Senior Pranks

Spring is in the air in Munich. Monday morning on my way to work we had our first April Shower. It was 75 degrees and sunny this weekend. Birds are singing, green grass is growing, and early spring flowers are blooming. Wonderful!

            Spring is also the time when the seniors at the school go on study leave to prepare for their graduation exams. Today was the last day of classes for the seniors, and they went out in style! Apparently senior pranks are common on their last day, and these seniors didn’t disappoint.

            Walking into school this morning from the bus stop in the parking lot, the seniors had filled the tunnel that connects the parking lot and the school grounds with foam. Lots and lots of foam. Filled to the top with foam. Luckily the groundskeepers had plowed a path through the foam for us to walk through, but the foam was still up to our ankles. 

            Outside, the students had roped off parts of the paths leading into the buildings. They had taken a few garbage cans and put them on the roof. They had also rented a large blow-up soccer ball for the students to jump inside.

 Trashcans on an overhang

Blow-up soccer ball jump

            In the buildings, the students went all-out. They had placed cups of water in the hallways and on the stairs so people couldn’t walk through it without spilling the water. They had saran-wrapped doors shut, taped off doors, zip-tied chairs together to block stairwells. In one of my Cooperating Teacher’s classroom, the seniors had covered everything in aluminum foil. In my other Cooperating Teacher’s classroom, the seniors had covered everything in post-it notes. 

 Water in cups in the hallway

 Water in cups on the stairs

 Chairs zip-tied together to block a stairwell (possible fire hazard?)

 Chairs saran-wrapped together in the hallway

 Aluminum foil room

 Lockers covered in post-it notes in a room

Post-it notes on the white board

            In a few classrooms, the desks and chairs were taped and saran-wrapped together. In another classroom, the room was filled with balloons. One teacher had his computer hacked and a message to him was played over and over. The seniors had also taken the couches from the teachers lounge and put them in their study area. 

 Desks stacked together and taped

 Overturned tables

            Needless to say, it was amazing! And the staff were having just as much fun as the students going around to different rooms to see what had been done. The seniors then cleaned up everything by second period. As long as nothing was damaged and everything got cleaned up, the staff didn’t seem to care at all. 

            It’s fun traditions like this that make a school more than just a learning environment, it makes it a community, a family.  And I’m really glad I got to see the festivities of this family.

It sucks to be sick in a foreign country!

To start off this blog post, I just had the best sushi I’ve ever had (not that I eat a lot of sushi) at school today. Because MIS is an International School, we have students from Japan that go to school here. In order to fund-raise for the Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami disaster relief, the parents of the Japanese students made and sold sushi. I normally don’t like sushi because apparently the sushi I’ve been eating in America sucks. The sushi that I had today was AMAZING! Just thought I’d let you all know! :)

I was sick last week and had to miss two days of school, Monday and Tuesday. It really stinks being sick in a foreign country. There isn’t the same type of medicine, and it’s difficult to get medicine. Most medicine you buy at a pharmacy you have to ask the pharmacist for. You don’t need a prescription, but it’s hard for a non-German speaker to ask for something as complicated as a decongestant. In an American supermarket, I would know exactly where to go to get the medicine I want. Here, it’s much, much harder.

I’m feeling better, still have the sniffles, but well enough to be in school. I taught for the first time today. I did a lesson in the History class I’ve been observing about the Russian Revolution. The students seemed to accept me as their teacher, and the lesson went pretty well. Tomorrow I will be teaching in the Geography class I’ve been observing. We’re doing a unit on the Geography of AIDS, and I’ve got a few clips from a documentary on the history of AIDS for the students to watch.

One observation for this blog post about German patriotism. I’ve noticed, and I think most Americans would notice as they travel abroad, that there is a distinct lack of German flags flying anywhere. Compare this with America, where you see red, white, and blue everywhere you go, outside of banks, schools, public offices, businesses, houses, on cars, clothing. If you’re not as patriotic or show your American patriotism in other ways, it can feel as though you’re being bombarded with the American flag.

In Germany, however, you will not find the German flag flying much anywhere. I was paying attention on the train ride this morning, and I saw one, yep, just one German flag, and it was hanging from a balcony of someone’s apartment.

The Germans don’t identify with their country as much as they do their region or “state”. I had this discussion with a few colleagues in the teacher’s lounge the other day, about how we identify. It seems in Germany that people will firstly identify with their region, like Bavaria, rather than as Germans. I suppose the same could be said for America too. I know I identify more as a Minnesotan than as an American. I tend to think that is because America is so vast, and the State’s tend to be quite separate from our national identity. I didn’t think that similar type of identity would happen in Germany too.

So, this week I will be up in front of the students a lot more doing some actual teaching. It should be quite interesting!!

