I have been preparing for the end of the Summer Semester here in Mainz and I have to say, time is absolutely flying by! I have been here almost a 10 months now and my final days here are just disappearing. I don’t leave until the middle of August (giving me just about 10 days to organize everything for the beginning of of new UofL semester), as I will be working for my boss as a Tutor/Assistant for the International Summer German Course at my university. Not to mention that exams at most (including my) university don’t end until the middle of July.

Well, I have already managed to face two of my final exams: Wissenschaftssprache yesterday, and Christa Wolf’s “Kein Ort. Nirgends” this morning. The first was a course dealing with the construction and use of scientific and generally higher level German (everything from the dangers of over-fertilization to world population growth…). I had actually planned to take a additional German course this semester dealing with Business German, but unfortunately that course was canceled two or three weeks into the semester, but hey, that’s just life! Regardless, I am happy the exam is over, but it is just a step in the right direction for the rest of the semester!

This morning I took my oral exam over the novel “Kein Ort. Nirgends” by Christa Wolf (I believe that the title was translated at some point as “No Place On Earth,” in the off chance that you have read it). The course consisted of reading and analyzing the book while learning the historical figures and appropriate contexts (in this case, Heinrich von Kleist, Karoline von Günderrode, Goethe, and of course, the situations surrounding the Author in former East Berlin etc. etc. etc.). Every week we would prepare about 8 pages of the text and work through the book line by line, every student analyzing and paraphrasing 10 or so lines in his or her turn, working our way around the classroom. The book was particularly interesting, as it takes place across the river from Mainz in the company of some very famous local early 19th century personalities. Though I knew what to expect from the final oral exam, as I had the professor last semester for a play by the Austrian playwright Arthur Schnitzler, I was still put on my toes for some of the questions: (keep in mind that this was, of course, in German) What similarities, if any, could be drawn between the opinions of Christa Wolf and Kleist in regards to their societies, respectively? This lasted about 15-20 minutes with a series of varying question and themes. WELL, maybe it wasn’t too bad… but you get the point, and to be fair, the professor is a genuinely great professor. And hey, I have nothing to complain about, I received a grade of 1.5, a pretty unusual grade… but that’s another story. Either way, a 1.5 is considered to be substantially above average (it is incredibly difficult to get anything ‘above’ a 2.0, as the German system is a reverse scale from 1-5, one being the highest), and I am especially happy with it!! It could end up a 1.7, depending on what happens next week, either way, I couldn’t be more pleased.

Otherwise things have been ‘normal’ here. I have just been busy with the usual day to day affairs, that we tend to take for granted (I will definitely think that next year when I am back in Louisville!). I went to Cologne a few weeks ago to meet up with a few teachers of mine from High School, who were on a trip through Europe with a group of students. I was actually on the last trip that my school went on 5 years ago! Talk about a flash from the past. It was great to see them again – one of whom, appropriately enough, is the German teacher. Nonetheless, it was great to see them!

I recently spoke with Michael and Heidi Boel, from the Sister Cities Louisville organization, and they were kind enough to invite me to come and visit with them as they are spending the summer in Germany! I don’t know if I will have the opportunity to visit with all of my exams, but I will certainly try to work something out.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot! Last week was Johannisfest here in Mainz – a huge 3 or 4 day festival celebrating the most famous Mainzer of all time (and the namesake of my university), Johannes Gutenberg. The entire old town was covered with stands, rides, book sales, stages and all sorts of other things. From Schillerplatz to the Rhine River (a very very large distance), the town was converted. One of the traditional activities for this festival is the ‘gautschen’ – the dunking of students who have finished studying book making. The students are lifted up and thrown into a giant cask of water on a stage in the shadow of the 1000 year old Cathedral while their names are announced. I found a video of this year’s ceremony:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DdU5dchW78 (notice that they took a beer break half way through… dunking students is hard work). Either way, this is really important step in the students lives, and it was a very culturally significant thing to see!

yours
justin

 

 Above is a picture of Adam and me on our hike up a hill that overlooks Bregenz, Austria. 

So I’m back for my second time studying abroad in my undergraduate degree! Last year, I studied in Bordeaux, France for six months, and this time around, I am doing a summer study abroad in Bregenz, Austria. When I returned to Louisville last year from France, I couldn’t wait to have the opportunity to study abroad again, and I’m very excited to be back!

