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Hm. I wasn't going to start with this but I just realized what "Deutschland ueberalles" literally means. I'm really smart.

anyway....

We're back in Freiburg and it really is wonderful. The weather is great (although it's now night time), the food is paid for, and the bed is familiar. My iPod may or may not be working again and I've somehow erased the music on the german's mp3 player. I am truly blessed with the talents for technological destruction.

So the trip did become much better once we left Prague. Even though the weather continued to be pretty crummy in Dresden, I think the city was much more my style, i.e. German. Even though I never knew where I was going (see walking towards the Altstadt to get to the Neustadt), I really enjoyed wandering around Dresden. When we first got there we had to go on a walking tour, which lasted way too long and by the end I had grown delirious with hunger. Jane and I power walked to get food and when I ended up accidentally ordering some ridiculous meat-gelatin-vegetable loaf I nearly cried. So now I've learned to ask questions if I don't understand the menu. Although I never would've predicted I'd end up with f-ing gelatin loaf. Vomitcity. And as a side note to my single ladies--Dresden breeds them right. We went to this bar called Flower Power for karaoke night and sang "Satisfaction" while Lana and Eric picked up the cutest boy in the bar: Dirk Somecompletelytypicalgermanlastname. I wish I was lying...but I'm not. I don't think he understood 85% of what we said. How sweet.

After Dresden we went to Meissen where they make porcelain. We also had a wine tasting here. This is all I have to say about Meissen.

After Meissen we went to Weimar. This was the longest walking tour of all. This woman had an agenda and a tropical disease. No shit. This is where Lana and I bought shoes and set off our second shoplifting alarm. Lana ran away while I stood in the door way and smiled. We would be horrible criminals. Omg shoes.

Today we went to Wartburg (I think) and saw the castle where Martin Luther (loot-her auf Deutsch) hid during his persecution..or something like that. I really need to start listening on these walking tours. I was too busy flirting with a 7 year old German boy. You gotta catch 'em young.

So yes, now we're back in Freiburg and I've come upon a list of phrases from a mitbewohner that I've been asking how to say in German for the past couple of weeks. So I will leave you with some to learn too!

-gross - "ekelhaft"

-His pants are out of control - "Seine Hosen gehen mal gar nicht klar."

-I cut my finger - "Ich habe mir in den Finger geschnitten."

-His beard hairs are all over the place - "Seine Barthaare sind ueberall."

-I am really proud of that boy covering his mouth whilst coughing - "Ich bin echt stolz auf den Jungen, der sich beim Husten die Hand vor den Mund gehalten hat."

-My sister's dog always pees on me when he is excited - "Der Hund meiner Schwester pinkelt mich immer an, wenn er aufgeregt ist."

-I miss my friends - "Ich vermisse meine Freunde."

Praha, otherwise known as the coldest city in the entire world.

Here we are in Prague. I'm sitting in Joscelyn's bed at the Hotel Expo because I'm feeling a little krank (sick). I'm not really sure what is wrong with me but I just feel not good. Maybe the idea of going outside in scary Prague is what is turning my stomach.

My ipod broke. I cried. Right now I'm borrowing one of my German roommate's mp3 players. I opted to not change any of the music, so while it isn't necessarily what I might choose, it's sort of like listening to a mix radio station...on repeat. Actually, I find it rather bizarre that Europeans listen to so much American music. To be in a foreign country, surrounded by a foreign language and then hearing TLC's "Waterfalls" is just comedic.

So Prague is cold. I saw the weather today and Moscow is currently warmer than Prague. The city is pretty, yes, but it's also packed with tourists and sort of...sterile? I'm not sure if that is the best word to use but it is what comes to mind. You can pick out the eastern Europeans: they're the ones with the disappointed looks on their faces. I can't imagine having grown up under communism. We visited the Terezin ghetto/concentration camp yesterday. It was still ... very very still. Lana and I looked around for a place to eat for about ten minutes and the best thing we found was a corner store that sold cigarettes, beer and some sort of fried-potato-chip-thing. It really felt like a ghost town. Communism only fell a little over a decade ago, I just guess I would've thought things would've developed faster. Although, there is no shortage of McDonald's and KFCs. I think the amount of McDonald's here is comparable to the number of Starbucks in the US. Either way, we leave for Dresden in the morning and I couldn't be more thrilled. If I see another teenaged-Italian wearing sunglasses and a fur-trimmed coat I may vomit all over the front of my L.L. Bean downvest. You really can pick out where people are from by what they are wearing or the expression on their face. The French & Italian always look bored.... the Americans confused....the Spaniards have mullets and the Germans are likely staring at you with a curious intensity.

I can't think of much else to share right now. Joscelyn and Laura just got back with some food for my ailing body. So I'm gonna rail on that now. Lazers nubs

Fussball

As usual, the men of Alban Stolz Haus are playing a game of soccer outside my window. Not that I mind or anything, but it is kindof hard to take a nap if the window is open. Good thing for me I fell asleep about an hour and a half before they started playing. The beginning of their game did mark the end of my nap, however. I probably should've gotten up anyway.

