These last few weeks have been very bittersweet. I am SO ready to go home and have the comfort of family, friends, Christmas, and Elon, but I also can’t believe I will be gone from Heidelberg for “forever!”

A few highlights from the past weeks:

• Weihnachtsmarkts! Since we were mostly done with classes, we took our time wandering through the Christmas market and enjoying the food (crepes, brats, hot chocolate, skinny food basically…). We also made sure to buy any last minute Christmas presents for our family. Despite the somewhat rainy weather, it was still fun to wander through and act like locals.
• Finishing Classes! I’ve been done with classes officially since Wednesday, but my exams were the week before and I had almost all papers done by Monday. It was a different feeling from normal college (where you basically hop in the car once you finish your last exam). I had the motivation to finish my assignments sooner so I could use the last few days here to pack, explore, and spend time with my friends.
• Out on the Town!  The last two weekends were SO much fun with friends. My closest friend group of 7 were all in town together, so we made sure to have fun and go to our last favorite bars and clubs one last time. We definitely got even closer in the end and made for a few teary moments (Cue: Lauren and us crying after a night of Karaoke and drinking, saying goodbye to her). We also had a big party for AJY and friends at Ben’s apartment on Thursday. It was nice to all be able to be together in a few rooms and hang out. It almost made me sadder, with this opportunity, to get to know others in the program even better so late in the trip!
• Full Circle! We noted a lot of things that happened to us at the beginning of the trip in the first few weeks, ended up happening during our last few weeks. Just small incidents and funny occurrences that aren’t exactly Internet appropriate. It became a catch phrase of ours at the end to note how things were wrapping up so well. It was a fast trip but SO many memories and countries and experiences happened. I made a PowerPoint of our friend group’s experiences and photos to show us at the end and being able to see how much we’ve accomplished and grown in just 115 days was amazing!
• Preparing for home! I could not be more excited to go home, even though I am really sad to leave. But being home means time with families and Christmas (Favorite. Holiday. Ever.). Plus so many things about home, most food! Examples: Chipotle, Corn Syrup Coke, English, Target… Luckily, we were all excited to go and all sad in the same ways to leave which made it easier. I definitely don’t think that I could have stayed a whole year, but I can’t imagine my life if I hadn’t taken up on this opportunity!

Get ready for a cheesy goodbye blog to come!

In the AJY center we were only supposed to speak German, but sometimes we just needed to communicate something. In general, there were just other words or phrases that came easier to us in German.

The structure of the German language also changed how we spoke (A fast lesson: The verb ALWAYS goes in the second position in the sentence. Always. Other verbs in “infinite” most always go at the very end of the sentence/phrase). We found our English sentences sometimes taking on this form. One quote from me: “We can here go.” Yup.

I’ve also found that I attempt to translate almost anything I say in my head, almost second nature, in case I ever needed to switch to German. At first I used it for practice for myself. It especially came in handy later when talking with storeowners and other customer service people.

Basically in the end our semester we spoke only German to strangers/people we didn’t know in attempt to fit in and immerse ourselves. We had enough trouble not speaking German to strangers when we visited non-German speaking countries (saying Es tut mir leid on the street, asking a question in German at customs, saying Kein Problem, as I just did in the airport) and so I am a bit worried about what will happen when I’m back in America. I know eventually I will transition and unfortunately my German will start to slip away. Don’t worry, Dr. Windham, Matt, Caitlin and I promised to have somewhat weekly dinners with each other and only speak German!

Dogs:

There are dogs EVERYWHERE. Some people on the trip are uneasy by these hounds, but they make me miss my dogs at home. Besides a few mangy looking ones, these pups are so cute and act like people. They walk down the Haupstrasse, go into stores, ride on the trains and buses, shop with their owners, and sit in restaurants. At first it kept taking my by surprise but I think that I will find it weird that they won’t be all over or accepted as such in the states. There were a few differences. These dogs did not need leashes all the time, they were very mellow and calm. They didn’t freak our or feel the need to greet all the other dogs they crossed. Obviously, this culture wouldn’t work too well back home (especially with my Jumpers of dogs, Emma and Foster). Writing this now is making me miss them too much though, so I’ll move onto another group.

