McKenna in Germany

Cairo Part 1

2010-02-24T13:25:00.001-08:00

Hallo alle!
I just got back to Bonn the other day from a trip to Cairo. It was the most amazing trip I've ever taken, and I got to see some of the most amazing artifacts, monuments, and sites in the world.
We (Juleen, Brandy, Mary, Chris, Kyle and I) woke up around 7:00 the morning of the 17 and took the 8:15 bus to the Cologne Airport. We checked in, something that was relatively easy considering we only had carry-on bags, and went to get our money changed and the international exchange. $1 was equal to 5.5 Egyptian Pounds -- definitely nicer than the Euro conversion!

Then we went through security and proceeded to our gate. Our flight left at 11:00 and was about a 5 hour flight. Most of the flight was covered in cloud, but we did get some pretty spectacular views as we flew over the Alps. Dad, you would have loved it!

A few hours later, after flying over Greece and the Mediterranean, we got our fist view of the African coast line of Egypt. Looking out the window, I could see the lush flood plains where the Nile drains into the Mediterranean, vast and green, the river stretching out it's long fingers into the sea. The further we flew, the more sandy the landscape became. Towns littered the dusty earth in clusters along the Nile, little oases of green popping up here and there.
Not long after passing the coast, the pilot announced our descent into Cairo International Airport was beginning. The time from this announcement to touch down seemed to last forever, but once we finally landed and began exiting the plane, the "not in Kansas anymore" feeling hit me like the wave of heat that couldn't be kept out of the airport itself.
The crowds exiting the planes all at once were far too big for the small space provided by the airport, and this set the tone for the trip. "Come buy visa! You! Come buy visa! 15 your dollar!" People flooded the stalls, where you must buy a visa, and then attain a stamp and got through "customs." I say this in quotes because "customs" consisted of "You have drugs? You don't sell them here. Have nice time in Cairo." After wading through the pack of people we finally came to a man who had taxis and was willing to take us. It was also dark at this point.
One nice thing about this city is that if you don't like the price, you can haggle for a lower one until you're satisfied. So our conversation with the cab driver went something like this:
"You need taxi? 6 people? 175 pounds."
"No, we can find a cheaper one."
"OK OK. 150 pounds."
"No thanks. We're going to go find another driver."
"For you, 100 pounds. 100 pounds."
"OK."
After getting the right price for the cab, they lead us outside, loaded up our bags, and we piled into the van. Never again will I complain crazy drivers or bad traffic. There were three lines drawn on the road, but 4 lanes of traffic, the cars alternating between not moving at all and doing 70 miles an hour through traffic wherever you will fit. If there were any traffic lights, they were blatantly ignored. So were turn lanes and speed limits. I wish I could say I were exaggerating when I say that we almost killed someone while driving every day at least twice. But we did eventually make it to our hotel (the Arabesque) in once piece. The girls' room was all pink with 4 low beds and a bathroom that was pretty clean from what we experienced.
After putting all our stuff away, we decided to venture out for the first time and find something to eat. THe owner of the hotel suggested that we eat something typically Egyptian and gave us the name of a nearby restaurant where we got "Koshary." It was DELICIOUS. It is comprised of lentils, rice, noodles, lemon, tomato sauce and various spices.

After that we were all exhausted and full, so we decided to go to bed since we had a big day ahead of us!
The next morning we woke up at 7 again and met up with our drivers, Ruby and Solomon, got in the cars and headed out for the hour long trip to Giza. Our first stop in Giza was an outlying district called Saqqara. This area was lush and green, covered in palm and date trees. Suddenly, this flourishing green ended, butting right up against the Sahara desert. This was the site of our first pyramid, Djoser. The tomb of Netjerikhet and Imhotep. Our drivers stopped and let us out, telling us that we needed to be back at the car in an hour. We went out to the the remains of a small temple, which we had to pass through to get to the pyramid. Djoser was the first pyramid to be built in Egypt, dated to 2,635-2,610 BC. As we approached we were instructed to form a line and enter the pyramid. To get in, you have to duck and crouch low, making our way down a narrow slope until you reach a large, cool chamber at the bottom. There were two other chambers branching off of this main one. The walls of the first chamber were covered from floor to high ceiling in hieroglyphics. The second chamber, to the left had nothing much inside it but a few remains of what were perhaps small stone pedestals. The room to the right was equally as large and decorated and the center chamber but contained a great stone sarcophagus, which would have held other smaller sarcophagi inside. The inside of it was also painted and carved with hieroglyphs. After taking in the inside of the pyramid, we exited and went back to the car.

The next stop was the papyrus shop where they showed us how this ancient form of paper was made and how durable it is. We could also buy our names written in hieroglyphics and various paintings.

After that we went to a perfume and oil shop that sold delicate beautiful bottles made of Egyptian carnival glass. They explained to us the process of extracting oils from plants, and which oils were meant for men and which were meant for women.
From there, it was off the the outskirts of Giza. Tall, thin houses were huddled together, stacked right on top of each other. We stopped outside of a seemingly random one and got out of the cars. We were told that this was where we would rent camels and horses to ride into the desert to the pyramids. We met our guide, Achmed, and rented 3 horses and 3 camels. To be honest, the camels were a little scary. They make lots of loud noises and they're bigger than you realize when you see them at the zoo. So I choose to start out on horseback on a brown horse called "Habibi" which translates to "honey" or "darling" in English. True to its name, the horse was sweet and careful. It took us about an hour to ride right out to the Pyramids with our little caravan.
The sight of them is like nothing I have ever seen, and I doubt I will ever see again. There, rising out of the endless sands of the Sahara, were the immense monuments of an ancient of powerful dynasty. I have no words to describe the feeling of staring at them, trying to take them in. They are overwhelmingly beautiful, vast and colossal.
After a few moments of observation, our guide told us to dismount and asked us if we'd like to climb on the pyramid a bit. Of course we said yes. This was unbelievable to me. I have wanted to see the Pyramids since before I can remember, and here I was offered the chance to actually touch them? I hardly knew what to do with myself. So I just did what the guide told us and started to climb on the huge stone blocks. The blocks themselves are gargantuan, each weighing roughly 2.5 tons. Then to think that these great structures were built without the use of trucks, or cranes, or any other modern building aids, only simple man power makes them that much more astounding.

After that, we switched so that those riding horses now rode camels and vice versa. The camel was a little scary at first, especially when it gets up and down, but for the most part it seemed to be a gentle animal. My camel (no joke) was named Ali Baba.
We were now headed toward another smaller temple which would precede the Sphinx. We dismounted again, I gave Ali Baba a pat, and we walked to the Temple of the Sphinx. It's pretty small, so it didn't take us long to wander through and come out the other side. And there it lay, resting on all fours, the Great Sphinx. Once again, you don't realize just how big it is until you stand there next to it. We wandered around it for about a half hour, taking pictures and admiring it before going back to Achmed, getting on the horses and camels, and riding back through the desert to the rental station.

We tipped our guide and got back in the cars, driving the hour back to Cairo. By now, it was after 4:00 pm, and our drivers told us we had one last stop. We got out of the cars on the banks of the Nile and saw a Felucca waiting for us. A Felucca is a kind of sailboat particular to Egypt. We were told we were going to end the day with a short boat ride on the Nile. The air had finally cooled off, there was a light breeze and you could hear the water lapping the sides of the boat. It was the perfect way to end the day.

After that, we went out to get food, walked a little while until it was dark, then came back to the hostel to shower and go to bed. We were meeting our drivers at 9:00 the next morning for more sight seeing.

I'll post more tomorrow! There's too much for just one blog!

Love you all!

McKenna

See You Soon.

2009-12-21T09:12:00.001-08:00

Ich hab' noch einen Koffer in Berlin

2009-12-01T05:13:00.000-08:00

Hallo alle!

From Nov.17-22 the study abroad program had an excursion to Berlin. We did so much, I can hardly describe it all here! So I'll just let my pictures do the talking for me :).

