With just two days left here in Mannheim, it is hard to believe that my internship is over, and that in just a couple of short weeks I will be back in the United States. My experience here was nothing less than great. There is a commonly held misconception of Germans in the U.S.-- the strictness, harshness, and rigidity. This stereotype is extremely inaccurate and wrongly held. Sure, you can find people with those characteristics here in Germany, but you can also find that personality in any person in any country. Okay, I understand that that perception is based on the majority, but through my experience here, I found something completely different. Perhaps my experience was extremely special, but during my time here, the majority of the people who I encountered on a daily basis were nothing less than welcoming, friendly, and open. However, I also think that I was very lucky in where I found myself-- both in terms of living and working and the people who were in my life every day. Not everybody who goes abroad, or even who moves in the United States, is so lucky to have such an experience as I did, and for that I am so grateful. As a result though, it has been even harder to say goodbye, but I think everybody can agree that a wonderful experience is worth the heartache that comes at the conclusion. There is a saying here in Germany: "Man sieht sich immer zweimal im Leben"-- You always meet twice in a lifetime. This proverb provides something to look forward to. It is not goodbye, but rather so long for now.

To end my time here in Germany around Christmas is such a wonderful treat. The country is so beautiful during this time of the year, and everybody seems to be filled with the jolly, festive spirit. It is so interesting to experience the different traditions and customs that exist for the same holiday in another country. The Germans take Christmas very seriously-- starting in the beginning of December, the trees are trimmed, and the first cups of Glühwein are consumed at the Christmas markets (Weihnachtsmärkte). Little smoking men fill the air with incense, and candles burn away on the Christmas wreaths. The month of December begins with St. Nikolaus on the 6th. One rises in the morning to find their shoes filled with chocolates and other goodies, and contrary to the common perception, this holiday is not solely for children. The month continues with various Christmas celebrations-- every club, working group, circle of friends has a Weihnachtsfeier (Christmas party). One of my first Weihnachtsfeier was a dinner with my work department. A group of about 25 came together at a BASF party building to eat dinner, drink wine, and play a common Christmas game here in Germany. Everybody at the party brings a gift from their home that they no longer have interest in, wrap it, and place it in a pile. A few die are passed around the table, and when a person rolls a 6 they travel to the pile of gifts and take one back to their place at the table. Once everybody has a gift, the wrapping paper is torn off, and the gifts are revealed. The second round of the game involves a time period of 20 minutes, in which once again the die are passed around the table, but this time when a 6 is rolled, that person exchanges their gift with the gift of another at the table. This round goes on until the 20 minutes is complete, and at the end, everybody has a gift. At the game's conclusion, I found myself with a very lovely tea cup from Moscow, Russia. Some of the other gifts included a singing fish that hangs on the wall, a very beautiful sparkly pink handbag, and a couple of bottles of wine as well, which were highly sought after.

So, on the 30th of December I will make my way back to the United States, and although I am very much looking forward to seeing so many people from home, and biting into a few good ol' American specialities, both literally-- a cheesesteak-- and figuratively, I am truly going to miss many aspects of the German culture and life. It was such a wonderful experience to work abroad for six months, and something that I will never forget.

My lab team at BASF.

My roommates in Mannheim.

It has been over two months since my previous post, and I think that can be attributed to the fact that life has become relatively normal over here in Germany. I have grown accustomed to the everyday happenings and interactions. I hope you don't misunderstand me-- things are still extremely interesting and exciting, but the fact is that this country has been my home for the past 4 months, and as such I have not been as inclined to deliver frequent blog posts through the interweb. With about 2.5 months left over here on this side of the ocean, the subject of time has entered my mind quite frequently. If one takes the patience and dedication to truly think about time on a deep level, then the mind becomes slightly overwhelmed. It seems that as we age, time somehow moves at a faster rate. When I was young, I would count the days until summer vacation, and it seemed like those days sitting in the classroom would last forever. During my years in college, the semesters would progress at an unnaturally quick pace-- the time from the first day of classes until the last day of finals felt as though it passed with the blink of an eye. I think about my nieces and nephew, or my younger cousins, and can't believe the age they have become, and I often have to make sure that my calculations are correct. And time continues to be a natural wonder. I look back on the time that I have spent here, and look forward to the time that I have left here-- almost 4 months are behind me, and about 2.5 months await me. It is rather difficult to comprehend. How can days pass by so quickly? One wakes in the morning with the chirping of the birds, and goes to bed in the evening as the moon rises, and it is often hard to believe that a full day has come and gone. I think time often likes to play with us-- a cosmic force acting on subjects who have no control. In many cases we want to conserve the time we have in a certain place, or with a certain person, and instead, time seems to mock us, moving at a quicker rate than it previously did. Time is certainly an unbelievable phenomenon, and something that we have no control over. We simply have to live life as time expects us to, finding the value in every piece of every day. Take this video as an example:

http://vimeo.com/3986821

More information about other aspects here in Germany, and the happenings in the fungi world will come soon.

