Highlights from Obama Week

What an insane couple of weeks. Ever since I returned from Poland there's been something every day. Last weekend on Friday evening, I had some friends over to the apartment for a little get-together - music, wine and food. I usually don't do too well in the party planning department, but this time for some reason it came together nicely. I think that what binds us foreigners together while in Germany is the fact that we're all in this together - we're all going through more or less the same situation. We've left behind loved ones at home for either a new beginning or an extended, one or two month vacation. Most of the friends I've met while in Germany are just here for up to three months to learn German, then return to their homelands. Only one other guy, Mattias from France, will stay here in Berlin for a few years. Lately I've been spending a lot of time with Elena, a girl from Italy. I feel that she isn't like a lot of other girls, in the fact that she doesn't spend a lot of time in front of the mirror, and doesn't try hard to impress guys. Maybe it's the fact that she has a boyfriend back home, but in any case, it's nice to spend so much time with someone you can relate to. She doesn't speak much English, so our entire friendship is based upon the ability to speak German. It's been happening more often lately, that my conversations with my circles of friends are only in German. I'm basically to the point that because I'm surrounded constantly with newspapers, tv, locals, ads, etc. in the language, I'm starting to think in it. For example, as I was in a restaurant reading the menu the other day, and as I was unconsciously thinking about what I might like to have, I said out loud, "Was bedeutet 'Ente'" to my friend Clair, and then she told me that "Ente" means duck. She then asked me if I was starting to think in German, which got me thinking about all of this.

So after our get-together at my place, they were able to talk me into going to the disko (club). We found this place called Matrix, which reminded me a lot of Fur, in DC. It had about 7 rooms with different types of music playing in each. About an hour into it most of our group went home, but a friend and I stuck around because we wanted to dance. As I was getting tired I glanced at the time and it was 4am. I'm not usually one to stay out late, but it was a lot of fun. Here, the clubs don't open until 11 and aren't packed until 12 or 1. Seems to be like that in a lot of European discos.

Sunday we traveled to Dresden, which is the capital of the German state of Sachsen. It's about 2 hours south of Berlin, and was almost completely destroyed by bombs during WWII. Some parts have survived nicely, and the rest has been beautifully restored so that now it's a charming villiage. My favorite part was the wall that had former kings painted on it, and you could walk down this outdoor corridor to see them all. The River Elbe also runs through the city, and we sat at an outdoor cafe so that we could soak it all in.

Tuesday our class took a field trip to Eisenhuttenstadt (Iron Forge City), a small villiage an 90 minutes from Berlin on the Polish border. Built in 1950 as a model comminuts city, it really doesn't have much to offer. The buildings are plain, the streets are wide and straight, and there aren't any special landmarks. The one place of interest, and our reason for going, was the DDR documentation center. This center is a sort of museum that displays what life was like under communism in the DDR some 40 to 50 years ago. It was quite depressing - there were few choices for schools, food and drink, and even what you could buy. It's hard to believe that during part of my lifetime this was going on (until 1989.) Because the DDR (the former East Germany) was part of the former Soviet Union, the residents of Eisenhuttenstadt decided they wanted more choices and a better life. So in 1989 they broke away from the Soviets, and in 1990 were reunited with the former West Germany to make what is now Bundesrepublik Deutschland.

Wednesday wasn't too interesting because I had to prepare for my presentation in class the next day. We're required as part of our lesson to give an hour-long presentation in German about a topic in German culture. I chose to research the Brothers Grimm, authors of several children's fairy tales including Cinderella and Hansel & Gretel. The Brothers lived somewhat of an interesting life - they started collecting folk poems in 1806 and it wasn't until a few years later they started writing the fairy tales. They were heavily influenced by Dorothea Wild, who was the wife of the younger brother, and her family. It was from her that the Brothers heard the tale "Little Red Riding Hood." So after gathering some important dates and choosing a section from Rapunzel to read to the class, I gave my presentation. I taught the class several new words, which were part of the tale, and afterwards some told me that they really liked the style with which I presented my information. They said I made them look bad because mine was so good. Not sure if I believe them, but it was a nice thought.

Later that day a sure highlight of my trip occured - I got to see Barack Obama speak along with over 200,000 other people. He's really quite well-received here in Europe - they see him as the "black J.F. Kennedy." They see him as a catalyst for a change that we so desparately need in the States. He spoke not as a candidate for President, he said, but as a citizen of the world. He spoke about the importance of building global relationships now more than ever, and referred to the Berlin Airlift several times throughout the speech to show how when we work together we can accomplish great things. I was somewhat disappointed though, and as I have read in the newspapers here so too are a lot of Germans, that he didn't speak about how we should do this. Sure, he spoke of the importance of eliminating the threat of nuclear weapons and ending genocide in Darfur, but where's the money going to come from to accomplish all of this? We're sort of in the middle of a war right now, and many of our otherwise-available resources are tied up in Iraq. Nevertheless, I think he has a better chance than McCain does of ending the USA's isolationist and reckless policies towards war and global domination.

