Goodbye Stuffe Zwei

The last six weeks have flown by and I am now just about finished with Stuffe Zwei. Luckily, this past week has been cold and rainy, which was conducive for studying and preparing for the exam. Tomorrow I will go one last time to our classroom to receive my test grades and sign up for the speaking portion of the exam, which I will complete on Tuesday. After that, Stuffe Zwei will be completed and I will be able to take a break from German grammar.

On Tuesday, June 15, my classmates and I begin a German literature course. I am excited at the prospect of starting something new, however saddened that I will be in a class with only the other Americans from the University of Wisconsin- Stevens Point and UW- Eau Claire. One aspect of Stuffe Eins and Zwei that I really enjoyed was working with and befriending students from other countries.

Before the literature course begins, I have a five day break, which I have decided to spend with friends in Ireland. We will be staying in hostels and exploring the cities and surrounding areas of Dublin, Cork and Galway. I am super excited to see what the “Emerald Isle” has to offer and am looking forward to having a pint while taking in some Celtic music.

S.N.

Cologne and Other Adventures

Two weekends ago, on Saturday, May 16, our group took a school sponsored trip to Cologne with our group advisor, Cornelia. There we visited the Kölner Dom, which is the biggest cathedral in Germany and the emblem of the city. It was quite an impressive structure for both size and aesthetic reasons.

We also visited Schokoladen Museum or The Chocolate Museum together. The museum was interesting, with displays and information about how the coco-bean is grown, harvested and processed, coco farming and free trade organizations and a small Lindt chocolate factory where visitors could actually watch chocolate candies being made. The highlight of the visit was definitely the gift store at the end of the tour which featured many different types and flavors of chocolate. The consensus of the group was that the Chocolate Museum was worth the visit; however more free samples would have been nice.

While the rest of the group went back to Marburg, two friends and I stayed in a hostel and further explored Cologne. We checked out the nightlife, sampled the local brew and explored museums (which happened to be free because of some type of city promotion) the next day.

The next week we had a long weekend, so I decided to make use of my special ticket and travel around the state a bit. Every student enrolled in the Phillips University- Marburg receives a card that allows them free public transportation in all Hessen’s cities and free regional and intercity train rides.
One day I traveled to with some friends to Eisenach, which is located in the state of Thüringen, but is free with our cards. In Eisenach we toured Wartburg castle, which was where Martin Luther first translated the bible into German. We were able to see the very room and desk upon which Martin Luther sat as he worked, which was pretty cool.

Another day I traveled to Kassel and spent the day exploring the Schlosspark Wilhelmshöhe, a very large park, visiting the large statue of Hercules, enjoying the wasserspiel and touring the Löwenburg castle. I definitely want to go back to Kassel to explore more of the park in the future.

S.N.


First image: Tom and I posing next to an advertisement in Cologne.

Second image: Me posing by the Wartburg in Eisenach.

Third image: Alyssa, Richard and I enjoying the wasserspiel in the Schlosspark Willhelmshöhe.

Hannover gegen Nazis

Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to celebrate another holiday in Germany: “Tag der Arbeit.” The first of May is “International Worker’s Day” (“Tag Der Arbeit” in German) and is celebrated throughout the globe (excluding the United States and Canada) as a celebration of social and economic achievements. In Germany, it is common for demonstrations, street marches and leftist party gatherings to occur on May 1. The following entry takes place in Hannover, Germany, and chronicles my experiences on and impression of “Tag der Arbeit.”

Leaving the train station, I was overwhelmed by the presence of police. They rode horses, sat in big vans and stood authoritatively on street corners. The parking lot was full of them as we got into the little red Ford. Birgit explained that they were there because of a Neo-Nazi, rally and protest march that was taking place the next day.

Birgit told me that every year the Neo-Nazis rally on May 1, protesting the presence of immigrants in the country. It is their belief that immigrants take jobs away from German citizens, which is why they protest on Tag der Arbeit. I also learned that historically, Tag der Arbeit was founded by the Nazis.

Every year a new city is chosen for the protest. This year, it was Hannover’s turn. Because of my interest and my endless flow of questions, Birgit decided to take me to see the rally the following morning.

Birgit and I set off at 11 a.m. to see if the Neo-Nazi protest was going to happen illegally. It was banned the day before because of fear of violence toward citizens and property, though it was fully expected to occur as an act of civil disobedience.

We walked most of the path where the march was supposed to take place and did not see anything out of the ordinary. Part of me was disappointed (I could have slept in!). The remaining part was relieved and dared to hope that this was a sign that extremist groups, like the Neo-Nazis, could no longer exist in modern society.

Later we learned that the rally did take place behind the train station and that some violence did occur. However, this is not what I experienced on May 1.

