Half way...

Its crazy to think that our program is now half over. We have done so much that I lose track of what day it is, when we've done what activities, how long ago we went to certain cities, etc. It just all runs together after a while since everything is so hectic.

Earlier last week, we visited the veterinary school in Leipzig, which was super nice. We were able to see a collection of old vet instruments as well as partake in an anatomy lab with some German vet students. It was pretty cool, especially since it was a clinical anatomy elective class where they were actually doing medical procedures instead of just memorizing body parts and functions. We also were able to visit the zoo, which was amazing. The animal exhibits, especially for some of the apes and monkeys, were very spacious and natural for the animals.

After Leipzig, we made our way to Berlin. The city as a whole was cool because of the history of it all, even though I'm not a big city person. I really enjoyed the bike tour, and even though it seemed dangerous at times, it was nice to have a break from walking. The zoo in Berlin was also my favorite zoo so far out of all that we have seen. The feline exhibit was outstanding. The outside areas opened into a cat house that you could walk through and see all of the cats hanging out in the air conditioning. I absolutely love all cats, and they definitely had the largest variety. I even got to see a sand cat! I've read about them and researched them in the past, but I'd never seen one in person until Berlin! We also visited the IZW Leibniz Institute, which opened my eyes to a new side of research. I never thought I'd be interested in research at all really, I wanted to do more clinical or even surgery type work, especially on exotics in zoos. But hearing about some of the projects going on at the institute and reading about others on printed posters throughout the facility made me extremely interested in some of their projects. Hopefully, if time allows, I'll be able to come back for an internship for some sort of feline research project!

My free weekend was spent in Prague with the rest of the group. It was a really pretty city, but honestly, I wasn't too impressed. Its definitely not a place I would recommend over any city we've been to in Germany. It was extremely touristy, and though most people seemed to know English, they weren't the nicest people to interact with. We did visit a concentration camp though, which was pretty cool.


We made it back yesterday to Hannover, and then had another busy day today. It was the most hands on day so far, we were able to pet several animals including a -very- adorable baby goat, and then we got to dehorn cattle! And we also were able to watch a basketball sized lesion get drained, so that was pretty awesome also.

Today I have decided to blogg about my experiences in Berlin as well as my weekend in Prague. My favorite part of Berlin was the behind the scences tour of the hippo exhibit. Looking down on the hippo enclosure and getting to feed the hippos was amazing. It was also interesting to learn how the newborn hippos are introduced into the group and that the zookeepers and veterinary staff are able to work so well with an untrained animal. Along the same lines, watching the seal trainer use simple commands such as to raise the seal's flipper or to wait were not all that impressive to the spectators, but were very important to the veterinary staff to draw blood and to examine the animal.
Also, I am a lover of history, so the bike tour of Berlin was also one of my favorite experiences. To explain, the story about the students from West Berlin sneaking people from East Berlin into West Berlin using tunnels was fascinating. Also, the stumbling stones in front of the houses in Berlin, even though contraversial, are a good reminder of the souls lost during one of the darkest times in human history. Even walking through Prague, I noticed several stones on the sidewalk next to buildings where Jewish families used to live. Prehaps the most uneasy feeling came while walking through the memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe. To me, the memorial represented the Nazi destruction of the Jews at the beginning of the war on the edges of the memorial, small and perhaps those from the outside would not notice. But as you walked into the middle of the memorial, into destruction, death, and hatred, I began to feel overwhemled, uneasy, and lost. There was no sence or understanding it, even from its core, and prehaps that is its meaning after all.
On Saturday and Sunday, I headed for Prague. I was not quite sure what to expect so I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered all the city had to offer. The Prague castle and the view from Charile's Bridge was beautiful especially at night. One of my favorite sights was the astrolabe and clock tower at the old town square. One of my good friends explained the history of the astrolabe and how it works, so it was impressive to see it first hand. On Sunday, I headed for Terezin concentration camp. This was a sombering experience to say the least. It has been said to be one of the nicer work camps but the conditions in which the prisoners lived was uphauling. Sometimes 600 to 900 prisoners lived together in one room and children and the elderly suffered the most. I also learned that most of the inhabitants died of disease or were sent to dead camps such as Ashiwtz. There was a large population of children at the camp so there were many children's drawings depicting life before the war and their longing for freedom. It was hard to see, but important I think to always remember so that we do not again repeat history. Prague, to me, was a very modern city with beautiful bulidings, cheap souvenir shops, and crazy night life. I hope someday to return and spend more time and hopefully learn some of the language.

Wait...the program is half over already?

Two weeks down! I probably should have blogged earlier, but this is the first night I haven't been too exhausted to do so. Where to start? I love Bonn. Out of Bonn, Cologne, Leipzig, Berlin, and Freiburg, I would definitely pick Bonn every time. I love how small and quiet it is compared to those other cities, and it's beautiful and historical and all that jazz. I shall return.

Just as a fun exercise, I'm going to make a quick list of the things that pop into my head about the trip so far, in order of popping: Döner. Red pandas. Bike tour! Sunburns. The little green and red crosswalk guys with hats. Delicious beer everywhere. Velociraptors and dodo birds. Black forest cake. Climbing up mountains. Sore feet. Americans are loud. Haribo=Yum. I love public transport except when it smells funny.

I think that pretty much somes everything up, but I'll write some more anyway.

Our first free weekend we spent in the black forest region of Germany in Freiburg. It's a touristy little city, but for good reason I suppose. It's gorgeous, the food and cake is fantastic, there's little rivers of water flowing through the streets, and you can take a cable car ride to the top of a mountain. What's not to like? I recommend it to anyone who wants a tasty, relaxing weekend. We're going to Prague early tomorrow morning, so if I'm not pickpocketed of all my belongings I will report back to you on that.