So far, Bregenz has been an amazing trip. We have only been here for 3 weeks, and we’ve already traveled to several towns around Bregenz and to Munich, Salzburg, and Vienna. The first weekend we were in Bregenz, we travelled to Feldkirch and Lindau. The second we visited Munich and the Neushwanstein Castle near Munich. The third weekend, we visited Salzburg and Vienna. My favorite of all of these cities has definitely been Salzburg. I didn’t realize how much there was to do in Salzburg, but once we arrived there, I didn’t want to leave. People played music in the streets as we walked the streets where Mozart was born, we visited a castle that overlooked the city, and we visited the beautiful dome in the city center.

This coming weekend, Adam (the other UofL student on this trip) and a few of the other students from the KIIS program and I are going to Interlaken, Switzerland and Stresa, Italy. Interlaken is in the Alps, and we will be taking a train to the tallest mountain in Europe. Stresa is a small town on the Italian Lakes but near Switzerland. There, we will take a boat tour to an island and take a cable car to a mountain that overlooks the town and lake. I can’t wait!

The program in Bregenz ends in a week, but I can’t believe it! It seems like we arrived here just a few days ago! The two classes I’m taking here are International Business and German 100. I love my International Business class because we’ve been learning about business practices in different cultures, and I’m definitely enjoying my German class. The two languages I speak fluently are English and French, but I’m excited to learn German and hopefully be fluent one day. As regards to the German language, being around people who don’t understand me and where I can’t express myself has definitely put me out of my comfort zone. Although it has been difficult, it has been an opportunity for me to learn a new language! I had never been interested in learning German as a third language before this trip, but after these past few weeks of speaking German in Austria, I am planning on taking classes when I get back to Louisville!

Hello all, this is my first post. I have a lot to say but I’ll try and keep it short and sweet.

I arrived in Madrid a few days before my program started, and I recommend this to everyone. I stayed in a hostel with guys from venezuela, australia, and south korea. We explored the city by ourselves, and had a blast. You learn so much more and enjoy things more when a tour guide is not leading you around everywhere with 80 other students. We got lost for a while, but it didn’t matter as we had no schedule to keep.

After a few days of doing whatever I pleased, the rest of my group arrived and we had a a lot of fun in Madrid and Toledo before going south to Sevilla where we met our host families for the first time. One thing I was looking forward to most was trying new foods at my homestay. The first night scared me a little, as I was served pasta with sauce that tasted way too much like spagettios. After that though, things got much better. One thing to keep in mind as you travel abroad, TRY EVERYTHING!! The food will be different than at home, even the Ketchup, but look through the menu and order the wildest thing you can find, usually you will not be disappointed.

Another recommendation, bring more money than you are told you will need! If other programs are anything like mine, you will spend every night out with others in your program, as no one wants to stay at home doing nothing – we only have so much time here and want to enjoy it as much as possible. You may also meet many other American students in you city with other programs who are also out every night so plan on running into them many places you go.

Sevilla is a lot of fun, as is Lagos, Portugal. I spent a weekend on the beaches there, and will never forget it. If you study in europe, try as hard as you can to get to Lagos, It is a great place. Do not worry if you know absolutely no portugese, the locals know a lot of english, and dislike it very much if you try to speak spanish to them. One last thing, although the Irish pubs are plentiful in europe, avoid them, there are enough back home. Experience the local places, which are cheaper anyway.

If you hate the rain, Sevilla is the place for you, have had nothing but clear skies.

Adios.

I got to meet my host family two days ago finally and they’ve been very great.  Everyone is really nice and they make sure I’m never hungry.  At dinner they just keep the food coming until I’m full.  They don’t speak English but they want to learn so we’re all teaching each other our language.  There’s a family friend who drops in from time to time and he knows some English so he acts as somewhat of a translator.  There are still some things he can’t explain or understand in the English language.  For the most part though I’m really enjoying myself.  I don’t think I could’ve asked for a better family to be matched with.  I look forward to the weekend where all of the KIIS students are supposed to spend the whole day doing activities with their families.

i have already been in beijing for three weeks. before beijing i went to shanghai for a week to go to the world expo. on the day i went with my group there were approximately 300,000 people there. now there are suppose to be a million each day. i can’t believe that. it was fun to see all of the country’s expos and to see people from all of the world i normally wouldnt see. after a couple of days in shanghai we came back to beijing and started classes. it is so much fun here. i would love to come back and do a semester if it is possible. the dorms are really nice and are close to a lot of things especially shopping malls. this past weekend we went to xi’an to see the terracotta warriors which was advertised as one of the “eight wonders of the world”. we have gone to see so many things here in beijing like tiannamen square and the great wall. i never imagined i would see all of this in my lifetime.

