Week 1

The first week of our program has come and gone in the blink of an eye! After
spending two days in London and walking for what seemed like 20 miles, Brenna,
Stormie, and I were all exhausted already! We were able to see Big Ben, the
British Parliament, the London Bridge, the Tower Bridge, and we even rode the
London Eye. The only down side was that everything was really expensive.
When we arrived in Basel, Switzerland on Monday, I was astounded by the
beautiful countryside. This was one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen!
Our first stop in this country was to Novartis, which was awesome! The
veterinarians and researchers there were extremely hospitable and did the
utmost to make us feel welcome and to inform us about the inner workings of
their company. The tours of the different labs were my personal favorites of the
trip - especially the pill press. The staff answered all of our questions thoroughly
and were more than happy to host our group. I know I can speak for the whole
group when I say that we all really enjoyed the trip. The second big part of the
trip was a tour of Basel - which was fantastic! The tour guide was personable
and very knowledgeable about the city's history.

After Switzerland came Leipzig, Germany... hosts (the thought of whom terrified
me), the Leipzig Veterinary School, the Leipzig Zoo, and Bergfest. I was assigned
to be hosted by two girls, Sophia and Johanna, who were not as scary as I had
imagined. They were very hospitable and did everything they could to make me
feel welcome and comfortable. Although I was admittedly nervous initially to live
in a stranger's home for three days, I am honestly happy that I did. I thoroughly
enjoyed talking to my hosts and learning more about their culture, upbringings,
and veterinary school experiences. I might have even talked one of them in to
doing an internship in Bryan, once she is finished! My hosts were genuinely great
girls, and I am very appreciative of their hospitality. We have all exchanged
information and plan to keep in touch. As for Bergfest - mere words cannot
describe the enormity of this party. I have never seen anything like it. It was not
just beer and drunken celebratory dancing, it was traditions and camaraderie to
commemorate the achievement of an important milestone. I LOVED it. Texas
A&M University has many great traditions of which we can all be proud, but the
College of Veterinary Medicine needs a new one...Bergfest! Toward the end of
the week, we were able to experience more of the academic side of the Leipzig
Veterinary School. We were able to brush up on dog and equine limb anatomy
and learn about the extensive anatomy program that the Germans must
complete. Although I am glad to be done with anatomy, I wish we had more
semesters of it as they do. I know I would benefit greatly from another course to
more firmly impress it within my mind. I really liked the beautiful and homey
atmosphere of the vet school campus. The facilities were very nice, and I
especially enjoyed the tour of the equine internal medicine ward where we were
able to see and discuss the hospital's current cases.

Thursday was our visit to the Historical Collection at Leipzig Instituaion for
Veterinary Medicine and the Leipzig Zoo! The historical collection was very
interesting; and I thought it was so cool that the tour guide himself had been
there long enough to know some of the most influential people involved in the
development of the university. I was amazed at how similar some of the old
veterinary instruments were to those used today. This part of the trip was
definitely very interesting. The Leipzig Zoo was one of the most unique zoos I
have ever visited. I really enjoyed the simulated rainforest and the boat ride
through it. The wide variety of animals was awesome, and I loved how the zoo
created each animal's natural habitat so closely. The veterinarian who toured us
through the zoo was very knowledgeable and was more than happy to tell us
anything we might want to know about each animal.

For our first free weekend, Brenna, Stormie, and I traveled to Prague in the Czech
Republic. We stayed in our first hostel ever, Sir Toby's Hostel, and I thought the
accommodations were better than any hotel. We had a three-person private
room with a private bathroom and a little kitchenette area. The only bad part
was that people were literally screaming and singing at all hours of the night and
into the morning. Luckily, I am a heavy sleeper, but my friends did not fare as well
in that regard. On Saturday, we toured the Terezin Concentration Camp, which
was very interesting. In this camp, prisoners were allowed to make drawings,
paintings, music, and plays, which was very unique. We were able to see some of
the works of art of some of those who perished during Hitler's "Final Resolution"
and some who managed to survive. We also walked within the walls of the camp
and saw the small rooms that housed up to 700 people with only one bathroom
(that was out of order), the showers that were too few to bathe the many people
properly, the hill where people executed, the railroad that transported people to
Auschwitz, and the cemetery where many of those who perished at Terezin were
buried. The tour was not a happy one, but it was an important and interesting
one that was very informational. Our excursion for Sunday was much more
cheery. We took a one-day tour of Prague that started on a bus, then
commenced to walking, then took a stop at a very nice restaurant overlooking
the city where we were served a three-course meal, then continued to a boattour
including a beverage and ice cream! We were very impressed with this tour,
as it was the perfect combination of all aspects of tourism all in one. I am looking
forward to the next week of our trip, and hope that it will be as fun and
interesting as the last!