I woke up at 5:30 to catch the bus leaving at 6:45 for our trip to Berlin. The trip started out with a LONG (10 hours!) bus ride. I slept most of the way. So did my friend Kristin. We didn't arrive until later that day, by which time we were all so tired that we didn't do much that night.

The first full day in Berlin started with a bus tour of the city.

During the bus tour, we made stops at some of Berlin's most historic places. The first was Checkpoint Charlie, one of the most well known border patrols between the former East and West. The second was a stop on the longest standing stretch of the wall. The two men in the picture are Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honecker.

After the tour, we were free to wander the city on our own. We visited the Jewish memorial, the Brandenburg Gate, and the Berliner Dom. All located on Unter den Linden, perhaps the most well known street in Berlin.

We also visited the Reichstag that evening with our tour group.

The next day we had a bit of free time in the morning, which we used to visit the grave of the Brothers Grimm. The brothers are famous for putting pen to paper to record fairy tales, such as Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, The Princess and the Pea, and many others. For someone who studies German language and literature, this is a little like visiting Shakespeare's grave if you study English.

That evening we visited one of my favorite places in Berlin, the world famous Pergamon Museum. The museum is full of antiquities, including the Ishtar Gate and the Pergamon Altar (for which the museum is named). Needless to say, we had a pretty good time.

The next day we went to Potsdam to visit Sans Souci, which means "without cares" or, as we affectionately named it, the Castle Hakuna Matata.

Most evenings were spent goofing off, wandering around Berlin and getting coffee.

Berlin is an ENORMOUS city. To give you an idea, the area of New York City is 469 sq. miles. The area of Berlin is 892 sq. miles. There were many moments of confused map reading and trying to figure out where we were exactly...

Berlin was a great time! If you ever get the chance to see Europe, Berlin is a city you definitely shouldn't miss!

Love you all!

McKenna

A Walk Home

2009-11-15T10:27:00.001-08:00

Hallo alle!

So it's been a while since I updated, but for the most part nothing huge has happened since then, except that I booked tickets to Cairo in the Spring! I can't wait for that trip!
But the pictures I'm posting now are the things I see on a typical walk to and from class. I hope you enjoy these views of Bonn as much as I do!

Love,

McKenna

Just an Update :)

2009-10-24T14:05:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!

So there isn't a whole lot to say, but here's a little life update and maybe something about the way college is in Germany.
I've taken a few weekend trips to Muenster and Aachen, both of which I have been to before and was just taking time to visit for myself and with a few friends.
I've met lots of new people and made friends from all over the world, Germany, Japan, China, Russia.... Most notably Vald, who is Russian. He lives in the same building as a friend, and so he has ended up eating dinner with us whenever we're together, which is great! I'm learning a lot about other cultures through him and the other friends I've made.
As for the school system here, it's also very international. I've had to read texts so far in German, English, and French and we are permitted to respond in any of those three languages during class (though the French in translated, thank goodness!). Classes only meet once a week, which is nice, there is no written homework and hardly any reading, and there is only one test. Your grade is largely dependent on your participation in class and how you score on this test at the end of the semester. While this system is great during the semester and causes considerably less stress, you can imagine that at the end of the semester people are frantic over finals even more so than in the States!
Other than that, there's not a whole lot to say! I'm doing well and loving it here. I think my German gets better every day and I certainly enjoy practicing it. I'm making friends from Ohio, Australia, Germany, Russia, Korea, Japan, China... All over! It's really great :)

Love you all,

McKenna

Brühl and Trier

2009-09-27T05:14:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
Sorry it's been so long since my last update! Things have been busy here. But here's what I've been up to:
Last week we went to a schloss in Brühl. It's a small town only about 20 minutes from Bonn, and the schloss is about the only thing there. It was once owned by Clemens August, the same person who once owned my school building here. Apparently he really liked yellow, because this one is yellow too!

Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the palace, but it had a really beautiful staircase in the main entrance hall. But here's what it looks like:

On Friday a few friends and I took a ship tour of the Rhine. It only lasted about and hour each way but it was really nice and there were some beautiful views of the surrounding hills. It's really easy to see why the Germans who came to Cincinnati likened it to the area around the Rhine. A river surrounded by hills and the weather here is just about the same too! It's a bit colder this time of year, but the humidity is the same and the weather changes about every five minutes.

The ship made a stop in Königswinter, which was really beautiful. A tiny town right on the Rhine. There's a castle on the hill above it called Drachenfells which (according to legend) is where the story of the Ring Gold took place. But we didn't go to Drachenfells because there is a planned excursion there later. But what I did do in Königswinter:

ICE CREAM! :)

Yesterday, we had a day long excursion to Trier, the oldest town in Germany. It was founded by the Romans over 2,000 years ago, no one knows the exact date. But the city gate, the Porta Nigra, dates back to 16 BC. While there we got to explore what's left of the ruins of the Roman bath house. This was, by far, my favorite excursion to this point. I really love ancient history, so being able to see these things was really cool! The only part of the bath house that you can see from the outside is a wall, but underground there is a labyrinth of dank servants tunnels. They are mostly only lit by natural light that is able to filter in from outside and above ground. Using these tunnels, servants were able to navigate the bath house unseen by the Romans relaxing in the forums above. So here are my photos from Trier!

I had a video of wandering around in the tunnels, but it won't let me upload it here. It is, however, on my Facebook! So if you'd like to see it, please check there!

Love you all!

McKenna

Weinprobe

2009-09-12T14:03:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!

So a few days ago my friends and I had another group dinner. This time we went shopping at the local open air market. We bought fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, grapes, hummus, gouda, and strawberries. Then we went to the bakery and bought a loaf of bread. It was by far the best dinner I've had here! Plenty of fresh fruit and veggies with fresh baked bread (tea bread) and some really great hummus! And Aunt B, you were right -- those were the most amazing strawberries I've ever had in my life! This is what the dinner looked like.

Then next day we had an excursion to Marksburg, an old castle. Unfortunately there wasn't a good vantage point to take a picture of the entire castle, but here are some that I took while inside. As Nick will be able to tell, this castle was once owned by the Prussians, but was owned by many other families and kingdoms before that.

After that, it was back on the bus and off to a wine cellar to do a wine tasting. We each had 6 glasses of wine over the course of a few hours. About three glasses in, they had each country stand up in turn and sing a song from their home. The American students sang Row, Row, Row Your Boat and then Yankee Doodle. The Australians sang Waltzing Matilda and the rest.... Well they were in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Czech so I didn't understand. But they were all neat to hear!

This evening I went to a local fun fair called Pützchens markt. We only stayed for a little oven an hour because it was so crowded and everything was really expensive. I also don't have any pictures of it unfortunately.
But I do have one more photo. I promised to show you my school, so here it is!

That smaller schloss that I had pictures of in the last entry was once property of the same bishop who used to live in this palace. It's pretty cool to have class in a palace! There are random statues or suits of armor in the halls, but not many. Once you're inside it's mostly like any other school State side. Tile floors, desks, black boards, white walls... Just every now and then you'll turn a corner and -- gold statue!

I'll write again soon!

Love,

Mick

Botanischer Garten

2009-09-07T10:18:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!

Today we had a meet and greet at the botanical garden here in Bonn. It was a really nice reception. We got to meet some more of the people running the program and champagne was served in the late afternoon. It was behind that schloss I mentioned earlier, so there are pictures of it now :)

The garden and schloss were very beautiful. But there seems to be a specialty in the garden for water lilies. They had all kinds, from the smallest ones you can imagine to giant lily pads and flowers.

This is the front of the schloss.

This is the back, where the gardens are.

Some of the many lilies and lily ponds.

It hard to tell from the photos, but the yellow fuzzy-looking flower was very very tiny. And you probably can tell that some of these lily pads were ENORMOUS!
It was really fun to walk around and see everything. Especially when it's all in full bloom like this!

Love you all,

Mick

Pasta Party

2009-09-06T11:15:00.001-07:00

Hallo alle!

