Photos from Germany

Day 1 in Freiburg















The Snow began to settle in (looking away from the city)




















At the end of the first week we took a trip into the Black Forest on Saturday. This is the church of a monastery up in the mountains.















Next to the church - although the snow was thicker here it did get quite thick in Freiburg!















Inside the church, intricate and well lit rococo architecture.















Amazing artwork in many different areas: the gates, ceiling and pipe organ.




















Inside the library of the monastery. The object of occupation of the Brothers here was language study and research and there is here a many-hundred-year-old Bible in seven or eight translations (including Hebrew, Arabic, Greek, Latin and others)
















Typical Black Forest scenery. Very beautiful. We had here an awesome snowfight (Schneeballschlacht) that lasted at least half an hour. I could no longer feel my hands despite going inside numerous times to warm them!

In transit

The flight to Germany was long. I'm glad I didn't fly direct from
Australia. I had a middle seat and slept very little. I was sick with a
cold that began towards the end in Singapore.

We landed in Vienna on schedule, I passed through passport control with
ease and, after a wait of about an hour, boarded my connecting flight to
Frankfurt. The flying time was 1 hour 15 minutes. It took about two
hours 15 minutes! It was snowing heavily in Frankfurt (this is March
3!!) and they were having to clear the runways regularly. (I later heard
that in the afternoon nothing was coming in or leaving Frankfurt at all!)

In the end I landed safe and sound at around 10am local time and
negotiated my way to the train station (which is within the Airport).
After a two hour train journey (at speeds of up to 250km/h) through
snowy Germany I set foot in Freiburg at 1pm, registered my arrival with
the Sprachlehrinstitut (Department of Languages - through which I'm
doing my German course), received my keys for accommodation, found my
way there, unpacked and had a nap.

Day 2

I woke up late and opened the blind to find not only that it was snowing
in Freiburg (it hadn't been on Friday and there was very little left on
the ground) but there was already about 5cms of snow already settled. It
was amazing and exciting and I'll stop before I make Timshel and Shelley
jealous!!

I went out exploring the city centre (the old part of town) which is
soooooooo beautiful, especially in the snow. It could be likened to a
fairy-tale film set, but it's better, more real, more authentic,
beautiful! Every street, alley or lane has bucketloads of charm and
history. It's a pleasure just to walk around. I bought a Wurst (sausage
- no let me correct myself - German sausage, which is far superior
anything we have in Oz) then some bread, eggs and vegetables a the
market which occupies Münsterplatz (Cathedral Square) from Monday to
Sunday until the early afternoon. I then bought another Wurst! Yum!

After another afternoon nap I met again at the SLI for a walk up
Schossberg (Castle Mountain) which is meant to have fantastic views of
the region - even as far as France on a clear day! The trouble was, it
was not a clear day. In fact the snow had increased and was now covering
everything (including concrete which holds off because of the heat it
stores up) up to about 20-30 cms deep! We walked anyway but stopped
halfway for a Coffee which was very pleasant. This time my
mostly-American friends were in France as they are on a different
program which runs together with my program. So the introductions began
again - still so much easier to meet people who don't know each other
than a group of established friends. This time it was far more
multinational. A Norwegian guy I'd met the night before was there, but
other than that I knew no-one. I met people from Italy, France, America,
another Norwegian, Denmark, Iran, Japan, England and Australia, all with
various degrees of German and English. Conversations switched fluidly
from German to English and back, with the two Italians and two Danes
also using their mother tongue.

After coffee we descended into Freiburg, then went to see a Volleyball
match (Germany's second league) for 99 euro cents (about AUD$1.60!!). It
was a close match in which Freiburg lost the first two sets (first to
three wins) against Sonnenburg (from the north - in translation it was
Freetown vs Sunnytown) only to take out the third and fourth and after a
killer decider they won 26-24 (the deciding set is typically first to
15!!). Certainly got my Euro's worth!!

Then it was back home for some pleasant sleep!

