03 August 2015
Amsterdam
Amsterdam -- Before I even came to Europe this summer I knew Amsterdam was the one location I had to make apparent to see no matter where else I travelled. For years now, I have only ever heard great things about this wonderful city, and knew I was going to love the place.
 |
A picture of one of the many canals in Amsterdam
with all the boats lines up along the sides.
|
It truly was the most unique place I have ever been. All within one city, you can go from the major city center with so many people and dirty tourist areas, to some of the most beautiful, quiet park areas all within a 10-minute walk. Not to mention the people of the Netherlands are by far the friendliest Europeans I have yet to come across. At first I was honestly taken back by all the small talk and questions all the locals kept asking me from the moment I got there. I was so confused as to why why everyone wanted to know where I was from and how I was doing, but it wasn’t until later that I realized I wasn’t in Germany anymore and people are actually nice and inviting like back home. It might have been the biggest breath of fresh air I had yet while being in Europe since I love small talk and getting to know others. I know it’s a small factor, but I was honestly so excited to feel welcomed from locals rather than seem like a bother.
Overall as a city, it was seriously very different from any place in the United States. To start, I don’t think I have ever seen so many bikes in my entire life. Literally everyone bikes in the Netherlands, and no matter what corner you were on there was easily hundreds of them everywhere. As for the main attractions in Amsterdam, everyone knows (well at least all the backpackers) about the “coffee shops” where the legal marijuana is. Which on a side note, I don’t think I have ever had such a constant aroma everywhere in one city until I spent a few days in Amsterdam. There was also the known the red light district for all the legal prostitution, where I did make it apparent to see, and that alone was an experience in itself. But besides the legal drugs and sex I promise there was a lot more Amsterdam had to offer. All over this popular destination were crazy amount of cheese factories where there were free samples in every store (I wouldn’t know that or anything). Cheese like pesto cheese and lavender cheeses that I don’t think I could have tried anywhere else. Also hundreds of museums within Amsterdam on seriously any topic you could think of like sex, cheese, history, beer, and many others. For example, I went to the museum of prostitution, to get behind the scenes on what it was like for the women in the red light district to work there. I found out that the reason the lights are red was not to only make the skin of the women look smoother, but was to also better hide STD’s back in the day. I guess you learn something new everyday? But besides museums and tourist parts there were other things in Amsterdam like the flower market! Amsterdam is known for their tulips, and the flower market there has the largest amount of tulips worldwide which was seriously so pretty to see. Tulips in any color possibly ever thought of. But overall my favorite place within this widely diverse place was the parks. Amsterdam can be very overwhelming at times, but if you can make it to any part of the parks I can promise it will be worthwhile. So peaceful with the canals throughout the entire city adds so much to just hanging out in the park away from all the people. I felt as if I could sit there for hours and watch the boats go by or just simply watch the ducks in the water. We spent out last day in the parks, and I couldn’t have thought of a better way to spend the last day there.
Amsterdam at first was not what I pictured, but I knew I would love the place and I wasn’t wrong by the time I left. I was upset I couldn’t spend more time there, since there is an overwhelming amount of things to see and do. But its okay because now I know this is a place I could come again in the future and explore something new every time I visit and I will make sure to see it again!
01 August 2015
Disneyland Paris
Paris -- As we approach the last few weeks of our program, we had one more opportunity to travel to a place of our choice. Always hearing about the Eiffel tower, and the “city of love,” I knew Paris was a highly desired place to visit. Even though I also always hear that the people of France are not the friendliest people around, I booked a flight anyway to see the beautiful city myself.
 |
Standing in front of Sleeping Beauty's
Castle in Disneyland Paris!
