Here is the only picture I took on the first day, since I didn't post it yesterday:
Me and Andrew upon arriving in Franfurt. Apparently, we were pretty tired. :P
Today I had the opportunity (möglichkeit, auf Deutsch) to take full advantage of the public transportation system here in Heidelberg. Four other students from SDSU live in the same neighborhood in Schriesheim, and we all left together this morning. First, we took the “Straßenbahn“ or „street train.“ I’m not even sure what it would be called in America, since I’m not familiar with our public transportation either, but it’s pretty much a bus on tracks… if that makes sense. We were a little confused about which one to take, but ended up choosing the correct one on our first try (whoo hoo!) and from there had no problems making it to our meeting point at the University.
What is behind the building we met in for orientation. I think those buildings are student residencies.
I learned today that Germans tend to walk rather fast; I once walked for five minutes with a rock in my shoe because I was afraid if I paused to remove it I would be left behind. :P At the University, we did some paper work, and some talking and some walking. We saw the Neckar, the river which runs straight through Heidelberg, separating the “Neustadt” from the “Altstadt.” (New city from the old) It’s beautiful! After all that, we took a bus to the “Altstadt” with some American students studying here in Heidelberg for an entire year. The bus was super crowded, and we stood for the whole ride there.
The Arts half of Heidelberg University is housed in the Altstadt (English, German, French, History, Art, Philosophy, etc…). We ate at the cafeteria there, and I was very surprised to find that the food was great, and cheap! This is a nice change from SDSU, where the food is ridiculously expensive and more on the mediocre side. I had my first encounter with “Tablewasser” today. Germans, for some reason unknown and not understood by Americans, prefer their water sparkling. Needless to say, now that I can say I’ve tried it, I won’t feel bad about passing on it from now on. Not for me, danke. Since, I’ve made a point to order “stillwasser” or tap water. :)
After lunch, we toured the Altstadt, getting a look at the “alte Brücke” (old bridge), Königstuhl (the mountain, its name means “king’s chair (or seat? I don’t know)). There is an old castle on this mountain, which I intend to make the trek up to see sometime during my visit. In the Altstadt, we walked down the Hauptstraße, which is the main shopping street in Heidelberg. It is pedestrian (and cyclist) only, and I think they said it’s the longest pedestrian-only city in the world, but don’t cite me on that
Left: HUGE OLD Catholic church. Middle: Street in the Altstadt. Right: The entrance to the old bridge over the Neckar.
Me and Andrew on the HauptStraße, having fun but starting to get tired.
We must have toured the city for a couple hours before heading back to Schriesheim. At this point, my feet and back were killing me and I was ready for a break and something more to eat.
Within minutes of my arrival home, however, my host-father showed me the spare bicycle that they have that I get to use. (YAY! :)) We then went on a bike ride, so no rest for me. I didn’t mind though, and riding the bike was very nice, not to mention easier on my feet than walking. First we went to a shop so that I could buy an outfit as my luggage STILL hasn’t arrived and I STILL haven’t even HEARD ANYTHING from the STUPID STUPID airline... It’s a little aggravating. Anyway, we then rode our bikes a few kilometers to another town. I got another look at an absolutely gorgeous section of the Neckar near a campground; I’d like to go back there for a picnic lunch or something sometime. :) Then we went and had dinner at a very nice restaurant called the Onion. (and I mean nice! They even brought blankets out to us as the night grew a little chilly) I think the waiter figured out that I was American as soon as I asked for stillwasser. :P He might also have been tipped off by my American accent, but I spoke German to him, I promise!
The food was amazing! I had trout, with new potatoes, diced tomatoes, and a pile of very very thinly sliced cucumbers. Mmmmh. :) I also got to try something new called Bionade, which is a German lemonade that was made specifically to be less sweet than other lemonades. It seems this is a very popular drink in Germany, and I can see why, it was perfekt! We rode home in the dark (the bikes have head and taillights!) and my final adventure for the night was to ride through a couple sprinklers and to have a moth fly directly down my shirt. Ick.
So far, I’m feeling pretty good about my adjustment to German culture, I think I was well prepared. I still feel like I speak baby-German, but it is the same with the other students so I don’t feel terrible about it. I think my host family might be getting tired of hearing “ich verstehe nicht” (I don’t understand) and “langsamer, bitte?” (slower, please?) but I suppose it can’t really be helped. I have noticed that they speak a little slower and in simpler terms tonight, so maybe they’re getting used to me. :) This is the first time that they have hosted a student in their home, so I have the added pressure of setting a good precedent! I hope I manage alright. :P
Eventually, I’ll provide you all with some information about Heidelberg and the difference between Germany and America but right now I’m still figuring all of that out. I hope you’re not bored with the daily run-down in the meantime… and besides, I enjoy logging my thoughts and activities at the end of the day. :) It’s very late here in Germany (7 hours later than Brookings, and 8 hours later than in Rapid City) so I must sleep! Gute nacht, liebe freunde und familie!
