Highlights of 2006

I'm starting this a little bit early--normally don't do it until Dec. 31, but of course in Germany it IS almost Dec. 31 already, so... whatever. :) I have done this every year for at least the last 5 years, but I've never had a blog that so many people read to use to share it. I like to go back through the year and list the highlights of the last year by month. I try to put down something for every month--some months are just better than other months, you know--because usually even if I don't realize it, God is doing something good in my life all year long.

January: This is always the hardest month for me to list something for. But I do remember being excited to go back to school (Penn) and feeling ready to just be myself for once.
February: February is one of my favorite months of the year--random, I know. Big highlight was the girls' lock-in we had for the girls in Campus Crusade.
March: Turning 20 was cool. Weird at first, but definitely cool. My spring break trip with Campus Crusade was awesome too. That was an incredible week. I also had some awesome recitals for Music 10 (the program at school that allowed me to take private voice lessons for free). I also found out in March that I'd been officially accepted to my study abroad program.
April: April got off to a great start with the Full Measure concert. I read a German book all the way through for the first time, which was exciting, and particularly enjoyed my German and music history classes. I got a random award from the German department. I also went home for Easter and had an awesome little visit.
May: My going-abroad-party was awesome. Fun to see all my friends backed into my little dorm room!
June: Starting working with the teens at church, and muscular dystrophy camp. Both were awesome.
July: Best family Wildwood trip ever! VBS!!!
August: "Game nights" with the teens, and then, of course... arriving in Berlin!
September: Getting involved in my church in Berlin, especially meeting the group that visited from Hessen.
October: Baptisms at my church, kite-flying in the park...
November: 2 Thanksgivings!!! And my trips to Munich and Lübeck.
December: Christmas markets galore! The Christmas season in Germany was awesome, but it's also been sooooooo nice to be home. :)

They took my salami!!!

Well, here I am, back in the USA. It's not really as strange as I thought it would be, it's more just strange to consider the distance. For some reason it's weird to be back here at home and picture my apartment, my church, my friends and everything in Berlin. It's sooooo far away, but it's real and it's a part of me now, and I'm a part of it. It was an interesting thought while I was in Berlin, but somehow it's even more interesting now.

The journey was long, but not bad at all. Got to the airport heinously early, so I slept on my bags for like two hours at the gate before I boarded! I slept a lot on the plane too, which was nice. I usually have a very hard time sleeping when I'm traveling (by car, train, plane, whatever) but I lucked out this time. The flight from Berlin to Newark though was funny because it was like a transition from German-speaking-land to English-speaking-land. On the flight I heard both languages and when I checked in with my bags and such, I had no idea what language to speak! They could speak both languages of course, it was just weird because I can speak both too and I wasn't sure which one the Continental Airlines employees in Berlin were more comfortable with. Very strange. Most of them just started speaking English as soon as they saw my American passport, but one the flight attendants on the plane always spoke to me in German. Crazy.

When I got to Newark, I had to go through customs. The big bummer of the day was that they took the nice salami I had bought for my dad. It was really silly. For one, it was made from pork, so it's not like it could've had Mad Cow Disease, and it's COOKED, so if it did have Mad Cow, it wouldn't anymore, and I also felt like saying, "I've eaten stuff like this for 4 months now and I haven't died!" but you know how those American customs people are. Coming into Germany from the States it's no problem, but man, in America, stuff from other countries is poisonous! They weren't even nice about it. They opened up my suitcase, took out the salami, closed up my suitcase and handed it back to me, saying (referring to the salami), "This gets burned." Way to reward me for telling the truth on my customs form! Next time I just won't tell them. :) At least they didn't take my cheese though, which is also for my dad. But the salami was a bummer.

Then I had to try to figure out if I'd cleared the waitlist for my flight from Newark to Atlanta, which I didn't, so I had to get on a train to Philly and then fly with Southwest to Nashville from Philly. It was cool to be in Philly, my college town, if only for a little while. The familiar train station, skyline, all that... pretty cool. From the train station I took a cab to the airport, where I checked in rather quickly and was ready to go.

