Lots of Posts on the way!

To anyone reading this:
After months of procrastinating, I will finally be updating this regularly. Now I know that will seem odd since I am only here 6 more weeks...but better late than never!

Basically I have been keeping a very regular journal of my travel and experiences over here, but I have just not gotten around to typing them up, nor typing up some of my other thoughts. Now I am finally going to do that.

So in essence, what you will have is a view of the present AND the past of my time here, if that makes sense. Some of my most interesting experiences and growth have occurred during the final third or so of my time here, so I think it will be quite interesting to do a bit of a retrospective, albeit one that is rather outdated.

So check back here within the next 24 hours or so-I promise there will be a lot more to read!
-Ben

What I've Been Up To

I apologize profusely for being so terrible about updating this. For those who care(which you obviously DO, since you're reading this), the last month or two has been really tumultous. It basically consisted of the following:

1) Grad school apps, grad schools apps, and more apps. I had 3 apps to finish by January 16th, and they went down to the wire. I'll hear from schools starting in March. With luck, I'll be doing an MA in International Affairs at one of the following 4 schools: the Tufts Fletcher School, the BMW Center for German and European Studies at Georgetown University, the GW Elliott School of Foreign Service, the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver, or William Paterson University's program on International Affairs and Public Policy.

2) Busy Christmas with the family and friends all over Germany. I've posted some pics below for your enjoyment.

3) Finishing my German class at the university, doing Buddhist meditation when I have the time(which has been rare), and teaching 12 classes a week at my high school. The teaching takes a ton of time because I have a 3 hour+ round-trip commute, plus I have lots of lesson planning to do. It's the most challenging thing I've ever done, but it's also really satisfying when I do it well.

I'll post more soon on some of my adventures at a high school in a small Saxon city! If you can read German, you read about it in an article on me here:
http://www.sz-online.de/nachrichten/artikel.asp?id=1381397

Otherwise, you'll just have to wait until I finish translating it. I had my pic in color in there too, but I'll have to scan it

Cultural Misunderstandings in Deutschland

I've been in Germany for quite a while now. From the point of view of the German authorities, I've been here for nearly five months, having entered on July 7th. In all, I've spent about 11.5 months in Germany. The point of all this math is to show that I've spent quite a substantial amount of time here. Inevitably, any foreigner will encounter some cultural difficulties, no matter how long he stays somewhere. I am no exception, and I am reminded of this quite often.

Just a few minutes ago, when I was about to go to the bathroom in my flat (er....apartment), I noticed that the door was closed. "That's odd," I thought. But then I stopped myself. "Oh, that's right. This is Germany, not America-maybe no one is in there after all?" Turns out I was right, in this case.

I remember when I was in Berlin 2 years ago how much the doors in Germany frustrated me. The truth is, they still do, sometimes.

Germans have this odd thing where they nearly ALWAYS shut doors, even when they are not in the room. In Berlin, I could never tell when someone was in the bathroom, as it would be shut no matter what. This was annoying and confusing at first, as I always had to knock before going in. It seemed to me as if they should just leave the door open so there was no misunderstanding. Oh well. I do remember several times when my amusing gay roommates, Guido and Rogier, were confused because of the whole door thing...they tried to open the door when I was in the bathroom, I did the same to them, etc.

And then there's the good ol' confusing "when a German shuts himself in his room" routine. This is highly puzzling for an American. I don't know about you guys, but when I shut my door in the U.S., it means I'm sleeping or really busy, and I don't want to be bothered. In Germany, it means nothing of the sort.

Now, it COULD mean that you're sleeping or busy...but it could also mean nothing. I found this out the hard way. My roomates would always have their doors shut, and I kept wondering what I had done to annoy them. Turns out, it's just a cultural thing. For whatever reason, Germans almost always shut doors when they are in a room for a while. I have asked them about this, and they don't even really know WHY they do it! Maddening.

Top 10 Best things about Deutschland

1) Beer. Enough said.

2) Chocolate. See above.

3) Trains: you an pretty much get anywhere in the country using these. Fast, very comfortable, and usually pretty affordable. After living here for a while, you pretty much just ASSUME that you can get to any settlement of more than 5,000 citizens by train. And usually, you'd be right.

4) Bikes: Everyone bikes, there are actually bike lanes and racks everywhere. This means fewer cars on the road, less pollution, and less fat people. It's a win-win for everyone except the auto industry(except it gives the car companies an incentive to produce cleaner cars, so it actually doesn't hurt them too much, either).

