3 Challanging Experiences (aidan)

     Before this trip, my only experience with travel had been to Italy and Central America, so my only idea of Germans and Germany was from my dad. He is one of the smartest guys I know; maybe his view of Germany is skewed or constrained within BCG’s office in Berlin, but he would say how uptight and difficult they were to work with. Given what I've heard from him, I was a little curious as to what my personal interactions with Germans and my host family would be, but I was completely surprised. My host mom, Isabol, is the sweetest and always has something fun she wants to talk about. She won't even kill nats or flies in her house; she insists on capturing them in a cup and then releasing them in the children's park across her street. She has so much kindness within her and for other people, and I felt like it was a great first introduction and representation of the population of Germany. Even though I do not eat meals with her, she always finds time at the end of the day to talk to me and make sure I'm enjoying my stay with her and in Bonn. Overall, it has just been an incredible experience and worth the forty-minute train ride to stay with her when I'm in Bonn. 

It is very hard to judge a population or culture based on one person but everyone I've met in Germany, with very few exceptions, have been so nice and helpful. I mean I'm just a dumb tourist who doesn't speak a lick of german but if I've asked for help people have been very understanding on how complex the metro and bus system must be for tourists. It was definitely a pleasant surprise. After the image my dad put in my head about his co-workers in Berlin this amount of compassion was not what I was expecting. It's hard to believe we've only got like two weeks left on this trip. This has been an incredible experience with some incredible people, and I know I'll carry the memories, and a much better image of Germany, back home.