Oh wait, back up, I forgot something important. When I got to Philly I was really really thirsty, so I bought a bottle of Aquafina water from a vending machine for $1.50, and I drank it, and when I was done, I THREW AWAY THE BOTTLE IN THE (ONE) TRASH CAN!!! No deposit, and no sorting trash into four color-coded bins!!!

On the flight to Philly, there was one again a language transition going on, this time from normal English to Tennessee "English". Three ladies sitting behind me had hilarious Southern accents. So I had some time to really get adjusted!

I made it to Nashville around 8pm (having woken up in Berlin at 5am, which was 10pm the day before in Nashville) and my parents and brother were there waiting. Big time "group hug"!!! When I got there, they were like, "So where do you want to go to dinner?" They didn't have to ask, they already knew the answer--I wanted MEXICAN food, so we went straight to Cozymel's!!! It was sooooooooooooooo good... salsa that doesn't taste like ketchup, yummy queso and chips, chicken enchiladas with beans and Mexican rice... delicious! When I got home, Mom and I wrapped some Christmas gifts, and then all of a sudden I was like, "Uhh, I'm running out of gas, rapidly..." so then it was bedtime. My bed felt soooooo good.

Yesterday I got to go back to my church, BCN, where there was an intense hugging session! The Clarks didn't realize I'd be home in time for the morning service, so they got a little Christmas surprise! The service was awesome, especially since the kids got up and sang a couple of the songs from their Christmas musical. Kimmy was also singing and playing again and sounded awesome. And my goofy pastor was full of his good ol' goofy sermon jokes.

After church, Mom and I met my brother at Qdoba for more Mexican, 'cause I just hadn't had my fill yet, and then we went to Cold Stone for ice cream! I will be working there a little bit while I'm home, so feel free to come by and visit and enjoy the holiday special flavors--Candy Cane and Dark Chocolate Peppermint (delicious!). Mom and I had our annual Christmas viewing of It's A Wonderful Life, then I wrapped some more Christmas presents. None of us were very hungry (we ate a lot at Qdoba!) so we just had some leftover homemade soup for dinner, then opened the traditional Christmas Eve gifts and then watched Elf. I fell asleep during it, I was exhausted! I got some great gifts though! Brother and I each actually opened two (my brother's good at convincing the parents!), and I got some great jewelry made by my cousin-in-law Heather and some comfy PJ/sweatpants from my mom.

Now, it's Christmas morning, but my silly little brother won't wake up so we can open presents! It's almost noon and he's STILL in bed! Silly brother...

Merry Christmas everyone!!! Friends in Berlin, I miss you tons; can't wait to reunite in January, although it will be cold and dark. (I'm loving the sunshine here!) Friends in B'hood--CALL ME so we can get together! Much love to all o' y'all!!! :)

One week left...

It is so weird to think that in one week, I will be back in the States. I'm definitely excited, but I have no idea what it will be like to be back in an English-speaking country for two weeks! So weird. But so cool.

Things I'm looking forward to:
Uhhh my FAMILY 'cause they rock
Going back to BCN!
My Christmas tree at home
Giving people Christmas presents from Germany
Binu!
Eating food that my mommy made :)
Mexican food
Ordering ice water in restaurants without getting weird looks, and getting free refills on sodas!
Cold Stone ice cream
Showing people pictures from my adventures (although they're already on this blog... but some people don't keep up:)
Hugs :)

Things I wish I could bring home from Germany:
The Christmas markets! I'm a big fan. Lebkuchen hearts, roasted nuts, all kinds of goodies that are bad for you, dozens of stands selling cute Christmas things, scarves, funny hats, etc., kids riding ferris wheels and such...
Special friends here... God's been good to me :)

Other than Christmas shopping and thoughts of heading home, there really hasn't been much going on here lately. Spent the day with Molly baking Christmas cookies... last night we watched Mean Girls, which was pretty funny. What was also funny: the German subtitles, which we turned on just for the heck of it. Some interesting translations!

