Library Research and Family Time

This morning I got up in time for Petra to drop me off at her shop to walk to the S-bahn station. It was raining, so I took a raincoat and Petra insisted that I take an umbrella. At my stop in Pasing, I picked up some currants (I think that's what they are) to go with the cereal I had for breakfast, and realized that I had left my transit card at home. Thankfully, no inspectors came to check my card today, but lesson learned!

I arrived at the library a few minutes early and had time to unload things in my locker and gather my thoughts for the day before hitting the books. I spent most of the day today reading a few other novels I found at the library, as well as browsing some of the resources that I found as nonfiction sources. I am a bit disappointed that I can't check out more books to bring home, but I understand their need to keep the collection there for others to use it and to lend to public schools. Thankfully, I did bookmark a few websites that will supplement my research for the unit plan and paper, so I'll be able to use those this week. You can see the desk that I've chosen here.

For lunch today, I had what they call ravioli, but it was more like the meat you find in wantons, finely ground, and layered between layers of fresh pasta, but pressed into triangles. It had a broth-y sauce and some veggies on the side. I took a note from Dr. Veltze today and didn't order a drink, but made sure to take a break before lunch to get some water from my water bottle. There is no free service for water with your meal, so you either have to get a soda or sparkling water, if you don't want an alcoholic beverage. If I save on beverages, then I have more money for meals and souvenirs.

After lunch, I continued my research, took a few pictures of the Eric Carle exhibit that I mentioned in yesterday's post, and then left with the group to discuss tomorrow's plans. After we had laid plans for tomorrow, a few of us went to Pasing to pick up a light dinner, and then went home. Several folks are still very tired from the trip and are adjusting to the time change. Since Shea was going home by herself a different way, I was able to show her which train to take and where to catch it, which was nice. (I feel like I'm really getting some confidence with the public transit.) I decided that I wanted to browse some of the shops in Grafelfing (the community where I live) on my way home. I found a cute little stationary shop that sells art supplies, which I may purchase a few tomorrow. There is also a very nice bakery and deli, as well as a nice Italian restaurant with an outdoor seating area and what looks to be a reasonable menu.

When I arrived home, Alegra and the cat followed me upstairs, which was fun. So I spent some time with them and then went downstairs when I heard Petra come home. Her mother is here for the weekend, as she comes to stay every weekend. Laura was baking brownies and offered me one (very tasty), and Petra offered me some of the olives she had set out. She, her mother, and Petra Wershing from the library have a girls night each Friday where they just chat around the table and eat munchie foods (like olives and cheese) and have wine or prosecco. It's nice to know that some of those social things are really cross cultural. We shared dog stories and I heard about some of the trouble Alegra got into as a puppy (she ate a bag full of brand new expensive underwear!), and I told her about Lavender's latest escapades.

Tonight, my plan is to read a bit for my unit and then go to bed early. Our trip to Dachau is tomorrow and we're heading out early, so I want to get to bed early. It's supposed to be raining, which I think is a fitting mood for the visit to the camp. We're also going to visit the city Dachau, which is a few miles from the camp (or the camp is a few km from the city). The German culture still seems to be carrying around a sense of guilt regarding the events of WWII, even though the large majority of them were not around during that time, and the ones who were were not directly involved. It makes for an interesting discussion, for sure. It sounds like Dachau (the city) has some historic sites to see and is an area that is attractive to artists, which is exciting to me. Perhaps I'll find my first piece of street art this trip!

Introduction to the International Youth Library

Today was my first real working day at the International Youth Library, or Internationale Jugendbibliothek in German. Here's the link if you want to check out the virtual tour: http://www.ijb.de/files/Seite00.htm When we all arrived, Dr. Veltze gave us a rough idea of the schedule for the day and then we were off to the lockers to deposit our belongings. In the study library, which is primarily where we will work, patrons are not allowed to have any bags, since resources are to stay in the study library. So, we have been allowed to use the lockers that are reserved for staff and scholarship students. Similar to other instances, you must deposit one euro in the lock, which may be retrieved at the end of the day. The library opens promptly at 10 am and closes promptly at 4 pm. The staff, and culture as a whole, seems to very clearly define the lines of work and play, so this strict adherence to the schedule helps to reinforce that.

We then went to the study library, where silence is mandated so that all scholars who are using materials may have the quiet and respect they deserve when working on projects. There are a few other scholars at the library including our group, one student from Columbia, a Japanese-American professor from Chicago, and another Japanese student. The reference librarian in charge of the study library gave us a cursory preview of the catalog and explained how resources are arranged. In addition to the study library, the IJB, as they call the International Youth Library, has a small public library and a wealth of resources which they share with scholars around the world through their lending program. There are several librarians at the IJB, many of whom are responsible for specific language areas, such as English (including those African countries that speak English as a primary language), Spanish, Asian languages, etc.

