Blogs from Reutlingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, Europe

Oh je, I'm here. It's really odd, because I thought this 'moving to another country, leaving friends and family and starting a new life alone' business would resemble the plot of a Hollywood film, but it has all seemed quite undramatic. I imagined tears, poignant goodbyes with whispered words in my ear like 'I won't forget you', as the credits rolled up and I drove away with 'We'll Meet Again' playing over the whole scene. In reality, it was a lot less emotional. On Friday evening, it was like I suddenly thought, 'I am moving to Germany tomorrow, I had better pack my things.' I did this, went to bed, woke up the next day and left. I have read other people's blogs/experiences about going on their Year Abroad, and they all seem to start with ... read more

English During an in inpatient rehabilitation, you are quite busy, believe me. Last week, I wrote that I had arrived in a rehab hospital in the town of Bad Urach, not far from Stuttgart. I saw the doctor, she talked to me and she examined me, and then she decided what therapies I would do during the next three weeks. But the therapies didn't start until Monday, so I had time to relax a little bit and have a look around. So on Saturday morning, I walked into town, around town and back, which was about 6 km altogether. I didn't even feel that sore after my trip. In the afternoon, I went to a very nice thermal bath that is just a few minutes away from my rehab hospital to relax a little bit. Sunday ... read more

We started classes this week. They seem like they'll all be fairly interesting but the way they're scheduled in is much different from my college schedule back at Valpo. It may be the change in friendships and the lack of cafeteria time that adds to this, as well. Instead of classes being spread out, they're all pretty well in a row and for longer periods of time. To add to the "blocked" feel, every class is in the same room. I think my favorite class will be German Economics because the professor is such an odd man (I mean this in the best way). He loves to joke and has a jolly chuckle that reminds me of a character from a book or movie. Very animated. He likes to pull out random strange facts about Americans ... read more

-Pedestrians no longer have the right of way. You must stay in the "Zebra Strips" -Germany is very eco-friendly. Deposits can be up to 50 cents on the bottle! -Half of German's walk around with huge baskets for shopping (eco-friendly) -Police sirons are even more obnoxious here -Dairy seems richer here -They know how to make good baked goods -Diet Coke is called "Coke Light" -They divide their garbage into three different types -There is Hazelnut flavored everything... read more

With a population of clearly over 100,000 this is already one of the larger cities in the German state of Baden-Wurttemberg. Reutlingen is about 40 kilometers south of Stuttgart. Like so many places in this region, the Alamanni took the city in the 5.-7.th century. The most obvious landmark of Reutlingen, St. Mary's Church, was completed in the 14th century. Reutlingen was later awarded the important status of an 'Imperial City'. A peculiarity of Reutlingen's judicial system in the 15th century was the 'Asylum of Reutlingen' that granted all manslayers asylum in the city if they committed their crime unintentionally (I'm not sure if that's still the case today...)! With the notable exception of Nuremberg, Reutlingen was in 1530 the only Imperial City in Germany to sign the "Confessio Augustana" , the declaration of belief in ... read more