So. Living in Europe is not cheap. As a result, my friends and I are doing our best to save money by eating together and eating cheap. So tonight we had a pasta party! It was pretty good, if I do say so myself :) They came to my apartment and we had spaghetti for dinner and apples for dessert. Doing the math, we all managed to have a pretty filling dinner for less than a Euro each -- not bad!

Here are the photos:

I'm lookin' pretty cheesy in that first one there...

Love you all!

Mick

Arrival in Bonn

2009-09-04T12:04:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!

Well, I finally made it to Bonn, got myself unpacked and set up the internet.
The city is nice and very beautiful, but so different from Dresden!!! I hope that in the next few weeks this city will come to feel like home the way Dresden did. Believe it or not, I actually feel a bit homesick for Dresden! So i'll have to visit on the weekend some time :).
Bonn doesn't have all the "old" (remember, Dresden was fire bombed, so nothing there is original) buildings that Dresden did (like the Zwinger or the Opera House), but the houses here are much prettier! The streets are all a mess and they wind and connect every which way. They are lined with pink and white and yellow and blue and green town houses. All trimmed with beautiful plaster or stone carved into ornate detail. They also all have balconies crowded with plants that spill and hang over the sides. And in the tiny front "yards" roses seem the be the flower of choice, and though it's the end of rose season, the city in some places emits a sweet mixture of the scent of roses and newly fallen leaves.
Once again, I live just across from a church which is my wake up call every morning. But rather than ringing at 6:00, I get five solid minutes of bells each morning at 8:00. This is both wonderful and annoying.
And while it's different, this city presents itself with a sweet sort of charm. The people are just as friendly as they were in Dresden, but the city certainly has its own personality, though it's difficult to describe. So far I'm enjoying it!
I've taken just a few pictures so far, but here they are!

These are of the inside of the church in the center of town called Münster. I don't have any of the outside right now, but I'll get some soon :)

Some lily pads outside the schloss (palace). This isn't a particularly big schloss. It's just a part of the main one, which is where I have class.

And lastly, I couldn't help but laugh at this one:

And I think that's it for today! I'll take more pictures soon. It's been pretty rainy, and I'd like a clear day to take a picture of the school (which is GORGEOUS) and the outside of the church, etc.

Tomorrow it's off to IKEA to buy some sheets, plates, and glasses. Yay cheap stuff!

Bis bald,

Mick

Frankfurt

2009-09-01T07:19:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
I made it safely to Frankfurt! My luggage and I arrived on time and together :) It's so nice to get here and have everything I need! I'm completely exhausted and I have no idea what time it is. So this is just going to be a short "I'm here" message. So... I'm here! Tomorrow I take the train to Bonn and most likely start taking pictures!

Love,
Mick

I'm Off!

2009-08-30T22:35:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

Well, I'm off! And this time for real! I'm so excited to get going and start the school year in Germany. It's going to be a little different this time as I won't be traveling with a group of OSU students or with a specific professor, but rather with a group of students from all over the world! I'll be leaving CVG this evening and arriving in Frankfurt in the afternoon (German time, +6 hours) tomorrow. The next day I'll be on a train and headed for Bonn. Fingers crossed and lots of prayers that my luggage and I arrive safely and TOGETHER!
Upon arriving I will be taken to my Studentenwohnheim -- something like a suite-style dorm, but a little bigger. I'm not sure how many people will be living in my suite with me or where they'll be from, but it'll be interesting to find out!
I may not have the internet for a few days, but as soon as I do, I'll post again, maybe with some pictures, so stay tuned!

Wish me luck!

McKenna

Coming Back

2008-06-13T14:26:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
The blog will begin again in the beginning of September. I have a flight set to leave Sept. 1. I will be spending a year in Germany this time doing another study abroad. This time in Bonn, which is located right on the Rhine River. Here's the school's website (the English section of it): http://www.uni-bonn.de/en/International_Relations.html
See you all in September!
Love,
Mick

Last Test and Saying Good-bye

2007-09-06T11:16:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
Well, this is my last post in Germany. Exactly 3 months ago today I passed my last test to qualify for this trip, and today I took my last test of the trip. It's been an awesome few months, seeing everything from England to Germany to the Czech Republic. It's been even more awesome to share it with all of you!
So here's what I think I'm really going to take away from my time here:
1) History is made up of people.
Before I got here, history was just a series of events that happened in a certain order. After being here, history has become a series of realities that happened to people. Places like Buchenwald and Pirna put human faces and emotions on history that I really never grasped before.
2) Language.
This is an obvious one. Even if you come here not speaking a word of German, you're bound to pick up something. In my case it was an effort :p
3) A better understanding of my own culture.
Even more than an understanding of German culture, I learned a lot about my own. What kind of things do Germans and the English see that put up the "that's an American" red flag (aside from my accent). It could be anything from your haircut, to your shoes, to the way you walk or gesture. Having seen the little things that make me different made me realize just how much culture America has, even if it is REALLY different (but that's what culture is about, right?).
4) I can do it.
This was a hard but fun one to learn. Probably the things that taught me this the most were going 5 days without luggage (just that whole airport ordeal really), having to constantly deal with the language barrier, going grocery shopping (and making my own food), and washing my clothes in the bath-tub (yeah, that's another story...).

So in a few hours I'll be on a night train bound for Frankfurt. I'll get there around six in the morning, then at about noon, an eight hour flight to Washington, Dulles then another flight (about 2 hours) to the Greater Cincinnati Airport. It's going to be almost 24 hours of solid travel, so I expect I'll be pretty wiped out when I arrive home, but I'll be thrilled to see everyone!!!
Also, I'm not entirely sure I'll continue to blog now that the trip is over. Who knows. Maybe I'll be back in Germany or somewhere else in the world and pick this back up.

Love you all! Can't wait to see you!!
Mick

Coming down to the wire....

2007-09-03T10:02:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
Well, I'm in the last week of my study abroad experience here in Germany and it's been great! Things are a little hectic, since we're trying to wrap up, and there's still lots to get done tonight, but I thought I'd take a break and blog a bit. I recently saw a pretty interesting little video-blog made by a boy living in England about what reminds him of England, being as it's his home country. At then he encouraged others to think about the little things that remind them of their own countries, so I thought I'd share. The list I came up with surprised me a little and made me smile, so here it is!
-American style football (which oddly enough uses more hands than feet)
-church festivals and county fairs
-having almost every ecosystem in one continent
-LOTS of farms
-blue jeans
-camping (even if I don't really do it)
-listening to baseball on the radio
-Old Navy
-pancakes and orange juice on Sunday morning
-marching bands and high school football games
-Jazz and Country music (though I'm not a big fan of country)
-along the lines of music: Frank Sinatra, The Beach Boys, Bruce Springsteen, Aerosmith, Billy Joel, Bon Jovi, and Pearl Jam
-anything plaid
-measuring temperature in fahrenheit
-fireworks
-grilling out in the summer with tons of people
-driving 17 hours to Florida for a family vacation
-having a front and back yard as well as a deck and porch
-finished basements
-over use of the word "like"
-being able to take someone (or a corporation) to court because you spilled coffee on yourself
-really cold winters and really hot summers
-having 3 universities within 20 minutes of your house
-wearing flip flops year round
-Aaron Copland, George Gershwin, John Philip Sousa
-Hollywood
-Comic books (including all the heroes!)
-not responding "American" when asked your nationality, but rather responding with your heritage (i.e. German and Irish)
-peanut butter and jelly
-driving everywhere

So if you comment, how about adding to the list?
Love!
Mick

The Opera

2007-09-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
Both Tuesday and Friday night of this week were spent at the opera! Tuesday was Carmen and Friday was The Magic Flute (die Zauberflöte). Two incredibley famous operas in one week in one of the best Opera Houses in Europe -- The Semper Oper. Even though we sat waaaayyy up in the balcony both nights (they were the least expensive!), it was AWESOME. Both shows were really well done, and a lot different than I had expected. I got chills hearing the overture for Carmen being, since everyone knows it so well. And the second night, it was the Queen of Night aria in the Magic Flute that got me. It was really an awesome experience to hear (possibly) the most famous aria ever written live. The Opera House itself was also completely breath-taking!