So far we have visited a few shrines one of them being the largest shrine that is still in existence.  I will be able to write more about the details of the places we`ve visited when I figure out more information on it.  I wasn`t really able to understand what it was about but I will have that information shortly.  I want to be able to explain what everything was.  

On another note, today we are meeting up with students in Nara University.  We get the opportunity to try to communicate with them in the attempt to make new friends.  I can`t wait.  Also later on today we will be meeting our host family.  I share the details on how all this goes after I`ve had the experience.  Until then…�

Tomorrow is Fronleichnam (Corpus Christi), and as such, we poor stressed out students are given the day off from Uni! Giving us a nice little break during the middle of the week, and a well earned day off – or at least an opportunity to catch up on a little overdue homework or reading. Or maybe just the chance to go down to the Rhine and relax with friends, either way… the Summer Semester is full of one day holidays and random protests (preventing us from going to uni – as an example, when the public transportation strikes… very difficult to get around then). Just this weekend there was a great protest/party in the city – Night-Dance-Demo, in english – this was 500-600 people literally dancing their way through the old part of town with three large trucks carrying suspended mixing tables and a slew of dj’s to entertain the crowds. Definitely one of the most interesting ways of taking an issue (literally) to the streets. It was so bizarre watching hundreds of people with live music dancing through the city – past buildings that are hundreds of years old, past statues of Johannes Gutenberg and Friedrich Schiller – juxtaposition if I have ever seen it!

In addition to my regular university courses I have been auditing a few courses this semester (I can’t enroll in them for credit as I lack some serious prereqs, BUT I am here to learn, so that is what I am going to do!). One of the absolutely most interesting of them is Exchange Rates and International Capital Markets, the professor works in Swiss Finance and is just a wealth of information, especially considering Germany’s role in the current Euro Zone economic troubles. The professor knows his material, and tries to represent as balanced a view of world Capital Markets as possible. Even though I am not taking the ‘Klausur’ (the exam), but I have definitely been trying to learn as much from this course as possible. Like last semester I have been really focusing on my German and taking a lot of courses about the language and the german literature – I have been trying to take advantage of every possible opportunity to learn the language while i am here. I do an English-German Tandem with a friend of mine, I live in a German-speaking WG (Wohngemeinschaft – apartment), and I am taking a courses about the language, that I simply can’t take back in Louisville. I had signed up to take ‘Business German’ (Wirtsschaftswissenschaftsdeutsch), but the course was unfortunately canceled after 3 sessions due to lack of interest. I did manage to get into ‘Scientific German,’ which has been unbelievably helpful.

I have been learning a great deal from my job in the International Office – just like last semester – but this semester I feel that my German has really gotten to the level that I can talk to the people I work with at a mature and appropriate level. Just yesterday my boss and I spoke about the events unfolding with Israel and the humanitarian aid ships, which has certainly taken a lot of people’s minds and discussions off of the European financial crisis, at least for a little while. I am still translating documents and preparing an online portal for all the new exchange students, like last semester, but I would gladly do it for free just for the experience! I can not describe how great of an experience it has been working in a German office, even if it is only one or two times a week. You can read all about how an office should work, and how you are supposed to act in intercultural situations, but to actually work in one… that is something totally different, something totally unique. Definitely making my experience here worth it in my mind, without a doubt!

Liebe Grüße,
Justin

Hello everyone and greetings for Panama City, Panama.  Although I have only been in Panama for two weeks, I feel I have experienced so much.  The way of life here, the people, the traffic, and the food may seem extremely different to someone who is not open to learning or fully immersing themselves within the culture.  There are many differences between Panama and the United States however; I do not think these differences are as prevalent as people may think.  By observing and speaking to the locals, I have come to realize they are trying to get out of life the same things people in other countries are only they have a different approach on how to achieve it.

I have met many Panamanians who attend UofL Kentucky and have talked to them about their country and some of the similarities and differences between the two.  I do not know if it’s because I already had an idea about what to expect when coming here or because I am a very open minded person but I am surprised I do not (and have not) had a huge feeling of culture shock.  Because I tend to hang out with the Panamanians in Kentucky, I am used to not understanding much, if any, of what they are talking about and therefore it doesn’t bother me when I am surrounded by it here.