My room

The view from my window - day 2

First Impressions

The Roller Coaster Ride

Arriving in the airport, exhausted, jet-lagged and knowing no-one my
thoughts were along the lines of "what have I got myself into?" People
would talk to me in public and I wouldn't understand (people seem to do
that more here than in Melbourne), when registering at the
Sprachlehrinstitut (SLI)I opted to be spoken to in English. A friendly
girl on the train tried talking to me in German but I had her change to
English - after which she seemed shocked to find out I'm majoring in
German major (well, almost). When I arrived at my residence there were
other people floating around but I failed to pluck up the courage to
talk to anyone - beyond "hallo" anyhow.
It was all too much, too different, too difficult.

Of course despite what the mind can convince you it was never going to
stay that way. Things started changing after a nap and a shower - that
helped a great deal to start with. I was told when registering that I
could go to the SLI office at 6 for drinks with the others doing the
language course. On arrival at the office I began introducing myself to
a group of people who were already waiting there. They turned out to be
mostly Americans.

An aside: It's interesting that people behave very differently in
different circumstances. Arriving at a place with little or no
connections, people make a great effort to make friends and get to know
other people and they will show their best side in order to do so. In
contrast, when people are in their comfort zones they tend to make
little effort with anyone - or thing - new and different, perhaps
because it's too much effort, perhaps even because they feel that new
things are a threat to their comfort zone. In this respect at least
there is something very positive about being out of your comfort zone.

Anyway, my point here is that making friends became very easy with
others who were facing the same situation. When we left for the pubs,
the people I had met split off from the main group and, as I had only
met these guys, I went with them. After the pub I took the tram back to
my residence, where the residents were partying. I joined them and spoke
60% English, 30% German and 10% Spanish with the other residents who
came from Germany, Spain and France. One of the Germans was departing
for Melbourne the next morning to visit a previous resident. He
suggested that when he returns he'd like to have a language exchange -
where I correct his English and he does the same with my German. I might
just take him up on the offer.

After about an hour spent at this party I was absolutely wrecked and hit
the sack hard.

Another day, another country...

This is my last post from Singapore. I will be departing here at 12.15am Friday morning local time (3.15am Friday Melbourne time) and arriving in Frankfurt at 8.30am Friday morning local time (6.30pm Friday Melbourne time).

Today I've had a chilled out day, going for brunch with Adrian then shopping at Holland Village (just nearby). I'm about to go for a walk, then packing, dinner and heading to Changi Airport for check-in. I'm excited but a little nervous about Germany. It will be a steep learning curve and mastering a second language will be a new achievement.

I will email contact details when I arrive and become aware of what they are. My roaming mobile has the same number as in previous emails. If you miss out on the email just send me an email and I'll update you.

Please keep the emails coming... I'm enjoying the contact very much!!

Next post is from Germany....

CBD and Sentosa Island

Today I went exploring in the CBD, visiting the Singapore Art Museum (worth a look) as well as the Asian Civilisations Museum (definitely worth a look). I saw the landing place of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, who fouded of Singapore as we know it as well as the hotel bearing his name.

After moseying around past parliament house and the supreme court and along the Singapore River, I made my way to Sentosa Island, Singapore's tourist entertainment centre. There I walked along the beach, watched a (fairly dismal) sunset, had a dip and went up the Sky Tower for a view of Singapore under lights.

I'm pretty tired so that'll have to do for this post. Just a few pics below:




















Singapore Chamber of Commerce















National Library of Singapore




















The famous Raffles Hotel















The Singapore River




















Bumboat peak hour




















Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles















Looking South-West across Siloso Beach, Sentosa Island















Siloso Beach after dusk















The CBD and docks from Sentosa

Freiburg

It's 27 degrees in Singapore at 10.07 pm local time. That's about usual. The weather forecast tells me Friday in Freiburg will have a maximum of 3 degrees with snow showers. I arrive in Freiburg on Friday, probably around midday. Out of the frying pan into the icicle.

Not sure whether to laugh or cry.

