Morgen's International Adventures: Köln Köln Köln!

Hallehallo!

All of my classmates made it safely to Germany, and we are all doing our best to learn as much as we can in our short period of time together. My small insight into Germany is amazing thus far. Everyday is an adventure, and even though it doesn’t feel like it, I know that I’m learning a lot. I’ve been having a lot of fun with all my friends, and so far I’m not missing home too much (although I’m sure this will change once I’m on my own).

We are all participating in a language and culture immersion program through the Carl Duisberg Center (CDC). http://www.cdc.de/ Our mornings are filled with grammar instruction by an eccentric and entertaining man named Herr Professor Doctor Mainka (the Germans love their titles). Then, we have a nice long lunch break where we usually just wander somewhere until we find something cheap and edible. The afternoons have been filled with acclimation and cultural activities. On Monday we went cell phone shopping and got German cell phone plans. Tuesday, we went on a walking tour of the city where we saw the Kölner Dom (see pictures below!).Wednesday, we had Intercultural Training. I found this very helpful because we talked about the differences between Germans and Americans both inside and outside of the workplace. This afternoon, we are going to the EL DE house; a German history museum in Köln.

I feel like I’m learning more about “dos and don’ts” and big mess-ups in the German language rather than the nitty-gritty grammar stuff. While this is helpful for a crash course, I think that I have already developed some bad grammar habits that might not get remedied through this kind of instruction. I do notice my pronunciation is improving and I’m able to understand a lot more. I think that is a common problem with all of my classmates; we are able to understand a lot more than we can speak. As with everything, it will only get better with practice, which I need to force myself to do.

Now I just want to do a rapid-fire list of my German observations/experiences:

Everybody bikes. Young people, old people, kids, students, businessmen, grandpas... literally everyone. It really makes me wish that cities in the US were more bike friendly. It’s such a practical and healthy mode of transportation.
Cucumbers. Are. Everywhere. I don’t know if this is just specific to Köln… but seriously almost everything I’ve eaten contains cucumbers. This isn’t a huge problem for me since I love cucumbers however they do make me burp. A lot. Ich liebe Gurken.
Everything is so expensive. This is the poor college kid in me coming out. I know that I am facing a lot of up front costs these first few days… but damn. I almost shed a tear when I looked at my bank account the other day… and then I remembered that I’m in GERMANY. And I told myself to suck it up. This is a once and a lifetime chance blah blah blah.
Public transportation is AWESOME. I’ve only been here for 4 days and I already know that I’m going to miss the German train system when I have to leave. It’s a thing of beauty.Everything can be accessed by train. Everything. And I can’t believe that ticketing is based on the honor system. Meaning, you are expected to buy a ticket. An employee might come around to check for them, or they might not. I have ridden the train at lease 10 times and haven’t been checked once. I wonder if something like this could EVER fly in America…
There are so many dogs! And they are all so well mannered!
If people have cars, they’re super nice. I’m talkin Audi after Beamer after Audi. It’s making my crush on German automobiles skyrocket.
German beer really is stronger than American beer. I had been warned. People had told me.But I guess I would never have truly believed it unless I tried it for myself. And try it I did.Oh yes.
People take the environment really seriously. This is awesome, and it’s going to make writing my Greenservations segments really easy! Stay tuned for more of them.
Also, I’m pleased to say that I had the stereotypical “order-something-without-really-knowing-what-it-is-and-then-regretting-it-later” experience. Yes ladies and gentleman, I ate something nasty. And you know what? I really enjoyed it… up until I realized what I had eaten. Josi and I went to this awesome little bar called “Brauhaus Ohne Name” orBrewhouse Without a Name. Unbeknownst to us, we went during a Köln v. Hannover Fußball game. The place was packed. We didn’t know where to sit. Eventually we found our way to the corner table and ordered some Kölsch Bier. Josi had been told that the specialty of Köln was a dish called “Himmel and Äd”, so we went for it. The waiter came out with a heaping plate of food. We recognized applesauce and mashed potatoes… but there was a third substance we could not identify. It was a dark brownish burgundy with the texture of both fried onions and a mushroomy meatloaf. We bravely dug in, and it was delicious. It wasn’t until two days later that we realized what we had eaten… bloodwurst. Yep, fried pigs blood. My stomach is still pretty uneasy about it, but hey, at least I can say I did it!