I feel like I've already learned so much about how to navigate around Europe and about the neat little cultural differences; I'm looking forward to learning more during the remaining two weeks of the program!

Super Zoom's Blog 2

So

The first week and the subsequent weekend were a whirlwind tour.  It was exhausting: usually on vacations I'm the one waking everyone up at 6 am so we can make it in time to the museum or bookstore, or some special event; I like to be organized and on time
(side note: I really like how today I said something about being obsessive and Rachel and James were like "duh")
anywho, that being said, even with my mad organization skillz, I walk too slow; it's becoming a problem

But I'd rather have painful walking experiences and see all the amazing things we've seen, as opposed to not seeing them

*Silent Fox*

So
I'm seriously considering coming back here next year to work at the Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research here in Berlin
right at this moment, I feel like I miss research: maybe I would like it better if it had to do with animals
I really think that all the things that made me get fed up with research would not be there in research focused on conservation
I'm SO excited! There were so many amazing project to work on
http://www.izw-berlin.de/en/izw/index.html

I keep wavering about what I think I'm going to end up doing as a DVM
I thought I knew, and then it changes, and then I'm sure again, and then it changes again
I have a lot of passion for a lot of things; But I know I want to be involved in several things, it's just a matter if it ends up being my primary job, or more of a hobby type thing

I have not been having enough caffeine for this trip
it's becoming a problem

The First Impression

It has been almost a week and a half since we arrived in Germnay. Most everything here is about what I anticipated or had experienced abroad before. The food however is exceptionally good wherever I have gone. (except on the train ride to Leipzig but that was more my own fault than anything).
So far we have visited an organic farm (which was quite interesting), taken multiple city tours, visited various research facilities (each one took care of things a little bit differently but everything was interesting), toured multiple zoos, and even toured a vet school.
Our first free weekend was split between Munich and Vienna. The first, Munich, was very pretty and we had an excellent time touring Cinderella's Castle and looking around the city for a bit. Our train left very late and we were pretty tired so we were very glad to have our sleeping cart all to ourselves. We arrived in Vienna after a not-so-fun train ride and once the morning issues were resolved and we were checked in to our hotel things started getting better. We visited the zoo, which was very interesting, and ate at a very nice restaurant. After not sleeping much on the train it was nice to sleep in warm cozy beds. The next day we left for Leipzig which took most of the day on a train but we made it without problems.
This week has been a bit more crazy because our schedules are much more dense with more activities taking place. However, I have really enjoyed being able to go on rounds, visit with other vet students, and see how certain things within the vet school work outside of the US. We travel to Prague tomorrow so hopefully it won't be as diffiicult of a ride as last weekend.

First Week

We just finished our first week in Bonn and Cologne and started on our second in Leipzig. I can't believe how fast our first week flew by! I had an amazing time in both Bonn and Cologne. Bonn is an amazing city, I really like all of the older buildings and walking down by the Rhine river. Our first day there we visited an organic farm in Bonn, which was really interesting because I have never been to an organic farm. I enjoyed learning about how everything worked, they also had sheep and chickens there as well as some horses that they board for other people. I also enjoyed going out to the dairy research center. I though that it was really interesting learning about the research they were doing out there and the area surrounding the farm was really pretty. In addition we did a walking tour of Bonn that I really enjoyed, despite the rain and hail that started about halfway through it. Later in the week we went to Cologne to visit the zoo and do a walking a tour in the afternoon. At the zoo we got a behind the scenes tour of the elephant house, which was really impressive. The house has a huge indoor part with individual pens for the elephants to eat and have the trainer work with them. We were able to watch some of the training and some of the medical treatments, which I enjoyed getting to watch. After that we took a tram back the main station, and got off there. When you walk out of the station the first thing you see is the Cologne cathedral which absolutely amazing. We got to see the inside as well and the inside is even more beautiful than the outside, I took lots of pictures but I don't think they will be able to do it justice. On Friday we left Bonn to visit Paris for the weekend. We saw the eiffel tower Friday night and walked the almost 700 steps to the second level (I learned then that I'm not in nearly as good of shape as I had thought :)). However it was well worth it getting to see the view of Paris from there! The next day we visited the Louvre in the morning, which I really enjoyed and then I went sat in the gardens close to it for a little bit and just enjoyed the weather and the scenery. After that we went to Notre Dame which was amazing! The inside of the church was indescribably beautiful, I'm so glad that we were able to visit. After that we went to the catacombs beneath Notre Dame and were able to see the ruins of the Roman city, which was really interesting to see. We finished off our weekend in Paris with a dinner cruise on the Seine river, we did it at night so we were able to see Paris all lit up, we also got an amazing view of the effiel tower all lit and lots of picutres.

1st Week in Germany

The first week in Germany was a world wind. We finally got all of the train situations figured out and survived some cold weather. A German spring felt like a medium Texas winter. My two favorite itinerary items was the lecture about homeopathy and touring the elephant enclosure at the Koln Zoo. Honestly I was rather skeptical about homeopathy having any effect on the animal at all. A simple demonstration of how different methods can be used to calm an aggressive or anxious dog cured me of my skepticism. I think it can be useful in allowing the owner to bond with the animal and making exams go more smoothly. It’s always better when a dog likes to come into a vet clinic. I also think it can be useful in managing chronic/progressive problems such as arthritis. The elephant enclosure at the Koln Zoo is by far the best one I’ve seen. I love that it was a large enclosure with the option to come inside when the elephants felt like it. The fencing allowed the public to be relatively close to the animals. I think the elephants enjoy having something more to look at than concrete walls.

