Friends

This weekend was an American one. I went to Essen, the closest big city, to meet a fellow American Fulbrighter there. Essen is "the shopping city", as they brag on their billboards. (Camera was dead, next post will involve pictures, I swear) There were lots of amazing stores mostly with clothes similar to anything I could find in the US. Except the shampoo bottles are smaller. Us two Fulbrighters had a wonderful afternoon full of cake, coffee, and, believe it or not, real, German bbq. Its amazing how similar our experiences are, but how our different perspectives bring us to completely different consequences about our situation. I am greatful to have another American perspective, especially from someone who knows the joys of the Fulbright scholarship.
After Essen, I went to Bochum to meet more Fulbrighters and hear similar stories. Bochum is slightly smaller than Essen. It has a more homey feel, with some very high-end clothing shops. We also happened to meet there one the weekend of a few festivals. Kindertag, the Onion Festival, and the Police Festival, to name a few. It was great to walk around and see the different displays. However, I am droaning on without even mentioning the reason for our pilgrimage! The Bermuda Triangle is a famous area of Bochum that contains countless bars, clubs, and places where one could find trouble if need be. It was suprising similar to the streets of Myrtle Beach in the middle of the summer...lots of themed bars with "good deals". But it was all European, of course, so it was much cleaner. The trip was a break from the reality of my German life; sometimes the phrase "ten months in Germany" hits me like a brick wall.
American friends can be a blessing: celebrating, comiserating, and living together in a foreign land creates a bond that I have yet to fully understand and appreciate (although I just know it is something special.) But while these people are priceless additions to the experience, I am eternally greatful for the one German student who has reached out to me in Dinslaken. I had coffee in the town nearby and talked for hours with her. I am amazed that she asked me to coffee, put up with my German, and afterwards escorted me to Essen out of the goodness of her heart. How lucky I am to have such a kind person in my life!
When things are going really slowly, it is easy for me to forget just why I decided to leave all of my friends, boyfriend, and family to come live in some place and teach some kids. But it comes down to the fact that my time here, more than accomplishing something huge at the school (muuuuch more to talk about there, in a later post), is for advancing in the field of human relationships. My truly unique opportunity in Germany is not to spread a magic dusting of love and understanding of America, but to learn and know people who I would have otherwise passed off as being fond of paperwork and not so fond of hugs.