Sorrento

So Since my last post I've been in Vienna, Bad Gastein and Ljubljana (the capital of Slovenia). We took a 2:30 am train from Ljubljana and arrived in Sorrento 5 days ago. We were planning on going to Rome but we've been here for 5 nights now and heading to Rome tomorrow. Going snorkeling this afternoon... I'll fill in the blanks later. Oh yeah and the photo album to the right has been updated so feel free to click through it.

- J. Ryan Sowell

Prague

Modern Prague is a combination of fair tales and Communism. It holds the world record for the largest medieval castle, it was under communist oppression until 1989 and the modern Czech Republic wasn't established until 1993.

Now when we decided to go to Prague it was simply a decision based on proximity and rumors. I had heard whispers about Prague for years, but I hadn't really talked to anyone about it extensively. Anyways long story short I had no idea what to expect.

We awoke in Munich bright and early Wednesday morning and boarded the train. We had our own cabin for much of the trek and were able to sprawl out and sleep a good bit on the way over. No air conditioning, which seems to be the norm in the Czech. Anyways we made it to our hostel (The Czech Inn) with out any issues. It was a good thing we bought a metro ticket though because they were actually checking them that day.

The hostel was one of the nicest and cleanest I have been in yet, it had a very modern design with metal bunks and concrete showers with wonderful waterfall style shower heads.

The first afternoon we simply made our way to the Old Town and got our bearings.

The next morning we joined the "Free Prague Tour" it was a good deal we got to see a lot of the inner old city and learn some history and fun facts about Prague. For example: 95% of "Euro Trip", the sniper scene of Triple X and part of Mission Impossible I were all filmed in Prague. Prague also had a strong protestant following well before Martin Luther and of course there is always the the defenestration of Prague (google it if that wasn't covered in your western civ class). One of the most morbid facts though is that the Jewish district was not destroyed by the Nazis because Hitler wanted it to be a future museum showing how the Jews lived. Consequently the synagogue and much of the jewish district is still in tact and was the home of Franz Kafka.

After the tour we made our way to Prague's own Eiffle Tower... The Tower actually over looks the city from a nearby ridge (read: straight up hill hike) it was built by the tourist club in the early 1900s and was inspired directly by the famous Paris icon (it is much smaller though). So we hiked up to the tower and enjoyed the sights, afterward we made our way to the world's largest medieval castle in the world. We watched the changing of the guards and saw the window where the defenestration of Prague acutaally took place. After a long day of sightseeing we retired for the afternoon and prepared for an evening out on the town.

Nick and I along with a few other people we met at the hostel partook in the Backpacker's Underground Pub Crawl. We had a great time, met people from UVA among other places and it ended near our dorm so we were able to walk home.

The next morning we headed out for Vienna

Munich update

Pictures from munich coming soon

Munich

Munich:

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

Friday afternoon was our last night in Freiburg. Bright and early Saturday morning the Pike guys and I set out for Munich. We had a brief change over, but all in all it was a smooth ride. Fully packed down with all of my belongings in my backpack this was the first time that I wish I had packed a little lighter, the luxury of having a home base was now gone, I was essentially on my own once again in Europe. We arrived in the late afternoon and spent the evening exploring the city center. Munich is a beautiful, clean city with a rich history and elegant pedestrian shopping districts. The town hall has one of the most entertaining clocks I’ve witnessed in all of Europe. Three times a day (9, 11 and 5 o’clock) various figurines dance to the chiming of bells for more than 5 minutes. The display consists of a Bavarian and French knight jousting on horseback, after two or three go-arounds, much to the crowd’s pleasure, the Bavarian knight knocks the French knight off of his horse. The defeat is then celebrated on a level below with a cooper’s dance to keep away the plague. We just happen to come across this spectacle as we passed through the Marien Platz square. After a bite to eat we retired to our hostel, Wombats, for a few drinks at the bar and some World Cup Soccer.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

