Berlin's football team utterly sucks. People told me they were bad, but after attending a game at the Olympic Stadium for Hertha BSC, I realize that they're on whole other level of bad. For those of you who are from Ohio, I'd say they're the German equivalent of the Cleveland Browns. However, the game on Sunday was fun, despite the stale beer and lack of a victory for the home team. The stadium is an incredible venue, and I can't imagine what it would be like when completely full for events such as the FIFA World Cup or the Olympics.
Prior to that, in the morning, I met up with a local my age who took me to Mauerpark Market, which was really cool. It was a huge fly market, with all sorts of artsy and antique things. I purchased two neat postcards and a small pin from the DDR, or East Germany. It has three German flags, each overlaid with the hammer and sickle of communism. It's neat to have my own small piece of history. I'm also quite happy because the local and I hit it off really well and I'm looking forward to getting to know him more. That's one of the things that I love about this city, how welcoming and open they are to foreigners. It's nice to have an insider's view on my new home.
After the day out, I had dinner with my host family, who surprised me with a melon-lemonaide and a Kinder Surprise, which is a chocolate egg with a small toy inside of it. My younger host-brother was the one to fetch it and hand it to me, of course with an adorable look on his face. I shared the egg with him, gave him the toy and we played a little together which was nice.
Monday consisted of classes. German is starting to pick up a little more, so I need to step up my game and use it as much as possible. Afterwards, I met up with my local buddy, who showed me around Kreuzberg a little more, particularly a neat avenue with a variety of shops, cafes and restaurants on it. We grabbed Indian for dinner, and it was delicious.
Today was supposed to be my first day of classes at the partner college, where I would commute for an hour for the first time. However, both courses were cancelled, as the professor who teaches both was sick, hallelujah. So, I slept in, had a lazy morning, completed homework, and then explored some more. I returned to Gendarmenmarkt, and climbed to the top of the French Cathedral to see the city. It was the perfect day for it with the sun shining and a clear sky and honestly, I could've spent all day up there.
Afterwards, I wandered a little more, and then met up with friends at Kurfürstendamm, one of best shopping districts in Berlin. They needed to go to the Apple Store to get their computers fixed, so I was simply there for company. I saw the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, and apparently we were also near one of the two zoos in the city, so I will definitely be heading back there at some point. I also wandered around the block a little in my homestay neighborhood.
This evening, I had dinner with my host father and brothers, learned some new vocab for food from my host-mom and had an interesting discussion about religion with the family. It was direct and open, very German. Tomorrow, we'll see what adventures besides homework await me.
Ciao!
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