Berlin

I went to Berlin this past weekend with Sonja and her husband Peter. We started by taking a tour, but the rain and speed of the tour made it impossible to take pictures or enjoy it. But that night, we saw the Blue Man Group at Potsdamer Platz! The show was incredible! I had no idea that they acted in skits as well as played music. They played drums on big metal barrells and paint splattered everywhere. They used gumballs, catching them in their mouths and then spitting the colorful juice all over a blank white canvas. One man used marshmallows, spitting them out to form a little sculpture. The crowd also got involved, crowd surfing toilet paper from the back of the theatre to the front stage as it sparkled in the black light. One young woman took part in a hilarious skit, while another young man was fitted with a full body jumpsuit and motorcycle helmet, painted blue, and thrown against a blank white canvas. We also were asked to stand up and perform specific movements in order to create a rock concert environment. The Blue Man Group entertained us for two hours, amazing us with musical talent and making us laugh at their comedy. Afterwards, I took a picture with one, who just happened to be my favorite, but could not reach the other two before they left. But it was so much fun and only the first of two wonderful surprises. I started Saturday with a repeat English breakfast minus beans, mushrooms and tomatoes. On the walk back to our apartment, we heard music. A new insurance company had opened that morning and had live advertisement. A man in a big green animal costume holding a sign marched around the sidewalks, leading five men who were playing instruments like electric guitar and a trumpet. They played some great oldies and songs that sounded like New Orleans originals. It was so funny, and if I lived in Berlin, then I would totally buy insurance from them. Next, we visited a Holocaust memorial. Above ground were huge grey cement blocks to symbolize the deaths of six millions Jews, a number much too large to truly comprehend. Under ground was a sort of museum with timelines, pictures, family accounts and personal letters written to loved ones about the horrors seen and experienced before death. I saw pictures of naked bodies being bulldozed, a rabbi surrounded by Nazis who were smiling while cutting off his traditional sidelocks of hair before they hanged him, a firing squad of twenty soldiers shooting a group of women, and a group of women's naked dead bodies piled up in a ditch with one still alive but about to be shot. My body cringed, but I could never possibly fully understand a tragedy of such epic proportion. Tears came to my eyes, but I never had to mourn the loss of a parent, sibling or friend just because he or she was a Jew. I find it difficult to imagine the amount of pride it requires to consider onself so superior to another race that one would assume the right to utterly destroy and wipe out the other. If I have ever doubted the presence of evil in the world, evidence of the Holocaust has removed every remnant of such doubt. Saturday night held the second great surprise. Peter took us to a private club called Bungalow. We had a dinner reservation for 8pm, and the guard at the entrance cleared us and let us pass. We walked into the bar area where you wait until your reserved time. Everything was white, and huge silver disco balls rotated slowly above us. Soon, a woman dressed in white led us upstairs to the dining room. We took off our shoes and came to our table, which not a table at all but rather a big, square, white couch topped with big, square, white pillows. So we lounged as we waited for our food to arrive. Then we were served a ten course meal! Yes, that's right, ten courses! The food was delicious, and the meal ended with tiramisu, New York cheesecake, and a chocolate icecream cone. Finally, our adorable waiter, dressed in white, brought the bill which was lying in a high-heeled, white shoe. But that is not all. During dinner, we got massages at our couch, and a woman peformed two songs beneath a spotlight. The entire evening lasted four hours, and was nothing short of amazing. On Sunday, we walked to see the last remains of the Berlin Wall. On our way, we saw police everywhere, on the street, in cars, and even on rooftops. Helicopters surveyed the area, and many bullet proof vehicles drove by with police escorts. Apparently, many important political figures were staying in the famous Hotel Adlon that weekend, and security was tight. Even the subways were closed in fear of an attack, and the British and American embassies have permanently blockaded their entrances so that only pedestrians may pass. I was reminded of how much 9/11 has changed the world. So we arrived at the wall, and that experience was very strange for me. The symbol itself is a distant and impersonal one to some extent, not being significant to my generation. To me, the wall is a tourist attraction or interesting monument, but to people in that time, it was a divider of families and friends, something people died trying to get over. Just like with the Holocaust and the number of six million being too large to truly comprehend, I could not really wrap my mind around such a boundary. At Checkpoint Charlie, I had entered a museum and read stories of people who tried to cross the border between East and West Germany. People made harnesses to slide down a rope to the other side of the wall, and some built homemade scuba diving gear, since the gear itself had been declared illegal, in fear of people using it to cross the border. And since people tried to swim to freedom, the Nazis built large metal bars with pointed spikes sticking out of them and placed them just below the surface of the water so as not to be seen. If anyone jumped into the water, then he or she would be either severely injured or killed. Although I have not been directly affected by the Berlin Wall, standing by it made me feel that a part of history had become a part of me. I now possess knowledge of the Holocaust and Berlin Wall that I would not have gained otherwise. Germans believe that tragedy must be remembered in order to prevent recurrence. I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to spend a weekend in Berlin and to learn about the history that has made the capital city what it is today.