Pirna and Königstein

2007-08-28T14:27:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
Wow, sorry it's been so long since I last blogged! I had some sirious thoughts to organize about this one though in light of the trip to Pirna. Pirna is a beautiful little city just outside Dresden with a rich culture and a beautiful country-side. But, much like Weimar, this beautiful town has a dark Nazi past. On top of the highest point in town, there is an old Mental Institution. It's easy to find, there is a trail of colored crosses leading through the town to the top of this hill. The outside of the building is nice enough, I suppose. There's a lawn with a few trees and a nice view of Pirna. It's private and quiet.

But this "quiet, peaceful" place was the site of thousands of murders. In this center, people with mental (and sometimes physical) disabilites as well as former concentration camp inmates were "euthanized." The Oxford American dictionary defines "euthanize" as "to put (a living being) to death humanely." "Humane" is not really the word I would use to describe the deaths of these people. Zyklon B (which was the gas used at some concentration camps, most notably Auschwitz) was not in use at Pirna. Prisoners of Pirna were killed using Carbon Monoxide. A prisoner would be lead into a small room, told that it was a shower. then gased. It takes roughly 15 minutes to die from Carbon Monoxide and it is considerably painful.
Upon walking up the hill, following the trail of crosses, like these:

we were lead into the basement. This was alright at first, it was a memorial in the first room. The trail of crosses ended in this basement room. There were flowers, some ribbons, and a few notes left by visitors. A painting hung on the wall which was done by an inmate. We were then led into the next room. It was lined with pictures and biographies of various prisoners, while still sad and meaningful, this still had an "OK, I can handle this" sort of feeling. Dr. Spencer then led us out into the hallway again and into another room. The wide iron door was standing open, and the room was small with a window. "All in?" asked Dr. Spencer, "Good." Then, all of us inside, he slammed the door with a heavy, hollow, resounding "KLANG." We looked at each other, then out the window, then to the floor. Hundreds of little chips and holes in the brick on the floor. There was a slit in the iron door. A few moments later Dr. Spencer opened the door again. He walked in, looked at us and said "This is the gas chamber. That window there would have been bricked or barred. This is not the original door either, but you get the idea. This is the last thing you'd have seen before they started pumping Carbon Monoxide into the room (he then proceeded to explain what happens to you during those 15 terrible minutes. I'll spare yout he details here). The doctors would probably have watched and monitored you until you finally dropped dead. Then they'd have aired out the room before allowing anyone to enter to get your body. But the Nazis and doctors still didn't want to come in or to touch the bodies. Do you see those chips in the floor? They used a meat hook instead and dragged the body." Everyone looked down at the floor. So many little chips. So many people. We all tried to shuffle to a spot without any chips in the floor, but there was not enough space anywhere without these pock-marks. There were so many that there was not even enough room to stand without touching them.

Then we were led into still more basement rooms. The next was all too familiar. The first thing I noticed, even before the scenery, was the smell. It's not a "bad" smell per se, but it makes you feel immediately sick and I immediately wanted out. "This," said Dr. Spencer, "was the corpse cellar." White washed walls, lined with hooks and chips in the floor as well as some drains. He explained the fairly obvious use of the room. Then he lead us into the adjoining room, which was once the crematorium and explained its use as well. We were then told to walk around and read the information, which could be found on a small plaque near the floor in each room, positioned in such a way that it was easy to miss, giving each room a "this is how it was left" feeling. At first, I raised my camera thinking "OK, this time I'll get a picture." But as soon as I looked into the viewer I put it down and turned it off. I stood in the corpse cellar for a few minutes, trying to force myself to take it in and not just run out like at Buchenwald. Once again, I imagined it when it may have been full. The hooks. The chips. The drains. I read the information on the rooms, which didn't say much more than what we already knew about the rooms. Then I went and stood in the gas chamber again. Dr. Spencer had told us before coming that the people of Pirna knew, just as the people of Weimar did about Buchenwald, that terrible things were happening at the Mental Institution. They could even see the smoke from the crematorium. They saw the wagons with blacked out windows headed up the hill of Pirna. There written accounts from citizens who mentioned the burning of bodies at Pirna. That people who went there were killed. "These people were all sick and disgusting," I thought "How could you know that was happening and do nothing to stop it? Much less participate in it yourself? These people were terrible." I continued for a little while to have those kinds of thoughts you have right before God humbles you big time. I felt that spiritual sleeve tug that says "You have something to learn about this place and those people. Something to learn about yourself." So I thought more about it. I felt a call to compassion and empathy, to try to understand. At first I felt bad for the victims and said a little prayer, like a good girl should. Then thought "Did you even really mean that? Or just think it to make yourself feel better?" I decided I did mean it. I really did feel sorry for the victims. But doesn't everyone? The more I thought about it, the more I thought that those victims were just that. Victims. Prayers for them are nice, but their lives are over, sad as it is and probably don't much need my prayers now. Then I thought about the Nazis, and the people of Pirna. I was hit by an unexpected surge of pity. I felt pity, but remember that pity does NOT remove blame. I pitied the Nazis and the people of Pirna. Then I felt like a stone-casting coward. Many Nazis were sick and disgusting and enjoyed the torment they caused. I pity them because they were misguided and knowingly made the choice to do wrong and evil things. Some Nazis probably did what they did because they were afraid for themselves and their families. They may have felt that becoming a Nazi or joining the military would mean security, even at the cost of ending the lives of others. I pitied them because they were afraid, and trying to protect their own loved ones. They may have felt they were given the impossible choice of "them or us" and choose themselves. They then had to live with that for the rest of their lives. Then the people of Pirna. If they had spoken out, would it be their turn next? Perhaps their families? They'd have had to organize an uprising of all of them together to accomplish something, but how can you do that when you never knew who is listening? Then came the coawradice. I tried to put myself in their shoes. I'd like to say I'd have said something, done something. Maybe if it were only my life, I would have. Who can say until (God forbid) you're put into that situation? Then I thought of my family and friends. What if saying something meant losing my family? My loved ones? What if I were risking many lives above my own? I looked at my feet as I came to the terrible realization that I would have been silent. I'd have done nothing, just like the rest of the people of Pirna. Again, pity doesn't remove blame. Every citizen of Pirna, every Nazi was to blame. Not acting is probably just as bad as doing it yourself. But people were put into impossible places, and asked to make impossible choices. And so I pity them. And pity (real pity) leads to compassion, which leads to frogiveness, which leads to a willingness to start again and keep the past in your heart without holding a grudge. It's so easy to cast blame without thinking or feeling. I've been doing it my whole life. But I hope that Pirna was enough to teach me to think before I cast blame again, for anything.

After, the basement, we went upstairs to look at more biographies, more pictures. Then we left the institution to look around town. Like most little German towns, it was fraught with churches and history. Some of the most famous names to grace Pirna were Napoleon and Johann Tetzel. I'm going to assume you all know Napoleon, but you may not know Tetzel. Johann Tetzel was the peron who pushed Luther into nailing his 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenburg Cathedral by his selling of indulgences. Pirna was Tetzel's home town. Just like the churches in Freiburg, the ceilings were the parts of the churches that captivated me most. So detailed!

After leaving Pirna, we had a 2 hour boat ride down the Elbe toward Königstein, the largest fortress in Europe. It has never been taken by force at any point in history. It too was used by Napoleon as well as being a holding place for POWs. Here's is Königstein as seen from the boat when we got close enough:

That hill might not look like much in the picture, but it was a real hike to get all the way up there! And it was a million times more imposing to stand right next to it. But the view was completely worth it! I'm pretty sure that's looking out over the Czech Republic (it's only about 15 minutes by train from Königstein to Czech).

And just to give you and idea about the walls of the fortress:

Crazy, huh?

Well, that's about it for tonight I think. It's getting late here!

