Nine days and counting. Nine days, and the United States will elect the country’s next president. But Americans aren’t the only ones waiting with breath that is bated.
Here in Germany, almost everyone I meet blatantly asks me about the upcoming election once they find out I am American. They inform me that Germany tends to be Democratic — as if I already didn’t know — and again and again they voice how popular Barack Obama is in their country and in Europe as a whole.
Obama’s status in Europe — and in Germany in particular — stretches much further beyond his opposition to the Iraq war, which has always been a point of contention for Europeans. His desire to strengthen ties between America and Europe by calling for a renewed partnership has sparked a trend within the local news agencies to begin dubbing Obama as the next John F. Kennedy, saying that his hope and optimism — revealed particularly in his speeches — are reminiscent of the nation’s 35th president.
“The walls between old allies on either side of the Atlantic cannot stand,” Obama said earlier this summer to a crowd of more than 200,000 at the Tiergarten in Berlin. “The walls between the countries with the most and those with the least cannot stand. The walls between races and tribes, natives and immigrants, Christian and Muslim and Jew cannot stand. These now are the walls we must tear down.”
These comparisons between the Illinois senator and the famous young president aren’t kept under wraps either. Several mediums in Germany have expressed this common view: The Berliner Morgenpost has published the headline, "The New Kennedy;" the tabloid Bild went with, "This Black American Has Become the New Kennedy!" and an editorial in the Frankfurter Rundschau reached even further back into history and read: "Lincoln, Kennedy, Obama."
This fascination with Barack Obama can be tied to Europe’s many years of disenchantment with the Bush administration, said Christian Hacke, a political science professor at Bonn University during an interview for Cologne, Germany’s Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger. Hope for a new policy, and one much more based on international cooperation, is huge, he said.
Germans are less impressed with Obama’s Republican rival John McCain, who stated in an interview for the BBC that while his opposition was in Europe for his world tour, he would continue to focus on issues concerning the U.S.
"I'd love to give a speech in Germany but I'd much prefer to do it as president of the United States rather than as a candidate for president," McCain said in the interview.
Perhaps it is this campaign tactic that has left McCain with fewer German supporters, (or perhaps they are still upset about the incident that took place during a town hall meeting in Des Moines, Iowa where McCain referred to Germany’s leader as “President Putin of Germany,”) but one thing is for sure: this group of Europeans is putting all of their dreams for international reconciliation in this charismatic presidential hopeful.
“Germans have a deep appreciation for romanticism and even beyond that — sentimentalism. This romantic leaning is what opened Germans' hearts to Kennedy. Just the way Obama's promise to unify the country and lead it to a new greatness is opening the hearts of Americans for him,” Hacke said.
So when gracing the voting booth next Tuesday, ask yourself, would you rather have the next JFK or another George W. Bush?
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Nose to the Grindstone
Man this blog thing is harder than I thought it would be... who knew...
So Kate is gone now, she flew back to New Mexico last Thursday. I am sad. And now I really have to concentrate on getting a job! I still am not one hundred percent sure exactly what I want to do, but I can't spend any more time thinking about it. I just have to get out there, see what happens, and see how I like the outcome. Scary.
But why am I feeling so frustrated? I should be so happy that I am here, which I am, but I am feeling like I am not accomplishing what I set out to accomplish. I know it's early on—I have only been here for six weeks (but again, that's kind of a long time), and I feel like I have no idea what I am doing. Hopefully this is normal. And I really hope I can do what I want to do. Which is... what exactly? Not sure yet. Dah. Frustrating. But it will get better, I am sure of it. (Hopefully...) Wow. There were a lot of "hopes" and "feelings" in that little paragraph.
So before Katelyn left, we ventured to the Netherlands (her boyfriend has family there and said we should check it out.) It was an experience, mostly because of how different is was from Germany. It's amazing how places so close together can vary so vastly. People in Amsterdam do not look at you. Ever. It is like you are invisible. This was very weird to me because German people not only look at you, they stare. And they don't care if you see them staring. They don't look away. But things in Holland are much cheaper than in Munich, so that was a plus. Long story short, Kate and I stayed on a cute little houseboat named the Vita Nova, that had very good breakfast and very small—teeny, tiny actually—rooms and beds. But it was a really awesome place to stay, and an experience in itself.
We went to the Anne Frank house, which was my favorite part of the trip. It was just unbelievable to be standing in the house where that family stayed and being in the middle of history. What got me most was when I was looking at the pictures Anne herself had put up in her room and knowing that they were the same images she saw everyday for two years, until that anonymous caller ratted the family out and they were discovered. Seriously. Such an unbelievable place to see.