Sunday morning we got up at a reasonable hour and made the trek out to the Dachau Concentration Camp in the Munich suburbs. It was honestly one of the most powerful experiences I have had in Europe as of yet. We wandered through the museum which was the former maintenance building originally built by prisoner labor. Dachau was the first of countless concentration and extermination camps across central and eastern Europe. Upon arrival you walk through an iron gate with “Work will set you free” (in German) written in the bars. Officially, these camps were meant to instill work-ethic and values in its dissident residents. Dachau was not a death camp (Auschwitz was the camp for that) it provided a forum for inferior ethnicities and political prisoners to serve as the labor force behind the Nazi government and later the war effort. To outsiders (based off of propagandist news paper clippings displayed in the museum) the camp was there to protect good Germans from bad influences and few knew how horrible the conditions truly were until it was liberated by the allied forces. Occasionally the camp officers would open the camp to corporate executives (using the labor) and party leaders to show how the work and good living conditions were indeed helping Germany retrain her lost infidels. This of course is where the happy little news articles came from. The camp layout consisted of a large central building overlooking two columns of barracks about 10 deep. The barracks were 10 meters wide and 100 meters long with bunk rooms and large enough to maybe fit 50 people in each room stacked 4 shelves high. Two of the barracks have been recreated, all that remains of the other bunk houses in their raised gravel foundations. The planned capacity was around 6,000 people but by the end of the war there were easily double that in the compound. Surround the facility was a 15 foot high electric fence with barbwire along its interior, about every 200 yards or so there was a guard tower which housed a trigger happy SS guard ready to snipe anyone that got too close. On the other side of the fence was a mote like canal and the crematorium. The ovens used to burn the remains of the dead (often from starvation and disease) are still fully intact, for years they ran continuously but at the end of the war due to the shortage of coal bodies were pretty much just piled up or thrown into makeshift graves. The crematorium was a stark reminder that the holocaust truly did occur and its scars still run deep in modern Europe.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

After our exploration of the Camp we made our way back into town. Germany played England that evening and much to our delight, England lost. People were celebrating into the night, but not on the scale of madness we witnessed in Freiburg. That evening we made our way to the Houfbrau Haus for a beer in one of Germany’s most famous brew houses. It was here that Hitler actually made some of his first campaign speeches, and where the Nazi movement really began to take hold. Complete with beer maids, a band decked out in lederhosen and 1 liter steins of pilsner this establishment truly is a tourist Mecca. After Houfbrau we went back to the hostel and spent the evening playing pool and enjoying the late night happy hour. The next morning the Pike guys left bright and early for home via Frankfurt I was left on my own for the day, Nick was to arrive the following morning.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

On my day alone in Munich I made my way over to the Olympic park and BMW complex. Since it was Monday, the museum was closed so I hiked around the park and went up in the Olympic Tower (think Seattle Space Needle). It was a pretty slow day honestly, the view from the top of the tower was spectacular and I was able to see where the Munich Massacre took place, but all the museums are closed on Mondays so there was not a whole lot to do. I ended up just walking through the English Gardens (really big Central Park) and wandering down the ritzy part of town. Made it back to the hostel worn out from hours of walking and retired for the evening.

Tuesday morning Nick Averwater arrived in Munich, his plane landed around 8:00 am and I was expecting a phone call from him to wake me up, but my service was horrible in the room and I eventually woke up to a later text message. I met up with nick in the lobby ate breakfast and showered then set out for the day. I pretty much took him where I had been the day before. We tried to get a tour of the BMW plant, but they were sold out of English tours and I just don’t think a tour in German would be worth it. So we explored BMW world and the museum. The World is a delivery showroom, event and expo center. In the World they had all the new models on display along with exhibits on new
technologies such as hydrogen vehicles. Across the street is the BWM Museum.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

It traced the history of BMW from a WWI aviation company to its current position as a automobile manufacture. They had motorcycles and cars dating back to the 1920s and everywhere between. One of my favorites was the Z8 used in the James Bond Film: The World is not Enough. You may remember it as being cut in half by a giant saw halfway through the movie. I inquired about this slicing and the guide assured me that a model was used in the film production. So now seeing as I have toured the plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina and visited the headquarters in Munich, I can safely assert that I have consumed more BMW propaganda than the average person. After BMW we hopped back on the metro and walked through the English Gardens. There we had a beer and some food at The Chinese Tower Beer Garden (One of the largest Beer Gardens in the World). We finished the afternoon following the river through the garden down to the end where the people surf. Yes, there is a fast and constant wave over some rocks coming out of an inner city canal that produces a large wave. I had never heard of city surfing before but now I had.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

We made it back to the hostel just in time for a few Happy Hour beers and a few games of pool. Seeing as Nick was jet lagged and we had a 9:01 train in the morning going out wasn’t on the agenda. Well for better or worse we were coaxed into going on a pub crawl. The crawl itself was nothing to excited but we ended up hanging out with some people from just about every English speaking country. We met some girls from Australia, Canada and England the company was great. The “crawl” consisted of going to this sketchy hole in the wall bar half way across town. We stayed at the hole in the while for quite some time and then “headed out.” Our first stop was the Haufbrau House which was fine, but it was one of the only places I had been before. We then went to an Irish Pub and then back to the Hostel. In all it was a pretty lame crawl, but we met some fun people. A hot train ride to Prague awaited us the next day.
Posting soon… Prague
- J. Ryan Sowell

