Our Little Bakery

melting the chocolate



Chocolate covered corn flakes!

  It's Christmas Eve so I'm just going to assume that everyone knows I'm referring the limitless supply of Christmas cookies and sweets that overwhelm the month of December. In the U.S.--at least in the Owens' home--the vast majority of baking is done in the two or three days prior to Christmas and the entire bar is always full, and often overflowing, with everything from triple berry pie and lemon bars to chocolate crinkle cookies and fudge. The 6'3" walking stomach ensures we never have to worry about making too much :-)



Sugar cookie dough, chocolate, and almonds!



In Germany, however, the Christmas baking season is conducted in an entirely different manner! It kicks off the first weekend of advent as the cookie cutters come out of hiding and the Christmas tins are hauled into the kitchen. Each week we added two or three new treats to the ever-growing accumulation of Christmas goodies and just today we finished the last batch--something that resembled peanut brittle but with almonds and pistachios :-)



sugar cookies with sprinkles!



In the last few weeks though I've had so much fun making dough, cutting cookies, and slicing little goodies into cute squares and pretty little triangles. Mama and I also experimented with my American Christmas CD as we baked....she's still convinced several songs are straight out of the movie "Enchanted" and way too "Disney" to be Christmas music. Selina, on the other hand, can't stop singing "All I want for Christmas is You" :-) All in all, the time we spent together in the kitchen was full of laughs, jokes, and...calories!



Lemon hearts!



So, as you can imagine, we have quite the stash of yummy little treats hidden away, but in keeping with tradition, once something is finished, it's careful stored away in a Christmas tin and taken to Mama and Papa's room for safe keeping. Then, with afternoon coffee, special occasion dinners, and the arrival of guests, Mama takes a plate into the bedroom, fills it up, and allows everyone only two or three special treats. Of course this results in a furious race to the most coveted types but it also makes the little cookies that much more special :)



A month's worth of Christmas goodies!



I'm sure many people reading this will get to sample a few of my favorite German Christmas treats next Christmas but for now, I'll make sure I sample enough for everyone :)

Christmas with the Kids

Sounds like the title of a corny movie...but in reality, it's the title of a corny blog post! ;-) Several weeks ago, I received a package from home full of little bits of American culture to share with family during the Christmas season. Among them, were two different craft projects for my four siblings.

 

The first weekend of Advent was an exciting weekend for everyone as it proved that Christmas really was well on its way and I thought there was no better time to give them their little gift from Oregon. As soon I gave the okay, the kids tore into their packages each pulling out a small window decoration--and instantly comparing it to everyone else's :-) Samuel was thrilled with his penguin and quickly ran off to put him on the window. Jonathan decided he wanted to make one of his penguins a snowman...but in the end all worked out fine. And yes, I do realize that's a pretty lame excuse for a "craft project".

 









Last weekend, however, I brought downstairs four Christmas door hangers--or at least the craft kits to make them. After making all four kids promise not to argue or fuss during the process, we unpacked the foam and set to work on making Santa, snowmen, and a gingerbread man.

Between Selina's task to cover up the "made in China" written across Santa's arm, Christian's creativity with his snowman's scarf, and the endless search for the missing eye of Samuel's gingerbread man, we had a memorable and fun time! All four door hangers turned out very cute and all four kids turned out very pleased. I'd say that's as close to perfect as it gets.

Tickle Fight!!

With three little brothers, I'll admit this is only one of many tickle fights I've participated in..but this one had a little twist. Normally, the boys are all giggles and smiles as they pounce on me and try to find my ticklish spot. Well, to me, it usually feeling more like poking and rarely causes me to break into laughter, but to please the boys who are trying their very hardest, I usually go along with them and make the scene they are striving for.

This time, however, I was laying on the couch when Jonathan jumped on me and started tickling. Samuel soon joined in and Selina, with a grin, grabbed my camera. The boys laughed as I tickled back and squealed with pleasure as I attempted to protect my rib cage from their little fingers and it seemed to me that everything was as usual...