5) Public goods: Europe just GETS the idea of "the common good" in a way that America, with its rugged individualism, probably never will. While Bush and co. waste my tax dollars on a war of lies and cut spending on parks and education, countries like Germany are ensuring that every city has an outstanding public library, swimming pools, beautiful public parks, etc. For God's sakes, I can't tell you how many small German cities I've been to that have public pools (with diving boards and often saunas and slides and whatnot) that make many private American pools, let alone public ones, look like absolute jokes).

6) The Döner Kepab. You can't really appreciate it until you try it, but I'll try to succintly explain its appeal. First of all, it's cheap, fast, and readily available. Any German town of over 5,000 is bound to have at least one Döner stand, it's a fact. Furthermore, while most German stores are closed very early most days, on holidays, and on Sundays, these places are almost always open, including very late at night. Quite handy when you get a case of the munchies after a night in the local pub.



Döners also pretty much have all the major food groups: meat(lamb or chicken), bread(a pita), vegetables(tomatoes, lettuce, onions, sometimes garlic), and dairy(cheese). Seriously, these things fill you up.

7) Being able to drink in public. You seriously do not know how amazing this is until you've lived here for a while. Can't tell you how clutch it is to be able to sip a delicious pilsener while waiting for the subway or riding a tram. Or you can sip a beer or wine while sitting in a beautiful park in a major urban center, or while looking at a view of the Alps. One of the best (and cheapest) things to enjoy in Germany.

8) Toleration: people here are much more tolerant of lots of things here, but especially anything related to sexuality, including homosexuality. The nudity can get to be a bit much at times, but it's a lot better than dealing with prudish Americans who get into a hissy fit every time someone shows a little skin, or a celebrity has a "wardrobe malfunction" on national TV. Grow up, we're not 4 years old anymore.

9) Politics and equality: German politics is refreshing in a number of ways. There are 6 viable parties and a lot less partisan bickering. Elections are publicly financed, so there's a lot less corruption. And, my favorite, there are actually real choices...for people like me, there are legitimate leftist parties rather than lame corporate parties like the Republicans and Democrats.

10) Beer.

Top German Stereotypes of America

Having taught German 10th, 11th, and 12 graders now for about 6 weeks, I have pretty much learned all of the stereotypes that they have about Americans. In the process, I have also explained to them what stereotypes Americans have of Germans. The pattern that has emerged is fascinating. Both sets of stereotypes largely stem from pop culture, particularly movies and TV. Both stereotypes have spread because they do hold a certain grain of truth. Yet, I would say that the majority of the population does not fit into these stereotypes. Simply put, cultures are too complex-you cannot pigeon-hole an entire nation to fit a certain group of characteristics or behavior.

So, without further ado, the top stereotypes German teens have about America and its people. Brace yourself...they aren't pretty!

1) Americans are overweight and are constantly eating at McDonald's and other fast food chains.
2) Many Americans own guns and are constantly afraid of their houses being broken into.
3) Americans drive big SUV's. They drive these EVERYWHERE and rarely walk.
4) Americans are stupid, particularly when it comes to knowledge about the rest of the world.
5) There is a lot of crime in America, mostly related to gangs.
6) No one cares about the environment. Americans are wasteful, don't recycle, and litter too much.
7) Kids at American high schools throw wild parties and don't seem to be able to deal well with alcohol.
8) Most Americans don't have passports and don't travel very much.
9) There are lots of poor people, especially black people in innner-city ghettoes.
10) Americans are far too patriotic.

A Summary of the Summer of a Life-Time

I have had a great time in Europe since I left the U.S. on July 7th. Hard to believe that I have been here more than 3 months! I have done quite an incredible amount of traveling, but I'm glad to be off the road/rails and more settled now. So, without further ado, here's what I've been up to!

I started the trip off by staying for 3 nights with our good family friends in a small village outside of Weimar, Germany(yes, the one home to Goethe and Schiller!)



This time was mainly spent catching up with old friends, eating great German food and drinking good German beer, and recovering from jet lag. I got to see the last two World Cup games on TV, which was quite fun, especially when Germany won the third place game! I also went to Eisenach to see the famous Wartburg castle, where Martin Luther hid after translating the Bible.



And finally, we saw the Buchenwald concentration camp, which is mere minutes from the village. After this, I took a train to Amsterdam to meet my good friend Adam McCluskey from home.



