful panoramic view of the city skyline, so we decided to try and count all the spires. Who wouldn't?


• Unfinished construction site or Roman ruins???
• Sometimes the Roman ruins looked like somebody got tired and stopped working on what they were building. Sorry Romans :/
• That's Satan in a baby stroller -Kate
• A nice family walking by was pushing a toddler in its stroller. The toddler gave us a menacing death stare despite us not doing anything to it. I felt personally attacked. 
• I really feel like people are just meant to be closed
• Camella doesn't enjoy watching people get operated on and opened during youtube surgical videos. 
• How would you feel if your job was to give life to the escalators every morning?
• Before we figured out that the escalators ran off of sensors that detected when people were on them, we assumed that somebody had the job of going and manually starting all of the escalators. 
• No, no, no. We're not going to imitate pedestrian crossings
• Sometimes the pedestrian crossing signs make clicking noises. Sometimes I like to make the clicking noises. Sometimes people don't like when that happens. 
• Are you good? You just dropped your life and a half -Kate
• I dropped my laptop, notebooks, phone, chargers, and textbook. Kate empathized very well.
• Do you ever just want to steal a kid? -Lois
• Lois thinks kids are really cute. I promise she meant this in the nicest, not creepy way possible.
• Excuse me, my backpack just untied my shoe.
• A backpack decided to entangle itself with Camella's shoe. When she put her backpack down, it pulled on her shoelace and untied her shoe. She wasn't happy about this.
• Don't you know some people have birthdays every two months?
• I don't have a good explanation for this. It just kinda happened. 
• Sometimes I just wanna give my computer caffeine
• Our laptops were a little slow because we had a gazillion tabs and SolidWorks open. They needed a little help.
• I just try to put all of my awakeness in my arm
• Fun fact: theoretically if you swing your arm in a circle really fast, all the blood goes to your hand and your arm feels really awake
• I smell like a wet box of mac and cheese
• #springbreakstruggles
• I am not putting my friendship chandelier in a dachshund castle 
• see above: friendship chandelier. After visiting Neuschwanstein (which is swan themed), we talked about what kind of animal theme we would put in our own castles. Deanna wanted to make her castle dachshund themed, and Camella wasn't having it. 
• Is it too late to order hot chocolate? It's never too late -Madeline and nice waitress lady
• After our enmodes presentation, we went to Macaroni and had a celebratory lunch. Towards the end of our meal, we saw Brynn order hot chocolate and it looked amazing. Madeline asked the waitress the above question, and the waitress had the best answer. I'm going to remember this when it's midnight and I want hot chocolate. 
•  Like a spy mission, but tastier.
• We put Lois in charge of finding a cookie recipe for us to bake. 
• Footshakes and nub rubs - Deanna
• Imagine a world where we shook feet and elbows instead of hands. It would be much more sanitary and fun. 
• Croissant crumbs or freckles?
• Croissants are notoriously flaky and prove to be very messy when consumed. The crumbs that they produce can sometimes pass for freckles. This has been known to cause confusion.
• The luggage children, of course! -Lois
• We compared the weight of our luggage to children of various ages/sizes. 

All of the quotes that have no name next to them were said by Camella J. Carlson

Day 108

Marktplatz 

Camella matched the flowers

Our last Sunday in Bonn we celebrated Lois' birthday, despite the fact that it was April and her birthday was in January. We had a late start to the day due to excessive laziness. I met Camella, Deanna, and Lois on the bus near my house, and road into the city with them. It started to rain a little, but that did not deter us from having a day filled with outdoor activities. We began our journey of reminiscence by walking through Marktplatz. We all had our fair share of gelato and currywurst from the square, so it only seemed fitting to make a stop there. Then we went to the Hofgarten and people watched. The Hofgarten is a lot like a beach, but without the sand and water. From there we decided to walk to Schloss Poppelsdorf, since three out of the four of us hadn't seen it. We heard some weird noises coming from the water, and it took us a couple of minutes before realizing it was a bunch of frog/toad things. The noise they made sounded like a weird mix between a screeching cat, duck, and squealing infant. It was fun trying to figure out where they were hiding and watching their faces inflate as they made their funny sounds. Regina told Camella and Lois about a yummy tapas restaurant near the palace, so we headed there next. All of us didn't want to limit ourselves to one large dish, so we each ordered two tiny dishes instead.

