Schneefall in Freiburg

Morning snapshot as I leave for town. First snowfall in Freiburg.


Christmas Market, Freiburg. Town Hall in the background. View from the resident director's decked-out eight floor apartment with surround sound window-walls.

A friend and I wanted to take a train to Strassbourg but couldn't due to financial complications and confusing schedules. Decided we would take the train that happened to be at the station on it's way to Neuenburg. It got to Müllheim and told everyone to get off. This was not where we wanted to go, and we weren't really sure how we ended up there. It's not a prime place to end up. It's not really a place at all. Maybe it was the one inch covering of snow, but it didn't look like there was any sign of life whatsoever. Also, although it boasts trains to Neuenburg every thirty minutes, there are none. We eventually got back on the exact train we had taken there from Freiburg to go right back home. We sat with someone who was rather peeved. He had spent two and half hours at the station waiting for any of the many trains to Neuenburg, but they never came. I don't think I'll go back. The train ride was however warm and cozy. And I like this picture.

It's like I don't Know how to not Write an Essay.

Some things are winding down as the 23rd of December and the start of the holiday approaches, other things are just picking up.
Wednesday evening I had my final exam for my German language course. To be honest I could not have looked forward to it anymore, not for the class’ end but for the test itself. I find a horrendous joy in test taking. I haven’t always, and if I’m not somewhat prepared, tests are a terrible thing, but there’s nothing like taking an exam when you feel good about it. That’s not to say you need to know everything, just to say that you’re confident you know enough, and the rest you will gladly learn, whether through studying or through reviewing your test-taken errors. The test was significant in length, and I was genuinely sad to be done. The rest of the evening I just wanted to be testing. The course is now at it's end, a tragedy. I can scarcely imagine a better class than this one; the teacher rocked, I learned only-goodness-knows how much German, and I now have two completely packed, self-compiled, almost fully extensive grammar binders. On Thursday we had a farewell party. Our class bought the teacher a lovely shawl and she was delighted. International House, I will miss you dearly.
A couple months ago I made friends with a girl from Serbia, Ivana. This week was her birthday and her farewell; she’s heading home on Saturday (by way of Stuttgart, Frankfurt, Berlin—then Serbia. cheers to traveling). While she was here she quickly and cozily settled into a “locals” bar called “Eimer” (Eimer means bucket. It’s a word used in several German puns/idioms, some that translate well into English. For example, in English we say “kicked the bucket.” Same idea in German. If you say “I am in Eimer” you are saying I am done for/I’m ruined). This bar plays alternative/hard rock; System of a Down and Pantera are nightly favorites. Most importantly and close to home, they play the Mighty Mighty Bosstones all the time. I don’t just mean “The Impression that I get,” I mean throw down style anything goes, like Pay Attention and Let’s Face It. Anyway. This was of course the prime spot for her farewell/birthday party, and it ran as though scripted. There were five or so of us including Ivana somewhat early. At the very moment she disappeared to go the bathroom, a double-digit crew showed up with cakes and candles that they scattered and lit in front of her vacant chair. It was fabulous. I was happy for her. Also, in case you were wondering. German birthday traditions bring much more embarrassment than the group of waiters who gather around you at Friendly’s and sing you happy birthday. They include several varying songs, and this thing where everyone gets around your chair, lifts you up in the air and tries to throw you to the ceiling, doing sort of a “three cheers" thing for you.
I must share my source of personal excitement over the last two weeks. Sometimes good things simply present themselves, and you wonder how in the world you’ve earned a spot in their path. This is such an instance.
Germany is the world leader in Solar Energy. Renewables are one of if not the hottest topics across Europe, worldwide for that matter. The industry has the need and the ability to boom, but it lacks people in certain fields, including translation. Freiburg is a vital center for Solar Energy in all regards. I was recently put in touch with the director of an IT and Renewable Energy translation firm based in Freiburg, currently running at max capacity and in dire need of an addition to their translation team. The agency covers a large range of subject matter, and does the translations for Germany’s leading Information Technology publisher.