That was before Samuel grabbed my foot. My rib cage, neck, armpits, arms--doesn't matter and I can control myself and regulate my laughing. But the boys had never really gotten to my feet before...and with both of them on top of me, there was nothing I could do. I tried to somehow get my feet under me but I didn't have a chance and the boys, thrilled with their new discovery, were only that much more intent on attacking my feet--behind the screen of my camera, Selina found us to be quite amusing.

I was finally able to squirm out from under them and fall onto the floor--which, as you can imagine, only increased their delight. As soon as I got back on my feet and had both my height and my weight working to my advantage, I was quickly able to end the little battle--for this time!

I'll admit that sometimes having three younger brothers makes me want to pull my hair out...but it's moments like these that remind me how much I love them, how sweet they really are, and why I'm so blessed to be in such an amazing family :-)

The Joys of Biking :-)

Never in my life have I seen anything like it--and storms are something I'm fairly familiar with! Your typical rainclouds can be described as "dark" or "grey" but the clouds that caused me to gasp as I left school on Wednesday, were nothing other than the deepest of blacks. It certainly took my breath away and reminded me why I should always carry my camera! The only problem with these beautiful storm clouds, was that my route home sent me biking directly towards them.

Now, at this point, seeing the intensity of the clouds and knowing the bike ride home was a good ten minutes, the normal person would have doubled pace in a race to reach home before the sky opened up. But me? I was happily naive in my own little world. Pleased to be out of school, marveling at the beauty of the storm clouds, and listening to my music as I biked with not a care in the world.

I wasn't too far from home when I felt the first raindrop. Normally a little raindrop doesn't fase me--I'm from Oregon after all! But this wasn't a little drizzle, it was a big fat raindrop and wasn't alone. At first there were just enough raindrops to motivate me to pick up the pace. But as I reached the final stretch to my house, drizzle turned to hardcore rain and in one instant, the boy a few yards ahead of me, the two girls across the street, and myself all began peddling our hardest, clinging to the hope of making it home in time.

As I rounded the corner onto my street the sky opened up in a furious rain. I rolled my eyes and continued peddling. I'd dealt with my fair share of rain and this wasn't gonna kill me. Twenty seconds later, the intensity of the rain increased as the speed of the wind picked up and all at once I noticed it was no longer water pounding on my head, but hail.

In a very typical "Oregon wind" that blew the hail in all directions at once, the storm was raging and although I was only a minute from home, nothing could save me from the unavoidable soaking I was receiving. Nevertheless, I finally reached home.

I came bursting in the door out of breath and quite literally dripping wet. I was instantly greeting by a very sympathetic Mama and a ever-cute Sammi who handed me a towel to dry my hair--and then asked if I'd play Uno. :-) Still trying to catch my breath and pick the pieces of ice out of my hair and clothes, I took a rain check on Uno, but did of course warm myself up with a cup of tea :-)

For those of you who were waiting for the happy ending of snow, I'm sorry...I'm still waiting for that happy ending too. But I'm happy that even in what could've been a very unpleasant situation, I was able to laugh at the mess I'd become in 60 seconds on Grund Street and still have a great afternoon!

A World of Chocolate

Yes, this description could fit Germany in general--especially around Christmas time--but what I'm referring to is something a little more specific, a little more expensive, and unforgettably delicious--Germany's largest chocolate market! An international chocolate market to be exact, with booth after countless booth stocked full of every kind of chocolate bar and truffle you can imagine...and a few that I still don't know who would imagine. White chocolate and sea salt? dark chocolate chili truffles? Anyway, the vast majority was mouthwatering and to my delight, nearly every table had a bowl or two of samples.