We ordered eight dishes here

We ate off of each others plates, in true friend fashion. I had never had bacon-wrapped shrimp prior to that evening, but I'll definitely be adding that into the rotation of things to cook. We splurged and actually bought water AND juice because we were feeling rather fancy and Lois' mom was paying for it. After dinner, we walked to Eis Labor in Altstadt. Fun fact: According to TripAdvisor, Eis Labor is one of the top ten places in the world to get gelato. The melon gelato I got tasted exactly like cold cantaloupe which was a pleasant surprise. We stravaged towards the Rhein and sat on a nice bench and did more people watching. There was a couple exhibiting wayyy to much PDA, which ruined the nice calming, atmosphere. They eventually left, and we got a nice stranger to take a photo of the four of us. Lois asked us if we wanted to go down to the water and stick our feet in, and a rando who overheard yelled "Yes!!!" in answer to her question. After getting to the water, we watched a duck do a bunch of dives and tried to guess where it would pop up after going under. It started getting late and I needed to study, so we walked towards Beuel. While crossing the bridge, we saw some idiot paddleboard into the middle of the Rhein. A barge went right by him and I have no idea how he didn't get pulled into the current behind it. Some people are strange.

The people of the day

These are some people I like a lot

Day 109

Happy Birthday Deanna!!!! On the walk to the Hofgarten, Austen and I saw a lonely Chihuahua with a life vest. As we crossed the bridge, it began to rain. Austen then proceeded to have a debate with me about whether rain and overcast skies were nice. I like them, he does not. We got to the Hofgarten early (no suprise there) so we went to go purchase coffee from the usually open coffee stand. Another suprise, it opens at 0800 and it was 0747!!! Yay!!! We went back to the group and waited until 0815 for some people who never actually showed up and I definitely could've got coffee in that timeframe. We got on the bus and drove two hours to Bacharach. I took a nap on Deanna the entire way there and it was wonderful. Once we reached Bacharach, Alexa, Deanna, Lois, Camella, and myself got coffee then hiked up to cathedral ruins that were constructed in the 1200s. We continued to walk around and stumbled upon a woodshop that had customizable signs. There was one with two turtles and a heart between them, and we immediately knew we had to get it for Dr. Wasser and his wife. The nice store owner burned two J's over the turtles' heads and we wrapped it up and stored it in Alexa's jacket. From there we walked along the river until our time ran out and we had to get on the ferry. After we boarded, a small group of us conglomerated on the top deck and observed the scenery while discussing the highs and lows of the semester. Dr. Wasser then announced that it was time for our History of Medicine final. He divided us up into the four houses, and I was in Ravenclaw. He would ask a question, and the first house to answer would receive five points. Ravenclaw won with 17 points, beating Hufflepuff who had 9, Gryffindor with 4, and Slytherin with 3. By the time out test concluded, it was time to get off the boat and go eat lunch. We had salad, schnitzel, and no wine :/ As soon as our plates were cleaned, it was time to hike up to Marksburg. A nice man named Raoul guided us on a tour throughout the castle. We got to see replicas of knight suits throughout the ages, weapons that commonfolk and soldiers used, and a torture room. Once our hour tour was concluded, we got back on the bus and drove back to Bonn. On the walk back home, we saw numerous people carrying giant birch trees covered in streamers. These were the Maibaums that would be placed in front of many females' houses overnight. I wasn't expecting them to be so tall, and the guys trying to drag them across the bridge were having a lot of trouble because of the wind. Dinner that night was a five course farewell meal. We had salad (without fennel and olives), spätzel, falafel, sesame potatoes, and schwarzwälder kirschtorte. It was one the best meals that I had eaten in Bonn. Karl, Gitti, and I spent the evening on the porch discussing the past semester and our favorite parts. After the table was cleaned, I went up to my room to study for my math exam the next day and get some packing done.

A view from atop the Marksburg

Maibaums!

THE BIRTHDAY GIRL

Day 92

We've been in Germany for nearly one hundred days which is a little bizarre to think about. This past weekend was one for the books. Friday morning I woke up a little late, and rushed to find all the pieces of my business professional outfit. I frantically searched for my heel and prayed that the morning would not be a precursor of how the rest of the day would unfold. After speed walking over a mile to the Hofgarten, Austen and I got on the bus and I slumped down next to Camella. She, along with the rest of our enmodes group had a late night at the AIB rehearsing our presentation until it was deemed acceptable by Dr. Wasser. After a headcount was conducted, the bus began the short trip to Aachen. This was one of the first bus rides that I didn't take a nap on. The air was filled with voices as people recited their practiced lines over and over again. I joined in and said my part to nobody in particular, being careful to articulate my words and not ramble through them. 

