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Welcome to Brian's web journal for students considering going to Goettingen,
Germany with EAP.
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Friday, April 11th, 2003
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- The past couple weeks
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I’m back in Göttingen after staying with my girlfriend’s family for several weeks. She lives in former East Germany in a small town near Leipzig. My first impression of the place was that it felt like I was in a different country. Despite the years which have past since unification, the east presents a very different scene. Rebuilding is evident nearly everywhere but it’s slow work. Especially in the smaller towns there are some buildings so delapidated that one is suprised that they are still standing.
I asked her mother why this was so and I received an interesting explanation. The orginal owners of the buildings still have the legal right to claim them, and the timespan of this claim reaches back to the time before the Second World War. Things get complication when you take into account property seized by the Nazis, the confusion created by a world war, a change of leadership to the Communists, the fall of communism in Germany and reunification. During each of these stages in history a building could have been inhabited or used by a different group people. However, since the legal right of ownership is given to a living relative of the owner preceeding WWII, should he or she drive into town one day, there is little incentive for anyone else to build. An obvious hole in this explaination is the fact that former West Germany does not look this way, yet had similar problems of ownership before and after the Nazis. My guess is that the lack of wealth in the east following the war, during the communist times resulted in lack of upkeep for many structures.
I’ve been used to the more relaxed pace of European life for some months now (at least within the student world in Göttingen), but it was interesting to experience daily life in a German family. My girlfriend’s parents return home around noon-ish to eat a leasurly, warm lunch together each workday. Both work not far from home, making this possible. On the weekend there is an additional afternoon coffee and cake hour, meaning there are occasionally four meals a day. Depite the delicious food, sometimes I find it exhausting to eat so often.
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| Sunday, April 6th, 2003
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- February 3rd
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Today was a bit frustrating. I showed up to one of my classes this morning to find out that the final was - today. I was completely unprepared. I talked to the professor and there will be a make-up test for those who were absent. I will luckily suffer no consequences for my absent-mindedness, but I still feel foolish.
How did this happen? I’ve been asking myself this question all day, seeing as I’m the only one in the class of 40 who encountered the problem. The best answer that I come up with is that the professor mentioned the date of the final only once (which I heard - though I missed several classes due to illness). There was no reminder of any sort during the class preceeding the test.
The words I remember hearing during the single discussion of the final date: “I think we’ll have the test on Feb. 3rd, but since it looks like not everyone can take the test on this day, we’ll discuss a firm date later.” In actuality, the professor decided that Feb. 3rd was the firm date for the final and that the makeup date would be discussed at a later time. Though I wrote the date down, I expected some sort of confirmation which never came. This brief discussion took place about a month ago, before winter break, and since then I simply forgot to think about the issue again, seeing as all my other finals are after the end of instruction. The final for this class was two weeks before the end of instruction - something I have never experienced at Cal.
I write this story as a heads-up to you guys: even if you think you hear correctly when a final will take place, or when the date of the final will be decided, confirm the information somehow. Sometimes there are not only difficulties in language comprehension, but in academic conventions as well.
On a different note, we EAP-goers in Göttingen (and probably elsewhere in the EAP program) have been asked to report on our perceptions of attitudes toward Americans, given the political climate of late. I can’t remember a single instance when someone treated me badly because of my citizenship. No one has attacked me during an argument for the actions of our government or the statements of politicians. Many Germans are critical, disapprove of what the US is doing, and feel insulted at some of the comments made by politicians in the US, but nearly all Germans I know differentiate between the American goverment and individuals. No one has ever began a conversation with: “Why did you Americans do that?” Instead they will ask: “What do think of Bush’s policies?” (as an example). They listen, are respectful of my opinion, and then state their feelings on the matter. I’ve never felt singled-out or cornered in such a discussion. And I have never felt in any physical danger, ever. I’ve only seen one protest during my time in Göttingen and it delt with a local issue.