Yesterday we went on a field trip to a company that makes bikes for handicapped people. Neat-o. Not everyone from IES came, so it was a pretty small group of Americans plus a small group of French people. And I guess I'm going to discriminate when I say this but they were pretty much everything a French person is supposed to be. Smoking cigarettes at every opportunity, seriously made-up and completely disinterested. Frankly, (ha, that's sort of a pun...Frankreich is France in German) they seemed kind of like assholes. But everyone knows I'm perfect. Because we went on our trip by train, at the end of the day we were left with train tickets that were good for travel anywhere within Baden-Wuerttemburg. I went with a group to Heidelberg. It was sleepy and beautiful. We walked up three-hundred-and-fifteen steps to view a castle. Naturally, while talking about tripping going on steps, I tripped...on the fifteenth step. That was my third trip of the day....three more would follow. Since coming to Germany, I've turned into something like a baby giraffe. I can't walk anywhere without stumbling..and this is without alcohol. I actually become more coordinated with every drink--smarter too! Anyway, Heidelberg was great and I'm glad that I was with people who understood the train system because I probably would've ended up in Russia had the navigation been left up to me.

Today we had the first half of our language placement exams. I suspect I will be in the lowest group. And I'm writing a letter to UT for my money back. Just kidding, sort of... but it turns out things could've been different. I suppose I could've studied more but that would mean me taking responsibility for my actions and that's simply un-American. It's not my fault I'm stupid...or clumsy. Anyhow, that came out much more negative than it should've of, but seriously, I think you're actually supposed to speak German in your german classes. We have our oral exams tomorrow which will thankfully be over in 15 minutes. I hope I don't die.

In conclusion, I need to go finish all the food in my kitchen. We leave for Prague and eastern Germany early Sunday morning and I refuse to have food I've paid good money for go to waste. Until later, I leave you with a mouth full of food and a rested mind.

morgen morgen

So even though it's Sunday morning and the one day I've had the chance to sleep in the in the past 7, I'm awake by 7:20. Go figure. Right now, it's beautiful outside and I imagine it's probably really cold. These windows work pretty well, so my judgement is based on the frost on the ground.

The past week has been rather eventful. On Thursday, our Sprachkurs (language class) went together ins Kino (to the movies) to see "Das Wilde Leben" about Uschi Obermaier. I think the most important thing to know about this woman is that she never wore clothes and she spent a lot of time with other people who never wore clothes. She also had "intimate" relations with, I think, every member of the Rolling Stones. The movie wasn't offensive, but I think we maybe should've tried to research more before we went. I don't think anyone was expecting what we got. Afterward, we went to Martin's Bar which is right by Martinstor, this tower that was built....uhm, a long time ago. I'll say ....... ....... somewhere in the 15th century. I don't really know, but you should know that everything in Freiburg is really old and important and old and important and old and important. There is one other original city wall tower that is still standing and I can't remember if it is that one or Martin's that we call "McDonald's Tower" because of the McDonalds that is basically built inside of it. By the way, for a limited time only, McDonald's is featuring a "Texas Mäc". Sick.

On Friday, we went on a hike through the hills surrounding Freiburg. It was pretty incredible. Definitely something anyone who plans on visiting should do. While we were up in the hills, we stopped in this small chapel dedicated to St. Ophelia where there is supposedly holy water that can fix your eyeballs. It worked for me because afterwards I could see this deer like, 1,000 miles away that had just taken a poop. NO JOKE. After we got down the hill, I went to the fancy grocery store and got in a lot of trouble for having changed my signature from the one on the back of my credit card and then not having an ID with me to prove I really am Susannah Brooks. This was naturally a highly stressful experience and I will never not have a picture ID with me again. Afterward, when I could breathe again, Lana and I went to another grocery store and bought several pounds of chicken, cheese and Triple Sec in preparation for Tex-Mex night. I had a lots of help making dinner (thaaaank you) and I think it went pretty well. Someone asked what "the green paste was" in reference to the guacamole and there were a few questions about the difference between nachos and burritos, but otherwise, hopefully everyone got enough to eat and everyone was happy. Afterwards, we walked in the rain over to another dormitory to eat cake and have a little celebration for Julie, who turned 21 yesterday. Yipee. Happy Birthday Julie, that cake was the bomb.

On Saturday we went to Colmar, France. It kind of sucked. It was pretty weather, but a little cold, and just an all around Boring city. Very small with very little to do. I was really looking forward to eating a delicious omelette, but when that made my stomach feel Horrible, the day was pretty much shot. Although, the pastries partly made up for it....partly. Afterwards, went to a wine tasting, which was also a little disappointing. I think everyone, and this was my situation, was a little too tired to really enjoy it. Once we got back to Freiburg, I came home and passed out for a couple hours. I woke up to eat dinner and watch some James Bond movie with Lana. We hardly even made it 20 minutes in. Too tired.