We also got to go to the Van Gogh museum, which I thought was very exciting since I love him and his work but it did end up depressing me. He worked his whole, sad life trying to sell a painting and never succeeded, and then ended up killing himself. Poor guy. If only he knew now how famous he has become.
We took a day to rest after coming back to Munich, and then we ventured to Füssen and then onto Schwangau to see Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau—both castles that the Bavarian royal family had built. The tours of both castles were very interesting and I learned much about Maximilian and Ludwig II, whose mysterious death really interests me... But Schwangau is such a charming and cozy town, and the weather was gorgeous and all the leaves were falling and all the colors were changing. Ohhhhh it was soooo nice. (I will post pictures as soon as I am done writing this post, I swear!!! And I am writing this sentence in here just to ensure that I do it!)
But the way back from Füssen... well, that's a different story all in itself. And seriously, to make a long story short as I don't want to drag it out the way I have done so many times telling the story—Katelyn and I were not aware that the last bus left from Schwangau to Füssen Bahnhof at 7:30 pm, so we were taking our sweet time, stopping for ice cream and coffee and the whole bit. So when we discovered this unfriendly little tidbit, we had to march across the street to a closing restaurant where the woman told us she would call us a cab that should cost about 6 euro. Ended up costing us 11. But hey, at least we were at the train station, right? No. We later found out that the train coming was going to be 25 minutes late, after we had already waited 35 minutes, and when we boarded the train, we then discovered it wasn't leaving for another hour. So it was 10:30 by the time it left. We left Schwangau at 8 pm. But that isn't the worst of it. When we got to our transfer station at 11:45, another voice came on the intercom and informed us that this train would be 20 minutes late. Great. By this time I am worrying that we won't make it back to München Hauptbahnhof in time to catch the last U-Bahn of the night. We got back into Munich at 1:15 AM, rushed to catch the U-Bahn (which also sat idle at the station for a good ten minutes before it left—and yes, it was the last U-Bahn of the night.)
So we left Schwangau at 8 p.m. and didn't get home until 1:30 a.m. And that is very interesting because German trains are almost never late. They are known for having the most punctual transportation system ever. But not this night. And poor Katelyn will be left with that impression of the German transit system. Oh and this also sucked because it was Katelyn's last night here, as she was leaving the next morning, and that was not the most fun last night. Boo.
But the day in Schwangau was nice. Very nice.
So what I have been doing these past few days is trying to locate the names of people in their respective departments so that I can figure out whom to address my cover letters to. So fun.
But recently I also went on a swimming pool search and found out that Munich kind of has an obsession for swimming pools and saunas, which is awesome. I spent most of yesterday at the Dantebad (especially in their crazy whirlpool) but I probably won't be going back there because the entrance fee was €6.70. Sheesh! I will try Olympiabad next time I give it a go.
Tomorrow I am meeting my friend Hillary in the morning and we are going—with her friends who are visiting from Missouri—to Dachau. Let the history, and more depression, ensue.
Tschüssi!
So Kate is gone now, she flew back to New Mexico last Thursday. I am sad. And now I really have to concentrate on getting a job! I still am not one hundred percent sure exactly what I want to do, but I can't spend any more time thinking about it. I just have to get out there, see what happens, and see how I like the outcome. Scary.
But why am I feeling so frustrated? I should be so happy that I am here, which I am, but I am feeling like I am not accomplishing what I set out to accomplish. I know it's early on—I have only been here for six weeks (but again, that's kind of a long time), and I feel like I have no idea what I am doing. Hopefully this is normal. And I really hope I can do what I want to do. Which is... what exactly? Not sure yet. Dah. Frustrating. But it will get better, I am sure of it. (Hopefully...) Wow. There were a lot of "hopes" and "feelings" in that little paragraph.
So before Katelyn left, we ventured to the Netherlands (her boyfriend has family there and said we should check it out.) It was an experience, mostly because of how different is was from Germany. It's amazing how places so close together can vary so vastly. People in Amsterdam do not look at you. Ever. It is like you are invisible. This was very weird to me because German people not only look at you, they stare. And they don't care if you see them staring. They don't look away. But things in Holland are much cheaper than in Munich, so that was a plus. Long story short, Kate and I stayed on a cute little houseboat named the Vita Nova, that had very good breakfast and very small—teeny, tiny actually—rooms and beds. But it was a really awesome place to stay, and an experience in itself.
We went to the Anne Frank house, which was my favorite part of the trip. It was just unbelievable to be standing in the house where that family stayed and being in the middle of history. What got me most was when I was looking at the pictures Anne herself had put up in her room and knowing that they were the same images she saw everyday for two years, until that anonymous caller ratted the family out and they were discovered. Seriously. Such an unbelievable place to see.