I am surprised at how Americanized Panama city is, especially the supermarket.  It was not hard to find what I was looking for.  Even if I didn’t understand what the entire label said, I knew and recognized the brand so I could figure it out.  The amount of fast food and common restaurants (what you see in the States) also surprised me a little.  I think I expected more local restaurants.  The other “shocking” thing that I have experienced (even though I was told about it ahead of time) was how nice and friendly complete strangers are to me.  The people here are willing to talk to you and get to know you.  They do not make fun of the way I speak Spanish, especially since I do not know that much.  On the contrary, they are quick to help in correcting my grammar so I don’t continue saying it incorrectly and are willing to teach me more of the language.

I think the worse thing about Panama by far is the traffic.  Not only are there an incredible number of cars and taxis all trying to drive down the same stretch of road at the same time but the way in which these people drive on an everyday basis is typically not seen in the United States.  I have heard many Panamanians who I have talked to say that if you can drive in Panama you can drive anywhere.  I used to think rush hour in Louisville was bad but the three different rush hour times they have here are much more congested.  The drivers here do not give pedestrians the right away and do not abide by the road signs (although I have notice there really aren’t that many street signs compared to the US).

A huge difference between drivers here and in the States is the frequency in which people here use their horns.  Every hour of every day you can hear horns being honked.  This is a form of communication, not only between the drivers themselves but between the drivers and people walking along the sides of the roads.  If a taxi driver sees you walking along the street (especially if you are a Gringo) he will honk his horn to let you know he is available to take you wherever you want to go.  While this is the case, most tend not to slow down and therefore pass you before you even have a chance to hail them down.  In the US, I have noticed that when someone honks it’s usually to get the attention of someone else.  I have a habit of waving to whoever honks, just to be friendly.  The first time I heard a car honk I just absentmindedly threw my hand up in the air to wave and a taxi pulled over to the curb.  I didn’t need a cab and was just trying to be friendly but I’ve realized this is an inefficient way to do that.

Honking is also a way for a driver to let another driver know he is passing him.  I have noticed Panamanian drivers are very impatient.  For example, if one is stopped at a red light with someone in front of them and the light turns green, that driver better put the pedal to the metal if he/she wants to avoid being honked at.  While the honking system of communication seems to work fairly effectively in Panama, it tends to get obnoxious to people like us who are attempting to sleep and all we can hear is beep, beep, beep.

The phrase “time is of the essence” does not seem to resonate with Panamanians.  “Panamanian time” is much different than what I am used to.  Here when someone tells you to meet at a certain time they usually mean about an hour or more later than the specified time.  At home, when people specify a time they mean show up at that time and being late is frowned upon.  The people here are much more relaxed and go with the flow a lot better than majority of the people in the States.  The best example of this is when I told a Panamanian to meet me at 8ish, which in US terms means give or take ten to fifteen minutes.  In Panamanian time it means at least a half-hour to an hour later.  Luckily the plans we had made did not need to be at an exact time or else we would have missed them.

Another thing I have noticed is that people in the United States tend to always be thinking about the future and don’t really live in the present.  Panamanians, however, look at the here and now.  This isn’t to say that they don’t think about the future, but they seem more concerned about what’s going on today and not a couple years from now.  One possible reason for this may be because of all the family businesses that are in Panama (this is just a speculation).  Many of the Panamanians I have met all have parents who own their own businesses and therefore a lot of them will be taking over the family business when they finish their school.  Most of them therefore will not have to worry about finding a job when they graduate because they are almost 100% guaranteed to have one in the future.  This is not necessarily the case with all Panamanians and is definitely not the case with US students (at least the people I know).  There are many people who have graduated with good degrees and are still having problems finding a job which is why people in the States start worrying about getting a job before graduation.

I was really excited to come to Panama, not only for the experience of being in a different country but getting to play soccer with people who actual care about and follow the sport.  Soccer is becoming more popular in the States but it is still really behind compared to the rest of the world.  One of the big things I noticed when playing soccer down here is females do not play.  The first time my friend and I showed up to the field we received funny looks from the guys because they are not used to seeing girls walk in with soccer cleats in their hands ready to play.  Most females sit on the sidelines and act as cheerleaders instead of playing.  I think they guys were also unsure about whether my friend and I were able to play and keep up with them.  Since we both have been playing soccer since we were little, we were able to play alongside the guys without any problems and they realized this because they have invited us to come back and play with them on a couple different occasions.

