Another week ist vorbei...

The time flies here, in general. I have to admit, though, that sometimes I still find myself wallowing in boredom rather than doing something about it.
This week I only worked on Monday. I know, my life is rough. I've been enjoying the opportunities presented by the Russian cultural exchange taking place with my Gymnasium (that's a school, not a gym) right now. It's been fantastic. I spent Monday and Tuesday in Stuttgart, Wednesday in Ulm (Thursday in my bed) and Friday wandering Eislingen. I also had the opportunity to experience a German doctor--this explains the Thursday in bed. How thrilling! Thanks to my private insurance (paid for by our gov't--thanks Fulbright), I was in and out in about 30 min. I damaged some muscles in my foot due to flat feet and crappy footwear--whoops. I struggled to walk on several occasions, and actually had to leave Ulm early because my right foot no longer wanted to function. Anyway, I'm spending a small fortune for some special inserts so I can continue to hike and wander cities in Germany in my ample time off.
So!

Some highlights... Stuttgart was fantastic. It was nice to be in a real city for once. The shopping opportunities are wonderful; though I have so far refrained from any major purchases, I see boots and lovely things in my future. I have decided to go somewhere outside of Eislingen every Friday (since I have given myself Fridays off), and Stuttgart, being so close, is near the top of the list. We were in the museum for Baden-Wuerttemberg History on Monday, and I was really impressed. Since I went with the Russian exchange program, I heard the tour in German and Russian, and found the connections between German-Russian history in this area fascinating. A great museum, overall, that I would gladly return to! The rest of the day I had lunch with the exchange teachers and then Konstanz, another English teacher, showed me all the best places to shop--for shoes, clothes, books :), and even glasses. We ran into my landlord, Leni, who also knows all the Russian exchange teachers, and she invited us all over for a fantastic dinner that night.

Dinner with Leni (in the red) and the Russians!

The next day we returned to Stuttgart to see the Zoo, among other things. The good: landscaping/nature/botanical sections were exceptionally beautiful. No one does nature like the Germans. The bad (if were doing black/white comparisons): the housing of the animals. It became very obvious to me in this situation how much less room there is in Europe. You notice it a bit with the size of houses, cars, streets, etc...but when you see an elephant, a giraffe, a gorilla, etc. in a cage the size of my living room, it makes you a bid sad. To see such exquisite creatures confined to such small spaces broke my heart just a little, and gave me much more appreciation for the space we have in America. I've never been a PITA girl, but part of me wanted to free the animals, if you understand what I'm getting at.

me, Peter, Svetlana, Gortschka

I just thought he looked cool...yeah??

Wednesday: Ulm. Ulm is a great city. I didn't explore as much as I'd have liked to due to my foot pain, but it's given me the excitement I need to push me to want to explore and be just a bit more bold and independent in my free time. The Muenster church was lovely--tallest church tower in the world (which, again, I was unable to climb, but I plan to! in the next couple of weeks). Afterwards we travelled to a swimming/wellness center where the students swam, dived, enjoyed the sauna, etc. I drank coffee with the other teachers and enjoyed some Kaffee and (you guessed it!) Kuchen. I headed back after a while to go home and rest my foot. Yes, poor, poor Sara. Someone was nice enough to pick me up from the train station and drive me home. Though I miss the friendly American attitude and open social life, Germans are nice people, too, and have so far been there for anything I have needed someone for.

entrance to the Muenster

Thursday I spent feeling sorry for myself and being bored out of my mind. I did some reading, watched a little German television, slept, cooked a little. Every once and a while I miss the ease of being in a country where my native tongue is spoken, and saying "hey" at the end of a sentence (thus transforming it into a question--that's a shout out to WI-speak), and smiling at people you pass on the street/in hallways/in restaurants, and going out and meeting young people, and just having friends (not aquantances and almost friends, real i-know-your business-friends)...but then I get up and do something and remind myself that I want this. I remind myself that everything worth doing isn't easy, that struggle brings a better triumph, and that time will help my adjust. Eventually it won't be so hard. Eventually I might have a real friend. Eventually I will feel as if I belong. And then eventually I will have to leave, and, if I know myself like I think I do, I will be devastated.