What I did experience was a big festival full of political speeches, music, beer and German camaraderie. This untitled fest occurs every year in Hannover and featured many kiosks from political parties (mostly from the liberal side of the political spectrum), though this year had a definite theme of diversity and tolerance and rejecting Neo-Nazi ideals. Birgit and I strolled through the booths, stopping to grab party information, buttons and postcards.

My favorite card from the day featured eight plump, delicious-looking bratwursts and said, “Braun und gut? Kann eigentlich nur eine Bratwurst sein!” meaning, “Brown and good? That can only be a bratwurst!“ Brown is the color traditionally associated with Nazism. Of course, everyone knows that Germans love their wurst.

The slogan for the festival was also “Bunt Statt Braun,” or “colorful instead of brown.” The adjective “bunt” can be used as a term for cultural diversity.

The runner up is a red postcard that reads, “Rote Karte Gegen Nazis,” or “Red card against Nazis.” Anyone that knows anything about soccer should recognize the symbolism here. A red card is a penalty card which can get a player thrown out of a match.

When I was not learning about German politics at the kiosks, I was listening to speeches. There was a stage surrounded by people waving flags and chanting “Nazis Raus!” or “Nazis Out!” Many had signs against nationalism which bobbed above the sea of people.

I saw the Minister President of Niedersachsen, Christian Wulff, give a speech about equality and diversity in Niedersachsen and how Neo-Nazi ideologies had no place in the state or the country as a whole. He publically thanked the 3,000 police patrolling the city, as well as the 15,000 people attending the festival. He received generous applause and the speeches continued. Later a reggae band from Spain took the stage and the waving signs and flags were abandoned as people danced to the music.

Later reflecting on my experience at the festival, I was very happy to have gone. So often is present day Germany pinned with its past of fascism and hate. Though history should not be forgotten, too many people associate modern Germany with racism and radical philosophies concurrent with WWII. Those who fall into this category, here’s a figure for you: there were an estimated 1,000 Neo-Nazis expected to rally in Hannover May 1. An estimated 15,000 rallied against them the same day. I am proud that I was one of 15,000.

S.N.

Another Catch-up

So I suppose it is time for another session of catch-up.

Since returning from Salzburg and Prague, I have started Stuffe Zwei (2), the second language course. Luckily, I am still in class with many of the students that I had been with in Stuffe Eins (1). There are some new students though as well: two from China and two more from Ecuador but for the most part, I am in class with familiar faces. Stuffe Zwei is moving at a better pace than Stuffe Eins had and I am enjoying the added challenge.

When I am not in class, I am generally doing homework, meeting friends or just walking around the city. The Oberstadt has a neat Brothers Grimm display which I plan on sharing with everyone later. I have also gone back to Hannover and have visited friends there.

Over the next month, I have two more breaks from class in which I will doing a little traveling. So far, nothing is concrete, but I will keep everyone posted and continue sharing my experiences.

Good luck with finals!

S.N.

Prague

Thursday, April 16

Somewhere in the countryside we noticed that we could no longer read the signs. Suddenly different characters appeared and we deduced that we had crossed the Austrian border into the Czech Republic. Exactly when this occurred, we were uncertain. Since the Czech Republic and Austria are both part of the European Union, there are no border patrols or check points between the two countries. If there was a sign, we missed it.

We took several different buses and trains through the green and hilly countryside. Suddenly the vehicle would stop and we would be ushered off and onto another one. We hoped that we were somehow headed to Prague. I was never too certain until someone would say, “Yes, to Praha” and then I would be relieved. We took two different buses and at least three different trains.

On the last train we boarded, we sat next to a middle aged woman in a small private car. The woman seemed approachable, with her pinkish-orange lipstick, short, graying curls, thick glasses and warm smile. I decided to ask her where we were going. She only shook her head. She did not understand German or English, but talked excitedly as she dug in her handbag. She produced a cell phone and proceeded to make a call. After speaking for a moment she handed me the phone.

Bewildered, I took it and sheepishly greeted the person on the other end of the line. I was greeted back by a friendly thick Czechoslovakian accent. It turned out that the woman had called her English-speaking son to answer our questions. Again it was confirmed, we were on our way to Prague.

We rolled into the city at about 7 p.m. at a shabby, concrete and overwhelmingly shady-looking train station. Perhaps it was the oppressing atmosphere or the unfamiliar Czechoslovakian language I heard, but I had a feeling of uneasiness deep in my stomach. I suggested that we speak to each other in German as if that would somehow advert something terrible (and as if our American accents were not detectable). Alyssa and Rebbekah agreed, leaving poor Naomi silent as we chatted about how to reach our hostel. According to our directions, we needed to take a metro.

We exchanged our euros for crowns and took the metro in the direction of our hostel. Inside the metro there were signs in both English and Czech about looking out for pick pockets. I was put even more on edge.

