Deutsch McDonald's

Today I started to fear my money is going to run short, so I decided McDonald's would be the cheapest place to get my lunch, going on the fact that in Europe, they have VEGGIEBURGERS hier. I didn't know that they would be 1.1 Euro. Compare that to 5.6 Euro for a Meal, 4 Euro for a McRib, and 1.5 for a McDouble. Unfortunately the smallest drink was the same price, but there's always refills.

Oh, and McCafe isn't just a concept here. This is a separate counter, open all day, with Danishes, cakes, and coffee. At the top, it says, "all good things begin with a good coffee."

My veggieburger and tiny Coke. So worth 2.2 Euro (~$2.75).

First-Day Shopping

My first day of class was on Monday, 30 May. We have class from 8:30-1:00 with 30 minute breaks at 10:30 and 12:00. On Monday, we had a tour of the main street downtown. The city is much bigger than I thought, and I'll dedicate another post to downtown and the suburbs, where I am staying with my host family. These are pictures from the tour and the shopping afterwards.

House of Shirts. They have a great selection of socks. The guy on the right is Tommy from Hong Kong. He's a complete beginner, but studied in Missouri in High School. We got off the tram together, and I didn't know where to go. I asked him "Entschuldigung?"
He said he spoke English and we figured out we were going the same way. Buddies then on.

All that green in the window is Absinthe. Click to enlarge.

First thing I do: drag my classmates into a used-bookstore. Futurama auf Deutsch!

Then to a new-bookstore. This is Freedom by Jonathan Frazen, for a friend of mine that wrote one of the first academic papers on it last year.

Aspiring polyglots don't have dreams as good as this! Visual dictionaries!

Officially licensed!

Good, cheap wine. 1 Euro = 1.4 Dollars right now. 5 Euros = 7.4 Dollars.

Christoph Waltz impersonating a window-cling at T-Mobile. Also, I have a phone here, so you can call me if you want to pay for it or if you are in the EU. (0160) 9189 7090

Home-life

I am staying with a host family in a suburb of Heidelberg. It's about a 10 minute tram ride to downtown and to school, and about 15 minutes by bike. The house has three floors and a basement. My family is a 25-year-old wife, Janine, and her 28-year-old husband, whose name I can't spell. Their son, Yasin, is three. The husband's brother, Hasan, about 20, lives here, too. The men are of Turkish decent, and Janine is a adorable with short, blonde hair and a lip ring. They are really great parents, and Yasin is a dream (most of the time).

Hasan was here when I arrived, and showed me my room. Shortly after, Janine and her husband walked in and because sprechening the Deutsch. I tried to say I didn't understand, and they said they would speak German first and English if I didn't understand. That didn't last long with Janine. Her husband doesn't speak much English, so he's pretty German-y when we speak. Yasin only speaks German, so I have to try my best. We play on my iPad and I call Angry Birds "bird-game" (vögelspiele), Fruit Ninja "fruit-game" (obstspiele); he saw Carnivores and was like "sauriaspiele!" (dinosaur-game).

They didn't know I was vegetarian, but they have been amazing. They cook me food and they eat it too. I don't know if it will be like that all the time, but it's a very sweet gesture. We had a Turkish dish on the first night and a casserole tonight (see below).

The view from my room. (Click to enlarge).

My room.


Tonight's dinner.

Canadian Airport Wanderings

In this post, a small-town girl goes to Canada for the first time. Enjoy.

Toronto Airport. French.

French.

French errywhere.

My first Canadian beer. No, seriously, it's called a Canadian.

The exchange rate doesn't make these prices any easier to swallow.

The warning on cigarettes in Canada and Europe take up half of the packaging.

See?

Dawww.

So much Dora.

I like candy.

Mehr candy. At this point, I'm just playing with my new camera.

Johnny Walker is so pretty.

Pac-Man Moleskin.

This is actually in Frankfurt. I want ALL the Moleskins.

Veggie Doughnuts?!

This is a vegetarian "doughnut" my host mother gave me yesterday for dinner when she didn't have time to cook. I was eager to look inside the foil, as, for obvious reasons, I didn't know what a vegetarian doughnut would look or taste like. It was a very delicious golden brown pita filled with salad veggies, beans, tofu, and a spicy sauce. A lot of the food here looks like it's influenced by the Turkish immigrants (of which, my host father is one). This could be Turkish-based as well. It was sehr gut.

I've been without a computer for a few days while I've been getting adjusted to my new surroundings. I'll post more later this week on my host family, my school, downtown Heidelberg, and other cool things like German McDonald's. Tschüss!

Had a dream last night that I missed my flight. You might have guessed that that is something I'd like to avoid. I had to buy a new ticket and everything. >( I take off tomorrow at 4:15 pm, which means packing all morning and arriving a few hours early for extra-secure body cavity searches. Then it's to Toronto, and to Frankfurt, to a shuttle for an hour drive to Heidelberg. I'll arrive at my host home around noon local time, Sunday, 29 May.

"Now back to the good part!"

Made a few more rounds to see some old friends before leaving. Germany is now all I can think about. I'm so excited to meet my host family and take (fail) my placement test and walk around the city and do little things like grocery shop! I'm seriously so curious about my living situation: how big is the family, or is it just one person? Are there kids? Do I share a room? What do we eat for dinner? Instead of worrying, I'm just playing "Firework" on repeat and looking forward to a few more good nights in America. Meanwhile, the Grímsvötn volcano's ash is looming over northern Europe.

I'm still entirely unprepared for this trip. I mean, I'm partly packed, and I have a cute new dress, but my German is still pretty sketchy. I know how to conjugate regular verbs, and that's about it. The thing is, when I get there, I need to test out of the first two semesters via an oral exam, or I'll have to take two extra classes when I get back to the states. It is possible for me to ask to be placed in a higher class, but I'll confront that if I get there. In the meantime, instead of studying Deutsch, I've successfully downloaded and critiqued the new Gaga album, marathoned the first season of Lost Girl, and looked over my French, Japanese, and Italian notes - just in case I meet a Japanese-speaking German.

In summary:
[X] - figured out what's so charming about Rizzoli & Isles
[X] - cleaned my room
[X] - pilled up my German books by my bed
[X] - learned the lyrics to Gaga's "Scheiße"
[X] - watched the Lion King in German
[ ] - studied German