The Homeless:

There is quite a large population of homeless people in Heidelberg and they are pretty unmistakable: lots of layers, lots of bags and totes, grungy looking, smelly. At first we were a bit scared and disgusted and weren’t sure what proper ettitquite was for acting around them (were we allowed to move without being rude?, did we have to give them change?, etc.). We figured it out as we went along and made a few “friends” along the way. I can count three of the most memorable homeless I’ve met:

• “Double Denim” always wore jeans and a jean jacket. Not matching of course. He would stand outside City Markt, a market near AJY, and talk. Usually not asking for change, he would converse or hang out. The market didn’t seem to mind. Appeal for his character was lost when the weather changed and he became “Single Denim” with his winter coat and we found out he spoke English.
• “The Clapping Man” is a guy that walks up and down Haupstrasse most days and just claps. He gets very excited when he gets you to clap back. When Cora was here, she clapped back and they both proceeded to have the biggest smiles. He’ll step into most stores and clap with the staff there, seemingly welcomed too, as he makes his trek. He is not seen as much and is more “Famous” of a sighting.
• “The Gnome.” By far my favorite. Anne Marie and I first saw him as we were going out and waiting at Bismarkplatz (transfer from S-Bahn to Bus). We heard a scream from a girl and looked over. I wish I could post this motion somehow but I will try to explain. The Gnome was “trapping” a group of girls on a bench. He meant only fun, going back and forth guarding that reminded me of drills from middle school basketball practices. They were screaming, we were laughing. We named him the gnome because he was short (under 5 feet I’d say) and was wearing a point hat with long white beard. Typical real life gnome if I can say for myself. We found humor in sharing our story over the next few weeks with our friends (ask my sometime for the motion of the gnome in person!) and dubbed him the “Gnome with No Home.” Just our luck, we were able to see him again on the way back from Karaoke with Yelena and Annie. This time, his hat was replaced with a pointy Santa hat and he even sang a song for us. I am so glad I was able to capture it and some pictures on my camera.

Babies and Children

At the first meeting at AJY, we were told to relax and know the difference between a “Problem” and a “Problemchen” (little problem). We were informed that to the program’s director, American parents seem like “Helicopter Parents,” always helping, and hovering over us to answer questions, solve problems, etc. German parents are not like that however. We learned this in our registration and trail/error to solve our culture shock at the beginning. Where we really saw this all the time was the kids who would wander through. Once their school started, we would see children on the S-Bahns and busses getting to and from school all on their own. A lot of time they were in big groups traveling to wherever, but without a parent, chaperone, nanny, or babysitter! We were shocked and nervous. We also noted the “harshness” I guess of parents. The most memorable was when we saw a kid FACEPLANT out of his stroller on Haupstrasse (cobblestone is not that giving too…). Instead of rushing to her kid, checking for scratches, and singing a lullaby, the mom kept pushing the stroller, no actually pushed it faster and yelled at the kid to catch up because she wasn’t stopping.  We didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry for the kid…Not sure if I’ll take this culture style for my own children (in 10+ years, don’t worry mom and dad) but it was very interesting to witness.

Yelena got in late Thursday night and Annie got in on Friday. We spent the day introducing them to the Old City and touring through the Christmas Markets. Still so magical. For dinner, we got together with a bunch of other friends from my program to go out to a typical German restaurant. After ordering liters of beer (yes, each), my friends did a pretty good job ordering their meals in German, admist the giggling. I’d say we had the most typical meal: with Schnitzel, Spaetzel, Kartoffelpuffer, and Wurst featured on the plates on the table. While we were all tired and feeling the beer a little, it was only about 7 so we headed home to go out for the night.

That night was:

• My most fun night in Heidelberg.
• My most embarrassing night in Heidelberg.

This is because we thought it would be a great idea to go to a KARAOKE bar. Yes, my dad’s side of the family is laughing now after we got boo’d off the lake for singing karaoke on the fourth back in 2007. But we went, and we sang. It’s also too embarrassing to share pictures (not that I could because WordPress still isn’t uploading) and especially none of the videos can hit the internet. Honestly, so much fun though even though I have learned I can’t even carry the tune of Jingle Bell Rock (though I can do the whole rap of Crazy in Love by Jay Z…).

