Europe Through My Lens

I don’t like considering Sunday as part of my week because, in my brain, it’s the last day of the week and the week starts on Monday, but here, Sundays are the day when everyone travels and goes hiking. This entry will cover the dates from April 19th to today, April 24th, but I will mostly discuss the earlier half of the week, since most things occurred then.

The week started with a trip to Wimsener Höhle, or Wimsen cave. Höhle simply means cave in German. The group I went with was very nice. We took a quick train to Reutlingen train station before getting on a bus for the rest of the way. We got off the bus in a very cute town called Zwiefalten. The boat tour wasn’t until 3 pm, so we went to a church in the area first. This church was massive and gorgeous. To get to the cave, we had to go on a quick couple of kilometers walk to get to the actual cave. It was a very gorgeous view. I didn’t bring my camera with me because I was worried about my camera coming into contact with water; not only was it going to rain, but the cave was also filled with water. There would’ve been so many awesome photography opportunities, but I don’t like bringing my camera with my long telephoto lens on group hikes. It makes me feel like I’m holding people up. So I may go back there again, so I can walk those trails and take photographs of the wildlife. There were so many different kinds of birds on the trail leading to the cave. All but one of the pictures that will be included at the end of the post are unedited and from this trip. As for the actual boat tour of the cave, it was much shorter and smaller than I had thought it was going to be. One of the only things we were told was to watch our heads because it was a very narrow cave. It seems simple, but toward the end, I got locked in on getting a photo and lightly bonked my head off the roof of the cave. It didn’t hurt, but it did suck that the tour guide saw it happen and called me out by reminding people to watch their heads. Someone in my group also asked me afterwards if I was okay. I awkwardly just said that it didn’t hurt. To be honest, only my pride was hurt. It was a pretty fun trip. I didn’t talk to too many people, but it was still fun.

The soccer and running club also started this week. Honestly, the beginner’s women’s soccer club was way more fun and more enjoyable than the run club. At the beginning of soccer practice, we did introductions, which allowed me to explain that I am an exchange student and that I’m learning German. The soccer coach asked a girl from my exchange student orientation from Switzerland and me if we wanted German or English. She went first and said German, so I said German too. She honestly gave me the confidence to say German was okay. The whole point in signing up for clubs that are taught/run in German is for me to be fully immersed in German in a casual environment where there is no pressure. The coach did tell me that she will translate the instructions into English for me anytime I don’t understand, I just have to ask. During the practice, I only misunderstood one instruction, and everyone was extremely nice to me. Most importantly, they spoke a little slower, which I greatly appreciated, while still speaking German to me. In contrast, I did not get the chance to explain to the people running the run club that I am an exchange student, and while I understand a little (ein bisschen) German, I am still learning. On Wednesday, at the next run club meeting, I will take one of the organizers aside and explain that I am an exchange student who is learning German.

Speaking of learning German, my A2 German class is taking way too long to begin, but it begins on Monday, April 27th. So only three more days of waiting for it to start. I was so worried that I wasn’t going to be admitted to the A2 German class. Even if it wasn’t a requirement to take a German class while abroad, it feels like a wasted opportunity to not learn the language while in Germany. I’m actually beyond excited to start the class. It especially helps that it’s only on Monday and Wednesday mornings, so it won’t be adding too many extra days to my already short week. I know I spoke about this in my last blog post, but I’m excited for it to start.

Another thing that I’m excited to start is a program that I applied for. The program is officially called “Rent an American,” which sounds strange, but it’s a really cool program. I was told about it during a StudIt program orientation trip. The program started in 2007 and is arranged through the German-American Institute (dai) Tübingen. The program allows Americans to go to schools and discuss topics related to the United States, but it also allows students, who may be learning English, to talk to a native English speaker and ask questions. I am most excited to be able to go to these schools and interact with students who all have different perspectives on the world than I do. Last time I was in Germany, three years ago, when I was in high school, we did something very similar to this program. We lived with host families our second week there, and we were invited to go to a couple of classes in Grundschule (elementary school). In those classes, we discussed stereotypes they had of the United States and answered their questions. The orientation for the program is tomorrow and I’m very excited for it.

My Week in Photos

This is the one photo not from the trip to the cave. This was taken on my way back from the grocery store near my accommodations, called REWE.

The last four photos were taken in the church we went to on the trip. I took a lot of photos in that church, but I chose these ones. There are probably some better ones, but the first and third ones definitely show the beauty of it. Well, as much as an iPhone photo can show.

These four photos are from the hike/walk to the cave’s actual entrance. It was mostly flat, but it was also a gorgeous hike. The little town shown in the first photo is one we had to pass through to get to the cave; it was really cute.

I didn’t take too many photos while in the cave because I was so scared of hitting my head. I included the second photo, even though it isn’t a good photo, because it’s the photo I took when I hit my head on the roof of the cave. The tour guide mentioned that once a year, drivers come to the cave and explore it, but they only do it once because it’s a fairly dangerous exploration due to how narrow and cold it is.

This Sunday, April 26th, I am going on a hike in the Black Forest through a hiking group based in Stuttgart and Tübingen. The hike should take roughly 3 hours and 43 minutes, covering roughly 7.39 miles with 1,375 ft of elevation gain. Once again, I won’t be bringing my actual camera because it’s a group hike. But I will take quite a few photos with my phone. I’m very excited for this hike too.

Next entry will cover the Black Forest hike, the orientation I have tomorrow for the “Rent an American” program, my first impressions of my German class, and any other cool or different things I experience from then until now.