|
Growing up as a kid my parents took me to Disney World in Orlando, Florida almost every year since I could remember. So when I found out that Paris was the only European Disney, I knew I had to make a trip. Days leading up to going there I seriously could not contain my excitement, Disney is by far still one of my favorite places to go and I was really hoping that Disney in France was going to be the same experience. Walking into the amusement park in Paris was the same feeling I had walking into Disney World back home as a child, just an overabundant wave of excitement. I could hear the same Disney themed music playing as I entered the large gate with “Disneyland” largely placed over the beautiful Mickey Mouse shaped flowers at the entrance. Once you passed this sign, the next big site wasn’t Cinderella’s big blue castle like in Florida, but instead Sleeping Beauties big pink castle. This alone was super cool to see a different castle than the one I always have seen growing up, but it was just as magical. The park is just like the park back home with thrill rides like Space Mission 2, and The Tower of Terror, which are rides also in Disney World that I could ride hundreds of times again and again without ever being bored. As well as rides, there was also the Disney Princess Parades that go through the park throughout the day, but in Paris this year’s theme is Frozen. Let me just add, you can still understand the popular “let it go” song sung by any little girl, even if it happened to be in French. But not only were there the rides and parades like the magical places back home, but even Disney characters like Mickey and Minnie who walk the parks and sign autographs, making every little kids dream come true to meet them. I couldn’t believe how much it ran like Disney World back home, but then again Walt Disney himself, wanted the overall theme of the “happiest place on earth,” no matter where it may be. There were a few different parts though as well to this park, for example there is a whole area dedicated to Ratatouille, whereas in the U.S. there isn’t a part of Disney. But since that was a movie based out of Paris, of course it had to be in Disneyland in Paris. Just like Alice In Wonderland, in Florida there isn’t a part of the part of the park for this particular film, but in France there was and I always find it interesting when parks are meant to be the same, but have different elements to make them their own unique park. I couldn’t have been more pleased with this decision to go to Disney while in France.
Even though this park was in France, Disney being known as “the happiest place on earth” is very universal. The children at the parks alone make the park the overall magical place it is, seeing how excited they are about seeing all of their favorite movie characters in person makes the place feel that much more like a child again. I truly believe no matter what culture you come from you know that Disney is a happy place, and Disneyland Paris in no way disappointed.
It was by far the best way I could have ended my last trip. Making me feel like I was home for the short time spent there, minus the French. It was truly magical and I am happy to say I am one Disney Park closer to seeing them all over the world!
31 July 2015
Berlin
Like I said, I wasn’t the expert on German government before coming to Berlin, but I did know there was a wall that was kind of a big deal not that long ago. During the Cold War in Germany, East Berlin was run by the Soviets, which ended up as communist, and West Berlin was the democracy side run by the Germans. The wall was built overnight, literally, and was a physical boundary that separated the two which was suppose to make them more connected or unified overall, but clearly that wasn’t the case. This divide not only divided the country physically, but also since there was no common ground between the two, it practically became two different countries. As the wall stood for 28 years, the countries grew differently. Since the East was a democracy, they grew relatively fast, and the citizens had freedom. Whereas the East citizens were very restricted, so communism took over and everything that was built during the time was practically built to look the same to portray the society they wanted. Jumping forward to 1989, the East realized that their money was decreasing, and they couldn’t afford much anymore without the help of the West, and during a random announcement in 1990 by government official Günter Schabowski, Germany become one again!
So with the help of my tour guide, this information helped a lot when touring the city. When the wall was taken down, the West weren’t the biggest fan of the East buildings that were built during the time of the wall. Overtime many of the structures built in the East were voted to be taken down and rebuilt by the now known democracy of Germany. This made some of the citizens from the East somewhat upset since this was part of their history, but for the West they did not like that part of history as much. Also for some that may not know, Berlin has a very high debt and with no money buildings take a lot longer than normal to be built, so since the wall was only destroyed 25 years ago, Berlin is heavily under construction. The parts we did get to see in Berlin, such as the part of the wall that still stands was super cool. Remains so recent in history makes seeing them in person so much more real and interesting. With the brief history of the wall, it really was intriguing to see how far Germany has come as a nation. It truly is very unique, probably one of the most unique places I have been in Europe so far. Especially coming from the East where communist wanted everything to be the same, and now it stands as being known for how unique the city is overall.