 I went with three friends on Saturday night and by the time we got to the festival, the streets were already packed. Crowds shoved up behind those who'd made it right up to a booth and as soon as someone stepped back from their coveted position, another person would hurriedly step up to the glass. The crowded streets only added to the Christmas atmosphere though, and I thoroughly enjoyed navigating the crowds...but then again, I'd go Black Friday shopping every year if I could. :-)

You can't find a chocolate bar bigger than that!

Aside from the chocolate for sale, there was a variety of chocolate sculptures, chocolate artwork, and even the world's largest chocolate bar--of which I got to eat a small piece :-) I also recognized American English being used on more than one occasion. I finally whispered to Eva that Americans are so easy to find because they are always so loud and she laughed. We both laughed even harder not five minutes later when we walked by a group of college students drawing attention to their noisy behavior.Their accent was unmistakable and I just looked at Eva, shook my head, and said, "Americans."

The evening was so much fun and just one of a million things I'm so happy I was able to experience in Germany.

Sharing the Season

"It's here! It's here!" Anyone who saw my post filled with sentences in all caps and an abundance of exclamation points, would have quickly recognized my child-like excitement when I received my Christmas package from home. I wasn't expecting it for at least another two weeks so when Mama walked into my room with a big box thoroughly sealed with tape, I was taken my surprise and just like a little kid on Christmas morning, began my squealing and chattering.

 
I received the box only a few minutes before i had to leave for handball, so I decided to wait until I got home to open it so that i didn't have to rush through everything. Naturally, handball practice felt like it would never end but when I finally did get home, I got on skype with my family who watched me open there box of Christmas gifts and American culture :)

Weeks ago, as she was shopping, my mom had asked me for good gift ideas. I replied with several things--one of which was American napkins. Cute napkins are popular in Germany and I told her that if she could find ones with American flags that would be really cool because you can't get them  here. Well, hearing the story in context, I'm sure you understood that when I said "you can't get them here" I was referring to napkins with American flags. However, a few sentences on gmail chat didn't do such of good job of putting my statement into context. I had no idea my mom thought I meant that you can't get napkins in Germany until I opened the box and found over a hundred napkins in a variety of patterns and colors :-) At least napkins are popular here!


Exchange students have the most unique wish lists--and this was the BEST Christmas box EVER! ;-D


I'm also excited to start putting together the stockings that arrived in the box! On Christmas day, I'll be sharing a bit of my family's traditional morning by filling up the big red stockings and before breakfast, watching everyone open them in their pajamas. :-) I won't be forcing by family to come running into the living room at 5:00am sharp though...:-D

Now, trying to get a bit of German Christmas back to the States has been an entirely different and somewhat frustrating adventure! Back in October, I mailed box number one, expecting it to take 3-4 weeks. Nearly 7 weeks later, that box is MIA somewhere between Gomaringen and Coquille. Box number 2 was mailed nearly two weeks ago and who knows how long it will take. Yesterday, Mama and I went to the post office to mail box number three (why we ended up with so many boxes is another story ). She inquired as to why, after seven weeks, my box had not arrived. No one had any idea and reluctantly, we sent box number three on it's way. I'm beginning to think some grinch of a postal worker somewhere is snickering evilly as he fills his face with kilos worth of Germany's mouth-watering chocolate!

Now that all boxes have been mailed, I need to get to work on getting out a few Christmas cards!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Everywhere I go!!! I suppose this post would have been appropriate two weeks ago, but to avoid making my American readers jealous, I decided to wait until the Christmas season had officially begun on both continents (after Thanksgiving ;-).

Although the decorations have lined the shelves of every store since the end of October, on Sunday, the season became official with the beginning of advent and Germany was transformed into a beautiful world of red and green. In addition to the countless decorations and never ending supply of Christmas baked goods that can be found in nearly every house, Christmas paintings, window decorations, and a giant advent wreath suspended from the ceiling give my school a bit of Christmas spirit. I find it ironic though, how in a country far more liberal than the U.S., no one has a problem with the school's public display of an advent wreath.



Perfectionist or not, I was happy with the end result!



