Three weeks. As of yesterday I only have three weeks left. It breaks my heart, I don’t want to leave this life. This village has become home to me. This past weekend was sportfest, which means soccer games on Saturday and Sunday, and then there are a few dance groups that preformed between the games and whatnot. I was there all day on Saturday with the boys from the village, who all at some point played. I recognized most all the faces there, and I talked to so many people. Not just the kids, but adults as well. It’s the “small-town thing.” I have always wanted that, and here in Germany I have gotten to live it. Yeah, back at home in Charlotte there is way more to do and it’s not a hassle to buy clothes or whatever. But thinking with the American mind, here for me it’s not a hassle to drive 30 minutes. It takes 30 minutes to drive to some places in Charlotte. A twenty minute drive is like, no problem at all, but here it’s far. Granted, it is further since they drive faster here and there are almost no stoplights. But anyways. I love this life, and it’s going to be hard to say goodbye, but I know I am coming back. That’s something Mother and Father Blackley did not want to happen. I know they did not want me to fall in love with this country, in fear of me coming back here. And if you had asked me six months ago, would I ever want to live here again, I would have said no. It really does take time to get into life. Any exchange is that way. You spend the whole time trying to learn a language and make friends. Then, you have to leave. It’s unfair, but we were told that it would be this way. You never know, I may end up back in this country for college. That would be a dream-come-true.

I have a busy three weeks, just trying to have as much fun with the time I have left.

I will begin with Spring Break. I went to ENGLAND! It was really great. My host sister and I tagged along with the school trip made up mostly of sixth graders and their parents. My school has a few teachers that do this trip every spring and fall. Franzi and I were parentless, since my host mother had done it three times already in her lifetime. We were old enough, and didn’t get into toooo much trouble.

We drove, YES AMERICA, DROVE, on Saturday March 31 to England. It took 12 hours, and we drove through Holland, Belgium, and France, then took a ship over the channel and hello English speaking world! We stayed in a little seaside town, Hastings. Sunday morning it was rise and shine and time to drive to London! It was about a two hour drive, and as soon as we got there we met up with my older host sister Thesi. She is currently living and working in Windsor or somewhere near there. She, Franzi and I spent a little time with the group and saw Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abby, Big Ben, along with a few little things in between. We split up from the group at lunch time and went our own way. We had lunch at  market then jumped on the Underground to go to Camden. Camden was just a huge secondhand market mixed with food from all over the world and the craziest little shops you can think of. We spent a few hours just wandering around and looking at all the neat things. It was a great afternoon. Franzi and I then went home to Windsor with Thesi for the night. We were lucky that we were allowed to split from the group for the night, so that were could spend time with Thesi and see her new life. The next day we just wandered around Windsor. I got to see where… the Queen or someone lives, and also Eton, the fancy schmancy boarding school. Thesi says its really funny to go by there on a normal day because all the boys are all dressed up. Sadly, it was Easter break. Franzi and I caught a train back to London and got there with an hour to spare. We met up with a really good exchange student friend of mine, Meredith. She was in London for the week with her American mom. Even though it was only about a half hour, it was great to see her. We met back with our group and drove back to Hastings for the night. The next day was spent in Canterbury. We saw the big cathedral and then the afternoon was just Franzi and I wandering around. It was lovely. The last day we spend in the seaside town of Hastings, where we were staying  for the week. Franzi and I found one of those arcade places, or more gambling than playing. We decided to use all of our leftover money to play, it was a great afternoon. We won all sorts of dumb prizes.

England week was over! And on to EASTER! I love Easter, and lunch at my grandmothers house is always the best thing in the world. Sadly, here really didn’t live up to it. We had lamb, which was interesting, but I missed the normal buffet of the Blackleys. During the afternoon we just hung out around the house. And at night, there was Osterfeuer, Easter fire. It was a village event, and just a HUGE, I mean huge, bonfire and beer, the typical German way to celebrate something, drink beer. I went with the girls from the village, and all the others from the village were there as well. It was just a fun night with friends.

