Ok so I know I have neglected to write anything new in the past 6 weeks- but to be honest I forgot and then when I remembered I just couldn't be arsed. There have been a fair few things happen in those weeks.
We have had a trip to Stuttgart, where we got to visit the Mercedes Benz museum (I would highly recommend, and this is coming from someone who really doesn't care for cars.) We also got a small city tour, and some time to ourselves where we huddled in Starbucks from the blistering cold.
The weekend after we were off to Zurich. Why they chose to go on a Sunday is beyond me as all the shops were closed and the only places open were the restaurants. Which by the way no one dreamed of going into unless you wished to spend your life savings on a slice of pizza. Inevitably we ended up in McDonald's. However we were treated to a really nice city tour and I discovered that the old part of the city of Zurich is really beautiful. Plus I have never seen Christmas lights quite so well done anywhere else. Overall our trip was successful, but I don't think I will ever get used to the price of stuff in Switzerland.
You would think that I would have taken a weekend off somewhere in between all my travelling but no. The weekend after was the arrival of my parents for 4 days. I can't say I wasn't happy to see them as I had been excited about this for a while. We spent their first night in Zurich (I know I can't seem to get enough of the place), this was cool as I was able to give them the city tour myself. We then traveled back to Konstanz and spent the rest of the weekend visiting the Christmas markets, shopping (from which I benefited nicely), and getting to eat in some of the restaurants that on my student budget I would never get the opportunity to dine in. All in all, I really enjoyed my parents visit. It gave me the boost I needed. Plus when they left I knew I would be home three weeks later so it helped.
Now you really would have thought I would have stopped there but no. The weekend after my friend Eve arrived from Ireland, full of excitement as it was snowing. Something which I was beginning to get slightly fed up of and would definitely resent by the time she left. Our weekend was very relaxed bar the massive snowball fight we had on the night she arrived. I really liked the way Eve just fitted into the group as it meant I didn't feel like I had to mind her too much or make too much conversation.
And finally just this weekend passed we had out Christmas Dinner. And baring in mind none of us had ever cooked a Christmas Dinner before I was very impressed when we pulled it off for 16 people. That's not to say that the day didn't go without any hitches - there was a slight incident with turkey juices when the went all over the oven and the amount of smoke in the kitchen became a bit overwhelming. Then there was a problem when after an hour and a half in the oven the potatoes still weren't cooked. Luckily it was only the one type. We had four different types altogether. No one can say we didn't put on a spread. After all that we had a great evening. There was a great atmosphere and everyone was relaxed and enjoying themselves. I also received a great Secret Santa present of a jigsaw and a really nice bracelet - thanks Katie even though it was the worst kept secret ever.
So here I am now sitting in bed and looking forward to a break. Oh wait that's not going to happen, because I am going HOME on Wednesday and I have absolutely no Christmas Shopping done whatsoever. Looks like I will be busy for the foreseeable future.
Happy Christmas,
If I can be bothered I'll write in the New Year.
P.S. I can't be bothered putting up pictures. If people are really interested they can check out my facebook page :)
Monday, December 17, 2012
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Tutorials are scary.......
So yesterday was my first tutorial for my module the 'Politcal System of Germany'. I was quite optimistic about it, as I thought it will give me a better understanding of the lectures, I will get to meet new people, and I will have a chance to work in a smaller group.
From the moment I stepped in that class everything went wrong. It was a complete disaster. Myself and Claire arrived 15 minutes early only to find that every seat in the class was already taken.
The German system for organising tutorials is completely different from Ireland. In Ireland, everybody must sign up for a tutorial time and when all the slots are taken.... tough. In Germany, people can just turn up to whichever class they feel suits them best. The result is about 50+ people in a room that can hold 30. Which meant that Claire and I had to find chairs and sit along the aisle.
That we could manage...
What really stressed us was the fact our German is nowhere near good enough to be able to participate in class. People were offering opinions, and answering questions and we had to content ourselves with sitting there trying to arrange our faces into some look that made the teacher think we had some clue as to what was happening.
The dreaded group work then happened, followed by an MCQ and I proceeded to keep my head down, praying to God that I wouldn't be asked anything....
Just when I thought I was getting somewhere with my German, (my everyday conversation is coming on a bit - well at least in my head) this class brings me crashing back down to earth, confidence smashed.
I am now dreading next week's class :(
From the moment I stepped in that class everything went wrong. It was a complete disaster. Myself and Claire arrived 15 minutes early only to find that every seat in the class was already taken.