 

 My home began to look like Christmas last week when Mama and I made the advent wreath. Well, actually she made the wreath and I made a little decoration of greenery with a candle for my desk, but we had a great time looking through all the decorations being sold, deciding on which shades of green to use, and picking out the perfect candles. Mama did laugh at my perfectionist nature and told me that wreaths are supposed to be from nature and therefore won't be completely even or perfectly circular. I simply replied that with enough glue, anything can be perfect. I was happy with my tiny wreath by the time it was finished and despite the many attempts it took me, I had a great time making it.

As soon as the first weekend of Advent arrived, it brought with it a whole new level of Christmas festivities! Of course, our house became properly decorated and we made special Christmas cookies--but mama finally gave the okay for the season of Christmas music to begin! If you count the among of singing I've been doing around the house, that season started long ago, but at least now it's official. :)

As if the first week of advent wasn't enough just being with family and enjoying the pleasures of the season, Gomaringen had its annual Christmas market last weekend! I had heard so much about German Christmas markets and was so excited to finally experience the typical part of German culture that sounded so fun--and I wasn't disappointed! I went with Eva and the two of us walked around from booth to booth, bundled is jackets and scarves to keep out the chilly evening air. We purchased some fun snacks to nibble on as we wandered around and bumped into friends from school along the way. I had a hot glass of punch to help warm my hands and with it, got the 2011 Gomaringen Christmas Market coffee mug! It was a wonderful evening.

You might think that the Christmas season is a time that I might encounter a bit of homesickness as everything is so different and no one knows all the traditions that I've come to love with my family, but on the contrary, Germany + Christmas = absolutely amazing! I'm so blessed to have been able to experience "the best of both worlds" and will definitely be bringing back a bit of German Christmas culture with me for next year :)

The Great Pumpkin Pie Adventure

For the last three months, my host mom and i have have been eagerly talking about and planning the little bit of American culture I had planned on sharing Thursday, November 24th--Thanksgiving! I'd compiled my recipes and decided on what dishes to prepare and which weren't even worth making in a house of picky eaters, and I'd even figured out where to get my turkey. Well, unlike in America, that third week in November is not reserved solely for a great turkey feast and as the day drew closer, more and more things were added to the week's schedule.

By the time Thanksgiving week arrived, it was quite obvious that to try and commit to a Thanksgiving dinner despite the chaotic schedules would only assure stress and disappointment. So, determined to not let Thanksgiving pass unnoticed, Mama and I took it upon ourselves to make an American pumpkin pie! Now, before you roll your eyes at the simplicity of our little task, let me tell you that in Germany, canned pumpkin doesn't exist and because baked goods are the pride of German cuisine, store bought pie crusts are a foreign concept.

 
That being said, we hauled the pumpkin upstairs and sat him on the kitchen counter...if only he knew what a noble cause he would be serving :-) I was disappointed that I wasn't able to help with the beginning on the task as I had school--yes, on Thanksgiving--but I left the recipe and instructions with Mama and hurried home after school. The pumpkin was baked, but I took up the task of scooping the flesh from the skin and blending the pumpkin into a bowl of orange goo. I'll admit it didn't look so appetizing :-)

Mama wanted a picture of me with my mess

A beautiful crust is hard enough with a regular pie pan!

At one point I look around the kitchen to find pumpkin everywhere! In a good way though :-) I helped with what I could but at 4:00 had to leave for over and hour to be briefed on my upcoming babysitting job. I returned home ready to start the crust and get that sucker in the oven! But Mama beat me to it and in the oven was a perfectly American pumpkin pie baking on a perfectly Swiss pie crust. We called it our Swerican pumpkin pie. :-)

An hour later--we crossed out fingers and pulled him out of the oven--SUCCESS! The pumpkin flavor was even better than I'd remembered and the Swiss crust wasn't too different from what I was used to and definitely added a memorable touch to our little adventure. Mama was nervous it was going to be nothing like what I was used to, but I assured her that it was even better :-)