Love,

Mick

Ich bin ein Berliner

2007-08-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

Hallo!!!
Well, I got to spend a nice long weekend in Berlin, which was awesome :) We even accidentaly happened upon the filming of a movie while we there, which was cool. Apparently there's a new Tom Cruise movie coming out about an attempted Hitler assassination during WWII. So of course I'll have to see that when it comes out. But let me say that it was VERY weird to be walking around the area surrounding Check-Point Charlie and see a bunch of men in Nazi uniforms and riding in Nazi cars around Berlin. I suppose the Germans knew it was going on though because they seemed OK with it. I only wish I had had my camera on me! But a few other people did, so I'll put pictures up when they send them to me.
I did have it with me for most of the time though! I went back and got it as soon as I missed that so I wouldn't miss anything else. So here's so of what I saw!

The longest standing stretch of THE WALL

A Soviet Memorial

The Berlin skyline from Potsdamer Platz

Famous sign at Check-Point Charlie

Nick, I was in the history museum and when I saw this, I just couldn't help myself. Sorry if it's not clear, I wasn't allowed to use flash!

Berliner Dom

The inside of the Dom (this is the dome)

This is actually Potsdam, but this is Cecilienhof, where the Big Three met after WWII

That's about it for now! I know this wasn't too terribly informative, but Berlin is a great city!
Love,

Mick

Prague

2007-08-12T03:19:00.000-07:00

Friday after class, Lori, Drew, Mackenzie, and I caught a 3:00pm train to Prague, one of my favorite cities so far. Not only that, it meant more stamps for my passport, which always makes me excited :D The first night was spent checking into the hostel, and then wandering around the city a bit. But as it was getting late, there wasn't too much we could do, so we found a bar and just relaxed for a little while. The next day wa sight-seeing crazy, since we had to do Prague in a day. We got started at 10 and walked non-stop until 7 when we caught the train home, by which time we were all exhausted. Unfortunately, I can't tell you too much about Prague's history, but it is definitely worth a visit (I'm so gald I went, Mary! I thought of you the whole time I was there!).

It was kind of hard to navigate some parts of town...

Downtown on Wenceslaus square

There were a whole bunch of little heads on this door. Good cause for us to stop and go "...what?"

An AWESOME church.

Another cool church.

Outside the cathedral on Prague's castle grouds

It rained alot. Lori was not pleased :p

And of course, a view of Prague from the top

Love!
Mick

Moritzburg!

2007-08-12T03:07:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday we took another class trip, this time to Moritzburg! Moritzburg is still a small town, just as it was in Medieval times when the first castle was built there (in the middle of a lake!). The castle was later renovated by August the Strong and turned into a hunting palace for his enjoyment. The entire inside of the castle was hunting themed, adorned with mounted heads, and even a room with hangings and bedclothes made entirely of dyed feathers. The "Federzimmer" ("feather-room") was absolutely amazing. We had to stand behind glass to view it and were not allowed to take pictures so that nothing would be damaged in this incredibly delicate room. Later, after seeing the castle, we walked around town to take in some of the sights, stopped for lunch, then went to the train station. This was probably my favorite train so far. It was an old steam-engine train (used more for entertainment than transport now). we were also permitted to step out of our compartments to look at the engine steaming along ahead of us. It was really cool to see this train steam along over a lake, through a forest, and past fields. People we passed always waved, and I got the impression some of them were even waiting for us as there were several parents/grandparents with small children (all the kids got so excited to see the train and wave at us). When we got to our destination, we walked through a few streets until we could see a vineyard up on a hill (Dad, this would have been your kind of day! We'll have to go sometime). At the bottom of the hill we were allowed to tour a house with information on the vineyard and why this one in particular is so special. It has been there since the 1600s, but the soil and precipitation are not at all conducive to growing the grapes ("Weintrabue") needed, but somehow this vineyard is still here and producing! We were then taken into a basement to see how the wine was stored and bottled when the vineyard was first started as well as some old labels that had been preserved. There were some pretty cool looking machines down there, not all of which I understood. Then they took us back upstairs and let us all do a wine tasting. It was a pretty neat experience, one I've definitely never had before! After that, Dr. Spencer took us all outside, pointed to the top of the hill and said "Let's go." Lori looked at me and said "Up THERE!?" Sure enough, we walked through a little gate marked with a sign that said "Jahretreppen" ("Year-steps"). Sure enough there were 365 of them! And at the top, a beautiful view and a beergarden. The perfect end to the trip!

The castle

This is the castle as we were walking away from it. I just liked how the image was reflected in the water :)

This is the train. I have so many more pictures of this, but they'll have to wait till I'm home :)

The steps (which weren't really as terrible as I thought they'd be)

Standing on the top step

View from the Beergarden

That's it for Moritzburg!
Love,
Mick

Not Too Much to Say

2007-08-07T09:35:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
This isn't going to be too terribly informative, not like any of the others. But I thought I'd sare some of Germany's quirks with you! At least things that I think are quirky. :p
1. Letting your kids go swimming naked in public fountains is A-OK.
- yeah, this was surprising at first! But no one seemed to care at all. I was walking down the main shopping district in my area (Prager Straße) during my first week and upon passing a series of fountains was shocked by a large group of kids (aged to about 5) all playing together in the water. Stark naked. The parents all sat around the fountains, some with books, others talking to friends. This is something I've seen a few times on hot days.
2. Weird hair?
-Germans have redefined "weird" when it comes to hair. I've seen it all. Pink, blue, green, dreds, mohawks, you name it. I've even seen polka-dot hair. Then there's these "almost" mohawks. They're really broad, and the sides are shaved, bot not completely. Usually it's one color on top and another on the sides. The color usually follows the cut (i.e. if one piece is longer, it's a different color)
3. Guys in girls' clothes
- Lots of the guys here wear what most would consider overly-tight pants (jeans usually). Another fad is guys in capris. They say they're 3 quarter length pants, but come on. Who are they kidding. They're capris. I have the same pair. Bags are also common with guys here. They aren't big enough to be a messanger-style bag, but they wear them with the strap across the chest. Looks kind of like a purse... :p
4. Try not to smile unless it's really that funny.
- This one's pretty hard for me! I smile all the time. When you smile, it's not really seen as trying to be friendly. This is one of the major differenes when shopping or dining out. It doesn't necessarily include service with a smile. Smile too much and most Germans will think you're a bit false. The attitude is that if you're going to smile, have a reason, not just to seem nice.
5. Faster!
- It's all about effciency. For example, when you go grocery shopping, you should always remember your shopping bag (you can buy cheap cloth ones at the store usually, and you bring them with you when you go) and have it ready as soon as the first item hits the scanner. You need to bag your own groceries, and you need to do it fast. And try to have exact change if you can so you don't hold everyone up behind you. And try not to take too long putting your change in your wallet if you don't have exact change. Credit cards are a hassle too, they just take too long. While it can be frustrating at first, this system is actually pretty nice. You don't wait long in line, and things are almost never too crowded.
6. Recycle, recycle, recycle!
- The trash cans in our dorms make this easy too, since we have a bin for each kind of item. You MUST sort your trash into glass, plastic, paper, and waste. Public trash cans are also divided this way to make it easier on you. This is the idea behind the cloth shopping bags too. It saves them money on plastic ones, and it's better for the environment to reuse one or two bags. Along with this idea of conservation, the city shuts down at 10. The traffic lights go out and the street lights are dimmed (or if there are two on one post, one goes out) to save energy. Lights are left on only in the heart of downtown on the Elbe.
7. If it seems like a bad idea, just don't do it.
- Germans find it absolutely hilarious that an American got money for spilling coffee on herself. You'd be laughed out of court for something like that here. The mentality is "You orded coffee. It's hot. If you spill it on yourself and get burned, deal with it!" You'll find this same idea at places like festivals. Lines aren't really something you do to wait for a ride. Just gather as close to it as you can, and when it stops, get a seat as fast as possible. Make sure you're out of the way when the ride starts too, because they won't always wait for you to get off if you didn't manage to get a seat. They think "you should be paying attention to what's going on around you. When something starts to move, get out of the way." Drivers here have the same mentality...

