What is Foreign Exchange to Me?

"A year of of my life. My life in a year."

Google Translate (Google Übersetzer)

Thursday, September 1, 2011

And They Call This Summer?!


Top Three Things That Will Take Me All Year To Get Used To:

1. The freezing weather! It's colder here in 'summer' then it is for me in winter!
2. Turning the faucet to the the right for cold water. I just can't seem to do that.
3. "Air-kissing" hello.

You would think the longer I’m here, the more familiar things become, but it’s actually quite the opposite. The more time I spend here, the more differences I notice. For example, the doors open in the opposite direction, have the handle on the opposite side, don’t make the same sound when they close and are generally heavier. People ask me what I miss most from California, and aside from the people, the thing I miss most is the doors. That, and the 'taste' of the air.

All the inbounds in District 1800 (my sponsoring district here in Germany) had orientation in Gifhorn last Sunday. There are close to 60 of us from at least 20 different countries around the world. There was so much culture in that room. The orientation went well though and everyone seems to get along excellently.

I can make excellent small talk in German now (a vast improvement from last Thursday) and I actually have to think about what I want to say in English when writing to my friends and family back in California. It’s very odd. I feel like I’m losing my English. I don’t remember how to say basic sentences sometimes and I’m even worse at spelling now, if that is even possible. Also whenever I read something in English, I automatically translate the words that I know into German and am beginning to think in German. It’s very… different.

I have resorted to wearing two long sleeve shirts under my sweater, leggings under my jeans, and at least two pairs of socks daily (one of the pairs being fuzzy socks!) and it's 'summer.' I'm going to be in for a rude awakening in the next couple months.

2 comments:

  1. What an invaluable experience though, despite the cold! I love reading your blogs, Amgie! You always make me laugh and I enjoy sharing it with the people at work! Love you, Aunt Kathleen. Xoxoxo

    ReplyDelete
  2. I like reading your blog too Angela, I see a writer or journalist in you! The weather should get remarkably cold by the end of this month. In Ohio it snowed in October and you are much higher up,"prost"!

    ReplyDelete

Days in Germany