Dear Friends and Family:

I’m going to do a real update soon, I swear. But the excitement of the World Cup has got me watching games every night— er… okay, I’ll admit, I’m not an avid spots fan, BUT watching the games provides necessary bonding time with my flat/house mates and I think my co-workers (or at least the WM watching ones) are warming up to me because I have something to say about the games.

Real update soooooooon

Shoot! What’s that word? And other chonicles of a foreigner. (Edited)

Living in a country with a culture very separate from my own is a wonderfully unique experience… it allows me to be a ‘foreigner,’ something I’m not typically used to.  Being labeled as such, however, has both positives and negatives that come with it…

The positives-

• Everything is new. Completely new. It doesn’t matter how long I’ve lived in Germany, there are things that I encounter every day and provoke me to think, ‘hmm… well I would never find this in the U.S.’ This means that simply walking around Freiberg on warm, summer evenings is a giant adventure.
• Going along with the previous bullet, I’ve found that I’m more adept to venturing outside of my comfort zone, mainly because everything is so … different and… well… new.  I feel as though I’m encased by this huge ‘no-one-here-knows-you-so-what-the-heck’ security blanket and am able to act in a less self-conscientious manner, more outgoing than normal. Last week, for the first time in a very long time, I heard AMERICAN VOICES. On the streets of Freiberg. BIG DEAL! After mustering up a bit of courage and my best Mid-western accent, I asked my fellow countrymen where they were from and why, of all small German towns, they were here. It turns out that these Americans are opera singers, singing in Freiberg’s ‘Die Zauberflöte,’ and they invited me to watch their performance their following night, and I did. It was wonderful.
• I’m treated like a foreigner. I’ve found that once I open my mouth and start speaking German, my accent is a dead giveaway for ‘I’m not from around here.’ People, in general, are then more susceptible to ask where I’m from and start a conversation.  I attended a vegetarian barbecue a few days ago (I know my brothers cringing right now) and knew a very small fraction of the party. In this case, it was nice to rely on my foreigner-ness to meet new people and know that we have something to talk about.

Negatives-

• You’re a foreigner… and sometimes you have to struggle with pre-determined expectations. Again, anything that I attempt to say in German automatically signifies that I’m not from Germany. Sometimes, people assume that I cannot understand any German and therefore speak to me in simple 3-word sentences. Frustrating, especially considering the fact that I’ve studied the language for several years. That, and I’ve found that the U.S. is still synonymous with McDonald’s; I’m starting to enjoy the shocked looks I get when I tell people I don’t eat meat.
• I have that feeling that I’m doing everything wrong… this really doesn’t belong in the negative category, but rather a ‘weird feeling of displacement’ category. Even though I’ve developed this ‘what-the-heck’ attitude when it comes to most things, there’s still that fundamental want to assimilate and not be so noticeable as a foreigner. I’m discovering that some social norms are very obvious, others- not as much…

C is for cookie

Freiberg: Hey Cassie, remember that one time that you were 5km from your apartment and I decided to downpour your whole bike ride home? Oh, that was funny!
Cassie: Why yes, Freiberg… I do remember that.
Okay, it wasn’t that bad. I actually enjoyed this ride- it reminded me of my carefree childhood summers and how fun it was play in a warm rain. I couldn’t stop laughing and smiling the entire ride home. (The clothes in the picture are soaking wet, if you couldn’t tell.)

–

If there is anything that I’ve learned in my life, it’s this: the easiest way to get to know people is through food. The simple enjoyment of a sweet snack or savory meal is something that binds us all together. And food has that magnificent power to transcend culture, generations, and time.

And my particular relationship with food? I enjoy cooking with friends, new and old. One of my greatest joys is working with others, conversing and trying to maintain that one goal of creating something delightful, or at least edible. I’ve learned that it takes both time and effort to produce something of quality, and there’s even more pleasure in the dish when it’s enjoyed with others, among family and friends.

Knowing this, I’m determined to meet all of my roommates (there’s 7 of them) by occupying the kitchen during dinner hours. Unlike the co–op that I lived in for the last year, there is very little ‘togetherness’ in my apartment and dinner is neither cooked nor enjoyed together… and not seeing my roommates and getting chat with them means that it’s an opportunity lost for me to practice my German. So, besides working during the week, I making baked goods (my introductory cookie was ‘American’ chocolate-chip) for everyone’s general indulgence and as of current, it seems as though my plan is working- I’ve even managed to get some of the people from other floors to stop by and see what’s happening in the kitchen. Conversations ensue.

