Final Celebration

Hi Class!

I can’t believe our time together has come to an end! It has been such a wonderful journey and I thank you all for being a part of it! I am definitely sad that I don’t get to experience the magic of Germany everyday like I had been the last several months; or see my friends from abroad, or the grand old castles,  or the endless number bakeries. But I know I will be going back again soon!

In this final post we will discuss some of the things we covered in our meeting on Tuesday. Many of you had some wonderful questions for me about my stay in Germany. Let’s recap a few of those questions that were asked:

What is your favorite food in Germany?

– My favorite food was the chicken schnitzel.

What was your favorite place in Germany?

– My favorite place was the small Eastern German town of Passau.

You probably remember this picture from my PowerPoint.

What was your favorite thing to do?

Traveling was by far my favorite activity. Once you are in Europe it is so easy and affordable to go almost anywhere.

What did you like most?

What I liked most about being abroad was meeting countless new people from all over the world. I was so surprised to see how diverse Europe has become.

After our questions and introduction, we jumped into my slide show presentation. Here I wanted to show you all some additional pictures from my trip that had not been on the blog. You got to see some more pictures of Mannheim and my friends, as well as various pictures from my travels across Europe.

Scarf of the Mannheim soccer team, named SV Waldhof.

Next we got to have a final round of comments and questions before taking some class photos.

All of you had such great questions. I can’t thank you enough for all the comments and questions you guys asked throughout the project. Both on the blog and in the classroom. You all challenged me to look at Germany in ways that I never would have on my own.

To conclude our celebration, each class got together for a final photo shoot.

Morning classes:

Afternoon class:

Thank you class and thank you Mr. DuPont for making this such an enjoyable project! I greatly enjoyed sharing with you all the excitement and sensations of Germany. It truly is a beautiful country. I hope you all have started to ask yourselves whether you would ever want to study abroad in a foreign country. I certainly encourage you all to do a trip like mine because you not only get to live somewhere else and learn about another country; but you also learn new things about yourself and your own home that you couldn’t before. Traveling abroad is like taking a big two footed leap outside the box. It can open your life to completely new ways of living and best of all it shows you that the billions of people whom we share this planet with are really not so different from ourselves.

If anyone has any last questions or comments that they did not get to say at our meeting, please write them in the comments section of this post. I am also curious to know how you liked those gummy bears!

Thank you all again for being a part of this project with me! I hope you all get the chance to study abroad like me one day 🙂

It certainly has been one of the best experiences of my life.

Until we meet again!

Auf Wiedersehen!

 

Student Interview

Hello again class!

This week I will fill you in on my recent interview with a class here in Germany. Unfortunately this will be our final post from Germany. I want to tell you all how much I have enjoyed sharing my adventures with you. I am very sad to be leaving this place, but I will return with many memories. Germany has taught me so much over the last 5 months. I have learned so much from the people here, not just about Germany, but about myself as well. I’ve learned that traveling and living in far away places is not as intimidating as it once seemed. Germany will forever be my home away from home. As promised, here is your student interview!

Thanks to my friend Julia I was able to sit down for an interview with a German class from the Altes Kurfuerstliches Gymnasium. The particular students I interviewed happened to be in grade 10. So they are a little older than you, but I asked them to reflect on their school experiences when they were your age. You all had some great questions for the students and they were happy to assist you with the answers.

Jessica asked: Is it fun going to school in Germany?

Yesfir asked: What do you do for lunch?

Josh asked: On a scale of 1-10, how difficult are your exams?

Aydin asked: How are the schools different in Germany?

Well Aydin, I will answer your question first because the school system in Germany is quite different from the one we have in the United States. School starts out the same up until the 5th grade. Going into the 5th grade students have a very important decision to make about which school they will go too. Rather than going directly to a middle school, like we do in the U.S., students can go to one of 4 different types of schools. The schools the students can choose from are known as; Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium, or Gesamtschule. Each school has a different focus and will lead students to a different form of higher education. The decision about what school each student will go to is ultimately left up to the parents, but teachers will always give recommendations based on a student’s performance. Students will usually be in one of these schools for grades 5 through 10. It can be a little confusing to fully understand how the system works, so I added the diagram below to help you visualize.