There are a few unexpected exceptions to these things. For example, if the tram drivers see you running to get the tram before the door closes, they will usually wait for you to catch up, even if they've been stopped longer than they probably should have. If you make an attempt at speaking German (or even in English sometimes), people want to help you. I have even been approached a few times by strangers when I'm pouring over a map or bus schedule with a friendly "You look lost, do you need help?" And if you say "Excuse me, please" they will always stop (at least in my experience) and help you. Even if it means going out of the way a little. For all their stoic efficiency, the Germans seem to be a friendly and patient group of people. They are eager to tell you the best places to see and the best things to do, especially when they discover that you aren't German (which is often painfully obvious).

That's about it for today!

Love,
Mick

Wiemar Part 3

2007-08-03T05:25:00.000-07:00

The last thing we did in Weimar was walk through the memorial for Buchenwald.

Upon entering there were about 20 steeles depicting scenes from the events at Buchenwald. This is just one of them:

Along the path of the memorial, you had to pass three of these deep ditches. There is an estimated 2,900 bodies total in these mass graves.
Upon approaching the end of the memorial, you stand behind the final mass grave to look up the bell tower.

This statue stands infront of the bell tower at the top of the steps. It is dedicated to the victims of Buchenwald and their liberation.

Standing behind the monument was even more powerful than standing before it. After years of imprisonment and torture, the final view of the victims of Buchenwald was the nation that Germany has managed to become out of its tragedy.

While walking through Buchenwald was one of the most hearbreaking and real experiences of my life, it is something I would recommend to everyone. It is nearly impossible to appreciate the full impact and desolation of the events of the Holocaust without stepping where the victims of such a tragedy once stepped. This place stands as a testament to the tragedy of the cruelty in human nature, and the resilience of the miracle that is the human spirit.

And finally, one of those personal touches that people often leave. This is a stone placed on one of the monuments outside the barracks. It was the only stone on the monument, I believe because it spoke for everyone.

"Never again."

Love,
Mick

Weimar Part 2

2007-08-03T04:24:00.000-07:00

OK, so I said that those were pictures of the "lighter side" of Weimar. I felt that the "darker side" was equally, if not more important in this case and deserved its own enrty. Weimar was also a hotbed of Nazi activity, even before it showed up in most cities. Corresponding to this, it is the sight of Buchenwald, one of the largest concentration camps in Germany. Buchenwald was not a death camp (death camps were mainly in Poland, the most famous of which was Auschwitz), though an extraordinary number of deaths occurred at Buchenwald, is was a labour camp. As stated before, it was not a death camp, but should you die at Buchenwald it was most probably brutal. Prisoners as Buchenwald died of starvation, exhaustion, and abuse. For misbehaving you could be shot, beaten, strangled, have dogs set on you (which were usually not called off until the person under attack was dead) among other forms of torture that I won't mention just now. Upon entering Buchenwald, a person was publicly stripped, shaved, and given a number thus beginning the sad and terrible process of dehumanization. Buchenwald (along with many other camps) was not a place only for Jews, though many died there. You could be imprisoned at Buchenwald as a POW, a Gypsie, a political figure seen as a threat by the Nazis, a Catholic, a homosexual, or for being "ungerman" (which could mean you were foreign or did not share Nazi views).
All that now stands of the barracks at Buchenwald are plots of rubble left by the Nazis when they learned they were about to be discovered in an effort to destroy all the evidence. Each barrack is marked with the number it would have carried and sometimes a plaque stating who would have been housed there.
I'll continue to explain what I saw at Buchenwald, but I'm going to use pictures with the explanations. They aren't graphic, but they were all hearbreaking.

This memorial shows all the nationalities of the people imprisoned at Buchenwald.

We learned that placing a stone somewhere marks that someone has said a prayer there in Jewish tradition. Nearly every memorial was covered in stones.
Translated as best I can, it says "From November 1938 to February 1939 some 10,000 Jews -- boys, men, and elderly men -- were housed here. 600 of them were brutally murdered. They were victims of racism."

This is the room people come form all over to see. While the cermatorium is sad, and is the image that most people have of concentration camps, it may not hold as much weight on your heart as the room I will explain momentarily. There is no record (though that is not to say it didn't ever happen) of prisoners being burned alive in the crematorium. It was good in a way to know that by the time a prisoner reached this point, his or her suffering was at an end, though it was equally sad to know that it ended in Buchenwald. A room I did not take a picture of, though it had the greatest impact on me, was the corpse cellar. In the basement of the crematorium was a large white room where corpses were placed while waiting to be cremated. The manner in which corpses were placed in this room was through a chute, pushed down like so much trash. When there were too many bodies on the floor, there was still room. The walls were lined with hooks on which bodies could be hung, like meat at a butcher shop. A prisoner didn't have to be dead to be put in the corpse cellar, but it was certain death to have to enter if you were a prisoner. If you were near death or had misbehaved to the point of death as punishment, SS would often walk a prisoner into the cellar and shoot or strangle him there. It saved him the trouble of having to carry someone down to the cellar if he could just kill him there. I have no pictures of this room because I couldn't stand in it for more than a few moments. All I could imagine was this room as it may have looked, full of bodies. And this was the last thing many people saw in their final, cruel moments of life.

Prisoners would rightly have feared men in this uniform.

Weimar Part 1

2007-08-03T04:07:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
This week we went to Weimar for 2 days. Weimar is consdered by many the cultural center of Germany. Many of Germany's most famous names considered Weimar home including Goethe (author of Faust), Schiller (a poet, philosopher and historian who also happened to be good friends with Goethe. So good that they were buried next to each other), Cranach (considered one of the "Old Masters" in German art), and Franz Liszt (a pianist and composer during the Romantic period). Wiemar is also the home of the Bauhaus, a school which combined art with purpose and design (I can almost pormise that something in your house has influence from the Bauhaus!) Wiemar was probably one of my favorite cities so far, especially because (while it's so important and influencial) it is fairly small. Only about 60,000 people call Weimar home. So here's some pictures of the light side of Weimar!

And look! I found some Meyer roots in Weimar! :p

Entertainment

2007-07-31T14:23:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! :)
Not a whole lot has happened since last time I wrote. We've all pretty much settled in here, so there aren't as many sites we haven't seen. But I thought I'd just show you what kind of stuff we do for fun when we're out!
The first one is a poster for the Simpsons movie, which we decided to take in last weekend. All the others were from bowling with our conversation partners.
Love!
Mick

Freiberg

2007-07-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

Hallo alle!
Today, we met at platform 11 in the Hauptbahnhof to catch the early train to Freiberg. Freiberg is an old mining town over 800 years old. It was visited by such historical figures as Goethe. It was also the city in which Germanium was discovered.
To start the day we visited an old Soviet graveyard (there was an agreement with East Germany after the war that all the Soviet graveyards were to be maintained). We were allowed to walk around and see their memorials and grave markers. Unfortunately, they were in Russian so I didn't understand it, but it was pretty sad. After that, we walked through town and up a hill to the mining academy there. They suited us up in cover-alls, rubber boots, helmets (like constructions hats), and gave us a light to wear around our necks. We went down in an elevator and got to explore the mines. It was pretty cool! But really tight and kind of scary sometimes. The craziest part was at the end of the climb, we approached a ladder and were told we were going to climb out. This would have been OK, except we were 300 FEET UNDERGROUND. I looked up the ladder to see a spec of light about as big as the dot of an "i." Half way up I thought I was going to die. We were all so tired from tramping through the mines, ducking here, dodging there, bending this way and that so that we were all sore already from walking in bizzare positions. But finally we reached the top -- what a relief! It was the only time in my life I have ever thought "I wish there were steps here."
After the mine, we got lunch and had a tour of the city. I don't really have a lot of pictures for today, but here's what I do have (we weren't supposed to take cameras in the mine, so sorry I don't have any :( )

I just thought this was funny.