We stayed in Amsterdam for 3 nights and then headed to London for 3 nights. Both cities were absolutely amazing! We had nearly perfect weather, mostly sunny and around 80 degrees. In Amsterdam we took in the Picasso museum and the great cafes and resataurants lining the canals. In London, we did just about everything, including Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, the British Museum(home of the Rosetta Stone), the British National Gallery, the Tate Modern, Chinatown, and Millenium Bridge. We also enjoyed a tradition English breakfast, a traditional dinner of "bangers and mash," and some good beer at a local pub. And finally, we were able to meet up for a great Vietnamese dinner with my friend from home Josh Cooperman and his fiance, who are studying physics in Cambridge.

My travels after that were pretty hectic and convuluted...to put it conscisely, Adam and I took a train across the English Channel all the way from London to Montpellier, France, which is on the Mediterranean coast west of Nice and Cannes. This was a mistake and one of the worst days of my trip, as it was far too long...we literally went the whole north to south distance of France in a day! The next day we went along the beautiful coast to Barcelona, and were greated by 100+ degree heat and high humidity! It was so hot that you woke up drenched in sweat, and then had to take a siesta in the afternoon because it was almost too hot to move. Even the locals were visibly bothered by the heat, which was made even worse by no air conditioning!

After being in Barcelona for a bit, I went 4 hours west to Alicante, also on the Mediterranean coast, where I went to a political conference that brought together activists from all over the world. Again, it was brutally hot, so that certainly put a damper on things. Matters were made worse when I heard via email that my Uncle had very unexpectedly passed away from a heart attack.

Things slowly get better from there, as I made my way east to Switzerland via a night train and was greeted by much nicer weather. Stayed in Bern(the Swiss capital) for a few days, where I saw some great art and enjoyed floating down the river with what seemed like half of the city's population.



I then spent a few days in Austria, going through Liechtenstein in an afternoon and then moving on to Innsbruck in the Alps, and then Salzburg, home of Mozart. From there, I made my north to Munich and northern Bavaria, where I stayed with my friend Jocelyn for 4 days in the northern Bavarian wine country. It was quite nice to get away from hostels for a bit and stay in a German home!

After that, I spent 4 wonderful days with our good friends the Herrmanns in Southwest Germany, near Heidelberg and the Black Forest.



From there, I made my way north to Dresden and Berlin. In Dresden, I stayed for about 6 days, getting oriented and finding myself an apartment after a great deal of hassle.



I then went to Berlin to my old stomping grounds from the spring of 2004, where I enjoyed seeing familiar sights and meeting up with some friends.



Next, I returned to Dreden and moved into my apartment. From there, I went back to the Weimar area to see our friends in the village, and then made my way east to Budapest, where I stayed for 4 days to conclude my journey.



Budapest was wonderful, especially the thermal baths and great art-noveau architecture.



I then went back to our friends' in Weimar before heading to Cologne for a few days of tourist activities, followed by my Fulbright orientation. The orientation was exhausting, but interesting. I got to meet a bunch of other Americans and Brits who are doing the same thing I am for the year-i.e., teaching German high schoolers about American culture and helping them with conversational English.

It was nice to see many other people who are as nerdy and obsessed with Germany as I am. We stayed for 4 nights in a very old cloister outside of Cologne, where we had intensive training on teaching foreign languages. We also had to present mock lessons to our fellow future teachers, which was interesting. Then at night, we enjoyed great German beer in the courtyard and got to know our fellow language assistants.

From Cologne, I made my way to Dresden, where I arrived on September 9th and really moved into my apartment for good.





I then started teaching on Tuesday, September 12th. The first month was pretty rough...hard to meet people, lots of bureaucratic red tape to cut through, etc. I was feeling pretty lonely and homesick, but then i moved into a new apartment where the social life was much better. Also have gotten a lot more settled at the school where i'm teaching, and now i'm enrolled in the university and starting a few classes, which will be nice.



I like the teaching a lot, actually. It was hard in the beginning,
but I have gotten a lot more used to it, and the kids know me and
trust me more now as well. It is in a small city, Kamenz, of about
20,000 people. It's about 50 km north of Dresden, so I guess it could
be considered a peripheral suburb. But it's definitely not a "city
school." A lot of the kids come from small villages outside of
Kamenz. The school is a decent size(maybe 1200 or so, but they have
two separate campuses more than a mile apart).

German kids are not all that different, I would say, although I think
they are a little more studious and serious. They are maybe a little
better behaved, although they do talk a surprising amount when they
shouldn't be...but I guess that shouldn't be surprising for teenagers.

That's all for now! More updates soon...