Germany, the Land of Bread and Small Streets?

Hallo everyone! This was our groups first week in Germany, which of course meant the start of classes this past Monday, January 12. The class itinerary is as follows in no particular order: European Art and Architecture, International Economics, History of Modern Germany, a Luther and Bach course, German 204 (for the advanced speaker), or German 101 (for the beginner), or German 102 (for the awkward student who took a semester of German before coming and did not want to repeat German 101, but yet German 204 is too advanced for them so they sit through class with their mouth wide open because they do not understand a word the teacher is saying). The reality of German 204 is not too bad to be honest, I have sat through the class for a week now and I can honestly say that my listening has improved at least 2 fold as well as my speaking. Although I may look constipated during the class, I am getting better and it helps to push yourself! (no pun intended) Thursday was a special day for our study group however. There is a Reutlingen specific holiday celebrated by Reutlingers in early January called Mutscheltag. Mutscheltag is an old schwabisch traditional holiday that involves playing dice games for bread prizes. However our group did miss the actual holiday, but Herr Viet, our Economics professor (and an authentic Schwabe) put on a special event for anyone interested in the holiday. The dice games are quite simple and loads of fun to play. All you need is a group of at most 7 and 3 dice and you are good to play! One game for example involved just having to role a one-two-three straight with all three dice once. In total we played 7 games, and the individual from each group with the lowest score got to go to the winners table. Thursday there was enough for five groups so five individuals made it to the winners table. After one short game at the championship table to determine final placement, individuals received their prizes and contemplated how they were going to eat all of that bread. I myself did represent my group at the winners table and got 3rd place overall! I counted it as a personal victory and was glad I could make my table proud. Below is a picture of my prize, and just to give you a picture of how large it actually is, the center ring by itself is as big as my head.

SO MUCH MUTSCHEL

However, the Mutschel itself was delicious and I enjoyed every bit of it! I did share it with people on my floor because no one man should have all that bread (yes that was a Kanye West joke). Also on Friday was the Valpo Study Cener groups tour around Reutlingen. We were able to see various statues of important individuals of Reutlingen’s history, the Marienkirche which is the largest church in Reutlingen, and also the Guinness Book of World Records smallest street. Yes that is right, the worlds smallest street is in Reutlingen. Pictured from left to right are some pictures inside the Marienkirche and on the far right is the worlds smallest street.

Inside the Marienkirche

Inside the Marienkirche

Yes…this is real

The Marienkirche was absolutely beautiful and there will be plenty more pictures to come when I bring my DSLR camera inside. One fun fact about the Marienkirche is that there are more than 600,000 small triangles that make up the entire ceiling of the church that have to be cleaned individually by hand. In blogs to come I can include the story of why the Marienkirche was built if that sounds interesting to you readers! Coming back to the smallest street however, the reason it is the worlds smallest street is because it is not privately owned. The city of Reutlingen owns the street and therefore is a registered street. The street itself is about 1 foot wide and a good 20 or more feet long. Myself with the group did make it through to the other side, but needless to say, it was a tight squeeze. For you starwars fans out there, you could say I felt a little like Jek Porkins in my X-Wing in “Starwars Episode IV A New Hope”. Sunday, myself and a few other of my classmates decided to climb to the top of the Achelm, the tallest mountain in Reutlingen. The climb itself was very exhausting but beyond worth it. The trip took us about 2 and a half hours walking from our dorm to the top so it was definitely a full day event. My roomate Ross told me his pedometer counted 15,000 steps on the trip so it was a great workout with breathtaking scenery! Unfortunately the weather was rather gloomy so the pictures did not turn out so well, but I do plan to go back in the spring to get everything blooming! Overall, this was an eventfull week and I felt like I have been here a year already with all of the activities our group has done but thats what keeps it fun! Tonight our group got together and had a quesadilla night while watching the news in german. Nights like these may seem insignificant when compared to climbing a mountain or going through Guinness Book of World Records, but nights like these form great memories and great friendships. This Saturday our group may be visiting the Hohenzollern castle just up the road so be ready for some awesome castle shots! I can also include photos from the Achelm if y’all want as well! Just comment and leave your opinion! This is Austin Pittman signing off from Reutlingen and wishing you all a good night and week, until next time. Tschuss!