Aaaaand I tried this for the first time today... O.o (pretty strong stuff, but I didn't have much)

Lots of love!
Mick

Pillnitz

2007-07-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

Hallo!
Today, a group of us went to Pillnitz. It was a pretty cool place! There was definitely a lot to see and it was good to be with more people in the group -- that whole getting to know you thing. But we wanted to visit the palace at Pillnitz, famous for it's gardens and oriental-style architecture. We took a long tram ride, then a short ferry ride across the river and the palace was right there. It was so bright and colorful! I love to look at all the flowers and trees. It's made even better by the fact that, rather than intruding on the nature around it, the palace seemed to compliment it with all it's color. We were there for quite some time. Pillnitz is definitely a day trip kind of thing. I am sufficiently worn out from all the walking I've been doing!

Just some silliness :p

And just because I know you all miss my smiling face :p

Love you!

Mick

A Day at the Großer Garten and a Night out in Dresden

2007-07-21T02:43:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys!
Well, yesterday was a pretty good day. We had class until noon and after that, Mike, Craig, Brent and I went to the Großer Garten. The Großer Garten is an ENOURMOUS park. but the cool thing about this park is the palace in the middle. Inside the palae, was a collection of statues that I suppose must have at one point been outside around the palace. We walked by a lake in the garden, and found a really nice Eis Cafe. An Eis Cafe is like a sit down restaurant, but for ice cream. It's pretty awesome :)
After that we walked around for another hour or so, then went back to the dorm to rest for a little while (it was about 5:00pm at this point). Then, when it got dark we decided to go down to Mike's room to play Rummy (it had started raining pretty hard, so we couldn't go out). Then, after about an hour (maybe 2), the rain let up and we went out to see the city at night. We had been told the Zwinger was pretty beautiful at night. The Zwinger wasn't as impressive as we thought it would be, but the city was definitely worth seeing at night! It was much quieter than in the day, and the churches and historical buildings were all lit up against the dark sky.

Love,

Mick

More Pictures!

2007-07-19T09:13:00.001-07:00

The first picture is of the Russian church near the dorm. The Rest are more from Meissen.

Meißen (Meissen)

2007-07-19T08:35:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!
Well today we took our first field trip to Meissen. For those that don't know Meissen is a city famous for it's porcelain. So we got to see lots of that! We also saw a few war memorials, churches, and the Burg (which is basically a castle, but it doesn't look like that ones in England). Today involved A LOT of step climbing, and we all know I love that! :p But it was a lot of fun really, I would do it again in a heart beat. One building we went in was once a church and later became a World War I memorial, and it was built in 980! Over 1,000 years ago! But my favorite part was the cathedral on top of the hill. I always love churches. But we got to climb to the top of this one, and it was so cool! The craziest part was that our tour guide up to the top was in her mid 60s! She went all the way to the top. By the time we got there we were all huffing and puffing, trying to catch our breath and there she was, calm, composed, and smiling. She also had pink hair, I wish I had gotten a picture of her. But she was fun.
We learned all about how Meissen was the original capitol of Saxony until the Elector of Saxony (Albrecht) moved to Dresden and it was named the capitol. The castle we saw was orginally built for him and his brother, but when Albrecht moved to Dresden, his brother moved somewhere else. So it was never lived in. It was later used as the porcelain factory :)
Not too much else to say today, but there's a picture that's sideways, I know. It's from the WWI memorial and it says that the church was built in 980 and later became a memorial. The other picture says "You were our walls, day and night." I thought that was pretty cool.

Love,

Mick

Almost Forgot!

2007-07-17T11:47:00.001-07:00

This is another common sight in the evenings and one of my favorite things to watch...

A Room With a View

2007-07-17T11:10:00.000-07:00

At 4:35pm (German time), a little miracle occured in my world. My luggage finally arrived. After five days without it, I can't even begin to communicate how happy I am. As Dr. Spencer said, "Just like Christmas." So I can finally wear more than 2 sets of clothing and I won't have to wash clothes everyday. How awesome is that? It also means I can show you at least a few pictures. Here's the view from my room in Dresden! That church that you see is called the "Black Church" (one guess why!). It was damadged by fires, bombs, and pollution. It's made of sandstone, which apparently has a tendancy to turn black pretty quickly. I'll believe it from what I've seen here. Lots of the buildings are black and require constant restoration.
I think I'm going to go rejoice now (oh clothes, how I've missed you!)

Love,

Mick

Going Without

2007-07-16T11:04:00.000-07:00

Well, still no luggage. Tomorrow marks day 5 without it. But let's look at the bright side of this: here is an awesome lesson in patience and taking care of youself. I've learned how to figure out how to get by with the bare minimum. This includes learning to wash your clothes by hand because it's not worth €1,10 to throw one outfit in the washer. Not only that, when one outfit is all you have, what do you wear to the laundry room? I bought the basic hygiene things I knew I was going to need. And today I finally went out and bought one new outfit at H&M that was a little cooler than full length jeans (it was 99 degrees today). But not only has this tought me patience (and is continuing to do so) it has shown me more fully just how kind people who can be. Even people you don't know. People have been constantly offering me this and that to help me out. One of my instructors was the one who took me out to show me where H&M was and to help me pick out clothes. She even gave me a spare razor. So a big thanks to Addie.
Class started today as well. We have a LOT of homework and reading. But it's all ok, because I'm doing it in Germany. And I'm enjoying it for the most part. We just started on adjective endings and the genitive case. Pretty hard to get my head around. The adjective endings require a really in depth knowledge of the each case. But that's ok, because I can do it :) My instructors are helpful and I now have to put this knowledge to use everyday. Not to mention I have a little study group going already with some friends I've made here -- Craig and Mike. Both are very sweet.
We had a walking tour of the city yesteday and got to learn some pretty cool stuff while we were at it. It's weird. Dresden is 800 years old, but it has been destroyed 3 times (by fires and bombs), so it can be hard to find anything as old as the city actually is. But it has restored many of it's historical buildings. If you get time, look up the Zwinger, Frauenkirche, and Semperoper. Just some of the restorations. This city is definitely what I would call a survivor.

That's about it for today!

Love,

Mick

Some More Pictures, but Not a Lot to Say Yet :)

2007-07-15T13:27:00.000-07:00

Not a whole lot to say today. Dresden is pretty cool :) I got to walk around a bit, see some awesome buildings but not much else to say!

Love!

Mick

Arrival in Germany and Pictures!!!!!

2007-07-13T11:44:00.000-07:00

Ok so, I'm finally here now in Dresden. The rooms are really really nice and my roommate seems pretty cool. She's in the same course as I am and is also from OSU.
But here's how the flights went:
I got to Birmingham Airport at about 5:00 am, but when I checked in they said there was something wrong with my passport. Also that I was only permitted one carry-on, meaning I had to get my passport and wallet out of my purse as they were the only things that I could still fit and still be within regulation. I had to put the purse (as well my camera) into the checked baggage. So I had all my books, my computer, and my wallet. They told me to go to the service desk about my passport, but it wasn't open so I was told to wait there anyway. I waited for 20 minutes until the lady there said there was nothing wrong with my passport and printed my boarding passes. The passes had no seat number and no gates listed. So I had to ask around, finally making it within minutes of my flight. Oh was I wrong if I that was the end of my troubles. We landed in Brussels (Belgium for those who don't know) to a massive and nearly empty airport. My flight left in an hour, so I had to do a lot of asking around. Especially since, as I mentioned, there was no gate printed on my pass. Again, I nearly missed my flight after a 30 minute security re-check that we all had to go through. I managed to seep through a good part of the flight to Berlin, which was nice. Finally we landed. I walked into the airport (we couldn't get a gate, so they had to lower the stairs directly out of the plane and we walked to the entrance) and headed for baggage claim. But wouldn't you know it, they had "temporarily mis-placed my luggage." They took Dr. Spencer's telephone number and I told them I was at the university and they promised to call with any info. But because of this delay I missed the train I was meant to take. I went to an ATM to get money for a phone card, but the ATM said "there are no more withdraws allowed today from this machine." This was when I nearly lost it. All I could think was "Great. I'm alone in a foreign country with no clothes, no money, and no communication." Thankfully I still had a fair amount in USD I hadn't spent on the way over, so I waited for the money exchange to open and exchanged it there. But there was nowhere to buy a phone card. So I decided to make my way to the train station first, hoping there would be something there. Too bad I didn't know how to get to the station. So I started walking. I passed to ladies on the street who were headed in the same direction and said "Entschuldigen Sie bitte! Sprechen Sie Englisch?" to which one replied "Ja, do you need something?" I asked her how to get to the Hauptbahnhof from where I was. She smiled and told me I was close and which train to take to get there and where to transfer. I managed to get there and much to my delight remembered being there last year with Konrad, and was able to find my way around fairly easily. So I bought a ticket for a train at 2:46 pm, so I had about an hour to kill. I found a T-Mobile store which sold phone cards and I bought one. I then found a phone and called Dr. Spencer to explain where I was and what train I would be on. He thanked my for calling and ensured me that someone would be there waiting for me. I got on the right train, after asking two different people if this train was bound for Dresden. I got off the train when it arrived and there was Dr. Spencer and Addie holding a room key and a map of Dresden as well as my student rail pass. I was happier than you'd believe to see someone I knew, and that I knew I could communicate with effectively. I met my roommate and after picking up one more person, we went to the dorm. The moral of story here is NEVER EVER NO MATTER WHAT SHOULD YOU IN ANY CIRCUMSTANCE TRAVEL VIA BRUSSELS AIR. EVER. I have nothing good to say about the employees, the flights, or their management of your belongings so I just won't say anymore about that.
On to a happier subject, my last day in England I got to see another castle! This one was not a ruin though, it was in very good condition and the stone way grey rather than red. I also got to go inside and see all the rooms. It was pretty awesome. It was called Warwick, by the way -- pronounced "Warrick" with that fancy English accent 'A.'
And finally, some pictures...

