Courses and Selection

So the STARTkurs has ended and I have only one thing to say: I am so very sad. This was the first time since German 230 that I have walked into a German course and didn’t face constant fear that I would embarrass myself. This is partially due to the fact that since I’ve gotten here, I’ve embarrassed myself so many times that my tolerance is quite high, but also because the teachers for the course are super friendly, helpful, and welcoming.

The topics in the courses depend on which course you’re in, but all of them have discussed course selection. We also discussed this in the UMass orientation, which was in Freiburg (I will discuss that more in-depth in the next post). Below, I’ve listed how to register for courses as well as some helpful tips. I’ll add more as I figure it all out:

1. Find the courses online. You can google the university or you can go to the IPO page and find the Tübingen Program there. 

2. Switch it to English if you have no idea what it is saying.

3. “Title of Course” can also function partially as a keyword search. It is not perfect, but it is helpful if you’re looking for courses that discuss British novels or something like that.

4. Once you’ve found a course, you’ll have to figure out when registration is. It usually says it at the top of the course information page or at the bottom, below the description of the course. If it is already closed for registration (most courses are at this point), but there are still open seats, email the professor. Make sure to use the proper titles as the emails are more formal than in the US. Include your name, your year, your course of study, your student status, and which course you’re interested in. Also ask how you can earn a Schein if it is not specifically stated.

5. For German as a Second Language courses, you usually register in mid-April, a week before classes start. Just go to Wilhelmstraße 22 and you can get advice and register there.

6. For credits: UMass is super helpful with this because unlike other schools that just divide the German credits by two and give you those, UMass takes into account that an intensive course meeting 9 hours a week worth only 7 German credits is probably worth 5 or 6 US credits, not 3 to 4. 

7. Random Information: You can audit courses, just email the Professor and figure out how to get a certificate saying you audited, otherwise it won’t count. 

March 13th, 2013: Death Eaters

The white window in the middle was used during WWII to signal when Jewish 
people could be sent in for hiding. They were put in crates and loaded in at night.
In the morning, the empty crates were "emptied" again to avoid suspicion. 

On Saturday (March 9th), I met up with Stephanie, a student from Darmouth College who is studying in Tübingen on a Fulbright. As I am interested in both Tübingen and the Fulbright Scholarship, I was really excited to meet her. She is a friend of a friend, so naturally my biggest fear was that she would not resemble her facebook profile picture that I had stalked and thus I would not be able to find her in the crowd. Luckily, we exchanged descriptions of what we would be wearing so as to identify one another. It worked.

We first went to a hot chocolate place in the center of Tübingen near the Rathaus. It is called: Chocolat, and yes, there is a picture of Johnny Depp in that movie. Here exists truffles of all varieties, regular hot chocolate, hot chocolate that turns into a warm pudding, and hot chocolate on a stick (I have yet to discover what magic allows it to taste like liquid hot chocolate). Stephanie showed me some cool Sehenswürdigkeiten: the Rathaus, the castle in Tübingen, and a cool building near the Rathaus that was used during the Holocaust as a shelter/safe home. 

Nothing happened on Sunday that was of particular interest except that it rained for the first time since I’ve been here. Despite being in Germany, rain has not regained any of its charm.

On Monday, I began the START Kurs. We took our placement exam (study for it...I didn’t realize we were having a placement exam and didn’t think to study). The placement exam consisted of a paper test, divided into four sections, and an oral test. Test is really the wrong word, it is more of a comprehension indicator. Part A is easiest, Part B is intermediate, and Part C is difficult. The fourth part is simply a writing section centered on your trip to Tübingen thus far. Part A and B were fairly easy. Then Part C arrived and drained the life out of 90% of the 50 or so students taking the exam. A collective gasped resonated through the room as Death Eaters entered and began eating our hopes, dreams, and souls.

Part C really wasn’t that bad, but I definitely knew that I didn’t do well on that section. The oral exam was fairly easy: answer questions about your trip so far, where you’re from, your goals and dreams, etc. There were less death eaters in this section.