I also finally finished my carpentry projects... almost... I built my desk, which was waiting half-built in my room for me to borrow a hammer from someone (finally did). I also hung up pictures and my new white board, which is cool and makes the room less boring. Only problem is this silly chair I bought... there are two pieces that just won't go together! Molly and I tried it together last night--we both sat on the darn thing at the same time, but our combined weight was not enough. Maybe it would be enough now that we've eaten so many Christmas cookies, but...

Oh yeah, I also saw that Christmas movie, The Nativity Story. It was pretty good. I saw it in German with Manu. We were the only two people in the theatre. Of course, we did see it at 11pm on a Wednesday night... yeah we're cool like that.

Actually, funny story--I ended up spending the night at the Heimlichs' that night because it was so late, and in the morning Robert went to kindergarten (which is preschool here), and Manu was still asleep, so it was just Emily and Timo, who was working in his office on the computer. I was already awake but still in bed, when all of a sudden the door opened very slowly and a little face peeked in... "Kee-nah...!" Soooooo funny! What a great way to wake up in the morning. :)

I think that's really all the news... definitely excited to head home. By the way, LAST CALL for anyone who wants anything from Germany! Seriously, anything except a car, let me know! I will have plenty of room in my suitcase!

Much love to everyone. Looking forward to seeing some of you very soon. :)

Cultural differences... or is it something deeper?

I had a really interesting conversation with Tobi today. I don't remember exactly how it started, but it was about conversation... haha yes, a conversation about conversation...

I've noticed that in conversations with other people, Tobi tends to ask much more direct questions /slash/ deeper questions. It is commonly known that in America, "How are you?" is not usually a real question, it's just a polite greeting (the proper response is, "Good, you?" or, if you're a college student, "I'm okay, a little tired, how are you?"). In Germany and many other countries, however, it's not just a greeting--it's a real question. Yes, people then ask this question a bit more selectively, but when they ask it, they are (generally) genuinely interested in the person's response, which can be as thorough or concise as one chooses.

Consequently, I've found that in Germany people come to "deeper" subject matters more quickly than they do back home in the States. Particularly with friends, people pretty much skip the small talk. There isn't really a pressure to share more about one's personal life than one really wishes to share, but there's an understanding that when someone asks how you are, they want to know how you really are. They're not just trying to pass the time by exchanging formalities.

I find that people here also then tend to be more open about the "heavier" subjects which are seldom discussed in America. Today a couple in the church had their niece with them, who is about our age and had a baby between 11th and 12th grade. The baby wasn't there, so we wouldn't have known if she hadn't told us, but just through normal conversation it came up and she said it rather openly and talked about some of the difficult decisions she has to make right now. I was struck not only by her openness, but also by Tobi's genuine interest, the way he asked questions not to probe, but because he cared somehow. He did the same thing when we went to dinner with my friend Suzy after she went with us to the church in Prenzlauer Berg. He asked her very freely, "What did you think of the service tonight?" and "Did you grow up with any kind of religion in your family?" without it being some hushed subject matter that one only brought up subtly or else simply avoided. And seeing his genuine interest, she opened up and shared a lot with us. It was as simple as that.

It made me ask myself, "Why do I always make it so complicated?" Why do I find such questions so awkward, and when I ask someone how they're doing, am I really interested in their response?

It also made me wonder how the question "How are you?" got to be just a polite thing to say in the U.S. What does it say about us that we've somehow hidden ourselves behind the small talk? Why are we so afraid of people's answers? Another thing I've found somewhat striking here is that my pastor here will frequently ask me on a Sunday afternoon what I thought of the service that morning. Tobi asks me that too. And neither of them just want to hear me say, "It was good." Even if it would bring criticism, they're interested. I think that is something to be valued.

How would my life--how would our lives--be different, if we weren't afraid to ask? If we wanted to ask? If we were so genuinely interested?

Marzipan, anyone?