The happiest-- and therefore my favorite-- flower in abundance in the lovely Schwebian Albs...

Today, I went to a Bauernmuseum--an outdoor museum comprised of actual houses and bakeries and stables and shops from hundreds of years ago transplanted and turned into a museum-village.
It was incredible. And we had the amazing luck of coming on a day (a Sunday of all days!) that had a gathering of small sellers and farmers and individual bakers/champagne producers from the area... (wow my English vocabulary is failing me right now) It was great! I had leberkaese (don't ask me what it is, but it was made of liver), pear-champagne, snail, onion-spread (which was so tasty that I bought a jar for myself), and delicious cheese varieties. I love German food/drinks. Then, Konstanz had us over for a real schwebian meal: Kaese Spaetzle (which, let me tell you, is not all that different from a beloved product in America...mac 'n cheese...and not Kraft). It was cooking lesson number one in schwaebische specialties! It was actually not hard, and I plan on trying it by myself soon... I had a fantastic night, and enjoyed great discussions in German/English/Russian.
Yeah, I'm working on learning some Russian, by the way. I can't believe that I'm actually trying to learn Russian in Germany, but why not, right? Olga promised to meet me twice a week for an exchange in English/Russian. I'll teach her some English, and in return we are cooking and learning some Russian.
Anyway, I've gone on far too long. With so much going on, I should just post smaller bits more often, but I get so wrapped up in things that I just don't feel like posting all the time.

And I really got to make some of it, too! Me rescuing the spaetzle!

Finished product, topped with onions...mmm, lecker!

And a beautifully set table...

 I miss home, though. I do. I have just about hit the one month mark, and I'm already looking toward the holidays and realizing that it's going to be difficult being away from home for so much. I can't wait to share Thanksgiving and other American traditions with the people who are sharing so much with me, but it's never the same as being with family and friends. I am loving most moments here, though, and wouldn't trade my ups and downs for comfort just yet.
Cheers--Na zdarove--Pros(ch)t

It's hard to miss home and be sad when there is such an abundance of beauty in life...

with love (and a little light),
Sara

...und?

Alright, another busy week has passed, so I suppose it's time for another post.This past week has been everything from stressful and exciting to sometimes boring and rather mundane.
I worked my first week at the school. I can't say that I did much, though. Right now I'm still in the process of introducing myself to all of the classes (there are a lot, to say the least) and observing. Every once in a while I have something relevant to say/add, and sometimes I get to hold question and answer sessions. It turns out that to a rather large range of school kids, Americans are somewhat exciting, as we don't come along very often here in Eislingen.
Without fail I am asked if I've met any stars, if I like McDonalds, whether I like Germany...and if anyone has heard anything about Wisconsin, whether or not it's true that I must love cheese. People here recognize the Milwaukee area as home of the Bucks, the only sport I don't follow. I'm always sure to inform them, though, that we have our beloved Brewers and Packers, whom we stand by win or lose. I really enjoying working with the students, and though I might not want to be a teacher, I'm starting to wonder whether working with kids/youth is something I might really enjoy...

And? What else have I been doing? Well! Last week school closed early in order for the teachers to go on a field trip. Not bad, hey? We went to Meinhardt...it's somewhere between some Schwebian Albs. We got there and then had a long carriage ride. The Carriage, pulled by two horses was fully equipped with wine, beer, water, and juices of all sorts.