Last Week

I am currently in Munich, but last week concluded my time in Freiburg with UT. All in all it was a pretty calm week. We arrived back in Freiburg Monday morning safe and sound. That afternoon Georg led us on a hike to meet his parents and explore the vineyards around his home town of Kaiserstuh. Thanks to our 7:00 am arrival back in Freiburg I missed the 10:15 train. Consequently I had to take the next train (30 minutes later), but it worked out ok, I was able to skip the hike up to the vineyard and rode with Georg's parents to the top of the hill. Also conveniently upon my arrival a snack consisting of Bretzels and Sausages was being served. Topped of with a glass of white wine, it truly was a great afternoon.


Tuesday was our hike in the Black Forest. We took the regional train just outside of Freiburg to a small ski village. From there we hiked though the woods and to a small restaurant. I had a goulash and some authentic Black Forest cake. All in all it wasn't too strenuous of a hike and I really enjoyed the cake!



Wednesday through Friday was pretty slow as we began to wind down the trip. On Friday we had a going away cookout and Saturday it was off to Munich!

- J. Ryan Sowell

Berlin

Berlin was honestly one of the most interesting weekends I have had as of yet during my time here in Europe. We woke up early to catch the 6:57 train to Berlin. We rendezvoused at the tram stop next to the Vauban housing complex. Everyone made the 6:08 tram and we were on our way. Then about two stops down the line Eric realized that he had forgotten his Passport. He darts off the tram and as he steps out the door Chris tosses him his phone (Eric’s phone had fallen victim to a taxi the night before). The rest of the group made it to the train station, we had a nice McDonalds breakfast and casually made our way to platform number 1. All the while Eric was in a mad rush to make it back to the train station. Seeing as it was so early the tram only runs every 15 minutes or so, and it takes about 18 minutes on the tram to get from Vauban to the train station.

We waited on the platform… 6:35: the 3 tram goes by and no Eric, 6:45… no Eric. The train arrives and seeing as it is a high speed ICE train it only stops for about 3 minutes. We look up and see the last possible tram Eric could have taken arrive. We wait a moment and then like a bullet, we see Eric swim move, duck and dodge his was though the crowd to make the train with only one minute to spare. He had made it!

The train ride was not unlike any other ride. 5 of us sat in a 6 person cabin the entire way alone and the other 2 sat in another cabin. It was more than a 6 hour ride, but direct. Most of us slept, I discovered I could buy a wireless internet subscription, so I passed the time wandering though the world wide web. The train ended up getting delayed by an hour or so outside Berlin so I think we ended up in Berlin around 3:30. Germany had just lost to Serbia when we set foot in the divided capital. The festive World Cup mood had been abruptly deflated. This probably worked in our favor though, it would have been very stressful trying to navigate around the city to our hostel with thousands of people celebrating in the streets (and the subway).

Anyways we made it to our hostel, Wombat’s, with enough time to unpack and make our way to the restaurant and watch the USA game. We ended up tying, again. Exhausted from our all day trek, we decided to hang out at the Wombar (the hostel’s Bar) for the evening and watch the England game. The idea was that if we stayed in then we would be more likely to get up early and explore Berlin (this of course did not turn out to be the case.)

On Saturday we rolled out of bed bright and early around 11:00, ready to take on what the German capital had to offer us. We wandered around for about an hour looking for a restaurant listed in Lonely Planet. We finally gave up our search and sufficed for sushi and hot dogs.

From the random part of town we had found ourselves in we made our way towards the Brandenburg Gate. On the way we passed by a preserved portion of the Berlin Wall which had been turned into one of Europe’s largest murals.

After the wall we took the U1 line to the Brandenburg for an interesting afternoon of sightseeing, or so we thought…

Upon our arrival at the gate we noticed there was some kind of festival, going on. There was a huge stage set up in front of the gate and some people were dressed up in, well let’s call it a “festive” manner. We had just walked in the middle of one of Europe’s largest St. Christopher Street festivals. It was Gay Pride day in Berlin. Now ordinarily a Gay pride parade is not something any of us would have sought out to partake in, but since we were there we had to explore. So we made our way past the stage, food stands and makeshift souvenir shops towards the staging area for the parade (on the way we also went by a very profound Soviet War Memorial). And by golly a parade it was. They didn’t have floats, they had rolling clubs. All the groups had semi trucks fitted with double-decker platforms. Each truck had its own DJ and about 100 people hanging off every which side of it, dancing and the like. We watched the parade go by for a while, and it truly was an interesting sight. I don’t think I will be attending another parade of this nature in the near future, but it was certainly and experience I will not soon forget.