Saturday morning we rolled around the apartment (these girls were still on Spain time) and then got ready to go to the Castle! Despite the cloudy and stormy weather, we trekked up and were glad to find ANOTHER Christmas Market up at the top. With lots of photo shoots, warm apple cider, and standing by firepits we were all happy German campers before our trek home. We had a relaxing night in on Saturday full of watching some of the worst YouTube videos we could find (email me for the top 10) and with much laughing/crying. We did manage to get out of the house to walk to Mandy’s (fast food nearby) to grab some milkshakes and fries for cheap!

On Sundays, as you know already, not much happens. Luckily, the Christmas markets are still open! We wandered downtown one final time before Yelena’s flight (which didn’t work out and her and Annie ended up leaving early Monday morning, but more time together yay!) and mosied through for final tourism shopping for them. Of course Yelena had to indulge in her fourth she claims third and final bratwurst

Sunday night/Monday morning, their shuttle to the airport was at 2:30 am so we decided to stay up…Well the Spanish abroaders did and I played along We ended up going to a bar/bowling alley and enjoying drinks until it closed. It was so nice to sit and have a final catch up before we don’t see each other for a long time (Yelena won’t be back stateside for Christmas, Annie is going abroad again the spring, I start school right after NYE again) but we’ve always been good at keeping in touch! We counted and realized we’ve seen each other more in Europe during a semester than we normally would at home. And that, my friends, is another one of my numerous #Studyabroadproblems

Two weeks ago, I picked up some very special people from the train station: My mom, my sister Cora, and my step-dad Bob. They had overnight-planed it here to make it for Thanksgiving and the weekend. It was nice to have them and see a face from home after being gone for 3 months and I was so surprised with how big Cora has gotten.

Sisterly Fun

I had planned a weekend of activities for us to do in order to show them the German culture and my lifestyle here. We did the castle, the Christmas markets (crepes on crepes on crepes), a trip to Schwetzingen, and climbed the Philosophenweg. It was the first week that the Christmas markets were open and it was so magical, especially for a little kid.

Fun on the Merrigoround!

Our center also put on a Thanksgiving dinner for us a restaurant (with turkey, and all the other goods!). It was nice to introduce my family to all my friends and the staff of AJY at this meal. I will say that the seasoning and cooking style of the food wasn’t 100% traditional American ways, but I already got my family to agree to let ME cook Christmas dinner so I’ll get my chance to shine and do things “right.”

It was so nice to see my family and it gave me a final push to enjoy my last few weeks in Heidelberg but look forward to coming back to the states too! It was also nice to have a change of pace, hanging out in the hotel and going out to eat a lot!

Thanksgiving dinner with AJY

Lights Down Haupstrasse!

For all of those who know me, know that I absolutely LOVE Christmas season. Back home, I start blaring the Christmas tunes and watching Love Actually on repeat starting on Black Friday. I become dictatorial in being the only one who gets to decorate the tree and house. I love it not for the gifts, but for spending time with family and how happy it makes so many people across the world.

Well folks, my love has grown. Here in Germany Christmas is HUGE. Most of our traditions and old time views of Christmas come from Germany and here abroad they still celebrate it. Making me even more of a lucky girl, the decorations and setting of up the Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market) begun BEFORE Thanksgiving and overloading of turkey and stuffing even hit the states. It officially opened November 23rd and I’d like to blame it (oh and the overload of end of semester papers and projects) on the fact that I haven’t blogged much.

All of our main street is decorated with wreaths and lights and Santa’s and we have not one or two, but FIVE Christmas Markets placed on difference squares throughout the city and they are opened every day until 9 or 10 pm!

So far, we have enjoyed “window” shopping at the little stands, ate way too many crepes (cinnamon and sugar, nutella and banana, cinnamon sugar and nutella…) to admit, drank “Gluhwein” which is basically a mulled wine in the CUTEST little mugs ever, listened to Carolers, and stood their sparkly eyed not wanting to go to class. I still have to go outdoor Ice Skating at Karlmarkt and indulge in some of the brat stands.

