11/11/13-11/17/13

11/11/13

Today was a rather easy day. I had a really easy but fun day at school and then came home. I hunted for an Intense German course near where I live or near castle, but no luck so far. All the classes have either started or they are only offered in the day time. It’s very frustrating, but I think I can find one eventually! Then I went to the church and celebrated Saint Martin’s day. We had a huge light festival and the Posaune chor played. We played outside the Edeka (super store) then went to another place and played. Then we finally went to the kindergarten school and played there. We finished off the night, talking and meeting new people. Tons of people were excited to meet me and asked a lot of questions! They were very pleased to have met an American exchange student. I hung out with Lara and we just had a great time! I am excited for tomorrow! Lara is driving me to school, so I can sleep in late!! YAY!

11/12/13

Today was an adventure! I only had math today which was really nice! I played on my tablet a little, did my homework, read a German book, and then met with Meredith! We decided to “defy time” as I call it. We had 45 minutes to get tons of things done. We managed to run/walk the whole time and I barely made my bus. We somehow got from one side of the town to the other in a good 5 minutes or so! Talk about luck! Meredith is really good with time! Then I went home! I got a letter from the post office, and they told me that they have my package!!!! They told me since I didn’t write “used” or “previously owned” that I would have to have the receipts sent to me. But all the stuff isn’t new. So my host dad called and they told us we would need a letter from the package sender. So I talked to my mom and nana, and got the letter. Now all we have to do it go pick it up on Friday or Monday! After almost 3 weeks I will get my package! I’m glad this mistake happened, because now I know what to write on my package! Then I hung out with my host family for the rest of the night. We played board games and it was a great day!

11/13/13

Today was a surprising day. Today I found out that my best friend was assigned a new host family, and will be moving this Saturday! OMG! I was so happy for her, but also really shocked! I will miss her so much, but an upside to her leaving (which is horrible to say) is that I will actually learn a lot more German. I had an easy day besides that. I had 4 hours of English today and everyone was really excited to ask questions about the United States and about my “American” life. I studied a lot for my chemistry test, that I have been trying to do good on and then just relaxed. I talked to some of my new German friends and talked to my host family, and hung out with them for the rest of the night. It was a really relaxed day and I enjoyed hanging out with my awesome host family.

11/14/13

So that chemistry test I was freaking out, wasn’t worth the freak out. I think I understood it all really well or I completely failed. I am going to be optimistic and say I did awesome! Politics class went by super slow and then Meredith did our last run to Wolfhagen together. I have gotten pretty good at “defying time” as I call it and somehow we made it to class early!! Haha talk about luck! I then went to choir which was a lot of fun today! We found almost all of Meredith’s teachers and told them about her leaving. They were all sad, just as I was, but happy that she will have a new family to make new adventures with! Then I went to philosophy and relaxed! It wasn’t hard today, which was nice after that chemistry test that I had! I then went home and hung out with my neighbors for a while. I recorded the voice of Germany and watched the TV show my host dad wanted to watch. It was actually really cool and interesting and he had a fun time hanging out with me. Now off to bed! I am not really ready for tomorrow, because it will be a happy and sad day! I’ll tell you how it goes!

11/15/13

Today was sad but not as bad as I thought it would be. I was shocked that I didn’t cry, we both kind of were! We had our last class together and it was nice. We just talked and hung out while we were drawing on our art projects and taking notes. We hung out during both breaks in between classes and took pictures. I was really talkative in chemistry and my teacher was really happy. I feel a lot more comfortable about talking German and I know that now Meredith is leaving I need to not be how shy, because if I keep being shy how am I supposed to make friends! After chemistry Meredith and I took pictures and then went to the bus. I got on and she went home to pack. It was a good last day for sure and I know we will definitely be meeting up in Kassel a couple times this year! I then went home worked on my homework for chemistry and practiced trombone. I am having trouble transitioning from treble to bass clef, but I know I will get it! I then hung out with my host parents. We played board games and then watched the Germany vs. Italy game. It was really exciting and I loved hanging out with my host dad. I am really glad he is feeling better! I can’t wait to see what I do tomorrow! A possible meet up with Laretta I hope! Miss that girl bunches!