After the parade we made it back to Wombat’s to get ready for the night. Berlin is supposed to have some of the best techno clubs in the world, so of course we didn’t want to miss out. We hung out in the Wombar for a while, watched some World Cup soccer, and eventually made our way towards a club that we had heard was fun and that we could probably get into (they’re tough on dress-code and the like). We took the U2 line for about 8 stops to the middle part of town, and began to make the 5 block walk to the club.

About 2 blocks away from our destination things turned a sour to say the least. I was walking in the back of the group and had missed a cross walk right of way. Most of the group was already across the street. I watched as a random Berliner with his girlfriend (about our age) lunged at Chris and muscled his shoulder in Chris’s chest. Chris pushed him off only to receive a heavy dose of pepper spray to the face. Confused and concerned by the altercation, Patrick walked up to try and pull the Berliner away from Chris. As he stepped around Chris to get a better angle on the guy, Patrick as well got a shot of pepper spray. Completely flabbergasted, Patrick shouted out, “Ahh… I’m blind! (insert any explicit word you’d like here)” With two men down crying and disoriented, Eric decided it was his turn to try and subdue the assailant. After pulling the guy away, he too was blinded with pepper spray (not without getting about 3 good hits on him though). We now had three blind mice. I jumped in the altercation briefly to pull the guys off each other, but in all honesty I stayed out of it as much as I could. The ordeal finally calmed down, the pepper spray had worn off and Katie had broken a pin in her watch.

Relieved, and flustered we walked the remaining 2 blocks to the club. About 100 yards from the entrance I heard sirens, a moment latter I could see the flashing blue lights reflecting of the rearview mirror of the car parked ahead of me. Three full sized Polize vans pulled up beside us. About 10 officers decked out in riot gear jumped out of the vans and had everyone move up against the wall. Somehow I slipped through the roundup so I sat on a barrier about 20 feet away. The police searched and questioned my friends. The girls told the story and identified our attacker.

It took about an hour in all for the witness statements and report to be written up. After being released from the police we made our way back to the hostel. We got a good night’s rest and set out to see Berlin Sunday.

On Sunday we visited the East Germany Museum, the German History Museum and we went back to the Brandenburg Gate, this time without the Gay Pride festivities. Our train left at 10:22 that evening from Berlin and we arrived back in Freiburg

Update Comming

Berlin was truly an interesting experience. Wrapping up class and what not here in Freiburg... I'll have a couple new posts up in a day or two.

- J. Ryan Sowell

Germany v. Australia

Well after Saturday evening, I did not think that I could have a more entertaining evening in Freiburg. I was wrong. Sunday evening was the most exciting evening I have had thus far in Germany.

As you may already know, Germany played Australia on Sunday for their opening World Cup Match.

Inspired by the chance to cheer on the national team with our fellow Freiburgers, a group of us made our way to one of the larger parks in town to watch the game on a giant big screen (seen above).

I would say there was close to 10,000 people in the park (think: the largest Sundown you've ever been to). Everyone was decked out in their German garb including fake Black, Red and Yellow mohawks.

As we entered the park we received a customary security pat down and took in the spectacle before us. To our right was probably a 20 by 25 foot screen, in front of us was 10,000 fans and along the back a ring of food and drink vendors ready to supply any of our traditional German festival cuisine. Initially overwhelmed by the whole experience we sat back and planned our course of action to make it back to the right corner where the rest of our party was situated. With no real path in site, with a beer in one hand and a bratwurst in the other we waded through the cheering masses. (note to self: learn how to say excuse me in German). After a few bumps stepped on feet we finally made it to the back corner where the crowed began to thin out and rendezvoused with the rest of the group.

The game was the biggest blowout in the World Cup thus far resulting in a final score of 4-0 in Germany's favor. With each goal the crowd bellowed a tumultuous chant not comprehensible to this American's ears. Complementing the chant was the South African horn and some foghorns that I had seen on sale at the department store blaring the well known chant "Ole Ole Ole Ole..." At the game's conclusion the energy did not simply die down, it swelled in tidal wave form and crashed at the town's center. We boarded the tram and rode it just outside of downtown, then the tram stopped. A VAG (the transit authority) official came on and in broken English said to me, "Making big party in city, no tram, you must get off." Two stops away from city center we got off and walked our way into town.
This was the scene we witnessed:
The crowd of people seen to your right are congregating at the crossroads of all the major tram lines and hence why we had to get off of VAG line #3.