Now came the most difficult part of our task--convincing those that this creamy orange mess of sugar and a vegetable was actually worth trying. The adults reluctantly tried it to be polite and the response was the same among all, "wow, it's better than I thought." Only one of my siblings, Christian, was willing to try it, and not because he's the best eater, but because he has the biggest heart. It was very sweet and he actually said he liked it and wanted more :-)

The next day I made a second pumpkin pie and we stuck the remaining pumpkin in the freezer. Mama said she liked it but not for every week. I assured her it wasn't every week that Americans ate it but that sometime around December 25th I might just need to pull a little bit of that pumpkin out the freezer :-)

Why I'm so Thankful

Okay, I intended to post this on Thursday as a little "count your blessings" post from Germany. But, as you may have noticed, I didn't post on Thursday, Friday, or yesterday. So just pretend for a minute you're reading this on Thanksgiving day as that is when the idea came to me and i began mentally composing this post :-)

On Thanksgiving week, there are so many opportunities for me to dwell on things I'm missing and it's quite tempting to began longing for the familiar traditions and culture that make the American holiday so special every year. I'll even admit to forcing back tears as I day dreamed through classes that I couldn't understand on Wednesday while the majority of my American friends began their five day weekend. But then it struck me--I'm going to be in Germany for Thanksgiving. I'm not going to get a turkey and the family I'm surrounded by is one of German culture--not American. So, why not focus on the many blessings I've been endlessly raving on and on about instead of the few things I'm missing?

So that's exactly what I did. As soon as I felt my mind start drifting off across the Atlantic, I'd pick up my pen, and began adding to my list of why i am so thankful. So let me share with you the joys in my life and the reasons I am so thankful to be exactly where I am--even if that is Germany on Thanksgiving. (I'm only posting about things in Germany so don't be offended, I'm thankful for you too!)

*A host family that has accepted me as their daughter. The love me and they scold me; they care for me and they tease me. I wouldn't trade them for anything.

* Evening cups of chai with Mama while sitting on the warm stone fireplace. Talking about the ups, the downs, and everything in between.

* Friends who are more than nice--who genuinely care.

* The fact that I'm four months into my exchange and the number of pounds I've gained has a little minus sign before it.

* That Mama and I share a love of healthy food

* That my host sister who plainly told me she didn't have any desire to host an exchange student, has finally decided I'm worth getting to know. :-)

* That my teachers at school are so understanding when it comes to my lack of understanding

The list goes on and there are many things that really have impacted my exchange for the better....but as I kept thinking, I realized how many itty bitty little things I had to be grateful for so I'll also share a bit of that humorous list with you as well!

* I found a comforter in the closet that is longer than me so I can sprawl out on my bed without freezing!

* I don't have to sit through, or find out how to occupy myself, during the Thanksgiving football games :-)

* My host family could care less how often I straighten my room.

* That I've developed enough motivation to actually straighten and clean my room on multiple occasions.

* I live in a place where bread consists of more than just air and chocolate labels read "made in heaven".

* I have the excuse "I'm an exchange student" that can be used in nearly every situation.

* My German is finally good enough to know when people are talking about me.

* German teachers don't hand out tardies the way teachers in the U.S. would

So there you have it. I could expand many of these short little sentences into complete blog posts...but in case you haven't noticed, I've not been the most faithful blogger in the last few weeks and am going to try to get back into my 2-3 posts a week before I take on anything that big :-)

Orange Action!

I'm beginning to think that I should make a list of all the fundraisers I've taken part in. It may or may not be impressive, but I have no doubt it would be amusing! Last week I participated in yet another to add to my unique little list--Orange Action!

My morning went something like this:

The annoying beeping from my nemesis, the alarm clock, began at 8:00 sharp. The sparkling house tops and frosty white yards out my window told me that this day was going to require more than just a sweatshirt. I glanced at the thermometer--25 degrees. I got dressed and went downstairs for a quick breakfast and ran back upstairs to quickly (and pointlessly) straighten my hair before we set out.

