Jengonda - Jennifer Gonda

Dear friends, I am blogging my trip to Germany as a McCloy fellow in Urban Affairs. Along with three colleagues from the US, I hope this experience will provide me with some new ideas to help move Milwaukee in the right direction.

In addition to that, I plan to make new friends, experience European culture, resurrect my German language skills, enjoy German delicacies, and of course sample some tasty Bier!

Hope you all enjoy reading about my adventures!

Jen

To learn more about the program, check this out:

http://www.acgusa.org/about2.php?pagename=Fellowships&subpagename=For+Other+Mid-Level+Professionals&toppagename=Urban+Affairs%2FLocal+Government&mlinkid=33

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Joined on: September 16th 2008
Last Login: December 3rd 2008

Blog Entries: 18
Photos: 89

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Blogs & Travel Journals

by Jengonda, order by Date newest first.

By Jengonda
October 11th 2008

No School Buses Europe » Germany » Bavaria » Munich

In Munich I found out that with a few exceptions, there really aren't school buses in Germany. The kids are taught to ride public transport around the age of 6. Younger students attend schools in their neighborhoods and walk. The more I think about this, the more it all makes sense. Here we are with a massive deficit in our ability to run an effective public transport system and a huge overrun in the school system budget - partially driven by the cost of busing. Could we solve both problems in one fell swoop? I suspect parents will be concerned about [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
October 11th 2008

OKTOBERFEST!! Europe » Germany » Bavaria » Munich

Ein Prosit!

Take Summerfest times 7 and you get 7 million people, in tents holding 7000 people drinking the 7 local beers of Munich! Really, this has got to be the most amazing sight. And the best thing is that the people are so festive and happy, which makes for a very fun time. In addition to the beer tents, there is an entire carnival/amusement park at the festgrounds with rollercoasters and every other ride you can imagine. In fact, local residents are sensitive about the fact that the festival is not just about beer. And they are right, after a couple beers, [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
October 8th 2008

Oktoberfest Preview Europe » Germany » Bavaria » Munich

Internet access and spare time have proven difficult to come by over the past week. Now that I am reconnected, many posts will be forthcoming. Since I know you are anxiously awaiting to hear about Oktoberfest. Here is a little preview!! [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
October 3rd 2008

Erfurt Part 2 - A Seamless Transportation System Europe » Germany » Thuringia » Erfurt

City Hall at Night

Ok, I am starting to feel blogging guilt. Started typing this over a week ago and am just now gettting to publish it. Don't think I am cut out for this in the long term! Here's my Jesse Ventura promise: this is a one-time deal. In most German cities, the public transport systems (and water and energy) are run by municipal utilities that are owned by the city but are privately administered. However, this doesn't stop Erfurt from having an incredibly coordinated transportation system that addresses all modes of travel. Dirk (our host) gave us guest passes to ride the tram [View Full Entry]

Tram Cables attached to Private Buildings

By Jengonda
October 1st 2008

Erfurt's High Tech City Services - Part 1 Europe » Germany » Thuringia » Erfurt

Fire Chief Bauer

It is no joke when I say that these people take their city services very seriously. Their new fire house boasts a full GIS system and fingertip blueprints on most city parcels. Citywide the firefighter staff is about 25% full-time and 75% volunteer. Paramedic services are fully staffed by city employees and they only turn to priovate companies for overflow - rather than splitting up ALS and BLS response. Response time averages 8-10 minutes and that is considered standard in Germany. As you can see, they were very kind in their tour and allowed us access to the entire station and [View Full Entry]

Looking down from the 30 Meter ladder basket

By Jengonda
October 1st 2008

Wartburg Castle Europe » Germany » Thuringia » Eisenach

Wartburg Castle

This post is merely for a few pictures - if you want to learn about it, check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wartburg_Castle As much as I've always wanted a castle, I think this one might be a little too drafty for me. I'll have to keep shopping. [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
October 1st 2008

Erfurt - The Basics Europe » Germany » Thuringia » Weimar

City Guesthouse

Erfurt, the capitol of Thuringia, lies in the dead center of Germany. Not sure why, but this program doesn't include it as a location. This seems odd considering it is a state capitol of 200,000 people and a center of regional trade. Dirk is our host in Erfurt. He works in the city's Human Resources Department and is also a volunteer firefighter. He has given us a jam-packed schedule of activities here so my comments willl have to be brief. We spent part of our first two days just taking in the sights of town. Halle was beautiful, but Erfurt is [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
September 28th 2008

East German Wine? Who knew! (and the Bauhaus) Europe » Germany » Saxony-Anhalt » Halle an der Saale

Wine Cellar

When I woke up this morning, I swore I was not going to have any Bier today but alas I was thwarted by my travelmates at lunchtime. I guess they have much greater responsibilities they normally have to attend to at home. Yesterday afternoon we did visit the famous Bauhaus in Dessau, home of early Modern design, but I won't bore you with that... see pictures below. After that we drove to the Weinstrasse (or Wine Road) in Seeburg and had a very nice tour and taste of some surprisingly tasty Vino! The owner gave us a tour and explained that [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
September 28th 2008

A Sense of Environmental Responsibility Europe » Germany » Saxony-Anhalt » Halle an der Saale

Numerous Waste Cans

Halle and Germany in general have a very advanced environmental management system. It is probably not unique to this country because the lack of space in Europe is common. The city has a comprehensive environmental management department that includes waste management, recycling, forestry, water/air quality provision and protection, nature preservancy, wastewater/stormwater GIS and aything else you can imagine that would be "Umwelt" in nature. The department produces multiple brochures and even a calendar for sale that describe waste collection and environmental protection requirements. Ea [View Full Entry]

By Jengonda
September 27th 2008

You've gotta love a scandal... (warning- slightly inappropriate topic matter) Europe » Germany » Saxony-Anhalt » Halle an der Saale

Cardinal Albrecht's House of Fun

..especially when it involves the church! Evidently Cardinal Albrecht (formerly Archbishop of Magdeburg) had a second castle and cathedral here in Halle. It was generally known that Halle was his "playground" while he did business in Magdeburg. You may recognize his name from the origins of the Reformation - a movement elevated after an argument between him and Martin Luther. Martin Luther attended the University now named after him here in Halle. Local historians believe Cardinal Albrecht had constructed a tunnel from his local castle directly to the house shown in this picture. [View Full Entry]

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