Random thoughts...

So...this is going to be a random mish-mash of a blog entry, so brace yourself for it now. Fair warning.

First of all, I need to get some random thoughts out of the way that occurred to me on my 20 minute walk back from the train station today.

Random thought #1: Germans are way too attached to their winter coats. Today it was literally 65 degrees outside. However, about 90% of the Germans that I saw STILL had their winter coat on, and often times a scarf as well. And they weren't sweating...how is this physically possible??? I was trudging along with my heavy bags in a hoodie and the sweat was rolling. How is a coat necessitated in weather which college students in the US would greet with shorts, t-shirts and flip flops?!?

Random thought #2: I've definitely assimilated to the culture when I've become obsessed with having "frische Luft" or fresh air in the room at all times. German homes and many buildings don't really have a ventilation system, so they simply open the windows during the day (no screens, mind you) in order to let in the fresh air and let out the humidity in the room. This happens in both warm and VERY cold weather. At my Berlin conference this weekend I found myself dying for some frische Luft many times, and I was very upset by the fact that the window in our hotel room didn't open. Well done, Germans...well done.

Random thought #3: Also when making the trek back from the train station today, I realized that I've really settled in here (of course right before I'm getting ready to leave). I had this sense of coming back home after being in Berlin for a week, and I was genuinely excited about seeing my colleagues for our weekly viewing of Germany's Next Top Model...just as kitschy in Germany as it is in the US, if not more so.

It's a bit late to start in on the travel talk right now, so for now I'll say that Hamburg and Berlin were both fantastic trips, mostly because I found them to be a completely different experience from any other trips I've had within Germany. Definitely both very unique, and not what people would expect in Germany (one being more of a port city and the other such a myriad of many different cultures). I'll post some pictures as soon as I get the time to.

Hope this blog finds you, my avid readers, well!

Alles Gute.......tschuessi! :)