The fervor from the win lasted well into the evening. The locals spent the evening dancing on the tables at the bars and singing their dear national soccer chants and anthems.

It truly was a site to behold and I am glad I was able to witness it.

This week consisted of our normal classes on trade and negotiations.

This weekend (well beginning at 6:52 am) we make our way to Berlin! We arrive at 1:30 and the USA game begins at 4:00 pm. Should make for an enjoyable weekend for sure.

- J. Ryan Sowell

FIFA Round One

Well as many of you already know this past weekend marked the beginning of the 2010 FIFA World Cup Soccer Championship in South Africa. While Soccer is quickly becoming a popular sport in America it has long been a staple of national pride in Europe and the rest of the world. The Cup lasts for about a month and I will be here for the entirety of the tournament. The two teams I have been following have been USA and Germany. This past Saturday the USA played and on Sunday Germany played.

In preparation for the games we scoured the streets in search of some USA paraphernalia (as if our appearance wasn't enough). We finally found an American flag in a small "Football Fan Shop" on one of the back streets of Freiburg. Eric quickly snatched up the flag and can be seen below wearing as a cape.



For the USA v. England game we spotted a restaurant with tents a screens set up for the game down by the river. We figured all the venues would be filling up early for the big game (this was not the case), so we found ourselves in control of the outdoor venue for about an hour. Soon however the game came on and to our surprise we found ourselves in the middle of one of the few Pro-England bars in Freiburg. We soon found out that the owner's wife was from Manchester, but all the well it was an enjoyable game. England came into the match as the favorite, but USA was able to scrap away with a draw. A draw gives each team 1 point in group play and a win gives the winner 3. So going into the second round we are now tied for second with England. The other two teams in our group are escaping me at the moment, but they shouldn't be nearly as strong as England.



At the end of the game some of the guys ended up talking to a group of locals at the venue. They informed us that there was a huge Techno DJ Block Party down the street hosted by one of the local radio stations and we were invited. So we followed Leona down the river as she rode her bike ahead. After about a 10 minute walk we could soon hear the bass reverberating off the buildings around us... we had made it.

(Side note: Patrick Dingess got hungry at the end of the game and meet a nice family from Boston that took him to a restaurant... I have been told that he had salmon and soup.)

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After about an hour of European beats and ready to head back, we found a Taxi and headed home to Vauban.
However, when we arrived to the dorm complex, it became apparent that our neighbors were indeed making a party in the storage room under one of the buildings (The storage room is typically used for bikes and such, but some girl had cleaned it out). Anyways, were forced to partake in the festivities.

It was a long, fun and adventurous night but nothing compared to what we would witness Sunday evening.

Paris

Last week was pretty much over before it ever even began.
Monday and Tuesday we had our normal class sessions at the IES building in Freiburg with George and Dr. Neilson. Then Wednesday morning we had to all make it for a train departure at 6:45 in the morning, which meant that we were to be up by about 5:30 and at the tram station by the 6:08 departure.

Miraculously enough everyone made it to the train on time. We boared and we were soon on our way to Paris.

We arrived in the L'est Gare and made the short trek to our hotel around 2:00 that afternoon.

My afternoon was spent exploring the Louvre.... for Free!

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

The Louvre has a deal that if you are an European Student under the age of 25 you can get in for free. Well we have ID cards for the Frieburg University, mainly to serve as access cards to the cafeteria, but the student ID was enough. So with 9 Euro saved we explored close to one third of the museum.
Upon our return to the Hotel it was about time for us to head down to the Seine River to take a scenic boat ride through the city. I think this is the third time I've been on one of these boat tours, but it was still fun.

After a long day of travel and exploration we came back to the Hotel. Once back Jen Alcala and Rebbecca Howard joined us at the Hotel (conveniently both of my friends in Paris just happen to be in the same program) and the whole crew hung out and caught up on life.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

Thursday morning we woke up early and traveled out to the Palace of Versailles. I've been to Paris a couple of times but I hadn't made it out there before and it truly was an awe inspiring experience. To think that someone actually lived there is beyond my comprehension.

I got back from Versailles around 2:00 O'clock and swiftly took a power nap. After waking up, we found some dinner at a nearby cafe and planned our evening out in Paris.