Not only did we tour and learn the history, but also we discovered the unique places all over the city that were quite interesting to say the least. At one point we came across a bar that was very monster themed. Where heads were floating, weird fish looking things were in the glass part of the bar, it was also very dark inside with weird electric music that played for hours. But don’t get me wrong, probably one of the coolest bars I’ve ever been to. We explored the markets that had vendors from all over the world coming to sell their handmade products, like wallets from Argentina, and jewelry from Chile and Uruguay. Graffiti is huge in Europe, but nowhere even comes close to all the wild graffiti art from Berlin, especially the famous graffiti on the Berlin wall. I even heard music in the streets like most cities, but in Berlin I heard COUNTRY ROADS! It made me feel like I was in Morgantown for a split second, even though it’s like a Brooklyn hipster type feel as a city. It was for sure very different from Erfurt, in the sense that everyone spoke English, and no one was angry when you asked for help. It seemed as if I was travelling in New York actually, where people are friendly and getting by was still hard because it was a new place, but no one minded to help you out. It made it a much more enjoyable experience. Berlin was by far the coolest German city I have been to so far. The unique feel for the place makes it like somewhere I have never been before. Everything from the history and seeing how far Germany has come, to the places like the weird bars, it couldn’t have been a better way to spend four days in one place! If I ever get a chance to come back to Germany in the future, Berlin will without a doubt be a place to stay again.
27 July 2015
Intercultural Adaptation Theory
Erfurt, Thuringia, Germany -- Intercultural Adaptation Theory basically looks at how we see ourselves fitting into a different culture or standing out. Throughout this theory there are stages from one to four that I personally feel I can relate to since we are now going into our seventh week here in Germany. For example, you start out in the excited “honeymoon stage” (stage 1) where everything is sunshine and rainbows, then realizing it’s not all that easy to get around and communicate and bang, “culture shock” (stage 2) hits you. Finally you have to adjust (stage 3), your behaviors to adapt (stage 4) to the certain culture.
When arriving to Germany I was most definitely in the honeymoon stage, I couldn’t wait to see what being a foreigner was like. At first, I tried to always speak German and I even tried to pick up some more German since I didn’t know much to begin with. I tried ordering food, asking basic questions like “where is the bathroom” and “can you help me,” but overtime that got old. This is when my “culture shock” set in. I started realizing that trying to speak the language got me more confused looks rather than answers, which over and over again made me less confident in trying to speak the language, as well as being frustrated when people looked at me stupid. I would say around week three, I finally realized that it was time to just adjust to this culture better and become familiar with certain things so I can avoid having those constant awkward confused looks, and get whatever it is I need faster. For example, I don’t ask where the bathroom is anymore I simply look around and figure it out myself, and sometimes when people see I’m wandering around confused they usually point it out for me. Just like finding certain locations, unless I am completely lost I rather just figure it out myself than dealing with an awkward conversation. As for ordering food I either one, ask someone at the table that may know whatever it is I don’t understand, or two, take the safe route and order food that looks familiar so no surprises come my way. These are all simply ways I have been adjusting overtime to avoid unnecessary hassle.
Within this theory, if I had to rank myself as to where I stand based off of the 1-4 stages, I would say I’m around a 3, the adjusting stage. I am trying to adjust but I am not communicating as much as I should be, so I’m adapting to the environment and surroundings, but not so much adapting to the locals or people around me. Overall it’s another part of this adventurous learning experience, I’m not happy that I can’t communicate with others sometimes, but I know if I was here for a longer period of time I would adapt more than just adjust.
When arriving to Germany I was most definitely in the honeymoon stage, I couldn’t wait to see what being a foreigner was like. At first, I tried to always speak German and I even tried to pick up some more German since I didn’t know much to begin with. I tried ordering food, asking basic questions like “where is the bathroom” and “can you help me,” but overtime that got old. This is when my “culture shock” set in. I started realizing that trying to speak the language got me more confused looks rather than answers, which over and over again made me less confident in trying to speak the language, as well as being frustrated when people looked at me stupid. I would say around week three, I finally realized that it was time to just adjust to this culture better and become familiar with certain things so I can avoid having those constant awkward confused looks, and get whatever it is I need faster. For example, I don’t ask where the bathroom is anymore I simply look around and figure it out myself, and sometimes when people see I’m wandering around confused they usually point it out for me. Just like finding certain locations, unless I am completely lost I rather just figure it out myself than dealing with an awkward conversation. As for ordering food I either one, ask someone at the table that may know whatever it is I don’t understand, or two, take the safe route and order food that looks familiar so no surprises come my way. These are all simply ways I have been adjusting overtime to avoid unnecessary hassle.
