Please don't pee on the memorials

Hallo!

(First off I am ashamed I have to title this post that)

So I got back from France on Monday, then I have been busy with final papers.
My 10-12 page paper turned into 30 Pages!
But to be fair I included Pictures and a Comic of Stalin and Hitler to be creative so...

Anyways, we arrived back in Berlin around 11pm after a 15 hour bus ride from Paris, through Belgium and finally to Berlin.

Strausberg was very pretty and small. I really enjoyed the older historical part of it over everything else.
Paris was my favorite though of the two by far.

It was larger, and I had no problem getting around. Their Metro is very similiar to Berlins U and S bahns.

We went to Versailles and the Louvre. I also went to the 2nd floor of the Eiffel Tower. I was in line for the very top, but it was to crowded so they had to Close it down.

Sad Face :'c

I enjoyed France, but I prefer Berlin by far.

I also noticed that the French behave very different than the Germans. (For example: Two Young Boys were Dumping water on a homeless man. There was no Need for that. He can't get into the Metro System, so just leave him be.)

Our tour guide in Verdun assumed we were all dumb American children (Even though a few students told her they were from Brazil or Thailand)

My favorite Thing she said (note the sarcasm) was 'Oh you American children, you know nothing of history or borders. Since you don't have borders.'

To which I turned to another girl and asked 'So does that mean Canada and Mexico don't exist?









So on the Topic of Verdun we had a day trip there.

The place of Verdun was the bloodiest battlefield of World War I.

To this day they have something called 'poison lands'

This is where villages used to be, but were destroyed. The ground grows in weird Little Knolls and hills. Nothing can grow there. The trees in Verdun also are't natural.

They are a weird black pine that was gifted to France by Austria I believe, so Verdun could have some trees.




During this whole trip I thought back to a class I had before the trip to Ireland.

We were shown a PowerPoint, and it basically covered things you DON'T do.

On the Verdun trip I saw things I want to add to that.



1) Please don't pee on the Memorials.

´When you first get into Verdun's Center, they have this beautiful Memorial of four soldiers standing shoulder to shoulder. If you look closely you can see they are built to look like a wall. The inscription translates roughly to English as 'You shall not pass.'
Soldiers were told to stand together to build a wall, and not let the enemy pass.
So it is Kind of a big deal.
When we got off the bus for a few minutes to Stretch and to get our tourguides. A few students peed on the Memorial.
A few ladies even went behind the Memorial to pee.

Behind the Memorial, or in front. Don't pee on it.


2)  Don't Mount historical objects(such as cannons)

Ouside the Citadel (which has an interesting ride in it...) They have historical objects on Display. Such as cannons. A few Girls took selfies of themselves on them.
Please. Stop.

3) Also don't Mount flag poles.

Honestly? People wonder why Americans have such a bad repuation abroad..Don't do it. Please don't do it to your own flag also. It's embarassing, and makes you an idiot.

4) Don't make jokes against Religion.

Not funny. And tastless.




It's times like this where I will Claim to be Canadian. Or not American.

It's actually funny because People in Berlin do not automatically assume I am American.
I got mistaken for a German before, and some Germans actually mistook me for Polish or Russian.
They were really excited to talk to me in Polish and then Russian, until they realized I had no clue what they were saying..

--

On a slightly more serious note, my German teacher is horrible.

No one in my class is a fan of her.

She constantly calls me out for being quiet. She swore at me, and treats me like I am a 5 year old.

I have a speach impediment, and having that pointed out constantly is not amusing.

I have had 3 Girls in my class (of 8 Girls) come to me concerned with how she was treating me. One of my friends was so upset she went home and called her mom for advice.

I have spoken to ISA about this, and she has offered to back me up.
But there is only 4 weeks left, and no other B3 class to Switch to.

I will just deal with it, and then she is getting a not so nice Review. I have also given Zuzana(ISA) permission on my behalf to talk to Dirk and Philip or Angelika about it.

I don't Need any backlash (which I know I will get) from this.

Next time though, if she starts up again I am Walking out of the class and going to find Zuzana.
I refuse to talk to the other head of FUBEST here, because I have not had the best of experiences with her.


And on a brighter note I will be booking my ticket for Rome tomorrow hopefully, so I can visit Kaitlin!

Tschüss!

(does anyone know how to Switch Bloggers language? I spell check everything myself, and then German spellcheck takes over...)

Mercy of the Late Birth- German Ideology\ German Slang

Hallo!

So in my totalitarian class, we discussed a popular German ideology that is used to help understand Nazism and its aftermath.

It is called the mercy of the late birth, or 'die Gnade der späten Geburt' in German.


A vast majority of the class was talking about how they couldn't understand how Germans were so indifferent to what was going on. (My Professor even acknowledges that Germans were indifferent). They were talking about how if they were in that situtation they would resist the Nazis.

To which my Professor responds with ' You should first cast a mirror to yourself and see how ugly you are inside.' 'We Germans have a saying 'die Gnade der späten Geburt.' Meaning we have the mercy of the late birth. We did not have to live through what they did. It is easy to say we would never do it, that we would never kill innocent people or become Nazis-Because we were not born then.

He says that the majority of Germans were indifferent, as long as they were not being affected then who cared. Remember the Nazis were VOTED into power, they didn't steal it. There was not much fear amoung Germans for going against the Nazis. They did not want to Spill perfect Aryan blood. They had a sense of freedom, but they chose to not act. It is easy for us to judge them, but would we have acted differently?

It was just a good thing to hear, because I have never heard of that term before.

On another note, in my German class we recieved a list of slang which I thought I would post here, because German slang is so interesting.