England-Part II

So after a wonderful day of sight-seeing, we had planned to return to the hostel by 5:30pm. I had to take two trains to catch my flight, and the directions at the hostel listed my journey time at 45 minutes. We did not really lose track of time towards the end of the day, but we did have to wait for our tour bus a couple of times, which put us behind schedule. I knew I was pushing it and began to prepare myself to miss my flight. However, I did not prepare myself for what was really ahead. Catherine and I ran to the tube station, said goodbye, and I hopped on the tube, which I took to a particular street. I got off at the correct stop, raced upstairs, and found the Stansted Express ticket line. I bought a ticket for this train which was supposed to go directly to Stansted Airport. I walked under a huge orange sign that read Stansted Express: the fastest way to Stansted Airport. I should have considered it an omen. I slid my ticket into the machine, the little gate opened, and the machine spit my ticket back out. I ran to the train and hopped on. The ticket master on the train took my ticket from me, examined it, punched a hole in it, and gave it back to me. Although I had a weird feeling in my gut that I was on the wrong train and should ask someone for confirmation, I dismissed the feeling as silly fear and tried to feel comforted by the fact that the ticketmaster had checked me in without indicating any problems. If that conductor had been around about one hour later, he would have regretted the day he became a ticketmaster! He is a lucky little man! So I rode this train for some time, expecting to miss my flight but hoping for a quick and easy exchange for a later one. I stepped off the train and knew immediately that something was wrong. Nothing looked familiar, and I knew I was not at Stansted Airport. I followed the crowd upstairs and approached the ticket/information counter. I explained to the worker that I was looking for Stansted Airport but was apparently lost. He replied that I could take a bus outside to the airport. At first I thought maybe the hostel information center had neglected to include that minor detail, but then the worker informed me that the bus ride would last one hour! Naturally, I reacted strongly to this. I told him that was strange because I was told to do exactly what I had done and that I would arrive at Stansted. He then told me that I had travelled in the wrong direction and was currently one hour away from my destination. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper. In defeat, I stepped outside into the freezing night air to wait for the bus. I called my colleague, Stephi, to tell her not to pick me up at Weeze, but the call would not go through. By the grace of God, the call to my boss was successful. I told him my dilemma, and he called Stephie for me and then called me back. He said he had bad news. According to the internet, the flight I missed was the last one of the night, and the next one left at 6:40am the next morning. The time was currently about 7:30pm, and I cringed at the thought of that possibility. I told him I would go to the airport and find out my options and then call him back later. Two men nearby heard my conversation, and the younger approached me. He was a young man from Poland, travelling with his father, and they had also taken the wrong train and were trying to get to Stansted. He told me that there had been some sort of mix up with the Stansted Express, so really it was not completely my fault. They caught me on the verge of tears, mostly from anger and frustration, so their timing was perfect. These two gifts from God distracted me with kindness and lovely conversation about our countries and lives therein. We parted ways at the airport, and they rushed to catch their flight, since they had been smart enough to leave time for such mishaps in their schedule! I went to my airline, which was dark and completely shut down except for two desks. I expained my problem, and a woman told me that my flight had indeed been the last of the night, and my next option was the 6:40am flight. In hopes of finding a flight with another airline, I went to information, who shared the blessed news that all the other airlines were shut down for the night with no more outgoing flights! Awesome! So I went back to my airline and paid about $100 to exchange my missed flight for the next one. Luckily, there was one cafe open 24 hours, so I drank hot chocolate and ate a muffin. I called my boss and upated him, and he told me I could take a cab from Weeze back to Straelen, and he would see me later. Then I called my parents. My mom answered and called me right back so it would be free for me to talk. Hilariously, my phone cut off right after I told her that I had missed my flight and was stuck in the airport. What a perfect place to end the conversation with my mother, leaving her to worry about me. Later, I remembered a genius invention known as a collect call and was able to get back in touch with my parents. We talked a while, laughing about my circumstance and how I was not at all surprised that it had happened to me! Anyway, to make a long story shorter, I spent the night in the airport. I tried to sleep, but that was nearly impossible. Choosing between a hard bench and the cold floor was a real tough decision, and I found myself lusting after the mats, sleeping bags and blankets of those around me. I frequented the cafe, watched the snow fall outside, listened to music on my i-pod, and immortalized my experience in a notebook. Sadly, I had packed lightly with one carry-on, excluding toiletries like face wash and toothpaste, which I borrowed from Catherine. So I chewed a lot of Orbit and felt pores clogging every minute. I laughed at myself and this miserable destiny, and I wished I had a travelling companion with which to share it. But I survived, and that is really the point. I took care of myself, caught the flight at 6:40am, took a taxi back to Straelen, and slept all day. Luckily, my boss is a gem and gave me the day off to recover! So I am glad to be back and am actually still quite exhausted. But I will definitely never forget the night I spent in a London airport, completely exhausted but as strong and independent as ever!

