Media Maymester Movie

A mix of post-program interviews and along-the-way footage.

Final impressions

A few last visual insights in to Munich's innercity:



















by Mary Pinckney Waters

Back in The States

By Kelly Enright

I have officially been back in the United States for a week. I’ve had plenty of time to think about my trip, and each time someone asks me about it I exclaim, “it was awesome”, and that is the truth. I have been meaning to write this last blog entry, as a kind of as a closure to our trip.

I must be honest, because my reasons for going on the trip were a little selfish. I am a German minor and really just wanted to see Germany again. I’m not too interested in studying abroad for an entire semester or year, so this was perfect. I’ve been to Germany once before, and it’s not everyday someone can travel to Europe! Also, I was convinced to take this class because I’m obviously in the J-school, so I would gain some great experience while abroad. In the end, the trip was much more than I expected. A group of 6 students and 2 professors went to Munich, and that right there is a little scary! As a group of students, none of us were “best friends”, and a few of us had never even met. So traveling to a foreign country with people you don’t really know is an adventure itself. And throughout my entries, I discussed my many “German Adventures”. We were all challenged with getting to know one another, from sharing rooms to navigating the public transportation, to sharing a pretzel because you are stuck on a train and that’s all there is to eat! But we all managed to get along!!

I was a little worried that we wouldn’t have time to be tourists, but we definitely did! We held meetings and class time and also had plenty of work to get done, but shopping, eating, and experiencing were all very important aspects of this trip! You can’t be in Germany and work all day! On many days Whitney and I took many different “adventures”, as I’ve called them, and we became great friends on the trip. We both learned you can get to know a person very well when they are in a new situation, and for us it worked out!

The professors on the trip were awesome. I believe it was the second day when I asked if we could drop the “dr.” and just call them Tanner and Sidel. Well, they accepted and were dubbed with nicknames. Both of them had great advice and made sure we stayed on task throughout the trip. I know that was more than a challenge between the late nights out, various meetings for the broadcast students and the random trips we all took to experience whatever we could. All of the J-school profs are great, but I feel we were very lucky to have such awesome ones on our trip. We all really got to know each other and had a great time!

Our project hasn’t been finished, but we will have it all finished by the end of June. Keep your eyes open for an iSite. It will be another quick glimpse into our trip. If anyone is interested in this class for next Maymester, make sure to speak to Dr. Andrea Tanner. If you have any questions for me personally, feel free to contact her and she can direct you to me!! I think anyone interested needs to go on this trip next year!


Travel Update: For those of you who read my blog about being very frustrated the day before I left Munich, here is what happened on Tuesday (the day I flew home). First of all, it was pouring outside. I’m not talking a little rain, I mean buckets of water pounded down with every step we took. Whitney and I were outside of a souvenir shop 30 minutes before it opened, and they let us in to shop! We were off to a good start! Next we were waiting outside of Kaufhof, a large department store, waiting for them to open also! We went in and purchased what we needed and were off to the hotel to grab our luggage and head to the train station. When we got on the train, I realized that my bags were packed full and I had just purchased two large bags of stuff to bring home! Whitney and I managed to repack my suitcase in the middle of the train. This involved lots of laughing, grunting and strength to close my suitcase. It also needed both of us to sit on it! The Germans around us were really looking at us like crazy Americans after this!

Now I will tell you something very embarrassing, but it’s all part of the experience so I have to share! When we stepped off the train at the airport, I felt a rather cold breeze on my bum. As I reached back to figure out what was going on, I discovered a rather large rip in my favorite pair of jeans. Well, how awful!! After we laughed and I borrow Whitney’s jacket to cover up, we entered the airport. This is where we separated, as Whitney didn’t have much time before she needed to be at the gate!

We both made it home safely, and the German adventures have ended. But weren’t they fun? I hope everyone enjoyed reading the blog.

Challenges for Journalists

By Jenn Ghelardini

I just became a student in the Journalism school. Until recently I studied Marketing in the Business school. I have had business internships, and have a pretty good idea of the types of work to be done. I however, did not have a real grasp on the professions in the field of journalism before this trip. There were various setbacks and challenges that I had not expected.