Other highlight of the week is walking up a mountain to see Drachenfels Castle ruins. Walking up the mountain seemed to take forever and a day. My legs were not happy about it. Every time the road curved we thought we were almost there. The view was completely worth it. We got there right at sunset and spent about 30 min taking pictures and only walked down because we didn’t want to go down a mountain in the dark. I could see the top of the Koln Cathedral in the distance aka really far away.

Taylor's Blog Numero Uno

My first week in Germany, and let me just say that jet lag is killer. 7 hours ahead here means that even though my body told me it was 1 in the morning and I should be sleeping, the clock said 8 a.m. and time to start the day. So the first day was exhausting and I honestly remember very little of it. The program actually started on our second day there in Bonn. Bonn is a beautiful city that reminded me a lot of College Station in that it was definitely a college town. I felt comfortable and I think that this was the perfect place to start the program. With the program we were in Bonn for 4 nights with our last day, Friday, spent in Cologne. While in Bonn I got my first taste of real German food which I have to say is delicious. I haven’t had a bad meal yet.

We visited an organic farm in the middle of Bonn that was home to some adorable baby lambs. (And other things but obviously the baby animals were the best) We also got to visit with the vet that runs the animal research facilities at the Bonn medical school. We also got a lecture on alternative medicine and homeopathy which was interesting. The city tour of Bonn was…fun. We spent most of it huddled under a tree freezing, attempting not to get hailed on. For twenty minutes. Fun. Next was a dairy farm which was really cool since there aren’t too many smaller ones still in Texas. We also visited a history museum in Bonn which, considering German history, was extremely interesting if a little somber.

Our day in Cologne started with a behind the scenes tour of the Cologne Zoo. This included getting to go into the elephant enclosures and watch the trainers treat and practice training the elephants. (There were babies!) The zoo was a lot of fun. I learned that the people of Germany really like raccoons, they have them in the zoo since they’re not native to Germany though apparently they have a tendency to escape and end up on top of apartment buildings…go figure. We also got a guided tour of Cologne which included one of the impressive cathedrals that I have ever seen. It was massive and gorgeous and famous for holding the tombs/bones of the three wise men. Some of us walked up to the top of the cathedral. My legs protested the truly ridiculous amounts of stairs but it was worth it in the end.

So concludes my first week of the program.

The good and the bad

Our first week in Germany was pretty fast paced, exhausting, yet fun. Bonn was definitely my favorite town so far, it didn't feel as large and tourist-y as others such as Cologne, Munich, Vienna and Leipzig. It was easy going, beautiful, and a good town to help us adjust to the new culture. We visited an organic farm and a dairy farm, which were both pretty cool. A few summers ago, I studied abroad in Belize, where we also went to numerous organic farms as well as a dairy, and it was neat to see the differences between European facilities, American facilities, and facilities in a developing country. During the week, there was also a talk on holistic animal medicine. That was probably my least favorite learning experience thus far. I think acupuncture and the like has its benefits, but there are still so many things within the holistic and related medicine categories that I do not think are real or true and that have no scientific backing. I'm sure some methods work on some animals, but without an explanation why, its hard for me to take it seriously and think that it is a real method that will work on a large percentage of animals.

The real adventure for me actually began on our first weekend. Annamarie and I set off with just the two of us to Munich. We had to rush to trains, stress out, make changes, and hope that our trains weren't too delayed. All in all, we did pretty well and got to where we needed to go. We arrived after midnight in Munich, but managed to quickly find our hotel which was just across the street from the train station. We spent all day Friday at Neuschwanstein Castle in the Bavarian Alps. It was my first time to ever see mountains! I'm still working on fixing up images so I can upload them. The castle was also amazing, and we got to go on this small, super high bridge to get a better view. We left with a tour company from the main train station in Munich to get to the castle. It was nice because there were only 6 of us in our group, which normally has about 20 according to the tour guide. We were with a guy and his son from Israel (I think?) and an English couple. The couple was really nice, and we talked to them throughout the trip. Once we got back from the castle, we walked down one of the main walkways of Munich where they had all of their restaurants and bars and such. It was really cool because they had a bunch of decorations and screens up in the plaza areas since the big Munich-Chelsea soccer finals game was there the next day.

Our train departed from Munich to Vienna at about 11:40 at night. Our plan was to sleep on the train, which arrived in Vienna at 5:45am, then to go to the Vienna Zoo, hang out the rest of the day, then get some sleep. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. On the train, we were sleeping in a locked cabin. I had my phone out to use as an alarm and my backpack was on the floor. We were both sleeping across the seats in the cabin with our heads by the window, my phone and backpack between our heads. Somehow, during the night, someone broke into our cabin, took my phone and my wallet out of my backpack, and got off the train. Later on, once I realized my things were gone, two girls came up and said that they saw two guys unlock our cabin, grab something and then get off at the next stop, but the whole story seemed weird. So then we finally got to Vienna with maybe 2 hours of sleep. We hiked over half the town looking for the US Embassy, then finally found it after getting directions from some cops. Unfortunately, the embassy was closed on Saturday. However, some guards were out in the station and connected us to some US Marines within the embassy. It was soooooo nice to hear voices speaking English without an accent. We wanted them to come down to the security stand where we were just so we could hug them haha. I tried using the phone in the security place to call my credit cards to cancel them, since I had copies of them with me, but we couldn't get through. The marine on the phone was finally able to connect me to my parents in the states, and they called my credit card and phone companies to get all of my stuff canceled. So far, all is well, except I have to call Wells Fargo in order to get a new debit card sent to me here in Germany. Luckily, my passport, Eurail pass, camera and computer were all left, so it was only an inconvenience and nothing too extremely serious. I just thank God that I didn't wake up, I don't know what I would've done, or what they would've done if we did wake up. I'm just glad that God was able to keep us safe and to only let a few things get taken.

