First Week Reflections: German professors and fast friends
13 girls and three guys who have never met each other save for awkward interactions at Dialogue pre-trip meetings board a plane bound for Germany. There’s no punchline because this is real life.
But just one week into our trip, there are plenty of other opportunities to laugh. We’ve covered some heavy stuff that will come in handy for our first assignments, and the best part about the learning that comes along with our day trips out is that it doesn’t feel forced. This is due not only to our incredible tour guides, Stefania, who toured us through the historical and more modern sites of Munich, and Frank, who led us through our two days at Dachau, where we toured the camp and heard from a Holocaust survivor, Abba Naor. Our professor, Natalie Bormann, and our TA Liz constantly encourage us to explore the city around us and are often the two who make us laugh the most along the way, all while contributing to our knowledge with facts and statements that make us think hard about what we’re seeing in front of us. Natalie being from Germany also helps in sticky situations, like when we can’t figure out how to apologize to the Germans we stumble into when we can’t find our way around, translating labels on foods at the hotel’s continental breakfast, or letting us know where we should go to celebrate the 4th of July.
Throughout our trip, we travel across the country, staying in hotels. We’ve been in Munich since we arrived, where we’ll stay until July 12, when we head to Nuremberg. On July 16, we head to Berlin until July 25. We then travel to Poland to visit Auschwitz, where we’ll take up residence in a youth hostel near the camp. After three days, we’ll travel back to Berlin to stay in the same hotel as before until we leave on August 2. Everyone has a roommate – mine, Alex, is so much fun – and the hotel here in Munich even has an official mascot in Mr. Jack, a 15 year old golden retriever who greets guests daily.
The information we’ll be learning throughout our trip is a lot to process, but luckily we have each other to talk through it with. When you’re in a group of people who are as passionate about this topic as you are, it makes for conversations that are intriguing and truly make you think. Of course, we also have plenty of free time. Because it’s such a small group, we’re able to experience a lot of activities together, whether it’s an adventure out to Englischer Gardens or Munich’s Olympic Park or dinner at one of Munich’s classic beer gardens. It’s easy to become fast friends when you spend 24/7 with people!
Tomorrow, we’re taking a group trip to Neuschwanstein Castle, a beautiful spot out near the Austrian border where we’ll be riding bikes, swimming in a lake and walking around. It’s a perfect place to spend the day and learn even more about our classmates, even though we’ve surprisingly bonded so much already.