Another thing I noticed that is different about playing soccer here versus the States are the fields they play on.  Because Panama doesn’t really have any state parks with soccer fields, the fields are synthetic and enclosed.  If you want to play you have to sign up for a time and you pay to play for an hour.  This keeps the game moving at a fast pace because you want to get as much playing time in as possible.  The fields are also smaller than regulation fields and therefore they play with 6 people on the field including the goalie.  The rest of the people sit out and switch in when a team scores two goals or they have been playing for ten minutes.

Panamanians are very individualistic soccer players, meaning they have a lot of foot skills and want to challenge each other one on one and school each other.  I am used to passing the ball and making give and go runs so sometimes it gets frustrating when they don’t pass or include others when playing.  I love playing soccer with people who are passionate about the sport though and I’m glad they recognize that my friend and I are decent players who play for the love of the game.

Panama is a wonderful country, full of friendly and welcoming people.  I will be very sad when I have to leave but the friendships I have made while being down here and the experiences I had been a part of are unforgettable.

-Kerry G.

As May rolls around, I can’t believe that I have lived in France for so long and that this wonderful experience will come to an end in about six weeks. This truly has been one of the most amazing experiences of my life and I wouldn’t have traded it for the world. If given the opportunity, I recommend that every student study’s abroad during their college career. The time spent over here has taught me so much about myself and my culture, as well as an appreciation for other cultures throughout the world. While the majority of the international students at BeM speak English fluently, they come from all over the world and I have made friends with people from pretty much every continent. The intermingling of all the different cultures has truly made me more aware of the differences and taught me how to work with them in terms of business and everyday life.
In terms of school, BeM is quite different than Louisville. The courses are broken up into three week sequences, one course per three weeks. Generally, we have class from 8:30-4:30 (with breaks) but there are a lot of half days and days without class so it never becomes overwhelming. Due to the fact that a course is so short, there aren’t many written exams or finals but we do have group projects which usually consist of a large paper and presentation analyzing a company’s strengths, weaknesses, risks, innovations, etc. These projects are where the cultural dynamics really come into play. You see which aspects of business each culture views as important and adjust the project to cater to these different aspects and work ethics. So far, I have taken two business courses in English, one French language course, one French business course, and will finish the semester with two more French business courses. The French courses have proved to be quite challenging but manageable. I have learned so much about French business as well as the language itself. Don’t worry though, students are not required to take courses in French and most of the internationals stick with the English courses. The student life is also slightly different too. The school is much smaller, 1,500-2,000 students; however, there are plenty of organizations to join such as the wine club, cinema club, sports club, or Melting Potes (international club.) Each of these organizations hosts parties and other events for students both in and out of their organizations so it’s easy to meet non-internationals as well as becoming integrated into the school.
The city itself is stunning and in my opinion one of the most beautiful in France. The city sprawls out throughout the red-wine region of France but the majority of the historical monuments, parks, boutiques/shopping districts, and old restaurants are located in the Centre Ville. If you do plan to come here I highly recommend that you only look for apartments in the city center. Everything is easily accessible by foot (no more than a 20 minute walk anywhere) but there are three tram lines that meet up here and go all throughout the city. Its relatively inexpensive 1.4 euro per trip or about 25 euro for an unlimited monthly pass. The city just implemented a new bike rental program where you can pick up a city bike at most tram stops. It’s free for a half hour and 1 or 2 euro for the day. I know a lot of people who ride them to school every morning but they are also convenient to use after the trams stop and you want a fast way home. Throughout Bordeaux there are a ton of cute shops and cafes so it’s a great city to just walk around or people watch from time to time. Now that the weather has become nicer, the city has become much more alive with people everywhere. We have made it a habit to spend afternoons in the Jardin Publique or along the Quai to just hang out. Bordeaux is about 40 minutes by train away from lovely beach cities which also make fun weekend or afternoon activities!
Traveling in Europe during a study abroad is a must. Since you will already be over here, I recommend going to as many different countries as your budget will allow. I recently returned from a trip to Greece for about 5 days, but I have also visited cities in Spain and France. This is the best age to visit famous cities since the majority of tourist sites are discounted or free for EU students. The majority of what you spend money on is transportation, food, and living. Traveling is super easy and it’s always possible to find cheap planes through RyanAir or EasyJet (just beware of their additional fees and know exactly which airport they are taking you to.) Trains are another easy way to travel especially in France. If you come, get the 12-25 card which costs 50 euro but gives you at least half off of every train ticket you purchase; mine paid for itself after 3 tickets.
I cannot express enough how amazing this experience has been and one that I think every student at U of L should make. If you have any questions about BeM or study abroad in general please contact me!

Gros Bissous!
-Molly