School is the same all the way through the 5th grade. At this point students will be placed in one of the following 4 schools; Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium, Gesmatschule.

Now to the interview! The students that I was able to interview are from the Gymnasium school. This type of school is most similar to our middle schools and high schools in the U.S. because it prepares students to go to college after grade 12 and sometimes grade 13. Below is a picture of Altes Kurfuerstliches Gymnasium in Bensheim, Germany.

Students playing in the courtyard during one of their 15 minute breaks.

My friend Julia in front of her old school. Without here this interview would not have been possible!

Below are some of the answers students gave to your question’s.

Do you enjoy going to school? 

Answers:

• Depends on the day.
• Sometimes, the German school system is very hard.
• Yes, I enjoy it.
• Sometimes I like going to school, but it depends on the subject.
• Yes, because I learn something new and I have met most of my friends here.

How do you think going to school in another country would be different?

• Going to school in another country would be exciting.
• Other countries have a different school system and maybe easier exams.
• I think we would learn different subjects. And you might be able to use your phone in class more.
• The school systems would be different, and so would the relationships between students and teachers.
• I like school in the USA better because they offer more subjects.
• Maybe the lessons are different, and which classes are required.

What do you do for lunch?

• I do extracurricular activities and play football (soccer).
• I have brötchen (bread).
• It always changes. Sometimes I have Salmon.
• I never eat at the school cafeteria.
• Eat, talk with friends, sit in the cafeteria.
• I hang out in the cafeteria, and sometimes do my homework there. Or study for tests.
• I walk home, which is 5 minutes away, and eat there.
• I eat and do homework. I eat noodles, salad, potatoes, or vegetables.

On a scale of 1 – 10, how difficult are your exams?

• Depends on the subject, but overall: 6-8.
• 5-8, depending on the subject.
• Depends on the subject. The ones I like: 3-4. The ones I don’t like: 8.
• Depends on the subject: 2-5.
• They can be very difficult sometimes. Maybe: 8.

How would you describe your teachers?

• In general they are all very nice, but sometimes unfair about speaking grades.
• Funny, a little bit strict.
• Fair. Some of them are strict.
• Everyone is different. Some are nice, some are fair.
• Fair but strict.
• Most are strict and sometimes unfriendly. But I also have really nice teachers.
• Depends on the teacher, but all in all they are nice.
• Funny, strict, fair, responsible.

How do you remember being in the Unterstufe? (That would be your grade level in Germany!)

• It was ok. Not really different from 1st to 4th grade.
• It was very easy in comparison to the ‘Oberstufe.’ (‘Oberstufe’ is the level where you all will be heading after the 6th grade.)
• Looking back it was easy.
• It was a piece of cake! I wish it were as easy now.

What are your favorite subjects in school?

• Latin, English, PE, and math.
• English, physics, and math.
• Physics, and religion.
• PE, English, politics, and economy.
• English, and German.
• English, biology, and music.
• English, politics, PE, Italian, Art, Chemistry, Biology, and sometimes French.

What are your goals after school?

• I would like to study at the University.
• I want to work as a pilot.
• I would like to go to the University and become a surgeon.
• I want to go to the University and study something with languages. Or maybe study abroad.

Herr Schuller’s English class at Altes Kurfuerstliches Gymnasium.

Thank you so much to Herr Schuller, and his students for taking part in this interview and granting us access to your experiences as German students!  I would have to say after this interview that schools in Germany really do not appear so different or more demanding than what we have in the U.S. I believe either a German or American student would perform equally well at these class levels in either system. I hope this interview gave you some insight as to how German students feel about their educational experience.

I wish you all a very merry holiday break! See you all in January!