The second week of break was dance course week. I don’t know, it’s not something that happens in America, and from what I have heard from friends, it doesn’t happen here either, but its normal for my host family and their friends, so I was included. Franzi and I went to someones house to live for the week with 20 other kids, I was the oldest, most were around the age of 14 or 15, 8th and 9th year in school. They were all really nice kids and I had a great week. We learned classical dancing in the morning, and friesenrock in the afternoons or evenings. We were there from Monday until Saturday, but I unfortunately got sick. I was sick the whole time with a sore throat, but on Thursday night it got pretty bad, I had a fever and just was so cold the whole time. My host mother picked me up Friday morning. I was hoping to be able to go back Saturday night for the party, but was feeling still pretty crappy. Luckily I felt better on Sunday and was allowed out of the house to take the dog on a walk. It was wonderful, freedom. I still had a cough the rest of the week, but a week and a half later, I think I am pretty much back to normal.

I had my birthday! The weekend basically was just eating cake and being with friends. I had a kind of party in the village, but really it was just the normal meeting and hangout, but with the added bonus of cake and everyone telling me happy birthday.

I would like to apologize for lack of writing, but as I have said, my life has just turned into life. It’s not longer the exciting new life, its my normal. And I really don’t have much to write about. I just go to school, don’t do anything, but go nevertheless, during the week. And weekends I am usually in the village with friends or on the rare occasion, at a party. It’s nothing special to y’all in America, but it’s so special to me. I don’t know how I will leave this life.

 A birthday cake made for me by two of the boys from my village. They were very proud of this cake.

A few weekends ago Charlotte, my older sister, came to visit. She came on a Wednesday night by train. It was quite the happy reunion. She cried. I didn’t, but was nevertheless so excited to see her. My host mother made a fantastic German dinner, and Charlotte and I just spent the night catching up and whatnot. Thursday I went to school like normal, and Charlotte slept the morning away. When I got home my host mother said “She came down for breakfast at ELEVEN!” She was shocked. We would NEVER be allowed to do that, but Charlotte got lucky because she was a guest. I came home from school, and Charlotte and I walked around Bonenburg and visited the horses. She just got to see the basics of life during the day in Bonenburg. The next day I skipped school and we went and walked around Warburg with my host mother. It was a lovely morning. We met Franzi for lunch when she got out of school, then Charlotte and I caught a train to Hamburg to spend the weekend with Ette. We had dinner at Ette’s apartment, then just walked along the harbor at night. Saturday we went out to breakfast and spent the day shopping and walking around Hamburg. Charlotte was very excited to see a real German city, but I think more excited to go into an Urban Outfitters in Europe. At night we went to a birthday party of a friend of Ette’s.

We put Charlotte on the S-bahn to the airport, and I caught a train back to Warburg on Sunday. I have to say, it was a great weekend. But the whole switching to English from German and then back was really confusing.

Life goes on in Bonenburg. I have become good friends with some of the boys in the village, and usually hangout with them on weekends and sometimes on random days during the week. They like to grill bratwurst randomly after school, and I am always a fan of food. I also have taken a liking to this bench on a hill, where the sun just hits perfectly so it is always warm there. I go there just about every single day. To read, listen to music, or just sit and enjoy being outside. Very few people go by, sometimes walkers or bikers, occasionally a tractor , and then the boys from my village on their mopeds. Well they are more like dirt bikes, not the annoying slow little things that people drive when they get their license taken. You can hear those boys from the main road waaaay down the hill and across a field. So I know when they are coming. I sometimes like to sleep on the bench, it’s just so warm. My host mother told me not to do that because I might get stolen. I laughed, and figured it was just one of those random things she says. But then a friend from the village told me the same thing. He tells me that every time he comes by and sees me when I am there. So not just a one thing thing. Stolen? Yeah, okay. I mean, I cannot imagine getting stolen in Bonenburg. So I will continue to nap there, I think.

I went on a school trip! I have basically just joined in the class ten. That’s where most of my friends in school are. So when my friend, Regina, asked if I would be allowed to go on the trip with them, I figured it would be fun. I was right, I had a great time. The grade was split into two, and my group went to an Abby, or Kloster, I guess that’s an Abby in English, there were nuns. Anyways we stayed in like a guest house by were the nuns were, so we were allowed to be loud teenagers. It was a great four days, and I think I have made quite a few new friends. The amount of times that I heard about how my accent was cute and funny…. Yes, I am American, and yes, when you speak English it is just as funny.