Little occurrences and everyday happenings are what make life enjoyable. The common sights and sounds that are often disregarded as routine, or mundane, take on a different meaning when observed from a closer perspective. During my time over here in Germany, I have spent many moments watching, listening, and thinking. Different sights, sounds, and interactions have caught my attention and have drawn a smile across my face-- finding a bundle of lavender on the sidewalk, smelling that bundle of lavender, hearing a small child speak German, a conversation with a friendly co-worker, food and drink with some friends by a lake-- these are all unexceptional in written form, but they create something extremely special and memorable in life. We have always been told to take pleasure in the small things in life, and I think I have always been one to follow this mantra. Now, however, I am experiencing this philosophy in a new country and environment, and I value those little bits of life that may seem so ordinary to the eyes, ears, and nose of another.

Following that little rant, here is an update on some happenings in the work/ research world...

Much of my work has consisted of evaluating the various effects that fungi have on crops-- more specifically, the effects of Rhizoctonia and Fusarium on wheat and corn, and the efficacy of various treatments against those pesky fungi. The evaluation for such a task involves washing the roots of the corn plants and then placing them in a numerical order, indicating the severity of the damage done by the fungus. The washing of the roots has become a rather therapeutic task for me. The job requires a sort of gentleness to handle the fragile roots-- we must not forget that plants are living things as well. Because the job requires little thinking, I find my brain wandering to other thoughts, and I rather enjoy this time to delve into those curiosities, memories, and other such musings.

On Friday I sowed the seeds of my own project (literally, ha!). The study will determine the effects of Sclerotinia on sunflowers. This means infecting beautiful sunflowers with a not-so-beautiful fungus. This creates conflicted feelings-- it is important to research how the fungus attacks the plant, but it also tears my heart a little bit to infect a lovely, living thing, which otherwise could live a healthy, and happy life. These feelings crop up (that pun was unintentional... almost) quite a bit in my work at BASF. Science has its ups and downs. Research is invaluable, but that doesn't make the subjects dispensable, whether these subjects include plants, mice, rats, monkeys, or any other living thing that is used for scientific purposes. As a result, science becomes a tricky profession, and one that often has you guessing your daily tasks. But if the research is done correctly, and humanely, then the end result is often worth the costs-- helping people in various ways and in various degrees, from a new treatment to better the outcome of crop production, to a profound medical breakthrough. Science is all around us, and is an extremely important part of our world, and frankly I can't imagine myself in another profession. The work environment and research subject will most likely change in the future, but the overall topic will remain the same.


Going in a different direction...

Last weekend I attended Brezelfest (pretzel festival) in Speyer (about 20 minutes West of my home city of Mannheim). It was very much a quintessential German event-- pretzels, bratwurst, beer, what else could you ask for? There really isn't too much else to say about it, but I will provide you with some pictures:

Today was a beautiful day in the city of Mannheim. One of my favorite places to sit outside and read, or write, is by the "Wasserturm." The grass there is lush, and the fountains create a soothing melody. I ended up at this spot this afternoon after walking from my flat, across the bridge over the Neckar river, and finally through Mannheim's city enter. Every few days there is an outdoor market on the "Marktplatz"-- a fitting name it seems. I passed this market earlier this afternoon during my journey to the water tower. The colors and the smells contained in this market are overwhelming, yet so pleasant to the various senses of the body. The vegetables, fruits, spices, cheeses, breads, meats, and flowers combine to create a unique sensation for the receptors located in the nose. And the colors are quite a treat for the eyes. Everywhere you look there is an apple, an artichoke, tomatoes, salami, hundreds of different cheeses-- it is truly a food lover's paradise. The various colored tents are contrasted with the red and white of the old building that stands in their background. Just walking through the market brings a smile to one's face, and a slight rumble in one's stomach.

After walking through the market, and turning a corner, the "Wasserturm" is visible in the distance. The tan and green tower stands majestically as the focal point of the bustling city. On a warm day, such as today, people flock to the lawn and the fountains to relax among the trees and water. This spot has become one of my favorite places in the city.

The ginkgo tree that I sat under today.