After an exhausting day of running around town with little food and little sleep and hauling around 50+ pounds of luggage, we finally arrived at our hotel. We had booked a super nice 4 star hotel right across the street from the Vienna Zoo, and we were so extremely thankful that our nice hotel happened to be on the night that we needed it most. After checking in, we freshened up and, even though we were in a haze from being so exhausted, we managed to make it over to the zoo. It really was a nice zoo, and we got to see giant pandas!! They had three!! They were so cool! We hit the other important animals and made it a very quick visit, since we were unsure as to how long we could last. Not only that, but the zoo was probably one of the worst places thus far with people smoking cigarettes, and that whole aspect is my least favorite part about being here in Europe. I don't drink, but I can deal with people around me drinking. But smoking is something different, its not only killing you, but its killing everyone around you, and it baffles me as to why its so popular here even with all of our advanced medical knowledge. Oh well.

Once we returned to our hotel, I was finally able to skype with my fiancee, and it was nice to actually talk to him and see him. After a bit of a chat, we decided to head off to bed. We slept 13 hours in our super comfortable, dark, quiet, 4 star hotel room. It was so worth it. not only that, but when we woke up in the morning, our breakfast consisted of eggs, bacon, fruit, breads and juices. It was amazing, and made us feel so much better.

We arrived back in Leipzig after 9pm last night, and I was so glad to be back with the rest of our group, and I'm glad we're rarely going out with such a small number of people from here on out. Though the weekend was very nice, it was still extremely stressful. Hopefully everything else on the trip will be fun and easy in comparison to this excursion.

Angry Dairy cow from Kris's view

Today was a very interesting day. We were working at the large animal clinic at Lepzig university going over cases. As the professor was talking, I heard a man screaming and an angry female dairy cow came running towards my professor and our group of students. We were in a narrow hallway between the stalls so we really didn't have anywhere to run. Some of the students went into the horse stalls and other students ran into a closet. My professor and I ran into a room that we thought had a door...but there was no door. ;(
The cow ran towards my professor and I am pinned us in the narrow room. I was holding the cow by the neck as best as a could trying to push it back but I was having no luck. One of the other professors at Lepzig university screamed at my professor to get out and pulled him out of the narrow room. I was suck in the corner and couldn't move. I was just trying to hold on to the cow to prevent her from running me into the wall. She was very scared and just wanted to leave. Finally one of the other students grabbed the cow and together we were able to push it out of the narrow room. ;) I was a bit shaken for a while, but I knew that it was not the cow's fault. It could have injured me if it wanted too but it didn't. I was just glad that no one was hurt and that the cow is happy and safe.
As a side note, I am rediscovering hot tea because I have come to the conclusion it is a sin in Germany to put ice in tea.
Kris

Video blog: week 1

I'll probably type out a whole shebang soon; but until I have real time to do that, here's my video blog covering hilights of week one:

I want to add: I think one of my favorite moments of this weekend was our group hug in the Vatican

REFLECTION ON FIRST WEEK J

     We are one week into our program, and it feels like time is FLYING by.  I am having an absolutely amazing time exploring the magnificent architecture and interesting culture.  I hope to not only blog about what we are doing but also about what makes it so special.

Bonn: Just walking around Bonn, you get the feeling of a quiet small town.  For example, when we were told we were going to visit an organic farm, I totally thought we would be riding out of the city to some tiny little farm.  Instead, we ended up actually on a farm in Bonn itself.  I was completely surprised since that’s not really something one would see back home in Dallas, not to mention the fact that it was organic.  It was extremely cool to see all the animals and plants being raised so close to the city and unaltered by pesticides and drugs. 

      Everywhere you look in Bonn you see something breathtakingly beautiful, even while walking around while getting pelted by hail and torrential rain and being frozen by icy cold wind.  The cobbled streets, the very old cathedrals, and old architecture looks nothing like anywhere I have been before.  You really get a sense of history. 

     I think one of my favorite experiences in Bonn was climbing the mountain to see Drachenfels castle.  I really didn’t want to go, but my friends were dead set on it.  It ended up really showing me how much I can physically handle if I really push myself, and the long climb was absolutely worth it.  The view was spectacular and the castle ruins were really awe-inspiring considering how old they were.

Cologne:  Even though we only spent a day in Cologne, I felt like I got a great feel of the city.  I loved the cathedral, and it’s always impressive to see architecture like that.  I adored the zoo and was surprised by the vast number of animals they had.  The behind the scenes tour of the elephant house was probably my favorite part, as I don’t think I have ever been that close to an elephant (although I have been that close to a herd of angry rhinos); I can’t wait to see what the Berlin zoo has in store too! 

More to come on Rome and this coming week!

First week down...3 more to go!

Halo!  Guten tag aus Deutschland!  Well, it has been a week and I am still alive...mostly.  So far I love it here.  Our program coordinator, Nils, is awesome and really knows his history.  The monuments, cathedrals, and all-around-awesomeness are breathtaking and mind blowing.  


For the first leg of "The Amazing Race: Deutschland", we were in Bonn and Koln.  I could live in Bonn forever I think.  The metro station, doners, sites, and history are all very impressive.  The Koln Zoo was the best so far because we got to go behind the scenes and see the trainers work with the elephants.  I probably posted 200 pics just from this week alone.