At 10:00 it was still well below freezing outside but with my sweater, jacket, scarf, gloves, boots, and enthusiasm, I left the house! Selina ( my 11 year old sister) and I were in the same crew along with five or six other girls. We arrived at our meeting point just a little late--careful not to ruin our reputation--and were briefed on exactly what our morning of "orange action" involved. 

A giant wagon of oranges was pulled up and down the streets of Gomaringen as the girls ran up to every door trying to sell oranges--50 cents each. :-) I remained loyal to the wagon with the two other older girls and we bagged bag after bag of oranges as the girls continued to sell them at a rate that shocked me! It seemed like every house they went to purchased at least a few oranges but many bought 10, 15, or even 20! I was told that the fundraiser for "Mully's Children Home" in Kenya is very well known and supported in the community but I was still quite impressed.

Once noses started running and growing more and more numb, we paused for half an hour at the house of my friend, Hanna, who's mom was awaiting our arrival with cookies, Christmas music, and lots of hot punch! We hit the road again, after gaining a bit more energy, and sold the last of our third wagon load just before 1:00pm. Less than three hours and a total of over 300 Euros. We were proud, we were cold, and were ready to head home :-)

It started with a bike crash on Monday. Honestly--there usually isn't a car parked right there as I come tearing out of the driveway, but in an attempt to avoid a collision, I turned quickly and with a little too much speed but it was just a little too sharp. Next thing you know I'm laying on the ground with my bike. As if that wasn't embarrassing enough, that parked car I told you about--my neighbors were getting into it. Invisibility would have been so wonderful about then. I got up and took off again, only then realizing the tear in the knee of my Levis and I was half way to school before I realized my finger was bleeding. But although this wasn't exactly the way I'd planned on starting my week, I didn't let it faze me.

On Tuesday my bike ride to school went wonderfully and without incident. I got to school, parked, and went inside for classes. Around 4 o'clock, I was finally done with school and ready to come home. I hopped on my bike...but something wasn't right. I looked down and noticed that I had no air in my front tire. Even without the pressure of sitting on the bike, the tire was completely flat. I'm no genius, but I'm pretty sure tires don't usually go from perfect condition to perfectly flat by sitting in a parking lot. But I made it home and although one man who drove by rolled down his window and yelled "You have a flat tire" I didn't have any major problems getting the bike home.

Because I had no bike, Wednesday, I took the bus. I don't have to get up any earlier and the bus is warm and dry--but also very crowded so I usually go by bike. Once at school, I saw that my English class was cancelled for that day! For me, that meant as soon as I was done with my German class at 10:35, I got to go home. Once done with school, I went to go wait for the bus but saw it didn't come for another hour :( I decided, since it was such I nice day, I'd just walk the mile and a half home. So I did and I had a great walk. I got home and the door was locked. I rang the doorbell....twice. I looked in the windows but saw no movement. With not many options to choose from, I sat down outside the door and pulled out my journal which I was very glad I happened to have on hand. About half an hour later, Mama and Papa returned and let me into the warm and welcoming house!

Thursday I had my first geography test and I might have even gotten ten whole points!!! That sounds so much better when you don't mention the total number of possible point...something like 40...maybe 45. First I had to read and try to understand what the question was asking. I understood maybe half. Then I had to try and figure out the answers from what little I could recall from past Geography lessons and my little bit of studying. School in German is not my cup of tea. At least my teacher is great :)

So, I will admit this probably one of the more entertaining weeks I've had, but I'm happy to say these little frustrations were nothing more than funny little bumps along the road and didn't get under my skin. Now its Monday again. I wonder what will happen this week...

A Circle Of Friends

As those of you who've been in close contact with me have heard dozens of times, I am so surprised and overwhelmingly blessed by how welcoming, encouraging, and accepting my peers have been. Specifically my 11th grade class in which I feel like the girls have warmly welcomed me into their circles.