The past two weeks have been a bundle of new experiences, first and foremost, trying to translate senior consulting letters summing up the price indexes of 2009 and laying out expectations for 2010.
After I sent in my first test translation, I had my very own experience with the strict, straight forward, and blunt dealings of Germans. The response email was a page worth merely of “don’t do’s” and “that doesn’t work at all” and “what on earth do you mean by…” and “where did you pull that from?” I thoroughly enjoyed the email. I had lunch with the director on Tuesday. He found it very amusing that my reaction to his criticism was somehow positive.
We sit down to lunch, and he says, “I’m offering you almost worldwide geographical freedom and an Income. You are your own boss, but I have the money. You would be a freelance translator.” At the moment it boils down to this. I’m working with him for the next two months. At the end of February we decide what will be best in terms of my time commitment (short and long term) to translation. It’s all very exciting. If you want a glimpse at what I’m working on now, check out http://www.pvxchange.com/, some of which is in English, some not. The price indexes are not. That’s where I come in (you can switch languages at the top left of the screen).
The next two months as I see them are a trial run to see if I want translation to be my venue of activism, and if I want my focus of activism to be renewable energy. The director is fantastic and offered me slightly different angles questions I frequently ask myself. We talked about the great value in university education, but also about the great disconnect between the university and its education, and the live issues in the world. I’ve got a whole new angle on translation now as well, though it’s quite basic. I somehow missed how important it is for the mere but necessary communication of ideas. It’s essential for the advancement of fields in our globalized world. Translation is not just good for expanding audiences of books and movies. The potential problem I can see for myself, as far as how much I could fall in love with translating and in seeing how important it is for global progress, is how removed it is from the action. It is no doubt 100% necessary for advancement, but it actively sees nothing. The translator’s activism takes place working alone in front of a computer leagues away from live conferences and research industries in which the discussions and advancements are physically being made. When I picture meaningful progression I picture masses of revolutionary people, not the absent behind the scene organizers who made it possible to put everyone together on the same page. Of course both parties are equally important. I just don’t know which one I want to be in, or if they have to be so distant. Then again our world is changing due to the web and globalization to such a rapid and awe-striking degree, the face of physical activism is being transported from assemblies to discussion boards. We shall see. This is all my pre-thought. I met Carl Kurz, the founder of Bikes Not Bombs, five years ago. I've never met anyone since who has successfully led such a powerful revolution, who has taken the little idea in the back of his head and turned it into a massive reality. This agency’s director strikes the same power and admiration and activist strains as Carl. These are the people who fascinate me; the people who run with their inklings and change the world.
Moving on. With the happy approval of an American friend of mine, I am glad to share with you that which makes learning a new language awesome.
While giving a presentation to a German political class of around 40 students, my good looking American friend with full beard and laid back personality had the following header to one of his power point slides: “Drei Ständer der Wirtschaft.” Presenting on the U.N., this slide was meant to show economic policies and foundations within the United Nations. It is intended to read, “Three pillars of the Economy,” though that title surely wouldn’t summon the laughter of German students and professor alike. “Drei Ständer der Wirtschaft” actually reads “Three Boners of the Economy.” He laughed, they laughed, he learned a new word. And this is why learning a new language is awesome.
What this post has in words it hasn’t at all in pictures. Hopefully I’ll get some up sooner than later.

Countdown to Nick Mon's arrival: 5 days.
Countdown to Father's and Erinn's arrival: 8 days.

That's pretty wonderful. Happy happy Friday.