Once we reached our destination, everybody filed into the conference room and attacked the refreshments that had been prepared for our arrival. All the students found their seats and two employees from enmodes arrived. After pleasantries had been exchanged, Dr. Wasser began speaking. He introduced all of the people who had been involved on the project then played the infamous "Shell Shocked" song that we had all heard multiple times within the past forty-eight hours. It definitely lightened the mood in the room, and made us all a little more comfortable before our presentations. Team Michelangelo was first to go and they crushed it (Lois/Deanna if y'all are reading this congrats proud of u both). My team, Donatello, was next and everybody did amazing, even with all of the last minute changes we had to make. After the final group, Raphael, finished their presentation all the groups were asked to go to the front and answer some questions that the enmodes people had. Once all of the inquiries were answered, Sarah busted out the champagne and we all celebrated. Deanna had the brilliant idea of combining that with the orange juice the hotel provided us with to make mimosas (they were yummy). One of the walls of the conference room proved to be a fun backdrop for a class photoshoot, so everybody proceeded to take photos until it was time for lunch.

77.8% of Team Donatello

Prior to the trip, nobody informed us that we would be walking a considerable distance over cobblestone to the restaurant. I failed to bring an extra pair of shoes since I was in a rush that morning, so I was left with no choice but to be really good at walking on uneven, weirdly spaced apart rocks. Macaroni sadly was not filled with macaroni :/ Instead, I had my fourth salad of the week. The only thing I was able to identify on it was strawberries, but overall it was good. The waitress brought in a glass of hot chocolate for Brynn, which caught the attention of everyone at my table. Madeline asked the waitress if it was too late for us to order hot chocolate, to which she responded, "It's never too late." She then proceeded to bring out nine glasses of delicious chocolate goodness. Dr. Wasser took a tiny nap while we finished our drinks, we sang Nicky happy birthday, and then Sarah announced it was time to go to the RWTH. 

Admittedly, I was a little reluctant to go to another place since I was tired and my feet were starting to feel funny. Thankfully we didn't have a choice, and I'm so glad we went. Two gentlemen, who both looked young enough to be my classmates, led us in two seperate groups around the cardiovascular engineering department. Prior to the tour, I hadn't really considered going into biomechanics. After seeing all the various types of artificial valves, hearts, and oxygenators, I realized that I could be happy working and researching in the field of cardiac engineering. It was really neat to see all of the labs and machinery that was used in their institute, and even cooler knowing that Lois' dad used to be there. We finished the tour by taking a group photo in front of the institute doors, then getting back on the bus again. I fell asleep three minutes into the drive back home, and didn't wake up until the bus stopped at the Hofgarten in Bonn. On the walk back home I was almost positive that my feet would fall off. Thankfully they didn't, and I enjoyed a nice evening of drawing and movies before going to sleep early. Overall, the day was a success and I still have a bruise on the bottom of my foot from my dumb shoes. 

Day 79

Post math exam, Lois, Camella, Deanna, and I marched into the camper van and prepared for the eventful weekend ahead. We nestled in our seats and caught up with my family while we headed south.

Having been to Munich a month before, Lois knew of an excellent eating establishment to visit. The Hofbrauhaus was filled with the dull roar of voices and steins being clinked. We managed to snag the end of a table that already had two women sitting at it. After further conversation, we came to learn that they were also Americans who were from North Carolina. One of the women was visiting the other, whose husband was currently stationed in Germany. I had my first taste of weißwurst and was astonished at the size of the beer and pretzels that everybody had. When dinner was over, we decided to explore the neighboring churches for a while before heading back to our campground. In the morning, my mom made an early breakfast consisting of bacon, eggs, fruit, and toast. It was a rainy morning, so we donned our raingear and headed to the Easter Market in the center of Munich. I managed to secure some pewter steins, gifts for various family members, and a wooden sign that reads “Frohe Ostern!” After everybody got done shopping, we met up at the Maypole and shared our wares.

in front of the Munich Rathaus

Lois then led us to Marienplatz and told us that the clock would start to move a little bit after noon. The growing crowd was getting impatient, and when the little people began to move a collective gasp arose from the congregation. My grandmother had the idea to video it, but quickly gave up after realizing that the first three minutes of the clock’s show is just a bell solo. The two levels of people were comprised of dancers twirling, knights jousting, and flag bearers. Once all the platforms stopped spinning, a wooden owl on the top of all the figurines flapped his wings and made a noise that supposedly resembled a bird. All in all it was slightly underwhelming, but cool nonetheless. As Lois had stated, you must put it into perspective and think that hundreds of years ago, people would have thought that the clock was witchcraft or magic because that kind of technology wasn’t as widespread as it is now.

