February 1st-11th

Friday February 1st
 After a long week, I had a girls night with Laura. We drank some champagne and had a bunch of junk food and then watched Sex and the City and some of the sequel. I had never seen it before, but it was really funny and we had a fun time.

On Saturday, I went to Kriztina's birthday party at her house. It was really sweet of her to invite me, and I got to meet all of her friends and see some of her old ones as well. Markus, Joana, and Crissy all came to the party and it was fun to catch up with them, as I hadn't seen them since we went to Münster. We played a few games and looked through their old yearbooks. Her mom had also made an awesome spread of snacks and finger foods that I got to try. It was a really fun party and I got to sing in both German and English. Alles Gut Zum Geburtstag just doesn't have the same ring to Happy Birthday, but  it was still fun singing it.

Sunday, Anni invited me to Iserlohn to attend her choir concert. I got to see her family again as well as go to another Sunday school lesson, and really enjoyed both. Plus, she is an amazing singer and had two solos, and it was really impressive. I know how nervous I used to get before piano recitals, but at least with that, you can make it seem like you know how to play. If you can't sing, then it's immediately obvious and there is no way to cover it up. However, Anni doesn't have to do this, because she knocked the socks off of her songs. Afterward, we went back to her house in Iserlohn and Dieter and Carl came over. We had planned on staying up, ordering some burgers, and watching the Superbowl, but we were all really tired by 10 pm. Unfortunately, kickoff doesn't even start until midnight over here, and there was no way I was going to make it through. Plus, Carl told me they don't even show the American commercials, which is one of the reasons I watch, so it was just a bust all around. Oh well. It was still fun to see Carl and Dieter.

Monday was Opi's birthday. I now have the privilege of having attending both Omi AND Opi's birthdays. Now it's just Anni's and Maike's and I'll have collected the whole set! Jokes aside, it was a really sweet day, with cake (yesssss!!) and Käsesuppe (cheese soup) that is basically the best thing I've ever tasted. I really want to the recipe, even though whatever I try to recreate will be a complete failure compared to Omis. Later, we went upstairs and played MarioKart with Maike. It was really sweet of Anni to invite me to both events, and I enjoyed seeing everyone again.

The rest of the week was spent trudging through more snow, taking my last final, shopping for souvenirs for when I go home, and packing my bags for my visit home.  I am trying to get take home some of the stuff I brought over here so I won't as much in July. That's it for now, Schüss!!

German Word of the Week: das Gepäck-"baggage" I really hope that my Gepäck is not lost on the flight over. 

First Day Back and The Rest of January (7th-31st)

January 7th-11th

    It was a fun winter break, but now I have to go back to school. I am used to starting a new semester in January, but here, it is just a continuation of the previous semester. It's kind of odd, but I guess I won't have worry about new classes for a while.

The silver lining is that I got a ton of candy over Christmas break that will tide me over until at least March. It truly was Halloween in December:

On Friday, the 11th, I went to the Folkwang Museum in Essen with Carl's mom, Desi, and Anni. We had talked about the museum over Christmas break and she had already been to the Expressionist exhibit and said it was really worth a trip to see. I am glad we went, as it was one of the last weekends that the exhibit was open. We had to wait in line for a while before we got in, as everyone else seemed to have gotten the memo about the exhibit leaving soon. Once we got in, we got the audio guide and made our way through the museum  It was a really great collection, with a lot of Picassos, Van Goghs, Monets, and the like. Unfortunately, you couldn't take pictures in there, so I had to commit all my favorite ones to memory. My favorite was a sunrise portrait by Edvard Munch, but I couldn't find a print of it anywhere in the giftshop. It would have been a really pretty desktop background.

14th-19th

   This week, I think everyone has caught the same cold. Mike, Chris, Brittney, and a lot of other people are all sniffling. I am trying to drink a lot of orange juice to ward it off, but I don't know if I will inevitably catch it. It also doesn't help that it has snowed once again. It's not really a novelty anymore for me. It's more like a hazard for me to slip on the way to school. But I did make a mini-snowman from the stuff outside my window, and got a really pretty picture of it underneath the moonlight.

On Friday, Chris and I cooked an "American" breakfast for his double, Laura. It involved French toast... so I guess that's a misnomer but it was good all the same. We had syrup and powdered sugar to go on it and also had eggs, bacon, and fruit salad. Laura is from Nürnberg and told us about the city and what she did for Christmas. I'd really like to try and visit it someday, the way she talked about it seemed like it's a fun town.

Saturday, Laura and I (not Nürnberg Laura, Prague Laura) went to see the ballet Swan Lake. Beforehand, we went to eat at Vapianos, the same Italian restaurant that Anni and I tried in Iserlohn. I got the carbonara this time and it was delicious. We made our way to the Opera house and were hoping to get last minute tickets, as they were all sold out online. We happened to get one front row ticket and one in the 12th row. Obviously, we didn't get to sit together, but Laura told me it was okay if I sat up front since I'd never seen it. It really was a great performance and since I was so close,  I could actually see all the muscles in the ballerinas' legs. I never realized how ripped they are. It was intense. Afterward, we went out for a few drinks and then went home. I had to walk through the field to get home, but I forgot that it was covered in snow. I was wearing silver dangly earrings for the theater and I thought that they were going to freeze into my ears since it was so cold. It was really windy as well, so by the time I got home, I had tears pouring down my face and frozen earlobes. Not a fun time, but all worth it for some top notch ballet.

20th-27th

  This week, we had a goodbye party for Gery. He has to go back to Hungary to finish his Master's thesis and leaves in a few days. Chris, Brittney, Mike and I all pitched in for some beers and we watched one of his favorite movies, The Expendables 2. It was a really fun night, but also kind of sad since he's leaving. He told us to come visit Budapest before we go back to the states. We will have to try and plan a trip.

On Friday, I had my internship as usual and also got to meet Hans Breder. It was really exciting, as I've been working in the Hans Breder Archiv for the past 4 months. He was very gracious and answered all of my questions about his work and the archive. I can't wait for the exhibit opening next week, it's really been a fun and exciting experience to see what goes on behind the scenes. Later, I had a girls night with Britney. We painted our nails and watched a few cheesy Gerard Butler romantic comedies. She also has an appreciation for his accent.

