Valpo Voyager

Student Stories from Around the World

Date: September 7, 2010

A weekend in Cologne

September 7, 2010 / / 0 Comments

04.09.2010 – 17:16
Phew. My feet are finally up! The soreness of your feet from constantly walking everywhere is one of those aspects of traveling that you know but never really expect. However, my tiredness was rightly earned.

This is our first weekend of traveling for the Reutlingen program. My friends Amber (who is also writing on this blog) and Cate worked out the plans for the entire weekend, so I was able to sit back and let them figure things out. We had thought that a weekend in Köln (or Cologne in English) would be an easy start to our traveling and leave some margin for error, which is bound to happen our first couple of times. So far, my expectations have been vastly succeeded.

Yesterday we left early in the morning from Reutlingen and hopped on a train to Meinz, transferring trains several times. I was tired from the Stuttgart wine festival from the previous day, but the southern German countryside is far too interesting and beautiful to fall asleep. We loosely followed the Mosel River, which is surrounded by rolling, wooded hills and steep vineyards on the hillsides. It is like nothing I have seen in the US; words, like always, fail to fully convey the true experience.

We decided to stop at Meinz to see the castle Burg Eltz. The beginning of the hiking trail, which is about 5 kilometers long through the hills, began in a beautiful little town on the Mosel. We stopped for a quick lunch at an Imbiss, and left our belongings with the proprietor, a very friendly old man. I know what you are thinking….”Why did you leave your belongings, including your laptop, with a complete stranger?” Well, I was wondering the exact same thing. Fortunately, everything was in perfect shape when we got back, so I guess it was ok. If you want to know more about that crazy adventure, email me!

It has been a beautiful weekend, sunny and mid 60s, and a perfect time to go hiking through the hills to a beautiful castle! We just turned a corner, and there it was (of course, after 5 km of hiking). Sometimes I had to push Cate to get us all there, but of course, it was worth it.
Last night we arrived in Köln, just expecting to sleep. Just as we were getting our pajamas out, our hostel-mates came through; they were three girls from Stuttgart who were just spending the night in the city. They invited us to go out, so…..you can’t pass up opportunity, can you? I’m sure glad we didn’t. Dane, Laura, and I went with them to a club, which happened to be overpriced for both cover charge and drinks, and it really wasn’t an atmosphere that I enjoyed. We all agreed to leave and find a bar, were at midnight we celebrated Laura’s 21st birthday.

Köln is an amazing city. The Dom (cathedral) in the middle of the city is absolutely massive, and it has very elaborate gothic architecture and styling. It is very impressive, and I suggest that anyone in the area should visit. You literally can’t miss it, it’s that big. We plan on going to church there on Sunday morning. That should be interesting, since it will be in all German. I suppose we will feel like the non-nobility before the Renaissance, since everything in the church was spoken in Latin.

We have only been here for about a day, but it feels familiar already. Time to visit the city’s chocolate museum! Hopefully I will be able to waddle back and write a follow-up. Tschüs!

Climbing Scotland

September 7, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Facing oblivion, you learn a lot about yourself. You don’t want to trust yourself; you need someone better than yourself. But with no ropes, no harness and no stretch in your jeans, there’s not much there but you.

There I was, fifty-ish feet up with the Scottish air breezing in off the North Sea. I found a convenient spot to wedge my knee, rest my hips and look out. Before me I saw sparkling waters and a stampede in the stratosphere. I soaked it all in and was soon ready to move on.

Looking upward, all I could see was beach grass and soil. Bad news. The vegetation made it hard to find good hand holds, and it was safe to assume that the rock wasn’t safe; plant roots break up rocks, making it brittle. With a heavy sight I looked down, all fifty feet of rock face. Suddenly I remembered a famous mountaineering quote:

“The summit is optional. The descent is mandatory.”

urbandictionary.com

September 7, 2010 / / 1 Comment

Boy, do I wish I had an urban dictionary this week. I am spending 10 days with a host family in Katatura, which is an urban part of Windhoek.  Although most people in my area speak English, I am always curious to know what they’re saying when they’re speaking Afrikaans or their native tribal languages. The sounds are so intriguing.

There is no language requirement for the Namibia program, which is nice because it makes it open to everyone. In my opinion, that is good because you get a variety of majors and people with a variety of interests. It is also less stressful because we don’t have to adapt to a whole new culture AND try to figure out the language.

Later in the semester we will be doing a rural homestay in northern Namibia. There, they are much less likely to speak fluent English. The program requirements say that during each homestay the host family will have at least one person in it that speaks basic English. To prep us for the language barriers that we might encounter, we have started Oshindonga lessons at our house. Oshindonga is similar to Oshiwambo, which is one of what are called “recognized regional languages”. It is a tough language to learn, but once you learn a few things it comes to you more quickly. I am feeling confident that by the conclusion of our lessons I will be at least fairly prepared to communicate with my rural host family.

In the Swing of Things

September 7, 2010 / / 0 Comments

We have been in Africa for a while, but we’re just starting to buckle down and start the semester. It is a strange feeling going from what was basically a vacation to having to do real work.

As part of the CGE Program, you can pick between 4 classes (Political Science, History, Religion, and Development), an internship, and an independent study. I am taking Poly Sci, History, Religion, and doing an internship. I started my internship at Oponganda Center for Children with Disabilities on Monday and so far so good!

Now we have also started classes. And with classes comes homework. However, I have discovered that homework is a lot more bearable when you can do it poolside.

The delayed start of classes illustrates the general feeling here well. The day-to-day pace of Namibia is much slower than in America. 5:00 means 5:15…or 8:00. It really just depends on how a person is feeling that day. At first I was really anxious about the time of things, but over the last couple of weeks I have learned to be more relaxed about it. I won’t say that I enjoy it, because it still seems to me like I am late, but I am getting used to the slower pace and actually starting to enjoy it. It is much more relaxing than in America where we are go, go, go all the time. Without strict time constraints I have met and talked with many people I wouldn’t have been able to talk with had I been speeding through my life. And here, spending time together in conversation is one of the best ways to show someone you care about them. I hope that is a lesson that I will be able to bring home with me.

© 2026 Valpo Voyager

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