Throughout the Media Maymester, every student overcame many obstacles including: technical problems, a lack of compatible equipment, the varying weather, difficulties scheduling interviews and contacting people, unfamiliarity with the local transportation, permits to film and physically carrying around camera equipment.

There are always going to be difficulties in any field and on any assignment, but these setbacks were aggravated due to the language barrier, difference in customs, and being in an unfamiliar land.

One setback, that was most uncomfortable for everyone was physically carrying around all the camera equipment. Being an advertising student I had never used a camera before, so I was not used to simply putting it in a car and driving to location, like the broadcast students. I eventually felt their pain as I went to many of their interviews and b-roll shoots with them, as I was happy to help out and learn something new. By the end of the class, I think everyone was happy not to have to lug around the big, heavy and awkward camera and tripod bags.

Another factor that no one predicted to be such an important determinant to when, where, and how we could do our work was the variability in the weather. In South Carolina, there can be change in the weather throughout the day, but it does not compare to the dynamic change in Munich weather. This was an important aspect for the the broadcast students since they needed to shoot their outside takes in good weather and lighting. For the most part, the weather was pleasant and perfect for shooting video, but it always seemed like the weather would quickly end up dark and dismal on the days set aside for shooting.

This was most challenging for Sarah who planned on shooting a great deal of environmental footage for her story the last few days before she flew home. She wanted to shoot some of her stand ups with large smokestacks in the background for her story on the environment. We tried several spots, because the weather was overcast and we just kept trying to tweak the camera and get good lighting anyway. I never realized how important and tricky lighting is to broadcast journalism- it's just one of those things you don't usually think about. It was just so trivial, we wanted to show the smokestacks in the background, but we also wanted a good shot of Sarah's face. When Sarah's face was best illuminated the smokestacks would completely fade out of the shot. Its converse held true so that when the focus was on the smokestacks, Sarah's face was not in focus and shadowed.

Another difficulty that came about was dealing with the constant stream of walkers present in Munich. There is always someone walking in Munich, or rather, a lot of someones. It was hard to set up shots where there would not be a lot of traffic in the background. Many times we had to quickly dodge bikers and move the camera out of the way. Sarah and I actually hiked across a muddy field to avoid the heavy Munich pedestrian traffic. This wasn't so bad for me since I was just helping her, but poor Sarah was dressed in her nice clothes for her stand up, and it mattered that she got a little muddy.

One difficulty I personally encountered being part of the IMC (integrated marketing communications) team was (everything) with computers. I took an advanced computer programming course in high school, but am by no means advanced when it come to any kind of technology. I get easily frustrated with computers and they are not my forte. It was all silly setbacks. For example, I put all of my pictures on Maddy's computer; Maddy left to go to Paris. My American flash drive actually crashed a German Apple computer. Blogger conveniently shut down while I was at an Internet cafe. The computer that I saved my inDesign presentation was the only one that supported the video programs fro the Broadcast students. Sigh! Like earlier mentioned, I am not a technology whiz, and it just seemed like anything that could go wrong would against all odds. After a while, you just have to laugh it off. "Well, I worked on my Blog entry until Blogger went down." Now, that I am back in the States I feel more comfortable because I can save all my work to one computer with Internet access. It's a very calming thought.

Luckily, we had the HFF students and professors help us out. They greatly lessened the problems of the language barrier. They also helped us attain permits to shoot, as well as informing us of the various permit laws and regulations. The also showed us around the city, which when in a city as large as Munich, local citizens are much better than any map.

This Maymester really showed me the difficulties of being a real journalist, and this could not have been taught in a classroom. I never really understood all of the work that broadcast journalists have to do for their 30 second- 2 minute stories. Now whenever I watch the news I really think twice about the newscasters, and have a great appreciation for their work. I also could not have anticipated the setbacks to simply working out of one's environment. I just assumed it would be just like at USC; boy was I wrong.