England-Part I

My England post will be in two parts, the first about the trip itself and the second about missing my flight back to Germany. On Thursday at 6:45am, my colleage, Stephi, picked me up at my dorm and drove me to the Weeze airport, a small, local airport located twenty minutes away from Straelen. Since Stephi was generous enough to drive me before school, I was farely early for my flight, so I enjoyed a hot chocolate and blueberry muffin in the cafe. On my one hour flight to London, I met Audrey. Her father is French, her mother is German, and she learned English in school, making her fluent in three languages! We had great conversation and shared the excitement and anticipation of our first trip to England. From Stansted airport in London, I took another one hour flight up to Newcastle Upon Tyne. Catherine met me there, and we rode a train to her house. We settled in and then ate at a pub, where I ordered a chicken caesar wrap and chips (french fries). Then we walked around Newcastle for a little while. That night, we met Catherine's Scottish boyfriend, Peter, and his friend, Ed, at the cinema to watch Music and Lyrics. On Friday morning, we ate a traditional breakfast at Willy's, the cafe where Catherine works. Our meal included fried eggs, hashbrowns, sausage, bacon, tomato, mushrooms, toast and beans, which are oddly enough quite common at breakfast. I devoured this delicious meal along with a cappuccino. Afterwards, we walked around Newcastle for hours and even toured an art exhibit at The Baltic. We bought groceries for the weekend and made plans for a night out on the town. We met Peter and his friends at a pub called The Lonsdale. Then we met up with a group of girls and took a taxi to a club called Venue. We danced all night and had a blast. On Saturday, we watched rugby with the boys at their apartment and did a little window shopping in town. That night, we watched a movie and relaxed at Catherine's flat. We headed to London on Sunday morning. Upon arrival, we found a hostel called The Generator and stayed in a room with six other people. It was really fun to meet other travellers and hear their stories. We walked around London that afternoon, ate, watched a St. Patrick's Day concert, and took some photos. When we got back to the hostel, we remembered that we had received an invitation to a mixer at the bar. This provided a way to meet other people, so we gladly accepted. The bar was a decently sized room with tables, chairs, couches, TVs and a pool table. We met a group of guys from America who just got back from Iraq and are living in Germany! They were from Florida, Texas and Kentucky, and we really enjoyed their company. They are finishing their time in the army and making plans for life thereafter. It was great to hear about their experiences and what they plan to do in the future. So we stayed at the bar all night and then rested up for a day of sight-seeing. We ate breakfast at the hostel on Monday morning and then took a tour bus around London. We saw Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Little Ben, Tower of London, St. Paul's Cathedral, London Bridge, Tower Bridge, London Eye and more. In perfect English style, we ended our day with traditional fish and chips at the Sherlock Holmes Pub. Then we headed back to the hostel and said goodbye to all our new friends. You can see pictures of our adventures on facebook. We had so many moments of awe. One time, I looked at Catherine and said, "We are drinking hot chocolate outside of Westminster Abbey right now!" We have known each other our entire lives, so sharing such a trip was quite special. We have always wanted more than the every day and familiar, so being in London together and seeing famous sights was an amazing experience! I am very thankful that I had the opportunity to travel to England, and I will cherish that time and those memories forever.