Jen, Rebbecca and a couple of there other friends from the UT French Language Program joined us out at the Bastille section of town. We explored a few venues, began at a Cuban place and ended up hanging out at an Irish pub.

After some confusion with the Taxi driver and his unwillingness to take me where I needed to go I was initially stranded on the wrong side of town. Luckily we found another Taxi stand and thanks to Jen's French skills I finally made it back to the hotel. The night guard let me in and that was thankfully the end to an eventful evening lost in Paris.

From Euro 2010: Germany and Beyond

We still made it down to the Eiffel Tower and tried to go up on top of the Arc de Triumph, but they were having a ceremony for the unknown WWII soldiers entombed underneath the Arc. After some confused dialogue with a Parisian police office we figured out that the ceremony wouldn't be over for another couple of hours so we made our way through the Latin Quarter for some great gelato, and the guys were able to find some cheap German soccer jerseys (hard to find in France for obvious reasons) in preparation for Sunday's big game.

We made it back on the train and made the long journey back to Freiburg. Arriving at 11:00 pm we called it a night.

Next Post: Pictures, USA and Germany FIFA World Cup Games... quite possibly the best sporting experience I've ever witnessed with out actually being at the game.

- J. Ryan Sowell

Interlaken

Friday afternoon we grabbed lunch and promptly hopped on a train headed to Interlaken. Luckily, after going through a couple different booking sights I was able to find seven beds at Balmers Hostel for Friday and Saturday night. It was great to be able to go back to such a fun place and share the experience with a new group of people. Friday we took full advantage of their two happy hours and reasonably priced food. We tried to book a canyoning trip for Saturday, but they were booked so we signed up for a Sunday morning excursion... needless to say it was the most extreme Baptism I've ever witnessed.

Saturday, seeing as our original plans to go canyoning had been spoiled, we made our way into Grindelwald. To explain Grindelwald, think Gatlinburg with out the air-brush tees and Alps instead of Smokies. Anyways from the train station we made our way up to a restaurant overlooking the Eiger Glacier and the town. It was one of the steepest hikes I've ever been on. At the restaurant I ordered a traditional Swiss Alpine dish consisting of hashbrowns with bacon and a fried egg on top... it almost felt like waffle house at 1775 meters. Over all we hiked up about 1200 meters (3900 feet) in elevation over maybe a 4 mile hike. After lunch we made our way back down and hurried to try an catch a gondola running from the middle of the mountain down into town. We of course missed it by about 30 minutes so that meant an additional trek down the rest of the mountain. Exhausted we made it back to the train station and back to Balmers. The rest of the crew decided to go to Hooters, but I needed to change my shoes so I got off at the stop just outside of town hoping to catch a bus to the hostel. Seeing as it was already 8:00 in the evening the bus wouldn't of come for another hour. So I followed the bus route we had taken in the morning and made the mile and a half or so hike back. Exhausted, I took a shower, ordered some food and prepared mentally for the adventure to come the next day.



Rudely awakened by my phone alarm and confused as to where I was, I jumped out of my bunk and prepped for the day ahead. We were provided a hearty meal of bread, butter and cheese (these continental breakfasts are starting to get old). We met up with our crazy South African guides and we were soon on our way to the Chili Schliere canyon. One of the most intense canyoning locales in the world. The trek consisted of 35-40 foot jumps, rappelling down waterfalls and slides through bed rock carved out by the tremendous force of the rushing water. Here is a you tube video below showing what we did.



As far as team building goes this put a ropes course to shame.

After the adventure, we boarded our train to Basel and slowly made the journey back to Freiburg

Geneva

This past weekend was quite possibly one of the most intense 4 day periods of my life. On Thursday we made our way from Freiburg via double decker bus to Geneva Switzerland. I think it was about a 4 hour drive, but I slept the entire way so I don't really know.

Anyways, we made it to the United Nations at Geneva shortly before our meeting with Heiner Flassbeck. Who is one of the chief economists for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. He typically deals with developing economies, but recently he has dealt with the Greece/Europe Bailout. His main argument is that ultimately it is Germany's fault for the huge trade imbalances. Germany (interestingly at the request of the labor unions) has essentially left wages flat for the past 10 years. Coupled with inflation and increases in efficiencies, this has left Germany operating with an undervalued currency and essentially an absolute advantage over the other European economies. It is an interesting theory and I think per unit wage differences between the European economies will be an important component of the European economic restructuring currently taking place. After our meeting we went to the U.N. Cafeteria where I was accosted by the French speaking cashier for trying to pay with Euro coins (I soon learned they only used Euro Bills). So with none of my peers in eyesight and the line growing ever longer behind me, I rushed up stairs to an ATM I had seen earlier. Pulled out some cash and with a slight look of disgust, the cashier lady let me pay for my lunch. After lunch we took a tour of the UN facilities and learned about the history of the building and location.


