So, after a couple days, it crossed my mind that perhaps taking one foreign language (Latin) in another foreign language (German) is not such a wonderful idea. Plus. I realized that perhaps I should take up a few sciences courses, so after talking to my new advisor today, here is my new schedule...
MONDAY
1. Sport
2. Sport
3. free
4. Mathe
5. Mathe
6. Englisch
7. free
8. Chemie
9. Chemie
10. Geschichte (History)
11. Geschichte
TUESDAY
1. free
2. free
3. Musik
4. Musik
5. free
6. Chemie
7. free
8. Deutsch
9. Deutsch
10. Englisch
11. Englisch
WEDNESDAY
1. Geschichte
2. Geschichte
3. free
4. free
5. free
6. free
7. free
8. free
9. free
10. free
11. free
THURSDAY
1. Englisch
2. Englisch
3. free
4. free
5. Physik
6. free
7. free
8. Musik
9. Musik
10. free
11. free
FRIDAY
1. Physik
2. Physik
3. Mathe
4. Mathe
5. free
6. free
7. free
8. free
9. free
10. free
11. free
Also considering picking up an art course, but this might not happen, as German is slightly difficult :P
Today was actually a pretty good day, considering. This morning, I got on the wrong bus, and ended up wandering around Bad Neuenahr for awhile before I found school. Luckily, I left on an earlier bus so I was pretty much on time for math. I was pleasantly surprised to be ahead of my entire math class -- turns out that since I got put in the grund-kourse (ground course), I'm actually two years ahead as opposed to two years behind. I find this very, very good.
Aside from that, my best classes are Musik and Englisch, are we surprised? Yesterday we did rhythm dication for about half an hour in Musik, and I was the only person in class (granted, there are only seven of us) who got them all right. I must remember to thank Mrs. Bowman for drilling that into our heads, haha. My other classes are kind of difficult, especially considering the whole language barrier. I'm sure it will get easier with time. After all, I am learning and remembering an average of 30 new words per day. This is what I can remember off the top of my head :)
I am meeting some very nice people. Everyone is very helpful -- multiple times today, fellow students came up to me and asked me (sometimes in English, sometimes in German) if they could help me with where I'm going, if I wanted to sit with them and hang out, if I wanted to share their chocolate... I feel quite welcome.
Other than that, not much is going on. I play a lot of piano, and tonight is my first night with a local orchestra, who will hopefully be able to get me a french horn.
That's all for now....
Liebe Grüße.
I love and miss you all
Signe
Friday, August 28, 2009
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
School is Back in Session ...
Hello all... Greetings from Deutschland and from one tired girl.
Today, obviously, was my first day of school, and I am comletely and totally EXHAUSTED! Today for me, I had classes from 9 to 5, which I think is a bit intense. Luckily, I did have a three hour break in between Musik and Deutsch... thank God. In this break, David and I went into Bad Neuenahr to get ice cream. Yes, you can leave school grounds at any given time, as long as you're back in time for your next class.
Everyone was really, really nice. I met a couple of people that showed me some of the important things in PJG, like the list which tells you when teachers aren't going to be there so you don't have to turn up for class. This is lucky, because it turns out that I only have one class on Thursday due to one of my teachers being in London.
I'm sure you're all dying to know what my schedule is, so here goes... and by the way, every period is about 45 minutes long, give or take. And the first period starts at eight. So, here goes...
MONDAY
1. free
2. free
3. free
4. Mathe
5. Mathe
6. Englisch
7. free
8. Sport
9. Sport
10. Geschichte (History)
11. Geschichte
TUESDAY
1. free
2. free
3. Musik
4. Musik
5. free
6. free
7. free
8. Deutsch
9. Deutsch
10. Englisch
11. Englisch
WEDNESDAY
1. Geschichte
2. Geschichte
3. free
4. free
5. Latein
6. Latein
7. free
8. free
9. free
10. free
11. free
THURSDAY
1. Englisch
2. Englisch
3. free
4. free
5. free
6. free
7. free
8. Musik
9. Musik
10. free
11. free
FRIDAY
1. free
2. free
3. Mathe
4. Mathe
5. free
6. Latein
7. free
8. free
9. free
10. free
11. free
I know it seems like I have a lot of free periods, but those are used for studying and such. You might also notice that I have no science, as it was impossible to fit in with all of my other classes. Don't worry -- I only need a math OR science credit in school.
Overall, I'm really excited, but still scared. Being in all-German all the time classes today was a bit like running into a brick wall... I'm glad that Englisch is entirely in Englisch. My teacher in that class has been really nice, and has me do other stuff, like work on my German throughout. We're actually studying the US now, and she always has me voice my opinion throughout. It is quite interesting to hear the European view on the States.
That's all for now, I'm probably going to go sleep..