For some reason, pictures aren’t working on wordpress right now for uploading so I will try to add some soon! In the meantime, google “Weihnachtsmarkt” to get an idea of this winter wonderland I’m living in

Markets at Uni Platz

Shannon got in late Wednesday night and we filled Thursday with walking around the Alt-Stadt and getting her used to the city. My friends and I also introduced Shannon to Free Champagne night at the Mohr on Thursdays and that was a great success! While somehow Shannon and I have NO pictures together from the weekend, she did manage to snap a picture of Anja, my ringstrasse roommate, and me:

Ringstrasse 41 enjoying free champagne

Friday we attempted to climb Philosophenweg, but really only made it 2/3 of the way to the great look out before calling it a day and going to the Mensa and grabbing a late lunch. Once we showered, my friends and I all went to Lowenbrau for a typical German meal. I had schnitzel about the size of my head with a huge pile of fries and a liter of their original brew (flashbacks to Oktoberfest!).

Later that night Emily arrived at the train station (props to her for figuring it all out!) and we got dressed and ready to go out. With our group of friends, we ended up going back to the Mohr and enjoying drinking and singing along. One of the biggest surprise of the night, someone bought shots for Shannon and I! They literally came out of nowhere and we’ve always, always joked that German boys won’t buy drinks or really barely even talk to you at a bar! This time, they just kind of pushed them in our faces. Rarity!

On Saturday we ventured out to the Castle. After filling up on too many pretzels (how can you resist 3 for 1 Euro…each…) we trekked to the Berg-Bahn to climb/ride the mountain up to the Schloss. Luckily, it was a beautiful day out and the girls got a great view of the city from above. We eventually went back down and moseyed down Haupstrasse before hunkering for a little afternoon rest.

Emily and me at the Altbrücke

Friends in Heidelberg!

On Saturday night, we all had a bit too much fun with the friend group when we went out for a night on the town on Untere Strasse. I’ll spare you the pictures, but I did get (MORE) free drinks and handcuffed to a groom within a Bachelors party all while practicing my German (so it was educational right?? and hey, no home-wrecking damage done, so don’t judge too much.). Going out with these girls made me miss Elon and my friends at home a lot, but I just realized it’s only about a month until my return! SCARY!

It was so nice having them and catching up, but also being able to show people Heidelberg and the German culture. Neither of them really planned ahead to come to Germany but I figured for them it would be best to do it when you have a free floor to sleep on and your own translator along with. I’m excited now because this week my family comes and the week after Yelena and Annie, so I get to be quite the host and now I’ve got a great weekend of places and eats down pact.

Athens Sightseeing

Our sightseeing of Athens began on Saturday morning. After dragging ourselves out of bed, we were off to first the Runner’s Expo at the Zappeon so that Yelena could get her pin and things for registration. We then went off in the direction of Zeus’s Temple, but were deterred by the cost to get in. However we saw a great view just a few yards down from the entrance for free!

The Zappeon

Zeus' Temple

We then took off in the direction of the Acropolis (basically, in the air-city), which is where most of the famous and historic sites in Athens are found. We could see it from the regular street and just had to walk in the right direction. On the way, we recreated a picture we had taken four years earlier in high school for a spirit day.

Still Goddesses after 4 years

Wandering up the mountain was fun and full of pictures contrasting the newer buildings with ancient moments and structures.

Ruins throughout the city

We weren’t ever sure we were going to find the Acropolis, we were kind of just wandering slowly at an incline through non-marked streets, and then all of a sudden we were there! Even better, we got free entrance for being EU students and saved 12 Euros! The Acropolis had many different parts, and while we weren’t really sure what they all were about, everything was so beautiful and ancient. It was hard to imagine ancient Greeks walking around here once (“With really cool sandals”). One thing to note was how windy it was at the top! A few funny pictures moments. I’ll share my general pictures of the Acropolis, Parthenon, and other ruins to better explain:

Overlooking Athens

The Acropolis

Theater of Dionysus

Hannah at the Parthenon

Girls at the Acropolis

Hannah standing before Athens

Love my friends

Always an Awkward Family Photos moment!

After heading back down through the city, we ended up in an area called Plaka, known for it’s tourism shops and restaurants. We found a nice place that offered us free house wine where we dined on such good traditional greek food for a few hours (see notes on Food below!).