Palau Ubin: Some Pics

Adrian on his bum on the Bumboat
















Me on my bum on the Bumboat















Adrian (Palau Ubin behind)















Me (on Palau Ubin) - the floating fishing hut is in Singapore, the land behind is Malaysia















Mangrove flats - the distant hills are Malaysia















Mangrove roots















A typical home on Palau Ubin (except this was about the only one that didn't sell cold drinks!!)















The mean machine




















Adrian didn't realise this was for two!















The foreshore (the main island of Singapore is behind)















Waiting for the Bumboat (the end of the jetty)

A Minister, a tourist and an Island

Sunday

Sunday was a relaxed day which was a welcome break. After church in the morning Adrian and I went into the CBD and lunched with Adrian Chan (another college friend for those of you who don't know) who was working nearby. My original plan was actually to stay with Adrian for a couple of nights but unfortunately he got caught up in a Coke campaign (he works in advertising) and has been working flat out.

After lunch we went shoe shopping and I bought a pair of running shoes then returned to the apartment for a swim at the pool (did I mention there is a pool here!) then out for dinner on the West Coast.

Monday

After testing out my running shoes (the best shoes ever) in 60 degree heat and 250% humidity, and seeing a monitor (huge lizard - like a Goanna) along the way, I donned the camera, water bottle and cash and headed into real tourist territory - the Jurong Bird Park, the Chinese Garden (ok not so touristy there) and then the Night Safari (it's at the zoo, it's like the zoo, but it's at night - all the nocturnal creatures come out to play). A good day, but I didn't feel like I was experiencing the real Singapore as much as I had on other days.

Tuesday

After some domestic chores (ie laundry) went with Adrian to Palau Ubin ("Palau" meaning "Island" - I think it's Malay). This is "rustic" Singapore - Lonely Planet tells me this is what Singapore was like in the 50's and 60's. It's a beautiful place with mangrove flats, forest, wild animals and huts. After taking the Bumboat (really, that's what it's called) across to the island we hired a tandem bike (much fun and fear!!) and traversed the island, even catching a rare sighting of a couple of wild boars!!

Back on the mainland we went out for dinner with Adrian's dad - as good as, if not better than, any meal I've ever had - a marinated, local spinach like vegetable, boiled vegetables, prawns in rolled in oatmeal and deep fried, all topped off with Chilli Crabs!!!

Monday's Highlights




















The tallest man-made waterfall on the planet - still doesn't match the real thing!! (Jurong Bird Park)















Signs about signs - gets me every time















Pretty in pink - a flock of frolicking Flamingos - this one's for you Aiden (aka Mr Pink)















The penguin enclosure















A hawk swooping in at the Birds of Prey show, Jurong Bird Park




















7 Storey Pagoda, Chinese Garden




















The Twin Pagodas, Chinese Garden




















Entrance and spiral staircase of one of the twin pagodas




















Who says wildlife can't enjoy the Chinese Gardens? (Monitor)




















Adjacent religious symbols
















Bridge to the Japanese Garden (which was closed unfortunately)

Food, glorious food

Let's just say that since I've been here I've put on 2kg. The food is amazing!!!

There are hawker markets everywhere (little food markets with tables shared between stalls) with fantastic Chinese, Malaysian and even uniquely Singaporean food, and it's SO cheap. S$3-4 ($2.50- 3.25 Australian) will get you more than you could ever eat in one meal!

I could happily eat in Singapore for ever!

Also, just to correct a previous post, Chicken rice, although a local dish is not Singapore's signature dish. This is in fact Chilli Crabs which I ate last night. Large crabs with a chilli gravy - mmm scrumptious!

Food Photos















Adrian enjoying some fine malaysian dining!















After Church, a quick snack on won ton noodle soup.















A hawker stall with a variety of dishes on the go (don't get the fish!)




















Chilli Crabs, Singapore's signature dish - before















Chilli Crabs - Singapore's signature dish - after















They even have energising, life-giving foods here!!