28th-31st

On Tuesday, Mike and I went to go see Django Unchained in Bochum. They were showing it in English and it was super-Kino Tuesday as well, so tickets were half price. I though the movie was great, especially Leonardo Dicaprio's Calvin Candie.

Also this week, we had the exhibit opening that everyone has been working on for the past few months. It is called "Kollisions Felder" (collision fields) and features the artwork of the aforementioned Hans Breder. I was really excited to go to the opening, I even had a special invitation to get in! There were a lot of speeches beforehand (all in German of course). I caught the gist of what was going on, but was happy when they released us into the exhibit. Afterward, my boss invited me to get drinks with our colleagues, Hans, and some members of the press. It felt nice to be included, and I had a really nice time with everyone. I got to sit next to Katja, one of the girls I work with and she made me laugh so hard I nearly spilled my beer everywhere. The reason was that she refused to believe I am Southern. We somehow got on the topic of Gone With the Wind and she talked about how much she loved it and went to the museum in Atlanta. I told her I always wanted to go since it's so close and her eyes got all big and she said "But you're not from the South." She just kept shaking her head and saying she didn't believe me because I didn't have an accent. I then put on the countriest back-woods Swamp People accent I could manage. We laughed for a long time after that, and the rest of dinner, she would keep asking me to say words in the accent. I was happy to oblige because I remembered Carl and Anni enjoying it as well. Whatever I can do to make my fans happy haha. That's it for this month, Schüss!!

German Word of the Post:Die Ballettänzerin- "Ballerina" When I was little, I wanted to be a Ballettänzerin, but my calves weren't strong enough. 

A Tour of Prague (January 2nd-6th)

January 2nd

       We had to get up super-early in order to catch our flight from Düsseldorf to Prague. I'm talking, leave the house at 2 am. I decided to not sleep at all and stayed up packing and watching movies. I was super excited about this trip. It would be me, Chris, Mike, and Mike's doubles, Robin and Laura touring around Prague for four days. First we had to get to the airport and wait in line for an hour. The counter wasn't even open and when a representative finally came out, we had to re-queue for no reason. We got through and found our plane, something my parents call a "puddle-jumper." It's a tiny plane with propellers. Like this:

We made it there fine, despite a lot of rattling. After a quick cab ride through the city, we found our way to the hotel. We dropped off of our bags since our room wasn't ready yet and went exploring. We went to the Charles Bridge, one of the most famous sites in Prague. It's a foot bridge over the Vltava River. Usually it's really crowded, but since we were there early in the morning, we pretty much had the place to ourselves. Plus the sun was rising and it was really beautiful.

We spent the rest of the day exploring the city. We went by one of Prague's major churches with a really cool clock on the side that's been in use since the 17th century:

Laura and I also went shopping in one of the swankier parts of the city. It was more like window-shopping, as some of the stuff was really pricey. We still had a great time. That night we went down to our hotel's bar/restaurant. It was decorated kind of oddly. It reminded me a lot of TGI Friday's at home. Just random stuff nailed up on the wall. We sat next to a suit of armor and on the other side of the table, there was a portrait of Bill Gates. Go figure. The food was good, a even better, the beer was cheap, so we spent most of the night there.

January 3rd

     We got up early to to go the castle in Prague. It's one of the largest castles in the world and we spent most of the day going through it. There were a lot of stairs to actually get to the castle, I felt like Rocky once we got to the top. It provided a really nice view of the city too.

They also had guards at this castle, and we caught the changing of the guard and snapped some photos with them as well.

He looks happy

Afterward, we ate at a little cafe. I tried the goulash, as apparently that's the thing to eat while in Prague. No offense to Praguians (Pragonians? Praguvillians?) but it was not my favorite. Maybe it was just a mixture of the spices, but I couldn't finish the dish. Oh well, at least I tried it. We also went to the spa in our hotel. We had it all to ourselves and tried out the sauna. I'd never been in one, but it was a lot of fun and refreshing. We also had a hot tub to marinate in. All in all, a relaxing end to a busy day.

January 4th

     Today we made our way down to the Frank Gehry building in Prague. I've posted earlier about his building in Düsseldorf and how he's kind of like the Dr. Seuss of architecture. This building was no different. They call it the "Fred and Ginger" because it looks like the two buildings are dancing together. Unfortunately it wasn't open for touring, because they actually use if for offices, but it was still fun to see.

We also went to the National Gallery. Unfortunately it was under a major restoration, so only part of it was open, but the part that we did see was impressive. After we were through with that, we went to the Alfons Mucha museum. He was from the Czech Republic and produced a lot of really beautiful advertisements for plays as well as illustrations. His stuff is really recognizable and popular. While there, we learned that when his posters would be put up around town to advertise something, within the next day, they would all be taken down by people who wanted to display them in their own houses. Here is one of his more famous pieces:

The prettiest cigarette ad I've seen

Later that night, we went to the largest club in central Europe. I know this because they had it in neon lights on the side of the building. I don't know if it was true or not, but the club was pretty big. It had five floors of different music. It was really interesting because if you got bored with the music on one floor, you could just move somewhere else. We tried out all of them, including the 70s/oldies floor that had a light-up checkerboard floor. There weren't a whole lot of people our age there, so we went to the pop/club songs floor and stayed there. I really enjoyed it there, because there was a glass ceiling so you could look up and see people dancing above you. It was an awesome night, and I really wish there were more clubs like this where I live. Oh well. The beer there was also interesting, my favorite had a goat on the front of it:

January 5th 

     Today we went to a performance of The Nutcracker and the National Operahouse. It was a lot of fun and the building was very pretty as well. 

The performers were very impressive, but it was a different version of The Nutcracker than I've seen before. It was like they combined it with A Christmas Story because there was definitely and Ebeneezer Scrooge character who was transported to the land of the sugar plum fairies. There were very few nutcrackers to be seen, but the music was recognizable, so I guess it wasn't a total loss. 

Afterward, we went back to the bar in the hotel. We had to leave early the next morning, so we didn't stay up too late. It was a really fun trip, and I would love to go back sometime. That's all for now. Schüss!!

