Rainy days...

Last day of class

The weather in Oldenburg can be, in many ways, quite unpredictable. One moment the sun will be shining with blue skies all around and the next dark, heavy clouds will be looming over you threatening to take away the warm atmosphere. In one hour, it is very possible to experience windy, sunny, snowy, cloudy then back to sunny conditions. Nevertheless, there is one weather condition that is very dependable...rain. Rain falls on Oldenburg almost everyday; a phenomenon I have not really ever experienced in Wyoming. Evidence of the vast amounts of moisture can be found in every corner from the city: the thin green layers over trees, fences, paths and houses as well as the small ditches filled with murky water running along roads and walkways that are always full. Although the rain is evidently the reason for the always green lawns and fairytale like atmosphere, it also poses the threat of ruining a perfectly productive day...such as today. Rather than riding my bike around town, sending out some postcards, doing a little wandering in the city center, and other random activities I had planned for today, I have been sitting in my room observing the monsoon happening just outside my window (I have learned that riding one's bike in the rain is not exactly the most comfortable or worthwhile experience). Bored out of mind, I have looked through almost every picture on my computer, surfed the Internet, watched numerous (hilarious) YouTube films, and reorganized my room. However, this has also provided me with a little time to write about some random aspects of my stay that I have previously ignored...

The buddy program is actually one of the reasons I chose to come to Oldenburg over the other offered universities in Germany. It is a program in which international students are matched with Oldenburg students (affectionately called "buddies) in order to help with transitioning into life at Oldenburg. Your "buddy" will meet you when you first arrive in Oldenburg to give you your keys to your Wohnheim, to help go over your contract agreement, and to answer questions you may have. I, as well as Kelly, happened to receive the most AMAZING buddies. They fulfilled their initial duties, and so much more including registering us with the city, bringing us around Oldenburg, giving us directions, riding buses with us (to make sure we get to the right place), and so much more. They have both become some of our best friends here in Oldenburg.

Kelly and I have just finished a three week intensive language course, which has greatly improved my Deutsch-speaking abilities! We attended class Monday through Friday for four and a half hours a day. Although speaking and listening to that much of a foreign language can be extremely exhausting, it was all worth it. Our classmates and our professors were amazing and so much fun...and quite international. There were students from Italy, Spain, the Czech Republic, Poland, and more. On the last day of class we all had a small party with singing, dancing and amazing Kirschekuchen. And with all of our new language abilities, Kelly and I can now converse casually in German for a whole conversation.

Probably one of the most frustrating aspect of my study abroad experience thus far has been money. Not only is the euro much more valuable than the dollar (meaning that I lose money with each conversion), but getting the money here has also provided quite the obstacle. After setting up an account with the Landessparkasse bank, I had my mother wire-transfer a substantial amount of funds from my home bank account. After a week of not receiving this money in my account, my mother chose to call my home bank to track the money and discovered that someone along the way had typed in the wrong number, meaning that the money was, after all, not actually going into my account. After re-routing the money, I was told that it would still be another week before the money would be account. In the meanwhile, I have frequented the ATM for cash, and ended up paying a 5$ fee each time. Just a little frustrating...

Oldenburg has many hidden treasures which have quickly become favorite places to frequent. One of my favorite places is the city center. Granted, this is in no way "hidden"; however, there are many small areas where I would call little treasures. One particular place is a small "garden" type area. Through a narrow hallway off one of the main roads, lays a quiet little area with ivy and flowers over all the brick walls and a little bench. There is also Bar Celona (restaurant and cafe), which has amazing loose leaf tea and wonderful Kuchen (cake). There is also, of course, the farmer's markets which I love to visit just to absorb the smells and colors of fresh flowers, fresh fruits and vegetables, homemade cheeses, and more treats for the senses. The park which Kelly and I walk or ride through each day on our way to school is also a favorite. I feel each time that I have entered a fairytale forest and at any moment a little fairy is going to pop out, wings and all. I suppose it's the small things here that seem so wondrous to me.

My start at Oldenburg

I have now been in Germany for a month and in Oldenburg for about two and a half weeks, and I finally have internet in my room! I am amazed at how much has happened in the last couple weeks. I share my Wohnheim (apartment) with four young men (to my suprise!) and a friend from UW, Kelly. We each have our own room, but the girls (Kelly and I) share one bathroom, while the men share another, and we all share a kitchen with a small living space and balcony. It is close to both the University and the "City Center" where I can always find amazing little shops as well as farmer's markets and flea markets. The town of Oldenburg is really an amazing place. The town is big enough to have just about anything you could need, but is still small enough that it feels like a comunity. Everything is green and humid, and the trees are all covered in a small film of green moss. It rains nearly everyday with the sun making appearances every so often. Small bakeries can be found at almost every corner filled with amazing breads and sweets. Kelly and I have frequented the Einkaufzentrum (mall), bakeries, and San Marco (the most amazing Gellaterei) many times for amazing snacks of gellato and pretzels. Almost everyday, on our way to school, we take a path through what they call a park, which seems to me more like an enchanted forest with smooth green trees that soar into the sky and amazing little dirt and cobblestone pathways.