Thursday evening was spent exploring Geneva and a trip to the bell tower of the Geneva Cathedral.

Friday, we spent the morning at the World Trade Organization (WTO). There someone from their external communications department walked us through the WTO history and how agreements and meetings were conducted. He started us off with a slide which simply said, "It's more complicated than that." and it most certainly was. But, pretty much the WTO is a meeting place for all the members to negotiate trade agreements. Overall it seemed a little superficial to me, but I guess that is diplomacy for you.

Pictures

Just added a bunch of pictures... story to follow. See the slide show to the right and click on it for more.

Freiburg 2

Well today was our second full day in Freiburg. I am starting to get my bearings a little and I was able to get a SIM card for my phone (Thank you Chris Lafaro).
This morning started off with an enthralling safety briefing by the IES staff.
Lunch was a Bratwurst at the daily farmers' market in the square around the Muenster (Cathedral). Then Patrick Dingess and I hiked to the top of the Muenster bell tower to take in a wonderful panoramic view of the entire town (pictures will follow soon).

Then we had our Economics and Agreements classes and we researched Heiner Flassbeck who is one of the chief European Trade Policy Advisers in Geneva. We get to meet him tomorrow and since he has been one of the main architects of the recent Greece Bail out the conversation with him should be interesting to say the least.

During our "research time" in the computer lab we did a little research of our own on activities for the weekend. It was decided by a group of us that a weekend in Interlaken would be good for the soul (one of my favorite places ever... see prior post). Balmer's looks to be full but we are finding other means of accommodation. Extreme Canyoning... here I come!

Later in the afternoon a few of us stuck around for our second German class. Today was numbers. I'm still oblivious, but I think I can count to ten (don't test me on that though). After German class a few of us made it back into town where we indulged in one of my European favorites... the Doner Kebab.

We hit up the grocery store on our way back (the first test of my number skills). Upon checkout I gave the clerk a 20 but he thought I gave him a 10. Of course I blanked on my recently acquired number skills when I needed them most. Lucky the lady behind me was able to help me. Rather than giving me a ten spot after the next transaction the clerk had to close the line and go to the back and count his register. He then returned, apologized for the confusion (I think) and gave me a small bottle of Merlot.

Tomorrow is Geneva, which is exciting because its truly is a great city (see prior post) and this time I won't be in the soviet style hostel we were in last time. The bus leaves at 6:45 so that will be a challenge, but I know how to work my alarm now so I should be good to go.

Anyways goodnight and I'll be editing my pictures on the bus tomorrow so I'll load them up soon.

- J. Ryan Sowell

First Day...

Well... I arrived in my Flat (if you will) yesterday.
It is set up where I have my own room but I share a Kitchen, Bathroom, etc. with 4 others.
I learned some of the rules today and I found my fridge and freezer space.
The morning started off with a light German breakfast complete with coffee, pretzels, and fruit.
Then we had an into lecture by the program dean on policies and things to know.
We also had our first Econ and Business Admin lectures.
We discussed Economic Models and the economic trends of Europe (Greece is killing everyone) and compared them to the USA.
For lunch we went to the University Mensa (I like to think of Mess hall) it was a good deal but I'm craving a Doner Kebab (Turkish Gyro type sandwich).
Then we had our first of a few German lessons. Informative, but I'd really just like to learn how to pronounce half of this stuff.
After wards myself and a few others went to a nice place known for their schnitzel. Had a wonderful meal with a couple beers.
Then we made our way back to the dorms (in the Hippie side of town) to find that there was a classic American girl's birthday party complete with a tiara worn by the birthday girl (Carolyn I believe).
From there we made it back into town via the tram to hit a couple of bars.
Nothing crazy but we finished the night at a techno type club called kamikaze.
Had a great time there and Patrick Dingess enjoyed teaching a few people his dance moves.
Coming back, with the trams done, a cab made the most sense. 5 of us piled in and the rest stayed. 2 Euro apiece latter we made it back to hippie town.
All in all a good day...

- J. Ryan Sowell

Made it to Freiburg... the one in Germany, not Switzerland

Today really began two days ago and it hasn't really ever stopped.