11/16/13

Today was a blast! I slept in really late, clan my room, clan the bathroom and then made plans with Laretta! Her host family said she could hang out with me for the whole day which was really nice of them! We meet at the train station in Wolfhagen and then we walked around and talked. We went and got ice cream! After ice cream we went to the movies and saw Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2. It was absolutely adorable and we both understood tons of it! After that, since all the stores were closed by 4:30 in the afternoon, we just walked around and talked. We went and bought batteries so we could take more pictures and I showed her around the town. She thought it was adorable and she took more pictures on my camera than I did. We then went to the cute little park and took pictures. It was really cold but really fun! We talked about both going to Frankfurt for our friend Keili’s birthday! After pictures and walking around we went and got food at the pizza place. Then we went to the train station and she went home. I then went home and talked to my old host mom about visiting in January! I filled out travel requests for this weekend’s friend’s birthday party (hopefully to which I could go to) and a travel request to visit my old host family!

11/17/13

Today was nice and active. I went to church with my host parents and then went home and relaxed. We then after lunch, relaxed and went on a long walk. We walked and met my host family’s friends. We talked back to the house and talked for a while. The rest of our friend’s family came to the house and we had coffee and cake. We talked around the table for a while and then they went home. I talked to my family about my Christmas wish list, and talked about how I would like an iPhone or a cheap smart phone so then I could get whatsapp. Germans aren’t big on normal texting because it is really expensive, so they all love whatsapp. I love my tablet, but it is hard to talk to people when it depends on Wifi! I can’t wait to get the unlocked Iphone, because then it would be so much easier to talk to everyone! I can’t wait! After that I talked with my papa, because today is his birthday, and then updated my blogs!!! YAY! I then talked with Meredith about her new host family, and relaxed with my host family for the rest of the night! Now off to bed! Tomorrow is my first day of no English people in my school! Super excited, but kind of nervous! I will now know what it is like to be a true exchange student!

11/3/13-11/10/13

10/3/13

So trying to get home was exciting, but I made it in one piece! I almost missed my train to Kassel. I ended up running down a massive hill and running into the train itself. It was awkward, but I made it! Then I trained to Kassel and got home with no more problems! Yay! I ate lunch and then updated photos and just relaxed. I relaxed around with my host family, and it was just another lazy day in the life of a German. School tomorrow which will be nice. I hope something interesting happens this week! It would be nice to go and do something, but all of this pouring ran stuff kind of sucks!! Haha. Let’s see how the week goes!

10/4/13

Today was a lazy day, as I suspected! Luckily I had tons of homework! I went home after a super-fast day of school and just relaxed. I got all of my homework done, and then studied a lot of German. I did philosophy homework, which was wonderful. I am hoping I can find another philosophy class to go to, because I love it so much! I also spent a lot of the day trying to think of things to do here in the winter, and other activities to join.  I also helped look for a host family for my friend, because right now she is only with a welcome family. Hopefully luck is on our side and we find her an amazing family!

10/5/13

Today was really nice. I had a normal day of school and then went into the city. I walked around the city for a while and got something to eat. It was nice to walk more around the city and just see how cool it is. It is kind of small, but I really like it. I got pizza to eat and then I went to the school to help with the students who need English help. I relaxed at home, practiced trombone and just read music. I then had another breathing problem like I did in language camp. It was kind of scary, but I have such amazing host parents and they kept me pretty calm. I tried to stay up by I ended up passing out on the couch at 8. I woke up, went upstairs, wrote this, and now I’m slowly failing into a sleepy “comatose” state. Good night all.

