Berlin is about 2 hours away from Hamburg. The bus ride was actually not bad because the view out the window was just continuous beauty. It was nice that everyone started to get comfortable with each other because I was never really social during the year with other members of the group. We really bonded over games of psychiatrist(my favorite!) and chicken tacos(new favorite :P).
On our way into the city, we stopped at a concentration camp called Sachsenhausen for a couple hours. It was such a profound experience standing in a place where an incredible amount of history took place. Sachsenhausen is a different kind of concentration camp. Unlike ones like Auschwitz, it was more like a work camp. So instead of killing by gas, it was where people died from working to death. But there was a building we visited where the guide walked us through the process that they went through to kill prisoners. He described what would happen in each room and the next steps they took until the corpse was sent to the incinerator. It was just crazy to stand literally two feet from the room where thousands of people died. It was such a fascinating tour and I can't believe that I was able to visit a concentration camp, a place I've only studied about in all my years of school.
Once we got to Berlin, we had free time for dinner before we got to attend the Berlin Philharmonic concert! It was our first real encounter of a language barrier. The waiter at the restaurant didn't speak English, and none of us knew anymore Germam than danke. We had to order by pointing to the numbers. It was a funny experience, we're such tourists.
The Berlin Philharmonic's concert hall is just absolutely gorgeous. The entire building is gold and the sunset reflected off of it just perfectly. The concert was epic. The most memorable piece was Zarathustra which if you look it up, you'd recognize it. It took everyone's breaths away. Really, look it up and imagine one of the best orchestras in the world playing it, you'd geek out too (ok maybe just me...no shame). On top of that, I got to witness Emmanuel Pahud playing. For those of you who don't know who he is, he is a world famous flutist; famous for his playing, his golden flute, and his handsome looks. Hot dang that was a good night, I really let my inner nerd come out.
We walked back from the concert hall to the hotel and got to see the city before the end of the night. Berlin is like Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and New York combined. Who needs America when you can get the trifecta right here. I am seriously in love with this city, it is so beautiful and majestic. I think I want to move here. We'll be back here again May 2nd, I'll be searching for apartments then!
Tschuss! :)
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Friday, April 27, 2012
Chillin with the Hamburgers
It's been quite an eventful first official day! We woke up in Hamburg feeling 100 times better. The hotel breakfast was fantastic, probably the best breakfast I've ever had. A breakfast buffet of cheeses, meats, and breads. There were so many varieties of jam and spread that I was forced to eat my weight in bread. I am eating so many carbs right now, it's awesome. German hot chocoloate is just delectable. I swear something about the European atmosphere just makes me want to eat all the time. Good thing we're walking a ton, but don't be surprised if I come back 30 lbs. heavier.
The first official business we conducted was the elementary school outreach. On our way over to the school, we passed a high school with a bunch of kids outside the door. They were all dressed in neon and smoking and drinking outside. It was a big party, apparently in honor of finals week. We should do that for finals week, minus the smoking and alcohol. It would really make it a ton better, Germans know what they're doing. At the elementary school, we performed a mini concert for them and demonstrated our instruments for them. I've decided foreign children are just a little bit cuter because they look at you with such adoration and probably mostly because we don't know what they're saying.
After the outreach, we went on a boat tour of Hamburg where I completely ate it down the stairs. I never hear the end of it, probably because I did it again during the concert later that night. We also learned some cool things about the city on the tour. Hamburg is like a combination of Boston, Seattle, and San Francisco. It is one of the cities that performs the Lion King musical, and they have an awesome venue just for it right on the water. I'm not sure I believe that hamburgers started here, but the people who live in Hamburg are often referred to as Hamburgers(pretty sweet).
After the boat tour came the bus tour of the city. We visited the St. Michaels Church which was beautiful and rich of history. We drove through the most urban part of the city where I almost jumped off the bus because it's a shopping paradise. I swear Germans or Europeans in general are more fashionable even if they're just wearing jeans and a t-shirt. They work those jean/t-shirt combos. I'll be sure to come back to shop sometime in my lifetime so I'll be cool and fashionable like the Hamburgers.
Dinner was served by the stake sponsoring our concert that night and it was the first homemade meal we've gotten. They served us German chili and it was delicious and so filling. Their chili isn't as heavy but they serve it over rice with something called creme fraiche, which is similar to sour cream. I've come to learn that Germans really really love something called apfel schorle, which is kind of like apple cider and apple beer combined. They drink it like every meal, and they always have it anywhere we go.
The concert was dreadful(#sorrynotsorry), it was hot and cramped. But the audience ate it up and made all the messes worth it. They were such a great crowd and it was a fantastic opportunity for the investigators to come. The turn out was about 250 investigators and non-members, pretty neat.