We also got to go to the Van Gogh museum, which I thought was very exciting since I love him and his work but it did end up depressing me. He worked his whole, sad life trying to sell a painting and never succeeded, and then ended up killing himself. Poor guy. If only he knew now how famous he has become.
We took a day to rest after coming back to Munich, and then we ventured to Füssen and then onto Schwangau to see Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau—both castles that the Bavarian royal family had built. The tours of both castles were very interesting and I learned much about Maximilian and Ludwig II, whose mysterious death really interests me... But Schwangau is such a charming and cozy town, and the weather was gorgeous and all the leaves were falling and all the colors were changing. Ohhhhh it was soooo nice. (I will post pictures as soon as I am done writing this post, I swear!!! And I am writing this sentence in here just to ensure that I do it!)
But the way back from Füssen... well, that's a different story all in itself. And seriously, to make a long story short as I don't want to drag it out the way I have done so many times telling the story—Katelyn and I were not aware that the last bus left from Schwangau to Füssen Bahnhof at 7:30 pm, so we were taking our sweet time, stopping for ice cream and coffee and the whole bit. So when we discovered this unfriendly little tidbit, we had to march across the street to a closing restaurant where the woman told us she would call us a cab that should cost about 6 euro. Ended up costing us 11. But hey, at least we were at the train station, right? No. We later found out that the train coming was going to be 25 minutes late, after we had already waited 35 minutes, and when we boarded the train, we then discovered it wasn't leaving for another hour. So it was 10:30 by the time it left. We left Schwangau at 8 pm. But that isn't the worst of it. When we got to our transfer station at 11:45, another voice came on the intercom and informed us that this train would be 20 minutes late. Great. By this time I am worrying that we won't make it back to München Hauptbahnhof in time to catch the last U-Bahn of the night. We got back into Munich at 1:15 AM, rushed to catch the U-Bahn (which also sat idle at the station for a good ten minutes before it left—and yes, it was the last U-Bahn of the night.)
So we left Schwangau at 8 p.m. and didn't get home until 1:30 a.m. And that is very interesting because German trains are almost never late. They are known for having the most punctual transportation system ever. But not this night. And poor Katelyn will be left with that impression of the German transit system. Oh and this also sucked because it was Katelyn's last night here, as she was leaving the next morning, and that was not the most fun last night. Boo.
But the day in Schwangau was nice. Very nice.
So what I have been doing these past few days is trying to locate the names of people in their respective departments so that I can figure out whom to address my cover letters to. So fun.
But recently I also went on a swimming pool search and found out that Munich kind of has an obsession for swimming pools and saunas, which is awesome. I spent most of yesterday at the Dantebad (especially in their crazy whirlpool) but I probably won't be going back there because the entrance fee was €6.70. Sheesh! I will try Olympiabad next time I give it a go.
Tomorrow I am meeting my friend Hillary in the morning and we are going—with her friends who are visiting from Missouri—to Dachau. Let the history, and more depression, ensue.
Tschüssi!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Ballet, Bon-Bons and Beautiful Weather... Finally
AGAIN I have lapsed in my duties to this blog... Dahhhh it is very hard to keep up.
Well... since my last post, Katelyn and I have done many things, including visiting several of Munich's churches—the Frauenkriche and the Theatinerkirche to name a few. We climbed up to the top of the Frauenkirche tower and saw all of Munich from up above. It was gorgeous. We also visited the Residenz, where all the royals of Bavaria and the kings and dukes lived.
We have also graced the halls of the Pinothek der Moderne (the modern art museum) and the Kunsthalle, where we saw a really cool exhibit about Walt Disney. We saw these exhibits whilst we were sick, hence the bon-bons title. (I wanted to keep the alliteration, you see.) My friend Hillary was sick, and unfortunately passed it to me, and I passed it to Katelyn. Now we both cough all the time, but I think we are recovering, and thank God it didn't last very long. (Knock on wood.)
Last night we attended a ballet—A Cinderella Story—at the Staatsoper, and it was lovely and nice, except for that we had seats on the very right hand side so we couldn't see all of the stage, and therefore not the whole picture. But the music was really pretty and so was the dancing, so it was an experience nonetheless.
Oh. And during the mornings of the past three days, I could be found sitting in a chair at the International Office at the Ludwig-Maximilians Universität... trying to matriculate.
The first time, I waiting with my number for two hours before I was called, only to be told that the form Fulbright had given me for my health insurance was not valid somehow and that I had to go down to the Mensa to the Techniker Krankenkassse office and get them to write me a confirmation saying I was, indeed, insured. So after trying to find that office for a while, I stood in line there for a half and hour, had a nice complicated chat with the bloke there before he finally ended up agreeing to write me the dang confirmation I needed for matriculation.
So, I trekked back to the Uni, and they accepted that paper but then said it was now too late to see the woman who could register me, and that I would need to come back tomorrow.