Photo’s of the Week – Dec. 5th

Hi class!

I imagine at this point the Christmas anxiety is beginning to set in. Here in Germany the Christmas season is in full swing! Every year, during the weeks leading up to the 25th of December, each town is extravagantly lit up with lights and crowded with Christmas markets. This week I would like to show you some photos of the Christmas markets I visited in Mannheim and my neighboring town, Heidelberg. These markets are filled with lots of little shops selling all sorts of Christmas trinkets like; traditional wood sculptures, scented candles, hats, dishes, and ornaments! By the way, in German, Christmas is called Weihnachten! Enjoy!

The main Christmas market in Mannheim is at the Wasserturm. It looks a little different now with all the decorations and the shops in front.

Here you can see some of the street decorations.

Those were some pictures from Mannheim. Below are pictures from the Heidelberg Christmas market.

Here is Heidelberg Castle lit up for Christmas.

What would a Christmas market be without lots of food! Here the chef is serving up steaks on a bun.

Wurst and hot chocolate are a must have at any Christmas market.

At this stand they are making crepes. It is a popular snack that looks like a pancake folded over and filled with anything you can imagine. I got one with nutella and bananas, it was really good!

You can find Ice skating rinks for the brave at almost every Christmas market.

Here comes the snow!

I hope you all enjoyed this weeks post and are staying warm! There is only one more post left after this one so stay tuned! I want to wish you all a very merry Christmas! Or as you would say in German, Fröhliche Weihnachten!

Photo’s of the Week – 11/28

Hi class!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! This year I was able to celebrate twice! Once at my home with some friends from Mannheim, and once in Tübingen with the other Oregon exchange students!

This was the first year I have ever tried to cook a turkey and I must say it turned out quite well! My friends helped make the potatoes, gravy, corn, casserole, and stuffing.

For many of my international friends it was their first ever Thanksgiving because they come from countries that do not celebrate it.

Cheese cake for desert! Yumm.

By the end of the night we were all left with full stomachs and tired eyes. I’m positive we left them with a great first impression of Thanksgiving!

The roommates.

Then on Friday I went South to the German city of Tübingen where the Oregon study center is located. Lots of exchange students from our state came, as well as some future German exchange students who will study in Oregon next year!

That’s all for now. Enjoy your holiday break and Happy Thanksgiving!

An American Studying Abroad in Germany

Hi everyone!

Wow, it is amazing how time flies! I can’t believe we are almost done with this project! I only have a few post left for you all. Looking back on my time in Germany I have certainly learned a lot about this country and myself. This has been an amazing experience and I would like to share with you what it has meant to me.

This week I would like to talk to you about what it means to study abroad in Germany. As a student from the United States I am continuously comparing what I see in Europe to America. My perspective of Europe as an American is much different from that of say a student from India or Ghana. The way that I notice and appreciate things in Germany is of course different from the way someone else might look at Germany. A simpler version of what I’m trying to say is that: I might look at a plate of pickled onions with spiced roast and think it looks delicious, but someone else might look at it and think it looks terrible.

What is Beauty?

Different cultures have different ideas about what ‘beauty’ should look like.

What I am saying is that everyone has a different view of things, and those views come from who we are as people. When I think about Germany I usually think about the things that Germany has that America does not. For example; Germany has an amazing train network, delicious sausages, cheap groceries, and it has really old buildings and castles. These are things America does not have that makes Germany different. This thought process goes both ways because I also think about what America has that Germany does not. For example; America generally has bigger cars, more fast food restaurants, and lots of space.

Studying abroad has revealed to me my American point of view. In the last couple months I have become very aware of perspectives other than my own. I have met many people here from all over the world, and they each see Germany a little different than I do. After talking to students from countries like Brazil, South Korea, or China; I have noticed different levels of appreciation for the Germany and its society. For example; some people from China might point out that they are delighted to see a less restricted internet in Germany, or someone from Brazil might be shocked by how cold the temperature is. These are things that I, as an American from Portland, would not normally notice or care to point out because we have similar internet rights and weather in the U.S. Yet these are factors that might make other foreign exchange students describe Germany differently from me.