We were glad to have something to warm us, because it was a bit chilly (as per standard procedure around here). I got to know a few younger people, too! (finally!!) We have some Referendaren, which are graduates who have to do a year and a half of observed teaching before being offered a job. It was really nice to feel like I was actually making friends. The carriage ride stopped half way for Kaffee und Kuchen: a German tradition that should be observed around the world. Mid afternoon, Germans stop their day in order to spend some time with a nice cup of coffee and a lovely slice of cake. I cannot say enough about Swetchgen Kuchen...plum cake. LOVE.

After our nice pause and warm-up time we headedback in our carriage to the hotel. Their we enjoyed a delicious meal. People actually come from all over the area to eat the food there, so we had a nice meal.

We stayed the night in the hotel, and woke up for a long hike the next day.

Saturday, we journed on a half-day hike through forest, over hills, and through fields. It's amazing the way the landscape can change from thick forests to huge, rolling, mountain-like hills, to flat fields in the course of an hour by foot. We stopped for--you guessed it--Kaffee und Kuchen at a beautiful restaurant. It was covered (literally--ceilings, walls, entrances) with plants. I had Zweibelkuchen and neuer Wine (onion cake and new wine...Onion cake is more like a pie-type deliciousness with bacon type bits and sweet/salty onions inside, and new wine is sweet): delicious.
We hiked the rest of the way back, and then drove home.
That night I went to the Eislinger Kreiselfest, a town festival here that didn't produce a ton of excitement. It was kind of nice to see my students all excitedly and nervously say "hello" to me.
Sunday I took a train to Stuttgart where I met up with some other current Fulbrighters and some past German Fulbrighters who ventured to America. It was nice to see more people my age and to chat in English. The only other English I get here is BBC World on the TV and music videos. Otherwise I am speaking very simple English to my classes, and having trouble mixing my German/English thoughts. We drove from there to Sigmaringen, where there was a castle. I unfortunately did not complete the tour due to some altitude troubles. I had to leave because I almost passed out...very strange. Something about the crappy air in the castle, and seeing black spots suddenly made it very clear to me that I had to leave. Anyway, I'm fine, but I missed about half of the castle. Luckily, castles are not a rarity here in Germany, so I will see another in due time.
Afterwards I enjoyed coffee-eis and wine with Lauren (from IES Freiburg!) and we were joined by Dirk and Jan, the two German Fulbrighers now working for Porsche and BMW--not bad. Afterwards Lauren and I hiked to the peak of the hill/mountain to get a good view of the castle from a distance.

We ate at a traditional German restaurant afterwards and enjoyed our food with good company and laughter. I returned to Eislingen late Sunday night exhausted and ready for sleep.
Today was much less exciting, but still nice. I wandered into school at about 10:30, made a schedule for the day, observed a few classes, took a walk during the lunch hour and enjoyed my sandwhich, and then returned for more classes. I planned out my schedule for the week, and gave myself Tuesday and Thursday off in order to go on the fieldtrips planned for the Russian exchange guests here this week. They're going to Stuttgart, Ulm and Bodensee, so I will definitely take part.

first dinner for one, ala Germany

After work I discovered a lovely bookshop and bought my first cookbook. It's called "ich koch' mir was: Rezepte fuer ein Person" (I'm cooking myself something, recipes for one person). It might seem a little sad, but I'm only cooking for one, and it has some good tips for what to do with leftover ingredients...buying and cooking for one person is a challenge. Hopefully when I make some more friends I can try my new skills (hopefully I will acquire some of these "skills") out on guests. Until then--I am a guinea pig for myself. I bought some peanut butter on base, so worst case scenario is that I eat some peanut butter rolls.
Anyway, this post is getting out of hand, so I will end it here.
You'll hear from me sooner than later.
Until then--send me your address if I don't have it, I'm working on getting post cards out in the next month or two. Send addresses to sara.wallsworth@gmail.com

Ciao Leute,
xoxo
Sara

Pictures that I was too lazy to put in my last post, so they are now a post of their own...

Max, who I visited. I'm talking to Marcus behind.

my living room/dining room

my apple tree <3

Kitchen!

plums picked from my yard.

