Stuttgart.

So this weekend I went and visited the Riehle family in Stuttgart and it was such a great weekend. It kind of made it really hard to leave. I went to go see Kathi’s, Emily’s exchange partner, “Winterball.” In Germany many gymnasiums (a type of high school here) have dance clubs. Try and picture dirty dancing + step up + classic swing and fox trot + jazz, ballet, and lyrical + modern American music and you will get a good picture of what it is like.

Essentially it is really cool and Kathi, who is also the president of the club, did an amazing job both organizing it and dancing.

Why don’t we do that in America? So many teens here are members of dance studies (girls and guys!) and learn all the classic dance steps, but only to modern music. It made me really jealous and I wished I could join in; however, the only other person who was on my “level” was her seven year old brother, Basti, and he never spun me; I was only allowed to spin and twirl him. So I did, a lot.

Overall, it was an amazing weekend and I continue to feel blessed by the Riehle family and their genuine care for me.

Tomorrow I am going around the Black Forrest to see the different “sites” with two Bekannte* of mine from the kitchen. Hopefully after that I will be able to have enough pictures to make an album worthwhile!

Sidenote: I am tired of being cold.

*The word “Friend” is used very carefully in German. Saying someone is your friend implies that you know them intimately and very well. It is actually the same word used for boyfriend and girlfriend. Often you will say someone is your Bekannter or your Kumple.

A kind of MAJOR change in plans...

Okay, so I have left a lot of information out lately because things here have been positively.... chaotic? Not sure if that is the right word. Okay so I think a major thing that set off my homesickness, besides the whole living on my own and having a job in a foreign country thing, was the fact that last Friday I received my packet from Freiburg for my studies there and it essentially wasn't what I thought. At some point the semester dates had changed and I would have been here till late August, a bit problematic considering UVA would have already resumed Fall classes. On top of that, I lost my housing and was responsible for renting an apartment in the city. A bit tricky for someone who only needs one for 3 months and has no furniture.

So I panicked.

But through the amazing patience of my parents and help from UVA I am now enrolled in an entirely different University. Crazy, huh? Imagine trying to do that with limited internet access. April 1st I will begin at Friedrich-Schiller Universitaet in Jena. This process has been overwhelming and tiring, but it almost seems to be finished. I had three applications to fill out in about two days and have been working nine hours days in the kitchen. It is actually amazing to see the Lord's hand in it all as well. As soon as I wrote my last blog post about being determined to rejoice I received the news that I had been accepted at Jena despite the deadline already having passed. After researching the University it truly seems like a great  place. There are many more support networks for International students and I am super excited to go. It also frees up about half of my summer now (I look to head back early July) so I can come home and take either a summer class or perhaps volunteer at Ligonier Camp and see people I love and miss a little bit sooner.

A lot still needs to be done and settled so please continue to pray for me. I have learned so incredibly much already (and not just about German culture and the language) but about myself. I am starting to wonder how much I truly trust the Lord to provide or in myself and my own personal ability to get the work done. If you own a copy of "My Utmost for His Highest" read the last week or so. Everything has been super convicting. This new opportunity for me to study in Jena is nothing but a gift and how smoothly it has gone must be from the Lord.

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

This is the day that the Lord hath made...

…so I am going to rejoice and be glad in it, if it is the last thing I do.

So, as I kind of alluded to in my previous posts the start of the second week has been a shaky one. Homesickness, dread, panic, nervousness, every possible emotion has been felt. The two previous mornings when I woke up in the morning and it registered where I was, I felt sick and had the mindset, well another day down now only 165 more to go. But this morning, it was different. Yes, I woke up and immediately felt panicky and then with Bryan’s words from the previous night in my heard, “Well, Amy, suck it up. You’re in Germany” I decided to take today to continually praise God for all the good of this trip.

It’s been working. I feel infinitely better than yesterday. Not to say it isn’t hard to be here, because it is, but I am going to remember what so many wise people said, “It’s all about perspective.” So, at least for today, it will be about perspective.