The only problem that I’ve had so far is that all of my recipes use the American measuring system (i.e. cups). This means that I have to put my cooking and guesstimation know-how to the test. As for now, I’m using a small tea-cup for a cup and am trying to perfect the ‘how-to-eye-the-teaspoon-measurements-in-the-palm-of-your-hand’ method that the all chefs on cooking shows seem to have artfully mastered.

Much to my surprise, it worked! (After having my first batch be a bit of a failure.)

–

Freiberg: Okay Cassie, I’m sorry for raining when I promised I wasn’t going to… here… have this.

Cassie: Thanks, Freiberg.

Sun?!

A surefire way to get your roommates to dislike you: steal the coffee pot and use it for tea. I call it resourceful, others may not.

Well, I survived my first week in Freiberg, and I would like to edit my previous post. I’ll admit, I was whining. But to be fair, it was my 3rd day alone in a new city, it was cold and raining, and all I could do was stay inside and be miserable. Oh, and my bike is actually OK, it’ll get me around for the next 3 months- I’ve decided that it’s just not fun to ride in the rain.

As of Thursday evening, after flooding half of Freiberg, the rain clouds broke and I was able to see sun for the first time. Since then, things have been quite fine and I’ve even managed to have an adventure in the Sachsen countryside yesterday.

My original intent was to go strawberry picking, but alas! They weren’t ripe enough. So me and my adventuring buddy, M., decided to explore the country side instead. After some bike riding through wheat and raps fields, we happened upon an old rock quarry, with a lovely little pond at the bottom. It was wonderful to find such a secretive oasis on my first weekend here and it only makes me want to do more exploring around the area to see what I can find.

I spent the rest of my day riding through the fields and forests, playing Frisbee in the park, and cooking an extravagant and time-consuming dinner (we finally sat down to dinner at 10pm) with friends. Having such a day like yesterday makes me really enjoy the time I have here and I’m now eager to see what the next 12 11 weeks will bring.

Oh, and work is fine- my co-workers still don’t know what to do with me, so I’ve been given the task of taking pictures of solar cells and their different components.

I’m not supposed to be here for another month?

This about sums up the Freibergian weather…

Current needs:

1. Better idea of what my work expects me to do for the next 3 months. Day 1: I was shown all the research equipment (but not shown where to get lunch or how to pay for it… hmm… ) and was a part of a game called ‘Uhhh-here’s-the-new-intern-you-take-her.’ It’s a lot like hot potato, you should try it some time. Despite  being at my company for a whole work day, the explicit expectations for me have yet to be expressed. I think I find out tomorrow.
2. Better bike. I really, really miss my bike. I’m currently riding some slow rust bucket that has neither breaks nor gears. Because of this, climbing/descending the German countryside (NOTE: large hills) is extremely tiring/dangerous.
3. NON FORMAL work attire. Mom, thank you for caring so much and taking me shopping for business casual work wear, but today I received steel toed boots and a flame-retardant lab jacket. Like my black tights, I don’t think these ‘accessories’ go with my beige skirt.
4. Internet that loads something besides Facebook and Google. Seriously, this has to be a joke- other than these two sites, I have to reload each webpage at least 20 times before I can see it. This proves to be quite frustrating when I want to see the latest news about Justin Bieber.
5. Sun/warmth. Freiberg: cold. And it will continue to be cold for the rest of the Summer (or that’s what I hear).
6. Pillow/blanket/any kind of bed linens. Since having moved in, I’m quite resistant to the idea of buying new bed sheets/blankets/pillows. Why? Funds are starting to run quite low (thank you 70 € supermarket trip) and the sleeping bag & pillow case stuffed with clothes have proved to be sufficient for the moment. However, if anyone is interested in donating to the ‘Cassie needs bed sheets’ fund, please leave a comment on this post.
7. Chocolate. And a lot of it.
8. Tea. And a lot of it.
9. Nap. Today was especially tiring due to the fact that within the first… eh… 5 minutes of being at SW, I was told that I wasn’t expected to be there until next month (July 1st). It turns out that some one got the date wrong (6 instead of 7, for the month) and I will still be at SW for 3 months. Nevertheless, it was a very hectic first half hour.
10. Hug.