Day 4: FreibUrg

Hallo, meine Freude! As you may have noticed, I have capitalized the "u" in Freiburg in the title of this post. I have done this for two main reasons, which I have explained below:

1. In previous posts, I have incorrectly spelled my current city of residence. It is not "Freiberg," but instead "Freiburg." I have, of course, corrected my wrongdoing and changed this spelling in previous posts (Please do let me know if I didn't correct any misspellings).

2. The second reason I capitalized this letter was to remember the importance of Union's "Block U" and all that it symbolizes. I am continuously reminded of what it means to be an outsider, a foreigner in this new and different place. Whether it is the looks we get from the Freiburgians as we took our walking tour through the city, or our difficulties with the simplest things (like ordering from restaurants), these past few days have given me a greater appreciation for those who immigrate to new lands. Many people who move to the United States have little to no understanding of English. I have seen how difficult it is to communicate, ask directions, follow signs, and adapt to the culture. And I've had 1+ years of German classes, while immigrants are seldom as fortunate.

I will talk more about this a little later, but first more on the Block U. To me, the Union U symbolizes individuality, but also camaraderie. The U is like "you"--meaning that you must find your own way and experience different aspects of life in order to get the most out of the Union experience. I feel like my college education would have been incomplete without taking the opportunity to go abroad. Additionally, the U symbolizes the very "union" the college looks to uphold. It is a bond between Union students, but also a friendliness that extends past the college's physical confines. Freiburg has shown me that the image we look to uphold as Union is found elsewhere in the world. Yesterday, Dre and I had gotten turned around a bit, and were not completely sure which street to take to get back to the Gaestehaus (dormitory). She subtlety pulled out a map and was immediately asked by a friendly Freiburgian if she needed directions. This simple action somewhat helped overcome the image some have of the unfriendliness of Europe towards Americans and reminded us of the lessons Union has taught us.

So, what does this all mean? Well, with those thoughts out of the way, I can now continue with my recount of the day's activities. After classes, the Zivis (the are young German "civil servants," meaning that they rejected service in the military and instead opted to serve in the community/with an organization) took us on their own tour of the city. Some of the pictures can be seen above. It was definitely interesting to get another perspective on the opportunities Freiburg has to offer. We got dinner at this neat little "ethnic" food court (non-German food actually) and headed back to our dormitory. Since then, I have been writing this blog/catching up on things.

I guess it has been a busy day so far. This morning, I talked to Professor Nelson about studying abroad in general and identity in a foreign country/foreign language. The German literature class I took last term focused on this a bit, but it has been definitely interesting to see it from a first-hand perspective. It's strange how language can define you so much, how an individual could be the most educated writer/scholar in one nation, but go to another and be lost in an inability to communicate.

Like I mentioned before, this has really given me appreciation for those who pack up their homes and move to a completely different location. It has also shown me the importance of being multilingual; there are so many international students here who know 3 or more languages. Although English may be the "medium" language in general, German is really the one that is most often accepted as a means of communication. Interesting stuff!

Well, I best be going. I believe that we will be eating a home-cooked meal in just a few minutes. Hope all is well at home! "Bis spaeter!" (Later!)...Tschuess!

Day 3: Deutschland!

Guten Tag! Today is Day 3 for all of us Union kids in Deutschland! It was our first official day of classes and we were at the Goethe Institute from 8:30-1 pm today. I thought that it was going to be a slow day, but class went by pretty quickly. We were in the same classroom the whole time, but we had a 15 and 30 min break at different points throughout the day. The teacher was very engaging and I think the day did not drag on because the class was so interactive. I am hoping to change into a higher level class and be challenged a little bit more. I think that maybe my shyness came through in the interview/placement exam after all. This may have put me in a more basic level class. My difficulty doesn't usually come from the understanding of the spoken German, but instead my ability to communicate back to the person speaking. But I think I sometimes have the difficulty in English!