Any student who wishes to gain real-world, hands-on, outside-the-classroom experience should consider the USC Media Maymester. It gave me a new appreciation and outlook on the journalism careers.

The Isar River and English Gardens

By Jenn Ghelardini

One of the most alluring aspects of Munich its varying landscapes. Munich is nestled not too far from the bottom of the Alps, allowing for a picturesque view of the mountain peaks in the distance anywhere in the city. Along with the mountains, the Isar River runs through the heart of the city. This resulted in many beautiful and exquisite bridges. The river also dictates the layout of the city as well as the lifestyles of many of its inhabitants and visitors.



When the weather is pleasent everyone in Munich heads to the riverbansks of the Isar. It is a favorite amound Munich residents and Germans from nearby smaller towns. There are many places along the river for people to relax and enjoy, but the most popular location is in the idyllic English Gardens, located near the city's center. It is quite popular for local University students, since it is right beside one of Munich's larger Universities.


You can find just about everyone and everything happenign in the English Gardens on a sunny day. The activities are endless and range from people sunbathing, picknicking, practicing rock-climbing techniques, swimming in the river, playing music and even surfing.

I was quite surprised to witness surfing in Munich, no less in a river, so I asked local surfers about thier sport.

Many Munich surfers spend a great deal of their vacation time traveling around Europe, away from Munich. In this time they are able to visit countries on the beach, such as Spain. This is where they do most of their traditional surfing (in the ocean) and perfect their techniques.

However, when in Munich, they are still able to practice their sport. They go to a man-created wave under a bridge. It is very dangerous because the wave was created from the build up of rocks, so the surfers are surfing right on top of huge rocks. A few people have died river surfing and there is a sign posting that surfing and swimming is prohibited. I found this interesting, because in America, one would get in a lot of trouble for disregarding a federal sign.

In conclusion, I found that the Munich river surfers, as they are known to the Munich community, really just love surfing, and enjoy the opportunity to do so- whenever, wherever, no matter what the risk.

Lions, tigers and bears

Could German zoos really be that different
from American ones? We find out.

By Kelly Enright and Whitney Robosson

German Fussball

Determined to find tickets, Whitney and Kelly document their
experience outside and inside a Munich-Mainz soccer game.

By Kelly Enright and Whitney Robosson

The post-wall divide

By Mary Pinckney Waters

This morning I had breakfast at a 3.50-euro buffet with some old friends from the University of Bamberg, where I studied for a year on exchange. Toward the end of our lattes, Christian, the oldest in our group at 28, started telling stories from his childhood as an "Ossi," or East German, and had our corner of the cafe swinging between a loud laugh and a slowly exhaled "krass" (crass).

He started by recalling how he was on a "Star Search"-type program for a couple weeks when he was child, how he sang Socialist anthems in a ridiculously high voice and was never nervous like the other contestants.

He said one time his family had guests from the West and that within an hour of their departure, government officials knocked on their door to ask them the purpose of the visit, what was discussed and what the guests brought. He said that he knew it wasn't any coincidence that officials had showed up at such a convenient time, and that one of their neighbors must have been in the Stasi.

He talked about moving to the West and integrating in Western schools. He said his teacher and his principal were blatantly prejudiced against East Germans and remembers being called out from the other students. One time the fact that he and another student were the only East Germans at his school was mentioned over the intercom; he recalled this fact through laughter-laden words, and everyone at our table cracked up with him as if we were watching a black comedy with a hilariously unfortunate protagonist.

Christian said that finally a new student from the East came who couldn't speak Hochdeutsch (High German) like he could, and at last he had an easier time at his new school because all the discrimination was refocused on her.