Athens Marathon: The Original

On Sunday of my trip to Athens, Yelena was running the Athens Marathon. It is the origin of marathon in history, of Pheidippides running from the battlefield in the town of Marathon to athens in 480 B.C.. When he ran this distance, of 26.2 miles, he dropped dead on sight, with his last words being “Niki!” meaning victory (and the origin of the popular brand). We hoped Yelena, and the other 8,500 runners, would have a better outcome!

Her biggest fans!

While she had her 4 am wake up call, the rest of us slept in and slowly made it to a stop on the Metro that we planned to see her run by, about 20 miles in. She didn’t get there for about another hour later, but the three of us had so much fun cheering on other runners.

At first it was just our method of staying warm (FREEZING, especially if you weren’t running!), but then seeing the runners’ reactions to our support kept us going and expanding out hoots and hollers. We eventually were going crazy pointing out specific people based on writing on their shirts (Nike, Shelley, Denmark) and “woo-hoo,” “you go girl,” “YOU CAN DO IT,”-ing to them. We got so many smiles and Thank yous in many different accents that we felt we really contributed to their moral.

20 Miles in!

At 20 miles in where we were, many runners had already finished and we were only a few of the supporters left on the streets. But to me, these were the people that needed cheering the most, as they were real people pushing themselves to finish a marathon, not genetically gifted freaks who ran it in 2 hours, 11 minutes (the first place winner and third fastest time on this course).

We ended up seeing Yelena, and her new running pal Kelly, 3 times throughout the course. We would see her, then hop on the metro go down a few stops and then cheer her on a few kilometers down. Other people in the running pack around her even recognized us! We didn’t get to see her finish (at 5hr14min!!!) because of the Metro timing but that gave her time to chill, get a space blanket, and get some bananas and water.

At the Finish! NIKI!

We then took many photos, since the location was perfect: Crossing the finish line at the original Athens Olympic Stadium from the first modern Olympic games in 1896!We then proudly took our hobbling, well accomplished, friend home, let her shower and un-stink before going out for our last nice dinner and drinks in Athens.

General Notes on Athens

• The Food: Greece has an amazing food culture and restaurant style. It is normal, and actually expected, that you stay in a restaurant for a few hours so as to not insult the owners/cooks. We experienced this a few times and had long meals, tapas style. They were filled with lots of lamb, wine, potatoes, and especially cheese! We usually got Greek yogurt with honey for dessert (a favorite of mine now). It is also typical to get free dishes from the restaurant for being friendly and there. This happened to us at our first meal, where we got free lamb sausage with curry powder and then yogurt! No complaints here I think I must have gained so much weight too, because our “host mom” also baked us cakes both days and I had no problem helping out with that. We only really ate one big meal out a day, but since it was long and filling!
• 

  Eggplant and Feta YUM

  

  Greek Yogurt

• The Dogs and Cats: Everywhere on the street were stray dogs and cats. The dogs seemed to have their own “turf” and bark at other dogs or random people. While it was really strange and off putting but I eventually got used to it and thought the dogs were cute. They were actually plump and not pathetic looking and somewhere just so adorable! This one that we named Socrates ended up following this one group of tourists around sights for a few hours. A few joined in on the Marathon and ran for a bit with the people.

• 

  Stray dog feeling the love

• 

  Cat at the Acropolis

• The People: It is a common stereotype that German people are colder and strictly business when interacting, but coming back to Germany was a relief, because the people in Athens were so cold and not friendly at all. We were told many times to hold onto our purses and watch for pick-pocketers (you know I had a death grip on mine the whole time). We were also warned that cab drivers would drive in circles and run up the meter if you didn’t give them street directions. On public transportation and in general they didn’t care if they bumped into you, they were very self-focused and saw you as an inconvenience to them. Personally, with Greek’s debt situation, they should thank me for helping their economy, but who knows. I will say that our host sister was absolutely so helpful in everything and in being accommodating.
• The Toilets: In Athens you cannot flush toilet paper down the loo. This just grossed me out. There were little cans provided “for your benefit” but it was just almost too much of a culture shock for me, and Annie too haha.
• The Language: After being in Dublin and noting that Gaelic was still used on public signs and transportation, but more for tradition and that most really just spoke English, I expected the same of Greece. However, Greek is the actual language used and not much English was spoken or available. Yes, there was enough to get by, but it was a little challenging at sometimes. We did have a LOT of fun pointing out Greek words that we could figure out from knowing the Greek alphabet from our sororities and even more fun saying and making common abbreviations (DT, FML, LOL) using the Greek letters (Delta Tau, Phi Mu Lambda, Lambda Omicron, Lambda).