We walked around and grabbed some wießwurst and schnitzel sandwiches before driving to Dachau. Once at Dachau, we visited the KZ Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial. Words and pictures can’t really prepare you for the feelings of disgust and sorrow that sweep over you when you walk through the gate. “Arbeit macht frei” was a cruel joke and seeing it in person made my disdain of the Third Reich grow even more. One of the signs said that the camp was designed to only hold a little over six thousand prisoners, but when the American troops arrived and liberated the camp the number was upwards to thirty thousand. My hometown barely has thirty thousand people and trying to imagine every person in Del Rio squished into the small perimeter was unimaginable. The accounts of the prisoners who had been kept there were chilling and put a lot of things into perspective. Any time I want to complain about being cold or hungry, I’ll think back to the conditions that those people were forced to live and work in. We watched a video about the history of Dachau, and in it were extremely gruesome and graphic images and videos. Seeing little children being torn apart from their parents really got to me and me realize how grateful I should be to have both of mine with me. After we walked out of it, I gave my mom a giant hug and didn’t want to let go. We walked around the camp for another half hour before realizing that we needed to be on our way to the next town. I felt like I couldn’t get out of the prison walls fast enough and didn’t realize that I let out a heavy sigh until my grandmother pointed it out to me. The fact that people could just let go of their humanity and subject people to such torture boggles my mind. I have qualms about shooting a deer that would feed my family and I, yet Nazis would pointlessly abuse actual humans with families, careers, and emotions with no hesitation. I still can’t wrap my head around it. I do know that I’m extremely thankful that I live in a time where the threat of being taken to an internment camp doesn’t loom overhead. The Holocaust survivors who had the strength to go back to these places of terror and create a memorial to their lost families and friends have an immeasurable amount of strength. Nothing bad happened to me when I visited, yet I had trouble staying there for two hours. Dachau is an extremely important place and a morbid reminder of what happened under Hitler and Himmler’s command. The brave men and women who experienced such unimaginable terror and suffering deserve to live on in the annals of history as heroes and survivors; and not just to be written off as victims.

Day 68

I rarely manage to beat my host father to the kitchen in the mornings, so when he came downstairs and saw that I had already ate breakfast he was mildly alarmed. It was the day of our school visit to the University Clinic and I was chomping at the bit to get going. Austen and I got to the Hauptbahnhof before we needed, as per usual, and the rest of the group slowly trickled in. When we headed out to board the bus, it began to snow. Having lived in southwest Texas for the majority of my life, snow in March was almost unheard of. Once we got to the Uniklinik and placed all of our coats and belongings in a random office, we were escorted to the locker rooms. Once the females and males were separated, we changed into mismatched blue scrubs and green crocs. After we donned out hair and face masks, we stepped into the hallway and were met by a tall man who oversaw the pairing of students and anesthesiologists. A group of us followed him down a corridor and he left each of us in a separate room. I had the wonderful fortune of being able to watch Dr. Struchhold work. Dr. Struchhold is an anesthesiologist who teaches medical students in a vary hands on manner. The student that was working under him for the current cycle was named Caroline, who was from Heidelberg. Having just been to Heidelberg, her and I talked about what the best places were and why schneeballs were so popular until the patient was wheeled into the operating room. Once the patient was hooked up to the monitors, Caroline and Dr. Struchhold busied themselves by constantly checking vital signs, gas temperature and flow, and the amount of medicine being administered to the patient. It was interesting to learn that there are specific drugs that are commonly used in a German operating rooms that are highly unpopular, and sometimes illegal in America. Dr. Struchhold was kind enough to take me under his wing and simplify the complex machinery that I was attempting to decipher. The first surgery that was being performed was an inguinal hernia reparation. Dr. Strucchold explained to Caroline and myself about the differing levels of anesthesia, and how we didn’t want our patient to go into a deep anesthetic state since the surgery was relatively light. Since Dr. Wasser had just finished teaching my class about cardiac and respiratory physiology, I had a better understanding of why Dr. Struchhold made the adjustments that he did, what the graphs on the monitor meant, and the effect of the certain classes of drugs on the patient. After a few hours, the procedure was finished and Dr. Struchhold decided that it was time for a coffee. Caroline and I followed him to the break room, where we were introduced to colleagues of our anesthesiologist. Once the coffee was gone, I was given ten minutes to walk around and explore before the next procedure started. I ended up running into several of my classmates and was able to briefly hear about the surgeries that they had seen before heading back into the OR. The next procedure was a thyroidectomy. Since this procedure was slightly more invasive than repairing an abdominal wall, the patient needed a different kind of anesthesia mixture than the previous patient. Dr. Struchhold explained that anesthesiology is a very personalized field of study, since every patient is very different and there are multiple ways to sedate a patient. One of the surgical nurses saw me trying to view what the surgeons were doing and was kind enough to bring me a small stepstool. Even though the stepstool did raise me off the ground a couple of inches, I was still to tiny to see over the tall doctors and decided to return to Dr. Struchhold’s corner. At various points in the procedures, he would pull a piece of paper out of his notebook and draw a body system or chemical molecule and explain a concept to Caroline and I. My favorite mini-lesson was when he compared red blood cells to a truck, and how there were a limited amount of seats for passengers. There could only be eight seats, or hemoglobin binding sites, in one truck and once one passenger got in the vehicle, more naturally wanted to follow. He happily entertained any questions either of us had for him, and was very knowledgeable about the history of Bonn and the hospital that we were in. Once the clock struck one, we had to say our farewells and I left to regroup with my classmates. I found Camella, and her and I managed to get mildly lost before finally finding Dr. Wasser. When we arrived back at the AIB, class began as usual and we had an uneventful ending to a very eventful day.