Starting life in a new country is rather analogous to developing a fungicide for agricultural products. These two main aspects in my life currently, create an unlikely, yet interesting comparison. During the process of creating a fungicide, many studies are conducted, and various treatments are tested. In the end, the treatment that is truly successful against the pesky invader is the lucky one to get sent off to the farmers to use on their crops. But the end result is not the only part that is important to study and examine. As the seed begins to germinate, the roots begin to protrude from the core, and one is able to catch the first glimpses of whether or not the fungus combatant is doing its job. Those little roots make their way into the large world, are tested, and face obstacles. Just like those little roots, we as people make our way into the larger world and face obstacles, and are treated by various measures. Everyday we test out new situations and determine which ones suit us and comfort us, and which ones really don't do all that much to combat any of our fears or ill feelings. The circumstances that "treat" us become our niche. These places, or situations-- whatever they may be-- inhibit, or prevent the bad. It may take a lot of time, and many tests to find these special conditions, but the end product is worth the struggle.

This comparison may be slightly cliche, or slightly difficult to understand in its entirety, but it is an important thought to keep in your mind when you begin life in a new country (or just everyday life in general). And for me currently, every experience has its importance.

It also could be that the fungicide treatments are going to my brain and affecting my thought process...

I apologize for the blog hiatus, things have been a bit hectic since arriving in Germany, but here comes another post your way.

I arrived in Mannheim, Germany almost one week ago. It really has been an adventure so far, in terms of getting everything situated, exploring the area, and diving into the language. It was nice to have my mom here with me for the first week, while I learned the ins and outs of the city, but we said our goodbyes and she departed last night, which has been a bit difficult. As recent graduates, and previous graduates, know, it is challenging to transition out of the college environment, where we have developed a community in a small area, into what people like to refer to as "the real world" (I always thought every part of the world was real, but perhaps not). Going through this transition in another country, where people speak a different language and have different customs, is even more difficult. Luckily, there are some very kind people at BASF (the company that I am interning for) to help me along the way, otherwise, I think I would be completely lost.

Over this past week, Lynda (my mother) and I have journeyed around Mannheim, and its neighboring city of Heidelberg, and explored the various sights, sounds and smells that the two cities encompass. Mannheim is not the most beautiful city in Germany (not that I have much experience), but it has its charms and its cultural attractions. 20 minutes away sits the city of Heidelberg, which in slight opposition, is a very beautiful city equipped with a Schloss (castle) atop a mountain, a magnificent university, and the longest pedestrian walkway in all of Germany. Both cities have their charms. One specific charm that Lynda and I discovered in Mannheim is Luisenpark. This park lies on the Neckar river and is absolutely lovely. It is a relatively large park with a large pond in the center on which gondolas glide through the carp infested water, and you sit and gaze to the banks where you can see flamingos, ducks, storks and various other wildlife. The park additionally houses a Chinese teahouse, a rose garden, various greenhouses and many different animals. But the most important attraction in the park, according to me, is the Humboldt penguin colony. Who would have thought that there would be penguins 5 minutes from my flat... in Germany? Certainly not me, but let me tell you, I sure am excited about the prospect of visiting them, at least, on a weekly basis.

(I forgot to mention that I bought a camera, so this blog will in fact have pictures).

Mannheim also has a few very nice museums, and a beautiful water tower (which I plan on taking a picture of soon). Mannheim lies between the Rhein and the Neckar, which allows for nice places to sit and relax in warm, or perhaps even cold, weather.

I start my internship at BASF on Monday, so hopefully I will have more to discuss then. I do not have any previous experience with blogs, so it may take some time for this here blog to get into the rhythm of the interweb blog scene. I miss you all back at home, and hope your summers have started off nicely.

I forgot to mention that because I do not own a camera, this blog will be lacking in photos. I apologize for any heartache.

This coming Saturday marks the day when I leave the comfortability of my home of 21 years (country, state, and residence) and embark on a journey to Mannheim, Germany for 6 months. This is a scary thought. But then again, many things are scary in this day and age. The time has come for me to remove myself from the comfort that I have lived in for the entirety of my life and set off on a new adventure overseas in the land of lederhosens and sauerkraut. This adventure takes some preparation however, and in this, I am currently lacking. As of now I have about 5 items placed on my bedroom floor with no suitcase to house them and the inability to subdue my anxiety for long enough to conjure up said suitcase and begin placing the items into their storage for the next few days. Rough for both them and me.

This blog is something that I had not thought of creating until just today, when my friend Molly convinced me to do so. I am not going to make any claims to the magnificence of this blog, because as many of you know, I am not one to fuddle around with technology. I will be sure to post often enough to relay all of my wild and crazy wanderings-- perhaps the occasional story about a delicious wurst I ate, or a damn good German beer that I came across, perhaps the happenings in the fungicide/ corn world (I am sure you are all dying to know the inner workings of that), or maybe even an interaction with Angela Merkel herself (yeah right)-- but in times of blog-writing absence, I will be sure to communicate in various other ways. The ability of technology in this 21st century world that we live in is unbelievable.

Well I believe this first post has met its end and supplied the sufficient information to catalyze its introduction into the interweb universe and the hearts of you at home.

Until January my friends,
Alex