I would also recommend that every person in the world should start every day with reading a couple of Psalms. Either 1) You are going to realize you don’t praise God nearly as beautifully and as well as the psalmists do and thus steal their prayers as your own or 2) You are going to realize that you will never be as desolate and discomforted as the psalmists were and thus take joy in the comfort of a God who hears.

Also, today I made tons and tons of Chocolate Mousse and got to eat tons and tons of Chocolate Mousse, so how could that be bad? Oh, and I also dropped the salad dressing bottle when I was refilling it into the tub of salad dressing and got it everywhere, including my hair. Still don’t know if anyone else saw it.

I learned a new word today...

Heimweh (adj) - homesick.

It comes in waves and seems to be worst in the slow parts of my mornings. I am having some stressful things going on with the study part of my stay here. Hopefully when that is worked out and I have less on my mind it won't be as bad.

UVA/family - Why do you have to be so amazing and great that it is hard to leave and be by myself?

I taught the other cooks in the kitchen the Cupid Shuffle.

Here are all the things I love about Germany:

1.      They find American accents cool.

2.      I understand and speak better German every single day I am here.

3.      I work with the NICEST people in the world.

4.      I feel cared for.

5.      I have friends who aren’t American and can’t speak English.

6.      I am learning to cook German food.

7.      They told me I was very funny.

8.      I threw a dance party in the kitchen yesterday.

9.      It is absolutely beautiful in the Black Forrest.

10.  They find everything about America super cool and constantly ask me questions.

11.  They are so understanding when I make mistakes and think that my German is phenomenal anyways.

12.  The food is better.

13.  The architecture is prettier.

Here are all the things I don’t love about Germany:

1.      I am tired of not being able to say exactly what I mean.

2.      I don’t have regular internet access.

3.      The exchange rate sucks for me.

4.      UVA isn’t in Germany.

5.      My living situation is a lot less fun than PHI MU (however, you girls should be happy to know that I am still dancing in the kitchen… often)

As you can tell, I am LOVING my experience so far. I have been so extremely lucky in my internship and am surrounding by an amazing group of people. I am always invited to go out and do things with the other co-workers and every day I feel as if I can communicate better and understand more. Continue to keep me in your thoughts and prayers. It is hard to be away from so many people and a place that I love and miss so much.

I made my first joke in German.

Okay, so now a more cohesive and less hurried blog post. Germany is wonderful. The people here at the resort are incredibly nice. As I mentioned already, my boss is wonderful and great. I really like her and the other workers. The town is the perfect post card town. It is a very small town in the Black Forest and has many little shops and cafes and snow! 

I am living in a room at the resort and have a nice large bed, closet, table and chairs, a small kitchenette, and my own bathroom. My first day of work was on Wednesday. I am working in the kitchen, cooking and preparing meals. And yes, I do have an incredible chef’s uniform. There are not too many guests right now at the hotel so there is not a lot of cooking to do. We take “smoking breaks” and get to hang out with one another. The atmosphere is really great. Nearly all the other workers are my age.  The first two nights we went out to a small tiny bar in the area. I have been very busy between working and getting to know the other workers, which is really only a good thing. The more I am alone, the more homesick I tend to get.

The hotel is beautiful. It is made up of several different buildings and they all have a south Germany flair to them. 

So, yes circumstantially Germany is perfect and I am having a wonderful experience.  I feel so lucky in the way things have turned out and to be here. However, to be perfectly honest with all of you (which I hope to be – I am a real person after all and don’t plan on sugar coating everything), I am overwhelmed. It is hard to come into a group of people who all know each other already, and it is harder when you don’t understand all that is being said and cannot express yourself well. I feel a bit alienated. Also, when I stop to consider just how long seven months is, I feel kind of sick. I hope that this is first day/week nerves and once I get settled in I will feel much more comfortable. All prayers would be greatly appreciated!

Happy first week of classes UVA. J

I live in the Ligonier of Germany.