The library also has several rotating exhibits which tour the world to highlight authors, illustrators, or special collections. They often have school groups come through the library to view the museum areas and use the lending library, as the public schools do not have the caliber of school libraries that we do in the States. Instead, the Bavarian government chooses to put their funding into public libraries that are easily accessible to students within the public school system. Currently, one of their main exhibits is an exhibit of Eric Carle's works, which have been translated into several languages, including German, Japanese, and Norwegian. It's quite fascinating to see works with which I am so familiar in so many different languages. I'll try to take some pictures of this exhibit tomorrow to post.

Lunch at the library is wonderful! We ate outside by the lake and rose garden today and I feasted on the "fleisch" option (meat) of pork cutlets, mashed potatoes, and sauerkraut. There is a kitchen at the library if I choose to bring my lunch, but for the staff price of 3.50 euro, I think it's worth it to have the experience. They also offer a daily vegetarian option, which was pasta today with arugula and Parmesan cheese.

I feel like I got quite a bit of work done today on my paper, almost six pages of the rough draft, and have found a nice desk in the study library by a window where I can set up my laptop and look out at the trees that surround the castle. (Still can't believe I have a desk in a castle for a month!) I'll try to post a picture of that tomorrow also, if I'm allowed to take pictures in the study library.

After work today, several in the group went to Marienplatz, but I decided with Mary that we'd go to Pasing, find a snack (yummy pretzel), and head home. By the time we chatted, walked around, and headed for home, I made it here by 7:30ish. With staying here with no other students, I want to be sure that I'm home before dark, mostly just so I'm more aware of my bearings. Munich is one of the safest cities in the world and my little neighborhood is wonderful, although it's a longer walk with the laptop in the bookbag than I had expected. Did I mention all of the cobblestone streets? Very beautiful, but hard on these American feet!

I'm taking the opportunity here to post some of my garden photos from yesterday, taken both at the library and at Marienplatz. I've also updated the past two days with photos, so you may want to look back. I'll try to post more photos from the library tomorrow.

Mass Transit Master

Today, I started out with a shower in a very short shower. I'll post a picture later to show you how short (yes, even I had some trouble with it, as short as I am). Benny may be taking bird baths when he arrives. (Well, this picture doesn't quite do it justice, since I couldn't zoom any farther out and my back was to the radiator.) But I am completely grateful for the new experience. Breakfast was raspberry jam on bread and a banana. Then, off to the S-bahn (the train) to go to the library, Schloss Blutenburg.

I found my way to S6 and went the correct direction, then I found bus 56 in Pasing and took it to the Schloss Blutenburg stop (the last one, so thankfully I didn't have to decipher too much German from the automated lady speaking). I made it there, and then circled the block around the library for probably 20 minutes before finding the entrance. (Did I mention I had to ask two people before I could get directions to the entrance? The first was a sweet old lady who tried her best, but between her not speaking English and my not speaking German, we left it at "Danka" (sp), and I found a nice gentleman who spoke perfect English who guided me in the right direction.)

I waited an hour and a half for my friends to show up... they had a bit more difficulty with the transit system and ended up going the wrong way on the bus... twice. In the meantime, Petra relayed the history of the castle to me, we discussed the public and private education systems in the States and Germany, and she showed me around the castle and her office. (She also seemed to be enjoying the time in the sunshine and putting off her work a bit :)) Once Mary and Amanda arrived, we were off to Pasing to tour the little town outside the center city, and then on to Marienplatz. Marienplatz is full of beautiful fountains, green spaces, old buildings that somehow seem to have survived WWII, and beer gardens (I had a Coke). I spent much of my time here indulging my passion for photography, which has gone ignored for far too long, with the new digital camera. I also spent some time sketching today, so it was nice to have this time before the serious studying begins tomorrow.

A side note about the "green" features of the city. They are not too unlike those that are becoming acknowledged in the States, just more prevalent and it seems that the government has done a better job of stating and enforcing the importance of these. For example, in our house, the organic material is separated in the trash from refuse. Also, all plastics are recycled or returned to the store for some cents back. Glass is the same. Paper is recycled as well. Almost all toilets have a two flush system, where one flush starts the water and another stops it, so as to not waste more water than is needed. Recycling containers are in all train stations and are spaced throughout the sidewalks, etc. Additionally, you must pay for a plastic bag at most stores, so you often see people with tote bags or collapsible baskets for grocery shopping, etc. Since most Europeans grocery shop as needed, this is easy to handle with the public transit system (they're not lugging 10 bags onto the train). I did see a wind turbine on the way in from the airport (flughafen is the German word), but have not yet had the opportunity to ask about this.

I will try to post some more pictures tomorrow. Thankfully, Amanda loaned me her adapter, and it fits my laptop cord, so no worries about the adapter now. Long day and my legs are tired from walking, so off to bed.