Day 68

The past week was filled with relaxation, adventure, and new foods. The start of Spring Break, we found ourselves in Venice, where we stayed the night at a secluded camping village on the mainland called Camping Jolly. The place was more like a tiny town, and we walked around for ten minutes before we could find our designated cabins. The cabins were basically shipping containers that had the interior reworked and fitted to have the illusion of a luxury hotel room. Very odd. As soon as we woke up, Camella and I went on a nice sixty minute jog along the bike trails that were nearby. After we finished, all of us took the bus onto the main island. The canal city is a jewel floating in the Adriatic. Camella, Deanna, and I walked around the island all day. We were in full backpacker mode, with our turtle shells covering our backpacks to protect them from rain and pickpockets. Piazza San Marco was filled with tourists and little kids chasing pigeons. San Marco's Basilica and the neighboring bell tower had lines that snaked around the buildings, so we decided to admire both of the prime tourist sights from outside. During our walk around the city we acquired a pizza box, high quality Italian leather products, painting pigments, gelato, and street art. Once night fell, we boarded the train to Trieste and headed east.
Once we arrived in Trieste, Sara, a friend of Camella's from high school, met us at the station and took us to meet her friend and roommate at bar. We enjoyed drinks and getting our first ideas of what the city would be like. The next morning Jess, another high school friend, arrived from Saarbrucken. All of us then went and viewed a castle that was wedged into the side of a cliff and overlooking the sea. Constructed in the eighteenth century, Miramare was one of the youngest castles we had seen. It had terraced gardens, fountains, and a rock pier that led into the sea. The weather was not in our favor and the bottom fell out of the sky after we had been there for thirty minutes. We hurried back to the bus and rode it to the main square in Trieste. After strolling around the city center, we popped into a gelato shop and had the best gelato that I've ever had. For dinner we had pizza and a burrata salad. Sara and Sophie's friends came over and joined us. Despite the language barrier, we all had a wonderful time. After going to bed late and running on little sleep, we all decided to sleep in while Sara and Sophie went to class. Once we got going, we grabbed lunch at bakery and walked around Trieste. We saw Roman ruins, a store that looked like a tiny Ikea, the inside of another gelato shop, new jeans, and lots of dogs. We met up with the our friends and watched the sunset from the pier. When the sun had finally disappeared behind the horizon, we all went back to the apartment and had a delicious pasta dish with homemade sauce from Sara's grandmother's recipe. It reaffirmed my love for Italian food. Our last night in Trieste was filled with laughter and good memories.
We were up bright in early the next morning. Collectively, we decided to go to Ljubljana and spend the day in the Slovenian capital. After an hour long bus ride, we were greeted with sunshine and a wonderful view of the Alps. Our first stop was Metelkova. Metelkova is a city block that's covered in weird art and graffiti. It was interesting to see during daytime, and definitely would've been extremely spooky and haunting at night. We meandered our way through the market and downtown, stopping to have a coffee on a dock placed on the river that cut through the city. After we were reenergized, we decided to hike up to Ljubljana Castle. When we reached the top, we found a bench with a scenic view and ate our sandwiches that had been packed the prior evening. Once we were done eating, we decided to head to Tivoli Park, which was located on the opposite side of the city. The park had many bronze statues of prominent figures in Slovenia's history and lots of ducks. The time for Deanna, Camella, and I to catch our bus to Croatia was beginning to draw near, so we made our way back to the bus station. Once we said goodbye to Jess and Sara, we prepared for the bus ride to Rovinj.