Plums left after I discovered how delicious they were.

one of four pieces of strange art that the city has...it's a dress, obviously.

Pasta sauce. Homemade.

final product: spaghetti bolognase

my new hobby is learning to cook, by the way. so naturally I have begun with pasta...







Enough pictures for now, yes? Alright. Bis bald.
Love from Eislingen,
Sara

Wieder in Eislingen

Grüße aus Eislingen: I am back.

my street: Zellerstraße

I have been promising photos of my life for a while, so I suppose this post ought to be dedicated to such things.
It's been a bit since my last post, but I've been gone until yesterday. Monday morning, I awoke promptly, registered to live here, opened a bank account, and got on a train to Köln/Cologne.
I got there a bit early, just in case I got lost or something? Next time I probably won't leave so much room for error--I've got the train thing sort of down. You get on. You don't miss your stop. You get off. Golden.

Anyway, Fulbright had about 140 people gather at the Koeln Hauptbahnhof. They certainly didn't want us to fit in at the trainstation. If you think a small group of Americans is obvious, just imagine the sight that 140 caused, though not all were Americans. Our meeting encompassed the American teaching assistants, the Australian and New Zeland assistants, and the British assistants assigned to Berlin. I got there, had some coffee and watched the masses gather from a distance, and then joined the congregation. To my surprise, it turns out that seven people who studied in Freiburg ended up in the Fulbright program as well (I am not the only one obsessed with Freiburg!!).

This is where we all gathered: at the bottom steps of the infamous Dom. I couldn't bring myself to snap a photo of the event itself, but take a note of the red vehicle in the bottom left. That is an ambulance. A man died on those steps while we gathered. So it goes. We celebrated beginnings, and had no choice but to acknowledge endings: they will come, and in all things.

A view of Haus Altenberg from afar

When the group had finally gathered, the mass exodus to Altenberg began the grueling four day orientation. We took a bus to Altenberg, where they housed us in an old Cloister. It was beautiful. The gates locked us in the house/courtyard at 9pm sharp each night. Luckily for us, Fulbright found a way around the strict no-alcohol policy, and let us gather each night inside the building.
In four days (and actually only two of working, since the first and last were mixed and shortened with travelling time for all), we were supposedly given all the information needed to be successful here. I'll let you know whether that's true. I did learn a few things about lesson planning, though, and was reminded of the fact that I hate group work, and probably always will. It doesn't matter how old you are; if you don't like group work, you never will. I probably need not mention the types of egos Fulbrighters tended to possess...let's just say there were a few balloons on the verge of popping. Anyway, it's over. Thank goodness. In the process though, I reconnected with some fellow Freiburgers, and made contacts all over Germany.
Thursday morning we were kicked out at 7:30 (that would be AM)...and I mean we had already had to eat breakfast, clean, pack, and exit by this time. Oy. We got back to Cologne at 9:00, and I spent the day wandering the city. I hate to say it, but all I could think about were boots; every corner had a lovely shoe store. I was strong, though, and did not purchase anything (due to the fact that I probably won't get paid for a month or so...). I enjoyed a leisurely day of walking, window shopping and eating before I took a train headed toward home.

Johanna and I

Rather than booking the ICE back to Stuttgart, I opted for the slower connection because I heard it would be a nice ride. I made the right choice. Rather than going under hills and speeding through cities, the train went along the Rhine and snaked past castles and through grassy valleys. I met my friend Max in Stuttgart (he goes to Lawrence) and spent the night with him, his host family, and friends. Talk about hitting the jackpot--he picked me up in a little convertable and we drove to his host family's house, which was essentially a villa atop a lovely hill in Stuttgart. We had a long, delicious meal, and then went out with friends of his host sister. It was really lucky to make friends with her and a friend, who will both be living and studying in Tuebingen (less than an hour from me). Feli's friend Johanna and I exchanged numbers, and are thinking about making it to Munich for Oktoberfest in the next couple of weeks. Why not?
Anyway, it's been a great week, but I'm exhausted. School starts on Monday, so it looks like I'm going to actually have to start working pretty soon. I've just been hanging out (other than the orientation) until now.
I have lots of details I'd love to share at some point,but I only have so much energy to write this blog, and you've only so much patience to read it.

