Monday was, as per usual, spent in class at the study center. I had German in the morning and the rest of the afternoon free due to my history class being cancelled. My friend and I hung out in the center attempting to do a German crossword puzzle together, which was challenging. After we gave up, he feel asleep on the bean bag chairs, and I headed home, since I had nothing else to do. That evening I spent time with my host family, talking with my hostmom and older host-brother about a variety of topics over tea. It was quite nice and soothing.
I also received a belated Valentine from a friend and a package from my significant other, filled with all sorts of goodies. V send me Cheez-Its, English Smarties, Pocky, some type of Asian candy, a letter, a voucher for hugs, a stuffed red blood cell plushie, and other small things. Someone in my program remarked that I'm always getting mail, and it's true. In the nearly sixty days that I have been here, I've received five packages and over twenty letters. At two things a week, that's more mail than anyone else in the program and it makes me feel quite loved.
Tuesday was another day wasted at the partner college across town. I arose early, and made myself a cup of tea to go with breakfast before I left. It was the first morning cup of my personal tea that I've had since I arrived, and I had forgotten how much I enjoyed waking up with it. At the partner college, I sat through two long classes that were quite boring, and when it was finally over, a friend and I headed back to my homestay to chill out before our brewery tour that evening. We spent the time showing each other our homes, schools, homes at schools and other important places in our lives.
Then, we headed to the Berliner-Kindl-Schultheiss-Brauerei by an incredibly crowded train and tram. We met up with the rest of the group and received a tour of the brewery which was pretty interesting. However, the highlight of the night was dinner (schnitzel, gravy, potatoes, peas and carrots) and the unlimited beer tasting. I sampled the Schultheiss Pilsner, and two of their beers mixed with syrup, one pomegranate, the other raspberry. I also traded sips with others, and tried the Berliner Kindl Pilsner, the Berliner Bürgerbrau Rotkelchen, the Märkischer Landmann, the Schöfferhoer Hefeweizen and the beers mixed with black currant and grapefruit.
Overall, it was a pretty fun night, and it was nice to relax a little and unwind over some drinks. A little before the tasting was due to end, my friend and I headed home. I fell asleep pretty early, but woke up a little before two in the morning. I started messaging some people from home, and one of them reminded me that his radio show was going to air at two (nine his time). So, I stayed up, listening to two of my friends broadcast their radio show, while also continuing to talk to others who were up. It was really soothing to hear peoples' voices from home, especially those who I don't Skype regularly. A small bout of homesickness hit, but it was manageable and bittersweet.
This morning, in contrast to last night, was not fun, as I immediately battled a migraine upon awaking. Migraines are never fun, and this one was even less so, due to the fact that the downstairs neighbor is renovating his apartment, and spent most of the morning hammering and sawing. Additionally, my homestay is on the corner of a fairly busy intersection, so it's pretty loud during the day with engines, people chattering and sirens every half-hour or so. Finally, the trifecta of terrible things with a migraine was that my bed is located right next to the window, and my curtain is quite thin, so even when it is shut, the room is light.
However, I managed to make the most of it, by covering the window with a heavy blanket, dousing my winter fleece headband in water for my eyes, and using an eyemask and earplugs to try and block out a lot of the noise and light. Fortunately, I also had medication which also helped relieve some of the pain.
Now, I'm taking it easy, since it subsided about two hours ago. I may go for a walk later, but for now, I'm pretty content to just relax on my bed and do homework. Tomorrow, I again have class, and for architecture, will be attending a summit regarding the land of the former death strip that the city of Berlin is trying to determine what to do with.
Next Thursday, I leave for my spring break, and I'm quite excited. I've been looking at sites in Malta and I couldn't be more ecstatic to be traveling there.
Also, in the past two days, this blog hit over a thousand views. So, thanks, friends, family and internet strangers for keeping up with my adventures and boring days. It means a lot when I hear that you've read even one post, or several.
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