And finally, yesterday after class I traveled with Elena to the concentration camp Sachsenhausen, which lies just north of Berlin. Over 10,000 Jews were murdered here during the early 1940s. Elena made a good point - that now there are some wildflowers and trees growing on the grounds - the best time to visit would be the dead of winter so that we could see what it really looked like there year-round. I learned that many Jews were murdered if they started just the slightest provocation. Workers at the camp (the average age of the workers was 21) were often given bonuses or extra time off for shooting prisoners immediately when told to do so. The barracks were also horrible - two and sometimes three people were stuffed into a bed smaller than a twin. If you got up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night you risked losing your spot. There was a roll call twice a day - one at morning and one at night - and if even one person was missing everyone had to stand there until he or she was found, sometimes all night. Your best hope was to get a job working in the kitchens - this required the least amount of physical labor and you could often secretly supplement your daily ration of less than a quarter loaf of bread. I remember reading the Diary of Anne Frank in eighth grade, but I never thought I'd actually see one of these places live.

In the evening we went out to celebrate the last day of three of our friends. Today they're back in Russia, France, and Switzerland. My good friend Yulia was one of the departing, so that was the main reason I went out. We danced for a few hours and had a great time. This club, called Dorf Berlin, was pretty intense. Most female bartenders were shirtless, and there was a cool show by these three guys with alcohol bottles on fire. The music wasn't very good, but I'm glad I got to see my friends before they returned home.

Less than a week left before the big move to Frankfurt...

Polska (Poland)

So I had this bright idea a couple weeks ago that I wanted to see Poland. I had many reasons, including my current proximity and my unsatiated curiosity, and so I tried to get some friends to come with me. Some were busy, but most seemed uninterested - either because they had already been there or because they'd rather see someplace else. So the very next day I got online and did some research. Where exactly did I want to go? What did I want to do? I settled on a town called Poznan (around 600,000 people) about three hours by train from Berlin. It was the closest big city and I needed to see Poland.

I arrived Friday afternoon and with a bit of wondering around I found my hostel. The Frolic Goats Hostel, it was called - don't ask me why. Everyone there was welcoming - the staff and even other guests. Someone even offered to help set up my bed. So I set off on my first adventure - I had so much to see with only three days to do it. Without really knowing where to go, I decided to walk aimlessly through the streets and check out the local architecture and see what the people were like. After about 30 minutes I came to a monument to this guy named Adam, who has a university there named after him. Directly behind the campus there was a park with a huge fountain in the middle and flowers all around - a place I just had to examine closer. I think it's great how cities can grow so quickly but still preserve greenspace in certain places. I lay on the grass for a bit watching the kids run around and the clouds rolling in.


After dinner it was getting a bit late, so I decided to return to the hostel to see what was going on. As I walk into the room, much to my surprise were 5 Polish people pouring vodka into glasses! (I stayed in a room with about 15 beds - all of them bunked. We had a full house that night, so I had a chance to meet all kinds of different people.) One offered me a glass immediately and said, "Welcome to Poland!" I knew immediately that I was in for a great night.

After a few shots they were all hungry, and I in all of my tipsy-ness tell them that I know of a good place. Actually, I had just arrived myself 6 hours prior, but when you drink your confidence seems to escalate a bit. As I was guiding them I tried my best to focus on where I had seen a Turkish restaurant, and when we got there one of them ordered something for me and wouldn't let me pay. I guess he really wanted me to feel the "welcome" part of "Welcome to Poland!" Afterwards we returned to the hostel and did more shots. I probably shouldn't have drank that much, because in the morning I woke up with a nasty hangover. I had a great night though, thanks to the hospitality and company of my new friends.


The next day I talked to an Austrian girl I had met the day before, and because she was a bit sick she didn't want to do too much walking around. I ended up running into her later that evening as I was sitting in the town square enjoying the pleasant atmosphere. We sat for a while and talked, then got some ice cream. Later that night we had a really good conversation, part English and part German, about our respective lives. She told me about her hometown in Austria and her travels through Poland, and I told her about my family and friends. The next day as she was leaving, she cried as she gave me a hug goodbye. It made me sad that she was leaving, because I feel that we made an important connection as friends. She's a real person and isn't afraid to show it, and I hope we can meet again someday.