Quote from a student in the history class: (talking about the conditions in Russia during the 1917 Revolution) “No one is happy in Russia”

A weekend in rural Bavaria

I spent the weekend in rural Bavaria (a State/region in Germany) with my friend Julia and her family. When I was in high school, I hosted Julia when a group of students from her school came to America for a few weeks. The summer after I graduated, a group of students from my German class and I traveled to Germany for a few weeks and I got to stay with Julia and her family while I was here. Over the years, Julia and I kept in touch via email and facebook. Now that I'm back in Germany, I had to go and visit her and her family!

I took the train from Munich into Landshut. (pronounced land-soot) It was my first train ride outside the city, and it was awesome! It's such an easy way to travel; I really don't understand why we don't use trains more in America. This needs to change. Anyway, Julia picked me up from the train station and we had lunch in Landshut. We also climbed up to the castle which overlooks Landshut. That evening, I went to a concert where Julia's younger sister Lisa was performing.

While I was at the concert, I noticed people could purchase a beer to drink while watching the performance. That wouldn't seem too odd except this was a school concert. Young kids were performing in it. And their parents could buy beer at the concert... this struck me as incredibly strange. Americans, myself included, have a very conservative attitude when it comes to alcohol consumption. In Europe, and especially Germany, alcohol is a part of life, it's normal to have a drink at a school concert.

After the concert, Julia and I went to a local bar to hang out with her friends. The Germans seemed very uneasy trying to speak English to me, even though their English was fine, so I had to use more of my German. We played a few games, including Foosball, and had a really good time. Julia asked me about the bars in America, and I told her about some that I've been too. She thought it was strange that the bars close at 2am. Apparently, bars in German don't close. People can stay and drink until 6am if they like.

The next day, Julia and her parents took me to a Bavarian Brewery for a tour. The Kuchlbaur Brewery was really interesting, but also a bit weird. Some of the architecture was designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser (yes, that's a first and last name). His style of architecture is really... well, weird would be the best word to describe it. It felt a bit like I was in Charlie and the Chocolate factory, or that Spy Kids movie. There's a tower built to be a symbol of the brewing process. I climbed all the way to the top, despite how terrified I am of heights!

That style of architecture was prominent on the inside of the brewery. And they also had a weird focus on dwarfs who help make the beer...

I did try a sample of the beer they brew. It was okay, certainly better than American beer, but I don't really like beer anyway. We also drove to the oldest Brewery in the world at a monastery on the Danube. The Brewery has been in operation since 1040A.D. It's almost 1000 years old.

 Me, outside the oldest brewery in the world.

That's one thing I've noticed being in Germany, the age of things. I told Julia that the house I live in in St. Cloud is over 90-years-old. She thought it was hilarious that I thought that was old. Things in Europe are much, much older than most Americans can imagine. We trace our history back about three hundred years, the Europeans can trace theirs back for thousands. Case in point, we drove past ruins from the Roman Empire that were almost 2000 years old.

Now starts another week at school. I will probably be teaching one of my lessons on the October Revolution in Russia for a history class later this week.

Lastly, I've been craving Taco Bell for the past few days! Sadly, there are no Taco Bell locations in Europe, and apparently the Germans don't make good Mexican food. I guess I'll just have to wait until I get home!

Pictures from my weekend

As promised, here are a few pictures from my lovely Sunday in the Park

Some things change, some things stay the same...

I apologize that I haven’t posted anything in a while, so this is going to be quite a long post.

I’ve been at the Munich International School for four days now. Some things are different from schools in America, some things are the same. The staff and students are wonderful, everyone is very friendly and welcoming. I have been given an e-mail account and a laptop to use. Every student and teacher also has a laptop to use for their schoolwork. The campus is wireless, and the use of technology is high. It is expected that the students utilize their laptops responsibly in and outside the classroom.

The students are extraordinarily smart and well behaved. It’s actually quite intimidating. I’m really going to have to step up my game when it comes to creating and teaching the lessons. I will be working with an 11^th Grade high-level Geography class, an 11^th grade mixed-level European History class, and a 10^th grade on-level European History class.

The scheduling system they use here is quite confusing. Every day the schedule is different. There doesn’t seem to be any use of a MWF and TTh type schedule like at SCSU. Each day is different, and every other week is different. They use a Week A schedule and a Week B schedule. It’s going to take me a while to get used to it. I will have a good amount of prep time, so I shouldn’t get too overwhelmed.

The food is decent. It’s still Sedexo food, but it’s better than at home. The meal I ate yesterday, beef with gravy and spaetzle (little flour dumplings) was awesome! The day before I had noodles with a tomato-meat sauce, also quite good. I can also get a sandwich or salad if I don’t want the actual meal. They also have fruit, yogurt, and lots of bread, croissants, pastries and pretzels.

Today, I helped my Cooperating Teacher with a discussion on cyber bullying in his advisory class. Some things do stay the same. The students didn’t take the discussion very seriously until I told them my own story with bullying, as well as some of the recent suicides in America due to cyber bullying (i.e. Tyler Clementi). I think I helped drive the point home that this isn’t just a joke, bullying needs to be taken seriously because bullying has consequences. I watched their faces as I talked, and I think they began to think about it more seriously. I told my CT that if I can’t find a job teaching, this is something I would love to do, advocate for bullying prevention.

