I haven't gotten to unpack yet because the summer sublettor is still in the room. That's ok though, because she's very nice and was helpful in telling us all about the apartment (how to turn on the heat, how to take out the garbage, etc.) And anyway, she's leaving tomorrow.
My roommate and I get along great. Which surprises both of us, since we're both decidedly independent people. But because we're going through the same program, and also have the same personality wiring, we find each other fairly compatible.
Yesterday we wandered around the city a bit going microwave shopping. We found one to buy and will go back to get it in the next day or so. But what was fun is that it didn't take long to get the hang of the subway (U-Bahn) and begin to feel like we lived here. To the many people who ask why I'm doing this study abroad program, a partial answer is that there is no substitute for living in a foreign country. All the travel in the world won't give you that intimate connection with another people and place that living there full-time provides.
My roommate is of Indian descent, which made our Hamburg adventures more interesting than they would have been otherwise. Near our apartment is a small produce store, and in the morning on the way to orientation we passed by some yummy-looking fresh peas on display outside. We stopped in to buy a 1/4 kilo for breakfast. The man there spoke enough English for us to communicate, but he seemed particularly fascinated with my roommate. "What land are you from?" he asked her. When she told him India, he said "Me too!" And then he proceeded to speak Hindi to her. He seemed so happy to have made a connection with someone else of his ancestry. In fact, today when we went back for more peas and I was struggling to find a 50 cent coin to pay for them, he waved it off, pointing proudly at my roommate and smiling, "My land!"
At school we've gone through two days of orientation, taking care of lots of paperwork, meeting the other foreign students, and some of the German ones. Last night there was a barbecue where we could mix and mingle and drink beer... My buddy and his friend showed me the foosball table in the basement. I'm embarrassingly rusty, but it seems like I may not have been too far afield when I contemplated adding my foosball skills to my legal resume...
Posted 9/2/05