German Word of the Week: Die Brücke- "bridge" Die Brücke across the Vlata River has a lot of statues on it. 

Christmas and New Years!! December 24th-January 1st

Christmas Eve

 It has finally arrived! Anni and I went into the city for some last minute shopping. We went to H&M, where I got some cute boots on clearance. I really should consider my luggage space when I'm shopping... I will seriously need a suitcase just for shoes.

Afterward, we visited her mom's boutique. She has some really neat stuff and delicious looking cupcakes as well. We also went for some ice cream. Ice cream in December, I know, but it was seriously 65 degrees outside. In any case, I got a banana chocolate concotion that was delicious. (See below)

After shopping, we went home to get ready for the Christmas Eve service at Anni's church. I got to see Rila again, and even got to meet some more of Anni's friends. Both of them were singing in the choir, so it was really fun to watch and hear them. Anni's grandpa also sang as well. After the singing, there was a Christmas play put on by the children. It was really sweet and I got to see some of my friends from the service on Sunday. After church, we went home to open presents. That's another benefit of Germany-you don't have to wait until the 25th to open presents! First, we had to wait outside the living room while Anni's grandparents decorated the tree and set out the presents. Then, a bell rang and that was our signal to go in. It was really beautiful.

Then it was time to open presents. I wasn't really expecting all that much, just because it was nice enough to be invited to spend Christmas with Anni and her family. However, I got a cute bracelet and CD from Maike, a scarf and earrings from Omi and Opi, and a trip to see the new Twilight movie from Anni. Oh, and a whole plate of candy. I really appreciated all of these gifts, but it was even nicer to sit and enjoy Christmas with everyone. I even got to Skype for a few minutes with my parents and family back home.

After all of the presents were opened, we had fondue. I only knew the kind with melted cheese or chocolate. However, this was hot oil and you could stick all sorts of meats into it to cook. It was really delicious. I seriously ate too much, especially as there was leftover cake for dessert. It was a fun and different Christmas tradition that I think I will suggest to my family for next year.

On Christmas Day, Anni and I went over to Carl's house. It was really fun seeing his family again and we played more Skip-Bo and Triominoes. We also got to open more presents, which is always a bonus. I got a book and painted picture of the museum where I work from Carl. I also got a pretty pair of purple earrings from Hanna and a trip to Bonn from Carl's parents. They were all such sweet and thoughtful gifts, and all I had to give was my container of chocolate chip cookies. However, they ended up getting eaten, so I suppose that is a good sign.

After we opened presents, we had raclette and fondue for lunch. I had never heard of raclette, so it was another fun tradition to try. It's basically a mini cooktop where you can sear different types of meats. Everyone also got these cute little frying pans where you mix in cheese, vegetables, sauces, basically whatever you want, and then add that on top of whatever meat you are cooking. It's kind of hard to describe, but luckily I took some pictures:

You can see the frying pans cooking underneath

The fondue!!! 

There were also tons of sauces to put on everything. Carl and his parents kept telling me if I didn't like something to just say so, but I wanted to try all of them, so I basically took whatever came my way. I think my favorite was this aioli sauce that Carl had made. I absolutely love garlic, so I slathered it on just about everything. Once again, I ate entirely too much and had to loosen my belt after the meal. However, I would just have to make more room because there was this giant bowl of candy on the table that we kept passing around. It was like Halloween. There was so much candy and all of it chocolate. I found a new favorite chocolate, "Duplo" which is kind of like a Kit Kat. Hanna had also made this delicious tiramisu for dessert, and even sent us home with a container of it.

The bowl of dreams

After lunch, we played a few more games and then went back to Iserlohn. We lounged around for the rest of the day watching movies, and I also got to Skype with my family again.

On the 26th, Anni and I got up early to have breakfast at Carl's house. His family had prepared this huge spread of all sorts of meats, cheeses, jellies, and breads. I also really liked the waffles and nutella.

Something that was also really sweet was that Carl's parents had specially bought peanut butter just for me. I guess they had heard that I am kind of a fanatic about it and had both the crunchy and creamy kind. They are both really nice and made me feel welcome. After we got done with breakfast, we went back to Iserlohn to prepare for more gift giving with Anni's family. Her aunt and uncle came over again and we all opened more presents. We also had more cake (yay!!) and a dish called Sauerbraten. I was so excited to try this ever since Anni had told me about it the week before. It's similar to pot roast, in that you let the meat stew in its own juices for a day or two.

I know that Anni was happy to finally have it as well, since I had pestered her almost every day if it would be the night for Sauerbraten.  The meal did not disappoint, and it was my favorite dish that we had while there. It was tender and juicy and I had to refrain from drinking the delicious gravy that was poured over the top. Yum!


On Thursday, the 27th, Anni, Maike, and I went out to Bali, an Indonesian restaurant in town. They described it as one of their favorites, and I was excited to try it. I really liked the decor of the place. They had these huge wooden chairs made into interesting shapes. They must have weighed at least 90 pounds each.

The food was, of course, delicious. We paid for the all you can eat buffet, but I think I only went up there three times. There was just too much to try: Shish kebabs, sushi, soups, mixed rices, and a lot more. I just loaded up on whatever looked good (which was all of it) and tried my best to make my way through all of it. Anni told me to save room for dessert, because they had this fried pineapple stuff that was heavenly.

After we got done eating, we went back up to Maike's apartment and watched more movies. I found out one of her favorites is The Wedding Date, just like me!

On the 28th, Anni and I went over to Carl's house for a movie night. We stopped at McDonald's on the way and purchased dinner for the night. I actually like the McDonald's over here. They seem a lot cleaner and nicer than the ones back home. We watched Crank and Crank 2 which were both really action-packed and violent. It was fun watching them with Carl, because he knows a lot about guns and knives and would tell us the type of pistol that was being used in the movie. He also showed me this website that is basically a Wikipedia for guns and can tell you what guns have been used in movies.