Eventually we found our hostel and were taken to our room, which turned out to be about a 10 minute walk from the reception’s office. Surprisingly we had unwittingly booked a spacious apartment consisting of four rooms- one a bedroom, one a living room/kitchen, one little room with a sink and toilet, the other with a large, Jacuzzi-style bathtub.

The place was completely furnished with a television, cooking supplies, beautiful tea sets with intricate designs, stove, dishwasher, refrigerator, coffee maker, large windows with red candy striped curtains, two sofas (I was sleeping on one of them- a big, red, comfy fold out one that presumably matched the curtains), also a little iron balcony overlooking an alleyway. Strangely enough the living room featured a big framed picture of New York City.

My travel companions were thrilled about our accommodations, but I was harder to convince. The apartment had its space and luxuries and cost about the same as our cramped eight person room in Salzburg, but we were also isolated from anyone who could help us if we were to need it. The apartment had no friendly staff to answer questions, give directions or provide breakfast. I could not help but think of the beggars rifling through the garbage in the alley below and wondering how safe we actually were.

I certainly was afraid to go out at night, which was a very unfamiliar feeling for me. In Hannover, Marburg and even the largely unfamiliar Salzburg, I had felt peace and sense of security and safety that was almost completely voided while in the Czech Republic. Undoubtedly I was experiencing some form of culture shock.

It seemed to me that most people I encountered here had hard, blank, expressionless faces, often with a cigarette hanging from their lips. Clothing was almost exclusively dark colors, different shades of blacks and grays, reflecting the gray, emotionless sky. The constant drizzle also added to the gloominess.

Even with my fears and reservations we did manage to have a decent time sightseeing in Prague. The gothic architecture surrounded by modern buildings was something I found particularly beautiful and special.

We hit the must see sights recommended to us by our guide books like the Charles Bridge, a bridge over the Vltava River adorned with 30 statues of saints and religious figures, Petřín Hill, a hill covered in parks with a gorgeous view of the city below and the Prague Castle.

The Prague Castle and its surroundings were my favorite sites. Though the weather was blusterous and rainy, teams of tourists lined up to visit St Vitus’s Cathedral, St George’s Basilica and the Golden Lane where Kafka once lived. We joined them merrily oohing and aahing at the cathedrals beautiful painted windows and the crown jewels of Bohemia, scampering down the wet cobblestones of the Golden Lane and thoroughly enjoying ourselves despite the weather.

On Sunday, April 19 we turned in our hostel keys and returned to Marburg, exhausted, with plenty of laundry to do and a new class to prepare for.

S.N.

First image: Me standing under the Astronomical Clock

Second image: Alyssa standing with the Charles Bridge in the background

Third image: The happy travelers (without Niami, who went back to the states)

Salzburg

I could smell burning rubber as the minivan careened down the mountainside. Its driver, our tour guide, nimbly steered the bulky white van, following a perilously narrow road that snaked through the mountains and surrounding countryside. Clutching my rolling stomach, I leaned toward the side window, my eyes never leaving the grandeur of the scenery before me.

Salzburg, Austria was the second stop on my mini-Eurotrip.

I got into Salzburg at around 10:30 p.m. on Monday, March 13. Not wanting to try to figure out the bus system, I hailed a cab to take me to the hostel where I was to meet up with two of my classmates, Alyssa and Rebbekah and Rebbekah’s sister, Naomi.

Over the next two days, Alyssa, Rebbekah, Naomi and I explored the city, stopping at museums, taking tours and walking around the town square. Together we toured Hohensalzburg Fortress, explored St. Peter’s monastery and cemetery and also Hellbrunn Palace with its trick water fountains.

For me, the highlight of Salzburg was when we took a tour into the Bavarian Alps. We booked the tour at our hostel and was picked up in a minivan and taken back across the border into Germany. We drove for hours on winding little roads, listening to facts and stories shared by our tour guide. When we came upon a particularly picturesque spot, the guide would stop the van and we could get out and take pictures. I enjoyed this because not only was the scenery breath taking, but I was also quite car sick and these breaks gave me a chance to recover.

The guide was a middle aged, knowledgeable Austrian fellow who was more than happy to answer our questions, encourage us to speak to him in German (though the tour was in English) and even played some selections from “The Sound of Music” soundtrack on the way back to the hostel. In fact, he timed perfectly so “So Long, Farewell” was playing as he dropped us off and drove away.

“The Sound of Music” was an ever present force in Salzburg. In fact, the city was the setting for the 1965 musical, making tours of the various filming locations popular for tourists. Though we declined on participating in such a tour, we did end up seeing the gazebo where the number “Sixteen Going on Seventeen” was filmed. The musical was also playing in the lobby of our hostel one night

What is interesting about our tour guide playing the soundtrack was that he, like most of the citizens of Salzburg, has never seen the Hollywood production. The musical, while being very successful and a cultural phenomenon in the United States, is largely ignored by the population whose backyard it was filmed in. The tour guide even knew random facts about the film and its cast members, which surprised me even more. It should not have though, considering that the guide was part of the tourism industry, which seemed to be content to milk every penny it could from the musical enthusiasts.