It was dark once we arrived to the Croatian coastal town, and the city life was nonexistent. Our AirBnB host, Lada, was very sweet and gave us recommendations of places to eat, visit, and how to best maximize our time in Rovinj. Once we sat our stuff down in our flat, we headed to a restaurant that was on the harbor, per Lada's suggestion. Since we arrived near closing time, there menu was limited to desserts and pasta. Since I couldn't eat any of the pasta, I had a ricotta mousse with forest berries and a glass of merlot from a local vineyard. Because everything was closed and it was close to midnight, we headed back to our flat and planned our next day. For breakfast the next morning we went to another place on Lada's list and had good food with a great view. We explored what shops were open, the winding, cobblestone streets, and wandered up to the highest point on the peninsula. We sat and admired the sea and our surroundings, and while doing so spotted a grouping of rocks that looked like it was outfitted for locals and tourists to go swimming. We crawled over the area and watched fishing boats go out to sea. It was our second day of good weather, so we wanted to maximize the amount of time we spent outside and in the sun. On our way to the market, we visited more shops and met the sweetest puppy who tried following us. After getting talked into buying weird honey jelly stuff, we walked along the coast more. I discovered that I have a large disdain towards seagulls and learned that you get a free postcard when you use the restroom that's guarded by the old man in the square. The majority of the day was spent wondering around and admiring how unique the village was. We attempted to go to a beach on the southside of the the village, but construction workers denied us passage to the road we needed to take. After having a dinner comprised of sandwiches, banana chips, and rice cakes, we got on the eleven hour bus ride to Split.
The drive felt like it lasted an eternity. The bus stopped each time we reached a village, and never failed to turn all the lights on when it did. The man in front of Deanna decided to vape periodically and the one across the aisle from her would roll a joint every few hours. It was interesting to say the least. The redeeming quality was that Camella and I got the very last row of the bus to ourselves. Unlike the other rows, the back one had five seats all in a row, which made laying down and sleeping very convenient. Since it was an overnight bus, we ended up arriving in Split at 0600. The sun was beginning to rise so it was bright outside, but nothing had opened yet. We weren't supposed to check into our new flat until 1300, so we needed to kill time. We sat by the water and sketched and read until a coffee shop opened. The Diocletian Palace was nearby was, so we walked through it and the neighboring market place until we could check in. Once we were settled in, we took a nap since we were sleep deprived. We went to the Brac the next day and then the next day we went to the Klis Fortress. It was really cool. Then we went home. It was all a lot of fun.

Day 59

The beginning of the week started out with us leaving early Monday morning to Colmar. My host father offered to give Austen and I a ride to the Hofgarten, and I was almost certain we would be late. To my suprise, we managed to make a ten minute drive in nearly five, and were there right on time. After a long bus ride and a rainbow sighting, we arrived to the town that also happens to be the birthplace Auguste Bartholdi, the man who created the Statue of Liberty. Once we got of the bus, we had free time and ended up eating lunch with Dr. Wasser and Nick. After, we stravaged around the town, which looked like something out of a Disney movie with all of its bright, vibrant colors and ate gelato. Once lunch was concluded, we went and saw the Isenheim Altarpiece and listened to a lecture per Dr. Wasser about its significance, history, and symbolism.

When our tour was concluded, we all got back on the bus and drove to Beaune. Lois, Deanna, and I managed to get a room that was more like a tiny house and secluded from the rest of the group. Dinner occurred at a fancy restaurant where we were served multiple courses of snail, steak, and chocolate mousse, all of which were excellent. Frenchie from the Real Housewives of New York made an appearance and taught us all a weird hand twisty lala dance thing that was very odd, but fun. The Isenheim Altar was saved during WWII by the Monuments Men, who recently had a movie made about them. Dr. Wasser informed of us this, so some of us decided to have a movie night and watch it. 10/10 would watch again. When morning broke and the sun rose, we went to Hotel Dieu and learned about the people who lived in it. We saw another altarpiece that was just as stunning as the last one. Our tour guide was a kind, elderly woman who gave us a very detailed history about everything we saw, all the while making subtle jokes and making us all laugh. After the tour concluded, we were off to Paris. 