Within this theory, if I had to rank myself as to where I stand based off of the 1-4 stages, I would say I’m around a 3, the adjusting stage. I am trying to adjust but I am not communicating as much as I should be, so I’m adapting to the environment and surroundings, but not so much adapting to the locals or people around me. Overall it’s another part of this adventurous learning experience, I’m not happy that I can’t communicate with others sometimes, but I know if I was here for a longer period of time I would adapt more than just adjust.
26 July 2015
Buchenwald Concentration Camp
Buchenwald/Weimar, Thuringia, Germany -- Throughout our lives, we heavily learn about the Holocaust during World War II. The movies, books, museums and memorials all tell us about this tragic time, but getting the chance to see a concentration camp in person was a different experience overall. With more than 55,000 prisoner deaths, Buchenwald was one of the largest concentration camps during the war. Opening in 1937 this labor concentration camp lasted until 1945, when Germany was liberated by the United States. At this certain concentration camp we got a chance to see the remains still standing to better understand the holocaust.
As we arrived I didn’t know what to expect, I couldn’t fathom that I was going to be standing in the same place thousands were prosecuted for no reason. Electric fence completely surrounds the camp, and to get into the site you enter through a white gate that says “Jedem das Seine,” which translates to “to each his own”, figuratively meaning, “everyone gets what he deserves.” Purposely placed there to psychologically confuse the prisoners entering, this site alone gave me chills before even entering. Going through the gate the first thing you see is a lot of open area where the bunkers of the inmates once stood, now there is just dark gravel in those areas. Even though there were a lot of buildings taken down to hide as much evidence as possible by the Nazis, seeing the few that still stand was still very hard to grasp. The first building we went into was a building that had a few cells for the prisoners that were awaiting death. In these cells they had names of some who occupied these cells, making it so much more real to see faces and information of victims. In this same building we entered another room with a table and a case filled with tools, tools that were used for medical experiments on the victims in the camp. Buchenwald was known as a labor camp overall, but also was known for some of their medical experiments to learn more about to human body in inhumane ways. Ways such as submerging humans in ice water to see how long they can live, or injecting others with bacteria to see what effects happen, to even hormonal transplants on inmates to “cure” homosexuality. I couldn’t believe I was standing in a room where all these gruesome experiments actually took place. The next building we entered was a building with crematory areas, which stood giant brick ovens to cremate all the dead bodies in large numbers. To transport such big numbers of dead bodies, there was also an elevator from the floor below where they gathered the dead bodies to be cremated. In the room below it was empty, expect for the hooks that were along the blank walls. These hooks were for the bodies that were not completely dead, but to hang them until they were. Reading the description of that, was another extremely hard part to imagine that another human could do that to someone else. The last area we walked to was known as “Little Camp” which at the time was a separated area by barbed wire from the main area of the camp. This was an area that was so small in perimeter that only about 50 horses could be stabled there, but instead 1,000 to 2,000 people occupied it at a time. The reason it was built was to hold the victims who were in transit to wait until shipped somewhere else, but ended up just being an area of the dying or death for Jewish people.
At the very end, we took a moment as a group to add rocks to the site in memorial of the humans who suffered. All over the camp you see flowers and placements of rocks to show the care one has for another human they didn’t even know. Overall it was a life changing experience, I learned a lot and made everything I already knew that much more real. In addition to all the learning, I truly believe no matter where in the world anyone can understand the tragedy that happened here just by the photos and seeing it in person. You don’t need any language to understand how devastating this was, and because I was grateful enough to see it myself, this will always be an experience I remember.
 |
The rocks we placed on one of the block numbers
for our condolences of the souls at Buchenwald, and all
concentration camps.
|
At the very end, we took a moment as a group to add rocks to the site in memorial of the humans who suffered. All over the camp you see flowers and placements of rocks to show the care one has for another human they didn’t even know. Overall it was a life changing experience, I learned a lot and made everything I already knew that much more real. In addition to all the learning, I truly believe no matter where in the world anyone can understand the tragedy that happened here just by the photos and seeing it in person. You don’t need any language to understand how devastating this was, and because I was grateful enough to see it myself, this will always be an experience I remember.
