TRA[life]VELS

Yesterday, instead of Starnberg, we made our way to Garmisch. I'm not quite sure how it worked out that way, but I don't think any of us really cared where we were going as long as we were just...going. Garmisch is a town in the mountains about 3 hours south-west of Regensburg. So we left an uncharacteristically sunny Regensburg from the train station around 9am headed toward our connecting train in Munich. We honestly didn't have too good of an idea where we were headed, what we would do when we got there, or even if we were on the right train, but again, none of us seemed to care. We were going to enjoy our independence for all it was worth. As the train made its way further and further south, the towns got more obscure. At one point we just kept looking out the window wondering where our sun had gone! I don't think any of us would have been shocked to look out the window and see a couple eskimos, or a dog sled. The blowing snow made it hard to see much past the few scattered houses. Soon enough our train pulls into the Garmisch station. By the sound of the town's name, and the "under construction" look of the station, we jumped to conclusions that this place was a little sketch. Thankfully, as soon as we walked out the doors and into the town, we realized how great the place actually was. The sun started peeking through and we could see mountains on every side. For those of you who know Big Bear, it reminded me a little of that - only Germanized. So we walked around for a bit stomping through some serious snow, looked at some souvenirs, and then headed for a coffee shop. I'm going to miss that about Germany [the bakery/coffee shops]...Starbucks doesn't even come close. After some "coffee chocolat," Heather and Lisa stayed to read for a bit while Chris and I explored some more. We ran into a couple cool churches, and stumbled on an awesome path that goes kind of above the city. Pictures would explain it better than a description, but I didn't actually take any [oops!]. The other three did though, so check them out.

Yesterday we took another field trip and went to Nurnberg which is about an hour away from Regensburg. Our plan was to hop on the bus, get to the train station, and then head strait to Nurnberg. Well, we were almost late for our bus, and we thought we were almost late for our train...so we ran a little. Turns out that the train was running 15 minutes late that morning. This is pretty unusual for Germany. Just within the past couple decades, scheduling has been getting a little more lax. There's an old saying that went something to the effect of being able to set your watch by the German trains. Anyway, with our extra time, some of the group decided to go grab some coffee while the rest of us went to wait on the train that had just pulled in. So we're sitting on the train and we notice that its about to take off [a little sooner than we thought]. Just as we're about to get nervous for our 4 classmates, we see them hurrying down the platform. At that moment Chris turns to me and goes, "wouldn't it be hilarious if the doors just slammed right now?" Well coincidentally, they did...with a vengeance. As soon as those doors slammed we all looked over to see if they had made it. One-two-three...oh no, where's Jeff? I looked out the window to see Jeff standing alone on the platform, pleading with the railway worker. When I saw the man vehemently wave his hands to signal "once they're closed, they're closed" I knew Jeff wouldn't be joining us that day. Luckily we weren't too far from the hostel. What made the whole thing even more comical was the fact that 5 minutes later, a man with a cart came rolling down the aisle shouting "coffee!...cappuccino!...tea!"

Yesterday was my mom's birthday. Last year I was able to drive home so we could go out to dinner at Johnny Carino's, but this year we had to settle with skype. Yesterday's AmBex adventure was a trip to Neuschwanstein castle, built for [mad] King Ludwig in the 1800s in classic medieval style. The castle was never finished because Ludwig died (likely murder) in the process...just a few days after being declared insane (likely because he was massively in debt!). It took us around four hours to reach the castle by train and we had to switch trains twice. This winter day produced uncharacteristic sunshine that bounced off the snow and fog to display a picturesque scene. Neuschwanstein is also the castle that the Disney castle was modeled after. Oh! I also found out that this is the lace of the actual Swan Lake (Ludwig had an odd obsession with swans). The hike up to the castle was long, and even colder than what we've been used to, but we were so distracted by the snow-peaked Bavarian Alps that we didn't mind all that much. After a minor bus mishap in Regensburg, we finally made it back to the hostel...safe, sound, and in enough time to wish mom a "happy birthday!"

