I have to say, I have a pretty sweet life here. I have less obligations than I've had probably since I was about 10, and also more money. Not a lot of money, but certainly enough to live comfortably. And did I mention that I have lots of free time? It's actually been quite a bit of an adjustment for me, going from the rush-rush pace of life at Wash U, where I had class, homework, research, a job and a thousand other things, to my Fulbright life, where under contract I only have to work 12 hours per week (I work a little more than that, but still, it doesn't even really qualify as part-time). So I've found some things to keep me busy, but don't worry mom, I'm not stressing myself out. The only bad thing about his abundant amount of time for relaxing is that I have no idea how I will ever adjust to a real job in the future. Fulbright is majorly spoiling me, but I guess I should enjoy it while I can.
However, I do sometimes actually work. My main job (through Fulbright) is as an assistant English teacher in a middle/high school, in the type of school they call a "comprehensive school" in the German school system, meaning that all students have class together, regardless of whether they're on the university track or planning on stopping after 10th grade and doing an apprenticeship. So, kind of like an American high school. However, comprehensive schools have a rather bad reputation in Germany that they don't prepare students for university as well as traditional "Gymnasien" do. The traditional German school system is three-tiered: Hauptschule is the lowest, Realschule in the middle and Gymnasium at the top. Hauptschule you stop after the 9th grade and go into a vocation like working in a factory. Realschule stops after 10th grade but you go on and do something like an apprenticeship to become an electrician or go into hotel management or something. From Gymnasium you're supposed to go onto university. I personally find this system highly elitist, because the kids are tracked after the 4th grade, and it can be quite difficult to switch from one type of school to the other. So basically if you're not good in school when you're 9 you will probably never have the chance to go to college. Seems unfair, but that's not the point of this blog, so tangent aside, back to my work schedule. I teach at the school every day except Wednesday. I'm usually there for about 4 hours per day, sometimes more if I have breaks between my classes. I help with a 6th grade, 7th grade, two 9th grade and one 11th grade class. I also help with an 8th grade drama class and oversee the English Club for the upper grades. I don't teach the classes independently, but I do lead a lot of lessons on my own while the teacher sits in the room, or we team teach together. Most of my lessons focus on American culture, such as holidays or the school system. Sometimes they go well, occasionally they don't, but it helps a lot that the kids intrinsically like me because I'm somebody new and interesting and from America. Plus the kids are just in general really friendly and funny; my favorite anecdotes will follow in a later post. In addition to my work at the school I'm a teaching assistant for two seminars in the English Department at the university in Dortmund. One is called "Cultural Education in Contexts of Diversity" and the other "English in America." I don't do much other than facilitating discussions every now and then and emailing with the students to help them on their projects, but then again, I don't get paid for the TA work either. Next semester I'm hoping to get involved with some research in the linguistics department, because I do miss that aspect of academia.
With my light work schedule, I've been able to indulge my hobbies more than ever before, as well as taking up some new ones. In three months I read more books than I read all of last year, and devote a few hours each week to reviewing French and Arabic so I can sign up for a language course at the university next semester. I've also started playing the piano again, because there's a baby grand in the music room at my school that is hardly ever used, and one of the nice teachers I work with gave me the key to the room so that I can practice anytime I want. I don't think I'll be giving a concert in Carnegie Hall anytime soon, but it's nice to be able to play just for myself. A new hobby I've taken up is knitting, which my roommate and a friend taught me. They're amazing and can knit mittens and sweaters and all kinds of cool stuff, whereas I'm still laboring to create a decent looking rectangle, aka a scarf. So basically, don't hold your breath for hand-knitted goods for Christmas. I've also been learning how to use Photoshop, so maybe I'll post some of my photography here one day. Other hobbies include watching Dexter, Mad Men and Criminal Minds online and, my all-time favorite hobby: cooking/baking. I've always loved to bake, but didn't really have the time before to spend hours testing out different cookie recipes. Now I do, which makes my taste buds really happy but is perhaps not so great for my calorie intake. My roommate and I both also love cooking, and I would say we probably make the best vegetarian meals in Dortmund (the competition for gourmet vegetarian cuisine is not particularly stiff in Germany). This leads to
just a typical dinner party. with a santa suit
our favorite activity, which is hosting or going to dinner parties with friends. A home-cooked meal is so much nicer than a restaurant. Also, the alcohol is cheaper. We decided with the other three people in our WG (who live in the apartment below us) that we should have a communal dinner every Sunday, so now the apartments trade off weeks and we get to catch up on each other's lives and laugh at Hidey the cat. It's all very "gemuetlich," as the Germans would say, a word that unfortunately doesn't have a good English translation, but means something along the lines of cozy, cheery, snug, comfortable, happy, etc. Basically used to describe anything that is relaxing and fun.