He also said when his new teachers held lessons on East Germany, he would often raise his hand and correct them on inaccuracies. Once he offered to have his uncle come speak to the class about East Germany; he said when his uncle came, he basically unraveled the teacher's entire lesson from the day before. "Yeah, with propaganda probably," another laughed. No, Christian answered, giving an example. He said they were taught at his new school that East German children had military training in winter, but said that really what was called Winter Maneuver just meant going on an annual hunt. "Yeah, Winter Maneuver was a lot of fun," he said, eyes distant and smile settled. But when I asked my friend Thomas, from West Germany, what he thought of the hunt, he said that he, and others, still considered such structures as Winter Maneuver a form of military training, adding that these topics are still very divisive for Germans.

Christian went on to talk about how he thought how older generations had an easier time in East Germany because the infrastructure provided for them better and the political philosophy was more family- and community-focused. "Hey, I love my neighbor," a "Wessi" at the table joked. Behind the wide smiles I wondered to what degree honor was being defended on the breakfast table between us, or whether this young generation was really just talking between sarcastic sides about its elders' choices.

American Football in Munich

By Jenn Ghelardini


At the University of South Carolina, being in the SEC, we do not take football lightly. In fact, it is the most important thing for most students for the entire fall semester.


It is such an important part of our lives, that it is hard to imagine not living in a "football country." In Europe, soccer is their futball; it may even be more important to them. So, it was surprising for me when I met some football players from the University of Northern Ohio who said they were here to teach an American football camp to German high school students, and play the Bavarian American Football League Allstar Team.


The differences between American football in the states and Europe are interesting and worth noting.


For one, people in Munich are n0t very enthusiastic about the game, as there were not many fans in attendance at the UNO vs. All stars game.


The most humorous (and possibly not too healthy) aspect of the game is that some of the Germans drink as they say "water with gas" (sparkling water) during the game. I was always told to avoid carbonated beverages days before an important tennis meet or race, so I cannot even imagine being an athlete and drinking a carbonated beverage in the middle of a football game. The air in the carbonation distorts the absorption of oxygen to the muscles, which is not good for any physical activity, especially that as intense as football.


Another part of the UNO vs. All stars game I found interesting was how nice the Bavarian players were. Some of the Bavarian players actually shook hands with the American players in between plays. It was not the stereotypical tough guy scenario.You would not find them getting in a fight or going to jail.

I found it interesting that the football players on the Bavarian team were so polite and well behaved. Also, I found it so odd that the players drank carbonated water during the game. Overall, I love the game of football, and it was a nice change to see it played with a more relaxed and friendly environment.

Weather

By Jenn Ghelardini

The hackneyed phrase "to change like the weather" holds true to Munich.

When I arrived at the Munich airport it was cold and cloudy. The weather quickly digressed to a rather frigid and rainy couple of days. Then out of nowhere it cleared up and I was fortunate to witness a fortnight of warm, pleasant and beautiful weather.

Unfortunately, the weather has come full circle, and today´s forecast was for 100% "chance" of rain, with a high of 47° and a low of 46°. This does not sound too pleasant, nor offer any variability.

The moral of this post is to inform you to pack many layers and be prepared for anything and everything!

River Surfers in Munich

The 10 Best Things About Munich (Compared to Columbia)

By Whitney Robosson

10.) Shopping! I agree with a point I heard Maddy make earlier this week: In Columbia, everyone ends up wearing the same thing because there are only a few good places to shop! The people in Munich certainly do not have this problem. I would take a year to look through all the clothes stores here. And another interesting note: guys actually go shopping here. The men’s sections are almost as crowded as the women’s.

9.) Unique restaurants. There are tons of unique restaurants in Munich. In fact, that’s one of the first things I noticed when I got here. I don’t know about the rest of the U.S., but I know the restaurant business in South Carolina is one of the toughest to survive in. The chains control everything because people decide what they want to eat, and they don’t want any surprises. But in Munich there is literally a different restaurant on every corner.

8.) Kids get more freedom. Munich youth get a lot of freedom to go to the store, to ride the underground alone, go to the movies, or whatever it is these kids are doing these days. I’ve never seen so many young kids doing things alone. Munich is an extremely safe city (safer than Columbia), but I think it’s really good for kids to start getting responsibility like that at a young age. I have this theory that the people who can’t survive on their own after leaving their parent’s house are the people that never got any real responsibility when they were young.

