Which Way to the Eiffel Tower?

So I went home for my break. I don't recommend doing that, not for any mind blowing reason, like you will forget everything you've learned, or you will never want to go home again. Nothing at all like that. Just merely for the fact that you are studying ABROAD, which means not going home on your break. When will you ever have this chance again??

That being said, I did go home for break. My parents really really wanted me to, and no matter how old I get, I'll always be a sucker to my parents' famous guilt trips. And it was great to see my family and old friends. Oh how quickly the time went, and now check it out...I'm back in Germany, but in a new town, attending a new university, making new friends and back on the adventure trail once again.

One cool thing about the trip home was that the trip back included a 4 hr layover in Paris. Mmmmhmm....if you're thinking what I'm thinking, you're thinking Eiffel Tower. Yup, I don't know french, I've never been to Paris, and I was traveling alone but somehow I figured out the Paris metro system and found my way to the Eiffel Tower!!

*pat pat* (that's me patting my own back)

Before you start thinking I'm so egomaniac, I just want to say that 6 months ago, I would have NEVER been able to figure that out, let alone have the guts to try something like that. Yay for study abroad!!! And thank you again to the Gilman Scholarship Program!!

http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program

Not As Weird As I Thought

So. I am back. I'm in the midwest. With my parents.

I thought it would be SO weird to be back in the States after 8 months of Europe. And I must say, it is disappointingly not that strange to be back. All the signs are in English, all I hear around me is English. I can joke around with cashiers and servers again, because I know the language well enough to do that. I have Burt's Bees chapstick again. I can watch Hulu again. All the money is one color and one size. Out of everything that is different in Europe, the 2 things that feel very strange now are the look of the money and the size of the power outlets.

Not that mindblowing. I'm going to chalk this up to reverse-reverse-upside-down and backwards culture shock. After living in San Francisco for 5 years, coming back to the midwest is always a bit of a shock. So there's that.

And being with my parents again is like hanging out in a time capsule. Their lives haven't changed at all, and they don't really get that mine has. I have seen and done and experienced so much, but they can't really comprehend that. It's like I'm telling them about a movie I saw....whether it's about California, Germany, or anywhere else in the world, it just isn't going to really affect them as it has affected me.

Also, I feel like I've moved around so much in the last 8 months that my head is still reeling. At this point, I feel lucky to be in a place long enough to unpack my bag. I have been getting used to new beds, kitchens, bathrooms and roomies for the last 8 months straight.

Europe seems like a dream--fuzzy and unreal. Maybe it'll hit me when I go back??? Who knows? This is definitely not what I expected...but then again, things aren't very fun when they go like you think they will, right?  :)

Going "home"???

I am going "home" tomorrow. I actually have to wake up in 6 hrs so this one's gotta be short. My parents really wanted me to come home for Christmas, but I was a bit selfish and wanted to stay in Europe for the holidays. When am I going to get the chance to do this again, right?

The compromise, however, was that I come home to visit on my semester break. Well, the day has arrived. I finished the last of my finals a few hours ago (whoo! what a week!!) and now I am all packed, set, and ready to go...to Michigan.

I've been in Europe for the last 8 months, so going back to the States is weird enough as it is. All the signs will be in English. I'll have to pay in dollar bills, which are only one boring color. There are $1 bills, as opposed to the 1 and 2 euro coins. I will be able to understand everyone who speaks to me. I will be able to watch Hulu again.

Good god what am I getting myself into??? I've lived in California for the last 5 years, so just going back to Michigan to visit my parents every year for Christmas is a culture shock in itself.

Going from Europe to Michigan is going to be....well, I have no idea how it's going to be. I'll let you know!!

http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program

Only looking forward...

I am 4 days away from leaving Tübingen and I absolutely cannot wait. Do I tell you what you want to hear? Or do I tell you the truth?

The truth is...the last 5 months here in Tübingen have not been the happiest for me. Sort of a roller coaster. Big ups and big downs. I know I must take some of the blame for not trying to burst the California bubble earlier, but I feel a lot of the fault can be placed on the program I am enrolled in.

There are 54 of us Californians here together in Tübingen. This is a small town, so there is no escaping. Maybe half of them live in my area of student housing, and most of the rest live together on the other side of town. I have a Californian on the floor above me, one on the floor below me, and ONE INSIDE MY FLAT. We were supposed to be "immersed" in the culture here......I am definitely not supposed to have a Californian as a roommate.

We also did not get to pick our own classes. The program consists of a strict set of classes that are made up of either all Californians (where we all speak English the whole class) or mostly Californians. The few classes we have with other students are the language classes, where thankfully we speak German, but more than 50% of these classes are still made up of Californians.

There is no escape. Some of them are fine with this. They live near each other, they have class together, they go out together, they travel together. And always, mind you, speaking English. Not my idea of immersion.

The other MAJOR problem is that I am 34. And everybody else is 20. I know it is unconventional for someone my age to be enrolled in a study abroad program, but I did it to try and broaden my horizons and put myself out of the comfort zone to see how far I could go. And I can't go ANYWHERE when I am chained to 53 other twenty-year olds, whom I cannot relate to at all.

So, I am very much looking forward to next semester. I get to start over. New city, new people, new roommates, new classes (that I get to choose). And hardly any Californians, whew!