Once arriving in Paris, we had dinner at a delicious creperie. I had a ham and cheese crepe, a caramel crepe, cider, and homemade apple juice. When all of the food was consumed, the group and I went back to our hotel, grabbed some jackets, and explored. Lois, Deanna, Camella, Mitchell, Corey, and myself took the metro to the Eiffel Tower and arrived just in time to see it light up and sparkle. We decided to walk along the Seine and towards the Grand Palais and Les Invalides. There were a decent number of rats that were running across the road and in the shadows, and that was a little disturbing. Salesmen would relentlessly try to get us to by souvenirs, alcohol, and other questionable things. This led us to pretending that we didn't speak English, which deterred them from pursuing us. We made it back to the hotel safely and after numerous FaceTime calls, went to bed. 

The next morning, Julien greeted us bright and early and led us on a walking/running tour around Paris. We saw the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe, Place de la Concorde, Luxor Obelisk, and Notre Dame, in addition to many other things. I had my first macaron from Pierre Herme, and I liked it so much that we went back for more the next day. For lunch we had free time, and I had the misfortune of eating sketchy Greek food in the rain. Since we had some time left before the rendezvous time, Camella, Deanna, Lois, and I found a small park that had the oldest tree in Paris, an aggressive pigeon, and a stunning view of Notre Dame. Once we met with the rest of the group, we went to a history of medicine museum and received an extremely detailed description of nearly everything in it. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and was happy to answer the numerous questions that were asked of her. That evening we went to a bar and tried different French wines and watched Camella eat ice cream.
The next day, we headed to the Louvre and received a three hour tour of the Sully wing. The Sphinx was pensive, the Greek statues looked like they could walk off their pedestals, and Mona Lisa's eyes appeared to follow us around the room. Once the tour was over, we went and had lunch and then took some fun pictures in front of the Pyramide du Louvre. Dr. Wasser and Julien granted us the rest of the day off, so we headed to Montmartre and saw the small shops and Sacre-Couer. The view from atop the hill was beautiful, even though the sky was cloudy and rain was pouring. We successfully found street art, gifts for people back home, and more macarons. Other than the rough weather, it was a lot of fun and I would definitely go back to that tiny village if I could. Math homework was due that night, so many of us suffered and stayed up to do the assignment. So fun.

In the morning, we had to pack all of our stuff up and eat an early breakfast. We headed to Versailles, where we got to walk around the palace and gardens until lunch. Dr. Wasser, Alexa, Nick, and Julien prepared a delicious picnic-style lunch for us that was comprised of meats, cheeses, breads, wines, and mousse. Groups of little kids arrived when we were halfway through our meal, and they were very loud and very adorable. Once lunch was over, I was given nearly two loaves of bread to take for the next week and we all bid Julien farewell. His parting words to us were unexpected and strange, "NEVER sleep in airports and life is butter."

Day 36

This past week consisted of the Bayer tour and Ash Wednesday/Valentine's Day/Galentines (the latter of which was the best). Since all the Karneval celebrations died down, it was time to get back into the rhythm of school. Thankfully, we got to spend a half day in Leverkusen touring the Bayer Company's communication building, or Baykomm. Prior to the tour, I had no idea that Bayer included a wide variety of companies, from K9 Advantix to Coppertone. I also learned that Bayer is focusing on increasing crop yields and tackling the problems that the world's growing population are causing. Before, I only knew Bayer as the people who make Aspirin, and now I have a newfound respect for the company. The initiatives and investments that they pour into research are impressive, and I would love to work for them someday. For Galentines, we basically did a secret santa type gift exchange and I got the BEST chocolate covered strawberries, peanut butter, and an adorable mug (thanks Claudia!!!) Our Galentines luncheon took place on Friday, and after it Lois, Camella, Deanna, and I decided to go the Bonn Kunstmuseum. The layout of the art museum was unique and confusing, much like the pieces that were in the museum. The pieces ranged from traditional styles to very abstract pieces. There was an entire room that was filled with painted cardboard, and it smelled like the boxes my siblings and I used to play in when we were younger. One artist recreated what looked like the freeze-frame of a car accident, with actual cars, and that made me very glad that I don't have to drive while here. Once we felt that we had became cultured enough to reenter society with a new perspective, we went on a nice walk along the Rhein. We began walking in the Rheinaue, along the riverside, over the Kennedy Bridge, and then home. After a nice meal with my host parents, I met up with my friends again to watch the Olympics. We crowded around a tiny laptop and watched the events that had happened earlier in the day. Once everyone was tired, I had the enlightening experience of riding on a night bus that didn't go along the route I was expecting. I eventually made it home, but it was -2 degrees Celsius and I was freezing. My host mother had left out some hot chocolate that she had made, so that was nice to come home to. Next week is my first math test, so this weekend will be filled with studying, studying, and more studying. Woohoo.