17 July 2015
Barcelona
Barcelona -- What is a summer vacation without a trip to a beach?! Being in the center of Europe for two weeks, myself and three other girls decided it was time to head to the coast somewhere, and what better place than Barcelona, Spain. Mediterranean waters that are crystal clear, skies with no clouds, siesta’s mid day, and partying that starts at 2 a.m., what can get much better than this?
 |
| Jumping off the cliffs in Costa Brava, Spain. |
Besides the incredible kayaking trip we also explored the city of Barcelona as well. We went to the Barcelona beach, hiked a park named Park Guell that was made just to overlooks the entire city of Barcelona, and ate a traditional Spanish rice dish called paella. Like I said before, Barcelona can easily cultural be compared to a major city like Miami in United States, which overall being there made me feel more comfortable, as if I was on a beach vacation with my parents This trip was a memory made that I couldn’t be happier I did. With a few more chances to travel, Barcelona made a huge impact, and I’m even more excited to see what happens further in my travels.
12 July 2015
First-Half Reflections
Erfurt, Thuringia, Germany -- Before arriving to Germany, I, Just like any other person going somewhere new for the first time, had a rough idea of what I was getting myself into. Well at least that’s what I thought. I had a vision that everything like grocery store, malls, and restaurants were all going to be the same, and I thought the people would be very similar as well. I didn’t know what it was going to be like becoming a resident of Germany for nine weeks, but here I am at the half way mark and it feels like I’ve only been here for a week. In this short amount of time I’ve experienced things I never thought I would have done, ate food I never knew existed, and came across people from all over the world that I would have never met anywhere else!
Before actually landing in Germany, I met most of the American students in the group who were also studying abroad. These were my first friends I made on this trip, and let me just add that I don’t think I could of asked for a better group of people. Everyone is very different in his or her own ways, but together we all get along very well and I am beyond grateful these are the people alongside this crazy experience with me. Not only are my new American friends wonderful, but also the new German friends I’ve come to know have made this trip awesome as well. My first encounters with German students were the girls in our SPICE program, Felicia, Clara, and Gabby. Before actually having a conversation with them, I only have heard them talk in class. My first impression was “wow they are super smart!” After spending these first four weeks with them, and having conversations we came to learn about how our culture is similar, but very different at the same time. I learned that they speak great English, where to them they don’t think they do, but coming from an American’s standpoint they are practically fluent. Schools systems are not the same in Germany compared to the United States. They as college students, one get free education which I’m beyond jealous of, they don’t get letter grades like we do, and semesters are a lot different. For example in the U.S. we start in August and end in May, Germans start in October and end in July. Not only school but little things such as drinking, in Germany you can drink at 16, but can’t smoke until you’re 18 so for them the “cool” thing to do is smoke, whereas in the United States drinking is considered the “cool” thing since you can’t do it until you’re 21. Beside these simple differences of growing up, oddly enough we all end up as adults who are quite similar. The German students have welcomed us beyond what I expected, and showed us places around town such as restaurants and bars that I never would have gone to without their advice, and I am beyond happy that these are the people I can also share my experience with.
As well as the students in my class, my roommates were the first residents I came across in Germany who I got to shared more experiences with. They were the ones who taught me where I can get grocery shop (much important information), what were the fun places in town, and overall what living like in Germany was really like. The home part of Germany, well at least the college life of Germany is actually the most similar part to back home. They all go to class, hangout with friends on weekends, roll in after midnight from parties, stress-eat during finals, and share their everyday struggles with you just like my roommates back home. They can be different in some ways but nothing major, for example they do not hangout overall as much as my roommates and I do back home when everyone is home, but they do communicate. They’re also the sweetest people, once they realized I moved in they made sure to clear some room in the refrigerator for me, let me use anything of theirs I didn’t bring, and any question I’ve ever had they were more than helpful to get me the answers I needed like my friends back home.
