BERLIN

Hey everybody!

Sorry that I haven't updated very soon, but... I have no excuse. :)  My goal is to post once a week for an update, so I will try to follow that!

So, from the 24th to the 28th I went to Berlin, and it was AWESOME! :) We had a tour about the Berlin Wall, went to the parliament building and had a tour, a city tour, went the the Brandenburger Tor, and went to the new Holocaust memorial.

A lot of people ask me what I am missing the most in Germany. Of course, the number one thing I miss are family and friends, but I know they will still be there when I get back. For your entertainment, here is a list of things that I couldn’t live without, and therefore I have brought with me to Germany. (And one thing that is killing me because I don’t have it.) My next blog post will about what I won’t be able to live without when I go back to the US. Trust me, most of it will be food. :)

1) My calculator. This sounds stupid, but I couldn’t live without it. We are doing calculus in my math class right now, and while I already know the topic because I took the same class last year, I am REALLY bad at simple math. My calculus class ruined it for me. I know, that is backwards, but I cannot do it. My host mom always makes fun of me when I try and do math related things.

For example--
Me to my host mom: Aren’t you excited?! Your birthday is in 13 days!
Host mom: No, it isn’t.
Me: Of course it is! Today is the 30th, and your birthday is on the 13th!
Host mom: Try that again.
Me: Oh.

I blamed it on not knowing there were 31 days in October, but I knew. Oh, I knew. It was a moment of shame.

2) Peanut Butter M&Ms.
Okay, I could definitely live without these things, mostly because I didn’t eat them a whole lot before I got here, but if I didn’t have them, I think my host sister would kill me. :) She REALLY likes them. I brought them mostly because of the peanut butter thing (Europeans aren’t as into peanut butter as we Americans), but they are actually quite good, if you didn’t know. I shared them with my host sister and now she wants to eat them all! And I brought 5 large bags of them with...

3) My IPad.
I never thought of myself as one of those dorky IPad owners, but after my mom bought me one as a generous going away gift/graduating from High School gift (WOHOO! Thanks mom!) I LOVE it. It is perfect for those moments where I really need to look up a German word, and then I can pull it out of my bag and quick look it up. It was really useful when I got the words to kill (umbringen) and to bring (bringen) mixed up.

4) My Watch.
I think that watches here are much more popular. In the US I always just looked at my phone when I needed to know the time, but I am so glad that I bought a watch with my awesome friend Kelsey before I came. This way counting down the minutes until Informatik is over is easier.

5) BATH AND BODY WORKS HAND SANITZER.
Let’s get real. I would die if I didn’t have this stuff. It is like crack. Clean, floral-smelling crack. I filled my suitcase with the stuff before I left because, unfortunately, they do not have B&B here! I know-- they are crazy. :) I also like to watch people’s reactions when I slather on Apple Lavender. Normally they just sniff a few times, and look around wondering where the delicious smell comes from. :)

6) Chipotle.
Lastly, my one true love. It kills me a little inside that there is no Chipotle here. I have an honest addiction to the stuff and I am going through some serious withdrawals. I got the Chipotle shakes. This was my last meal in the states, and will surely be my first when I come home again. If you’ve never had it, think of it as Mexican Subway. :) I went to a theme-park with my host family, and there was a Mexico themed section. I persuaded them into eating here, and I got a burrito. It was heaven. My nowhere near as good as Chipotle. Chipotle-- I miss you.

Okay folks, that is all.

I will update soon! (I hope!)

Beth