As for the first free weekend, my group of 3VMs and a lone 2VM ventured to Paris.  We, of course, did the touristy thing and went to the second level of the Eiffel Tower...an impressive 687 steps! The second day there, we went to the Louvre and basically ran through it. I can officially say I have seen the Mona Lisa with my own eyes and have the pictures to prove this! We then walked through Notre Dame.  I was so impressed and in awe with this cathedral.  Not only was it beautiful, but as I walked through, I felt completely at peace and calm.  It was an amazing feeling.  While at Notre Dame, we walked through the underground catacombs and saw some spectacular ruins from the Roman Age.  Another great aspect of this free weekend was the festival going on around Notre Dame when we were there.  Bakers came from all over Paris to sell their goods...and they were very good!  


After Notre Dame, we hiked up a few hills to see the Pantheon; a building of Roman architecture that is now a museum.  Next on the list: Champs Elysees and the Triumphant Arch.  This was the only "must see" for me while in Paris.  Not only is this the 5th Avenue of Paris, but (more importantly) it is the final stage of Le Tour de France each year.  Ever since I became addicted to watching and following le Tour each year, I have dreamed of seeing the amazing arch the mighty few race towards each year.


Finally, to make a great weekend better, we took a dinner cruise on the Seine River through the center of Paris.  This was the most spectacular of all views.  We cruised by the Lourve, the Eiffel Tower, several beautiful cathedrals, and much more. As we toasted our weekend goodbye with a tasty glass of champagne, we sat and enjoyed the perfect end to our weekend in Paris and our first week in Europe.


Overall, I have to say I love almost everything I've experience so far (2 exceptions): 1) some nasty cheese discovered while being brave and ordering the unknown in Paris and 2) having to pay more for soda or water than for the meal I am eating.  Regardless, this has been the most amazing week of my life thus far.  I am excited to be in Leipzig and Berlin for the coming week and hope to top the past week with awesomeness!


Ciao for now!

I'm on the train to Paris right now, and it seems like a nice time to reflect on the last week.  It's nice to be outside of a large group and to be quiet and still for a while. It seems like there are many moments of panic, instability, and questioning while you're traveling abroad. At least I feel like its this way for me.  Yes, there has been a lot of frustration-dealing with not understanding the language, feeling guilty for not knowing, dealing with classmates, or organizing and planning weekend trips. With all of these things going on, I really appreciate the opportunity to be still and quiet. I like having the train rides as personal time and time to rest and recuperate.  But the difficult things aren't what I want to focus on, I want to remember the trip for the positive things involved. I want to remember the organ playing in the cologne cathedral, the brisk air flowing off the Rhein river, and the green of the countryside here in Germany.  I know that I'm less conservative than the traditional Texan,  but I didn't realize how my viewpoint on America would change. I know we're only a week in, but I'm looking at my actions, my thought processes, and my relationships to others in a different way.  I'm excited to see where this journey continues to take me. We visited Paris this past weekend, and I'm still awestruck by the immensity and history of that place. I'm going to keep this post short, but next time I'll focus on one event and how that has impacted me as a youthful traveler. Tschuss!

First week

Ok, so I guess I should start with our arrival in Deutschland and go from there. Frankfurt: Lexie and I decided to go to Frankfurt two days before the program to be able to see Frankfurt instead of just flying through it. We booked the Frankfurt Hostel because it was relatively cheap (€23 a night) and it was next to the Frankfurt central train station (Hauptbahnhof if you will). They definitely failed to mention on their website that they were in the middle of the red light district. That was an interesting first experience for our first night in Germany. Also our first hostel experience staying in a four person room with two random people - everything went smoothly though. The rest of our time was spent wandering the town, going to the Deutsches Filmmuseum where they had a Charlie Chaplin exhibit, sampling mustard at a mustard gallery (yeah, that's a thing), and walking through a street market. All in all a great way to start the trip.  Bonn: Bonn was a great town. It was small enough to manage the public transportation for those of us that were new to it, but still a busy college town. In Bonn we visited an organic farm (Gut Ostler), went to the House of Experimental Therapy where they do animal experiments (mostly mice), heard a lecture on homeopathic medicine that was very interesting, visited the Center of Integrated Dairy Research, and went to the Haus der Geschichte (house of history) with the program. On our break time we hiked to the Drachenfels ruins (which took a lot more effort than we thought it would) and went to the Haribo store - imagine an entire store of gummy candy - it was overwhelming. Also in Bonn we got caught in a hail storm in the middle of May which was quite odd for all of us when we're used to it being in the 90s in May.  Koeln:  Our day in Koeln (Cologne) started very early, at 5:30 in the morning. We took a train from Bonn to the Koelner Zoo, where we got to come in early and go behind the scenes with the elephants and see the keepers feeding, training, medicating (foot abscesses and broken tusks), and generally caring for 15 elephants. It was an amazing experience. After the elephants, we got to wander the zoo until lunch and got to see a raccoon (Waschbaer) exhibit, which was very strange to us - the Germans were all very interesting in seeing them. After lunch we got to see the Koelner Dom (cathedral). Despite all the pictures I have seen of that cathedral prior to this trip, I could not believe how stunning it was. The day we went happened to be the Ascension/Father's Day, so there were people everywhere celebrating the holiday. When we went into the cathedral they were just starting mass and hearing the organs start up in that cathedral that survived the bombings from WWII gave me goosebumps. We decided to climb to the top of one of the spires (probably not the best idea after just climbing to Drachenfels the night before) - 533 circular steps later we got to enjoy the view from the cathedral, which was stunning.  That was our first week of the program - an amazing whirlwind adventure - and I'm so glad to have 3 more weeks to go! I'm exhausted from our weekend in Rome, so I will blog on that later.

Bonn

Its only been four days since I left the U.S. and embarked on the most extensive travel experience of my life so far.  We aren't even a week into it, and already its been a wild ride. 