Saturday, the 29th, Anni and I went downtown to do some more shopping. This time, I managed to refrain from buying any more shoes, but I did end up in a bookstore, like a nerd. I found Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in German and was actually able to understand most of the first chapter. I think that would be another good way to learn German is read a book that you know by heart. I went ahead and bought the book and have already made my way through the first three chapters. Not too shabby! While shopping, I wasn't completely thinking about myself. I was still getting some last minute gifts for friends back home. I am going home in February and wanted to make sure I had something for everyone on my list.

On Sunday, the 30th, Anni and I went to go see the final Twilight film. It was a really sweet present from her, and I really enjoyed it. I also learned a lot about how the movie theaters over here work. Apparently, it isn't a free for all like in the U.S. when it comes to picking seats. In Germany, when you buy tickets, it's like buying tickets for a play or baseball game; You have an assigned seat. I thought it made a lot more sense and was much more orderly than the random way we do it in the U.S. Anni also bought us snacks for the theater that were a little different than I'm used to. She told me that the popcorn is sweet instead of salty. It's more like kettle corn that you can get at the fair. I liked it, but I much prefer the butter-drenched fatty stuff you can get back home. We also got some nachos to share, but the "salsa" was more sweet than I'm used to. It reminded me of sweet and sour sauce from the Chinese restaurant.

Once we got into the theater, we watched a few previews for some upcoming German films. After that, they turned on the lights again, and a man came in selling ice cream. It really was like a baseball game. The movie was in German, but I was able to follow along and Anni was right next to me if I had any questions. It was a really fun night, and I thoroughly enjoyed our night out at the movies.


On New Year's Eve, Anni and I went over to Carl's house to celebrate. We had more raclette, and I had actually gotten better at not burning any meat or tablecloths. I felt really bad, as the first night we had raclette, I put my hot frying pan down on the tablecloth, and it burned a hole right through it. Luckily, it wasn't a family heirloom linen one, and more like a birthday party one that you can ball up and throw away. However, Carl's dad told me the next day that when he was washing dishes he had one frying pan that was especially difficult to get clean, as it had something yellow melted to the bottom of it. Whoops! This time, I managed to avoid burning anything and really enjoyed doing the raclette again.

We also had a lot of champagne to ring in the new year. Carl even let me shoot his pistol, (blanks, of course) as New Year's is the perfect time to shoot a gun because the neighbors won't be disturbed.  At midnight, we all went out into the street and shot off fireworks. It was really crazy, as almost everyone in the neighborhood was outside shooting stuff. In my hometown, it is technically illegal to shoot fireworks within the city limit, and we usually have to go to a official fireworks show at the beach. Not so in Germany. I got to light a few bottle rockets, and Anni and I kept lighting firecrackers and trying to roll them into the sewer grate across the street. The church bells were also ringing, and all in all, it was an awesome New Years. I even took some video, but be warned that it looks like I have ADD because I can't focus on just one area.

We spent the night at Carl's house and got up in time for lasagna that Hanna had made for lunch. All too soon, we had to be on the way back to Dortmund, as I was leaving the next day to spend a few days in Prague. It was an amazing Christmas and New Years, and not one I will soon forget.

Side note: I feel like this blog has turned into a running list of all the food Joanna likes (read:just about everything), but I will try my best to include more content that doesn't involve me stuffing my face.

German Word of the Week: Der Tannenbaum- "Christmas tree" It is always fun to decorate Der Tannenbaum. 

Dec. 21st-23rd

Friday, Dec. 21st.

Freeedom!!!! I met up with Anni and we drove to her hometown of Iserlohn. I got to meet her grandparents again, both who were really gracious and gave me big hugs. Upon entering their apartment, I noticed all of the great decorations. There were candles and wreaths everywhere. It was really pretty.

 I also noticed her Omi's orchids. She had at least 15 all throughout the house and all were beautiful and in bloom. A green thumb indeed.

The several plates of Christmas cookies placed around the house did not go unnoticed either.

Don't mind if I do!

The sign says "Merry Christmas!"

 After we had unpacked and settled in, I got to meet Anni's aunt, Maike, who lives above her grandparents. We got to have dinner with her and a few of her friends and we watched a movie as well, Mirror, Mirror. It's another Snow White story (Schneewittchen in German), but it was fun nonetheless.

On Saturday, the 22nd, it was Omi's birthday! I got up and had breakfast with Anni. It was a proper German breakfast, with rolls, assorted sausages and meats, cheese, nutella, jam, and the like. I was in heaven. I usually am too impatient for breakfast and grab a yogurt or banana, so this was nice for a change. Around 3, Anni's uncle, Thorsten, and his wife and children came over to celebrate Omi's birthday. They have four children, including one really sweet 6 month old, Lukas. Her uncle teaches English at a high school near Iserlohn, so I had fun getting to know him and his family. Carl also came over for the celebration.

 However, I was unprepared for the epicness that is a German birthday. I am used to a single cake for a birthday. That cake usually comes after a family dinner. Here, however, we got to eat cake first. And not just one cake, there were at least 6 different kinds to choose from. Mind you, these were all homemade by Omi. No box cakes here! My brain could not compute all of this at first. Here are just two of them:

I think I managed to make it through three different slices, but had to give up after that. But there were leftovers, so another day I shall try again. Afterward, we all sat around the table and talked. It was fun trying to discern the different conversations going on at once. Anni and Carl were really kind and would translate for me if I didn't understand something. Something I did understand was when Anni's aunt said that it might snow for Christmas. All at once, everyone stopped and said "WAS?!" (in English: WHAT?!) It was really funny. I hope it will snow, but it doesn't look good. The temperature has been hovering around the 60s.

After the cake had time to settle, we had supper. It was spatzel with mushrooms. I really enjoyed this as well. What with the cake, cookies, and awesome meals, I am on track to gain at least 10 pounds by the end of break. Totally worth it.

Afterward, Carl, Anni, and I played Triominoes. I don't know what it was, but I hit a really lucky streak and won two games in a row. We talked about popular German movies like Sissi, which is a series of movies from the 50s about Elisabeth, the princess of Austria.