10/6/13

Today was really nice after last night. It was my English day and I had a lot of fun. Meredith brought candy corn to class and we introduced it to the Germans. They now think every American has diabetes, because they think we eat that stuff year round. Haha! After my German and other English class, I went home and practiced trombone for a good 3 hours. It relaxed me and I can kind of play Christmas music. I prepared my friends’ package to send back for his birthday/Christmas present, and then went to bed early. Trying to prepare for my long day tomorrow. Philosophy here I come!!!

10/7/13

Easy day and not as long as I thought it would be. Chemistry was really easy and then I went to politics. It was really boring, but I didn’t mind. It was kind of hard to pay attention, I was too excited for choir! I then had English again and then a 45 minute break. I then went to choir and had a great time. We sang tons of fun music and we did some really weird warm ups in our seats. It was a great day in the school and I sadly didn’t have philosophy. I can’t wait for next week! After school I went home and relaxed with my host family. We played board games and just relaxed. I watched the voice of Germany and then went to my room. Now blogging and going to bed, tons of stuff to do tomorrow!!!

10/8/13

Today was super productive and really fun! I went to school and only had 2 hours of class. Art was a lot of fun, even though I have no artistic talent! J I then went to the post office and sent my friends’ package, went to the book handler’s store and got To kill a Mockingbird for my English class, went back to the school and did all of my homework, and finally started reading my book. I went home and practiced trombone for a good 3 hours, and then read notes for another hour or so. I am really hoping to learn trombone well! I then went to posaune chor. It was not as fun tonight. I had a lot of trouble reading the notes for some reason and wasn’t as confidence. I think I need to practice a little more, and get better with note reading. I can’t wait to play complicated music, and hopefully I can play with everyone on Christmas when we go to the hospitals and play for the sick people. J It will be so much fun!

10/9/13

Today was half productive half lazy. I got up early clan my room, bathroom, and backpack and then organized a lot. I watched a little bit of the voice of Germany and eventually read all day. I went with my host mom to the church for a concert and that was so much fun!!! The group sang a lot of fun music that I knew somehow. It was really nice to hear the music and it was just a great day. Then I went to my room and watched The breakfast club. Now off to bed, I have no clue what tomorrow holds!

10/10/13

I have been in Germany for 3 months!!! Holy cow! Time flies! Today was a really productive day. I reorganized my closet and then relaxed with my host dad. I read some of a German book my friend gave me and then laid around the house. After lunch my host parents and I played board games and had a great time. We watched a little TV and then just chilled around. Then we had some of my host parents’ friends over. Then more of their friends came over and then more and then there were like 7 or 8 people in the house just talking and relaxing. It was nice and they stayed for a long time. When they left we ate dinner and then watched The hunger Games in German. Now off to bed!

10/28/13-11/2/13

10/28/13

So happy to be back in school! Today was a lazy day for me which was a bummer for me, but still fun!! School flew by and everyone was really busy with other stuff. I relaxed at home, played trombone and finished the Indiana Jones series. I did tons of homework for science, but it wasn’t complicated, just time consuming. I then talked with my school friends and hopefully we will be having a sleep over on Saturday. I am going to the Abitur party on Friday and I am so excited! Tons of socializing and German speaking!

10/29/13

Today was supposed to be a long day, but it turned out to be a short day. I understood all of my classes today and got all of the homework done while waiting for the girl I tutor to come. She never came, but I had to wait because of the bus. I finished all of my homework for the next week, and then went home. I talked to my friends and asked them questions about Halloween. It is not a huge holiday here in Germany like it is in the US, which is really different. I also started gathering recipes from my friends and family in the US so that then I can cook for my host family sometime soon, and maybe I’ll even cook Thanksgiving if they let me! I can’t wait to talk to them about it and hopefully I can cook a delicious traditional meal.