Once Upon a Time

With the student train ticket here you are covered for all regional commutes within the greater Freiburg area and beyond. You can stand on the bridge above the train yard, pick a red train that you like, and get on it. If you want to play the less risky version, you can glance slightly to your left and read where the trains are going. This game shuttled me to Offenburg on a dark, cold but wonderfully crisp Friday evening. I learned many things about the city during my 90 minute walk through its Christmas Market.
The economical epicenter of Offenburg is socks. They’ve misunderstood the concept of “Christmas stockings” here, but have thereby done something rather astounding. Every other business at their Christmas Market is a Christmas Stocking dealer, and they sell socks. People buy them and love them.
A warning to those who are planning a visit to Offenburg: watch out for unwholesome, self-idolizing high school degenerates. They are everywhere.
Saturday night I went to a Märchen Party, a fairy tale party. I have never, never never, been to a party with such lavish, successful, and time consuming preparations, nor have I attended such a victorious costume party. 96% of attendees came from Brothers Grimm. I don’t have any pictures, which is a shame; I can only mention for description the walls lined with evergreens, the dozen or so detailed fairy tale passages written throughout the apartment-turned-forest, and the “Rapunzel-limbo” built by the hosts, a game which involved coupled-off guests limboing under the ever lowering hair of the singing beauty.
At the beginning of the evening I was the brother of little red riding hood, who lead the lost through the dark and dangerous forest. My character quickly became disbanded. I had managed to prepare a basket and flower pot full of lit candles (eight) to bring with me to the party. My guiding light was immediately abandoned, due to the ridiculous danger factor when around too many people, and walls lined with tree branches. After several, several times clarifying that “it’s not a gender thing! I have no problem being a girl. I know little red riding hood didn’t have a brother! The point is to run with your imagination! I’m adding to the story, you see,” I simply became little red riding hood.
On Wednesday evening I and two other students from Madison went as the student representatives of Madison to a dinner hosted by the “Madison-Freiburg Partnership” (sister cities). This “Madison-Freiburg Gesellschaft,” as I came to learn, is merely a cover up, an excuse, for the richest people in Freiburg to have a dinner in a castle restaurant of the highest vantage point in the area. From the red leather lined lounge in which we were served from platter carrying peasants, we were led to the private dining room in which we would feast. There were 25 or so of us around one of those long rectangular wooden tables you see in the king’s court. I and the other students were presumably the only ones under 50. It was a five course meal, of which each course (excluding desert) included meat. I told the wait staff I was vegetarian five minutes before serving and I was made something especially tasty for every portion. It was, well it was great, but certainly noticeable. When it came time to serve the goose, and everyone had a white plate covered in dark meat and darker gravy, one could scarcely avoid noticing my brightly vegetably colored DELICIOUS platter. Easiest version of “Where’s Waldo the Herbivore” ever. Honestly I think the cooks had a blast cooking for me. Vegetarians may merely be myths at such a place in Germany.
Luckily I sat between the two out-of-their-mind clowns at this jamboree. The woman to my left was a rich gossip who just laughed and laughed and laughed. The man on my right was a family man first, a lady’s man second, both of which provide for highly interesting stories. I talked with them for several hours; we were the last to leave the dinner. We’re getting together before Christmas for a wine tasting. Splendid. Grandiose.
I went to a sort of Christmas Party hosted by the International House where I have my German course. I thought they did a really nice job turning a classroom into a Christmas party room, tree and all. Everyone grouped off into different country assemblies and performed for each other. There were three rappers who rapped in Arabic, some Spanish guitar, and Christmas songs in half a dozen European languages. There were four Americans including myself. We sang Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer in fabulous four part harmony. Everyone who came brought a gift and threw it in a sack. Then you'll never guess what: SANTA CAME! I ACTUALLY GOT TO MEET SANTA! Turns out she speaks German. And he is a she. That was a surprise. She distributed the gifts along with personalized words about each student, which the teachers frantically wrote down and handed to her. Props to the International House for being awesome. I received a lovely teddy bear ornament which is now hanging from my Christmas desk lamp.
The “German is not my native language” thing is started to fade into the background a little bit, which is a very cool thing. It defines me here much less, it allows me to show people other sides of me, other than “I’m here purely to learn the language…oh you can already tell?” When the first impression you make on someone isn’t “I’m a visiting student studying your language,” many, many more doors for communications and connections are opened up.

