So I haven't been getting many comments lately, but I'm gonna keep on posting, at least for myself (and you Mom!)
The last few days have been pretty uneventful. I was too tired to go out on Saturday night, and then Sunday was just cleaning my room and doing homework. My German class and homework have been getting a lot easier for me. It is amazing how quickly one picks up a language when living in the country. I do spend a lot of time hanging out with the other Libby's and speaking English, but that's because I haven't met anyone else here, and they're the only ones in my classes. I'm sure that once the regular semester starts our circle of friends will grow. And although my pronunciation and Wortstellung (word order) are pretty bad, I do try to talk a lot in class (especially after I've had my morning coffee!)
It got cold here really quickly. Lin and I went to TKMaxx yesterday to get some fall/winter jackets. And yes, TKMaxx is TJMaxx's sister store, and if I'd remembered to bring my employee discount card along I totally would have tried to use it! I was amazed at how much cleaner this store was though. They also didn't seem to have a leaky, caving-in ceiling. How does one manage that? lol. The stuff was just as cheap at least, if not more so. I got a big, warm wool coat for only 40 euros. It's really heavy, but I'm hoping I can bring it as a carry-on when I come back. We also found a Fresh Food store with a lot of foreign imports. (Kinda goes against the idea of "fresh," but oh well.) I got more peanut butter and some Mini-wheats! Unfortunately they only had the plain kind. :-( Still haven't found any Poptarts either...that might be a lost cause.
Today we got our textbooks from the Buchhandlung (bookstore), and I also found a 4 euro DVD of Dornröschen (Sleeping Beauty) from the 80's. It'll be a fun way to practice my listening skills, and the hair and costumes are great!
In class today we talked about Racism, Foreigner hate, and the Holocaust. Heavy stuff. Anthony was the only one of us who knew much about WWII. I told our teacher that in American history classes we usually never get past the Civil War haha. I was thinking about going with Anthony to Poland for our Break, but now that I've really thought about it I don't think I could handle seeing Auschwitz, or any of the Concentration Camps for that matter. I'm good at distinguishing reality and fiction (thus my love for horror movies), but when the reality is reality it hits me too hard. I tried taking a Holocaust class in high school and didn't make it past the second day.
So I think I'll just go to Amsterdam for our break instead. That's a fun place! Plus if I want some history I could visit the Anne Frank house. I don't think that would be too hard on me. First I have to find someone else who wants to go with me though. I heard the Hostels there are kinda expensive too. If it doesn't work out I'll probably just visit friends here in Germany. Conserve School made sure that I have plenty of friends around the world!
When I went to Europe on a school trip, we visited Auschwitz on our way to Krakow from Prague. I would recommend doing the same. It's really moving (though obviously be prepared to spend the weekend sorta mopey), but you can move on to Krakow, which is beautiful (and cheaper than Amsterdam, probably). Also, it's not that far from Dresden. It's really an experience you should have while you're there, in my opinion. It can't really be explained. On the one hand, you have this massive instrument of death, but on the other hand, it's in ruins: ultimately, good won, evil was defeated, and the factories of death went cold. I think that's important to remember if you decide to go.
ReplyDeleteI would point out that the Jewish High Holiday of Yom Kippur (the Day of Repentance) is coming up, so it'd be a particularly good time to visit the location of something for which Germans today are still paying penance. I think that's a significant part of the current German mindset, so I think it's relevant if you're in Germany to learn about German culture and whatnot.
Whether you decide to go or not, it sounds like you're having a good time, which is great. I wish I could be there!
Ihre BULA-Offizierkollege, Bryan
i'm still reading!
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