Suzie's First Report from Germany

September 22, 2005

Hey everyone,
Alright, I'm sorry I haven't written before now. My family didn't 
have internet until Tuesday. Just my like that they arranged to get 
it while I was here. :) Anyways. Germany is so much more than I 
expected. Hold on, I'll start from the beginning.
     I woke up on Monday, August 8th at 4 o'clock in the morning and 
the thought of leaving was still incomprehensible. Even as I kissed 
my sister goodbye and got into the car with my mom, it didn't sink 
in. We checked into the Miami Airport with my 3 bags. lol. 2 of them 
were full of gifts, by the way. The flight was short, I slept. 
Stepping off the plane into Boston airport, it finally hit. I'm 
leaving, for a year. It was an interesting feeling: excitement, 
dread, terror, anticipation, delight. So after a long lay over I 
finally got on the plane to Amsterdam.  The flight was great, I read 
my book and watched the new Ashton Kutcher movie. Amsterdam was a 
nightmare. I had to wait in line after line to get to my gate, only 
to be told I had to go to a "transfer station" to get my boarding 
pass. I tried to use the phone to call home and tell my parents I was 
ok and I was completely lost. Their phones are like computers, way 
too hightech for me. I finally made it to the bus that would take me 
to my plane only to hear the ultimate mood crusher. A bird flew into 
the intake of the airplane and we would have to wait a while to make 
sure it was ok. So packed into a little bus like sardines, we waited 
for the mechanics to repair the plane. I listened to the people 
around me talk and tried to understand when they spoke in German. It 
was good practice and made me realize how much I had to learn. 
Finally, we were on the plane and on the way. I flew into Hamburg for 
a week with our former exchange student Marina and her family. Before 
i got out of the luggage terminal, I realized i had no money for a 
cart, 3 huge bags, and no way to exchange money. An extremely nice 
woman helped me out and as i rolled out of the airport, there was 
Marina.
     I was so happy. I met her stepdad, Lutz and together we stepped 
out into, what I now know is normal, very cold weather. So to make a 
long story short. I spent a week with Marina and her family, learning 
Deutsch, different customs, eating German food, and checking out 
Denmark, German history, and shopping. It was marvelous. The week 
ended way too soon and i was heading out to Siegen before I knew it. 
My host family happened to be in Austria for their summer vacation 
and my host dad was driving out the next day to go meet them. So I 
was greeted by a quiet house. But, omg, the house is amazing. 4 
stories, built into a hill, all glass and concrete, landscaped. It's 
beautiful. The city itself is incredible too. It's nestled in between 
hills along with 5 other cities in the same valley. It's wonderful. 
We have two "castles" which really aren't what i though castles were 
like but beautiful none the less. We have malls and shopping and 
dancing clubs and everything you could dream of. Ironically, there 
are many restaurants named after New Orleans that have American food.
     My family is really nice. I have a younger sister who's 8, 
Caroline, and a younger brother who's 11, Carl-Friedrich. I'm having 
a hard time adjusting to them though. I really feel like an outsider. 
School is great though. My first day, I was trembling. My classes are 
awesome. I don't understand most of the lectures, but I listen and 
learn and everyday I understand more. I'm making friends too. The 
people are so nice and helpful. Today a group of friends were trying 
to explain to me when "schön" means beautiful and when it means nice. 
We all ended up laughing on the floor. I've been trying every 
opportunity that has crossed my path, included going to church and 
bible study, dancing class, and watching a "murder night" for 
entertainment one night. It's been a lot of fun.
     We went out to Austria to go meet the family the next day. We 
spent the rest of the week in Austria hiking and checking out the 
Gastein Valley. It was really great. The family was really shy at 
first but after showing them how to shuffle and touch their tongues 
to their noses, the kids warmed up to me. ummm. That's about it. I'll 
write more soon and pictures are soon to follow.
For everyone back home, I miss you terribly  but I'm having an 
amazing time.
Tschuss
Suzie