Thinking about your own perspectives –

I know some of you students come from different countries or states, or have parents that were born in other places. Or some of you have even traveled to other countries, States or cities. So one of the things I would like you to think about is how your background contributes to your view of the United States, Oregon, and even Portland. What are some things that you and your family notice all the time? How are other places different from your home? For example; maybe your family is from some place where it is always sunny, so maybe you will point out how Oregon has really cold cloudy weather. Or maybe you come from a city where very few people ride bicycles, so you really like how everyone in Portland rides bikes. Thinking about these simple things will help you better understand your own perspective of the world. Everyone’s view of the world is a little different and that is what makes us unique.

Excursion Time!

So I don’t bore you with you to much writing, I would also like to share you a little field trip my class made. The other day my class went to a nearby church to climb up the tower so we could get an amazing view of the city.

We had to climb so really old stairs to get to the top.

At the top we able to see the church bells and my teacher explained to us how they work. On the top there was a platform that gave us a complete 360 degree view of Mannheim!

I’m really glad that I didn’t miss this trip, because normally people are not allowed in the tower. Since we were a class from the university and my teacher goes to this church we had no problem getting let in. You can probably tell by our winter jackets that its starting to get cold here! I hope everyone is staying warm back in Portland!

Until next time!

Keep those comments coming!

Photos of the week! – 11/21

Hey Everyone!

Today I want to show you all how I get to school everyday. I live about 4 kilometers from my school, which is about 2.5 miles. It can be quite a long walk which is why I always take the tram or the bus.

It is really easy to use the trams here. Only a few trams go straight to my school, but I can hop on just about any tram here and get off close by.

There is one bus just outside my house that takes me directly to school in about 20 minutes. Its a nice way to get to school because I don’t have to worry about changing buses or trams. The buses always come exactly on time or a little early so its very important that I leave for the bus extra early!

Bis Später!

 

 

Music and Food!

Hi Everyone!

This week we will discuss music and food that is popular in the German culture.

Since I was learning about music today in class; I thought I would share some German music with you. Germany is the largest music market in Europe, and the third largest in the world! The country is rich in all styles of music from; classical, opera, folk, rock, metal, punk, and hip-hop. Here are some of the German musicians my teacher shared with us today. I hope you get a chance to listen to a little of each.

Classical Music

Did you know Ludwig van Beethoven was a German musician. I’m sure many of you will recognize this piece.

Folk Music

You will probably find this a lot more entertaining.

The man in the red jacket is known as Heino. He is a famous folk music singer here in Germany. And yes, people do really dance like that during folk songs.

Liedermacher – Songwriter

This next song is by Reinhard Mey. His music is not in any particular style. He is a very, very popular songwriter. He just preformed a sold out show in Mannheim a few weeks ago. Tickets sold out last year in October 2013!

This is his most famous song. It is called ‘Über den Wolken’ which means ‘above the clouds’. It is a song about thoughts of freedom above the clouds.

Essen! (Food!)

I know many of you have been curious about what people eat in Germany. So today I will show you some of the delicious foods that are here!

Frühstück – Breakfast

While I was visiting the city of München last month, I was treated to my first authentic German breakfast. It was much more colorful than my typical bowl of a cereal that I tend to eat every morning. It almost looked like lunch!

Breakfast!

At a German breakfast there is always bread and coffee on the table. Usually these are complemented with cold slices of meat and various kinds of cheese. It is a great meal to start your day with!

Grocery Shopping

Germans love buying their foods fresh and local! Rather than going to a super market, like we do in America, Germans traditionally shop at many speciality stores for their groceries.

Farmers market outside the Mannheim train station.

Just like in Portland, Mannheim has many markets for fresh locally grown foods. Farmers come from all over the area to set up stands and sell their home grown fruits and vegetables.