This entire room was just cardboard

I don't understand modern art

Day 30

IT IS KARNEVAL SEASON!!!! Our teachers tried best to prepare us for this weekend, but no words could truly get us ready for what was to come. It's so strange seeing everybody casually walking around in full costume like it's just another day. During the parade on Thursday in Beuel we got pelted with everything from candy, mustard, entire cookies, and hand sanitizer. I've heard Viva Colonia at every bar we've been to and met some new friends. Finding costumes for the weekend was very easy since my host family has two giants boxes of costumes from past years. So far, I've been a wizard and a hippie. I definitely never thought I would willingly go outside when it's twenty degrees out, but it's Karneval and everybody suffers together. Tomorrow we are participating in the LiKüRa-Karneval-Parade and helping with the patients of the Therapy Center Beuel. On Monday we will go to Cologne for Rosenmontag and watch the big parade with two million other people. This week we had our first exam and it wasn't fun. At all. It was a packed week since we got Friday off, but with the exception of the exam, everything else was low-stress. My team and I are making progress on our project (it's a secret) with enmodes, which is super interesting and complicated. I also learned why Germans don't wear their college logo/colors/literally anything, which is a question I've had since we landed. We celebrated one month of being here (yay!) and time has flown by. We only have three months left, which feels like nothing. Homesickness hasn't kicked in yet, and hopefully it never will. My parents finally decided when they'll be coming to visit, so I get to look forward to seeing them sooner than I thought. 

Day 10

We've been in Europe for over a week and I'm still not used to sales tax being included and having to pay to use the restroom. This week we travelled to Aachen, Cologne, and I'm currently in Brugge/Bruges. The two cathedrals that we got to see this week we're absolutely breathtaking and it hurts my head to think about how long it took to construct them. The variations in architectural style were interesting to analyze and Camella and I thought way too hard about how they put so much detail into something that's hundreds of feet above the ground. In Cologne we also got see the EL-DE Haus, which was a very somber place. The prisoners' writings on the walls were eye-opening and it was a harrowing experience. Our tour guide repeatedly emphasized about how important it is to learn from history and not repeat its mistakes, which I believe is especially significant in today's sociopolitical climate. Brugge is a wonderful little community filled with retired people and weird languages. I can safely say that I had never heard of Flemish before coming here. We walked in the rain and saw the canals, old buildings and windmills, and ate Belgian chocolate. Everybody here loves a variation of Nutella and having chocolate for breakfast makes mornings more fun. If anybody who reads this comes to Brugge, stay in the Snuffel Hostel. We only booked it because it has a fun name, but it's actually a really cool place. Flixbus also sucks. Every place that we've been to so far looks like it belongs in a painting. Europe is gorgeous.

Day -01

My family has extremely strong Germanic roots and I grew up being surrounded by German food, music, nursery rhymes, and books. By attending this study abroad program I hope to not only be able learn about my major, but immerse myself in my culture as well. I have wanted to study abroad ever since I learned that you could live in a separate country, all the while receiving a proper, high quality education. Now, the perfect opportunity has presented itself. One concern I had regarding studying abroad was that I would have to sacrifice the quality of my education. However, this program will be led by Texas A&M faculty so I know that I will be in a comfortable, familiar learning environment. I am dreading leaving my puppy and best friends, but my host family has a pet and I know I'll meet many new people. My biggest fear is that I won't be able to find gluten free food, but hopefully it won't be a huge issue. I'm excited for the chance to broaden my cultural lens, enhance my capabilities as an engineer and increase my network. The experiences gained by studying abroad are extensive, and I cannot wait to see how this program will change me for the better.