1. A German doesn't cut school or work...he 'makes blue'. (Blau machen).

2. A German doesn't beat someone up...'he mixes someone up.' (Jemanden aufmischen)

3. It's not all Greek to a German...'He understands only train Station.' (Nur Bahnhof verstehen)(Blog Name)

4. A German doesn't turn you down if you ask for a date...'he will give you a basket:' (Einen Korb geben)

5. A German doesn't make fun of you... 'he pulls you through the cacao.' (Jemanden durch den Kakao ziehen)

6. A German doesn't have a skeleton in the closet...' He has dirt on the stick'.(Dreck am Stecken haben.)

7. A German woman does not have a nice rack...'she has a lot of Wood in front of her shack.'( Ordentlich Holz vor der Hütte haben).

8. A German is not just slow on the uptake...'He has a plank in front of his head.' (Ein Brett vorm Kopf haben).

9. A German doesn't bite the dust...'He bites the grass'.( Ins Gras beißen).

10. Alternatively he 'Hands in the spoon'. (Den Löffel abgeben).

11. A German doesn't get on your nerves...'he gets on your cookie'. ( Auf den Keks gehen).

12. A German doesn't commit a blunder...'He steps in a bowl of grease'. (Ins Fettnäpfchen treten).

13. A German doesn't have a sharp tounge...'He has hair on his teeth.' (Haare auf den Zähnen haben).

14. A German husband is not henpecked...'He is a slipper hero'. (Pantoffelheld.)

15. A German doesn't overcome his weaker self...'He overcomes his inner pig-dog'. (Den inneren Schweinehund überwinden).

16. A German doesn't make a mountain out of a mole hill...'He makes an elephant out of a mosquito'. ( Aus einer Mücke einen Elefanten machen).

17.  A German doesn'T have to chose between the devil and the deep blue sea(A rock and a hard place)...'he has to chose between pestilence and cholera.' (Die Wahl zwischen Pest und Cholera haben)

18. A German is not told to go jump in a lake...'He is told to go where the pepper grows'. (Geh doch dahin, wo der Pfeffer wächst.)

19. A German is not friggen blind...'He has tomatoes on his eyes' (Tomaten auf den Augen haben).






Tschüss!!
 

Passed into B3

Hallo!

We were able to see our finals for B2 and I passed! Barely-but it's a pass nonetheless. I would have had a much higher score but I was not able to finish the Essay or reading section :(

Anyways this weekend Kaitlins coming to visit, and staying with me. I'm way out in Litcherfelde but it is soo much cheaper then a hostel.

Also last week was break, and I didn't do much. I stayed in Berlin and wandered around. There were Football games. Hertha BSC fans + beer+ crowded SBahns= Jen staying FAAAR away. I was in Westkreuz SBahn Station and there was a mob of Polezei with riot gear.

Hertha BSC fans can get craaazy. When München came to play you had both teams fans going at in Alexanderplatz. They had Police dividing the sides, and their was a LOT of chanting-and shoving. This makes me nervous because shoving at the edge of a sbahn Station while the Police just looked on...

Not much is going on right now, soon it will be Term Paper Season. 10-12 pages each class Minimum. On Wednesday in my Human Condition class we have a survivor from the Holocaust coming. She and her Family survived by going Underground. This will be interesting, because last semester my friend heard her talk and said it was bad. The other classmates were being awfully rude and ignorant. Hopefully it will be better this semester.


On request of my friend, I thought I'd share the Babushka Story.

My friend Lizzy is Orthodox and eastern European. She wears a scarf to church and when its cold outside. In Poland we each bought a square scarf thats perfect for Babushkas.
Fastfoward to November in Berlin..
For those of you who have never been in Berlin in November\December its cold. Not just cold but COLD. The wind is the worse part, you stand outside for 5 minutes and bam instant windburn.
We both hate hats so we figured why not the scarves.
(Keep in mind this is Babushka style)

(babushka)

(Not Babushka. Headscarf for Hijab)


(Keep the above in mind)

 

 

 

So fastfoward again to Winter break. I'm on my sbahn Station and this woman comes up to me. She asks "Sprechen Sie Türkisch?" I say nein and she asks "Sprechen Sie Arabisch?" Once again I say nein... At this point I am totally confused and she asks "Sprechen Sie Deutsch?" I reply Ja ein bisschen... Thinking maybe she needs directions. Then in English she tells me she thought I was a Turkish Muslim. I can't help it. I do not look Turkish or Arabic or whatever she thought I was. She points at my scarf and I reply its just to keep my head warm. Then she digs through a folder and hands me a pamplet. Then I realize she's a Jehovas Witness and trying to convert me because she assumed I was a Muslim.

A few days later (at another SBahn Station) there was this guy sitting next to me. He asks if I speak English and I say yes, ASSUMING he wanted directions. Ha I was wrong. He pointed at my tights and asked where he could get a pair. For his friend. His female friend. Because he's a guy. Not a female. A guy. He wants to know for his female friend, whose a female. He is a guy so he has no clue where to buy tights. Because he is a male. I'm confused and tell him Primark or TKMAXX. I even give him directions. He shakes my hand and tells me his name is Noble and he is from Ghana. He follows me onto the train and asks for my Facebook\number\email to which I say I have none of those. (Lies, but I'm not that stupid.) Then he asks if I am Islamic. I tell him no just cold and he goes "Suuuuureee." I have been around plenty of Muslims here and can say I have never seen one wearing a knee length dress, tights and their hair showing.
Needless to say I was glad when he got off before me.




Tschüss! Bis Bald!
(Also apologize, German Computer capitlizes random words and changes spelling :c  )