7.) Active Lifestyles. No gyms + no fat people = they’re doing something right. I don’t think I’ve seen a gym since I’ve been here, and I’ve seen very few fat people. In Columbia it seems there’s a gym on every corner, but we’re still having this obesity epidemic. There’s so much to do in and around Munich, and it’s just not part of their culture to sit around and do nothing.

6.) They support higher education! College education in Germany is almost funded 100% by the government. The students only have to pay about $400 a semester, and I’m pretty sure that includes books. If I didn’t have a scholarship, I would be paying about $10,000 a year for college and this would probably be #1 on my Ten Best list.

5.) Fresh Food! For those of you who don’t really know me, I’m not one of those “crazy” health nuts (mainly because as a college student I can’t afford that kind of lifestyle) but I am pretty picky about what I eat. I hate artificial dyes, sweeteners, and preservatives that factories add to all of our food. God designed my body to work with the stuff he makes, not chemicals. In Munich, most of the food is fresh. Germans go grocery shopping several times a week, so all that extra junk isn’t needed.

4.) Dogs! It’s true that a dog is man’s best friend, but in Munich it’s more like a dog is man’s brother. Dogs can go everywhere in Munich: stores, restaurants, the trains, etc. You may think that sounds chaotic, but it’s really not. The dogs are so used to being around lots of people and their manners reflect that.

3.) Munich is a true walking city. If you need a few groceries, there’s a store right down the street or a fresh produce stand on the corner. If you need medicine, there are a thousand Apothekes right outside your door. You don’t need a car to survive in Munich. I walk to get groceries sometimes in Columbia, but it’s not convenient and sometimes not even safe.

2.) Romance. This may sound a little strange, but I love the “PDA” here. It’s not like in the States where the only couples who touch each other in public are the gross couples. Here it’s more like the two really cherish each other and they want everyone else to know it. It makes you say “aww,” not “eww.” A lot of times it seems like American guys are embarrassed to express their love in public. It makes me feel all mushy inside to see all the lovey-dovey couples here.

1.) Public Transportation!!! I can’t stress this enough – the public transportation here is so easy to use and so efficient. If there’s anywhere you want to go in Munich, all you do is look it up on the map and jump on the nearest underground, bus or tram. We have public buses in Columbia, but I wouldn’t ride one unless I was toting my right arm in a bag of ice and it was taking me directly to the hospital. The Cola buses don’t go to very many places; they’re dirty and full of sketchy people. I’ve been so relaxed here not worrying about a car.

Pictures From FC Bayern Match!

Frustrated on the Last Day

By Kelly Enright

Today has been very frustrating. Whitney and I are both departing for the United States of America tomorrow morning, and we had saved today for souvenir shopping and packing. Well, much to our surprise, absolutely everything is closed. Apparently Germany uses every holiday as a vacation day.

Now what are we supposed to do when we arrive home and have nothing to show for it? I purchased a large amount of clothes from H&M, but I don't think that my parents will be able to appreciate the cute dresses as much as I will. And this brings up another issue. Souvenir shopping is stupid. Although people want a gift from whatever country you visit, the only things to really buy are the 'typical' presents from the area, which for Munich are beer steins and mugs. And really, my personal experiences in Munich have not centered around beer, so these gifts are really pointless. But I guess that people just want to know you were thinking about them.

Back to how upset we are. While we walked all along the main shopping area, even the souvenir shops were closed. Wouldn't they benefit the most from all the tourists wandering around trying to find something to do? So now I have ended up at the Internet shop once again, and I found out the closest souvenir place opens at 9:30 tomorrow morning. Now think about this: Whitney's plane leaves first, about 12:45. If we left our hotel at 10 it would put us arriving at the airport at 11, with a little less than two hours to do an international check-in and be ready to board (My plane leaves about 25 minutes after hers). Personally, I plan on calling the shop early in the morning and see if we can come early, but these are the chances we are willing to take to bring our loved ones gifts. So I hope they appreciate it! I know you are thinking, just buy some at the airport. But have you ever looked at the prices there?? I have spent so much money on food in Munich, I will be broke for weeks, surviving off of whatever is leftover in my apartment in Columbia.

