The Sportplatz is where the public soccer field is in Weitingen. I purchased a soccer ball today for 20 euro and decided it would be a good idea to try out my new cleats and ball. Altogether 70 euro, a good investment for the year I believe. At the Sportplatz I tried to get back into the game, I'm a little rusty, but for the most part still got it. Kicking with my left foot felt slightly foreign though. When I was there some German dude asked me if I spoke German and I talked to him for a moment. He told me that he was looking at me for the club team in town, but I told him that I'd only be here for another 5 weeks. So much for that. Perhaps in Tuebingen.
Tomorrow is a half day at school. We get out around 12:30 and then I'm going to Stuttgart by train with Eric and Jonathan for the day. I'll make sure to take some pictures.
Last night I thought of this: if you were the North Star, my boner would be pointing in your direction.
Good, right?
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Ergenzingen, Germany
I had a lot of energy in class today which made the day quite enjoyable. A girl in my class, sitting next to me, became so frustrated when the teacher kept trying to help her with pronunciation that she started crying. It was definitely a surprise to me because she is 29 years old and I don't find it to be frustrating that pronunciation is difficult. Either way, I understood a lot more of what the teacher was saying today. A step in the right direction.
After class we had a meeting with everyone and the main International Affairs coordinator, Anita. She spoke about responsibility and drinking. Apparently someone came home drunk and the host parents put in a complaint. It's interesting to see how the younger kids (under 21) are responding to there newly found freedom in Germany. I have two theories: either what Anita talked about actually happened, or she says that every year to the study abroad students for good measures. I'm kind of 50-50 on where I stand.
When I got back home Erika, Wolfgang, and I ate dinner. It was a "Swabish" dish called "Linsen und Spetzle." "Swabish" is the term out here for the people in Baden-Württemberg (the state in Germany where I live) that speak a certain dialect. Basically, the meal consisted of noodles, a soup kind of thing, and "Winerle" (kind of like a hot dog). It was a good meal.
Once my food digested a little bit I hopped onto a bike and headed north to Ergenzingen, another small town about 6km from Weitingen. The ride was fun, going through paths in between cornfields and also riding on the road. I was on a mission to find a store called "Kik" so that I could buy a soccer ball. To my dismay Kik did not have any. Damn. On my way back I stopped at a swamp like place and hung out for a moment and then continued my journey. It really is quite an experience riding around in an unknown land.
Back at the house I enjoyed the luxury of swimming in Erika and Wolfgang's pool and did some push-ups, dips, and squats while simultaneously drinking a beer. Who needs protein powder, right?
In the evening I went to a pizzeria/bar with the other Jonathan (he's from CSUCI as well and we're the only California students who live in Weitingen, the 60 students are spread throughout various little towns in the area) which was only a two minute walk. While there we drank, ate, and sat with some Germans near in age and conversed in the Mother tongue.
After class we had a meeting with everyone and the main International Affairs coordinator, Anita. She spoke about responsibility and drinking. Apparently someone came home drunk and the host parents put in a complaint. It's interesting to see how the younger kids (under 21) are responding to there newly found freedom in Germany. I have two theories: either what Anita talked about actually happened, or she says that every year to the study abroad students for good measures. I'm kind of 50-50 on where I stand.
When I got back home Erika, Wolfgang, and I ate dinner. It was a "Swabish" dish called "Linsen und Spetzle." "Swabish" is the term out here for the people in Baden-Württemberg (the state in Germany where I live) that speak a certain dialect. Basically, the meal consisted of noodles, a soup kind of thing, and "Winerle" (kind of like a hot dog). It was a good meal.
Once my food digested a little bit I hopped onto a bike and headed north to Ergenzingen, another small town about 6km from Weitingen. The ride was fun, going through paths in between cornfields and also riding on the road. I was on a mission to find a store called "Kik" so that I could buy a soccer ball. To my dismay Kik did not have any. Damn. On my way back I stopped at a swamp like place and hung out for a moment and then continued my journey. It really is quite an experience riding around in an unknown land.
Back at the house I enjoyed the luxury of swimming in Erika and Wolfgang's pool and did some push-ups, dips, and squats while simultaneously drinking a beer. Who needs protein powder, right?
In the evening I went to a pizzeria/bar with the other Jonathan (he's from CSUCI as well and we're the only California students who live in Weitingen, the 60 students are spread throughout various little towns in the area) which was only a two minute walk. While there we drank, ate, and sat with some Germans near in age and conversed in the Mother tongue.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Englishless
Today was the first day of actual class in Horb. A mentally
draining day it turned out to be. Five hours of German class in which the
teacher only speaks German and we’re not allowed to speak English, period. For the
most part I understood what she was saying and what was going on, but at times
I felt like I was in an upper level chemistry class without ever taking an
intro class. All in all I think the challenge is good and that I’ve been placed
in the right class level. What I have just described will repeat five days a
week for six weeks. I wonder when I’m going to lose my mind. Fortunately Friday
is a half day and every Saturday we go on a free trip, this coming Saturday we
go to Heidelberg.
The pictures below I took today in Horb, enjoy.
Monday, August 13, 2012
A Free Day in Horb
I woke up this morning around 7am, ate some breakfast, did other morning routines, and then headed out to the bus stop. Weitingen, the town in Horb in which I reside, is around 10km from school. There was a placement test that was ridiculously hard and then the rest of the day was free. To Kaufland (kind of like Walmart) we went in a large group. Beer was a necessity and then to the Neckar river we went to hang out. It was kind of cool, there were these hamick like things that we chilled on and drank. The beer is quite inexpensive and relatively tasty, though usually warm.
Yet another good day with some tropical rain around 6:30pm while waiting for a bus. All in all Horb is a nice place to be.
