Orientation!

Oh Internet, so much has happened to me since we last spoke! I'll start with my adventures at orientation, then I'll try to follow up tomorrow with my adventures since then.

I took the train to Koeln (Cologne for you English speakers) on Sunday morning. I was supposed to switch trains at Frankfurt Flughafen (the airport), but our train stopped at Frankfurt Sued and there was an announcement. Then more people got off and the announcement was repeated. I finally figured out that this was an important announcement, so I turned to the stranger sitting next to me (she looked about my age) and said "Ich habe das nicht verstanden." She explained the situation to me in English: our destination was closed because someone left a bag unattended so the police shut the whole place down. Eventually our train started moving again and we got to a different part of the same train station, but the trains were all messed up because of the airport station being closed for a bit. Luckily, this girl was also going to Koeln, and she went and asked another girl in the line at the information center to ask about the next train for us. Eventually, three strangers ended up making it on a MUCH nicer train than we would've been on otherwise without buying another ticket. (Apparently that's a thing here. They don't really care which train you're on as long as your ticket says the city you're going to.) It was the ICE international to France, so we ended up getting to Koeln way faster than I would've with my regular ICE ticket. At the Koeln train station, that girl and I parted ways. I didn't ask her name or get to thank her, but she was so helpful; I would've been a mess without her.

Then I finally got to Koeln! For the first time I felt like I was truly back in Germany. I love Koeln a lot - after dropping my stuff off at the hostel where a lot of the ETAs were staying I headed straight for the Dom.

It was just as beautiful as I remembered. Then I met up with Werner Mohr (professor from my study abroad trip who lives there) for dinnerat Frueh am Dom. It was really good - the first big meal I'd had since getting to Germany. I'm so glad I got to see him again; dinner was also a really good chance for me to practice my German.

That evening was my first time in a hostel. The other three girls in my room were all Fulbrighters, and the place was really nice! Like a nerd, I took a picture of my bed. I realized when I was taking my bedding off that the two sheets they gave me were a duvet cover and bottom sheet, not a bottom sheet and top sheet. Oh well...

Then it was off to Maria in der Aue, a beautiful conference center in NRW. There were over 100 Fulbrighters, and we were all pretty loud. It was an endless cycle of "What's your name? Where are you from? Where did you go to school? Where are you placed? Where is that?" Of course, no trip to Germany would be complete without an unexpected hike. When we got 1,4 km away from the hotel, we were told that the buses couldn't fit down the road, so we could wait for a shuttle or walk. We all chose to walk. I should've known that hiking would happen sooner or later.

We were given roommates based on our Bundesland, and since the hotel had a few single rooms and I'm the only American girl in Thueringen, I had a single. I was a bit bummed because I was looking forward to making friends with my roommate, but it turned out okay! Hier ist mein Zimmer.

This is where I took the world's most American showers. Gotta live large while the water's free.

Baby tv! Baby bed!

You had to push the button then twirl the lock. It was weird. But the mini Baeren were free!!

We all got nifty nametags...that weren't all that helpful. Mine fell out of the holder for a bit, so someone made me another one that said "Chel-say."

Orientation was amazing. The other Fulbrighters are an amazing group; it felt like being at a weird camp designed to teach us a tiny bit about teaching English. We got a lot of resources, like a book of lesson plans and a list of all the other ETAs. We also had Guenter Jakob, who may be one of my favorite Germans. He works for the PAD (in English, the Office for Educational Exchanges), and he was so funny. After going over what our insurance covers (about nothing) he advised us to not get "too pregnant too fast."

Before dinner one night, I went for a walk around the resort area with some other people. It was beautiful! If I were to actually move permanently to Germany, I'd want to live in rural area.

One afternoon, the woman in charge of the US Consulate in Dusseldorf came to speak to us. It was amazing to hear her speak since I want to work with the State Department someday. The room was so hot that day though...there were 120 people in the room, it was afternoon, and the room had huge west-facing french doors.

We also were split into small groups to discuss actually teaching English. In those groups we were divided still further and each of the small groups presented a lesson to the class. My group had Level II English; we did a lesson about our emotions.

The last evening there was a talent show, which was surprisingly entertaining. It was the perfect blend of cool and nerdy. People played instruments, sang, recited poetry, as well as entertaining us with skits about German life, Gollum impressions, juggling, and a Q&A session about Alaska.

I'm so glad we had this orientation. I met people from all over the US who now live all over Germany, which would have been a wonderful experience even if I didn't get to stay here any longer.

On my train ride back to Erfurt, I was trying to find my seat, but there were these Australian people blocking the aisle trying to explain to an older lady that she was sitting in their seats. (Trains have little electronic displays above the seats saying if a place is reserved, but they weren't working in this car.) The lady didn't speak English and the Australians didn't speak enough German to explain the situation to her, so I jumped in and tried to help out. (They were blocking the aisle, after all.) In the end, the Australians found other seats and I ended up sitting by the little old lady. She asked me why I was in Germany and then wished me good luck in Germany when she got off! I also talked to the Australians a bit before I got off; they were visiting their son in London and taking a quick tour of Germany and Austria because their son had to work for a few days. The whole thing reminded me of the part in The Great Gatsby when someone asks Nick where West Egg is and he says that that experience gave him the freedom of the neighborhood. I am extraordinarily friendly to any native English speakers I come across here.

Living abroad is definitely an adjustment, but when I'm feeling down, I am always the subject of a random act of kindness from a German.

And to finish this entry, a photographic gem from Maria in der Aue:

Wer wirft Binden in die Toilette? That's just common sense...

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Links: Maria in der Aue

Station Hostel

Picture from the US Consulate Dusseldorf

Kölner Dom