light work schedule, I've been able to indulge my hobbies more than ever before, as well as taking up some new ones. In three months I read more books than I read all of last year, and devote a few hours each week to reviewing French and Arabic so I can sign up for a language course at the university next semester. I've also started playing the piano again, because there's a baby grand in the music room at my school that is hardly ever used, and one of the nice teachers I work with
Santa is a huge beer fan
gave me the key to the room so that I can practice anytime I want. I don't think I'll be giving a concert in Carnegie Hall anytime soon, but it's nice to be able to play just for myself. A new hobby I've taken up is knitting, which my roommate and a friend taught me. They're amazing and can knit mittens and sweaters and all kinds of cool stuff, whereas I'm still laboring to create a decent looking rectangle, aka a scarf. So basically, don't hold your breath for hand-knitted goods for Christmas. I've also been learning how to use Photoshop, so maybe I'll post some of my photography here one day. Other hobbies include watching Dexter, Mad Men and Criminal Minds online and, my all-time favorite hobby: cooking/baking. I've always loved to bake, but didn't really have the time before to spend hours testing out different cookie recipes. Now I do, which makes my taste buds really happy but is perhaps not so great for my calorie intake. My roommate and I both also love cooking, and I would say we probably make the best vegetarian meals in Dortmund (the competition for gourmet vegetarian cuisine is not particularly stiff in Germany). This leads to our favorite activity, which is hosting or going to dinner parties with friends. A home-cooked meal is so much nicer than a restaurant. Also, the alcohol is cheaper. We decided with the other three people in our WG (who live in the apartment below us) that we should have a communal dinner every Sunday, so now the apartments trade off weeks and we get to catch up on each other's lives and laugh at Hidey the cat. It's all very "gemuetlich," as the Germans would say, a word that unfortunately doesn't have a good English translation, but means something along the lines of cozy, cheery, snug, comfortable, happy, etc. Basically used to describe anything that is relaxing and fun.
romantic setting for the WG dinner
Georg and Steffen being awkward
Hidey does not love Amanda as much as Amanda loves her
Less gemuetlich is the "Nordstadt" (north city), which is the area of Dortmund I live in. It's not really known as one of the most desirable addresses in Dortmund, mostly because the majority of the residents are immigrants and it's in general a lower socioeconomic-, working-class area. Basically, it's just not the most beautiful part of Dortmund: kind of old, industrial, not always kept-up and frankly kind of grim sometimes. I think there's a pretty high unemployment rate in the area, as every morning on my way to work (my school is also in the Nordstadt) I almost always see people hanging out on benches and outside kiosks drinking beer (at 7:30am). There's not really any violence to speak of in the area, just a lot of people with not-so-great economic prospects, and a lot of people of foreign background, to the point that you hear far more Turkish/Arabic/Bulgarian/what-have-you on the street than you do German. The good thing about this is that when I go into a store or Imbiss (fast food stand) I don't have to worry about messing up my German, because the shop owners probably don't speak it any better than I do. The residents do have a little bit of neighborhood pride, though, as evidenced by the electric sign on the side of a high-rise apartment building that says "the sun rises in the north." Aplerbeck and Dorstfeld and the other sissy suburbs may think they're the best, we Nordstadt-ers know better! So now, enjoy the scenery of the Nordstadt:
all that was left of a church after the war
I don't know why there is a Navy store, nor do I know why they fly not only the American flag, but the Canadian and Confederate ones too
I swear I live by every train track in the city
Remember the pretty view out my bedroom window? Well, they cut off the tops of the trees a few weeks ago, so now I get to enjoy this. And trust me, it looks better in this picture than it ever does in real life.