Fun In The Sun

The weather in Straelen this weekend was beautiful! Lately, it has been raining every day, and if the sun shines, it does so only for a short while before the next rainfall. The SAD (Seasonal Affect Disorder) was beginning to set in, but now Spring is finally arriving! On Monday, my day off, I decided to play outside. I wore cut off sweat pants, a UGA sweatshirt, tennis shoes, and sunglasses. I ran some errands and did some window shopping, and I was in a very cheery mood. I smiled and said hello to every person I saw, basically wearing a sign that said "American" across my forehead. I finally settled into a bench in the middle of the town square and read The Testament by John Grisham, an author I am enjoying quite thoroughly. I read for a couple of hours, basking in the warm rays of the sunshine directly above me in the clear, blue sky. It was perfect! Germans passed by on bike or foot, and many stopped to converse with familiar faces. I bought an icecream cone at a little cafe, and the cold, minty refreshment hit the spot. I looked around and chuckled to myself at my reality. I thought about how I was currently in a foreign country, living and working by myself for almost four months. I thought about how far I have come since my initial arrival. I knew noone and was not yet familiar with my surroundings. I had no idea what to expect. At that moment, I was very proud of myself for all I have accomplished, and I got excited about what is still to come. God has blessed me with this amazing opportunity, and I am enjoying every step of the way!

A Weekend With My Colleagues

Last weekend was such a blessing! On Friday after work, I went home with my co-worker, Sonja, to Krefeld. We picked up my co-worker Thomas's wife, Connie, at the train station and went grocery shopping. We headed back to Sonja's flat, and Thomas arrived just in time for coffee and pastries called Mandel Hörnchen and Nüssecke, which are really yummy. We sat around the living room for a while, talking and laughing. Sonja cooked a delicious dinner of salmon in a creamy sauce, steamed broccoli with baked cashews, rice and white wine. We ate, conversed and devoured juicy pineapple for dessert until my tongue was raw. According to custom here in Germany, we sat around the table for hours, simply enjoying each other's company. I think that has become my favorite part of my experience here thus far. I love the way Germans relax over meals and spend time together. The focus is not on the food but rather on the company present at the table. Meals become a wonderful opportunity to get to know each other better. Finally, we went to bed, but Sonja and I talked for another hour, giggling about boys like little girls. Thomas left for work early the next morning, but the ladies slept in. Then we ate a fabulous German breakfast, including warm brötchen, jam, meat, cheeses, orange juice and cappuccino. Again, we sat at the table for hours, only speaking English when I did not understand something in German. Connie and Sonja had planned to talk about taxes, so I cuddled up on the couch with a blanket and a cappuccino and began to read a new book, John Grisham's The Rainmaker, the perfect activity for the rainy day. Hours later, Sonja drove us to the train station, but we missed the train. So Connie and I found a bakery and got to know each other better as we waited for Thomas to pick us up. Then we drove to their home in Kerken, ten minutes from Straelen. Naturally, we started with coffee and pastries. I drank a fabulous lemon tea, which I bought later in Venlo (in the Netherlands) as we shopped for groceries. Thomas was not feeling well, so he took a nap while Connie and I went grocery shopping. In a very un-American fashion, we drove to four grocery stores to buy everything we needed! To my delight, Connie cooked penne pasta with a tomato meat sauce, which really hit the spot. They drove me home that night, and I showed them around my dorm. Thomas said that when he is feeling better, we can all do something fun together, like go bowling. So I look forward to more quality time with my colleagues. Before bed, I watched the eclipse, which I believe is my first ever, and it was really neat. On Sunday, I worked from 10-2, and had fun in the bistro. Sarah and I worked together, and we were really busy, but I am now confident in my abilities to understand orders and prepare and sell the food, so I had no problems. One woman came up to the counter and began trying to tell me that her coffee was weak. She said it was not too strong, but rather another word that she could not think of in German. I happened to know the word and told it to her, and her face lit up as she confirmed that it was the word for which she was looking. Needless to say, I felt pretty proud at that moment. I was able to help a German find the word she needed to express herself! Turns out, she was from the Netherlands, which is just minutes away from Straelen, so she spoke English too. They are quite language savvy over there. So I had a lovely weekend and thank the Lord for blessing me with the opportunity to bond with my colleagues. Now I am looking forward to going to England next week to visit Catherine Merritt, probably the oldest friend I have, for about one week. Then I am going to Berlin the next weekend with Sonja, and her husband, Peter. You will remember that Sonja is the daughter of my mother's cousin, Helga, who had the big birthday party. Then for Easter, I will travel back to Wüstensachsen to spend time with my relatives. Also, my mom's cousin, Gabi, and I are planning to take a day trip to see some surrounding sights. So I have a lot to look forward to as I draw closer to the end of my stay in the motherland. I love you guys. Grace and Peace...:)

TGIF!

