I wrote this post almost two weeks ago on February 17th, sorry for the delay...
Living in Cologne has continued to be a mix of pleasant routine and out of the ordinary experiences. During the week I have tried to stick to a set schedule while on the weekends I have taken advantage of the opportunity I have to see and experience Europe. In the time I have spent I have tried to enjoy the everyday and the out of the ordinary with equal enthusiasm.
My basic routine for a typical workday begins at 6:45 when I crawl out of bed and head straight to the shower. I am back in my room by 7:00 with forty minutes to get dressed, eat breakfast and gather my things for school. School begins most days for me at 8:00 except Tuesday when I have my first class at 8:50 and Friday when I do not start until 9:55. Every day is different but I usually am on my way back home by 3:00 except on Tuesdays when I am off at 11:30. Because of unusual scheduling, lunch has to be eaten when there is time. I try to bring snacks to get me through the day and have things for sandwiches back in my room. After school I will try to get some sort of workout in and sometimes will do some studying or lesson planning at Woyton, a coffee shop nearby with free internet. Kara and I typically will get something for dinner at the grocery store and cook it in the community kitchen around 7:00 with friends we have made from different parts of the globe. After dinner I have time to call Caroline before I go to bed at 10:30.
The friends I have made at Kolpinghaus have made daily life here in Cologne much more enjoyable than I think it would be if I was by myself. The first friend I made here is Peter from Antwerp, Belgium. He has a gift for languages and speaks Dutch, English, German, French and Spanish nearly all fluently. He has been a blessing for times when I need some interpretation but has also been a very good friend that I think I will have for life. I have also met Magda and Rafael, a brother and sister from El Salvador, and Chloe from France. We have had several great times together including making crepes, fajitas, and enjoying the night life in Cologne. This past weekend Kara, Peter and I went to Paris on a bus tour. Last night we all went out together to get costumes for Carnival which starts on Thursday and afterwards got pizza and carried it back to Kolpinghaus to eat.
I have two weekends here in the time since my last entry. Kara and I spent the first weekend in Cologne to experience the city in a way that we are not able to do everyday. We went to the Ludwig museum first which is the big art museum here. I enjoyed seeing some of the permanent exhibits which were mostly modern. The temporary exhibits were a bit too modern for my taste. One was on the hippie movement in America and the other showed the work of a famous German film director who had some very bizarre work displayed. Perhaps the more enjoyable part of the day was spent at the chocolate museum that covered every aspect of chocolate from marketing to production.
Last weekend, as I have mentioned, was spent in Paris. We decided to take a bus tour because it was very inexpensive and seemed like a good idea. We left Cologne at 12 midnight and arrived in Paris at 6 a.m. Overall it was a very good experience although it got rather frustrating being stuck on a bus for such a long time there and back. When we arrived in the city we stayed on the bus for a tour that took us to some of the famous landmarks in Paris including the Sacre Coeur Basilica where you can get a tremendous view of the city, the Eifel Tower, and the Arc de Triomphe. When we arrived at our hotel we took a minute to plan and then headed back to the Arc de Triomphe to take pictures and then walked down the Champs Elysees to the Louvre. From there we went to see the Notre Dame cathedral and then found a wonderful French restaurant with the help of the owner of wine shop and Peter’s language skills. I enjoyed Paris and the dinner so much that Caroline and I will be back when she comes to visit as I went ahead and made reservations.
Back in Cologne the air is buzzing in anticipation of Carnival. School will be a half day on Thursday and will be out until Tuesday as Cologne goes crazy during the days in between. I am ready to join in the celebration with my Knight outfit that I purchased last night. I cannot really say too much about Carnival now as I have not yet experienced it but I am sure, as almost everyone has told me, that it will be an experience not to miss.
Living in Cologne has continued to be a mix of pleasant routine and out of the ordinary experiences. During the week I have tried to stick to a set schedule while on the weekends I have taken advantage of the opportunity I have to see and experience Europe. In the time I have spent I have tried to enjoy the everyday and the out of the ordinary with equal enthusiasm.
My basic routine for a typical workday begins at 6:45 when I crawl out of bed and head straight to the shower. I am back in my room by 7:00 with forty minutes to get dressed, eat breakfast and gather my things for school. School begins most days for me at 8:00 except Tuesday when I have my first class at 8:50 and Friday when I do not start until 9:55. Every day is different but I usually am on my way back home by 3:00 except on Tuesdays when I am off at 11:30. Because of unusual scheduling, lunch has to be eaten when there is time. I try to bring snacks to get me through the day and have things for sandwiches back in my room. After school I will try to get some sort of workout in and sometimes will do some studying or lesson planning at Woyton, a coffee shop nearby with free internet. Kara and I typically will get something for dinner at the grocery store and cook it in the community kitchen around 7:00 with friends we have made from different parts of the globe. After dinner I have time to call Caroline before I go to bed at 10:30.
The friends I have made at Kolpinghaus have made daily life here in Cologne much more enjoyable than I think it would be if I was by myself. The first friend I made here is Peter from Antwerp, Belgium. He has a gift for languages and speaks Dutch, English, German, French and Spanish nearly all fluently. He has been a blessing for times when I need some interpretation but has also been a very good friend that I think I will have for life. I have also met Magda and Rafael, a brother and sister from El Salvador, and Chloe from France. We have had several great times together including making crepes, fajitas, and enjoying the night life in Cologne. This past weekend Kara, Peter and I went to Paris on a bus tour. Last night we all went out together to get costumes for Carnival which starts on Thursday and afterwards got pizza and carried it back to Kolpinghaus to eat.
I have two weekends here in the time since my last entry. Kara and I spent the first weekend in Cologne to experience the city in a way that we are not able to do everyday. We went to the Ludwig museum first which is the big art museum here. I enjoyed seeing some of the permanent exhibits which were mostly modern. The temporary exhibits were a bit too modern for my taste. One was on the hippie movement in America and the other showed the work of a famous German film director who had some very bizarre work displayed. Perhaps the more enjoyable part of the day was spent at the chocolate museum that covered every aspect of chocolate from marketing to production.
Last weekend, as I have mentioned, was spent in Paris. We decided to take a bus tour because it was very inexpensive and seemed like a good idea. We left Cologne at 12 midnight and arrived in Paris at 6 a.m. Overall it was a very good experience although it got rather frustrating being stuck on a bus for such a long time there and back. When we arrived in the city we stayed on the bus for a tour that took us to some of the famous landmarks in Paris including the Sacre Coeur Basilica where you can get a tremendous view of the city, the Eifel Tower, and the Arc de Triomphe. When we arrived at our hotel we took a minute to plan and then headed back to the Arc de Triomphe to take pictures and then walked down the Champs Elysees to the Louvre. From there we went to see the Notre Dame cathedral and then found a wonderful French restaurant with the help of the owner of wine shop and Peter’s language skills. I enjoyed Paris and the dinner so much that Caroline and I will be back when she comes to visit as I went ahead and made reservations.
Back in Cologne the air is buzzing in anticipation of Carnival. School will be a half day on Thursday and will be out until Tuesday as Cologne goes crazy during the days in between. I am ready to join in the celebration with my Knight outfit that I purchased last night. I cannot really say too much about Carnival now as I have not yet experienced it but I am sure, as almost everyone has told me, that it will be an experience not to miss.
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