There was absolutely nothing I could do about the classes, but believe me, it wasn't for the lack of trying. My advice to you....if you are looking to study abroad, find out exactly what the program entails. Especially if you are older, like I am. Honestly, it's been a personal hell trying to fit in with the 20 yr olds (which has been my mistake this whole time--I actually tried to fit in, instead of branching off and doing my own thing).

Most programs aren't as structured as mine. There are some students here from Connecticut, Michigan, and Oregon, and their programs are completely different. There are not so many of them here together, they get to choose their own classes, and they have a real chance of immersing themselves into the new culture.

On the other hand, my program is so structured that we didn't have any hassles getting here. The Visa process, matriculation, registration for classes and registration with the city were all taken care of for us. They even opened our bank accounts for us. Other students have to do all this on their own.

But you can learn a lot by being forced to handle things on your own, so even if your program doesn't baby you like mine did, don't let that scare you away. You'll figure it out!!

Well, I guess I have learned my lesson the hard way. If the roommates suck, move. If you don't like the people you are surrounded by, reach out. I have 5 more months left, so let's see what I can do!

http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program

Mission Impossible?

Sometimes I get all caught up in how much German I'm not learning. I am going to visit my parents in 2 weeks and I will see my grandma, who was born and raised in Berlin. I am afraid of what she will think when she sees her granddaughter, who has just spent the last 6 months in Germany, and who can still hardly speak.
.
Sometimes I feel like I haven't learned much and that I have failed on my mission...but then I need to remember what my mission actually is:

To become more outgoing.
To be able to think on my toes and know how to react in a variety of situations.
To explore the world and learn a 2nd language.
And most of all, to break out of my comfort zone and really put myself out there, to see what I can find!

6 months ago, I would have never...
...met a group of people I don't know out for a coffee or a drink.
...gone to a show with someone I just met.
...invited almost complete strangers to come over and cook dinner with me.
...crashed on a strange couch in a strange city.
...gone out to eat, out for a coffee, or grocery shopping in a place where I don't speak the language.
...gone out jogging by myself in a city I'm not familiar with, with nothing but a map, 10 euros and a calling card in hand (in case I get lost, which I did, in Rome...I had to take a taxi home after being lost for 3 hours hahaha)

6 months ago, I would have been terrified to do any of those things, and now I do them without a second thought. And I've met the most amazing people this way. People I would have never had the chance to meet otherwise.

So is my mission complete? No. I'm not sure it ever will be. There's always room for improvement.

But is my mission a success so far? Absolutely.

On our way to new adventures in Italy

The view from the cottage in  Tuscany

New friend and boyfriend :)

Christmas dinner in Berlin, with new friends and old
http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program

Einen Einblick

An insight...yesterday I took a break from studying (the semester is almost over! so much to do!!) and went in search of thrift stores here in Tübingen. I found myself walking through the Altstadt, and as I made my way down the cobblestone streets, I heard an accordion player...for just a minute, I felt like I was in the movie "Amelie" (one of my favorites)...

Right then, I suddenly realized, just how happy I am to be here :)

Altstadt Tübingen

The Neckar River Tübingen

Österberg, Tübingen

http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program

Bursting the American Bubble

Ok. I am in the midst of a serious freak out. Again. As we speak, boyfriend is on an airplane, on his way back to the States. The day I have been dreading for the last 4 or 5 months. So I went from spending 5 weeks with him, almost 4 of which were in Berlin, which is the one of the most amazing cities I have been to yet, and with the raddest roommates I could have ever hoped for...to my dorm room in Tübingen, with no boyfriend and rather lame roommates that never, ever come out of their rooms.

It's kind of like taking a ride in a really comfortable, warm and cozy car, playing your favorite tunes, and then getting in this sudden car accident that rips you out of your beloved environment and dumps you into a smaller, lamer car that's playing really bad German techno music.

Talk about culture shock. I've had a headache for exactly as many days as I've been back--4. I'm trying to get back into the groove of things here--diving into classes, going running again (at least the weather's being nice to me!), and preparing to transfer to another university next semester--but it's hard....really, really hard knowing my boyfriend, best friend, and my mental support system all rolled into one is flying home right now.

What I am trying to concentrate on is me. I know that I could have made things better for myself here. Even though the odds were against me breaking out of the California bubble when the International Program I'm enrolled in dumped 54 Californians together in this tiny town, I could have done it. But now that my time here is ending, I realize I have only made a few real connections here, because I've spent most of my free time visiting my boyfriend. Now that he is gone, it is my chance, my last chance, to do what I came here to do. To put myself out there and meet people from different cultures and make real international connections.

If you study abroad, do not only hang out with Americans!! Do your best to break away from them, no matter how many of them there are around you. Get involved with an international student program (most universities should have something like this). Sign up with Couchsurfing (if you dont know what this is, check it out!!!  http://www.couchsurfing.org/about.html ) Get out there!!

If you don't make an effort, you will not meet anyone new! It is SO easy to only hang out with the people in your program, but then what was even the point of studying abroad? Don't just pick up your American bubble and set it down in a different country, break out!

Now I'm going to spend the rest of my time here trying to follow my own advice ;)

http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program