On Sunday, the 23rd, we got up to go to church. I got to help Anni with the children's service, which was a special one because it was Christmas. We spent the morning singing Christmas songs, eating cookies, and playing games. It was my kind of service. I even got to meet Anni's best friend, Rila. She was super-nice and we all took part in a game called "Blitz, Feuer, Wasser, Wind" (Lightning, Fire, Water, Wind). Basically, the object of the game is to wear the kids out. It involves a lot of running. For example, if Anni yelled out Blitz! the kids would have to lay on their stomachs to escape the lightning. If she yelled Wind! then they would have to run and touch a wall. It was hilarious, because Anni was really good at stirring the kids up. She would say stuff like "There's a tornado right behind you, you better run faster!" and "Only one can survive, who will it be?!" I don't think I've laughed that much in a long time. It was really good for me to hang out with kids as well, because I actually understood a majority of what they were saying! I am thinking about enrolling in a preschool close to university. That's a sure way to improve my German!

After church, we went home and had lunch. We also decorated the room we were staying in. Anni brought all of her ornaments and decorations from home, and we had fun hanging it all up.

Anni getting her swag on

After this, we went upstairs to see Maike and have a girl's day. We painted our nails, put on facial masks, and watched a reality TV show about weddings. The language was not too terribly difficult, and with a lot of help from Maike and Anni, I understood most of it. Plus, it was a really fun show as well. When the show was over, we decided to play some Wii bowling and Mario Kart. We stayed up pretty late, but it was a fun day overall. That's it for now, Christmas Eve is tomorrow, and I am super excited! Schüss!!

German Word of the Day: Die Glocken- "the bells" Die Glocken on Sunday morning are a nice sound to wake up to. 

The Week Before Christmas (Dec. 16th-22nd)

Dec. 16th-22nd

 I am so ready for break to be here. I am really jealous reading all the posts on Facebook from friends back home who are already on vacation. Oh well. On Sunday, my language class performed our production of Der Grüffelo. It's a popular children's book about a mouse who has to outsmart all of these other forest animals.

Yours truly accepted the role of der Fuchs (the fox) and is expecting accolades to come pouring in at any moment. Actually, a lot of people turned out to see us. It was tons of fun. We also sang a song at the end about Der Grüffelo, and I think video of it exists somewhere, but I won't be posting it on this blog. Here is a picture of all of us:

After the play, Chris and I met up with Uschi for a little Christmas shopping. We all exchanged presents and went for a cup of Glühwein as well. It was really nice, even though the freezing rain was less than ideal.

Here is a picture of the giant Dortmund Christmas tree, as promised:

On Wednesday, I baked chocolate chip cookies. Both Anni and Carl had invited me to come stay for Christmas and New Years, and I wanted to get their parents and grandparents something. Of course, I had no idea what to get them, but food seems like a safe option. Everybody likes chocolate chip cookies, right?

Thursday, we had an informal Christmas dinner. Chris and I cooked jambalaya for Gergei, Mike, and Brittney and we all exchanged gifts. I don't think jambalaya is a traditional Christmas food, but oddly enough, we couldn't find goose. So we settled on the next best thing. It actually turned out pretty well. We sat and talked for a long time about our personal Christmas traditions and plans for the break. I'm going to end this post early so I can combine my Christmas break adventures into one huge post. So goodbye for now!

German Word of the Week: Der Reis- "rice" Don't overcook der Reis, or your jambalaya will be a "der"saster.

Dec. 9th-15th

Jack Frost Pays Us a Visit

On Monday, Chris, Mike, and I went shopping at the Christmas market. We were trying to find gifts for friends and family back home and had fun consulting with one another on what we thought everyone would like. 

Tuesday, I woke up to a winter wonderland. Overnight, it had snowed. A lot. At least, it was a lot in my mind, since I've only been around the stuff about 5 times in my life:

However, I had several close calls with ice slick walking to campus. I managed to catch myself, but am waiting for the day when my reflexes fail me. A guy riding a bike ahead of me totally ate dirt, or in this case snow, and it looked really painful. 

Wednesday, I had lunch with Krisztina and we talked about possibly going sledding. She has a legit one, with reins and room for two people! I also went shopping again. This time, it was presents for Mike, Chris, Britney and Gergei. We want to get together sometime before break and have a Christmas dinner and present exchange. I managed to find a gift for everyone and bought some stuff for myself as well. 

On Thursday, Chris and I built a snowman and had a snowball fight. I say fight, but I think I only threw maybe five of them. It was really difficult to form a ball because this snow was the powdery kind that does not pack easily. That's also why we ended up with a snowman that was really more of a snow child and maybe 2 feet tall. We also had to improvise with decorating him. We didn't have any carrots or charcoal or old silk hats lying around, so we made do with some sticks and Sweetarts. Yeah. Not the prettiest snowman ever, but it made us laugh: 

"Billy"

Friday, I had my internship as usual, but we also went out for a "Weihnachtsessen"or Christmas lunch. It was at a really nice Mediterranean restaurant. I got lamb kebabs with couscous that were both delicious. It was a big group of people who all work in the museum, and it was fun getting to know everyone better. We all compared Christmas traditions and food and ended the lunch with some delicious espresso. 

Saturday, I cooked breakfast for Damla. She had been nice enough to make me dinner last week, so I decided to return the favor. I may not be the best at cooking dinner, but I can do breakfast. I made her eggs in a basket. It's a fun dish to make. You cut a hole in the middle of a piece of bread, and then crack an egg into it. It's something that reminds me of my childhood, and I hoped that she would like them.

Deliciousness

We sat down and discussed our plans for the break. It was a nice way to start a lazy Saturday. That's it for this week, I am ready for next week to be over with so that I can start Christmas break! Schüss!

German Word of the Day: Schnee- "Snow" We can go sledding in the schnee! 

Dec. 2nd-8th

A Visit from Mom and Dad 

On Sunday, my parents came to visit me in Dortmund. They had been in Germany for a week, on a river cruise down the Danube and came up to see me before going home. They arrived later in the evening, so we took it easy the first night and checked in to the hotel.