Everyone around here (and I really do mean everyone including our 70 year old neighbor) rides bikes in Oldenburg. Which brings me to the story (among many!) that I have chosen to elaborate on a little more. After taking the bus (which was very expensive) and walking everywhere for about a week, Kelly and I decided to search for some old bikes to buy. After hearing that a friend of a friend may have some old cheap bikes, we hopped on a bus after class and rode down to city center. We got out at a bus stop which we vagely remembered from the late night weekend visit to the same Wohnheim we were going to meet the student at. After walking around aimlessly for about 10 minutes or so, we decided to ask for directions...in German. After finding a nice saleswoman, we intently listened how to get to the correct street...and actually understood all of it! We arrived at our desired location in about 5 or 10 minutes and the friend of a friend showed us his very old and very...unusable bikes. We politely rejected and headed out of the dark bike room. On our way out we decided to walk rather than take the bus home...about 2 and a half miles away. On our way home, we stoped in at various little shops as well as San Marco's (for our daily scoop of ice cream), and decided last minute to look in a little used bike shop. The man there spoke no english. We slowly stumbled through our German, explaining that we were looking for cheap old bikes. The prices of the bikes seemed somewhat expensive, but we thought we would give it a try. He pulled out two seemingly nice bikes and told us (all in German remember) to ride down the street. After trying to explain to him that I had not ridden a bike in many years, he simply laughed and said "Geht!". And that was it, we were off! I felt extreamly shaky, but then it all came back to me (there is that saying...it's just like riding a bike...). We turned around at a gas station and returned to the bike lot. We both noticed the 105 euro price tag on Kelly's bike (there was none on mine) but we chose to ask for a price anyways. He suprised us both when he said fierzig und funfzig (40 and 50 euros)! We immediately agreed and then realized that we had only 75 euros between the both of us. This didn't seem to bother him too much. He told us to take the bikes, and return the next day with the rest of the money. And that was it! We became proud owners of our very own German bikes, joining our fellow Oldenburgians. And we did it all auf Deutsch! Since then I believe I have spent more time on my bike than I have walking...

Ahh Paris

My weekend trip to Paris was...well...amazing! It took about 5 hours on a bus to get there and another 5 to get back to Saarbruecken, but it was all worth it. On Saturday morning Caroline and I arrived with our small amount of luggage at the bus stop around 5:50 am and found our giant red bus quickly. After loading, we promptly fell right asleep. We arrived in Paris around 11 and the bus driver took us around to a variety of amazing and famous sites speaking the whole time in German. Due to my current status of the German language, I, unfortunately, did not understand the majority of his explainations. It didn't really bother me all that much though; I was really just happy with the knowledge that I was in Paris! We soon arrived at the Montparnasse tower which we were able to go to the very top and observe an amazing 360 degree view of Paris. Fifty-six stories above the famous city provide quite the sight. Soon after we arrived at the Eifel Tour and took a boat ride along the Seine. Later in the night we walked around the Champs D’Elise with the most magnificent view of the Arc De Triomphe. After running across gigantic streets that were in no way divided into lanes and narrow alleys that pretend to be streets, we found a Flamkucken Hause and sat down for a truly French meal with French lemonade, Flamkucken after Flamkucken, and an amazing ending of Crème de Brule! Flamkucken, for those who do not know, is a very thin pizza type dish with a white sauce and ham and onions…ah c’est magnifique! And the Crème de Brule was beyond words it was so delicious. That night we stayed in a Holiday Inn (who knew they were in Paris!). In the morning we had a wonderful breakfast and then set off to stroll the streets of Paris. We had 4 hours until the bus would again pick us up, so we decided to head over to Le Louvre. After viewing the gigantic mass of people in line, we opted to head for a smaller part of the museum which was all about fashion. On exhibition was the famous designer Sonia Rykiel, which I have to admit, was incredibly strange…but it was just so exciting to be in the famous Louvre! We also saw a whole exhibition on jewelry, and for those who know me well, this was quite the treat! After the Louvre, we wandered through the narrow streets filled with Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and little boutiques. Again and again we would turn the corner and find a magnificent and ancient building towering above us as if hidden in the streets of Paris throughout time. After our very French lunch of a baguette with ham and cheese we headed back to the bus for our ride home. It is quite the understatement to say that I enjoyed Paris. The Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Seine River…it all holds a magical feel not soon forgotten.