Yet another good day with some tropical rain around 6:30pm while waiting for a bus. All in all Horb is a nice place to be.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Photos of house in Horb
Today was a nice, warm Sunday full of swimming, dart playing, eating, and sunbathing. Here are some photos of the host family's house.
This is my room.
This is my other room (connected).
Wolfgang's father put this ship together.
The weather is nice so we've been eating outside regularly.
Barn/storage area.
The garden. Currently with tomato, zucchini, lettuce, and some other things.
Pool area, went swimming today.
Played some darts with Wolfgang today.
Swimming with Erika.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Bodensee
The garden at my host family's house provides fresh food for all meals. After breakfast I went with Wolfgang and Erika to the Bodensee, a lake about an hour and a half drive south from Horb. This was the first time on the Autobahn. We were traveling at 150k/h which is around 90mph while other cars were zooming past us, I would estimate around 130-140mph.
The Bodensee was a beautiful lake in a town, if I remember correctly, called Reichenau, or something like that. We went swimming and across the lake, about 10km, was Switzerland. It's amazing how green Germany is, atleast what I have seen so far. It was a very mellow day in comparison to the three days in Tuebingen.
At night I watched the Olympics in German with Wolfgang. As the days go on I am understanding more and more German. I'm excited for school in Horb so I can improve my language skills and better communicate with Wolfgang and Erika. I wonder if I will slowly lose some of my English.
I will try to remember to take some pictures and put them with one of my next posts.
The Bodensee was a beautiful lake in a town, if I remember correctly, called Reichenau, or something like that. We went swimming and across the lake, about 10km, was Switzerland. It's amazing how green Germany is, atleast what I have seen so far. It was a very mellow day in comparison to the three days in Tuebingen.
At night I watched the Olympics in German with Wolfgang. As the days go on I am understanding more and more German. I'm excited for school in Horb so I can improve my language skills and better communicate with Wolfgang and Erika. I wonder if I will slowly lose some of my English.
I will try to remember to take some pictures and put them with one of my next posts.
Friday, August 10, 2012
arrival
After a day of travel with two delayed flights I finally arrived in Stuttgart. From there I hopped on a bus into Tuebingen to check into the youth hostel. On the bus I met another Californian that was doing the same program. Together we found the youth hostel and met some more Californians. That night, as well as the next two nights, we went out around the town to bars and other attractions. I like how one can walk around town with a beer in hand. It appears to be the norm.
Last night in Tuebingen Erik and I branched off from the group and found random Germans to socialize with. Throughout the night we went to three bars and hung out with three separate groups of Germans. We tried to the best of our abilities to only speak German and it seemed to work out. Also, Erik speaks Spanish, so when we didn't want the Germans to know what we were talking about conversed in Spanish. As the night next on we were mixing three languages together all over the place. Finally, after going to the Neckar River, we retired around 4 in the morning.
This morning after a long night out drinking good German beer with my new friend Erik we were awaken by a pounding on our door. In our room there were two bunk beds with Jonny, Ted, Erik, and me. Apparently were were supposed to wake up at 7:30 for breakfast and be out of the hostel by 9:30 to walk to the university to fill out a pile of paperwork. Well, the four of us slept through two alarms and the knocking on the door occurred at 9:30. Oops.
With Olympian speed we packed our bags and headed out for the school, the four of us and a second Eric who has been in Germany for the past year doing the same program as us. He led us to our destination, but of course, we had to hydrate. The cool thing about the hostel is that they sell beer. Beer in hand and stomach, we journeyed to the school and arrived at 10:30. Oh, how we gave worry to many people that morning.
Piles of paperwork and a lost pair of sunglasses later the whole lot of us 67 Californians shuffled onto a bus bound for Horb. Once there, we were herded into a room where all of the host families were waiting to meet us. It was an epic stand off. Germans on one side of the room and us on the other, staring at each other in anticipation. I was one of the last to leave the building with my host parents, Wolfgang and Erika Klumpp. A very nice couple indeed.
Communication is a task that takes a lot of mental energy out here, but my German is improving everyday. I will write again soon.
Last night in Tuebingen Erik and I branched off from the group and found random Germans to socialize with. Throughout the night we went to three bars and hung out with three separate groups of Germans. We tried to the best of our abilities to only speak German and it seemed to work out. Also, Erik speaks Spanish, so when we didn't want the Germans to know what we were talking about conversed in Spanish. As the night next on we were mixing three languages together all over the place. Finally, after going to the Neckar River, we retired around 4 in the morning.
This morning after a long night out drinking good German beer with my new friend Erik we were awaken by a pounding on our door. In our room there were two bunk beds with Jonny, Ted, Erik, and me. Apparently were were supposed to wake up at 7:30 for breakfast and be out of the hostel by 9:30 to walk to the university to fill out a pile of paperwork. Well, the four of us slept through two alarms and the knocking on the door occurred at 9:30. Oops.
With Olympian speed we packed our bags and headed out for the school, the four of us and a second Eric who has been in Germany for the past year doing the same program as us. He led us to our destination, but of course, we had to hydrate. The cool thing about the hostel is that they sell beer. Beer in hand and stomach, we journeyed to the school and arrived at 10:30. Oh, how we gave worry to many people that morning.
Piles of paperwork and a lost pair of sunglasses later the whole lot of us 67 Californians shuffled onto a bus bound for Horb. Once there, we were herded into a room where all of the host families were waiting to meet us. It was an epic stand off. Germans on one side of the room and us on the other, staring at each other in anticipation. I was one of the last to leave the building with my host parents, Wolfgang and Erika Klumpp. A very nice couple indeed.
Communication is a task that takes a lot of mental energy out here, but my German is improving everyday. I will write again soon.
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