Monday, I got to show them around the city. It was bitterly cold, so we had to bundle up. At least it wasn't snowing. I took them around the Christmas Market and showed them the giant Christmas tree. There was, of course, a trip made to TKmaxx. Daddy even documented the occasion:  

We then went to get something to eat. At the Christmas market, there is a lot of food to choose from, but we migrated toward the desserts. My friend Krisztina had told me about a "Germknödel" one day at lunch. It basically looks like a dough ball covered with some sort of sauce. It's actually a type of dumpling and is usually filled with different types of fruit and then covered in a vanilla sauce. We tried the cherry flavor and it was delicious. Here's what one usually looks like: 

Odd-looking... but delicious!

For dinner, I took them to the Indian restaurant that Uschi had showed us. I was not very adventurous, and ordered what I got before, the lamb. It was still just as good. Mom and Dad seemed to like it as well. After dinner, we had tickets for a musical quartet. It was a very tiny venue, maybe half the size of a regular high school auditorium. However, this put us closer to the performers and the acoustics were really good. The ensemble consisted of two violins, a viola, and two cellos. My favorite performer was one of the violinists. He really got into his performance (Brahms, by the way) and his facial expressions were priceless. He also had a habit of shifting his feet and bouncing around in his chair. At one point, we thought he was going to just stand up and continue playing. All of the musicians were very talented, and it was an enjoyable night out.

On Tuesday, we took a day trip to Cologne. It seems that we picked the wrong day to go, because all of the trains were delayed 30 minutes. Once we finally got to Cologne, the weather was really crappy. It was windy and rainy as well. We sought shelter in the cathedral, which mom and dad had not seen. It was very peaceful and a nice respite from the rain. Right next to the cathedral is Cologne's Christmas market, which is a little more traditional than Dortmund's. There were a lot of nutcrackers and handicrafts. Mom and I found a booth that sold Christmas pyramid's and a lot of other hand-carved wooden stuff. She even bought me one for a Christmas present. Here's a video of it in action: 

The tiny candles are real too! 

After perusing the shops, we found a place to warm up and laugh at the people outside struggling with their umbrellas. I saw at least 3 umbrellas snapped because of the wind.  We made our way home and had dinner at Carl's apartment. He and Ann-Kathrin were sweet enough to invite us over and my parents really wanted to meet them, so it was a fun night. We got donür from the Turkish restaurant down the street from Carl's apartment. It was delicious as usual.  I'm glad that everyone got to meet, and I think a good time was had by all. 

My parents left on Wednesday, it was a short but sweet visit, and I was happy to see them before Christmas. 

On Friday, I got to sit in on a meeting for the Hans Breder exhibtion in February. It was really interesting and another behind-the-scenes look at what goes on at a museum. I'm grateful to have the internship and an awesome boss that lets me in on these meetings.

Saturday,  Krisztina was nice enough to invite me to go to Münster with some of her friends. I don't think I've ever eaten so much in one day. It began with breakfast at a Currywurst stand in Bochum. According to Krisztina, this stand is the one that invented Currywurst. It was very good, but honestly, I like anything with sausage and french fries. I also got to meet Krisztina's friend Steph, who was visting from Australia. Then we met up with even more friends, Joana and Markus. We would be driving to Münster together. It was fun to finally meet another Joanna, but even though her name only had one "n," I kept responding whenever someone would say her name. Krisztina suggested they call me Jo-Jo, a nickname I haven't heard since preschool. I didn't mind, and it was a fun car-trip. I had been complaining about the lack of Christmas music.

 In America, they blast it constantly, beginning the day after Thanksgiving. You hear it everywhere- malls, restaurants, sports events, basically anyplace with speakers. I usually get sick of it by the second week of December. But in Germany, it's the opposite. I traded too many Christmasy songs  for none at all! However, Markus and Joana had three CDs full of classic Christmas songs. I was so happy and sang under my breath to my favorites. My quota of Christmas music has now been filled. 

Once we got to Münster, we met up with a couple more friends. Münster has 5 major Christmas markets spread throughout the city. We managed to get to two of them and both were really nice. On top of the Currywurst, I crammed in Reibekuchen (basically a hashbrown that you eat with applesauce), a Krakauer (type of sausage served with mustard on a roll), and a cup of Glühwein and hot chocolate. This was all at the 2 Christmas markets. We then walked to downtown Münster, which was really pretty. There was even a live musical performance along the main road.

As I was to find out, the day was just starting! After we finished looking through the city, we drove to the nearby town of Telgte. We would be attending a Christmas market combined with a type of renaissance  fair. It's called "mittelalterlicher" which basically means medieval. Joana told me that it's a year-round thing, and it travels throughout Germany. I had never been to a renaissance fair, so I guess Germany was as good a place as any to try it out. There was so much to take in. This thing was held in the middle of some woods. No joke. There were torches everywhere lighting the path and a lot of vendors throughout the area. 

There was even a stage for bands to perform. People were also dressed up in traditional renaissance clothing. It reminded me of Game of Thrones. While there, we managed to find even more to eat. I tried a dönur type thing with bits of shredded beef and what tasted exactly like ranch dressing. I asked the Germans and they said they didn't know the name of the sauce, but I swear the lady making these things had a bottle of Hidden Valley stashed away somewhere. We toured some of the stalls, which were a lot different from the city vendors. There was a blacksmith and tanner, and a place that sold bow and arrows! We listened to some of the bands perform (a lot of bagpipes... I don't think I've ever heard bagpipes outside of a funeral, but here, they were used in rousing anthems that had a lot of shouting and foot stomping), and found a big bonfire to sit around and warm up. Then it was time for more food.  Joana recommended an almond hut, where you could get them coated in all sorts of stuff: coconut, butter toffee, and my favorite, Nutella. Then we tried a cheese pretzel. It was the freshest you could get, straight out of the oven and delicious. I stood and watched the man make them for a while as well. Really interesting!   On the way out, I saw some wooden horses that were clearly meant for children to play on. However, I got Steph to take a picture of me riding on one: 

They may take our lives, but they'll never take our FREEEEEDOM!

The cherry on top was the fire-breathing dragon head near the exit. I couldn't get a picture of it in action, but it was still cool nonetheless. It was a long but really fun day, and I was happy to meet some new friends!

Schüss!

German Word of the Week: Bauchschmerzen- "stomachache" If you want to sample all of the food at a Christmas market, you will probably have a Bauchschmerzen by the end of the day. 

