I apologize for not taking as many pictures as I should, but honestly, I think if you really want to know what its like here, you simply have to come here. Its an experience thats hard to portray through just pictures and words. You have to hear it and see it and feel how cold its getting to get an idea of what its like here in northern Germany :)
I'm on fall break right now, which started on October 3rd, which is a national holiday here because its the reunification date. And so last week and this week I have off of school :)
This is just a small compilation of different things that I've noticed throughout the last months.
1. Food! Grocery shopping happens at least once a week, which means food seems to be a lot fresher an healthier. The main meal that can be had at any time of the day is bread and cheese or meat. Waffles and pancakes are more of a desert than a breakfast, and breakfast (on weekdays) is usually just cereal. On the weekends, big breakfasts with brötchen and cheese and marmalade and nutella and all sorts of stuff is had. Its wonderful :)
2. Germans are dog people. They love and cherish their dogs and cats are not as common it seems as it would be in America.
Ohmygosh, but my dog is totally the best, Arthos is so amazing and cute!
3. German TV has a lot of American shows on it (Scrubs, How I Met Your Mother, Grey's Anatomy, The Dog Whisperer, Malcolm in the Middle, Desperate Housewives, One and a Half Men, etc...)
And German TV is odd...like there is this show called Mitten in Leben that I think is people acting out real live situations (like being cheated on, or having a crazy father, and other weird things) and doing it really badly. I don't know if its serious or not! But shows like Guten Zeit und Schleten Zeit is an interesting equivalent to something inbetween Days of Our Lives and 91210. There is also the Disney channel here, featuring all American shows dubbed.
4. The school system is very different from America's. Here, you are in Kindegarten or nursury school until from about 3-6 and then on to Grundschule, which lasts until 4th grade. From 5th grade on, you have a few different paths.
The first choice is Hauptschule, which lasts usually until ninth grade. This teaches regular subjects at a slow pace and with more vocational oriented subjects. This leads to a part time apprenticeship and vocational school until you are 18.
The second way is Realschule going to about the tenth grade. This leads to part time vocational school and here you are focusing on looking for a career and studying a broader range of things. Its possible to transfer to Gymnasium from here if you wish.
The last one is Gymnasium. (the one I'm in) This lasts until 13th grade, and at the end, you take a big test called the Abitur. This is a diploma thats going to get you into University. This seems to be the more educational way to go.
Teachers will suggest to parents what school to put their kids in, but its ultimately up to the parents to decide.
Tuition for University are low cost or possibly free, but you have to be proving that you can do it with high scores to stay in.
It seems that in my classes, grades are heavily based on participation and test scores, not on homework.
In Gymnasium, you are in a regular, highschool like schedule until 11th grade in which you separate off into tracks. Biology, history language, and math (I believe) are the four ones that you can go into. This means that that specific class is going to be tougher and you have it twice a week, instead of once. I am in the history track as of now.
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