The German system for organising tutorials is completely different from Ireland. In Ireland, everybody must sign up for a tutorial time and when all the slots are taken.... tough. In Germany, people can just turn up to whichever class they feel suits them best. The result is about 50+ people in a room that can hold 30. Which meant that Claire and I had to find chairs and sit along the aisle.
That we could manage...
What really stressed us was the fact our German is nowhere near good enough to be able to participate in class. People were offering opinions, and answering questions and we had to content ourselves with sitting there trying to arrange our faces into some look that made the teacher think we had some clue as to what was happening.
The dreaded group work then happened, followed by an MCQ and I proceeded to keep my head down, praying to God that I wouldn't be asked anything....
Just when I thought I was getting somewhere with my German, (my everyday conversation is coming on a bit - well at least in my head) this class brings me crashing back down to earth, confidence smashed.
I am now dreading next week's class :(
Monday, November 5, 2012
Sure it's something to do
So I'm sitting here in my room, looking out of the window, at 12 45 and I thought what am I doing with my life. I mean college in Germany is non existent. Well for an Erasmus student at least....
I mean I look at my timetable and I only have one lecture a day - here that equates to one and a half hours of college. Life is great you think.....but no it's not. What it does mean is that the days become very long as you try to fill them up with things to do.
I have always known this about myself, but since I have come to Germany it has hit me like a ton of bricks.....that I need to be kept busy. These open planned amount of times do not do me any good. Not only that but I would nearly go so far to say that I miss my weekend job at home. In two years I have never had the luxury to plan a weekend excursion or just relax and now I am faced with a year worth of weekends and find myself despising them. Especially here in Konstanz where everything bar the pubs and restaurants are closed.
Anyway enough of my griping. I'm depressing myself....
Since my fist post, we have had a very eventful week. It all started with Claire's surprise birthday party at the weekend. The effort we put into planning it would make any army officer proud. And then of course what does Claire do???? She puts a spanner in the works. She turns up at my front door and I have to say I failed to conceal the look of pure horror on my face. For the next hour I acted like a complete lunatic. I tried to keep her away from my computer, then I forcibly took her for a walk in the snow (yes, it snowed last week here). Upon return this is the site that greeted us:
I mean I look at my timetable and I only have one lecture a day - here that equates to one and a half hours of college. Life is great you think.....but no it's not. What it does mean is that the days become very long as you try to fill them up with things to do.
I have always known this about myself, but since I have come to Germany it has hit me like a ton of bricks.....that I need to be kept busy. These open planned amount of times do not do me any good. Not only that but I would nearly go so far to say that I miss my weekend job at home. In two years I have never had the luxury to plan a weekend excursion or just relax and now I am faced with a year worth of weekends and find myself despising them. Especially here in Konstanz where everything bar the pubs and restaurants are closed.
Anyway enough of my griping. I'm depressing myself....
Since my fist post, we have had a very eventful week. It all started with Claire's surprise birthday party at the weekend. The effort we put into planning it would make any army officer proud. And then of course what does Claire do???? She puts a spanner in the works. She turns up at my front door and I have to say I failed to conceal the look of pure horror on my face. For the next hour I acted like a complete lunatic. I tried to keep her away from my computer, then I forcibly took her for a walk in the snow (yes, it snowed last week here). Upon return this is the site that greeted us:
Claire was completely surprised so in the end it worked out, but we did think at one point we would have to tell her!
So on Wednesday we then had Halloween. Not one of my favourite holidays, if you can call it that. But in the spirit of things I decided last minute to dress up and go to a party. I went as a devil. My costume consisted of a pair of devil horns and make up completed by Claire. It was so funny to see everyone dressed up. Loads of people made such a big effort, which is difficult as in Germany it is quite difficult to find costumes for Halloween.
On Saturday there was a party here in Sonnenbuehl. I loved it as for once there was a party in our building and we didn't have to worry about finding a taxi. There was great fun to be had on the swing sets that have recently been put up. Orla in particular was in her merriment. There was also a small dance of Gangnam Style. I won't name who did it, all i'll say is I have video evidence :)
So tonight is something I'm very excited about. We are going to see the new James Bond film and you'll never believe it but its in ENGLISH!!!!! It's something at the moment that I'm loving Konstanz for :)
Sunday, October 28, 2012
First Impressions
So I have been living in Germany now for the best part of two months and my new found friends have finally convinced me to start writing a blog. I find this quite a strange thing to do as I'm not sure that I want people reading my blog. However, I do realise that it would be nice to keep a written diary of my time here in Konstanz and that a blog is the best way of going about this :)
For me, being in Konstanz has been a major struggle. The transition did not go smoothly to say the least. After spending the first week crying and avoiding all contact with home, I sucked it up and skyped my parents, I was a mess, they were a mess, but I strangely felt better afterwards. Since then I have learned to deal with my homesickness. I still dread times when I have to spend long periods of time by myself, but thankfully my new friends, (or family as I would now consider them while I'm here), have helped to keep me busy and positive.