Breakfast, Bond, Bombs, and Ballet

Nov. 25th-Dec. 1 

Wow! I cannot believe I've been here 3 months already. It feels like just yesterday I was packing up the car to go the airport. But! I will stop being sentimental and get to the interesting stuff.

Sunday, Gergei had us over for breakfast. He was cooking Hungarian eggs and advised us to bring our appetites. They were very good. Scrambled eggs with lots of different sausages and onions mixed in as well as fried lard. Yes, you read correctly, fried lard. I felt right at home with all the fattiness and cholesterol mixed in to the food. Afterwards, I think my stomach had expanded to twice its normal size, but now I can say I've had authentic Hungarian eggs. It was really nice of Gergei to have us over, I will have to invite him over for some equally delicious and fattening biscuits and gravy.

On Monday, Lena invited me over to her house for dinner. She lives in the city, but I was proud of myself for managing to find it on my own. Of course, I did get on a train going in the wrong direction, but that's normal, right? Lena cooked chicken pasta that was delicious. I could get used to having people cook for me every day of the week. We talked about different Christmas traditions and what we wanted for Christmas. After dinner, she took me down to the Dortmund Christmas market for a cup of Glühwein and a tour of the booths. Glühwein is kind of liked a spiced/sweet wine that is a Christmas tradition. I sipped some of Lena's, but I think I like apple cider better. There were also vendors who had chocolate covered everything: coconut, strawberries, almonds, etc. I got some pineapple that was really good:

Tuesday, I went with a few friends to see the new James Bond movie, Skyfall. We found a movie theater that was showing the film in the original English, but with German subtitles. However, this theater was also located within a train station. It was the one of the oddest movie experiences I've ever had. There was only one screen within the whole theater, but it looked pretty normal. However, every 15 minutes or so, you could hear the trains coming into the station. This was not that noticeable during the action sequences, but it got kind of annoying during quiet scenes, when, all of sudden, there would be the sound of screeching wheels and a conductor's whistle. Oh well.

On Thursday, my boss at my internship invited me to an exhibition opening. It was about gift shops in museums and the phenomenon of buying fakes and souvenirs of famous works of art. There would also be a guest speaker on the subject. It sounded really interesting, and I was looking forward to going. However, I was a little late to the opening and managed to sneak in toward the back. I had been there about 2 minutes when maybe 20 police officers came rushing in. Someone who looked to be the captain made an announcement (in German, of course) and everyone gasped and started getting their things together. I had no idea what was going on, but was a little freaked out. I found someone who spoke English and he told me that some construction workers had found a live bomb from World War II and they were having to evacuate everyone within a 5 block radius. The German word for this is "Blindgänger," which means dud. This 5 block radius included the museum, a lot of residences, and two hospitals. It was kind of chaotic going out on to the street, my new-found friend also told me that the police were going door to door telling people to evacuate. It was like a step back in time. He also told me that they may be able to continue with the speech and exhibtion if the police gave the all clear. I decided that I did not want to stick around one way or the other and made my way to the train station. It reminded me that even though the war ended over 60 years ago, the remnants still remain. It was an interesting and unique experience, one that I can't say I want to relive again. Here's a picture from where they found the bomb, you can see the museum in the background:

Here also is a link to an article about the bomb, it's in German, but you can kind of pick out the gist of what was going on: Blindgänger.

On Friday, I went to see a ballet. My language teacher is also part of the Dortmund Opera House and had a small part in Der Traum der Roten Kammer or The Dream of the Red Chamber. It's based off a 17th century Chinese novel.  It was a lot of fun. I got a discount because I am a student, but this fact also put me in the balcony. I was squinting the whole time trying to pick out our teacher. It was one instance where I really wanted some of those fancy opera glasses.

Oh you fancy huh?

Nonetheless, I really enjoyed the ballet. The dancing was magnificent, and I had a good view of the orchestra pit as well.

That's all for now, Schüss!

German Word of the Week: Die Ananas - "pineapple" Ananas is delicious, especially when dipped in chocolate. 

Week of Thanksgiving!

Nov. 18th-24th

On Monday, I went to Chris's house to watch a movie. He rented City of God from the library and said it was one of his favorites. It's based on a true story about kids in the slums of  Rio de Janero. It was interesting, and had a sort of happy ending as well. (As happy as you can get with these types of things). 

On Wednesday, I made cookies for the Thanksgiving Dinner. The International Office puts together a dinner every year and everyone brings a dish and a present. I spent all last week trying to get ingredients together for my chocolate chip cookies. They turned out to be chocolate chunk cookies, because I couldn't find chips anywhere. I also had to make my own brown sugar (1 cup of regular sugar + half a cup of molasses for those that are interested), since that is also a rare commodity over here. The cookies actually turned out okay. Ann-Kathrin told me they tasted like the ones you can get from Subway, and those are freaking delicious, so I took that as a huge compliment.

The dinner was a lot of fun. Instead of the typical giant 25 lb bird, we had four smaller turkeys. It was just as good as anything I've had before. There was also pumpkin soup, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, and mashed potatoes. Everything was delicious and I'm grateful I had a successful Thanksgiving in Germany. After everyone was done eating, we exchanged gifts. It was like Secret Santa, where you just pick out a random present. I got a bottle of wine, which I'm always happy to get. Ann-Kathrin got a  Rubik's cube and we spent the rest of the night trying to solve it. We ended up stopping once we got one side done.

Close Enough! 

On Friday, Mike, Laura, Robin, Chris, and I went out to Sausalito's. It was a nice way to unwind at the end of the week. I spent most of the night learning how to do the last half of the Rubik's cube. I don't think I'll ever be able to string it all together. Mike had to write down the instructions on a napkin, so now I have a sort of cheat sheet. 

Saturday, I went to the K20 Museum in Düsseldorf. For my art history course, we have three museum excursions throughout the semester. We actually get to see firsthand some of the art we discuss in class, which I think is always a nice thing. I managed to find the museum by myself. I looked it up on Googlemaps the night before, but was still kind of worried. I knew to keep the Rhine on my left and managed to stumble upon the place. We focused on the American section of the museum and learned about Warhol, Pollack, and Rauschenberg.

