Guten Tag, Freunde!
Sorry it took so long to pop out another post, but I've had a bizarre combination of never enough time and terrible WiFi. That being said, I figured out that I can post just fine from my phone, so regardless of the carpal tunnel, I'm about to get, please enjoy the forthcoming novel:
Wow, Germany is awesome. I suppose the best way to begin was with my first night in the hostel in Frankfurt. After almost thirty hours of travel time and no sleep, I went to the hostel, hoping to get some sleep, only to find out (after several failed attempts at the German language) I couldn't check in until 14:30. I was frustrated, but I explored the city, and that's where many of you saw the pictures of the park and the other various gorgeous parts of Frankfurt. I eventually got back, and was later woke up around 18:30 by my new hostel mate, Colin, who I tried desperately to speak German with, but I quickly discovered he was French, so we spoke together in English. That evening, he, Hucein (another hostel mate) and I went to go for my first traditional German meal: Currywurst und Pommes Frites (French fries)! The next morning, I left and went to the airport after saying goodbye to them (and my third mate, Michael), where I met my friends in the AJY Program for the first time.
It didn't take long before I realized that I absolutely adore the group of people I'm going to be studying with for the next five months, including good friends like my TKE brother Connor, Kim, "Womkatze," Jesse, Josie, Caitlin, Pete, and many more.
The first week was both intense and terrifying because, while we didn't have classes yet, we may as well have, because EVERYTHING WAS IN GERMAN. Regardless of my eight years of German classes (which I like to call six, because three of those years may have added to one, if I'm being generous), I was totally unprepared to speak the language. In the two weeks I've been here, I feel like I've learned more German than could ever be taught from a book, which only makes sense. Probably my favorite is a phrase I picked up from Connor, which is "Das ist mir Wurst," which translates directly to, "It's all sausage to me," but essentially ist just one of many ways to say "whatever."
We've taken a couple excursions at this point both as a large group and in smaller ones. We visited Mannheim on Thursday of this week, last week we explored the city of Heidelberg (I'm actually learning to read a map pretty well), we climbed the Heiligenberg mountains on the northern side of Heidelberg, and Connor, Jesse, and I were thinking about taking a cheap trip to Berlin next weekend. Traveling is a blast, but sometimes staying put can be the best thing for you.
Unfortunately, it's really hard to stay still when you're abroad, because you just want to soak it all in. So the day after we climbed a mountain, my Gesprächsperterin, Anna-Lena (German speaking partner we chose to help improve our German while we help improve their English) invited me to go bike riding with her in some of the farmlands near Heidelberg, because she has two bikes. Despite my weariness, I soldiered on, and I'm glad I did. For as much as I love the city, I really enjoyed riding through the seldom-rode paths of the outskirts of Heidelberg. Truly magnificent.
Last week was lots of paperwork and making sure we were all set up in our apartments and knew where to find everything. This week was also lots of paperwork, but mostly of the homework variety. I remember learning both Passiv and Konjunktiv 2 (passive voice and second subjunctive), but never to this degree. I didn't even know there was a Vorgang- and Zustandspassiv! Essentially the difference is whether the verb is more of a process (Vorgang) or a situation (Zustand). And then I thought I would be good to go for the Konjunktiv...but then they combined it with the Passiv! Just my luck. But all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, so naturally...
...I've had quite a bit if fun in the bars and at parties around Heidelberg, too. I've tried a couple beers, I've I've tried some bourbon, but the craziest place I went to was this place called Shooters. Connor and I went on Wednesday, but apparently it just gets CRAZY on the weekends. It's a place with over 300 different shots, all with weird names, and on the weekends, there are Aktionshots (shots where you have to perform an action. Ex: When you order the Rocky, you have to get some gloves on and punch a wall). We thought, since we were studying Passiv in class, "why not get a Passiv at the bar?" If you should ever find yourself at Shooters in Heidelberg: DO NOT ORDER THE PASSIV. It is straight vodka and two onions at the bottom. Dreadful.
You might be thinking, "Wow Billy/Will, this all sounds expensive. Are you staying within your budget?" (Mom.) Yes, I am. I'm actually trying to go under budget, if possible. For example, we recently did this dinner where we have everyone who comes pitch in a couple Euro, and then we make a big meal. It was actually pretty cheap for everyone to eat, too. It was a great time, and I am watching my money. Oh, and thanks again to everyone who helped finance my trip!
But all in all, I've been having a blast meeting really nice people from the program and from Germany, and I've enjoyed pretty much everything about this country. I really hope I can make it in international law, because I would love to come back here fairly regularly.
Stay clear, friends.