There have been some frustrations, mainly dealing with arranging transportation for weekend excursions, but I am having the time of my life.  Fighting through the jet lag, our group 18 eager American veterinary students have encountered organic farmers, researchers of all focuses, dairymen, holistic healers, and the thousands of Bonn residents.  One thing that has struck me in Bonn is the constant beauty of the place.

On Monday, our group got up early, enjoyed an authentic German breakfast of warmed rolls, cold cuts and cheese, and sliced bell peppers and tomatoes.  Jams, Nutella, and breakfast cereals were also made available to us, and of course, lots of excellent coffee (which I already know I will miss dearly when I return home).  At 8:20, we all headed toward the Deutsche Bahn to catch the 8:30 train to the bus station.  From there we took a bus to the historic farm turned organic, the Gut Ostler.  The farm's history can be traced as far back as Bonn's own to the time of Ancient Rome, but in the last twenty years has been transformed into a self-sufficient organic farm. That's right.  Completely organic.  No chemicals, no castrations, and no docking of tails.  Nichts.  But they have everything.  The farm grows a plethora of vegetables and fruits, raises pigs, geese, chickens, and sheep and even keeps a colony of wild bees. 

The fact that this farm remains nestled in the center of the city of Bonn is amazing enough, however, I had not expected to gain the appreciation I now have for what the organic farmer's main goals are.  Gut Ostler maintains a "do no harm" method of operation and carry out all of their work in absolute balance with the themselves, the animals and the environment. 

They do not use chemicals, so they do not use pesticides on their crops.  Instead, they rely on the potent repelling effect of distillations from plants like stinging nettles to ward of aphids and other pests.  Sometimes the bugs win, sometimes the farmers win.  It is a very "live, and let live" mind set.  If a certain batch of veggies was decimated by invading insects, the response was "I will not worry about that one crop, I have so many others to sell."  Even the weeds that might be considered unsightly, however, harmless, were left in rows to be sorted out when the crops are harvested.  Its as if they trusted the environment to be what it was meant to be, accept the losses, but reap the greater benefits.  The whole philosophy is so different from that of the mass scale productions.  There is a strong connection to the land (an ancient German concept) that is maintained in organic farming and the consideration of consequences on the land itself that I think should be greatly considered in our efforts to improve agricultural product quality and health of the environment.  I do not know very much about the agriculture industry but I do know that the small farmers are succumbing to the influence of large scale corporations.  While small scale organic farming might not seem like the most practical method, there are some things they have very right, and warrant greater consideration.

This post is already long enough so I will stop here.  Tomorrow its up at 5:30 and on to the Cologne Zoo!!

Tschuss!

3 days in Germany

Hello again. ;) Well, I arrived successfully in Germany and have found my new favorite food Duran!! It is a pocket of lamby goodness topped with vegetables and a garlic sauce and the best part is that it is only 3.50 euros!! I have already eaten 2.

On Monday we went to an organic farm and learned about organic farming in Germany. I love gardening so this is a subject that I am very interested in. Also, I spent 2010-2011 in Portland, Oregon which is a very organic community. The practice of people being able to rent out a plot of land to farm is a great opportunity for the locals to get back to the land through harvesting from it. In the afternoon, the group headed for an animal research laboratory on the campus of Bonn university. There, we learned about the process of embryo transfer in mice as well as the equipment and upkeep of the facility. For myself, the ventilation system and the self sealing cages were quite impressive.

On Tuesday, the group visited a doctor of homeopathy which is for myself hard to accept due to the lack to scientific studies and proven medical research saying that homeopathy works. Also, it was a bit difficult to understand how different combinations of flowers were used in order to cause symptoms for a particular disease. For myself, I am not against using homeopathy in combination with a more western treatment regiment, but by itself would be difficult to recommend to a client. In the afternoon, the group went on a tour of Bonn which was delayed halfway by hail and pouring rain. ;( We all managed to make a penguin like formation to protect the weak like myself who had forgotten their umbrellas from the hail and bitter cold. The best part of the tour for myself was the discovery of the 2000 year-old floor and tiles. To think that the town was so old and full of such history was amazing.

On Wednesday, the group visited a dairy farm on the other side of the Rhine river and listen to several PhD lectures regarding movement, nutrition, and lameness in dairy cattle. For myself, I found the second lecture in regards to measured movement in cattle and lameness to be the most interesting because at Oregon State University a team from Israel came an did a similar project, so I am familiar with the subject matter. In the afternoon, we visited the House of History and I completely loved it. From a young age I have always loved history and politics and the tour blended them beautifully. The most interesting part of the tour for myself was the fall of the Berlin wall and the reunification of East and West Germany. I remember my father talking about it often in 1989 when I was only 6 but to him it was unbelievable because he grew up in during the cold war and never believed that West and East Germany would be reunited. Truly for the German people, it is one to the high points in their history. Tomorrow, we are going to the zoo in Koln and I am looking forward to it. For now, it is sleepy time...I will blog again soon.

Kris

Time to go- repost

Hello everyone. This is my first post on this blog in regards to my trip to Germany with the Texas A&M veterinary college. My flight leaves this Saturday and I find that I am not anxious or scared at all, but instead look forward to this adventure. During my trip, I hope to learn a great deal about how veterinary medicine is practiced in Europe and any differences that exist. I am also planning to travel to Japan later this summer and hope to gain insight into veterinary medical practices in their country as well. I have never been to Germany before, but I believe that it will be a lot more like Japan than the United States. I look forward to this great adventure and I hope to get to sing karaoke with Dr. Wasser during this journey as well. I will repost again when I land in Germany, so for the time being sleep well and I will see you all soon. Kris

ALMOST TIME!!!!