The protest in Stuttgart over the new train station

There will probably be much to say within the next week with school beginning, and a normal, scheduled existence reemerging. Until my next post, here are the promised pictures. (I have a lot, but here are a few...)

The view of my patio from my room

View of my room from my bed

Kultur

Also. I know I promised pictures, but I lied. Tomorrow (probably).
Today's discoveries, or I should probably say re-discoveries, were primarily of the Kultur inclination.
I've actually been pretty sick since I got here, so I've spent more time than I'd like attempting to sleep, but between sleeplessness and boredom, I have had my go at the plethora of German television stations that come in on my TV...
1. My first observation is that half of the stations that I receive provide only news and/or non-fiction programming. Either Germans care a lot more about what's going on in the world, or they just aren't as clever as Americans (sarcasm).
2. German music videos are insane. If you think American music videos are a little "off", look up some random German videos and prepare to be amazed. Here was my favorite from today. Note the monkeys everywhere--I especially appreciated the monkey drum line. http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&v=DD0A2plMSVA
3. I have completely forgotten how complicated garbage is here. It's really not that complicated, actually...it was just nice in the USA to decide that something either needed to be recycled or was trash. I have four types of trash bags, and only one trash can. I think it's clear that the math is not working out, and I really need to make some purchases.
4. Soccer is not a sport; it's a religion. Enough said.
5. Everything closes in a small town by noon on Saturdays. Whoops. Since I was busy trying to sleep away illness, I slept till noon, and then attempted to go grocery shopping for the weekend. I could have survived, but I decided to take a train to Göppingen to explore and grab some things there. Göppingen is twice the size of Eislingen, and has an actual town center with stores and people--young people--the kinds of people I am still trying to find here in Eislingen, the land of the old. Hopefully when I start working I will meet some more people who could at least lead me to people in the vicinity of my own age. I do love and appreciate everyone here, and the amazing hospitality they have shown me, but it is getting a bit...old. (sorry, too much)
6. This is not at all cultural, but entirely common sensical: if your place is freezing, and you decide to turn on the heat in a room...it will do no good if you leave the window directly above the heater open (and I mean swinging door, wide open).

That's all I have energy for tonight. I need to get to bed so I can wake up in time for swimming tomorrow. My landlord Leni and I are going to the swimbad and breakfast. Good thing I brought a swimsuit!
I might not post for a while, I'm off to Cologne for a few days, and maybe a detour in Stuttgart on the way home...Who knows!

Bis bald--I'm sure I'll start missing home eventually.
xoxo,
Sara

In Eislingen

Tina, Dagmur und Leni (my landlord) picked me up from the airport. My place is fantastic--waaay too big for someone who came with only two suitcases.
I have a nice sized bedroom--it has a patio door that leads to outside, nice big windows that open wide enough to let in (AND DO) 3-inch poisonous spiders, and a wall lines with wooden wardrobes from floor to ceiling. My living room has a patio door and huge windows, a tv, two couches, a dining room table (adorned with plums and flowers from my garden) as well as several cabinets housing dishes that are too nice and proper for me to consider using.
There's a fully-stocked kitchen (wine included) and a bathroom with tub and shower seperate, and another toilet room. Then there's a whole other bedroom with a normal bed and a pull-out bed. I really need a roommate. What does one person do with all this space?
I'll post the pictures when I'm less lazy and have had less to drink.
I"m enjoying myself, but I have yet to meet anyone my own age (who lives here anyway).  Peter und Tina have practically adopted me, and take me out to eat a lot, and Leni, my landlord, is taking me to the swimbad Sunday for a swim and for some breakfast.
My English is getting worse, I think. We tried to speak in English for about a half an hour tonight, but I couldn't make the switch. When people struggled, it was more natural to switch back to German than to stick to it. Anyway, I am nervous about this when it comes to teaching.
On another note, I tried plums today. They were previously ruled out of my diet due to the strange outer texture. HOWEVER, I have inherited a plum tree, and European plums are a little different. I got bored today and decided to try a bite. One thing led to another, and three plums later, they are now a valued part of my diet. I took pictures of these as well. Strange, I know.