So, anyway, after classes we were given a walking tour of Frieburg. We began at the Rathaus (town hall) and the original site of the Freiburg University, then made our way through the city visiting historic sites, like the Muenster (note: if there's an "e" after a vowel in a German word, this probably means that the vowel has an umlaut--2 little dots--over it). No, we were not at a cheese factory! The Muenster is a cathedral dating back to the Medieval Era. Some of the pictures from yesterday and today are of the outside and inside of this church. Some more points of interest: there are gutters, known as Bächle (there's the umlaut! I got it to work!), running throughout the city center. Literally, there is water running through the streets of Freiberg! The local myth is that if you step...or trip...into one of the gutters, you're going to/have to marry a Freiburg man/woman. Finally, we stopped at the Red Bear. It is an old (and when I mean old, I mean OLD...as in it's been around as a building since the 1000s!). It is a hotel and also a winery/restaurant.

Interesting stuff! Lots of history in Freiburg, that's for sure. It's been quite a tiring day...and it's only the first day of classes! I am hoping that when I get the whole class level thing figured out that I will be able to relax and bit and just enjoy the experience. Until then, I'm not planning on worrying too much about things anyway.
I am quite fortunate to be given this amazing opportunity to spend the term in Europe, so I am here to enjoy it!

It's been interesting to learn more about early German history and even though there is so much medieval influence found in this city, modern style does also impact Freiburg. Although it is unfortunate that the city was bombed during World War II, the lasting effects give me more insight into the era I find so historically interesting. So, ja! This has been a slightly long blog, but I am glad that I have the chance to sit down and write about my day. Right about now, I would like to just lie down and relax, but it seems that we are always on our feet! Well, I hope that all is well at home!'Til next time...Tschuess!

Day 1 & 2: Arrival

Day 1: We have arrived in Freiburg! Although there was some intercommunication in our arrival schedule, we have now moved into our rooms and are ready for a nice dinner in the city! My roommate is from China! Classes start Tuesday, but we have placement exams tomorrow...looking forward to testing out my (rusty?) German skills! Missing all at home!

Day 2: Guten Morgen! Well, it's actually afternoon here. We have completed our placement exams, gone shopping at the local store for food, and are now taking a break before meeting for dinner at 5 pm.
Life is Freiberg is very interesting. It's a beautiful old town and the history is evident in even the modernized buildings. Freiberg is located on the edge of the Black Forest. I am looking forward to hiking and running on the local trails. It's been quite an experience getting used to talking in German all of the time. The locals are generally friendly and understanding, but it has been a learning experience in understanding and communication, that's for sure!
But it's only Day 2 and I am actually doing better language-wise than I thought I would. I guess I don't give myself enough credit! The aspect I think that I am doing well with is not being too shy or nervous when speaking German. My roommate is from China and our only common language is German, so it's be interesting to be forced to communicate that way. So, things are going well so far! We will be going out to dinner tonight with all of us Union people (6 students, 1 professor). At first, I kind of wished that there were more of us this year, but I think it will be nice to be in such a tight-knit group. I'm not sure where we're headed for dinner, but last night we went to this neat little brewery and I ate some Raumschnitzel (not quite sure what type of meat it was, but it was good) with Spaetzle (yum!!). The groceries we bought were surprisingly inexpensive. The pretzel rolls are especially delicious! Hope all is well at home!! We're going to head out, maybe even rent a bike to ride around the city. As they say over here: "Tschuess!"

Introduction

Hello, all! Hallo! My name is Erica Fugger, I am originally from Connecticut, and I am a member of the Class of 2012 at Union College in Schenectady, NY. My majors are history and German, with a minor in Psychology. On campus, I am a member of the Union Swimming and Diving Team and an editor of the Concordiensis Newspaper. This blog of my term abroad in Germany is my first blogging experience!

Andrea (one of the other Union students) and I are currently in London, awaiting our flight to Basel! We are functioning on very little sleep, but our excitement is keeping us alert! Hope all is well back home! I will post an update when we reach Freiburg and are settled!