I'm sitting in the airport and our flight has been delayed. I guess we'll have to wait an extra hour to get to Germany. I was so busy spazing out about not forgetting anything that I almost forgot to post this post! However, my giant backpack is packed and I'm so, so, so ready to go!!!!!

Despite having been abroad before, I'm super excited to get to Germany.  I love experiencing new cultures and seeing just how different they are from us.  I think I'm most excited about getting to meet the veterinary students in Europe and getting a glimpse into their daily lives.  I think I'm most nervous about going between countries, as I don't speak anything but English and a tiny bit of Spanish that managed to stay in my brain from high school.

THIS IS GOING TO BE GREAT :)

And we're off!

Well, here it is. It's the morning before my flight to Germany. I can hardly believe after all this planning and investing that it's finally reachable. I've been wanting to travel all of my life, but there have always been more important things. Now it's time to experience the new, to breathe in the air of a foreign land, to meet new and interesting people, and to become a better person by doing so.

I consider myself a very open and tolerant person, but I'm excited to see how this trip will broaden my perspectives on humanity. Something that stuck with me from the program was the idea that when we come back, we'll be going through a similar culture shock experience, even though we'll be coming back to our homeland. This isn't because the U.S. has changed in any way, but traveling abroad has molded us into new people.

I'm currently pretty darn nervous, sitting in front of my giant backpack full of life's necessities. Strange to think how we live so abundantly at home, when really all we need is so little. I'm also elated for the unknown; it feels good to throw myself into something, and just experience it. There's not often times in one's life that raw adventure is possible.

For the moment, I'm going to pack everything into the car, eat my last American meal, and take some deep breaths as I plunge forward into the depths of Europe.

Finally Time

I am so excited to finally go on this trip! After making it through the second semester of first year, this is definitely the reward I wanted. I'm looking forward to meeting the German students and learning about vet school in Germany. I'm hoping that I can remember all my German from school and can get more comfortable with speaking it. My main concern at this point is making all of our flight connections and trains for the weekend trips and finding places to stay for each weekend. As soon as all of those plans are solidified I'm sure I will feel much better. Financial aid was definitely a difficult part of this trip, with last minute changes and freak outs on my part - hopefully they will get that fixed for next year.

Finally the time to get on a plane and fly to Germany has arrived! My emotions have been on a rollercoaster for the past few weeks, I have either been really excited about the trip or really nervous. The little German I know doesn't seem to stick. I guess I'll be practicing on the long flight. Honestly the train system completely confuses me. (I've never used public transportation before) I can't wait to see new places and experience a new culture.

Starting off

I leave tomorrow and it's hard to believe.  It's been a while since I've traveled and I'd almost forgotten the conflicting emotions before beginning a trip like this.  The intense excitement wars with the anxiousness that accompanies the beginning of anything new and uncertain.  I've been gathering things for the trip for days and perpetually running through a mental checklist of what I need, what I might need, what I would miss most, what would just be unnecessary weight, and all the other considerations.  Oddly enough, one of my most troublesome questions was what books to bring.  I've always been a big reader, and it is particularly comforting in times of stress (like this last semester, amiright?).  However, being gone for six weeks, and flying with baggage restrictions, books could easily become a weighty nuisance.  I had to sift through my reading list and pick what I think would keep me occupied while still not filling my luggage with no room for anything else.  A friend also made the wise recommendation to bring something I find exceptionally reassuring and home-like, so when the inevitable culture-shock hits, I'll have something to turn to.  This seemed a lot to consider, but I think I finally found a compromise.  I settled on bringing Anna Karenina, which I've never read and have heard is excellent, to keep me busy (since it's one of those books you could likely use as a weapon if need dictated), and several of C. S. Lewis's works, since I've always found Lewis's writing comforting even when it can be challenging.  I suppose we'll find out if that's enough starting tomorrow!  Germany, here we come!

It's Almost Time

So in less than 24 hours I'll be getting on a plane to spend the next 4 weeks of my life in Europe. It's exciting and terrifying at the same time. I've only been abroad once before and that was to Spain so the language barrier is nothing new but I was only gone for 2 weeks then. I imagine some homesickness in my future. I fully expect to miss my family, friends, and pets a whole lot. (I'm missing my little brother's graduation which he's not too happy about.) Still, I'm excited to see and do new things, especially of the veterinary variety. Meeting vet students from other countries is probably what I'm most excited about while the travel (by train) is what I'm most anxious about. I'm counting down the hours and I can't wait!

Eek.

I have finally finished the giant list of things I had to do before leaving for Germany...except one thing...packing. I've laid out everything I want to take and I can tell you, it doesn't look like it's going to fit in my tiny 44 liter pack. After this, I'm going to go try and wrestle it all in there; should be fun.

So I'm excited of course. I'm also rather distressed about leaving my boyfriend, Brian, behind, but he tells me he'll be fine. I'm not convinced. He would love to go to Germany too, but it doesn't work out for him to come visit after the program. Neither of us has any international traveling experience, so part of my goal here is to learn everything there is to know about getting around Europe and the language. That way, I'll be able to take Brian back to Europe and we won't look like your typical confused tourists, yay!

Another reason I wanted to go on this trip stems from my passion for horseback riding. I've been interested in German culture since I had two riding trainers who were from there. Some of the best horses and riders in the world come from Germany, and I'm hoping to catch a glimpse of the English riding world there to compare to what I know here.

I've been working on the language a bit when I have time, and I really am excited to test it out. I'm thinking that learning German from an iphone translator app is probably not the best way to go about it, but that's okay. I'm sure it will make for some funny/awkward moments when I'm trying to have a conversation in German.

I don't know what else to say except that I'm ready to get this trip started! 

Almost Time!!