Everywhere we went in Salzburg, there also seemed to be some commemoration of Mozart, who was born and lived in the city. Mozart Kugles, little chocolate ball-shaped candies sporting Mozart on the wrapper, Mozart marionettes, music boxes playing minuets written by the composer and various t-shirts were sold in the countless little stores in the city center. We visited the house where Mozart lived, which had been turned into a museum, and walked past the house where he was born.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Salzburg and would recommend the city not only to those who enjoy musicals and classical music, but also to those who want to take a family vacation in Europe. The locals were very friendly and willing to answer questions and at no time did I feel unsafe as a tourist during my stay.

For more information about Salzburg, visit the city’s official tourism Web site at http://www.salzburg.com/tourismus_e/index.html. Another good Web site is http://www.visit-salzburg.net which is run by Austrian locals.

To see my pictures from the trip, click this link http://picasaweb.google.com/nemecse/Salzburg?feat=directlink

S.N.

Easter in Hannover

Mary and I arrived in Hannover Thursday, April 9, at about ten at night. Birgit met us at the station with her little red car and took us on a mini impromptu tour of the city before driving us to the apartment. The city, illuminated by street lights, seemed to glow. I felt as if I were glowing too with the simple happiness of recognizing the landmarks and stores that I had left behind last summer.

Birgit’s apartment was just as I remembered, consisting of two bedrooms, a kitchen, bathroom, dining area, living room and balcony decorated with various angel figurines, family photos and brightly colored throws and pillows. Of course, I can not forget the resident felines, Garfield and Kitty, who seemed more interested in my luggage than with getting reacquainted with me.

Before bed, we sat together at a small table in Mary’s room, sipping champagne and talking. Soon the bottle was finished and Birgit brought me a fold out mattress and blankets so I could sleep on Mary’s floor. I feel asleep that night feeling safe and at home and just plain happy to be with people who I care about.

Mary and I spent the next two days meeting friends and walking through the sunny streets of the city. The weather was summery and I borrowed shorts from her and never had to wear a jacket. The air was fragrant. Everywhere we walked there seemed to be flowers blooming (generally cheery yellow daffodils) and trees blossoming as well.

Late Saturday night, Mary and I found that the Ostern Hase (Easter Bunny) had left us treats in our beds. I went to sleep thankful that somehow the magical rabbit had known that not only was I in Germany, but that I really enjoy chocolate. We slept for a few hours and then got up for church.

The church service at 6 a.m. Easter morning was not as different as I thought it would be from my own past Easter experiences. The ceremony began with a bonfire outside the church, with the congregation standing in a circle, surrounding the flames and chanting in Latin. Once we entered the dark church, everyone lit candles, illuminating the church in an eerie light. Eventually, later in the mass, the electric lights were turned on with a flurry of organ music.

After church, we slept and attempted to make Easter eggs. Earlier in the week, I had commented on the beautiful colored eggs hanging from a bouquet of pussy willows sitting on the dining room table. Birgit suggested that we color eggs ourselves. She purchased eggs, crayons and all the other necessary items to decorate them.

The three of us, Mary, Birgit and I, sat at the dining room table, carefully making holes at opposite ends of the eggshells with pins, then blowing the insides out into bowls. Then Birgit directed us outside onto the patio where we would begin coloring the eggs.

There we spread newspapers and got out the crayons Birgit had recently purchased. Then we threaded a long, thin, toothpick-like piece of wood through the eggs, heated the crayons over lit candles and dripped the hot wax onto the egg shells.

Up until this point, everything had been running smoothly in the egg coloring process. However, as we rolled our eggs over the flames, trying to coax the wax to spread and cover the entire egg, we found that the wax was uncooperative. Instead of covering the egg, it burned, leaving unsightly black scorch marks. In the end Birgit brought out a set of paints and we ended up coloring the eggs that way.

Although the eggs were not colored in the traditional way, I think we had more fun laughing at each other as our eggs burned and then covering them with paint.

The next day, we went to a family brunch at Birgit’s sister’s house. The food was excellent and so was the conversation. Mary’s family has been exceptionally kind to me and patient as well. They always encourage me to practice my German with them, are happy to answer my questions and gently correct my grammar and pronunciation mistakes. I was genuinely sad when I left for Salzburg, Austria, later that day. I hope that I will be able to visit Hannover and Mary’s family again before I leave Germany.

If you would like to see photos from my stay in Hannover, click this link: http://picasaweb.google.com/nemecse/EasterInHannover?feat=directlink

S.N.