Oh goodness. It's really strange to have sooooooooo much going on, then all of a sudden... nothing! Strange but very nice!! My biggest "concern" right now is Christmas-shopping. Bummer. (Hehe)

So... I had a ginormous presentation on Tuesday. Actually I'm exaggerating, it wasn't ginormous, but it was my first big "project" I've had to do for a class here. It went very well. Only one mildly embarrassing moment when I read a quote and then realized at the end of it that it was not the quote I wanted to read, and I couldn't find the one I wanted to read. Oops. But my classmates were nice and didn't like boo me or anything, haha. Prof said he liked my thesis, thought my presentation was good and that my German was also good (nice little bonus there). And it was a good start on the big paper I'll have to write for the end of the semester, so that was cool.

Once that was over, I got to make an Advent wreath at church! One thing I think is really cool in Germany is that arts and crafts are not just for kids (or really crafty talented moms). Arts and crafts are for everybody. Our church kicked off the Christmas season by making Advent wreaths together. Cool huh? Making a wreath is actually not that hard, just kinda prickly. =)

Then, on Wednesday, I got in a bus and headed about 3.5 hours north to Lübeck. My German teacher, Karolin, from Penn last semester, grew up there, and she is actually teaching in Cambridge now but brought a small group of students on a trip to visit her hometown, in particular the Christmas market. It was really nice. For one, it was totally a vacation because my presentation was over and I felt like I'd earned it, for another, it was so cool to see Karolin, she's really funny, and the kids from Cambridge were fun too. They speak German with British accents and it's really cute. And Lübeck was sooooo pretty. In the middle ages it was like one of the biggest harbor towns along the Baltic--much bigger than Hamburg--and what's remarkable is how many buildings and such and have been preserved in their original, very old, very German (and if you ask me, very pretty/cute) forms. I will upload my pictures soon and then edit this post with a link to them, so stay tuned.

Edit: here's the link for the photos. :)

by stinaberlin

The Christmas market was fun. I think the whole Christmas market tradition is really cool. Picture like a small-scale fair, plus lots of booths for buying Christmas-y stuff (lots of self-made crafty stuff), and TONS of German roasted nuts, Glühwein (mulled wine, accompanied by the alcohol-free kiddie version), licorice, little things calls Muzen which are basically little pockets of funnel cake dough that are fried and topped with powdered sugar, and of course sausage and pretzels and all that really German stuff. And yes, a few amusement rides for the kids. So cute! The place was literally packed with people sipping Glühwein from their souvenir mugs (you pay 3.50 € for a mug of Glühwein, then if you don't want to keep your mug you can bring it back and they give you 1.50€ back, or you can just keep it as a souvenir, like I did! Where can you get a mug for 1.50€?) and just being merry. What a great tradition. I can't wait to go to the Christmas markets here in Berlin--there's a couple of different ones. Fun fun.

Oh yeah, about the title of my post... so, Lübeck is like the Marzipan Capital of the World... or at least of Germany, or so I perceived it. Lübeck has this big famous marzipan shop called Niederegger, and they seriously sell marzipan in every variety imaginable. I can actually buy Niederegger marzipan in my grocery store here in Berlin here. I think marzipan is a pretty big deal here in Germany. So, my question is... do any of you guys like marzipan? 'Cuz I'd be totally happy to bring some back, particularly something funny made out of a marzipan (like a potato, haha!). Lemme know.

After I got back I didn't have to do much. Spent the day yesterday with the Heimlichs, pretty chill. Their little girl Emily, who is 2 zears old, calls me "Keena" now. Cute cute. And, Manu gave me like the coolest present ever--cilantro!!! And it's like in a pot, so it will like grow and such and I will have more and more cilantro. Now I can make salsa that doesn't taste like ketchup!!! Woohoo!!!

And now, I'm here at the church, just chilling until a prayer meeting tonight. It's weird not to have any particular project hanging over my head. Weird, but nice.

One more thing: I come home for Christmas in 3 weeks. Weird. I'm excited of course to see everyone, but I have no idea what it will be like to be back in the US. It will be interesting to see. Hopefully I'll get used to speaking English all the time and won't keep saying all the goofy things I tend to say in English here. I already get made fun of enough for my "Philly accent". My "Berlin accent" is likely to sound much more ridiculous.

For now, a lovely day/evening to everyone. Post comments!!! They make me smile!!!