WOW has this been a crazy month. Any free time I’ve had since last Christmas has been spent doing some sort of major travel. Immediately following finals week, I spent a week kayak training and the next week camping/kayaking in South Carolina. It was an amazing time full of great sights and experiences – and I got some gym credit and some GH credit in exchange! These courses, English 297D (3) and Kines 001 (1.5) are part of the Adventure Literature Series initiated by Dr. Bob Burkholder. This Series entails an english class during the semester that covers literary works relating to an area of interest, followed by a physical education portion where you actually visit the area you have been studying. Dr. B. and 16 students (along with some TAs) trekked down to South Carolina and kayaked 55 miles through the wilderness to local historically significant areas, such as the Hampton Plantation, Bull Island, and the McClellanville Museum. It was great – I would recommend it to anyone who wants to take a fun, interesting class that ends with a big camping trip!
Shortly after that I turned 21. woo.
Then I frantically packed up my life and drove from State College to Atlanta (14 hrs!), and two days later was on a plane to Germany where I’ll be spending the next 6 months on co-op.
That’s right, 6 months. In Germany. A German government program that sponsors American and Canadian science students to come over on internships is paying me to be here. In Germany. For 6 months. Why no one I know has done this before is beyond me. They PAY you to come over here! Knowing German isn’t even a requirement! but anyway…
I arrived in Europe for the first time in my life at 7:18am. It was an 8 hour, 40 minute flight from Atlanta to Amsterdam. And let me tell you, those international flights may be long, but they are FUN! Each seat has its own personal TV with headphones, and a large library of movies, TV shows, music, and video games to entertain you. Plus, they give you tons of delicious food. It was a great flight and even though it was a red eye, I didn’t get any sleep cuz I was busy kicking the guy next to me’s butt in Yahtzee.
I also saw the sun rise over the Artic Ocean at 3:45 am at 39,000 feet, which may be one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. It was brilliant, and wholly indescribable.
After that flight, I went through the hardest part of my trip, which was a 5 hour layover in Amsterdam. And let me tell you, after a night of zero sleep, it is incredibly difficult to sit down and try to stay awake for 5 hours waiting for your next plane. Just sitting there, watching the clock… reading… time inches along. I couldn’t fall asleep because I had no alarm and if I had happened to doze off, I guarantee I would have slept plum through my flight. plum.
Anyway, I arrived in Dormitz at around 2pm, where I will be living for the next 6 months. Its about 6 miles outside of the small city Erlangen which is where my lab is where I’ll be working. And let me tell you, it may be too early to speak (I’ve only been here 8 hours), but I hit the jackpot. This tiny town of 2,000 people is absolutely gorgeous. In the center of the town, towering over the other buildings, is this stone church that is at least 600 or 700 years old. It, along with the entire town, is absolutely b e a u t i f u l. Oh yea, and I have my own house im subletting for the summer, which is equally beautiful, but in a more modern, spacious, IKEA sort of way. The Ph.D. student who is my mentor while I’m here is pretty awesome, and I also learned that, unusually, almost my entire research lab is comprised of germans (20+ germans!), so while most research labs are quite international and eclectic using english as a common language, my lab speaks German as a common language – this, coupled with the small town, will be HUGE in helping me gain fluency in German. But we’ll see how it goes. I don’t have to go into lab until Monday, so I’m going to explore for the next couple days.
I can’t even imagine what kind of person i’ll be like in December. It’s scary to think how this place i know nothing about, with the people i don’t understand a word they say, will eventually feel like home in less than 6 months. crazy.
so yea, if you’re a science major, what’s your excuse? there are 250 science and engineering internships available in any subject you can think of, 99% of which are 6 weeks to 3 months over the summer. you can count it as a co-op. knowledge of the german language is in no way required. gotta take advantage of these college opportunities before its too late!
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