Metzgerei, butchers store.

When people want to buy meat they typically go to a place called the ‘Metzgerei’ which means ‘butcher.’ Walk into any of these stores and you will see the walls covered in different kinds of meat. This store particularly has a lot of pork sausages, but beef and poultry like chicken and duck are also very popular.

Bäckerei, bakery.

One of the most popular and recognizable stores in Germany is called the ‘Bäckerei’ or Bakery. This is where people go for fresh baked bread and pastries. Everyday the food comes fresh from the oven.

There are probably more bakeries than any other store in Germany. Walking through Mannheim I can spot one on almost every corner.

Turkish Food

Germany is home to a lot of people who have immigrated from Turkey. So of course Turkish food has become a part of living in Germany. Turkish restaurants are dotted all over Mannheim, and they are best known for selling ‘Döner kebabs’.

Döner kebab.

A döner kebab is pita bread stuffed with: shaved chicken or lamb meat, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and yogurt sauce. I like to think of these as the German burrito. They are amazingly tasty, but what makes them special is the shaved meat.

That is the meat for the Döner being shaved off. The meat is packed together and slowly cooks from the heater behind while it rotates.

Abendessen – Dinner

In the past, dinner was usually a smaller meal compared to lunch. Though in recent times that has started to change as more families want to sit down together for a hot meal. Here are some of the dishes you might find for dinner in Germany:

Leberkäse! Type of meatloaf. Taste like a slice from a giant hot dog. Served with bread and potato salad.

Schnitzel! Fried boneless meat covered in bread and seasoned with lemons. Kind of like a big chicken nugget.

Wüsten – Desert

My favorite meal time in Germany! Here are some of the sweetest dishes in Germany:

Deep fried bread covered with powdered sugar and cinomen! Apples and berries are mixed in.

Fried breaded apples covered in sugar and served with ice cream!

Spaghettieis! Looks just like spaghetti but the noodles are made of ice cream and the tomato sauce is actually strawberry sauce. Underneath the ice cream is a pile of whip cream.

Are you guys hungry yet!? I certainly am. Now that you know some original German music and food, think about what is original to America. What foods do we have in America that make us unique?

Can you think of any original American types of music or food?

What do you think about the German music and food I shared with you?

See any foods you like, or want to try?

 

I look forward to your comments!

That’s all for now! Until next time!

 

 

 

 

Photo’s of the Week – 11/14

Hello Class!

Here are your pictures of the week! This weekend I traveled to southern Italy! To get there I had to take the fast ICE train from Mannheim to the Frankfurt. Once in Frankfurt I had to catch a plane to Italy! The German transportation system is nothing short of amazing and so efficient.

My ICE train. We traveled at 200 kilometers an hour! That’s 124 miles per hour!

 

The train stations are always busy.

 

Frankfurt airport! It’s the 3rd busiest airport in Europe, and the biggest in Germany!

Bis Montag!

 

 

Germany and the United States

Hey class!

This week I’d like to tell you about the relationship between Germany and the United States. A few weeks ago we looked at some of the culture that our countries share, like; fairy tales, Christmas and food. This time we will talk about Germany’s relationship with the United States.

Germans have an amazing attitude towards Americans. After World War 2 Germany was under the occupation of the allies from 1945 to the mid 1950’s. In this map you can see how the country was divided into different allied ‘zones’ after the war.

The four main allied powers; United States, Great Britain, France, Russia, and their occupational zones. Each power had partial control over the capital city of Berlin, seen towards the top right.

Each allied country had the responsibility to help rebuild their occupied zones with the intention of one day reuniting Germany. In 1948, the powers of Great Britain, France, and the United States began reuniting their zones. This was something that Russia was not yet ready for and lead to the division of the country into ‘East’ and ‘West’. This division would last all the way until 1989 when the Berlin wall was torn down. This last weekend actually marked the 25th anniversary of the wall being torn down!