Anyone speak Greek?

Overall, Athens was amazing to visit and such a different culture from the rest of Europe that I’ve experienced. I’m also so glad I was able to be at the marathon for Yelena and see friends from home-home while abroad. In the future, I would like to do a trip of Greece Islands, perhaps, and most definitely visit during the summer when it isn’t 11 degrees Celsius!

*My Own Marathon to get to Athens

This is a side note of not so funny then, kind of funny now story. All the trains leaving Heidelberg on Friday that were supposed to take me to Frankfurt were all about 60+ minutes late or not coming at all. I got to the train station at 1:40 for my 2:20 train and didn’t end up getting on a train until 3:30. I even looked into taxis but the 109 Euro cost, more than my plane ticket, was out of the question. People on the train must have thought I was crazy because I was so antsy and kept checking my clock every few seconds.  I made it to the airport (with a few train transfers) at 5:15, for my 6:00 plane! And this is the regular Frankfurt Main airport with international flights and many terminals. I BEGGED to be let into the Fast Lane for security and that still took long enough. I then RAN through the terminal and made it to my plane at about 5:40. Luckily in Europe they don’t start boarding until 30 minutes before take off so I was fine, but I was so scared I would miss it and have a boring, very sad weekend in Heidelberg missing out. I used to judge the people who I would see running through the airport, figuring they had not given themselves enough time, but never more. Once I got situated on the plane, I finally let myself look at my printed out directions and places to see, knowing I would actually make it to Athens. My airline, Aegan Air, is also the best airline I’ve been on I think! For my roundtrip ticket cost of about $130, they treated me to candies upon boarding, free AMERICAN coke from the cart (a feat in Europe and discount airlines, as Mary has heard me complain), a MEAL (!!!!) of spaghetti with bread, cheese, dessert, and then after dinner tea. On my way home on Monday, I got breakfast too! There were no complaints from me, after I caught my breath that is.

The only thing that makes me more excited is that this means Christmas season is starting soon! (November 23 here to be exact) and I found out that one of the pedestrian squares, they build an ice rink!!

Highlights:

• On Saturday, it was a beautiful fall day so Becca, Anne Marie, and I climbed the Heiligensberg by means of the Philosophen Weg. I’d done it before but it was even prettier this time with all the leaves changing (despite the fallen leaves making it slippery on the ground with the steep inclince).

• After the hike we trekked it to a Rugby game across town. Our friend Matt has been practicing with the team and I’ve never seen a match before AND it was free so we were more than happy to tag along and act like groupies! The game itself is so intriguing and so brutal! I hope to go to more, especially if Matt can play!

• I got ahead on some homework. My friends thought I was a little insane starting our Literature paper that isn’t due until December, but I know the next month is FULL of visitors and I don’t want to miss out on fun with them to write about a German artist in German for 5 pages. I’ve gotten 1.5 done so far which I’m content with for now.

• I met with Tayler, a 2008 Elon graduate who is getting her PhD in German abroad in Tuebingen, Germany. We are collaborating on a German Studies paper with my German mentor, Dr. Windham, in the spring and it was nice to talk about my previous summer research and how we can expand on that from a German studies viewpoint.

• I am more used to my class schedule now. One that intrigues me the most is my grammar class at a local international center. There are 20 or so students in the class, and only 5 of us are from America. That makes for MANY different accents and viewpoints when discussing topics. After a few sessions, I realized that English isn’t these people’s first language, which would be similar to me learning Spanish in GERMAN. So crazy, so impressed.

• We went back the Das Life Café on Sunday as part of our non-acamedic activity for AJY. This time, we met some new people, and surprisingly most talked about sororities. It was SO hard to describe them in English and then also in German because there is no parallel in other cultures. One girl even asked if we still studied and took classes while being in a sorority. I was amused because I never thought of the idea of teaching others my culture while I was abroad.