Liebe Grüße
Signe
Today, obviously, was my first day of school, and I am comletely and totally EXHAUSTED! Today for me, I had classes from 9 to 5, which I think is a bit intense. Luckily, I did have a three hour break in between Musik and Deutsch... thank God. In this break, David and I went into Bad Neuenahr to get ice cream. Yes, you can leave school grounds at any given time, as long as you're back in time for your next class.
Everyone was really, really nice. I met a couple of people that showed me some of the important things in PJG, like the list which tells you when teachers aren't going to be there so you don't have to turn up for class. This is lucky, because it turns out that I only have one class on Thursday due to one of my teachers being in London.
I'm sure you're all dying to know what my schedule is, so here goes... and by the way, every period is about 45 minutes long, give or take. And the first period starts at eight. So, here goes...
MONDAY
1. free
2. free
3. free
4. Mathe
5. Mathe
6. Englisch
7. free
8. Sport
9. Sport
10. Geschichte (History)
11. Geschichte
TUESDAY
1. free
2. free
3. Musik
4. Musik
5. free
6. free
7. free
8. Deutsch
9. Deutsch
10. Englisch
11. Englisch
WEDNESDAY
1. Geschichte
2. Geschichte
3. free
4. free
5. Latein
6. Latein
7. free
8. free
9. free
10. free
11. free
THURSDAY
1. Englisch
2. Englisch
3. free
4. free
5. free
6. free
7. free
8. Musik
9. Musik
10. free
11. free
FRIDAY
1. free
2. free
3. Mathe
4. Mathe
5. free
6. Latein
7. free
8. free
9. free
10. free
11. free
I know it seems like I have a lot of free periods, but those are used for studying and such. You might also notice that I have no science, as it was impossible to fit in with all of my other classes. Don't worry -- I only need a math OR science credit in school.
Overall, I'm really excited, but still scared. Being in all-German all the time classes today was a bit like running into a brick wall... I'm glad that Englisch is entirely in Englisch. My teacher in that class has been really nice, and has me do other stuff, like work on my German throughout. We're actually studying the US now, and she always has me voice my opinion throughout. It is quite interesting to hear the European view on the States.
That's all for now, I'm probably going to go sleep..
Liebe Grüße
Signe
Thursday, August 20, 2009
First Week!
So, I suppose it took me awhile for me to get this set up. Es tut mir leid... but I have been very, very busy. Where to begin...?
The flight over was slightly hellish. My first flight to Detroit was delayed because of thunderstorms over Ohio, so when I got there, I had to sprint through the Detroit airport to catch my flight to Amsterdam. This occured with a VERY heavy backpack and an ostentatious jacket (for those of you who know the Rotary jacket, I'm sure you sympathize). Luckily I made it on time, and then made my flight to Köln with ease. In Amsterdam, I actually met another Rotary exchanger on her way to Switzerland. It was pretty cool.
Anyway, when I arrived, I was greeted by the RYE chairs for the Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Club, Herr & Frau Hansonis, and my host grandma and host sister, Line. We drove home -- Germans drive CRAZY, by the way -- and I ate some soup, got a shower, and slept. When I woke up, I met my host parents, ate some more food, and then... slept some more. Unfortunately the next morning I had to wake up at nine to get into the city on time to take care of some business i.e. bank account, living permit, etc. I met the other American exchanger that's here in Bad Neuenahr with me, David. He seems pretty ok, as of yet :)
What all have I done? I will number them and then describe.
1) Gone to the Heimersheim Weinfest
This was pretty cool. I live in a wine-producing region, so most little villages have wine fests during this time of year. So anyway, this place was CRAZY, so many people were dressed up in medieval costumes, and so much wine... I have never before seen so many people publicly drunk. I went twice -- during the day with my host mother Elke and host sister Line, and then at night just with Line and her friends. I preffered it better during the daytime, as there was more interesting things than people drinking. It was also really crowded at night... You could hardly go one step without running into someone. Even with that, I still had fun. Twas a good experience, methinks, for being introduced to the culture here.
2) Gone to Köln for a baptism
This was also cool. I didn't understand any of the service, but the baby was cute, haha. It was actually quite different than a traditional baptism in the U.S.A., but unfortunately, I cannot properly describe it.
3) Gone to Bonn
I think this was my favorite out of all. First, I got to visit the Beethoven Haus -- which is where the aforementioned famous composer was born. There was so much to see there... some of his original instruments, old letters, his ear trumpets (he was deaf), and even some original scores! Post BH, my host grandma and sisters Line and Rike (who got home on Sunday from Barcelona) and I went to get ice cream. Ice cream here is so much better than at home, let me tell you. More cream then ice, and so much richer. I took pictures of random points of interest around town, and we went shopping as well. Rike got a new pair of shoes, and I got an awesome purple handbag that I am absolutely in love with.