Celebrations at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin! Sunday, November 9th marked the 25th anniversary of the reunification of East and West Berlin.

America and its western allies put an immense amount of pressure on Russia to tear down this wall that divided Berlin and to reunite East Germany with the West. 25 years ago, as of this weekend, America and its allies finally achieved what it had set out to do after the war. During this divide the western allies were highly regarded by the German people for representing democracy and supporting Germany’s vision of being a unified country. It is important to keep this important bit of history in mind when thinking about Germany because the outcome of that situation still affects government policy today.

Remember in my post about soccer I mentioned how important the game is to Germany. As the collapse of the Berlin wall marked German reunification with the east, it also meant that soccer teams in the East would rejoin the DFB (Deutscher-Fussball-Bund or German soccer league). To Germany this was a very important symbol of their new unity.

Currently, soccer is also an important topic when it comes to U.S. and German relations. Right now the head coach of the U.S. men’s national team is a German named Jürgen Klinsmann. He is a legend in Germany for having played in the 1990 world cup and being Germany’s head coach in the 2006 cup.

Jürgen Klinsmann, now head coach of the U.S. national team.

The German soccer connection runs very deep on our U.S. national team. Last June during the 2014 Fifa world cup, the U.S. actually had five German players on the team. All five are sons of American servicemen and have German mothers, so it is ok for them to play for the United States.

Timmy Chandler and Jermaine Jones of the U.S. men’s national team. Both were born in Germany and have played for German soccer clubs.

The relationship between Germany and the United States dates back even further than the end of World War 2. Since the 1670’s German’s have been migrating to the U.S. They are one of the largest European groups to have migrated to America during the founding of our nation. Currently there are about 50 million people of German descent in the U.S.

This map shows the percentage of Germans living in each state across the U.S.

Do you see Oregon on this map? It’s no wonder that German fairy tales and traditions are so popular because the Germans are everywhere!

This does not mean that Germans are the only ones sharing their culture. The German-American influences go both ways. Taking a walk through Mannheim you would be surprised to notice just how much American influence there is in this town. Walking down the main street towards the central railway station I spot some very recognizable franchises.

Burger King and McDonalds.

Starbucks.

I was not to surprised to find these stores here in Germany since I already knew Starbucks and McDonalds have stores all over the world. These might not be the best companies to represent America but it is no doubt that the U.S. does play a role in the German economy. In fact, Germany is actually the United States biggest trading partner in all of Europe.

From what I have heard, Germans tend to think of America as a big wide open land that is a little to expensive to make a worthwhile visit. They also see America as the driving force behind democracy.

Typically Americans know Germany for its food, drinks, and cars. But there are many traditions and habitual rituals that form an underlying connection between the U.S. and Germany. We can not forget that though we are a nation of immigrants, Germany was one of the biggest contributors to our identity as a country.

That is all for this post! Please read my questions below!

I have some questions I would like you to respond too for one of my upcoming post. I will be interviewing some German students so I want to give you the opportunity to have your questions answered by a local German!

What would you like to know about students in Germany?

Also think about,

What would you like to tell people in Germany about Portland? What makes you proud to say you live in Portland?

Extra Information:

If you want to learn a little more about the Berlin wall, the BBC made a nice 60 second video explaining the rise and fall of the wall:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-29938258

Schönes Wochen! Have a nice week!

Video of the Week! – Friday, Nov. 7

This week I have decided to show you a little more of Germany. Photo’s can only say so much, but I think these video’s will give you a much better idea of what Germany really looks like. Lately, my professor has been showing parts of this film to my class, and I thought they were so cool that I wanted to share them with you! These videos come from a film called “Deutschland von Oben” which means “Germany from Above.” Watch the first video, and if you have time take a look a the second. The film is narrated in German, so you will also get to hear what the language sounds like! I hope you enjoy.

This second video shows you what some German cities look like from above.

Auf Wiedersehen!