So the next day, I waited with my number for THREE hours, and when they called my number I finally thought I was going to be over and done with the whole process, only to be told that the name the bloke at TK had written on the form was not mine. He had read my forms from Fulbright too fast and had written down one of the commission's staff members' name down instead. So guess what? I had to go back and get another one, but I would again have to come back the next day because it would be too late again to register as the office would be closed by the time I got back.
Anyone who saw my face after that little adventure and as I stomped off to the TK to get another stupid health confirmation immediately stepped out of my way. Probably to their best interest because my head was probably looking like it was going to explode. Or that I was going to make someone else's head explode. In short—I was SO frustrated with this whole situation that tears of anger were welling up in my scrunched up and glaring eyes.
So today, I got up at 7 and was at the office before they opened, and I was the first one they called in. And FINALLY all my paperwork was correct and they registered me. My GOD that was seriously one of the most frustrating and time-consuming processes ever. HFaigeowjagpejnrptjwajoyrwryw. Sorry. Still feeling the effects of it even though it is, at last, taken care of.
YAY.
Now we are getting ready to go to Schloss Nymphenburg to see the grounds and also to go to the Mensch und Natur Museum (the natural history museum!!!). And tomorrow we are taking the train to Füssen to see Schloss Neuschwanstein, Kind Ludwig's famous fairytale castle (also seen in Sleeping Beauty). And the weather has finally turned from rain to sunshine. So I hope that stays, at least for a little bit...
I will post pictures of many things when I get back!!!
Well... since my last post, Katelyn and I have done many things, including visiting several of Munich's churches—the Frauenkriche and the Theatinerkirche to name a few. We climbed up to the top of the Frauenkirche tower and saw all of Munich from up above. It was gorgeous. We also visited the Residenz, where all the royals of Bavaria and the kings and dukes lived.
We have also graced the halls of the Pinothek der Moderne (the modern art museum) and the Kunsthalle, where we saw a really cool exhibit about Walt Disney. We saw these exhibits whilst we were sick, hence the bon-bons title. (I wanted to keep the alliteration, you see.) My friend Hillary was sick, and unfortunately passed it to me, and I passed it to Katelyn. Now we both cough all the time, but I think we are recovering, and thank God it didn't last very long. (Knock on wood.)
Last night we attended a ballet—A Cinderella Story—at the Staatsoper, and it was lovely and nice, except for that we had seats on the very right hand side so we couldn't see all of the stage, and therefore not the whole picture. But the music was really pretty and so was the dancing, so it was an experience nonetheless.
Oh. And during the mornings of the past three days, I could be found sitting in a chair at the International Office at the Ludwig-Maximilians Universität... trying to matriculate.
The first time, I waiting with my number for two hours before I was called, only to be told that the form Fulbright had given me for my health insurance was not valid somehow and that I had to go down to the Mensa to the Techniker Krankenkassse office and get them to write me a confirmation saying I was, indeed, insured. So after trying to find that office for a while, I stood in line there for a half and hour, had a nice complicated chat with the bloke there before he finally ended up agreeing to write me the dang confirmation I needed for matriculation.
So, I trekked back to the Uni, and they accepted that paper but then said it was now too late to see the woman who could register me, and that I would need to come back tomorrow.
So the next day, I waited with my number for THREE hours, and when they called my number I finally thought I was going to be over and done with the whole process, only to be told that the name the bloke at TK had written on the form was not mine. He had read my forms from Fulbright too fast and had written down one of the commission's staff members' name down instead. So guess what? I had to go back and get another one, but I would again have to come back the next day because it would be too late again to register as the office would be closed by the time I got back.
Anyone who saw my face after that little adventure and as I stomped off to the TK to get another stupid health confirmation immediately stepped out of my way. Probably to their best interest because my head was probably looking like it was going to explode. Or that I was going to make someone else's head explode. In short—I was SO frustrated with this whole situation that tears of anger were welling up in my scrunched up and glaring eyes.
So today, I got up at 7 and was at the office before they opened, and I was the first one they called in. And FINALLY all my paperwork was correct and they registered me. My GOD that was seriously one of the most frustrating and time-consuming processes ever. HFaigeowjagpejnrptjwajoyrwryw. Sorry. Still feeling the effects of it even though it is, at last, taken care of.
YAY.
Now we are getting ready to go to Schloss Nymphenburg to see the grounds and also to go to the Mensch und Natur Museum (the natural history museum!!!). And tomorrow we are taking the train to Füssen to see Schloss Neuschwanstein, Kind Ludwig's famous fairytale castle (also seen in Sleeping Beauty). And the weather has finally turned from rain to sunshine. So I hope that stays, at least for a little bit...
I will post pictures of many things when I get back!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
