Chris Roman: Berlin Life

Some great news: between this and my next post, my blog will FINALLY be up to date! I can finally start writing about what life here in Berlin is like.

First, I have to mention that I really enjoy my host family. I'm appreciative not only for the chance to speak lots of German every single day, but also for the fact that dinner is cooked and laundry is washed for me! It has been 4 and a half years since that was done on a consistent basis, and boy, if it isn't a welcome adjustment. My 9-year old host brother and I still enjoy playing soccer together, the cat and I are getting along well despite the fact that I'm no cat person, and my host dad is hilarious. When he's not at work or biking to or from there, he loves talking, giving me handshakes (I've gotten at least 10 since I've moved in), putting on funny accents (in both English and German), talking, reciting German poetry, watching South Park, playing online computer games with his son, talking, and making stupid typical "dad jokes." His teenaged kids seem tired of his act, but I love it!

Next, my political science classes at Freie Universität (FU) have officially begun. All my classes are in German, so I have quickly found out that I have to finalize what classes I want to take based not purely on the class topic but instead on how slowly and clearly (or not) the professor speaks. In only two classes have I had a rapidly speaking or mumbling professor, so for the other 5 courses I will be taking instead, I have made sure I have no problem with understanding the lecturer. Three months ago, though, I know I would have been pretty lost listening to any of these professors talk. I've made some major German progress!

Already I've ascertained that FU is an incredibly diverse place. Classes are generally pretty antisocial settings, and I haven't gotten the chance to meet too many people yet, but I already know students from England, Iceland, Canada, Japan, Belgium, Russia, Korea, France, Germany, and the Netherlands. It's a cool environment, and I think I'll enjoy it even more as time goes on.

And now, to the pictures:

I saw one of Berlin's major landmarks already on one of my first few days here. A young German guy named Alex, who is a "tutor" hired by my program to help me and the other program participants here in Berlin adjust, took us on a long walking tour of the city early on

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, the country's first government-sponsored Holocaust memorial. The use of "murdered" in the title was a big deal, since it meant Germany was officially admitting to a crime

A few days later, my friend Tony and I tracked down the former location of Hitler's bunker

We also visited the Tränenpalast ("Palace of Tears," so named since East Germans had to give tearful goodbyes to their West German loved ones here). That is the former border crossing at Berlin Friedrichstraße station, where East Germans said farewell to visitors going back to West Germany. From 1962 to 1989 it was the border crossing for travellers by S-bahn, U-bahn and train between East and West Germany. Today it's a museum with many historical items from the era including this sign, which would have really irked me

My host family, at least my host dad, is a bag fan of hiking and bike riding. Right near our district of Berlin is an extensive woods

Olympic Stadium

Frog in the woods

Sacrower See

One of a few bike rides I've been on with my host dad

Grunewaldturm, built in 1897-99, is a historical tower in the Grunewald forest southwest of the city

View from the tower. That hill on the left is Teufelsberg, which was formed from the ruins of destroyed buildings after WWII (the hill's name in English is 'Devil's Mountain'). Berlin is way in the background

My host dad posits that if you see a statue of an emperor figure in Germany, his name is either Wilhelm, Friedrich, or a combination of the two. This is Wilhelm I

On my birthday, we made sure to get out and do some sightseeing. Our guide to some of the city's biggest sights? My trusty Rick Steves travel book.

This memorial is dedicated to 96 members of the Reichstag who were persecuted and murdered because their politics didn't agree with Hitler's

Chancellor Merkel's office is also called the 'washing machine' by Berliners

The Reichstag, Germany's parliament building, was built in 1890 but nearly burned down in 1933, remaining disused until 1999, at which point the modern dome was completed and the Parliament once again convened here

Berlin Wall Victims Memorial

Monument to the Murdered Sinti and Roma (Gypsies)

The Brandenburg Gate is the only survivor of Berlin's 14 old city wall gates. Napolean once took it to the Louvre but it was retaken by the Prussians in 1813

Hotel Adlon was rebuilt in 1997 since it was destroyed in the war. It was here where Michael Jackson dangled his baby over a balcony railing

Originally only used in East German traffic lights, this"Ampelmann" (traffic light man) design is now used in nearly all of Berlin's pedestrian crossing signals. He is such a cultural icon that there are several souvenir shops dedicated just to Ampelmann-related merchandise

Lenin once studied law here during his exile from Russia

St. Hedwig's Church resembles an upside-down teacup from the outside, and the interior was redone by the East German government, hence the stark looks

Once a gaurdhouse, this building from 1816 was converted by communist authorities in 1960 (it's in East Berlin) to a memorial to the victims of fascism. Today, it's a national memorial that also contains the tomb of an unknown German soldier and concentration camp victim

Berlin's famous TV tower was built in 1969 for the 20th anniversary of the communist government (thus it's also in East Berlin) and as a demonstration of the power of an atheistic state. But as you can sort of see here, whenever the sun hits the tower, a huge ironic cross reflects on the mirrored ball