I’m eagerly awaiting the coming of spring, and all that comes with it: sunshine, warmth, and colors other than those found on the grayscale. That’s all for now.
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| Wednesday, January 8th, 2003
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The past couple weeks have consisted mostly of socializing with my housemates. Gradually we are becoming more comfortable with one another, and the newcomers in the house (myself included)are earning the status of seasoned residents. Considering this increasing social activity I've been thinking about the different ways in which Germans and Americans accept "newcomers" into social circles. Only now after 3 months are people becoming relaxed and casual with one another. Now that we have reached this "comfort level" interacting with one another, relationships feel much more "American" - loud, open, informal, and friendly. It did take a very long time to get to this stage, though. From my experiences so far I´d vouch for the stereotype that it takes a much longer time to "get to know" Germans than it does Americans. To make the most of studying abroad and meeting Germans it´s vital that one remain patient and not become frustrated at being the outsider for longer period than one is normally accustomed. I don´t mean to scare anyone off by saying this. Just a "heads up" to know what to expect.
The typical German rebuttal to such an observation as that made above is that Germans take friendship more seriously. Someone is not "your friend" after a 10 minute conversation at a party, as in CA. A friendly aquaintance, certainly, and the possibility for further interaction, but little more. The social formality can seem a bit distant and stiff at times, but from my experience it has been very polite and respectful. Most people are more than willing to help out (to proofread a paper, finding cheap means of travel, etc).
Other than socializing with housemates recently I´ve been preparing for the General GREs, which I take this Friday in Berlin, and organizing material for Grad School applications due in mid-January. Since all the information is now on the web, so far the process has been much more painless than I expected.
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| Tuesday, October 15th, 2002
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- introduction
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My name is Brian and I’m a fifth year physics major from Berkeley. From the start I hoped to include time spent studing abroad as part of my undergraduate experience, but decided against going during my junior year. Speaking with my guidance couselor and professors convinced me that study abroad would leave gaps in my undergraduate education, as the physics program at Berkeley is structured in a series of courses which, for the most part, must be taken in sequence. I decided to “play it safe” and spend a year in Germany after all my major and university requirements had been satified. Only one problem: by that time I was only a few units under the unit ceiling. I had heard that studying abroad for the full year was the best way to go, and for this I needed a waiver of the unit ceiling requirement. I talked to my major advisor – including my reasons for NOT studying abroad my junior year – and he happily wrote a letter to the dean explaining my case. The dean granted the waiver, I believe largely because it was apparent that I had a strong idea of what I would gain from study in Germany.
Why Germany? Or Göttingen? Beginning in physics at Berkeley, it was recommended that one become proficient in French, German, or Russian if one planned to pursue graduate study. My parents speak German, and that played a role in my rather arbitrary decision. The only way to truly become profient in a language is to speak it daily in a variety of settings, and a wished to improve my German beyond an “amateur” level. Also, I’d met exchange students who had come to Berkeley from Göttingen, and for the most part they had positive things to say.All UC students who had studied here seemed to have a great time; so for me it seemed a good bet.
So far I've had a fairly easy time getting to know Germans in my house. I think this is because I do make an effort, spending several evenings a week socializing in the common room. From my experience, German students in Göttingen are much more interested in political discussion than even those at Cal. Almost any political issue is a good starting point for a long, stimulating discussion. I'd agree with the oft-repeated statement in the EAP guides that the general social atmosphere is much more serious and intellectual, so one should not expect to survive on light chat and smalltalk as one can in the states.
During the break between ILP and the start of the semester I chose to travel through Scandinavia. I have a friend in Norway and another in Sweden, and decided to accept their invitations to visit. My experiences in the two countries were drastically different than any other I've had as a tourist, seeing as I was able to get a glimpse of the daily lifes of my friends, and meet their families and friends, in addition to the usual tourist activities. If a similar such opportunity presents itself to travel or stay with friends who are locals, next time I'll surely take it.
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