I’m only at the halfway mark and I hope time slows down! Experiencing a new culture first hand has been incredible to say the least! I’m more comfortable and settled in here now, but I can’t wait to see what more memories I’m going to make with me new friends!
 |
| German and American students hanging out in Germany! |
As well as the students in my class, my roommates were the first residents I came across in Germany who I got to shared more experiences with. They were the ones who taught me where I can get grocery shop (much important information), what were the fun places in town, and overall what living like in Germany was really like. The home part of Germany, well at least the college life of Germany is actually the most similar part to back home. They all go to class, hangout with friends on weekends, roll in after midnight from parties, stress-eat during finals, and share their everyday struggles with you just like my roommates back home. They can be different in some ways but nothing major, for example they do not hangout overall as much as my roommates and I do back home when everyone is home, but they do communicate. They’re also the sweetest people, once they realized I moved in they made sure to clear some room in the refrigerator for me, let me use anything of theirs I didn’t bring, and any question I’ve ever had they were more than helpful to get me the answers I needed like my friends back home.
I’m only at the halfway mark and I hope time slows down! Experiencing a new culture first hand has been incredible to say the least! I’m more comfortable and settled in here now, but I can’t wait to see what more memories I’m going to make with me new friends!
6 July 2015
Brussels, Belgium
Brussels -- Brussels Belgium, where do I even start? When a trip around a few German cities turned into, “hey lets take a two-hour trip to Belgium instead” last minute decisions can secretly be the best decisions. Last week we, as in me and six other students, planned to visit Frankfurt, Cologne, and then Dusseldorf, all German cities just so we could travel the country of Germany some. After spending the night in Frankfurt, we headed to Cologne for the day, and the next stop was supposed to be another 30-minute train ride to Dusseldorf, but plans changed. When one of my friends saw a pamphlet on a train, the only thing standing in the way of a new country and the seven of us was another two-hour train ride. So of course the American students were totally game for Belgium versus another German town. Since this was a last minute decision, we didn’t have a hotel or anything booked in advance, but hey there are thousands of rooms within Brussels so how hard could it really be to find a room on a Tuesday night? We arrived in Brussels around 9:30 pm; we get off and happen to see a woman who kindly directs us in the best, cheap hotels/hostels. The only thing is she didn’t explain was that the part of town we were getting off of is pretty much the slums of Brussels. Since no one ever has been to Belgium we didn’t know, and started looking for places to stay. One hotel after the next everything seemed to be booked on a Tuesday night. After maybe six hotels, we came across a hostel that was sketchy but only 25 euro a person, so how could we complain? Well not everyone was okay with that, so we kept looking. Next place we found with open rooms was another hostel with a receptionist with missing fingers and a group of guys sitting in the bar that could possibly have been in the MOB… super safe right? But hey once again places to stay? For the six girls in the group, myself included, we asked for our money back and went to streets to keep looking. At this point everyone was tense, it was getting dark, and still no place to stay. With the clock ticking we checked a map and saw if we hopped back on a train and get to the other side of town, there was a lot more hotels. Once arriving on the other side it looked more promising with larger hotels, even names we were familiar with like the Hilton and Sheraton. So the search continued, one after the next, and funny enough they all happened to be booked. After another dozen or so places, we came across a hotel that told us the reason everything is booked is because that day a strike happened within the UK and everyone was fleeing to Belgium to find a place to stay, just our luck right? At this point it was getting close to midnight, and after three hours of searching we decided to split up and hope for the best. Three of the girls and myself ended up finding a room for the four of us, and the three others found a place as well. Since it was so late we grabbed some food and went to sleep.
 |
Myself and three other WVU student standing in the center of
The Grand Plaza in Brussels. It has been voted the number
one square in Europe for years now. Used to be a place of trade
and market, and now is a tourist attraction with restaurants and shops.
|
Even though the night before was a rough one, I learned so much about one of my favorite places in Europe so far! As I’ve said a few times, things happen, and you just have to roll with the punches. Everything happened to work out very well after the mishap we encountered. I’m more than happy I went to Brussels on a whim, but from now on I’ll make sure the next city I visit there isn’t a strike going on. (haha!)