After staying with a host family with the most good looking toddlers, I've come to the conclusion that Germans are fabulously nice.
Here are some German I've picked up:
Saft- juice. Ex: apfel saft=apple juice
Tchuss- a farewell expression kind of like saying "good luck to ya"
Bitte- please and can be used as thank you
So not a lot but it's on it's way. It's been fun chillin with the Hamburgers. I'm grateful that I'm here and I say this in the name of...oh wait, I suck at ending these. So just guten tag!
The first official business we conducted was the elementary school outreach. On our way over to the school, we passed a high school with a bunch of kids outside the door. They were all dressed in neon and smoking and drinking outside. It was a big party, apparently in honor of finals week. We should do that for finals week, minus the smoking and alcohol. It would really make it a ton better, Germans know what they're doing. At the elementary school, we performed a mini concert for them and demonstrated our instruments for them. I've decided foreign children are just a little bit cuter because they look at you with such adoration and probably mostly because we don't know what they're saying.
After the outreach, we went on a boat tour of Hamburg where I completely ate it down the stairs. I never hear the end of it, probably because I did it again during the concert later that night. We also learned some cool things about the city on the tour. Hamburg is like a combination of Boston, Seattle, and San Francisco. It is one of the cities that performs the Lion King musical, and they have an awesome venue just for it right on the water. I'm not sure I believe that hamburgers started here, but the people who live in Hamburg are often referred to as Hamburgers(pretty sweet).
After the boat tour came the bus tour of the city. We visited the St. Michaels Church which was beautiful and rich of history. We drove through the most urban part of the city where I almost jumped off the bus because it's a shopping paradise. I swear Germans or Europeans in general are more fashionable even if they're just wearing jeans and a t-shirt. They work those jean/t-shirt combos. I'll be sure to come back to shop sometime in my lifetime so I'll be cool and fashionable like the Hamburgers.
Dinner was served by the stake sponsoring our concert that night and it was the first homemade meal we've gotten. They served us German chili and it was delicious and so filling. Their chili isn't as heavy but they serve it over rice with something called creme fraiche, which is similar to sour cream. I've come to learn that Germans really really love something called apfel schorle, which is kind of like apple cider and apple beer combined. They drink it like every meal, and they always have it anywhere we go.
The concert was dreadful(#sorrynotsorry), it was hot and cramped. But the audience ate it up and made all the messes worth it. They were such a great crowd and it was a fantastic opportunity for the investigators to come. The turn out was about 250 investigators and non-members, pretty neat.
After staying with a host family with the most good looking toddlers, I've come to the conclusion that Germans are fabulously nice.
Here are some German I've picked up:
Saft- juice. Ex: apfel saft=apple juice
Tchuss- a farewell expression kind of like saying "good luck to ya"
Bitte- please and can be used as thank you
So not a lot but it's on it's way. It's been fun chillin with the Hamburgers. I'm grateful that I'm here and I say this in the name of...oh wait, I suck at ending these. So just guten tag!
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
We have arrived!
3 flights, a 5 hour layover, and more than 24 hours of traveling later, we are finally in Germany! Wow that was a lot of traveling. I'm not gonna lie, I am pretty sick of airports. We started in Provo, bussed to the Salt Lake airport, flew to the Seattle airport, then to the Amsterdam airport, then finally flew to Hamburg.
It was a pleasant surprise to see my friends from the BYU Volleyball team heading to USC before boarding. For once, I'm going somewhere cooler than them (ha!). The Seattle airport was pretty neat. We had to take a train to the huge food court they have, and of course we had some fine dining there (Wendy's). The worst and best airport was Amsterdam because of how long our layover was but we made up for it by window shopping all the cheeses and chocolates. We sampled some cheese, it was very "Gouda" ;)
By the time we reached Hamburg, everyone was delusional. I thought I was going to die any second. My feet were swollen from flying so much, my head was spinning, it was really a nightmare. But as soon as we started walking around the city, anything bad disappeared. It was so refreshing to see a completely different atmosphere. Everything is different: the weather, crosswalks, street signs, even the toilets. I kind of enjoyed not knowing where I was walking to and not being able to read the directions; scary, but exciting. Our first meal in Germany consisted of bread, random cheese, strawberry milk, and of course, chocolates. Oh the CHOCOLATES!