4) Gone to the local swimming pool
The Bad Neuenahr public pool is SO much nicer than ANY American pool I've ever been to. I went with my host sisters, their friends, and David. They have both indoor and outdoor pools, and water slides. Yes, in plural. Viele Spaß :)
5) Explored Ahrweiler, the medieval town
This I actually did today with David, after our German lesson. We originally just went so I could post some letters and get school supplies, but we ended up buying ice cream and basically wandering around for awhile. It's really cool, it's a walled city... pictures of which are to be posted on Facebook at a later date.
There has been so much more, here are some quick highlights.
*Kirchdaun, the village in which I currently live, has about 350 people and 200 cows.
* There is one other exchange student in my club, Vedashree from India, but she has yet to arrive due to problems with her visa :( She should arrive Saturday.
* School in my state starts Monday, but we Austaschschüler don't start until Tuesday. Schweeeet.
* Today, one of Rike's friends came over and brought me flowers welcoming me to Germany :) I thought that was very, very nice.
And lastly, but most definitely not leastly...
THE FOOD HERE IS AMAZING!
Brötchen... käse... Mineralwasser... Apfelschorle... Würst... Nutella... Eis... mmmm
I am thinking that this is all for now.
Liebe Grüße,
And I love and miss you all,
Signe
The flight over was slightly hellish. My first flight to Detroit was delayed because of thunderstorms over Ohio, so when I got there, I had to sprint through the Detroit airport to catch my flight to Amsterdam. This occured with a VERY heavy backpack and an ostentatious jacket (for those of you who know the Rotary jacket, I'm sure you sympathize). Luckily I made it on time, and then made my flight to Köln with ease. In Amsterdam, I actually met another Rotary exchanger on her way to Switzerland. It was pretty cool.
Anyway, when I arrived, I was greeted by the RYE chairs for the Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler Club, Herr & Frau Hansonis, and my host grandma and host sister, Line. We drove home -- Germans drive CRAZY, by the way -- and I ate some soup, got a shower, and slept. When I woke up, I met my host parents, ate some more food, and then... slept some more. Unfortunately the next morning I had to wake up at nine to get into the city on time to take care of some business i.e. bank account, living permit, etc. I met the other American exchanger that's here in Bad Neuenahr with me, David. He seems pretty ok, as of yet :)
What all have I done? I will number them and then describe.
1) Gone to the Heimersheim Weinfest
This was pretty cool. I live in a wine-producing region, so most little villages have wine fests during this time of year. So anyway, this place was CRAZY, so many people were dressed up in medieval costumes, and so much wine... I have never before seen so many people publicly drunk. I went twice -- during the day with my host mother Elke and host sister Line, and then at night just with Line and her friends. I preffered it better during the daytime, as there was more interesting things than people drinking. It was also really crowded at night... You could hardly go one step without running into someone. Even with that, I still had fun. Twas a good experience, methinks, for being introduced to the culture here.
2) Gone to Köln for a baptism
This was also cool. I didn't understand any of the service, but the baby was cute, haha. It was actually quite different than a traditional baptism in the U.S.A., but unfortunately, I cannot properly describe it.
3) Gone to Bonn
I think this was my favorite out of all. First, I got to visit the Beethoven Haus -- which is where the aforementioned famous composer was born. There was so much to see there... some of his original instruments, old letters, his ear trumpets (he was deaf), and even some original scores! Post BH, my host grandma and sisters Line and Rike (who got home on Sunday from Barcelona) and I went to get ice cream. Ice cream here is so much better than at home, let me tell you. More cream then ice, and so much richer. I took pictures of random points of interest around town, and we went shopping as well. Rike got a new pair of shoes, and I got an awesome purple handbag that I am absolutely in love with.
4) Gone to the local swimming pool
The Bad Neuenahr public pool is SO much nicer than ANY American pool I've ever been to. I went with my host sisters, their friends, and David. They have both indoor and outdoor pools, and water slides. Yes, in plural. Viele Spaß :)
5) Explored Ahrweiler, the medieval town
This I actually did today with David, after our German lesson. We originally just went so I could post some letters and get school supplies, but we ended up buying ice cream and basically wandering around for awhile. It's really cool, it's a walled city... pictures of which are to be posted on Facebook at a later date.
There has been so much more, here are some quick highlights.
*Kirchdaun, the village in which I currently live, has about 350 people and 200 cows.
* There is one other exchange student in my club, Vedashree from India, but she has yet to arrive due to problems with her visa :( She should arrive Saturday.
* School in my state starts Monday, but we Austaschschüler don't start until Tuesday. Schweeeet.
* Today, one of Rike's friends came over and brought me flowers welcoming me to Germany :) I thought that was very, very nice.
And lastly, but most definitely not leastly...
THE FOOD HERE IS AMAZING!
Brötchen... käse... Mineralwasser... Apfelschorle... Würst... Nutella... Eis... mmmm
I am thinking that this is all for now.
Liebe Grüße,
And I love and miss you all,
Signe
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