So this is where we are right now, and I still haven't even begun to pack. Did I mention that on the way to Germany my bag already weighed 50 pounds? (that is the limit). So what am I supposed to do when I went shopping for another wardrobe?? Thankfully I packed an extra bag. All you readers out there, can you tell I'm stressing?? Today was supposed to be a nice day of wrapping up our trip, and it has turned into nothing good! Additionally, the weather dropped from about 80 degrees yesterday to about 40 today. Grr... Well hopefully I'll have a happier post for later. If not, keep me in your thoughts as I try to make it back to the US, and hopefully I will bring gifts.

Fun at the Salt Mine

By Kelly Enright

Our last German adventure is almost finished. Whitney and I are on a train in the middle of nowhere, or also known as Berchtsgaden, in the Alps of Bavaria. Today we did one of the coolest things I have experienced since coming to Germany. We toured a salt mine. Yes, it may seem silly, but instead it was a highly educational and enjoyable experience. We were even given a “salt present” by our train conductor/tour guide. I know you may not understand yet, but I will give you the details in just a moment.

It all started last night, when we were talking to Tanner. She left for Columbia this morning, but was very insistent on Whitney and I experiencing this salt mine. She passed off her Frommer’s Guide to Germany (this is an honor, she treasured it throughout the trip). So we decided to get online and check it out. Since we only have two days left, we wanted to do something good, and get out of the city.

Well, when we boarded the train this morning, we didn’t know just how far out of the city we’d be heading. Three hours and two trains later, we were in Berchtsgaden, and had no clue where to go. This became a familiar feeling throughout the day, as there were absolutely no directions- for anything. After asking around, we walked the 20 minutes to the mines and purchased our tickets. We saw people walking around wearing these odd outfits, and realized we would look just like them in a few minutes. These were the miner’s clothes that we had to put on- big white pants and awful blue jackets, with a leather butt cover that wrapped around your waist. Whitney and I took plenty of pictures, and I couldn’t help but do the MC Hammer dance. We were pimpin’.

When we made it to the entrance of the mine, we climbed on a train (well if you could call it that, you had to straddle the seat. This is quite awkward when there is a smelly German man sitting in front of you.) We took off at quite an alarming speed for such a contraption, and continued riding through the darkness with a very chilling wind in your face. Once we arrived in the mine, we were told some stuff in German, and then began the “Ok, now in English” part of the tour. At each part of the tour the guide would explain where we were in German, and then announce to everyone that he was going to put on a loudspeaker with the English translation. Then he would leave with the rest of the group, and Whitney, another family, and I were left to listen to the very interesting description of how salt was mined, or catch up with the group.

Miner’s slides are awesome. You sit on these two pieces of wood, lean back and lift your feet, and you’re off! We were very excited to ride on two of these 34 meter long, downhill slides, which are what the miners used to get quickly from one destination to another. Another exciting this we did was ride on a ferry across a lake, which was about 110 meters underground, and is was created by the method the miners use to extract the brine, which is turned into salt. Remember, we are underground for the entire tour, and the tunnels are teeny, just a few inches taller than me (I’m 5’10”) and wide enough for two people.

Keep in mind, this mine has been in use since 1517 and is still in use today. After we left the tour, we rushed to the train station, because we needed to be in Munich by around seven. Well, we had missed the train by not even 10 minutes. Figures. So we went to a pizzeria to get some food and I ordered us a small cheese pizza. What arrived was a small, burnt, nasty piece of what this particular restaurant called pizza. It was only one slice. I was starving, and Whitney and I were forced to eat the very unappetizing piece of “food” we were going to be forced to pay for. In Germany, the restaurants don’t really care if you don’t like what you ordered- you will pay for it anyways.