Our hotel room is so tiny, so European, and so awesome! My roommate Lyndsay and I had to do our workouts on the small space between the window and our beds, on our beds, or against the wall. But all in all it's been a smooth trip and it's gonna get even better tomorrow because we will get a good night's rest and be able to function like normal human beings again. Pictures up tomorrow, and if you want to Skype, add me: ChelseaChen17. Until then, good night! <3
It was a pleasant surprise to see my friends from the BYU Volleyball team heading to USC before boarding. For once, I'm going somewhere cooler than them (ha!). The Seattle airport was pretty neat. We had to take a train to the huge food court they have, and of course we had some fine dining there (Wendy's). The worst and best airport was Amsterdam because of how long our layover was but we made up for it by window shopping all the cheeses and chocolates. We sampled some cheese, it was very "Gouda" ;)
By the time we reached Hamburg, everyone was delusional. I thought I was going to die any second. My feet were swollen from flying so much, my head was spinning, it was really a nightmare. But as soon as we started walking around the city, anything bad disappeared. It was so refreshing to see a completely different atmosphere. Everything is different: the weather, crosswalks, street signs, even the toilets. I kind of enjoyed not knowing where I was walking to and not being able to read the directions; scary, but exciting. Our first meal in Germany consisted of bread, random cheese, strawberry milk, and of course, chocolates. Oh the CHOCOLATES!
Our hotel room is so tiny, so European, and so awesome! My roommate Lyndsay and I had to do our workouts on the small space between the window and our beds, on our beds, or against the wall. But all in all it's been a smooth trip and it's gonna get even better tomorrow because we will get a good night's rest and be able to function like normal human beings again. Pictures up tomorrow, and if you want to Skype, add me: ChelseaChen17. Until then, good night! <3
Monday, April 23, 2012
Less than a day!
The countdown has been endless this past year! Just one more year of school, one more semester, one more month, one more week, and now one more day. I don't think it will hit me until I see the sky of Amsterdam when I walk out of the airport.
It's almost bittersweet that I'm leaving good old Provo! I've lived in this little city for almost two years now. And even though I've been pretty independent for a long time, it's still going to be quite the change in independence when I'm in a different continent!
There's still so much preparations to take care of. I'm so nervous that I'll be on the plane and forget my flute or something. So if you see me before I leave, remind me to bring my flute! I'll be leaving Tuesday (tomorrow!) morning at 7:30 AM! It'll be sad to say good bye but I'll be back soon enough! :)
It's almost bittersweet that I'm leaving good old Provo! I've lived in this little city for almost two years now. And even though I've been pretty independent for a long time, it's still going to be quite the change in independence when I'm in a different continent!
There's still so much preparations to take care of. I'm so nervous that I'll be on the plane and forget my flute or something. So if you see me before I leave, remind me to bring my flute! I'll be leaving Tuesday (tomorrow!) morning at 7:30 AM! It'll be sad to say good bye but I'll be back soon enough! :)
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Learning the Culture
To prepare for our trip, this past winter semester the Wind Symphony took a Cultural Survey class together. We learned the history, culture, and Do's/Don'ts of the countries we are visiting. My conductor shared a quote that really stuck to me:
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." -Mark Twain
Pretty eye opening quote I'd say. I am looking forward to growing and becoming more knowledgeable of our world. Traveling these next three weeks will kill any ignorance I have of what's out there. But I hope the stereotype that Belgium has the best chocolates is still true ;P I shall blog about it soon!
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." -Mark Twain
Pretty eye opening quote I'd say. I am looking forward to growing and becoming more knowledgeable of our world. Traveling these next three weeks will kill any ignorance I have of what's out there. But I hope the stereotype that Belgium has the best chocolates is still true ;P I shall blog about it soon!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
About to become the world traveler...
I am so excited to finally go to Europe. I just received my itinerary and this trip has suddenly become so tangible. I've always sulked to my parents whenever they mentioned their experiences there because they always seemed to forget to bring me along. Now it's my turn to be the world traveler; I'll get to see the places they've been and even more.
Just 6 more days until we depart from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam where our 3 week tour will begin. We will be traveling to Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and France, and maybe even spend a day in Prague, Czech Republic. Our tour schedule follows a basic outline of free time and sightseeing during the day and performing or firesides at night. It can't get better than that. Besides sightseeing, we will get to attend a Berlin Philharmonic concert, be a part of Liberation Day in the Netherlands, and visit the Anne Frank House.
I am incredibly blessed to be given this opportunity of a lifetime. Words can't describe my anticipation for this trip. I will be blogging often to post updates and pictures. For now, check out my Europe Pinterest Board for pictures of the places I'll be visiting :)
Just 6 more days until we depart from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam where our 3 week tour will begin. We will be traveling to Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, and France, and maybe even spend a day in Prague, Czech Republic. Our tour schedule follows a basic outline of free time and sightseeing during the day and performing or firesides at night. It can't get better than that. Besides sightseeing, we will get to attend a Berlin Philharmonic concert, be a part of Liberation Day in the Netherlands, and visit the Anne Frank House.
I am incredibly blessed to be given this opportunity of a lifetime. Words can't describe my anticipation for this trip. I will be blogging often to post updates and pictures. For now, check out my Europe Pinterest Board for pictures of the places I'll be visiting :)
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