Willkommen in Freiburg!

I have been in Germany for a week now and already I've met so many new people and seen so many familiar faces. My trip started perfectly, with a visit from Evan who drove several hours from Massachusetts to the Newark airport to hang out, calm me down and bring me fresh produce. I will remember it for the rest of the year as my last American experience: sharing a red pepper and some watermelon near the baggage claim, listening to impromptu serenades by an airport custodian.

But once Evan had gone and I sat alone near the gate to Frankfurt, there was no one sharing food or exchanging witticisms with me. Immediately, it dawned on me that I would not be in Germany for a vacation or for a summer, but for nearly a year. Adolescent worries about the first day of school showed their ugly faces as I wondered: Will people like me? Will people think I'm stupid? Will they think my shoes are ugly?

Frankfurt

Since my arrival, it's been a rollarcoaster. Luckily, my dear friend Marc picked me up from the airport and totally hooked me up with a phone, a day of free transportation around Frankfurt and a comfy futon. It was nice to see old friends again--Marc, Denisse, Felix, Lisette, and others--and I couldn't have imagined a better welcome. As I recovered from my jetlag, I became reacquainted with Frankfurt and all of its green and gastronomical splendor.

Cacti in the Palmengarten

Marc posing pseudo-naturally on a bridge

Frankfurt skyline from the Palmengarten

The first test was done, but next came Freiburg. Having lived in paid-for student housing all four years of college, this apartment and banking stuff was new to me. It didn't help that you pay your rent in a way that I've never heard of--in Germany, there are no checks. People know one another's bank account numbers and they transfer money that way. I had a minor freak-out, and then it was over. I embraced my new life here.

The apartment is really cute--not a lot of rooms, but just enough for me. Schade that there's no oven--but there is a magnetic stovetop, a french press, a microwave, a fridge. I think I can deal with that. As long as I can have my morning oatmeal (Haferflocken) and coffee, life is pretty good.

Altenberg/Köln

Almost immediately after my arrival, I had to leave for Cologne for an orientation. I had booked my tickets ahead of time with an arrival 30 minutes before we were supposed to meet the other teaching assistants, thinking that would give me ample time. Not to mention the infamous pünktlichkeit of the German train system. However, it was for naught. Somewhere between Bonn and Cologne, there was a Personenschaden, which sounds like a horrific type of accident. So me and several others had to get off the train at Bonn and get on the U-Bahn, a much slower and less comfortable mode of transportation between the two cities. Luckily, I met a few other Fulbrights and we were eventually able to split a Taxi to Altenberg, a church/Hostel/conference center in the countryside.

I met so many wonderful people here and reconnected with William and Mary folks, which was awesome. My roommate Melissa and 2 others will be in Freiburg or the Freiburg area, creating a fun support group here. We had to participate in a classroom simulation, and my group planned a lesson on American dating, which was really fun. German teachers were our mentors in the classroom, and all of them were really helpful and enthusiastic about our being there. They emphasized positive reinforcement--abundant in American classrooms but lacking greatly in German classrooms. One teacher said, "you may be the light in their day. They're just waiting for someone to tell them they did something well."

Freiburg

Freiburg is a thriving university city of about 220,000. Surrounded by wine and leading to the deep Schwarzwald, Freiburg is such an idyllic place to live. People surround you on bikes--students, families, bums--yet people seem to take their time here. It's very gemütlich, to use a German term (warm, friendly, cozy). It also enjoys the best weather in Germany, which doesn't hurt.

My neighborhood is wonderful and I couldn't have a better location. I'm near the Hauptbahnhof, the Uni and the Altstadt. Across the street is a beautiful museum, and nearby you can hear the flowing Bächle, or these little water gutters. They apparently cool the city in the summer. The legend is this: if you fall into one of these gutters, you are destined to marry a native Freiburger; being an American at heart, I need to watch my step.

The Gymnasium where I will be teaching is wonderful. The teachers are lovely and my Beratungslehrer is obsessed with country music and used to host a country music radio show. I will probably work 12 hours a week, 4 days a week. I am part of the Fulbright diversity program, which seeks to introduce the US to students who have had little to no contact with the country and its culture. Students with migrant backgrounds don't make it to the Gymnasium in large numbers in Germany; however, my Gymnasium has the largest number of immigrant students than the other Gymnasiums in the area. On Monday I go in early to watch the students receive their class assignments, which is supposed to be a pretty big deal. On Wednesday, my Beratungslehrer will show me the town before we participate in an English department conference.

One of the Uni buildings. The inscription above the entrance reads, "Die Wahrheit wird euch frei machen," or "The truth will make you free."

Rathausplatz

The Theater

Small vineyard in my neighborhood

Museum next to my apartment

The Uni

Random meat truck, for your occasional Bratwurst craving

Bächle

Around my neighborhood

So, as of now, I have a few things in mind for my stay in Freiburg:

1. Become a guest student at the university

2. Take free dance classes every Thursday downtown

3. Visit schools other than my own (Grundschulen, Realschulen, etc) to see the differences in teaching and administration, and to introduce myself

4. Make German friends (Last night was a start--Melissa and I went to an overpriced bar and tried to liven the place up with our best dance moves. Only some found it amusing)

5. See Joachim Löw, coach of the German national soccer team and resident of Freiburg

6. Get a bike?

7. TRAVEL!

I'll try and write in this every week, maybe make it a Saturday activity. Bis nächstes Mal!