As said before, the Ruhrgebiet is the former seat of heavy industry (coal mining and steel production) in Germany. Very little of this industry is left now, because, as is the case in most Western nations, mining and other heavy industries have been mostly taken over by developing countries where production is cheaper. However, some factories and power plants are still in operation, and remnants of industry can be seen all over the region. For example, there are "Halden," or slag heaps, near all the major former mines. Thankfully, they've all been grassed over and planted with trees, to the extent that they really look like natural hills just rising out of the ground. Many have become popular walking or outdoor activity areas, such as Halde Haniel in Bottrop, where I went with Pascal's mom. A way of the cross was installed on a winding path up the hill, ending at a large cross where Pope John Paul II once gave an address. Also on the top of this particular Halde is a small amphitheater where plays and concerts are occasionally held, as well as a crazy totem pole sculpture garden. The view from the top is amazing; I could see the entire Ruhrgebiet (almost as far as Dortmund even). Interestingly, interspersed with the cities and smokestacks are huge tracts of very rural areas that look like forests or fields. As I mentioned in my first post, a lot of Germans picture the Ruhrgebiet as smoggy and gray, but in reality it's almost overwhelmingly green.
the very top of the heap wasn't grassed over
cross at the top of the path
totem poles
amphitheater
the streets of Essen
Before industrialization, the Ruhrgebiet lacked in major significance in the German economic or cultural scene. Some cities (such as Essen or Dortmund) were moderately important as seats of power or trade, and Duisburg was very important for trade along the Rhine and had a renowned university, but overall the area was pretty much a collection of villages and farms. The discovery of coal kick-started the region's growth and towns sprang up quickly and with an eye on cheapness and efficiency rather than aesthetics. Add to that the fact that the Ruhrgebiet was extremely heavily bombed in World War II (industrial production sites of steel and weapons were obviously critical targets for the Allies) and in some towns over 75% of the buildings were destroyed. In the post-war period the prevailing architectural style seems to have been "plain concrete blocks," not too dissimilar from what Americans thinks of as typical Soviet architecture. All of these factors combine to create the unfortunately reality that the towns of the Ruhrgebiet are really just not all that pretty. That's not to say that there are no pretty or traditional buildings at all, and I certainly think that the construction of the cities here is extremely interesting and attractive in sort of utilitarian, modern way, but Dortmund and company lack the charm of towns such as Tuebingen with their quaint medieval buildings and winding cobblestone streets. That being said, I find Dortmund to be considerably more "livable" than Tuebingen, because I don't feel like I'm living in a postcard or constantly being a tourist at some historical site. Also, because there are so many cities in close proximity to each other, there's always stuff to do, concerts to go to, exhibits to see. It's not at all isolated, like I sometimes felt Tuebingen was, and, in my opinion, the perfect place to just have a normal day-to-day life. So now, some pictures of the wonderful city of Dortmund:
flying rhino statues are all over Dortmund
the market square and Reinoldi Church
Germans love eating outside
a building across from the Concert House
modern buildings by the train station
entrance to subway station
the TV tower in Westphalia Park in Dortmund
view of downtown Dortmund from TV tower
I live behind the smokestack
old brewery that has been converted into a museum
typical Ruhrgebiet: nice park, green treas, abandoned mines
Currently working in a middle and high school in Germany thanks to a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship grant.
~This blog is not an official Fulbright Program blog and the views expressed are my own and not those of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State or any of its partner organizations.~
Less gemuetlich is the "Nordstadt" (north city), which is the area of Dortmund I live in. It's not really known as one of the most desirable addresses in Dortmund, mostly because the majority of the residents are immigrants and it's in general a lower socioeconomic-, working-class area. Basically, it's just not the most beautiful part of Dortmund: kind of old, industrial, not always kept-up and frankly kind of grim sometimes. I think there's a pretty high unemployment rate in the area, as every morning on my way to work (my school is also in the Nordstadt) I almost always see people hanging out on benches and outside kiosks drinking beer (at 7:30am). There's not really any violence to speak of in the area, just a lot of people with not-so-great economic prospects, and a lot of people of foreign background, to the point that you hear far more Turkish/Arabic/Bulgarian/what-have-you on the street than you do German. The good thing about this is that when I go into a store or Imbiss (fast food stand) I don't have to worry about messing up my German, because the shop owners probably don't speak it any better than I do. The residents do have a little bit of neighborhood pride, though, as evidenced by the electric sign on the side of a high-rise apartment building that says "the sun rises in the north." Aplerbeck and Dorstfeld and the other sissy suburbs may think they're the best, we Nordstadt-ers know better! So now, enjoy the scenery of the Nordstadt:
