Die Niederlande

For the majority of the day, my host parents and host brother, Simon, went biking for about fifty miles around Germany and into the Netherlands (no passports for nations in the European Union when traveling through the continent). It's gorgious scenery and very flat land. The Dutch are the biggest users of bikes in Europe, for it's a small country and again, flat.

What I've noticed is that television and radio in Germany, in a way, is really "Americanized." They have all the same shows that are on Fox and NBC; and they're in German--great practice! The radio plays a combination of German music and popular American songs with artists like Lady Gaga (in English). I've had delicious food for my first week here as well. Never in my life had I eaten Turkish or Dutch food before. The Dutch meal I had contained about ten percent horse meat...I couldn't believe how good it was! All I knew was that it tasted great, for I never knew what it was until my family told me afterword.

My Home Province: North Rhine-Westphalia

This is the province where I will live this year. North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populated federal state in Germany.

Deutsch "Schule"

Today was my first day of the four-week immersion training! It is a seven hour day all about German...I love it! Everything is entirely spoken auf Deutsch. There are 7 Americans here with Congress-Bundestag, and 3 students from South Korea. It will take the two teachers sometimes up to five minutes to explain something (absolutely no English), however they're fluent in both languages. After the course, we should "passably" be able to converse in German. After a year of living here, attending a "Gymnasium" (German word for college-bound high school) should gain fluency. Throughout the last twenty-six years of the Congress-Bundestag scholarship, nearly all recipients returned, testing at fluent levels.

European Tour

Today my host family drove me through the Autobahn--no speed limits! They showed me the city of Aachen (about 250,000 inhabitants). After that they took me to parts of die Niederlande (Netherlands) und Belgien (Belgium). I've now been to a grand total of four European countries: Tschechische Republik (Czech Republic), Deutschland (Germany), die Niederlande, und Belgien. (Sorry for the German, I'm trying to keep my mind auf Deutsch!) What's interesting is that in public parking garages, they have "Women Only" spaces in areas with lighting and security cameras.
Tomorrow I start an intense immersion training at a local school in Geilinkirchen (subarb of western Germany where I live), where all the Congress-Bundestag scholars will learn the history and geography, culture, and the language of Germany. "School" will be from 8:15 - 15:15 (with a lunch break). The walk is only ten minutes!

Now Departing: Washington to Frankfurt

By the end of today, I experienced complete jet-lag. I pulled an "all-nighter" since I couldn't sleep on the plane (8 hours), and Germany is 7 hours ahead of Illinois! I have moved in with my temporary host family: there are 5 students in high school: Elena (female-19), Simon (male-18), Teresa (female-16), Anne (female-16), and Jonas (male-14). They're an extremely nice family with kids my age! Once I got settled in, we talked for a bit and went out to dinner. It took a while for me to realize that I was actually in Germany, after being tired from staying up throughout the night! On Monday I start the intense four-week language and cultural learnings of the country, with high hopes to return home fluent in German.