3 July 2015
Face Negotiation Theory
 |
Friends and classmates
exploring Erfurt, Germany.
|
This happened to myself last Friday in Germany. Before class, me and two other students went on campus to study. As we were walking there I grabbed a coffee at one of the coffee shops on campus and ended up sitting across campus at the other coffee stop to study since they had tables outside. About 10 minutes passed and all of the sudden an employee from the coffee shop I was sitting at approached our table. He came to us speaking German, and as one of the girls thought he was asking for a coffee order that wasn't the case. He then pointed to my coffee and as I discussed in my previous blog, Communication Accommodation Theory made me realized it wasn't a coffee order, and he didn’t seem angry, but I could tell he wasn't happy either. At this point I explained I was sorry but I speak English, so then he changed from German to English to explain to me that it wasn't okay to have my coffee from the other coffee shop at their tables. He stated that selling coffee is how they make their money, and it's almost rude to do that. For his sake he was saving his image and telling me this so I wouldn't do this again in the future. He didn’t want to come off in a negative way because he wasn’t yelling, but he also didn’t want what they consider “the norms” to be broken. For my self-image I didn’t want to come off in a negative was either, I immediately apologized and moved to the closest university bench that was right by the coffee shop. Back home, this would have not been an issue, and that is why I made sure to be sincere with my apology. Cultures are different and we as a human race don't understand everyone's culture to an exact T, hence why we call them different. It’s an experience and being in a different culture is the only way I can truly come to understand these differences.
But once again I'm in Germany and still in shock! I'm human and mistakes happen, especially in cultures other than my own. I much rather have someone tell me I’m in the wrong versus looking stupid repeatedly. It's only week three, and I can't wait to see what else is in store for the next six weeks ahead! Everything here is a learning experience I couldn’t be happier about and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
25 June 2015
Communication Accommodation Theory
 |
A mug from Erfurt, Germany with
a carving of the cathedral in Erfurt.
|
Erfurt, Thuringia, Germany -- Wait… so I'm actually in Germany now!? Still seems unreal, but I've been having the time of my life so far and it's only week two! Upon arriving I was told to not really worry about speaking German because "everyone knows English," just in case you've never been to Germany that's a big old lie. Don't get me wrong a lot of people know English, and have been more than helpful when trying to help me get whatever it is I need, but a theory known as Communication Accommodation Theory better explains how I’ve been helped around here lately. Communication Accommodation Theory, or “code switching” in the communication world pretty much boils down to how we as humans accommodate or make accommodations to get what we need or want. Phrases such as "Was it das" (what is this) “Sprechen Sie Englisch" (do you speak English) have got me pretty far as of now, but sometimes hand symbols have got me further. Signs that are known by Germans and Americans as simple as thumbs up or down for yes or no, or pointing to show them what I’m trying to get are basic ones that help a lot. Just the other day, for example, I went into an ice cream shop and wanted one ice cream cone and I asked if they spoke English and since no one responded I assumed that pointing was the best strategy. It wasn't until I struggled to pick my ice cream that the woman told the man in English to add another scoop because I was American. Wait what?! I get I can't speak fluent German, but I promise because I'm from the United States that I don't need more ice cream, but hey I'll totally take it haha. Even though for this case the lady in the ice cream shop did know English, it was the fact that they understood what I wanted just by pointing and accommodating to me to make sure in the end I was getting what I wanted. It truly amazes me, how we as humans cannot always understand verbally what people want, but just by using simple gestures we can always come to relate or try to at least.
Overall, most people are seriously overly friendly and they try their hardest to help understand as well. But as of now, pointing and simply shaking my head is what is best for getting me by and people seem to be okay with that. Being frustrated with my lack of verbal communication for a few moments is totally worth every second I get to spend here. I love, love, love Germany so far, and I hope before I leave this place I get to understand more German, and I can’t wait to see what my following weeks have in store!
31 May 2015
Introduction
No comments:
Post a Comment