But, alas! We spotted a girl walking with cotton candy! After a quick investigation, we discovered a very small carnival, and fed our hungry stomachs with a large amount of this wonderful treat. And now here we are, still riding on the train to Munich. After we arrive, smelly and tired, we are going to dinner with Sidel and his wife. His wife arrived this morning, and will stay for the rest of the trip to help out with anything we may need. I am very excited to meet her, but I feel bad because I won’t be very presentable. I guess it’s all part of traveling. I am fighting to stay awake, so forgive me but I must depart. I am sad that Whitney’s and my last adventure is coming to a close. We’ve had a great time in Munich. But, as I keep reminding everyone, “I miss my dog!!!”, and must return home.

Tomorrow will be a day of shopping for souvenirs and packing. Doesn’t that sound like fun. I’ll probably post all about it, so keep checking back!!

Am I Doing it Wrong?

By Whitney Robosson

In Munich, everyone walks. There are people practically filling every square inch of the sidewalk, especially Saturdays, when everyone heads to Marienplatz to shop. There are so many people walking in Munich that even Tanner says getting around on foot is easier in New York City. Well, I’ve never been to NYC myself, but I don’t doubt her for a second. If your greatest fear is hundreds of people shoving their bodies against you over and over again, don’t plan to vacation in Munich.

The walking is not the part I dislike. I walk almost everywhere I go in Columbia because getting my car out of the garage, dealing with my manual transmission, and finding a parking spot 50 feet down the road is too much to handle on most days (oh and by the way – I drive a VW Jetta and there’s pretty much always something wrong with it, so someone needs to work on that. It does go really fast though…). I don’t even mind being poked and prodded and squished by the masses of Germans passing me. The part that drives me insane is that I always seem to be in the direct path of someone walking toward me. If I’m not the one that makes the decision to move, I’ll find myself involved in a full frontal collision with someone ranting in German giving me the death glare (and personally someone could be reading poetry in German and it would still sound beastly).

So I want to know what I’m doing wrong. Apparently the Germans have figured out, because they know to just keep walking. I’m always the one jumping out of the way and the other person is completely oblivious to the fact that we almost became …. I’m not walking on the wrong side of the sidewalk, I’m not walking too slow, and I’m certainly not aiming at my fellow walkers. Why do I keep getting run over? And I’d like the answer to another question: if German A is walking at 2 mph and German B is walking at 4 mph and the are walking toward each other, will they collide?

Changing German universities

Friday I attended a student meeting for Bavaria's largest political party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), with my friend Thomas Uhlen, a friend made during my yearlong study abroad and a CDU member. I went to film for a piece on the changing face of the German university system, which was, of course, discussed at the meeting. Universities in some Bundesländer (German states) have recently implemented tuition fees for the first time in history and, in accordance with the Bologna Process, are making the switch to the Bachelor's-Master's system, shortening years of study by almost half in some cases. The conference was held in a towering former monastery in Kloster-Banz. Other topics of discussion included the need for conservative embrace of innovation, how tuition fees should be applied in cases of study abroad, and what the changes' implications for Fachhochschulen (advanced technical schools) are.

Taking time out for lunch:



A member just elected president for the new year.


Thomas works as a journalist for his CDU branch --
probably why we get along so well!

By Mary Pinckney Waters

Sundays in Munich

By Jenn Ghelardini



During the week Munich is such a busy city, always full of citizens, and tourists. It is hard to manage in the dense crowds. I did not realize how hard it is to manuever through until I tried to go running around five o'clock at night. I could hardly walk through the crowds, let alone run. There are just people everywhere.

This is a stark contrast to what one sees on Sundays in Munich. On Sundays, the streets are empty, and hardly any stores are open. For example, I had to walk past three internet cafe stores before I found one that was open. The German people greatly value thier leisure time, and take advantage of anytime to take off work. I have noticed that there are many religious holidays in the month of May, and that everything closes down for the holidays and the even the Monday afterwards.

I love this aspect of German culture. They work hard, but stop when the clock strikes five o'clock. For the most part, they stop working and take time to enjoy thier lives.