But after the trip to Bestwig, Germany, I was home for a night. I went with the boys from the village and my friend Regina, who also lives in Bonenburg, to a big party at the closest thing to a club or disko. It was called “Schools Out,” and they have these every time school lets out for break. It was a funny night. Sadly, the next day I had to wake up super early to get on a bus to drive, yes drive, to England.
I will post something next week about England. Or maybe tonight. Depending on if I can sleep or not.

Anyways.

Places. My room, obviously. My cousin’s couch where I so often take up space. The Beverly Crest clubroom. The Murphy house. Arboretum Chickfila. Renfrow Hardware (Yes daddy, I am serious). Shotgun in Lacey Moore’s car. The yellow couches in the Dixon house. The pond behind my house. Southpark. That stretch of Providence Road that I seem to always be on. Yens. All the floors that I just end up laying on. The bustle of life in the city, yes Charlotte people, its a HUGE city, you just haven’t lived in Warburg. Harris Teeter. Cookout. Target.

Tastes. Chickfia. Doritos. Lemonade. Qudoba. Goldfish. Spinach on subway sandwiches. Dorians. Greenbeans. Green food from the backyard garden. NORMAL WATER, no bubbles. Chicken nuggets from the frozen section. Harristeeter cookies, especially the free ones. Cookout. Mexican food. Asian food. Duck sauce. Sweet Tea.

Miscellaneous. Ventilation systems in buildings, yes Germans I realize AC is not needed, but your bulidings are always stuffy without it and no I do not want to open the windows when it’s below freezing. The simplicity of cellphone services, not all this prepaid stuff. Trucks. The radio. TV without fifteen minute long commercial breaks and weird start/end times. Sports other than soccer on TV. Collefe sports. College spirit, WOLFPACK. The driving age.
Those are just some things America has or does better than Germany. I will post sometime soon what GERMANY does better.

Not much has happened in the past week. I am supposedly writing a test in history on Monday… on a subject that I was not even in the class for. I came into that class just a few weeks ago. THIS should be interesting.

So long for now!

Friends from the village <3

Anyways. I am currently in a dilemma. I can either take classes at school where I can understand the subject and still make friends, or I can take classes that I most likely won’t actually learn anything, but they are classes that can translate to Providence. A part of me just wants to give up the whole possible credit thing and just try to learn German and make friends instead of spending all my time trying to pass school in a foreign language. I will figure it out.

My favorite activity to pass time in a little village is to take the dog on walks. We go on at least two or three every day now. Usually from 30 minutes to an hour. It is my favorite part of the day.

Yeah, rather pointless post.

I hope life is fun in the US

Last Thursday, marked the beginning of Karneval festivities. Even though I don’t live in a region, such as Cologne, that goes all out, I am lucky enough they do have something here. On Thursday night the girls in village, Franzi, and I dressed in costumes and were on our way to the hall in Bonenburg to start my first Karneval experience. Well Karneval is basically where everyone dresses up and drinks. There is a show that includes dances and sketches and comedy. I personally didn’t understand the sketches, but the dances were funny. We were out from 6 until about 11, but had school the next day so home we went. It was quite a fun night with all the girls.

We had a quiet weekend, and the second day was Sunday night. We didn’t have school on Monday, so us girls went to one of our houses and got ready and spent a few hours just laughing together, how cheesy does that sound, and then off on our way to a different village, Ossendorf, for quite an event filled night. I think about everyone from my school was there, and it was not that big of a hall to begin with. By about eight, the place was packed, and everywhere you turned, you would see someone else to talk to. I spent some time with my host sister and her friends, then just started jumping between groups of people. It was such a fun night, and I talked to so many people that I had never really met before. All of course knew that I was the American, but to be blunt, sometimes it takes a party or festival and a little alcohol for it to be easy to just to talk to strangers, but everyone was partying and extremely friendly. I have found sometimes it is harder to get the kids to talk to you, maybe since I am this strange American girl, but more likely they have all been together in the same schools, or most of them, since 5th grade. It isn’t always easy to welcome someone new it. But I felt quite welcome that night, it was such fun.