Finally Arrived

I arrived in Munich a few minutes earlier than expected today. But before I get into that, I should explain a bit about the trip.

I met Mary at RDU after Matt and Mandy dropped me off. We breezed through security and were able to do the self check-in for the flights to print our boarding passes. I was rather impressed with myself being able to fit all of my belongings into carry-on luggage, and Mary was even more impressed. (Although the bookbag did take up some valuable real estate on the floor under my feet.) When we arrived in London, my times were all mixed up, as I’d had dinner and breakfast in the span of about six hours, and it still felt like about 2 am for me. I had a few toiletry items confiscated in London, due to them being oversized for carry on luggage (oops, didn’t know). But overall, the flights went smoothly and we arrived safely ahead of schedule.

Dr. Veltze met us after Mary picked up her luggage from baggage claim and from there we went to pick up our public transit cards for the month. The line was exceptionally long, so Dr. Veltze waited in line to get the cards for the whole group while I dozed and Mary read her book. Then, we followed the S signs to the “city train” (as Petra calls it) or “subway” (as Dr. Veltze calls it). (I’ve decided to simplify things and just call it the train). We rode for almost an hour on a very clean train with wonderfully friendly people to Pasing, a suburb of Munich. While on the train, I noticed some red poppies that reminded me of Italy and a few wind turbines, which I’ll have to inquire about later. From there, Petra (the library director) met us at the station to take us to our respective homes. Petra is incredibly friendly and even took me grocery shopping with her this evening, since her house is just one street over from where I am staying. She also showed me the way to the bus station to ride to Schloss Blutenburg, the castle which houses the International Youth Library.

The family I’m staying with seems quite wonderful. They’ve given me the “penthouse” at the top of the apartment with a small attached bath. The landlady (also named Petra) is fun and spunky. I’ve only met her briefly, as she was on her way out to her workout class as I arrived. The family dog, Alegra, has become my new buddy. She’s huge, but very gentle and craves attention. The cat (whose name I can’t yet pronounce or spell) is fun too, although she’s almost deaf, so you have to be careful about petting her without her seeing you. There is a wonderful little courtyard garden out back that I’m sure I’ll enjoy some during breakfasts.

The only real bit of trouble I’ve run into is that my laptop cord doesn’t fit the adapter I borrowed… so I’ll have to see what I can work out with classmates. I made sure that it fit my other appliances, but didn’t think about the laptop before I left home. Oh well… I’m sure I’ll be able to work it out.

En Route

I left Boone yesterday with Benny and Lavender (our dog) to meet our family in the Hillsborough area. Before leaving, we took a few pictures. We spent some time with my mom and will spend today with Benny's family. The plan is for Mandy, Benny's sister, to take me to Raleigh tomorrow to fly out. I've already realized there's one item I left, but I'll be able to take care of that today.

My flight leaves tomorrow evening and I'll be flying with a classmate, which will be fun. It's an overnight flight to London and then on to Munich. Hopefully, I'll be able to get some sleep on the plane. I packed a travel pillow in my bookbag for the trip.

Even in the midst of this employment turmoil, I'm beginning to get excited about the trip. I found a gift for my host family, which is small enough to fit in my carry on bags, so that's fortunate. I was able to pack in only carry-ons, so I won't need to mess with checking luggage, which will be nice. I've been burned once by misplaced luggage, and would rather not deal with that again. Thankfully, I will be able to do laundry at the house in Germany for a nominal fee. I'm hoping that this trip will help to provide a bit more perspective and peace about my next steps with regards to my plan in the fall. In the meantime, I am becoming more and more grateful for the support of family and friends, and for all of those intangible things that I already have.

Preparing to Leave Home

Today I finished up tying up the loose ends at school and am beginning to pack up my things for a month in Germany. I've been continually working on my outline for the paper and unit plan and have been reading most of the American literature and nonfiction works I can get my hands on that would be appropriate for my topic. I'm hoping that my time at the International Youth Library will be spent seeking out the information that I need to fill in the gaps in the science and math portions of the unit.

While I'm in Munich, I will stay with a host family, a mother and two teenage daughters (and a cat and dog:)). I'm looking forward to this more intimate perspective on the culture. I'll have my own room and bathroom, and will also have kitchen privileges. It will take me approximately 30 minutes to walk to the library from the house, and I'll have about a fifteen minute walk to the subway station.

There are several outings planned for our group, including a Mozart Dinner Concert during our time in Saltzburg, and a visit to Dachau. I also hope to visit Eagle's Nest and the Jewish Museum in Munich to help provide a greater context for my unit. I'm sure that during our time there, I'll find more places I'm interested in visiting outside of the library.

I'll post pictures here as I can during my trip. I'll also post a few pictures of my preparation (exciting pics of packing, laundry, the dog, etc.). More to come later!