Saturday evening seeing as it was my last night in Knoxville for a good while, I thought it would be more than fitting for me to at least go out for a bit.
Next thing I knew it was already 2:00 am and I hadn't finished packing. With a flight leaving at 8:00 that meant I had 3 hours to both pack half my bag and sleep.
I was able to squeeze in about an hour of shut eye and the the gauntlet to Freiburg began.

Lured in by cheap rates and the lack of a lay-over in Washington Dulles (last summer resulted in my living there for two days) my flight schedule took me from Knoxville to Miami to New York JFK to Zurich... and then a train to Freiburg but I'll touch on that later.

Miami was nice enough, flat, hot and a lot of Spanish being spoken. That's about all I have to say about that.

On my flight between Miami and JFK I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had some how managed to book a seat in Business Class! Thanks to the 120 degree reclining seat I got the best sleep (three hours) I've had since Friday. I tried to do the same trick on my flight to Zurich (rebook my seat as close to the front as possible), but I ended up two rows into coach.

The flight to Zurich was delayed for nearly 2 1/2 hours which meant we sat at the gate for about an hour and a half and taxied for the remainder (ad to think American Airlinesalmost had me sold on them after the Business Class... oh well). In the meantime I struck up a conversation with the fellow sitting next to me. Come to find out he is in a band (the name escapes me) that had just opened for Bon Jovi at the New Meadowlands Football Stadium a couple nights before and now they are touring around Europe for a couple weeks (months maybe?). Anyways I thought that was interesting and my seat mate played the Viola... in case you were wondering.

So in air they showed the "Fantastic Mr. Fox" starring George Clooney and a cast of other notable names. Based on the Roald Dahl book it was very enjoyable and if you're looking for a humorous flick I would recommend it.

So two hours late I arrive in Zurich, I was supposed to meet Will Jolly at the Airport Train Station, but I was almost certain he would have already left without me. A little down because I figured I was going to have to make the trek to Freiburg alone, as I was retrieving my bag two guys (Chris and Trent) walked up and said, "Ryan, right?" "Ya?" I responded(Strangely I have meet people in random countries before that knew me... see 2009 post from Interlaken), they continued, "Hey so we're headed to Freiburg with the UT program... you're with us right?" This was wonderful news, we grabbed our bags and headed to the train station.

Upon arrival, I showed them how to get their Eurail passed validated, I went to the self-service kiosk and we were on our way! (Jolly was no where to be found, but he met a few people from our trip as well and made it safely to Freiburg)

From the Airport we made our way to the Zurich Central station. I looked at my ticket and found the train for our next stop... Bern (or so I thought). After some thought I remembered that there was no way Bern could be on our route. Bern is in the middle of the country! I had bought a ticket to the wrong Freiburg... the Swiss one. We were literally standing on the platform and the train was arriving when I had the revelation.

After explaining my ineptness to the train ticket officer, she allowed me to change my ticket for 10 Francs ($8.50 or so). With a major mistake diverted we got on a direct train to Freiburg. Easy sailing from here.

And that was the case until we arrived at Freiburg Central Station. I got off the train, Trent got off the train, but then the door closed on Chris. There was nothing he could do. He was headed Offenburg.

So slightly panicking (I had pretty much met this guy this morning and I did not know if he even knew where we were supposed to go) Trent and I decided to wait on Chris. We took note of the train schedules and calculated which train he should arrive (back) on. First train (4 minute layover time) no show, Second Train (35 minute layover) most probable scenario... no Chirs. Well this went on for about 2 1/2 hours. We finally gave up and hailed a taxi. Upon finding out where he was to take us... the cab driver suggested we walk.

So Trent and I arrived at the IES central office at 5:15 (just in time for dinner) to find Chris sitting behind a computer in the computer lab.

So in conclusion, I should have landed at 7:30 this morning been on the 8:45 train to Zurich and on to Freiburg with an estimated arrival at about noon. Instead, I found myself delayed and lost half the time. It has been a long 2, 3, however long. I'm glad to have a room to call my own... already made my first mistake though, used the girls bathroom.

Goodnight... can't really focus on the computer screen anymore.

-J. Ryan Sowell

Shipping Out

Early Sunday Morning I will be flying to Zurich via Miami and New York. Intentionally avoiding Dulles this year. Let's hope there's no delays this year, and I figure out how to get on the train to Freiburg!

Europe 2010

Well it's that time of year again and this year I will be traveling to Europe again. This time I will be primarily based in Freiburg, Germany. We will have trips to Paris, Geneva and Strasbourg to study international trade institutions such as the WTO and the European Union Parliament. In the coming weeks I will be updating my blog and I thank you for following my adventures.

- Ryan