Happy Friday! This week was fun because I received two packages. Sadly, the camera cord is for the television, so I still cannot upload photos. However, my dormmates are going on a class trip to Italy for one week, and Christian said that I could borrow his laptop, which has a place for my camera card. So I should be able to post photos to facebook sometime next week. The other day, I went with my friends to buy matching shirts for their trip. We were standing outside our dorm, waiting for everyone to meet so we could leave. All of a sudden, the boys start laughing and shouting orders to one another, and I realized they had discovered a bit of mischief. Our friend, Jens, was sleeping in the dorm, so the guys decided to turn his car completely sideways in its parking space! Suzanne, Verena, and I watched, laughing hysterically as the guys huddled around the small automobile, picking it up and sliding it until it was facing the car next to it. We took pictures, and the guys stood by, proud as peacocks of their accomplishment. It was pretty funny, and I like the fact that they are so playful. I am looking forward to the weekend. Tonight, I am going home with my coworker, Sonja. We will have dinner with our coworker, Thomas, and his wife and then spend the night. I might go to Thomas's house on Saturday too. My boss bought me a TV and DVD player for my room, and Jens let me borrow a pile of DVDs, so I will not be bored while everyone is gone! Other than that, things are pretty slow around here. I got pretty homesick last week, made worse by the fact that my dad had knee replacement surgery and was not doing very well. He is better now though, which is good. So my dormmate, Matthias, felt badly for me when he found out I was sad, and he invited me to spend Saturday in his hometown. We drove about thirty minutes to Oberhausen, famous for the largest mall in Europe. Honestly, it was not that big, comparable to the Mall of Georgia but not as nice. I met his friend, Britta, who speaks fluent English and wants to be an English teacher. She has spent time in the states, so we had great conversation. Matthias is a bit socially awkward if you will, but I am thankful that he was kind enough to invite me to see where and how he lives. Christian has been really busy with his school work. Everyone has to complete a final project, and since Christian is a procrastinator, he has been frantically trying to finish in time while also keeping up with other work and presentations. But I have been excited about progress in my relationships with my coworkers. I had been sad last week, wondering if they wanted to get to know me outside of work, that being difficult since they do not live here. I had walked through Straelen last weekend, wanting to shop but wishing I had a good girl friend with whom I could do so. Well on Tuesday, God blessed my heart. Sonja invited me to her house this weekend, and Nadine invited me to stay with her and go shopping! And I have noticed that we are talking, laughing, and joking more often. Once again, God's timing is perfect, knowing exactly what I need and when I need it. He is so good! I love you and miss you. Grace and Peace... :)

My Interview

I had my interview with the city's public relations representative on Friday. I thought you might like to read the translation of the article that is being published in the paper, complete with a picture of me! The paper is not just available in Straelen but other surrounding districts as well, such as Düsseldorf. The article might become available online, so I will let you know. But here is the English translation. Some parts might sound funny because of the language difference.
"Her smile was worthy of every toothpaste commercial. White teeth and brown eyes compete with brunette hair. The conversation is about Barbara Ashley, the 23 year old American practicum student from Athens, Georgia. She will work at Wasserstraelen until May 2. She took the job because she wanted to learn German and learn something from the Germans.
In the aquatic fitness center, Wasserstraelen, she brings with her what she studies. She assists the sport scientists with their children’s swimming classes and baby swimming classes. Sometimes you see her at the reception desk or in the bistro. The children find it totally exciting to test their English knowledge, and they have a lot of fun with that. Barbara Ashley transfers her theoretical knowledge form her studies at the University into the practical work. She studies health and public behavior, which is a field that consists of exercise and sport as well as diet and nursing. Later she can work as a therapist, a nurse, or a physical fitness advisor at companies. She exchanges her experience in the field of primary prevention with the sport scientists, and she will prepare a portfolio for her studies. The internship in the fitness center of Straelen is comparable to a semester. Without written documentation of the internship work, she will not graduate.
Not only is the work a win-win situation, but she has also made good personal experiences. The roots of the family on her mother’s side lie near Fulda. Her relatives still live there, and she already visited them. In the city of flowers, she has experienced a lot of positive things. “I have very good contacts to the apprentices of the “Meister Klasse.” I live in the same dorm as them. It was relatively easy to get into contact with them. They accepted me in their circle and took me to events on the weekend.” She went with them to Köln for Karneval and her “Alaaf” is perfect. In order to improve her German, she is attending an advanced German class at the People’s High School in Geldern. “I drive there with a stick-shift car. My car in Georgia has, as many others, automatic transmission. I enjoy riding my bike to work,” she says as she flashes her white teeth."