Anyway, I should probably sleep. I have another meeting at the Eis cafe here. Italian ice is very important to these Germans.
Pictures next time. I promise.

xoxo
die neue aus Wisconsin: Sara

The journey to Eislingen

Here's what I have: it's actually a bunch of posts on the breaks I had on the way here--but I put it all into one. Why not?

Plane 1: MKE nach Newark.
Traveling is, for me, an altogether solitary activity. Each has his agenda that is unique to him, though our paths cross along the way... We share the experiences of the action itself: cars, trains, airplanes, the general act of removing oneself from "home" to go somewhere else, etc. But our destinations are always different-- even when the cities themselves are the same. Some of us are running, some are reaching, some returning, and others wandering; everyone is going, though. My ears are popping thousands of feet above the earth and the clouds surround me like marshmallow UFOs. I can hardly believe this is my life and that my home is about to change once again. I keep wondering if the marshmallow UFOs are going to shoot down the plane and I will wake up once again in Waukesha. Wah, wah, wah.

A sudden yawn has just created that startling release of air pressure that returned me to the world of hearing--though probably only temporarily. (Airport #2: Newark. The perfect site for some good old fashioned people watching.) On one side of me is a group of middle-eastern-looking men, and on the other four white, upperclass-American-looking men. The group to the right of me doesn't even attempt to hide the racism spewing forth. Take a guess at which group it is...

Airport #3: (train station.) My hands are covered in blisters from lugging nearly 200 pounds (yes 200) of crap that I own around. Why do we all have so much shit anyway? If I had a do-over I would make some serious cuts and just buy what I need. I'm starting to wonder whether I really need ten sweaters and all those books I couldn't bear to leave behind... Hind sight. So it goes.
The train leaves in an hour, so until then I'm enjoying a good sit before the bustle continues. One hour ride to Stuttgart and then forty minutes to Eislingen, where Tina and Dagmur will pick me up.
I already made a friend, by the way. Johanna from Heidelberg. She will be hearing from me since a) Heidelberg is awesome and b) I don't know any other people my age.

Train to Stuttgart gets more exciting each minute as flat Wisconsin-esque lands slowly roll into hills that look more like mountains as each kilometer passes. Some Germans gave me dirty looks with all my obnoxious luggage, some took pity (poor thing look), and one was even nice enough to help. Cheers to a rough journey almost over...or almost begun?

Endlich...Eislingen. Tina, Dagmur und Leni picked me up. Tina is Peters wife, the random family friend of friend connection; Dagmur is the teacher I will be working with; Leni is my landlord. My place is great--Huge windows, bright walls, tile floors, nice kitchen, washing machines (including a dishwasher), bed with huge pillows (if you know me well, you know how much that means to me), and even equipped with the basic necessities of life. Its about 50 degrees here, though, so I could go for a couple more degrees (but I cant get too needy, I suppose).
I went out to dinner with the above mentioned people plus Peter and minus Dagmur. We had the typical German cuisine: Italian food. Gotta love it. I feel like Ive been adopted. Tomorrow Peter is going to pick me up and bring me to the next town to figure out a cell phone and internet (in case this mysterious connection craps out), and then I will go become a resident of Eislingen.

Pictures to come. Im already struggling to keep my languages straight, so good luck comprehending future posts.


Herzliche Grüße aus Eislingen.
Sara