VISIT TO COLOGNE!

The SABINA group visited the city of Cologne, Germany. It is the fourth largest city in Germany and has one of the largest populations of homosexuals (in case you wanted to know that). One of the best sites to visit is the bridge in Cologne that is COVERED in locks. Bike locks, old locks, new locks, small locks, big locks, chain locks, someone left their sock on the bridge as well. The people of Cologne have started a tradition that when a couple is truly and madly in love, they go to that bridge and place a lock on it to symbolize their everlasting love. The locks are of all shapes and sizes, most engraved with the names of the lovers that placed them there before throwing away the key into the Rhine River, making it impossible to break this symbolic bond of love. Not exactly your typical Romeo and Juliet, but more like Heidi and Klaus in a modern Germanic city. Either way, the view of the millions of locks is impressive and definitely gives some character and personality to a city that seems to have so much of it!

Of course, while in Cologne, we visited the magnificent Cologne Cathedral (Kölner Dom), which survived very extensive bombing during the Second World War. Also not to be missed in Cologne, are the statues of Tünnes and Schäl. The statue of Tünnes depicts a redheaded foolish, man with a very large nose and wooden shoes. It is said that if you rub his nose, you will receive a free wish and by rubbing his wooden shoes, you will become immensely rich. Naturally of course, our entire group was compelled to rub the statue of Tünnes for free wishes and boatloads of money. Yet, Tünnes is depicted as a fool and is called “Tünnes” to show his stupidity, as if to say it is foolish to rub a statue for anything in the first place! Schäl, on the other hand, is cross-eyed and considered to be very untrustworthy. Therefore, you may rub his statue for luck, but it may not be guaranteed. This presents an interesting dilemma and challenges a person to choose which inanimate object he or she will rub.

Written by: Laura Blackerby

THE EIFEL REGION

On Sunday, the SABINA group visited the Eifel region, just about two hours away from Bonn. While in the region, we visited the Benedict Monastery (Maria Laach) and attend a mass in the famous Abbey Church, which features a beautiful array of Romanesque architecture. The area is immensely beautiful and is surrounded by hills that formed from volcanic activity in 10,000 BC. The group also visited the only castle in the Eifel that has never been occupied or destroyed: schloss Bürresheim. This castle is so famous that it has even been featured in American movies, such as “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” as well as in many television commercials in Germany.

After our visit to the Eifel region, we headed toward Monreal (kind of like the German version of Montreal, Canada) where we hiked up an extremely steep path to see the city. Of course we were driven to make it to the top so as to enrich our cultural experience in Monreal, but more importantly to get the free ice cream Rainer promised us. Whatever the motivation, our group made it to the top to see the city of Monreal and of course, got our free ice cream.

Written by: Laura Blackerby

MISCOMMUNICATIONS

Yes, these are highly unavoidable when you are visiting a foreign country and have little to no knowledge of the language or customs. Luckily, the members of the SABINA group were all able to experience their own miscommunications during our first week in Bonn. One of the hardest concepts to grasp in the German language is the rule for identifying the gender of an object. Consequently, one member of the SABINA group had the constant misfortune of identifying himself as woman for the first couple of days. Another person had the misfortune of characterizing a chair as something you use to sit under a knife, instead of at the table. When given a scavenger hunt to complete throughout the city of Bonn, our last item on the agenda was to take a picture with a local German university student. Unfortunately for us, the first couple of people we asked ignored us or ran away, making it difficult to achieve our task, of course, who would want to take a picture with the confused Americans who can barely speak German! Eventually, someone was able to understand our broken English, but not until after we embarrassed ourselves with the process of asking. Additionally, another member of our group miscommunicated when he tried to ask what time a place closed and the girl who worked there began to tell him what time she was getting off work and when she could hang out. To make matters worse, not only have we had problems with the meaning of the German words, but we have had problems with pronouncing them as well. As a result, our thick American accents (which derive from places across the U.S. such as Texas, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and California) have inhibited our ability to correctly pronounce the words we are learning. Additionally, these miscommunications extend far beyond just mispronouncing words and confusing their meaning. Many members of the SABINA group have gotten lost in the city, or misread the train system and ended up far from where they meant to be, such as in Siegberg instead of Königswinter which are two cities in the opposite direction of each other. As a result, we’ve ended up in some interesting situations in we’ve had to dig through all the German words we know to get back to where we were supposed to be. Consequently, this has actually just forced us to immerse ourselves in the German language and truly experience studying abroad in Bonn!

Written by: Laura Blackerby

BONN CITY TOUR

It was our first real experience in the city of Bonn. Jet-lagged, hungry, and some of us not understanding a lick of German, we braved our first encounter with Bonn, a city settled in 11 BC by the Roman Army. That was probably the only piece of information I understood from the entire four hour walking tour (in German) that we went on that afternoon. Even so, Bonn is a beautiful and intimate city that sits along the Rhine River and boasts many parks such as the Hofgarten, which gives Bonn its lush, green appearance. Historically, Bonn was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and was also the official seat of government for Germany from 1990 to 1999. Additionally, Bonn is very culturally diverse, with almost thirty percent of the population of a non-German ethnicity. As a result, the city offers a multitude of opportunities to witness these cultures thriving throughout the city.

As stated, for our first day in Bonn, the SABINA group went on a walking tour of the city for almost four hours. It was a hot day and by the time it ended, we were all pretty much done with trying to use our brains to decipher the language and fight off the jet-lag. After much debate, one of our student workers suggested we visit a popular biergarten nearby. Ironically enough, there just happened to be a biergarten right outside of our school, overlooking the Rhine River. Whoever thought to put a biergarten in the middle of the University area should receive a medal for such brilliance! Consequently, the visit to the Biergarten ZumRheiblick was the perfect way to end our first day in Bonn.

Written by: Laura Blackerby

AIB FILM STUDENT WINS PRIZE AT THE CARNEGIE MELLON COMPETITION

Misha Scott’s prize-winning entry in the Carnegie Mellon competition was her documentary “Niki”, which she also entered in LMU’s annual Undergraduate Research Symposium. The 10-minute film, made for Scott’s junior thesis and shot during her Bonn semester abroad, examines the life of a Roma teenager in Hungary and the social challenges she faces.

Above is an excerpt of “Niki”; film festival guidelines prohibit “releasing” the entire piece online prior to entry.

“I think that Niki is really a compelling character,” Scott said. “She shows a heartbreaking mix of optimism and resignation.” Scott’s 16-year-old subject wants to be a beautician, but the legacy of discrimination against Roma throughout Europe is stifling her ambitions. Scott’s interest in the subject began several years ago when French President Nicolas Sarkozy vowed to banish Roma from the country and forcibly expelled hundreds of the so-called Gypsies. “That stuck with me,” Scott said. “I knew that I was going to Europe for a study abroad semester, and I was looking for subjects.”

Her pre-production research included viewing the film “Our School”, which looks at education discrimination against the largely itinerant ethnic group. Scott then contacted DARTKE, a European nonprofit agency that works with Roma, to make contacts and get logistical assistance.

“Making this film comes back to why I wanted to make films in the first place: they can be so affecting,” she said. “I’m gaining confidence in my ability as a storyteller to capture things honestly and get it out to one more person. That’s a form of activism.”

During the summer, Scott will be working on a 15-minute documentary as part of an Honors Summer Research fellowship. Planned to be filmed over a period of three weeks, “Home Is” will raise awareness about the injustices facing the Navajo community of Black Mesa, Ariz. Scott will also explore the community’s vital connection to their land, as well as the violence being done to that land by major industries.

Congratulations, Misha!