I would like to start off by saying
that I almost chose the Italy and Greece trip over the Germany trip.. A number
of my friends went on that trip last d-term and talked about how much of a life
changing experience it was. After much consideration, I realized that I should
at least give the effort to look into the other d-term programs that were
offered. After looking at the options, the only other trip that sparked my
interest was Germany. After missing the initial meeting for the Germany trip
(sorry about that…), Professor Wolf allowed me to have an individual meeting
with him regarding the trip details. Needless to say, Professor Wolf sold me
right off the bat. I instantly knew that I was going to choose this trip over
going to Italy and Greece.
I previously mentioned in our class
meeting that I haven’t been out of the country. Taking everything in that
Professor Wolf showed me during our individual meeting, I knew that this needed
to be my first trip out of the country. Besides the rich history that Germany
holds in regards to WWII, as well as the ability of their current International soccer
team, I don’t hold much knowledge about the current German culture, or how it has evolved over time. It may be very vague, but a major reason why I chose to
go on this trip was to see the culture change between the U.S. and Germany.
Even taking the little things into account, such as the use of mobile devices.
Everywhere you go today in the U.S., and I mean everywhere, people will be on
their phones. Whether that’s sitting down at dinner with multiple people, or at
their work setting. Way to often do I see individuals on their phones when they
should not be. While in Germany, I would like to know when it is or isn't appropriate to be on your cell phone. It may sound silly, but personal communication is such an enormous part of our everyday lives. This is the first thing that I am going
to observe when we land in Germany and get settled in.
While visiting, there are a few
things in particular that I would like to learn. One of which is the reason why
Germans take such pride in their history. As professor Wolf mentioned, there
are numerous statues throughout Germany that represent acts that Germans are
not necessarily proud of. In no way, shape, or form do they feel the need
to hide their mistakes. Why exactly is that? Has this always been the type of
recognition that the Germans give, or has this changed over time? After coming
in contact with these statues at various touch points in Germany, I hope to
grab a better overall understanding of their true value.
Another concept that I hope to
learn about stems from a business standpoint. As noted, Germany is the number
one country in exports. I am curious as to how they are so successful in
tackling multiple types of foreign trade. At what point did Germany start to be
seen as a worldwide leader in this category? Is there any significant event or
action that took place that assisted Germany in their distinguished exporting capabilities? I
hope while we are in Germany, we visit at least one venue that touches on the
business side of the German culture.
Erfurt Christmas Market
Away from the academic aspects, one
of the reasons I want to visit Germany is because of the stereotype that it
holds when it comes to drinking beer. I’m not trying to sit here and sound like
a typical college kid, but I guess there is no other way to say it. When
Professor Wolf described the Christmas market, called Erfurt (pictured above), I
knew that this was definitely one of the destinations that I want to spend a
fair amount of time at. I found it very interesting when we were told that
Germans love to drink outside, no matter how cold it is. Seeing that it will most
likely be cold when we are at this market, I am curious as to how I will hold
up drinking in this type of environment, as well as the rest of the class.
Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp
The most significant reason as to
why I am interested in this trip to Germany is because of the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp (pictured above) that we will be attending. When Professor
Wolf went into brief detail about the camp, I knew that this was something that
I had to experience. The reason I feel so strong about visiting this
concentration camp is because both of my grandparents on my father’s side were
put into Japanese-American Internment camps. Though their conditions might have
not been as severe or inhumane as some of the camps in Germany, they still had
to go through an experience that no one should have to go through. After
hearing about some of the details that my grandparents had to go through while
attending these camps, it has become a very humbling concept for me.
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