I've been getting a good amount of writing done lately, in styles that I haven't really touched before. It's exciting. I'm looking foward to visits from Nick, Pops, and Erinn this Christmas, aka, less than three weeks. I've rediscoverd The Shins as a great late night walking band, and rediscovered the Onion as an awfully good time killer.

A lovely second Sunday of Advent and week to follow.

Until next time.

Ice Skating at the Offenburg Weinachtsmarkt. If you look closely you can see a skater with a penguin. This was a common commodity for learners, one that I find much more creative than the New England milk crate.

Welcome to the Offenburg Weinachtsmarkt.

Rathaus, Offenburg.

Offenburg.

Freiburg!

Residential Quaters.

Downtown.

Münster, Freiburg.

another sunday.

Monday through Thursday were stockpiled with work. Three papers and a presentation for Thursday. I enjoy binges of intensity. They make you feel like you’re doing something, if you’re engaged. They also justify a lazy and fruitless weekend to follow, which is fabulous. You earn the right to do nothing for a while.
I thought about this chain of merit during the week and remembered several instances from childhood, in which I earned something. I have a vivid recollection of one instant in particular. I don’t know what I did, something in elementary school: received a good grade, finished a project, who knows. What I remember is mom taking me to a computer store afterwards to buy a game, because she felt I earned something. It was a genuinely happy feeling. I think I bought mathblasters2, terrific game. Can not tell you how fun it is to defend the galaxy with missiles fueled by mutiples.
Thursday after my presentation on Rilke I went to Müller, which is the Super-Super-Target of Germany. I thought I’d buy myself a computer game. I bought two. One is called “Felix: Eine wundersame Reise durch die Zeit,” Felix: a wondrous journey through Time. It’s about a teddy bear who, while his ten year old caretaker sleeps, jumps into a fantastical history book and travels through time interacting with all the ancient civilizations. So far I’ve discovered that-- Actually I haven’t discovered much yet. But it’s really fun to watch the teddy bear jump around and talk German. I bought Civilization as well, and I plan on conquering the world Tuesday night. After I’ve had supper and brushed my teeth.
I also bought Wall-e and Findet Nemo. Sometimes I have this really bad habit at stores, in which I can’t decide what I want to buy, I spend two, three, four hours just standing in the isle staring at all my options, and then I buy everything. I’m very curious to see how the German Disney pronounces Wall-e. Wall-e? Vall-e? Vall-a? The suspense builds with every glance thrown at the Trash Compacter desperately waiting to come to life.
Friday was an adventure. I’m part of a program here called “Rent-an-American.” It allows German high schools to invite an American to an English class. Friday I was hired by a school in Villingen, which is on the opposite bank of the Black Forest. This was my first real journey through the Schwarzwald and it was unreal. My train left at 6:40 and arrived in Villingen, which is a mere 38 miles from Freiburg, at 9:02. Traveling through the Schwarzwald with a train is a winding, indirect trip that is entirely removed from this world.
The visit was a blast. I was supposed to visit one class, I ended up visiting three. The English teacher who I made the appointment with brought me into the faculty lounge and everyone huddled around me to ask for a visit. I felt like a ring at an engagement party. The visits were great.
I was frequently asked if it’s true that everyone in America owns a gun.
I got home at eight, immediately passed out, and slept for 14 hours. When I woke up I realized I had left my backpack, with all my books, Ipod, and my thought vault on my bike rack the night before. It was still there just as I had left it, thought with a faint coating of due. I haven’t been so deliriously tired in quite some time.
Here is my week in pictures.Preperations for Weihnachtsmarkt are underway at the Rathaus. Non-stop Party till Christmas. Germany.

This is the school I visited in Villingen. It's gateway has BLS' beat. Barely. Villingen.

Boston! Ohp. nope. not quite. A reminder nonetheless.Villingen.

Bunny one. Bunny two.

Children's territory. Unknown Village in the Schwarzwald, taken on Train from Villingen to Offenburg.

Same train, village #2.

#3.
4.

4. signs of life. signs of progressive transportation.

There was a large, large demonstration all week long: students against tuition/tuition increases. They had a rally on Tuesday and many students took part in a week-long 24 hour a day sit-in/sleep-in in the University.

Went on a hike Saturday. This is one of several wine vineyards that are no more than a ten minute walk from my apartment.

This is a picture from atop the wine vinyard. That's where I live. Pick one of those houses to the far left and it could very well be mine.
You can play that game here too!

And here.

A friend enjoys the company of a comfortably aged tree atop the vinyard.

These kids are about to floor it. You can't hear it here, but they are screaming intimidation at each other. I must say, I really enjoy listening to small children speak German. Their German is leagues and leagues better than mine. It makes me happy to think how smart kids are. Language can be taken for granted. I've studied the language now for a little over four years, and my percentile of correctly placed prepositions hovers steadily around 17%. Not so low for these delinquents. Kids are smart.

Yes, that is a small, small child guiding a pony through the residential walkways in Vauban. This picture was taken from my bedroom. Just another morning.

There was no talk of Trick-or-Treat, there is no talk of Turkey. It seems I'll have to wait till sleighs to glimpse our homegrown Holidays.

On Thursday, a friend and I made our way to a bar that apparently was an old morgue, though, despite the painted bare feet and toe tags upon the entrance way, I’m not fully convinced. The night was good. Nevertheless I have nothing more to say; the morgue possibility was all worthy of mention.
Saturday I went into town with plans to meet a class group. I was quickly wrapped up in a mass of people gathered for some all important but still unknown reason. Then I was enwrapped in their procession, then at their assembly, all done with a whistle in hand and buttons/pins that were given out with never ending urgency. I could have constructed myself a shield and built a shelter for a tiny child. As well as whistles and ammo to fight their foe, they also handed out ear plugs to protect all participants from the booming ruckus. I can only hope their prepare-for-repercussions attitude is no foreshadowing of their probable loss in this battle.
They were demonstrating against, as far as I can tell with my wanting understanding of their language, the proposal of a new freight train line that would run above ground through a residential area in Freiburg. It was an impressive protest; even mayors from several locations in the area came and spoke adamantly against the proposal.
Once I had heard enough of this whistle-blowing ceremony I went to a reading, as I had initially planned. This weekend in Freiburg several contemporary writers came and read. I went to see Lutz Seiler, who writes among this century's most prominent in Germany. He read the beginning of a story for about 45 minutes, and everyone smiled the whole time (everyone being a real number somewhere between 250-400 people, the preciseness of which I leave to your imagination, do have yourself a ball); there was always something to laugh about. This story really gets interesting…here.
After the reading, the professor of my contemporary poetry course, myself, one other student from the class (who is a man well into his eighties who knows an incredible amount about history and literature and life), and the aforementioned Lutz Seiler went out to dinner together. Lutz and I talked about his time in New England among other things (very indirect and weak family shout out, he thinks New Hampshire and Maine are beautiful) and much about translation. He was happy to talk with me. We exchanged email addresses and post addresses and he is sending me his works and the various attempts that have been made for English translations. I eagerly await them.
Otherwise this weekend contained much writing and research, though I found all of interesting. I wrote a paper about the “can we teach intelligent design in schools” controversy in the U.S.

It feels like spring here. I don’t really like it. The weather doesn’t match the order of things in the least! It’s just confusing.

Until next time!

Hello! Hi.
A good week here in Freiburg! I finally have some sense of consistency, so it seems. I actually did some things this week outside of a book! I have to jump to thursday for anything exciting. Monday through wednesday were just classes, including one in which we read Hegel in German and it could not have been more round about and verbose.
Thursday morning was my Novelle (short story) class. Only on this morning did I realize I am the only male among 13 females, including the professor. Why so noticable now? This week we read a short story about love, what else. Thirty minutes into our discussion, the class realized that I, the one male, was the one supporting the female's case in this Love gone horribly wrong. Almost all the girls backed the guy. I wish I had more to say about that, but I don't. It was a comical topic in class I swear.
I'm finally starting to find really nice cafe spots here. It's taken a while. The cafes are simply different. In madison I'm used to a cafe that is set up for a student to sit, get a coffee, and do work. It's a cozy student do work drink a coffee atmosphere. Here that is simply not the case, but I'm discovering a few exceptions. I'm excited about that.
It's beginning to become less and less a part of my identity that I'm not German. I mean to say that for a while, it was as though I was a visiter here. Who wants to make connections with a visiter? It's fruitless, the relationship is to inevitably be broken when the vacation's up. But now I'm less and less a visitor and much more a resident. Things are speeding up to normality. To some sort of normality, a different one than I'm used to. Same template, different people, different night life, different words. Different cafes.
Thursday night I went to a TandemPartner Party, meant to connect native speakers with non-native speakers who are interested in speaking different languages. I met someone from Serbia early in the evening and we talked the entire time. We were the last two people there; they would have had to kick us out if we hadn't left on account of the awkwardness instilled when there are more bartenders and DJ's present at a party then there are sheep.
Friday night I discovered the simpsons in German online. I had planned on going out. First it was 11pm. then midnight. By 3am I decided to stay home and keep watching the Simpsons. And that is what I did.
Last night I went out with a few guys from one of my poetry classes. Several of them study English. We spoke German the whole night, except for the brief excerpt in which they felt compelled to switch to English in order to tell me how marvelous they think the word "awesome" is. They really like that word. When this pair started recounting how mythical the word is, everyone else broke out into astounding cheers of agreement. (I have indeed often felt a little empty when i want to express that something is "awesome" in German. I just can't quite do it. It's like a little bit of my feeling is left behind and dies when I want to say something is awesome.)
Today I have an essay to write, some reading to do, but nothing too stressful. I'm writing an essay about the JFK assassination. I feel the need to mention that Jacqueline Kennedy led one of the most tragic lives I've ever heard of.
Ok ok. Schönen Abend noch.
Bis dann.
ciao ciao.

This one is boring.

Once again, two weeks to cover, this time rightfully so. I ve been doing a hell of a lot, but not much of it is noteworthy, it all involves me and a book and a dictionary and often grinding teeth. From the moment classes started last Monday until, now, I’ve just worked worked worked, which is great, can’t say I’m not learning, but man. It certainly doesn’t make for an interesting story.
All of my classes are amazing. The biggest I have is 15 people, the smallest, six. Six students, two professors. We sit around a table, and talk about the psychology behind how poetry transports emotions. I talk quite a bit in my classes, which I’m happy about and have to keep up. I have soo much reading to do and it goes oh so slowly, but it’s all extremely interesting reading, and it’s getting easier. Sometimes, for example, I now find a sentence in which I don’t need to look up every single word.
Progress is being made.
Yesterday, in my Novelle class (German short stories), the teacher started reciting a German poem and she asked us to tell her what it was and who it was by, if we knew (sidenote: my teachers just recite stuff left and right. They love what they do). Anyway, I knew what it was almost immediately, so I told her. The one American kid in the class of Germans knew the poem, it felt great, I turned heads (it was Der Panther, by Rilke. Thank you Dc. Carroll). Anyway, that was a nice, impressive five minutes in the class for me. I then commented on something else and defiantly proved that, though perhaps I know a poem, I can’t speak the language. In my language class we read an essay by Mark Twain about the German language. It’s entertaining and well written. If anyone is interested, it’s called “The Terrible German Language.”
My one break last weekend was pretty cool. I went to a café, one that, after eight o clock, turns off the lights and hands out candles. It was so cozy, I stayed there until they closed.
I played American football with some of the students where I teach this week, that was a blast. They were surprising good.
Unfortunately I have nothing exciting to share. My balance has been broken the past two weeks. But not today! Today I do no work.

View from my class room.

The University.

Picture extension

Hey here are some pictures. I'm waiting anxiously for my first class. I can not wait to be in school again.


Bike sea number one of oh so many.
This is where I work.
This is also where I work.
This is simply a lady on a bridge above the Freiburg central Train Station.

okayy, have a lovely Monday!

Classes, Gutach, and a Bicyle for me.

Once again I must backtrack and remember things to share, seeing as my post is two weeks late. Last weekend the international office at the University here hosted a welcoming party for international students. I went, expecting a medium sized room with fifty or so people eating crackers and drinking water spitzer. It appears the university international office’s idea of a party is quite similar to that of a college child. There were hundreds of people, bartenders who burned a thousand calories to the hour, and live music. Finding the place was rather difficult, I ran into a parade of Quebec-inites in the street and we spent thirty minutes walking to and fro. At the party I sat down next to a group of eight or so Germans who were more than happy to immediately attack me with questions concerning American viewpoints. Small talk at the University here is different; no one really cares about the weather (though in Madison’s defense, it is really fascinating how cold it can actually get). They were very friendly and drove me home at the nights end.
Friday I got a job offer, Sunday I went to check it out. It’s in a little village called “Gutach” about a 25 minute train ride out of Freiburg. I teach English. It’s a blast. Sunday was “Speed Talking.” I sat behind a table, and every five minutes a new person would come and we would speak English. I spoke with almost four generations: some six or seven year old children, and an eighty year old man (who I had a fascinating conversation with after I told him I was a philosophy major. He and I are meeting on Wednesday and he is going to teach me what he knows, over coffee and chocolates). At any rate I took the job and last Wednesday had my first real day. It’s a great deal. I teach English for three hours, then I receive an hour and a half of one on one German Tutoring. And I get paid.
On Tuesday I confirmed all of my classes. It looks like this. I have classes Monday through Thursday. I’m taking courses at lots of different places. At the International House here, I’m taking an “Aufbau Kurs,” basically a building up my German skills class. A German class, simply put. At the Speech Institute here I’m taking a “Verbal Exercise” class. At the University I’m taking a “Poetry after 1989” class (which has a focus on slam poetry!! I’m really excited about that) and a “poetry and emotion” class. Then at the Pedegogische University I’m taking a literature class about “Die Novelle” which is a German structure of writing, very popular. These books are usually 100-150 pages. Not a short story, not a novel, a Novelle.
I’m excited about my courses. I’ve always had the following hypothesis. Creativity in the English language concerns itself very much with word play, word selections, how two words sound together, how one can describe things. It’s the words that matter. I’ve thought that the German language, creatively, works a little different, with a great focus on the structure of the sentence, as opposed to the word selection. The other day I received my first poetry reading assignments, and the very first poem I read was nothing but structure play, and it was amazing, it made me happy (actually, it wasn’t the first poem I read, it was just the first one I understood. The other two? Goodness. Don’t ask.).
Today I went to a flea market. I finally bought a BICYCLE. Six weeks without a bike, though I could borrow one, is the longest stretch without for me in the last, I don’t know, decade. It’s wonderful. The man I bought it from was very friendly, we traded numbers, and after my year with it I’m bringing it back to him and he’s going to give me my money back :). I also bought clothing for pennies because at flea markets here that’s all it takes. The market was in a different land and I blindly took a bus there so I didn’t know how to bike back, but I met someone who was leaving to go back to the city as well and followed her. Turns out she lives a few doors down from me. That has happened a few times, I love it.
This Monday I finally start classes, I can’t wait. It’s funny to think that everyone is Madison, everyone who has survived Swine Flu that is, is already done with midterms and finals are far, but looming.

pictures soon. this internet connection can't handle black and white.

ciao ciao.