10/30/13

Today was a long and kind of stressful day. I went to school and then went to the Austauschbüro to get my visa or whatever it really is.  We were late to the appointment, and got lost trying to get there. I was very frustrated. When we got there they told me that my biometric photo was wrong, and then I had to pay to get a new one. It was all very frustrating and I can tell you it was not fun at all. We finally got that sorted out, but the woman who was helping us, had no clue how to use the computer. I totally understood, because I have days where I can’t use mine, and I helped her. We had to call the IT guy in the building, and we found out we didn’t have the printer plugged in. It was really embarrassing for both of us, and everyone was cranky by the end of it. Language barrier can be really hard some days, and today was defiantly one of those days. We went home and I went to my room. I just needed a little alone time, I think everyone did. We all just had alone time for the rest of the night, and I ended up falling asleep at 8 and waking up an hour or two later. Now off to bed for real this time, Meredith and I are celebrating Halloween tomorrow and I have a long day too!

10/31/13

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!!! Today was so much fun!!! It was my first holiday from my family, which was odd, but I was keeping so busy that I was too busy to even think! I had a really easy beginning of the day and Meredith and I went and found Halloween like candy and had a great time. We got our grades in our classes, and so far I am doing outstanding! The lowest grade I have is a 12(80% in the US) and my highest grade is a 15(100% in the US). The school is really proud of Meredith and I for trying so hard and we are happy that they are noticing that we are trying. They told us our German is a thousand times better and it made my day great. I had a great time in choir and in philosophy. Those 2 classes are my favorite, they beat English class any day! We talked about immortally in Philosophy to go along with Halloween and I loved hearing everyone’s philosophical opinion! Choir was a blast and I met some new friends! I can’t wait for next Thursday! I think it’s my new favorite day of the week!

 11/1/13

It’s a new month already! Holy smokes time flies by!!!!! Today was better than yesterday! It was an extremely fast day of school and then I got ready for the Abitur party for tonight. I did all of my home work for the week end, and I talked with some of my friends who were going to the Abitur party. I finished getting ready and we left! Meredith and I hung out until more people got there and then found some of our friends. My friend Felix bought us a drink (non-alcoholic of course) and then we all just talked and danced. After mingling with some of my friends we went and found some of Meredith’s friends and danced with them. It was such a fun night! Hopefully tomorrow I can go and spend the night with my friends in Kassel! I love having friends here that speak English. Sometimes you just need an English day!! Off to bed, the sooner I fall asleep the sooner I find out if I can go!

11/2/13

Today was amazing! I woke up and Jutta told me that I could go and spend the night with my friends in Kassel! I was so happy I went and immediately packed! Meredith and I finished making plans on how to get to Kassel by bus, and then we just talked. I went to kinder Kirche and helped with the wonderful little kids. It was so much fun, and they were all so eager to teach me German! After I ate and waited for Meredith. See I told Meredith to come here early because we had to go to the next city over to get a ticket to Kassel. She never got that message and she was late. She ran to my car and we were yelling for her to hurry up and get in the car! We drove really fast to the next city over and got there 2 minutes before the bus was supposed to leave! We barely made it and it was kind of scary, because if we were late we would have had to wait another hour, and would have been late! We got on the bus and then got to the train station. We hoped on the tram my host mom told us to get on, but apparently it was the wrong one. So we rode that train to the wrong part of town, and then back to the train station and then finally to the right place. We met our friends and then we just stood there and talked for like an hour. We went and got on a train and went to the store. We bought junk food and then got on the train and went to the movie store. As we were walking my ADHD kicked in and I saw something move in the grass. It was a hedgehog!! I screamed in excitement, and we all stopped and took pictures with it. I picked it up and we all took a good 50 pictures with the hedgehog. It was so cute and I really wanted to keep it, but I’m pretty sure my host mom would have had a fit if I kept it, so I put it back in the grass. We then tried to find the movie rental place and could not find it. We asked for directions and after a good hour, we were told that it is closed forever. We gave up and went back to my friend’s house. We talked and joked and hung out all night and watched American TV. We printed out “New Girl” (TV show) masks for our mini Halloween party and had a great time! We talked about everything and then we all fell asleep. It was so fun and we all had a great time. I can’t wait till we do it another time! Pretty great night!