Hello Friends! I haven't posted since I arrived in Lüneburg, because my laptop is broken, so I'll have to text my posts for the time being. A lot of exciting things have happened in the past few weeks.
Classes started, and thankfully they aren't extremely difficult, but just a bit of a challenge. We had to take a placement test, and I was placed into Track II, which consists of intermediate German courses. I think the Track II instructor is really good at explaining concepts, and I have been learning a lot. We had our first exam last Friday and everyone did fairly well. (:
Almost everyone in our USAC program went to Hamburg last weekend too, and that was a lot of fun. It was only a half hour train ride from Lüneburg, which was nice. We went to the history museum where we learned about the history of Hamburg, and I could have spent hours there. We walked through the city after, and took a ferry ride on the river, and got to see some great architecture. Since we were only there for a few hours, my friend Susan and I plan on going there this weekend to explore some more (and hopefully make a trip to the Apple Store to get my laptop fixed).
Other than visiting Hamburg, I've been staying in Lüneburg exploring as much of the city as I can. Susan and I took a trip to the Wasserturm, and we could see the entire city. It was super pretty, and only cost us 3€ each. The money goes towards a charity that provides drinking water in African countries. Lüneburg is a beautiful city, so I'm glad I got to take some pictures. Now that I've seen most of the city, I plan to travel to other cities and countries soon. My mother had an international student live with her when she was in high school, and they are still really good friends today, so Susan and I will be spending Easter break with her in Belgium. We are really excited.
I am still loving every second I've spent here in Lüneburg. There are a few things I've noticed that are different from America, but I am adapting. Germans prefer to hang their clothes to dry rather than use a dryer. I thought it was strange at first, but now I don't really mind it at all. It saves me a lot of time. Buying beer in restaraunts is also cheaper than purchasing water, and there aren't any free refills for drinks either. It took me a few days to get used to, but now I don't drink as much Coke, so I guess that's good.
Susan and I are also preparing to move into our apartment finally. We're grateful that we had the opportunity to live with people in our program, but hardly any of them know German, so it will be nice speaking it with our new roommates. I will be posting again soon after I am all settled in. Tschüss (:
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Saturday, January 10, 2015
Third Day in Lüneburg
Hello friends. It is my third day in Lüneburg, Germany, and I am absolutely in love with the city. So much has happened in the past three days I don't even know where to begin.
The trip to Germany was a bit exhausting, but I was so excited to get there that I didn't mind. My classmates and I arrived at the airport in Hamburg, and we were a bit confused on what to do next. We eventually found out where we were supposed to go, and hopped on a train that took us to the central station in Hamburg. Once we got there, we rushed to get to the train that would take us to Lüneburg, but we missed it by a minute, and had to wait 40 minutes for the next train. When we finally made it to Lüneburg, we were all a little less stressed out, and our advisors at Leuphana Universität helped us all get to our housing.
My housing situation is a little different, but definitely manageable. I'm living in dorm style housing with other USAC students until February, then moving into an apartment with Susan, who is also a CMU student, and a couple German students. I like the dorm I live in, but there is no kitchen, so it's harder to make food for myself, however, for the time being, I will just make the best of it.
Once I was all settled into my dorm, Susan and I did a little exploring with our new friend Eddie. He is also a USAC student who has been in Germany since the fall. He showed us the Mensa, which is like a cafeteria, and how to use the bus system. He also showed us cool things like the Rathaus, and the best place to get a Döner, which is a really tasty turkish pita type sandwich.
Even though Eddie showed us how to use the bus system, Susan and I still managed to get a little lost. We were on our way to meet Eddie at his apartment so we could hang out and meet his roommates, and somehow ended up 10km in the opposite direction of where we were supposed to go. We were also stranded there, because busses stopped running for the night. We walked to the only restaurant we saw, and asked to use their phone, and called a taxi. It was definitely a learning experience, and I'm actually happy we got lost, because the taxi driver that took us to Eddie's apartment didn't speak any English, so it was nice to have a conversation in German.
I've spoken more German in the past three days than I have in the last three months, so I'm really looking forward to seeing how my language skills progress through out the semester. Classes start Monday at Leuphana, and I am very eager to get started.
The trip to Germany was a bit exhausting, but I was so excited to get there that I didn't mind. My classmates and I arrived at the airport in Hamburg, and we were a bit confused on what to do next. We eventually found out where we were supposed to go, and hopped on a train that took us to the central station in Hamburg. Once we got there, we rushed to get to the train that would take us to Lüneburg, but we missed it by a minute, and had to wait 40 minutes for the next train. When we finally made it to Lüneburg, we were all a little less stressed out, and our advisors at Leuphana Universität helped us all get to our housing.
My housing situation is a little different, but definitely manageable. I'm living in dorm style housing with other USAC students until February, then moving into an apartment with Susan, who is also a CMU student, and a couple German students. I like the dorm I live in, but there is no kitchen, so it's harder to make food for myself, however, for the time being, I will just make the best of it.
Once I was all settled into my dorm, Susan and I did a little exploring with our new friend Eddie. He is also a USAC student who has been in Germany since the fall. He showed us the Mensa, which is like a cafeteria, and how to use the bus system. He also showed us cool things like the Rathaus, and the best place to get a Döner, which is a really tasty turkish pita type sandwich.
Even though Eddie showed us how to use the bus system, Susan and I still managed to get a little lost. We were on our way to meet Eddie at his apartment so we could hang out and meet his roommates, and somehow ended up 10km in the opposite direction of where we were supposed to go. We were also stranded there, because busses stopped running for the night. We walked to the only restaurant we saw, and asked to use their phone, and called a taxi. It was definitely a learning experience, and I'm actually happy we got lost, because the taxi driver that took us to Eddie's apartment didn't speak any English, so it was nice to have a conversation in German.
I've spoken more German in the past three days than I have in the last three months, so I'm really looking forward to seeing how my language skills progress through out the semester. Classes start Monday at Leuphana, and I am very eager to get started.
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| Das Rathaus |
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| Ein Döner |
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