Whole New World

I already have faced some interesting situations here in Berlin. First day, we all slept a lot and decided to go out and decided to get a bite to eat. I had my first beer in Berlin and it came with a straw. Kinda embarrassing? I refuse to drink a beer through a straw! I drank it the "natural" way. The beer was interesting because it was very sweet (almost like juice; kind of carbonated) yet you could still taste the fact that the drink was a beer. I thought of it as a beer/champagne. I only drank it because I was told that you needed to try it at least once seeing that it was native to Berlin. 

The night out was fun. There were a few of us you could hold there eyes up a little longer and decided to continue without sleep. I had my first communication break down where I tried going to the bathroom and I couldn't figure out which room was the boys room. A man walked out of the girls room (actually cleaning) and I thought it was the men's room. It was funny but embarrassing when the old man needed to tell me that I was going the wrong way. I didn't know the German words for the men's room and women's room. It didn't help that the figures on the doors both looked like they were wearing dresses. One dress just looked younger than the other. It was an experience. 

On the second day, the tour of Berlin was extremely interesting and worth while. To think that Berlin was once a battle ground was a fact that was never truly thought of until now. You learn a lot in history classes but being here in Germany has really opened my eyes and I have found a new appreciation for history. Seeing parts and pieces of the wall was amazing and hearing first hand stories from Gudren was really cool. The before and after pictures of war and of the wall was a huge part of the my experience here in this country. It really makes you appreciate where your from and the opportunities you have in the U.S. The unity of East and West Germany was an enormous change for Germany and I am in aw after seeing what I saw. I'm glad its not going on now or else this class would have been interesting. The architecture here is beautiful and the old buildings with all the different people and animals on them really give you the feel that your in a whole new world. 

I only know the word "prost'!!!
Aloha