Most got to know who I was quite quickly between my always being lost or late and I've probably asked the majority where a classroom, bathroom, bus, or teacher was at some point. But to my delight and relief, I've never even seen a hint of annoyance at this helpless American and her questions :-) Now that I've been in school a while, I finally know who are the people are that added me on facebook two months ago and my language skills are finally allowing me to participate in conversations!!!! (A very exciting achievement I'll have you know)

I've also joined a Christian girls group that meets every Wednesday night. The group has about 15 girls on a full night and each night has a theme that I've found to be quite creative and always fun. :-)

Germany's Next Top Model night included a wardrobe exchange!

Germany's Next Top Model! Well, that was the theme and everyone was asked to bring at least two pieces of old clothing they didn't want --we ended up with sweaters, sweatshirts, jeans, scarves, and anything else you can think of. Unlike everyone else though, I didn't have 5 years of clothes just sitting in my closet as I did a wonderful job of packing lightly when I came, but it worked out and once all the clothes were displayed, the hounds were set loose to find something in the pile we wanted. I ended up with a pretty blue scarf :-) Afterwords, we talked about how beauty isn't everything.

Me and my AMAZING friend, Eva <3



Eva was one of two friends "assigned" by my dear Mama, to help me on my first day of school. Well, her assignment lasted far longer than one day, but now we hang out as friends and Eva is no longer my babysitter ;-) We have nearly every class at school together, go to the same church, play handball together, and also attend girls group so I'd say I've gotten to know her fairly well in the last two months and really come to love her :-)

The Fast and the Furious! ...We couldn't stop laughing!

I missunderstood the instructions for this night, and therefore am in shorts instead of jeans but it was in September and I didn't get too cold :-) We arrived as usual and then loaded up and went out into the middle of the woods to play what I'm used to calling "night cames". My legs came out of those woods a little scratched up and I had to go fishing in mud that was at least a foot deep for the flip flop it stole from me but not without having a blast! The evening turned out to be a lot of fun and after our "fast and furious" game, we sat down and talked with candlelight.

My awesome leaders, Anne and Francie--Africa night!

Set to a Jeopardy style gameboard, Africa night included tons of trivia regarding African food, geography, animals, and a few random topics. My team decided they loved the "action" category rather than the actual trivia so we ended up crushing walnuts by hand and drinking over a liter of water each--all to a timer of course :-) It was one of my favorite nights with a discussion I could barely follow on challenges women face in Africa.

We have always have lots of laughs and lots of fun :-)

And that picture is what I'll leave you with. A great representation the laughs and smiles that I've come to know and love so much in the last months. I'm really exciting to get to know my friends better as the language barrier slowly begans to decrease.

Thoughts I've Held Onto

So, when I was in Oman on exchange two years ago, my mom found this beautiful travel journal that had daily quotes as well as Bible verses. The journal was so cool, that she bought it for me with the intention of mailing it...well, we all know how that goes so let's not hold it against her ;-)

 Fast forward two years and I'm at it again--traveling that it :-) However, earlier this year...in February I think...I decided to start journaling again. I've filled up two journals since then and am now putting that beautiful travel journal to very good use. So, it actually worked out better that I have it with me now rather than in Oman where I'm sure I would've tried to journal faithfully and undoubtedly failed :-)

The quotes and Bible verses sometimes make my day as they are often encouraging, comforting, and often offer a little motivation which is always nice :-) So, since the majority of my reading audience are also travel junkies, I thought I'd share with you my ten favorites in no particular order :-)

1. Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail--T. S. Eliot

2. I am guiding you in the way of wisdom and I am leading you on the right path--Proverbs 4:11

3. There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it--Mary Wilson Little

4. God will not send us out on any journey for which He does not equip us well.--Alexander Maclaren

5. Our days are identical suitcases--all the same size--but some people can pack more into them than others--Bits & Pieces