Yesterday our group made the trip to Rothenburg, Germany, a Medieval town about 2 and a half hours from Regensburg. The town is very well preserved. The best way to describe it is probably cliche, but I felt exactly like I stepped back in time. The cobblestone roads, the moss covered bridges, and the colorful houses all contributed to the atmosphere. Apparently, Rothenburg was the inspirations for the setting of Pinocchio. We also kept coming across shops filled with teddy bears, and Kelley told us that this was the place where they first made them. I don't know too much about the history of the town, just that it is extremely old and extremely well preserved. The parts that were destroyed in World War 2 were restored back to their original state. We came across this cool little carousel that was way too small for us...but we sat on it anyway. When we put in a euro, we were disappointed to find out that it didn't work. We got a cool picture though! There was a man in the shop window laughing at us the whole time...Germans get a kick out of American tourists...because we're completely clueless.

This morning we had the pleasure of having a guest lecturer for our “People and Places of Germany” class, Frau Obermier. She is a German school teacher for 10-14 year olds and her pupils are staying here with us at the youth hostel for a few days. In Germany, all children go to elementary school until they turn 10 (I think) and then attend one of three types of schools: The Gymnasium, Realschule, or Hauptschule. The Gymnasium is for bright students who plan on attending a university. The Hauptschule is more vocational training…students who aren’t as intellectual who are preparing for hands on jobs such as a baker, a hairdresser, or a bricklayer. The Realschule is one that is sort of in-between. Frau Obermier is a Hauptschule teacher and her students are here to prepare for how to do a job interview. These students must get a job and begin working at age 14 and 15! The interview we had with her was supposed to be focused mainly on education, but it ended up being quite a bit broader than that. What really interested me was when our conversation took a turn toward politics and religion. “I think people have to believe in something,” said Frau Obermier. How interesting coming from a very liberal woman (like most Germans) whose idea of religion is a cross hanging in Bavarian classrooms and going to church or mass on holidays. In Germany, southern Germany at least, religion is still very much a part of life. On your birth certificate your parents declare you either Protestant or Catholic. As you can see, religion is more politics than anything. Many people even declare themselves atheists because declaring yourself either Protestant or Catholic means you have to pay taxes to your church. Contrast this with the United States. Religion is banned from politics (over-emphasis on separation of church and state) and equality and neutrality of religion is highly valued. Despite this, there are more believers (or at least claimed to be believers) in the United States than in Germany or the rest of Europe. I did not realize how much the socialistic mindset had a hold on a Germans worldview. They see everything through the lense of socialism, because that is what makes sense to them. Frau Obermier could not fathom why certain Americans did not support Obama’s vision of socializing medicine.

“I think people have to believe in something…” it is impossible not to have faith in something. Now that is something we all could agree on.

Later on we went on a tour of the churches in Regensburg. The cathedral our group went to 2 days ago is the largest…it towers over the entire city, but there are surprisingly many other churches, both Protestant and Catholic, that surround it. We even saw the place where Napoleon stayed for a time. Something I didn’t know before, the current Pope is from Regensburg and lives here part of the year. The walls of the large cathedral were once covered in soot from the war, but recently much of that has been sand blasted off, so you’ll see parts of the church that are completely black while other sections carry their normal color. I started taking more pictures of all the churches today, but unfortunately, the wifi is extremely slow here…it may take some time!

This morning we all woke up to SNOW!...that may not sound like a big deal to some of you, but for the California kids it definitely was. What started as a light snowfall ended up as snowballs being chucked at us from the sky. I'm not even kidding. The snow is significant because we had to walk in it, probably 20-30 minutes to the church from the Regensburg Youth Hostel and back. This morning we visited a Catholic church to see the Regensburg boys' choir. That choir is supposed to be second only to the Vienna Boys' Choir. Both are world famous. The thing about seeing the boys' choir was that they performed at Mass. This was my first experience with a Mass. The inside of the church (kirche) was no different in temperature than outside. Even with our warmest clothes on, the cold penetrated so much that after awhile it was actually painful. Apparently, being able to tolerate the cold is equated with piety. The church was very ornate, like most Catholic churches. Bavaria is prominently Catholic, and this church wasn't destroyed in the war, so it dates back very far. The inside was decorated in gold plated saints and stained glass windows...it was beautiful, but I couldn't help thinking about what paid for those elaborate decorations. So we stood, then we sat, then we stood again, and sat again...you get it. The service was entirely in German and Latin so I caught about every 10th word. Mass finally ended and we walked back out onto the snow covered cobblestone. If my fingers hadn't been so frozen I would have taken some pictures, but I haven't taken any yet. Thankfully, I have 88 more days left!

After a loooooooong day of flights we're finally here. 5 hour flight to Philadelphia then a 7 hour flight to Munich.

Hallo Freunde!