So it looks like I've caught you up on the past several days. I think I'm going to get back into bed now. Seems I'm tired again. Be good, send mail.

hallihallo

Good news: the weather has performed a total 180. The skies are clear and it's not too windy. The past week has been completely miserable weather and it was definitely bringing down my mood. There was a lunar eclipse last night but I didn't get to see the whole thing because we went into a "dance bar" that was pretty horrible. Crowded, expensive, and hot...it wasn't very fun. I did have fun with the girls I was with though. Shout out to the ladies if you're reading- Crabs, Blondie, just Jane.....good night. Joscelyn, where were you?? I think next week we should go out during the week, as that is what we have been told, by the real live Germans, is when most people go out.



I slept in far too late today, mostly because I could but also because I stayed up until the sun came out. I sort of wish I hadn't wasted so much of today but I needed the rest. I'm trying to figure out now if I can maybe walk up the big hill outside of my window. I know it's possible, but I'm not sure what direction to head. I may just walk towards town and sort of wander around. A lot of the other IES people are at a soccer match today, so alas, I am alone. You know how much I enjoy sports...



Oh, so yesterday we went to Switzerland...We were supposed to go hiking but the weather was so horrible that we had to go to Lucerne instead and wander around the city for several hours. Pretty crappy weather, too expensive everywhere. IES gave each of us 20 Swiss Francs which pretty much only covered the entrance fee to an hour long IMAX movie, which I fell asleep for half of anyway. I think it was about penguins. Eitherway, that's the most expensive nap I've ever taken. I think Lucerne would be a lot more enjoyable had the weather been warmer and it wasn't raining. It seems like a good place to walk around, i.e. not have to spend any money. I plan on going back, but hopefully to somewhere else. I'm not really sure where yet, but there should be chocolate and yodeling.



Alright, I'm off to go wander in Freiburg. Hopefully I can find somewhere open that I can buy a coffee. I need a caffeine fix and a little extra motivation. Be good my babies, know that I'm missing you all a lot.

jaaa...ich bin die neue....

Listen: I've made it to Freiburg and I've already done a lot of stuff in this past week. For example, on Saturday, we took a bus to the Black Forest (Schwarzwald) and toured a cloister and a barn. Mind you, it was no ordinary barn, but rather a barn-house-thing that was first constructed, I think, in 1620....and it's still there. Generation after generation of the family have lived there and I think it was in the late nineteenth, early twentieth century that the land surrounding the barn-house-thing was sold to a non-family member....or something like that. Frankly, I didn't understand most of the tour because it was auf Deutsch... But I got that it was old and important because it is old. Oh I'm learning so much. The same day we also visited Titisee (Lake Titi, fantastic name), which was nice enough, but it was kind of crappy weather, so I think it could've been a lot more enjoyable. The town was a bit touristy, but that's what we were too. On Saturday we're going to die Schweiz (Switzerland) and I think it'll be about an hour trip by bus? Again, something I'm not very sure about because it has only been talked about in German. Pretty much everything is a surprise to me, as it is being done, because my listening skills are so shitty.



Tonight there was a bit of a celebratory birthday dinner in the kitchen for Markus' birthday. They put a spread together that was something like fondue, but different. Instead of dipping vegetables and meat into the cheese, you put vegetables and whatever on this sort of spatula thing and then placed a slice of cheese on top, and then heated it all up together on a sort of ... griddle. There was also this "dip" for the potatoes that tasted very similar to ranch dressing. Oh...and they all drink this thing called "Schwip Schwap" which tastes kind of like flat coke mixed with iced tea....kind of gross. Anyhow, it was fun and what not, and while they all speak German with each other, they say a lot of stuff in English, i.e. "Happy Birthday" and they can all speak English pretty well. I think they're only being nice when they say my German is good. I usually give up pretty fast and revert to English. I made some chocolate chip cookies. And uh, explained that "Don't Mess with Texas" comes from an anti-littering campaign and I think I've cleared Texas' name for now atleast. 




So, uhhh. Right. Let me share some of my impressions of Germany/the Germans so far....

-Everyone has blue eyes....or well most everyone. And all the children seem to come in twos. I can count on more than one hand the number of little blue-eyed, blonde-haired twins that have stared me down from their stroller seats. Babies: the silent judger. Apparently Germans receive a fairly substantial amount of money from the government when they have a kid, which sort of reminds me of the Nazi system of rewarding parents that were of "good-breeding" when they had a lot of kids. Which brings me to my second "impression"....

-I can't not see an older person and wonder what they must've been doing during the second world war. I mean...I guess everyone couldn't have been a Nazi, but ... well... they probably were, right? I don't know. The old people are kind of mean period and are really bad about staring. Although, the other day this old lady was getting on the street train and fell down and that made me feel bad, but then I thought, well, maybe she was a Nazi so it's okay? I guess I kind of become obsessed by the idea of whether or not people were Nazis and it's really not something worth obsessing over.

-All of my "Mitbewohnere" (Roommates) are great. The way my dorm is set up is that everyone has a single room with a sink and then we share a bathroom, kitchen, and living room. I think I may be the youngest person in the hallway because Germans don't start university until much later. So I think the fact that I'm only 20 and already in my fifth semester of college is strange for them. 



Alright, this should be enough to pacify you for now. Be good in die USA. I've only been here a week and it's already become difficult to write coherently in English. Sorry about that. I hope you get the idea.

Ports

Every single dream I've had within the past two weeks has involved my passport and/or airports.