I am here in Germany, finally! On Sunday I flew out and then yesterday I spent an incredible day with the Riehle family in Stuttgart. The Riehle's hosted my sister this summer for three weeks and they made me feel so incredibly welcome. It is so evident that God has purposed and planned this trip for me. It began with (and yes, this might be embarrassing) me bawling in the airport/plane (seven months became a very long time very quickly). There the nicest woman, in a Troy Polamalu naturally, asked me if she could pray for me and told me she would be continuously praying until August. I didn't know her at all and she could not have known that I was a Christian. Then on the train, I sat next a man in his fifties with two college aged children who could tell that I was upset and made a conscious effort to talk to me and distract me for a good two hours. I then went to the Riehle's home where everything became even better. While there, they told me they would love to be my "German family." They said whenever I am homesick I can come and stay with them, and asked if they could visit me at my University. They were beyond gracious and I am excited to seem them soon! God is good and he provides.

Now, I am currently in Koenigsfeld im Schwarzwald beginning my internship. The city is essentially Ligonier. There is even a white gazebo. It is a small German town in the country side and I feel right at home. My boss is great and kind. Everything is in all German and constantly overwhelming, but that should get better. Tomorrow I begin in the kitchen for six weeks and then I begin housekeeping. Nearly all the other workers here are my age and two girls have already invited me out tonight. My boss has asked the other girls to make sure to take me places and show me everything and given me free anytime access to her office where I can get on the computer. So, again, she is amazing. I am a bit worried about being by myself. I have a room here and I am nervous about being lonely. Hopefully, I will get to know the other workers well and all will be good. So far I could not have asked for things to be better.

Sorry for the hastiness of this post. I am about to leave soon and wanted to quickly update.Also, sorry for the poor grammar. The constant German is messing with my ability to express myself!

Bis Spaeter.

To blog or not to blog? Das ist die Frage.

So if you know me (which I sincerely hope you do, because if not, I find the fact that you are reading this a bit creepy) you would know that I lack three essential "blogger" qualities - a firm grasp of the English language, the ability to tell a good story, and comedic value. Nonetheless, I have decided to blog about my upcoming adventure and share my time there with you all.

On Sunday, I will be leaving to spend about seven months (perhaps a little less) in Germany. I will be doing an assortment of things, including: studying at Albert-Ludwig University in Freiburg, eating sausage, visiting Megan Frook and Kelsey Sherbondy in Berlin and Paris, drinking amazing beer, staying at a resort in the Black forest (Schwarzwalk Park Hotel), missing UVA, and traveling.

The majority of my time will be split between two cities. I will be in Koenigsfeld staying with the cousin of a family friend at her resort. I will be "interning" until the beginning of April. I will then move to the beautiful city of Freiburg, founded in 1120, to complete a UVA semester abroad program. Nearly all aspects of my trip are "nontraditional" and therefore slightly frightening. My internship is of my own doing and I have no idea what to expect or what will be expected of me. My semester will be done via direct enrollment, meaning I will not be doing an American program nor will I be with other UVA or American students. I will be enrolling in the same classes as German students with the same professors and assignments. English? Nope. At the end of this time I hope to finally achieve what I have been working towards the last 6 and a half years: mastery of the German language.

Naturally, I am beyond excited to go. I am a third year and running out of time in which I can be completely and utterly independent with little obligations. I will live, breathe, and experience German culture and language. I will see beautiful things. However, I am also a tiny bit terrified. Seven months away from school, home, and familiarity scares me... a lot. I have no idea what to expect at either my resort or my university, but of this I am sure, this semester and these seven months are of no surprise to the Lord. As he tells the Israelites he will go before me and be with me. I am excited to see the way in which God humbles me and provides for me. I am excited to experience a full trust in the Lord's provision in nearly every aspect of my life. He is good and He cannot be not good to me (double negative? but I think it works here). I am excited to see His goodness abroad and share with you all about this great adventure.

Bis Dann.