Since coming to Konstanz I have met loads of new people. This has been one of the more exciting parts of my stay here. It is the first time I have ever met and spent time with a load of young people from different countries. However, I still seem to have placed myself in an English speaking group, despite my best intentions, to make German friends.
As this is my first entry for my blog, I am trying to give a brief overview about everthing, and its proving difficult. Just this week alone we have started college and planned a very successful (if I do say myself ) surprise party for Claire's 20th. I think both of these topics deserve seperate entries so I will try to write about these during the week.
My apartment is another matter. I love the location of it. It's only a 10 minute walk from the University, and a quick bus ride away from the city. I suppose my biggest issue is that it is my first time living away from home so everything is strange to me, especially the fact I have no windows in my kitchen. When I first walked into the apartment I thought it was dark and a bit gloomy looking. But know I have gotten more used to it and its starting to feel like home. My bedroom was like a prison cell. EVERYTHING is white, and I mean everthing. The bed clothes, the desk, the walls, the wardrobe and the shelves. But know after a few weeks I have started to collect my own few accessories for the room and its starting to look and feel more like a bedroom and less like a cell. It's still a work in progress but it is getting better.
My prison cell bedroom :)
My roommate situation has been difficult, some might say awkward :) It has been difficult for me to get to know my roommates from the start as there has been a lot of changes of people since I first moved in. There is one person who has been here since the start and they have proved for me to be a bit of a struggle. This person is very socially awkward in situations and makes life in the apartment weird at times through their observations, and there directness. I may seem that I am being harsh, but until you have met this person, you cannot possibly understand what I am on about. Believe me my friends here are all in agreement :)
While I have been here we have had a few outings, including the Konstanz Oktoberfest, the Insel Mainau and the Sealife Aquarium.
Jellyfish at the Aquarium
The Insel Mainau
For me, being in Konstanz has been a major struggle. The transition did not go smoothly to say the least. After spending the first week crying and avoiding all contact with home, I sucked it up and skyped my parents, I was a mess, they were a mess, but I strangely felt better afterwards. Since then I have learned to deal with my homesickness. I still dread times when I have to spend long periods of time by myself, but thankfully my new friends, (or family as I would now consider them while I'm here), have helped to keep me busy and positive.
Since coming to Konstanz I have met loads of new people. This has been one of the more exciting parts of my stay here. It is the first time I have ever met and spent time with a load of young people from different countries. However, I still seem to have placed myself in an English speaking group, despite my best intentions, to make German friends.
As this is my first entry for my blog, I am trying to give a brief overview about everthing, and its proving difficult. Just this week alone we have started college and planned a very successful (if I do say myself ) surprise party for Claire's 20th. I think both of these topics deserve seperate entries so I will try to write about these during the week.
My apartment is another matter. I love the location of it. It's only a 10 minute walk from the University, and a quick bus ride away from the city. I suppose my biggest issue is that it is my first time living away from home so everything is strange to me, especially the fact I have no windows in my kitchen. When I first walked into the apartment I thought it was dark and a bit gloomy looking. But know I have gotten more used to it and its starting to feel like home. My bedroom was like a prison cell. EVERYTHING is white, and I mean everthing. The bed clothes, the desk, the walls, the wardrobe and the shelves. But know after a few weeks I have started to collect my own few accessories for the room and its starting to look and feel more like a bedroom and less like a cell. It's still a work in progress but it is getting better.
My prison cell bedroom :)My roommate situation has been difficult, some might say awkward :) It has been difficult for me to get to know my roommates from the start as there has been a lot of changes of people since I first moved in. There is one person who has been here since the start and they have proved for me to be a bit of a struggle. This person is very socially awkward in situations and makes life in the apartment weird at times through their observations, and there directness. I may seem that I am being harsh, but until you have met this person, you cannot possibly understand what I am on about. Believe me my friends here are all in agreement :)
While I have been here we have had a few outings, including the Konstanz Oktoberfest, the Insel Mainau and the Sealife Aquarium.
Clodagh and I at OktoberfestJellyfish at the Aquarium
The Insel Mainau
Im hoping that while I'm in Germany, I get to experience new things, make lots of new friends, get to travel loads, and finally (I suppose I have to include it), improve my German.
Bis Bald,
Alice
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