After the exam, we took a tour of town and went home. The next day, we were assigned our classes. Class 1 is for beginners or people who have been out of practice for a while. Class 2 is for people with three to five semesters of German. Class 3 is for more advanced students and Class 4 is for the advanced students. I think they just sit in class, sip Champagne, and discuss Nietzsche, but I could be wrong. My class (Class 2) is amazing. The teachers speak at a good pace, not too slow or too fast, and they have a lot of games that are fun and not as terrifying as I thought they’d be. I look forward to Thursday’s class with a combination of dread and excitement. Excited dread. Dreaded excitement. 

Catch Up/Ketch Up: (apologies for the late post)...

Adam and I opened a bank account as part of the matriculation process (this is also where you can deposit scholarship money when you get it) To open a bank account (at least through Deutsche Bank) bring your passport, your pink sheet for the residency permit, your admission letter, any money you want to deposit, and also know your phone number. You’ll need to make an appointment, so stop in on an errand day and plan to have the appointment for the following day.

We were guided through the process and explained all the necessary steps and benefits of banking there, which include: free ATM withdrawals through them, Barclays, Bank of America, and Barnipas (a French bank), a .5% interest rate, online banking, and of course, an ATM card. The ATM card will arrive in the mail within 7 business days, so keep that in mind. The whole process took less than half an hour. After we opened our accounts, we wandered around and waited for the Matriculation Office to open. We did our registration and now await mail with our student ID info. After that, we ventured to Kaufland.

KAUFLAND is the German equivalent of Walmart. I searched high and low for a cheap pot or pan in which to make ramen and other fine American delicacies and could only find cookware equal to my rent in town. Kaufland, which is a ten minute walk from Franz. Viertel, has cheap pots and pans, and though cheap quality, you probably won’t be bringing them home in your luggage anyways. They also have a grocery section, cleaning product section, and lots of drinks (I'm pretty sure three or four aisles are devoted to sodas, juices, wines, etc.). Make sure to bring your own bags, because they will charge you for using their plastic bags to take your groceries home. It is 7 Euro cents a bag or you can get a reusable one for 99 Euro cents. 

That's all I have for now. The next few days we will be spending meandering through the streets and sleeping before classes start on the 11th.

Day Two: Why Would You Carbondate That? A Story of the Struggles to Stay Hydrated in Europe:

Originally I intended to call this blog “March 5th, 2013: A Journey to the End of the Bus Line!” but due to a horrifying circumstance, I felt a name change was necessary.

Adam and I set out this morning with one thing in mind: food. If we could not find it, we agreed that cannibalism would be an acceptable solution. We boarded a bus, had a slight mishap buying the tickets, and headed into Tübingen center. Luckily, we did not become Zombies and found Gehr, a bakery in the center of Tübingen. We managed to order in German two donuts and two apples juices. Then the worst thing ever happened: we realized that apple juice comes only in a carbonated form, which tastes quite foul as if it is the direct source of evil (I learned later that apple juice does exist in its more natural state, but we still have yet to discover this pokemon).

In disappointment, we wandered down the road and went to Cafe Lieb, on Karlstraße. There is literally a Backerei and an Apotheke on every street. Cafe Lieb has at least four locations, and Gehr at least three that we have found. All of them are very good, but their pastry selections vary by location. We got pretzels (0,60 E/pretzel) and meandered down the road. 

You most likely won’t get internet access until you register with the University, so planning ahead before you come here is very useful. Though we told our parents our internet access would be limited for a week or more, we did not plan ahead in finding internet cafes. Luckily, there are a few on the main street that charge minimal prices. The one we used was on Wilhelmstraße and cost 0,50 Euro for 18 minutes of internet, which seemed fairly reasonable. We used that time to send emails and find free wifi spots, like Hades Cafe.

Further down from the wifi café was Frau Simone Hahne’s office, which we went to get our cellphones and our welcome packages. If at all possible, see her the first day. Why? Because then you can begin the matriculation process sooner and get internet. You may think, wow, a week without internet, without tumblr distracting me, without my parents hounding me about whether or not I have survived the cross-Atlantic trek, but it is horrible. You do not have leo.org, canoo.net, or google translate to help you figure out that phrase you so desperately required. You also don’t have facebook, the onion, and that twitter thing. 

Matriculation is a long process of completing form after form. You have to start the residency permit, you have to open a bank account, you have to have passport photos, and you have to show you have health insurance among other things. We started with the temporary permit. Some helpful tips about the permit office (assuming it does not change): 

• When you enter, there will be a machine that you get a ticket at. Ignore this and the desk and the waiting section. Instead, head behind the waiting section, through doors, to another waiting section, get a ticket there. This is where you go for permit inquiries.