Getting to and from school has been an experience. I take about an hour and a half to get to the school in the morning, and about the same time coming home in the evening. I walk three blocks to the bus stop by my house, take the bus to the U-Bahn (subway) station at Aidenbachstrasse and take the U to Marienplatz. From there, I take the S-Bahn (above ground train) to Starnberg Nord station, and then get on a bus to take me to the school. So, a bus to a train to another train to another bus is how I get to school every day. Apart from it taking so long, I like taking the train(s). I get to read before school, and relax on my way home. Plus, I have my iPod, so music always helps make the commute better!

Over the weekend, I went out with my neighbor to go grocery shopping. My neighbor is a nice, 24 year old German woman. Her English is okay, good think I can understand broken English. On Sunday, I went to the Englisher Garten in Munich, which is basically like New York’s Central Park. There, I ate at the Chinesischer Trum Beer Garden. It was simply gorgeous, and the food was delicious! Wienerschnitzel (breaded, fried pork cutlet) with Pommes (French fries) and Apfelshcorle to drink. (no beer for me, yuck!)

In all, it was a good weekend, and it’s been a good few days getting used to being at school again. I’ll post pictures of my time in the Englisher Garten later today.

One last thing, I found out yesterday, because it was such a gorgeous clear day, that I can see the Bavarian Alps from the school I’m teaching at. They’re just shadows in the distance, but it’s still awe inspiring! :)

Cloudy Day

Well, today didn't turn out like I had planned. I woke up at 6:30am (11:30pm in MN) today, fully intending to take the train out to the Munich International School to meet with my supervisor. That didn't happen. I took the train out to Starnberg, where the school is, but got off at the wrong stop and tried for a half an hour to find the bus that would take me to the school. By the time I realized my mistake, it was too late to visit the school. At least I figured this out now, instead of making that mistake on Monday when I actually start student teaching. I'm going to visit the school tomorrow, now that I know exactly where I'm going.

On the positive side, the lake in Starnberg by the train station is gorgeous! I hope to get back there soon, maybe tomorrow, to take lots of pictures!! I spent the rest of the day chilling in my apartment. It was cloudy, windy and a bit rainy today. Not really a day to go exploring. I took a long nap, figured out how to get Hulu.com to work on my computer, and got my TV to work! I watched Family Guy and Futurama auf Deutsch (in German), and now I'm watching BBC News :)

My neighbor, a young German woman, stopped by to introduce herself this evening. She invited me to go out with her and a few friends tomorrow night. Not sure if I really want to go out my first Friday evening here, or spend time relaxing and adjusting. The poll on my facebook status about this seems to be favoring going out. Maybe I'll trust my friends and have an adventure...

Time for bed. Got to get up early and try to get to the school again!

I've finally arrived!

As I type this blog bost, I'm sitting in my new apartment in Munich! It is truly incredible and unreal! I'm completely exhausted, and I can't wait to go to sleep tonight. It is currently 7:10pm in Munich, which would make it 12:10pm in MN.

What a journey I've made! From Rochester to Chicago, and Chicago to Munich. I've learned a lot in such a short amount of time. The first thing, even if an airline says a carry-on bag will fit, doesn't mean it actually will. Take my carry-ons for example, I had my duffel and a computer bag, both pretty stuffed. My duffel wouldn't fit in the overhead compartment on the Roch-to-Chic flight, but that was a tiny plane, so I'll let that slide. On the larger plane from Chic-to-Mun flight, the duffel fit in the overhead, but my computer bag wouldn't fit under my seat. They've blocked off about a quarter of the space under the seats for electronic stuff for the TV screens inside the headrests. Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather have more foot room than entertainment any day of the week. It made sleeping next to impossible and just sitting quite uncomfortable. I'm sure this is taken right out of a bad stand-up comedian's routine, but WOW do they pack us in there like cattle on those planes. I don't remember it being that bad when I came to Germany five years ago.

Anyway, enough with my complaining... I made it safe and sound. Got a taxi and headed for my apartment. It looks just about the same as on the pictures. Really small, but really nice! I unpacked, got settled, and took a quick nap before heading out to explore the neighborhood. I found my way to the subway station and road it into Marienplatz, the heart of Munich. Marienplatz is a large plaza where the Glockenspiel is. I walked around there for quite some time, enjoying the nice weather (sunny and mid-50s) before heading back on the subway to my apartment. I stopped at a little market near my place and picked up something for dinner, a few rolls, some meat, cheese, fruit, Apfelschorle and some chocolate cookies!!! :) YUM!

 My bed, all made up and ready to be slept in!

 

Other half of my apartment...

 The Glockenspiel at Marienplatz

My yummy first dinner in Munich!



I'm ready to get lots of sleep right now! Tomorrow I'm waking up early to take the train over to the school where I'll be teaching at to meet with my supervisor and get a tour of the school!