Do I want to return someday to Poland? Of course! I'd love to see Krakow and Warsaw, and even to go back to Poznan. The architecture and the atmosphere are stunning, and it really is a nice place to visit during the summer. Transportation and lodging are relatively inexpensive, so it's possible on a student's budget to have a good time. Next time I want to travel with friends so that I can have others with which to share the adventure.

So this upcoming weekend I'll travel to Dresden, a city in Germany about 1.5 hours south of Berlin, with some friends to do some sightseeing.

The Homeless

Berlin's homeless do some interesting things to make a Euro. I wouldn't normally care to write about something such as this - except that the homeless in this case have gotten quite creative.

Naturally, you have those who care to do nothing but sit there and smoke cigarettes while holding out their cups. Included in this group are the occasional punks you see at busy street corners, and some that sit there staring at the sidewalk with a cup sitting in front of them. Come on people, at least do something to entertain me. Then there are the ones with a little creativity - those willing to take on a bit more risk. At busy intersections you often see these people walking up to cars stopped at red lights, propositioning to allow them to clean the drivers' windshields with a little squeegee. Did I just use the word squeegee? The swiftness with which these workers move amazes me. Within 20 seconds they have the window looking like new. They continue with other customers until the light changes green, then start all over again.

There are also those who opt to sell newspapers on the trains going around the city. I've been told that those who choose this option must give a cut of the profit back to the publisher (they charge €1.20 and give €.20 back.) To perform their task, they must board the train and do their spiel (German for "to play") about why they're selling the papers. Not a bad method.

In some areas you see older women with children who walk up to you, sometimes with a sign and sometimes without. They ask," Do you speak English?" then hold up a sign with an explanation as to why then need money. I believe that that phrase is the only English they really know. And I think the kid acts as a prop so that we'll be more likely to give.

And finally, today as I was riding home I came across one of the strangest things I've seen: when cars stopped for a red light two people, a man and a woman, came out in front and put on a little juggling show! It must have lasted 30 seconds, and afterwards they received tips from some generous drivers. How interesting. What is even more interesting though is how the homeless are dealt with here. The government actually provides them with a place to stay in a low-cost apartment, so in essence they are not actually "homeless." Many are out of work because of lay-offs or being fired, and some have fallen on hard times, whatever that means.

I can conclude that here, in contrast to the States, many people seek to entertain passersby to earn some money. If only they would use their talents to find a more stable job...

End of First Month

Today marked the end of my first German class, on which I'm proud to say I did better than expected. Our exam, which included listening, reading comprehension, writing and speaking sections, was yesterday. The exam started with the two most difficult sections: reading and listening. After these sections, my head was spinning and I was wondering to myself whether or not I'd have to repeat this class next month instead of moving on. The second and third sections proved to be more my style - the speaking and writing parts. Because I could express myself I believe I did better here. For the writing section, we wrote a letter in return to a "friend" who had written to us, at least a page. We had to incorporate certain themes into our response; using these themes as a guide I let my imagination wonder. For the speaking part, we had a 20 minute interaction with a partner about getting to know each other, planning a party, and explaining a graph. We were then graded on our word usage and grammar. I think that German grammar is much easier than English, or maybe we're just slow learners - I remember learning English grammar over a period of about 20 years back in school, where I've only been learning German for a year now. I suppose that's the pace Americans choose to educate their children. Actually, every day I'm realizing how much better life is over here. America is very much one-dimensional and boring, whereas life here is exciting. People travel, know what's going on in the world, and are generally well-rounded and intelligent, albeit opinionated.

A strange thing happened to me yesterday as I took my daily stroll past the playground of the kindergarten that's near our school. For some reason I stopped to watch the kids play, and to my horror a little girl about 5 years old started taking off her clothes! Underwear and all. I figured a teacher would run over and tell her to put it back on (clearly what would happen in America.) Boy, was I mistaken. A second later her little friend came over, sat down, and proceeded to take her clothes off as well! The little girls then ran through the schoolyard bearing it all. One by one the little boys and girls took off all their clothes, and were running through the yard. There must have been thirty of them, all naked and running with joy. The teachers sat around like this was nothing out of the ordinary. I later learned from my German teacher that this is quite normal here during summertime. All the while I was thinking to myself - if this happened back home there would be lawsuits flying left and right. We Americans are frivolous; jumping at the first opportunity to defend our "rights" as humans and to exploit our legal system for an extra buck. What we don't realize, though, is that we are all living in a system of terror, where people are afraid to do anything because they may be slapped with a lawsuit. Furthermore, if kids learn this sort of comfort early on to be naked around one another, maybe it's not such a big deal later on. It's the same with a lower drinking age, and really I could go on and on. The point is, people say, "America is the land of freedom." Maybe I'd think twice before saying that again.