I can't believe that in less than 24 hours I will be on a plane heading to Germany! I keep fluctuating between being extremely excited and nervous. I'm nervous because I have never been to Europe and I'm not entirely sure what to expect. I have also never traveled by train so that will definately be a new experience, but one I am looking forward to. I'm also worried about not having everything that I need because, to my dismay, my backpack didn't fit nearly as much as I thought it would :). But mostly I'm just very excited about getting to Germany and getting to meet new people and see things I have never seen before. I love meeting people from different countries and learing about their background and culture and now I will get to experience it first hand.

Nearly time to leave

Hard to believe I'll be in route to Europe in 15 hours!!!  Its been 15 years since I have been to Europe.  I have been eagerly awaiting a trip back and now its finally happening.  Even as a kid I loved learning about and experiancing new cultures and now I get to combine it with learning about veterinary medicine in Europe! The minute I heard about the Veterinary Study Abroad program I knew it was perfect opportunity for me.  I have always wanted to visit Germany and to be able to visit Switzerland, Netherlands, France, Czech Republic, Norway, and Sweden all in one trip is just amazing!  I am so excited!!!  Now I better go back to packing since I will be leaving soon!

Almost time.

Still hard to believe it’s actually happening. There are a number of emotions that would be appropriate for me to feel at this time, two days before departure, but I think dazed would be how to most accurately describe myself at the moment.  I know on Saturday at the airport my mind will be buzzing with excitement and apprehension.   Right now I just don’t know what to expect.  I’ve wanted to go to Europe for years and Germany most of all, and throughout those years I’ve built up and built up my expectations of how spectacular it should be.  Will it?  Will my perspective change?  Will my life change?  I hope so. :)

Just plain EXCITED

            Everything is pretty much packed and sitting in my parent’s formal dining room waiting for one o’clock Saturday to hurry up and get here.  I really only have one concern about the trip, TRAINS SCHEDULES.  I have traveled every way possible except by train so it is a little daunting.  I know once I’ve done it a couple of times it will be cake but it’s just that unknown factor that is scary.  

            There are a few things that I’m going to miss during our four week whirlwind trip across Germany.  First, much to my sister’s dismay, I will be missing her High School Graduation.  Her dismay was not about me not being there for a momentous occasion in her life. It is that “it isn’t fair that she had to sit through two of my graduations and that I will not have to sit through her graduation.” I do feel really bad about it and have decided that will get her a nice gift from somewhere over in Europe.  Next I’m going to miss not having to pay to go to the bathroom or for a glass of water! I guess we Americans are just spoiled when it comes to stuff like that.  Finally, I will miss my pets that have provided many laughs and love when I needed it to most.

            I cannot believe that our trip starts in just in just TWO DAYS, it feels like so long ago that we filled out the initial paper work.  See you in Germany!

Two Days!!

I can't believe that the time is finally here! In two days, I will depart on a trip to take me farther away from home than I have ever been before. My interest in study abroad trips started in undergrad when I spent a month in Belize, but it was nothing compared to what we're in for. The plane ride was only an hour and a half, the native language was English, and they were still in the Central time zone! It was so easy to adjust, and I know for a fact things will be vastly different for this trip. With the exception of Belize, I have never been outside of the US, and I haven't really traveled from Texas that much in general. I've been to Florida 4 times, flying 3 and driving at night the 4th. The Frio River is the farthest west I have ever been and, sadly, Dallas is as far north. So this is a huge change for me, and I am super excited! Hopefully, all of my stresses of making sure we catch trains, find our hotels, etc will eventually ease up as we get settled in Germany, even though I know we're up against a hectic (yet fun!) schedule.

And so it begins

After traveling abroad before I understand the culture shock and language barrier I am about to experience. However, I feel as though I am woefully unprepared. There are still so many more things to do even though my flight leaves less than 3 days from now.
As the final preparations fall in to place I begin to grasp the sheer amount of traveling I am about to do. Between traveling all around Germany I will be going to Italy, the Czech Republic, France, Ireland, and the United Kingdom all within a five week window! It sounds crazy when I list everything off and even crazier when I realize that all of the traveling will mean little sleep for me. Coming out of an insane first year of vet school the last thing I need is less sleep. But it will all be worth it in the end!
I am very excited about getting the opportunity to see new places, make new friends, and visit family. Truly this will be an experience to remember!

It's almost time!

As I make the final preparations for departure, I am excited and overwhelmed at the same time! I have never been away from home for this long, and this is also the first time I have left the United States (I've never even been to Mexico, and I've lived in Texas my whole life!). I am SO excited thinking of all the places we will visit - Germany (of course), Switzerland, Italy, Czech Republic, Belgium, The Netherlands, Spain, and Ireland. I don't know what to expect, but I definitely think it will be the experience of a lifetime!

That's all for now, but I know my posts will get progressively longer once we arrive! Now I'm off to get my reading material for the longest flight I've ever been on (The Hunger Games series! Can't wait!).

Panic Attacks

I keep fluctuating between pure ecstasy and utter panic.  I am so very excited to be going to Europe.  I can't believe I'm going to be in another country, another continent, for 6 weeks.  I'm going to be visiting to all the places I've always dreamed of going.  I'm going to be away from my puppies and my friends and my family and my new boyfriend for 6 weeks.
It's a dilemma.

I have no idea what to pack for this trip.  I am typically an over-prepared person, so narrowing down what I absolutely need.  It's exhausting.

I'm just so very happy that finals are over and that we will all be in Germany so soon!
It's gonna be so awesome. We will all be best friends by the time this is over!

Also, I think most people that I've talked to are on board for my idea of doing a video blog. Hopefully we can do that once a week!

Yae!

-Nats