The next day, off to Bonenburg Karneval it was once more. Thursday was for adults, but Monday was for the little kids as well. Many more groups that did dances, and there were children everywhere. The program started around 2:30, and went until 5:00 or so. I was with all the girls again, but this time we sat at the table with all the boys from my village as well. All of the girls are two school years younger, or one school year younger, but the boys are all about my age or a little older. Some of the girls were all helping one little kid group with a dance, so all the girls went to help practice, but I decided to stay and talk to the guys, since I really only knew one of them. I had forgotten how it was to be with kids my age and older. It was absolutely hilarious. I have a group of guys from Providencce at home, predominately cross-country runners, that my best friend, Sarah Kate, and I always love to hangout with because of how funny those boys are. This group of guys from the village reminded me so much of those nights Sarah Kate and I hung out with those boys at home. The girls were gone for a least two hours, but I had such a great time anyways. The program ended, but the music never stopped so we just made up our own fun. Then the girls came back and we probably all danced for two hours. Around 7:30 or 8ish everyone started slowing down, and in the end we were all sitting and falling asleep on each other’s shoulders, which was a telling our night was over quite early. But thinking of how we started the afternoon early, it made for a great day.

Surprisingly almost all of us were on the bus the next day for school. Normally the bus rides are quite with everyone sleeping, but the back of the bus where most of the Bonenburg kids sit was loud with laugher of the day before.

I would say I had quite an amazing, possibly the best, weekend. It makes me love my baby little village so much more. But as I always tell my host mother, Bonenburg IS the center of the world.

Moving right along.

PRESSLY IS HERE! My American sister, who is currently studying at a university in Whales for a semester, came to visit. I took the train to pick her up in Düsseldorf, which we had some problems for her waiting at the gate for me, while I waited for her at the train station, we didn’t really talk enough I guess, but we made it home eventually. I have shown her Bonenburg and Warburg, and today we went to Paderborn for shopping. It has been really nice to see another family member, but the translating thing has been something else. She knows not a word of German, so I am constantly switching languages. My host family can all speak English well enough, but I am so used to German with my family I am always starting in German to Pressly, then having to backtrack. Good thing, right?

I really have realized I am able to speak two languages. My German is still really rough, and the grammar is terrible, but I can communicate enough to get along, I couldn’t ask for more.

I hope everything is well in the states!

Here are some pictures from my Karneval nights!

Theresa!

Stefanie!

Sophia!

Roland and Tobias!

I just had such a lovely and very German weekend. I don’t know how I am going to be able to leave this life behind.

This video. It’s all so true. A fellow exchanger posted it to Facebook and I had to share. A lot of this, wouldn’t make sense for those who haven’t lived in Germany. But, you can still find it funny, just knowing all what they talk about, or at least most all of it, I have run into.

Today, something amazing has happened, it rained. Which means, SPRING IS ON ITS WAY! Or, at least I hope so. I am such a typical American, or an American from the south. I wanted nothing more than snow, but soon realized that the snow this year was weak and the equivalent to a Charlotte snow, and those are lame. It actually was not really cold enough, then it got WAY TOO COLD in about two days, so there was no time for real snow to come. We were bellow freezing for about three weeks. Yesterday or the day before being the first time above freezing, it felt so warm, but we all know if I had been in Charlotte and it hi 32 degrees I’d be complaining in a hot second. See, I am learning to adjust. Well with the coldness, we had a week filled of iceskating. It was lovely. Now, rain, and hail, have returned. I can’t help but get that feeling back from when I first got to this country, and it would not stop raining, ever.

I remember back to a day the first week, and a perfect double rainbow appeared one afternoon. I knew then that my year here would truly be magical. It has proved to be so, and continues to do so.

Yesterday, Valentine’s day, was also my host sister’s best friend’s birthday. She has also become a great friend to me. She turned 15, which just makes me feel so old, knowing I’ll be 17 in April. Franzi and I, along with five other friends from the village, went to her house to have cake and just spend time together. I love when in a group, I understand what is going on. It was so hard in the beginning, and not really anyone would talk to me, because I was so slow to speak and understand. My German has improved so much, and because of that that I feel apart of life here now. Mid-way point, right?

Next week my sister, Pressly, comes for a visit! I am beyond excited. I will have to take a three hour train after school to Düsseldorf to pick her up, then turn right around for a three hour home. She knows not a word of German, and in the case she missed her train, or misses her second train, she’d be in trouble. I will just take my homework and have some nice study time on the way there.

Charlotte, my other sister, has also planned her trip to come see me. She’ll be coming in March!

Well, not a whole lot to say now. I’ll write again after Pressly comes!

Our attempt at hockey?

What a bummer.