First Impressions

For my day in Germany I laid low, due to the travel weariness flowing through my body. The group arrived and we went out to dinner at an Italian restaurant. A small group and I went walking around Berlin today. We searched everywhere for a bank to exchange money, but really ended up taking in more sights than anything. It was really interesting to walk around and see all the poeple and what goes on during a Saturday afternoon. I saw everything from a political-ish rally to soccer fans to street performers. It is just crazy the kind of stuff people on the streets do. The people here seem to have a passion for what they do. I feel like if I were to go to a city in the United States I would not see a troupe of street performers dancing and performing stunts with as big a crowd as was watching this one.

I have also been trying to use the German that I spent so much time learning. I feel like the native Germans are much more open to helping and easier to work with when you try to speak their language. Almost as though they appreciate that you made an effort to speak their language, since you are just visiting their country.

Overall my first day and a half in Germany has been mostly about learning the culture and trying not to stick out. I hope to later get involved with the culture more and hopefully be able to speak better and more German than I have been attempting. I suppose with more time around it and hearing more of it, that will happen.