I hardly know where to begin! It has been a very fun, but also very busy couple of weeks. I think the best thing I've taken away so far are the friendships I've made. While I was on the tour to Königslutter, I met some really great people, and the tour was just what I was hoping for. First we visited the Kaiserdom, which was built in the Middle Ages... it was like walking into my art history book, I just loved it! We also saw the Linden that was supposedly planted by the King when the first stone was laid for the Dome. I have never seen an older, more fairy-tale-like tree in my life. Then we continued to explore the picturesque town, and I had lunch with Fiona from Ireland, Ezgi from Turkey, Päivi from Finland, and Zbynek from the Czech Republic, at an Italian restaurant (I'm soo international... haha). Afterwards, we visited a musical instrument museum, which was also very interesting. That night, I met up with Fiona, Ezgi, and Pävi to go to a party where I met more fun international students.
The next weekend, I went to a hockey game. The Hannover Indians won! It was a great, close game complete with a "show" where little kids with headdresses skated around a totem pole with huge flags... the fans lit sparklers and were very enthusiastic throughout, plus the beer was really good. I went with my tutor Francesca, her boyfriend, Otto (the most typical German I have ever met) and another group of international students. Francesca calls me her little sister, Katri and introduced me to my new "brother." His name is Javier and he comes from Columbia, little Javier is about a head shorter than I am :) He is very funny and sweet.
The next day, I went out to lunch with Ezgi, Fiona, and some of her Irish friends, Jessica and Leanne. We took a walk through the old part of Hannover, called the Altstadt. There are many different parts of Hannover, and I hope to get to know them all. Later that night, we went to a Slovakia/Czech party that Zbynek invited us to. Javier came along as well. The party started with traditional food and music from that region, and then everyone went down to the Silo, a bar that is conveniently located right near my dorm... its interesting, how in Germany, they seem to hold all sorts of events with free or student beer prices (1 Euro). The Herrenhäuser Premium Pilsner, which I really liked, is brewed in Hannover. I actually live close to the brewery and plan to tour it soon. The party was a lot fun and Javier introduced me to some more people he knew there. I even spoke a little French with a Quebecoise girl.
Then on Sunday, Fiona, Jessica, Leanne, Ezgi, and I visited Oldenburg, which is about a two hour train-ride away. There we went to a cultural museum located in the city's palace! I just loved all the exhibits and artwork (I saw so many pieces that I recognized from my senior art history class), not to mention the beautiful palace itself. After the museum, we toured the town, did some window shopping, and got ice cream, I chose Hazelnut... it was an absolutely lovely, sunny day.
On Wednesday, I went with Fiona and some other American guys to IKEA, where I outfitted my room a bit more. Now that I finally got my suitcases, which unbelievably took a week and a half to get here, my room is looking pretty cozy. I now have a cute, yellow potted plant, picture frames to put my sisters in, a blue shaggy rug, and a seat cushion for my desk chair. Today I am meeting Fiona for lunch and then going to Kaufland (Buy-Land) to pick up some actually necessary items like kleenex and laundry detergent... plus, I'm hoping to hit up the boot sales, as the dreary, wet winter has settled in again.
Yesterday, after my internship, I went to the Rathaus for a lecture given by the Freundeskreis Tambacounda, which is the NGO I plan to work with at the end of February. The lecture was a bit hard to follow as it was debating a book I haven't read and was spoken in African-accented German and French... but it was an experience nevertheless! The time I have spent working at the EIZ, my current internship, has also been valuable. So far, most of my work involves research. Because Scotland has elections in May, they may have a new minister, therefore making it hard to invite the current minister over here now. Therefore, we have shifted the focus of the Scotland project to tourism, which I was happy to research. The EIZ holds many events and now, I am in the process of researching european cultural clichés for an upcoming one held in the theater. My next project concerns what specific European companies are doing to reduce their CO2 emissions. I have also had the chance to partake in a meeting with other regional information-center heads concerning the financial crisis and the Euro, where they discussed how to best assure the public that the Euro is still strong. Other than that, I successfully ordered 100 copies of a German publication, due to my English writing abilities :)
So I've been having a good time here, and am looking forward to what the next weeks will bring. I hope all of you are doing well back home!
Love,
Katrina
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