Bath

2007-07-10T10:11:00.000-07:00

Hello hello hello!
Today we woke up early picked up Tabi's friend Rach and were off to Bath. It was about an hour and a half drive to the city, but it was so worth it!
We parked the car outside the city and took a bus in to avoid parking issues. The awesome part about this was that it was a double-decker bus! You know, the kind you see in just about every movie set in England that we don't get to ride over in the States? Well, I got to ride one! I even got to sit on top. It felt like we were about to tip the whole ride! A little scary, but plenty of fun.
Once in the city we headed straight for the old Roman Bath House. We bought our tickets and started out tour. It was one of those audio ones, not with an actual guide (which was proably better since it meant we could spend as much time in one place as we wanted). It was so awesome! The bath was built in the 3rd Century AD (don't quote me on that!) and believe it or not, the main bath as well as several others are still fully functioning! It was all anyone could do to resist the urge to jump in for a swim. The water was a bright green color and steam was rising off the surface. We got to walk around all over and see all sorts of interesting bits of Roman history from the city. As we walked behind the main bath, the spring from which the water came was still bubbling out water through ducts and drains the Romans built. The spring was considered sacred in those times and it's not hard to see why.
We then went into Bath Abbey, also amazing. The abbey was lined with stained glass windows, tombs, and memorials. The high vaulted ceilings reached almost higher than I could see. The whole inside of the abbey was a beautiful cream color with deep brown wood for the alter and pews.
After that it was back to Sulihull for a short rest after the long drive and then we visited Kenilworth Castle. It was a ruin, but still beautiful. It was constructed entirely of rich red stone made only more enchanting by the backdrop of billowing clouds and a sun beginning to set.
The last thing we did today was to stop for (get ready for this) fish and chips. Chips are fries, by the way. And I ate it :p It wasn't so bad really. But sadly, they don't do ketchup so much here :'(
But all in all, a very exciting day!
Love,
Mick

Arrival and First Days in England

2007-07-09T10:49:00.000-07:00

Well I'm here!
I took three flights to get here and they were all pretty good :). The first was to Chicago and only about 45 minutes long. I sat next to a really nice guy from Stockholm who studies flute at CCM and was on his way back home. We talked the whole way to Chicago about music and travel. Then next flight was the looooong one. From Chicago to Frankfurt -- a nice seven and half hours. Thankfully I had plenty of room to stretch out. That flight was very quiet, so I was able to sleep for a little while. The last was only an hour and a half from Frankfurt to Birmingham. While boarding the plane, a boy on vacation from I have no idea where saw my passport in my hand and said "Wow -- you're a long way from home." Judging my his accent I can only assume he was Australian (but there's a huge chance that I'm wrong). We had a short conversation before getting on the plane -- oh the people you meet in the air!
Upon arriving in England, Tabi picked me up in the airport and we went back to her house. I settled myself in and met her brother and dad, both of whom are very kind. We spent that night at Tabi's house and watched Meet the Parents while I tried to overcome five hours of jet-lag. Then next morning it was off to Sidmouth to visit her parents who were staying at the vacation home there. I also got to meet her grandparents and some of their friends, who were a great time. I got to take a walk on the beach with Tabi's mom in Topsham and see the cliffs all along the shore, a first for me. On the way to visit her grandparents, we were driving along a narrow road when Tabi's mom said "We had to take you along at least one of the narrow roads of Devon!" I looked at Tabi who said "Oh, this is a two way." "THIS is a two way!?" This got a laugh from everyone. I looked out of the car to re-examine the road. It was so narrow that there was no shoulder and there were tall hedges on either side which the rear-view mirrors occasionally brushed. The road broadened a little here or there to give room for a car to pass, but should you meet another car where to road was not wide enough, one of you must reverse.
The next morning we went to a little town called Beer, which was very nice, and gave me the opportunity to see another of England's beaches. This one was rocky, unlike the one I got to see in Topsham. We then went home for lunch, which was "proper" sausage, potatos, chicken and lamb. Too bad we don't do lamb as much in the States as it's really excellent! But then, Tabi's parents are both exceptional cooks! After lunch it was back off home.
Today was spent in Birmingham (2nd largest city in the UK under London). Tabi and I did a little shopping and met a friend of her's for coffee. Then we looked in at the aquarium, which was pretty cool. And tonight, Olie (Tabi's brother) is our personal cook :) It smells amazing already.
I've also heard some phrases that died a while ago in American English like "fortnight." And some words I've never heard at all in America -- like "lorries" (trucks) or "ta" (thanks...I think :p). Also that you can't get Oreos in England (except from one particular store and they are £4.99, which is about $10.00).
I'm using Tabi's computer, so I can't post photos at the moment. But I will post them as soon as I get to Germany!
That's all for the moment.
Love you all!
Mick

Last Day in the States

2007-07-04T09:22:00.001-07:00

Well, this is it! My last day in the US for a while. But what better day than the 4th of July, right? My flight leaves from the Greater Cincinnati Airport tomorrow at 12:35, so I'm really excited! I'll be in England for a week, then I'll arrive in Germany on July 13th.
Things have been pretty awesome so far this summer at home, and I'm really going to miss everyone! I had a great time in Gatlinburg with all my friends, and I got to spend some good time with my family. I've already made good memories this summer and I can't wait to make even more.
Good luck in basic, Sean! You're so close to being home, Alex! Brian, tell me all about your mission trip when I get home! Have an awesome time in Mexico, Mom and Theresa! I love you, Dad! Good luck with the new house, Nick -- I can't wait to see it when I get home! Don't laugh too hard without me, Katie :D!
And to everyone else, I'll miss you and I can't wait to see you when I get home.

Love,

Mick

Last Test!

2007-06-06T18:30:00.000-07:00

Just passed the final test for this trip! Nothing can stop me now :)
I was thinking today about the crazy stuff that happened last time I was in Germany, so here's some fun pictures. You can put your own stories with them :p

Preparing

2007-06-04T16:39:00.000-07:00

It's a few days before the final orientation session for Dresden and things are starting to fall into place. All airline tickets have been purchased and train arrangements have been made. I'm pretty excited, but a little nervous about being expected to communicate in German with German people. I'm afraid of being laughed at, but at the same time I know that will happen and if and when it does, I'll just let it roll off my shoulders and learn from it (because, after all, isn't the best way to learn? from your mistakes?).
Well, I will probably post again before I leave, and pretty steadily after that!

Love,

Mick