Name that artist! 

 It was a fun way to spend a Saturday, and I'm looking forward to our other excursions. Okay, I'm done for now, Schüss!

German Word of the Day: der Würfel- "cube" The Rubix Würfel is both frustrating and fun. 

Nov. 12th-17th

Nov. 12th-17th

Well this week flew by for some reason. On Monday, Chris, Mike, and I found out that there is an English DVD library on campus. It's kind of tucked away behind some old classrooms, and I was expecting a copy or two of Grown-Ups and the complete series of Dark Shadows. In other words, my hopes were not held high. I was very wrong, as I often tend to be. This collection blew me away. They had recent movies (Hunger Games, Brave) as well as the classics (The Godfather, Gone With the Wind). You could even rent video games. You can only check out two movies or one series per week, but I will definitely be frequenting the library when I have more time to actually watch movies.

I also spent this week learning how to do a Rubik's Cube. Mike told me he brought his along and could show me, so I figured I'd give it a try. I figured out that it's not as complicated as it looks, but my brain definitely got a work out. The key is imagining what the cube will look like after you make a move. I always sucked at those spatial reasoning problems on math exams, so I think it's going to take a little longer for me to learn. 

What cube matches the flattened design? Answer: We may never know

On Wednesday, Chris and I went to see The Dark Knight Rises. We found out that there's a film club on campus and every Wednesday they show a movie. Most of the films shown are in German, so I got a chance to practice my listening skills. However, I was happy that I had seen the movie when it came out, otherwise I would've been completely lost. Even in the English version, the way that Batman growls makes it difficult to understand what he is saying. I asked Chris a few times what he just said and he said he had no idea. German + growling does not equal coherency. Other than that, it was an enjoyable midweek break from studying and reading.

On Friday, we got to have dinner with Uschi. She is the sweet lady that picked me up from the train station when I first arrived. Chris and I decided it would be nice to treat her to dinner one night. We went to an Indian restaurant that was delicious. I am getting hungry just thinking about it. I ordered a lamb and almond dish that came with a huge side of rice.

It's blurry, but trust me, it was delicious

Our conversation over dinner was interesting, it was kind of funny because Chris and Uschi kept switching to German and then reverting back to English when talking to me. After dinner, Uschi took us to preview the Christmas market. Almost every major city in Germany has one, but Dortmund's is the best, according to Uschi. They do have the tallest Christmas tree in the whole world. It's made up hundreds of smaller trees and is pretty impressive.  I will post pictures when it's lit up.

Saturday, Ann Kathrin and Carl invited me over to play Mario Kart. Chris and Mike also came along, and I had a really great time. We ordered pizza and played video games to our hearts' content. I had forgotten how much I suck at Mario Kart. Like, really bad. Carl was the winner of the night, I think he won every race he tried. I kept running off the track and taking nonexistent shortcuts. We then switched to the battle mode, where you have to burst other player's balloons. It was so funny, because when Ann Kathrin and I played, we just kind of drove around and around until we met somebody to attack. On the other hand, the boys played to win and would actually use the map to stalk out opponents. I will admit, there was a lot of swearing from everyone, but it was all in good fun. I think I ended up winning once, so I didn't bring shame to Toad's name.

That's it for this week, Schüss!!

German Word of the Day: Die Banane- "banana" When playing Mario Kart, watch out for Banane peels or you will come in last every time. 

Nov. 5th-11th

Nov. 5th-11th

This week was kind of dreary. The weather was foggy and damp most of the time. Like this:

My classes were at least interesting. We have started The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe in my fantasy bestsellers class, and we have a screening planned for later in the month, when we will watch the movie that came out a few years ago.

On Monday, Mike, Chris and I went to get Dönur at a little shop on South campus. Apparently, Mike and Chris are regulars there, because the owner brought out free samples of a delicious coconut cake. Score!

On Wednesday, I had a group presentation in my American literature class, and I was a little nervous. However, everyone came well-prepared and the class was very engaged. Thursday night, we decided to make shrimp po-boys. Chris and I did most of the cooking, and it wasn't a Paula Deen recipe! Now, having never tasted an authentic po-boy, I have no way to gauge how good ours were, but  Gergei, Mike, and Britney seemed to like them. It was a fun get together, and we've got a lot of shrimp leftover, so we will have to figure out something else to cook.

Friday, I had my internship as usual and have made a lot of progress in the archive. I spent most of Saturday holed up in the library, catching up on my TV shows and doing some studying in between. The monthly internet limit is kind of annoying sometimes, so I have to use the free Wi-Fi in the library whenever I get the chance.

Sunday, Chris and I went to Cologne for Karneval. Remember how I was complaining about a lack of Halloween costumes in my last post? I found out that Germany just does Halloween a few days later! Everywhere you looked, there was someone in costume. I saw: cookie monster, Batman, Hobbes (from Calvin and Hobbes), Buzz Lightyear, and many many more. What's cool about Karneval is that everyone dresses up, not just the kids. I saw a group of elderly ladies in carrot costumes. I also saw a group of old guys in full-out Braveheart gear. I can't imagine this being the case in America, I kind of wish Halloween would extend past your 20s, like Karneval.

So a panda, solider, Scotsman, and a Native American walk into a bar....

Ghostbusters!!! Their containers were filled with beer. Welcome to Germany.

Unfortunately, I was not made aware that Karneval involves costumes, and made do with a tie-dye shirt and crazy hat. Lame, I know, but it was the best I could come up with. Chris borrowed a skeleton costume from someone and fit right in. We went to a party with one of his doubles, and it's not every day that you get to party with Red Riding Hood, two polar bears, Spiderman and the Hulk, and Alex from A Clockwork Orange. My favorite part was probably the parades. At any given time, there were at least three going on around us. There were marching bands, people on stilts, clowns handing out free pretzels (which were delicious, by the way) and all sorts of other crazy stuff. It was a long day, but I'm glad to have had the experience of Karneval, and I hope I can go again someday-with an amazing costume, of course.

That's it for now, Schüss!!


German Word of the Day: Die Brezeln- "pretzels" Be wary of free Brezeln, unless they are given by a clown.