A Long, Long Overdue Update

Last week was busied with studying for finals on Thursday. The weekend before we got down to working, my friend Mark and I took a train 30 minutes out of Freiburg into the Black Forest to “Titisee.” We hiked around, chatted with some friendly and some unfriendly people, and found a spot on the beach to camp out. We made a little house of it: a wood oven kitchen under one canopy, an open sandy foyer, and a bedroom under canopy two. We had class the next morning, so we got up early got back early, wrote our essays, and that was that.
Tests were tests, and in three and a half weeks I had magically earned three credits. Wonderful.
Thursday afternoon brought exams. Friday morning brought me a train that carried me quietly and quickly to Aix-en-Provence, Southern France. Within the first hour of my flight on rails I’d been through three countries (Germany, Switzerland, France). That was pretty cool. The realization came when all of sudden German and English were dropped from train announcements. Germany, Switzerland: internationally accommodating. You are bound to hear a language you understand when announcements are made. France: you either know French or you suppose what is going on, but it’s simply a guess. I stayed in Aix with my there studying friend Nick for four solid days. We drank lots of coffee, lots of tea, took a day trip to Marseille, got a good amount of walking in. We also had lots of conversations that went somewhat along the lines of “oh you have that problem too? Cool. I thought it was just me who had lost all basics in communication.” France always amazes me because it is so French. It’s very easy to bunch all the European countries together simply as Europa. False. France is absolutely a different country than Germany. And the others.
I took an overnight train back to Freiburg Tuesday morning. That was fun, though the extremely reclinable chairs didn’t really serve their purpose. Tuesday day I slept and slept in preparation for a German heavy night. I went to a dinner party with my roommate and eight or nine Germans. They are all some of the nicest and friendliest people here I think. I was quite happy and content at the start of the evening. Then we sat down for dinner and I swear for 90 minutes I didn’t say one word. Not one. Topics at the table were foreign, sometimes entirely not understandable, and always fassst. My silent bought slung me into a lonely depression on the porch. A breath of fresh, silent air, no misunderstanding there. People joined me on the porch and I could finally click into conversation. That’s what it took that night. 90 minutes of dejection. Completely worth it. No doubt. We went to a party later and the entire night I could talk talk talk as much as I pleased. I had a wonderful evening.
Today I took care of some logistical matters and met with one of my teachers from my language course. I tried to translate a piece of creative writing from English to German and my teacher was more than happy to swim through seas of completely nonsensical expressions with me. I certainly improved my translation.
I still have two weeks before classes start. This week I will register for my classes. Friday I have an appointment with an advisor to figure stuff out.
Fall is most certainly upon us. :)

Ah! I forgot about Critical Mass. For those of you who don't know, every month there is an international bike ride that takes place where ever the population is large enough. Any commuters/bike enthusiasts get together and ride slowly through the streets "celebrating bikes as transportation." It's a blast. I rode with Freiburg Critical Mass this past week. I had a bike out of the 30's, before they used brake cables. It's built with metal rods with joints to operate the brakes. The ride was great. I met a few people who took me to a camp after the ride. I really don't know what kind of camp it was. There were a good amount of people, lots of Turks, it was a raise racial awareness camp (sort of). Lots and lots and lots of Turkish children who loved to breakdance. Right when I got there I took up salad duties and prepared food with a few people. I met someone else there and she invited me to a punk show. After the camp we went to the show, I was incredibly pleased with how good the music was. The first band was out of Freiburg. The headline band was from Pittsburgh.

It was really just Mark and I at our camp spot. But there were also a dozen ducks, and they were fearless. One tried to bite a tortellini off of marks fork, but it's beak wasn't strong enough.

View from our beach.
We brought and set up candles for light, in addition to our fire.

The Kitchen.

Living Quarters.

Oye I forgot about this too. I live next to a squatter camp/"wagenplatz" (car place) where people live. They have built their own community. They have a theatre (every wednesday and Saturday at dusk, free chai, free movie!). They throw festivals often, including this one. I played table soccer with a group of kids that was fun. I also watched this man and his two friends juggle fire, classy entertainment.

Yay! Nick and I in Marseille :)

Marseille.

Beautiful Park in Aix (Nick and his friend Mark)

Tea House.

Cafe.

Marseille.

Marseille.

Aix. :)