We flew Luthansa, of course, into Frankfurt and bussed to Budenheim, where we were to have our orientation sessions with our German program administrators. We had the afternoon off, so I took the opportunity to play some Kegelbahn (German bowling, which is much harder than the American sort), try my hand at foosball, play table tennis (a major pastime here, with many competitive clubs and leagues), and take a walk in the surrounding area.
Only in Europe could you take a short stroll and happen across an old stone tower built in the 1800s - and that's just what we did! I found a German webpage that tells me a local painter and stuccoer named Adam Allendorf constructed a platform that still offers views of the Rhine River and the nearby city of Mainz.
I also made my first German friends later that day, two program alumni who had gone to America for a year. It felt good to get an early start on those intercultural connections we're supposed to me making.
After even more program orientation the next day, it was time for a group picture then a bus trip out to our respective language schools.
All 75 of us then split up to go to three different cities for the next two months, during which time we will be in language training. I traveled with the biggest group, which is now living in Cologne! I got my first look at my new city and language school later just a few hours later, which was obviously occasion for a new (Cologne) group picture.
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| Not quite everyone was ready for this one |
Then it was time to meet our host families! Everyone in the program lives with a German who gives a program participant their own room. I myself now live with a nice middle-aged roofer named Paul, who lives on the 2nd floor of a 2-story house. On the 1st floor is Paul's friend and landlord, who herself is hosting another program participant, my friend Sarah. Having someone else in the program in my house made the transition easier. Plus, our host parents were nice enough to have a welcome barbecue for us the night we arrived, which not only let us all get to know each other but also helped Sarah and I get used to speaking nothing but German.
The next day was for - you guessed it - more orientation! But first, we had the morning off, and Sarah and I were intent on using it. We wasted no time visiting our new city's biggest attraction - the Kölner Dom, or Cologne Cathedral in English. This building is just amazing. First off, it's enormous - it is the largest Gothic cathedral in northern Europe and is the 2nd-tallest church of the entire continent. Second, it's amazingly decorated - every time you look at it, you can discover a new detail you hadn't notice before. And third, it took 632 years to build, starting in year 1248. It's just an overall incredibly striking building. It was one of the only structures in Cologne to survive World War II (despite having been hit by 14 bombs). The Allied bombers left it either out of respect for its heritage or, it's surmised, to allow its 516-foot tall spires to serve as landmarks for other bomber pilots.
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| Just one of several entrances. No worries, there will be many, many more pictures of its exterior in upcoming posts |
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| Everywhere you look there is more stained glass |
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| The original design for this window was lost in WWII. The plain placeholder panes were supplanted in 2007 by 11,500 pieces of colored glass that resemble pixels. The archbishop of the cathedral was opposed to this design, though |
Every time I see this building, I'm still amazed. You can see it from all over the city, since buildings in its vicinity may not be built above a certain height.
Sarah and I supplemented our first tour of the cathedral with a look through the innumerable valuables in the cathedral's treasury and museum, which served as a reminder of how rich and powerful the Catholic Church was. We also spent an hour trekking up and down 509 steps to reach a viewing platform 300 feet above our new city.
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| Unfortunately only my phone camera fit through the netting. I guess they didn't know I was coming |
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| Once we finished, I was ready to be done with spiral staircases for a while |
After orientation, Sarah and I spent the evening talking auf Deutsch with some guests of our host parents and then visiting a few bars with other program participants. It was that night we had our first exposure to Cologne's signature local brew, a type of light hoppy beer called Kölsch. It's a bit bitter but definitely not bad. It's also ubiquitous - every cafe and bar offers some sort of Kölsch, and it's always the cheapest drink on the menu. Another program participant found a whole book on Kölsch, and in said book there was an entire chapter just dedicated to talking about its head! An interesting note about Kölsch is that it quickly loses flavor once it has been poured out of the tap. Thus it is served in tiny .2 liter glasses to facilitate its quick consumption.
And so went my first few days in Deutschland! More to come soon!
P.S. Pictures are great, but video is fun too. Check out the video blog of my friend and fellow program participant Nicole, which covered our first week here. She shows the campus on which our US orientation took place, then the Schloss where we had our German orientation, the tower I referred to earlier in this post, and more. A special bonus - I make an appearance or two!