6.Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.--Proverbs 3:5-6

7. When preparing to travel, lay out all your clothes and all your money. Then take half the clothes and twice the money--Susan Heller

8. At every crossroad, follow your dream. It is courageous to let your heart lead the way.--Thomas Leland

9. In the long run, the pessimist may be proved to be right, but the optimist has a better time on the trip--Daniel L. Reardon

10. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen,--Hebrews 11:1

My Life in a German Gymnasium

Well, I'm now 8 weeks into the school year! Maybe I say this in every post, but time really is flying by!! Now that I've gotten into a routine and learned most of the ropes, I thought I'd share with you a little bit more about German school because as I learned quite quickly, it's very different from a high school in the U.S. :-)

First, for those of you who are interested and missed my first post about school, here's the link http://juliannesjourneys.blogspot.com/2011/09/guess-what-i-survived-my-first-week-of.html I also have my schedule posted there :-)

Well, where do I start? I guess I should mention with pride, that I haven't gotten lost in weeks now. Although I'm anything but self sufficient, it does feel good to not need a babysitter in between classes ;-) I've learned that although I'm taking Chemistry, Geography, History, and many others....those are all just code names for what the classes really are--German! German, German, German--everywhere and all the time I'm constantly hearing to words and trying to absorb as much as I can and I think I might even be learning a little :-) I've also discovered which teachers I like--and which teachers frustrate the--you know, I'm not even gonna go there :-)

I do have two favorite teachers though. One is my Geography teacher who is constantly making the class laugh with his over-enthusiasm and determination to help us not learn, but understand. He's the kind of teacher that really seems passionate about what he's teaching, and therefore the majority of the class (which is only 9 people) can handle listening to him teach. I personally appreciate his abundance of hands on examples--whether using books, chairs, desks, rocks or whatever else he can get his hands on, seeing what he's saying makes understanding a million times easier! From what German I could understand, he even got himself scolded once for bringing the class, who couldn't stop yawning, coffee from the teacher's lounge. :-)

Using two buckets, a desk, and some rocks, he showed us how different forces of water are capable of moving different sized stones :-)

Although I still only understand about 25% of the advanced vocabulary in my history class, I am happy that I have a wonderful teacher. Actually, he just happens to also be an English teacher and on more than one occasion has happily translated an assignment, or even discussion, for me. Right now, the class is studying early American history and I've enjoyed being able to offer my two cents and even reading excerpts from different documents like the Declaration of Independence. A few weeks ago, he'd started talking about how beautiful the American passport is and asked me if I could bring mine one day. When I did, he took it up to the front of the class, showed off what he found to be it's most impressive features, then passed it around the classroom! I was feeling pretty patriotic about then :-)



The class admiring my passport :-)

 As far as the system of school itself--hang on don't stop reading! I promise it won't get too boring :-) the differences are huge and more than I care to list (and you care to read) in one blog post. One of the biggest differences though, is Substitute teachers--or lack thereof. This just happens to be one of the differences I quite enjoy, actually. :-) When a teacher is sick, on vacation, or whatever the case may be, the class is simply canceled for that day and the students have a free period. This is fairly common and I usually get at least one unexpected free period a week. There is a big electronic board in the main part of the school that keeps track of what classes are cancelled and there is always a hopeful crowd gathered around it. Usually you can even hear disappointed groans as well and excited cheers.

One other difference I'll mention isn't one I love nearly as much. I knew coming here that school sports and school spirit are very American but experiencing difference for myself occasionally causes me to miss the halls of CHS decked out in red every Friday before the big game or the giant crowds that rooted on our girls to the state basketball tournament last year. In Germany, school is solely academic--which makes sense but isn't quite as fun :-) I guess I'm lucky to have been able to experience the best of both worlds. ;-P

Well, with posts about this size, hopefully by the end of the year I will be able to cover the main differences but for now I'll leave you with these few and a bit more of an idea of what my life is like at a German Gymnasium :-)