• Take a ticket and wait for your number to be called. The desks are sorted by last name, so your ticket will correspond to the desk/person at the desk, not necessarily the exact order. 

• You will fill out a form that is in German and English (mostly). Don’t be afraid to ask for clarification. Some of the words used in the translations are not quite accurate or seem almost archaic. 

• After you fill out the form and they enter in some information, you will be told to come back in about two weeks to get your actual permit started/continue the process. Make sure to bring: your lease, your acceptance letter, your passport, a passport photo, your scholarship letter, your financial disclosure letter, and your health insurance letter. Basically, every form you get, have with you. 

Famished after filling forms out, we headed down the street and somehow found Rewe. It is a smallish grocery store at the end of Karlstraße that has fruit, drinks, a backerei, meat, cleaning products, etc. It is relatively inexpensive. However, despite our best effort, the apple juice we bought turned out to be carbonated. It was the biggest disappointment thus far.

We went to my apartment next and stopped at a McDonalds, feeling homesick. It had the most amazing menu: The American Stars, Part 2, which includes a Chicken Bagel and the New York Burger, neither of which I think are served in America. After grabbing some things at my apartment, we hopped a bus to the city center. An important note about the bus system: A ticket for stop 11 will always bring you to Tübingen center. The 22 Bus will take you to Viktor-Renner-Straße, but figuring out which button you hit for the correct ticket is hard and makes no sense even when looking at the signs. Tomorrow I hope to figure that out and also find regular apple juice. 

Today’s Money Savings Tip: Cafe Lieb has a special for 3 pretzels for 1.65E. They make great snacks. 

Day One: 3 Taxis, 2 Apartment Buildings, and a Patridge in a Pear Tree

Tübingen is a land of narrow streets, 90,000 people, 27,000 students, and confusion for newcomers. I arrived in Tübingen around noon at the Haupbahnhof station via the 828 bus from the Stuttgart airport. Though my German is not amazing (yet), the bus driver was able to understand me and give me a ticket. 

Upon arrival in Tübingen, all hell broke loose. Not really, but it was pretty confusing and difficult considering I brought an extra checked luggage. Despite the makeshift straps of bungee cords holding two pieces of luggage together, forming the Optimus Prime of suitcases, I still struggled wheeling them up and down the streets. 

The first real difficulties came right after I arrived in Tübingen. My information packet/emails stated I could either take a bus or take a taxi from the Haupbahnhof. However, they did not mention where in that area I could find them. Buses roamed the pavement like elephants grazing in a field, moving slowly about, but blocking everything behind them, which coincidentally was where the taxis were looming. A nice woman showed me where they were. At first I was terrified because a stranger was talking to me and I could hear my mom in my head warning me about my life becoming the movie “Taken.” She did not kidnap me for ransom, so it ended well.  

If you have a lot of luggage, I would suggest a taxi. You could take a bus, but lugging all your stuff on board is slightly embarrassing and you’ll take up a lot of space because they don’t have a storage area either under the bus or at the front or back like most American ones do (at least the ones I have encountered). You could put your luggage in the train station lockers, but they are small and at some point you’ll have to go back and get it, so you might as well just get a taxi.

Adam, who I met up with, and I took a taxi to Fichtenweg 5, the leasing office. We knocked on the door around 1pm, and were told that we had to wait outside. This was a little frustrating, but twenty minutes later we were let inside and began the process to sign our lease. Though the receptionist did not seem to pleased to be dealing with us, she called for another taxi to take us to Viktor-Renner Straße, where Adam lives, which was really helpful and nice.

He checked in and we called a taxi to take us to my apartment. After a pretty hysterical German-English phone call, we arrived in the French Quarter at Wankheimer Täle 1, my new home. This was by far the best taxi-driver we had. He told us all about the streets we were on, the history of the area, where to get food, and which bus stop would take us to the city center. 

In the email with my address, I was told to go to Wankheimer Tale 9. For those who may one day live there during this program, Wankheimer Tale 9 is in the same building as 7, it just has its own entrance. WHT 7 neighbors WHT 1, and WHT 9 is towards the right half of WHT 7. The office is not actually in the main part of Tale 9, but rather towards the end of the building up an outside set of stairs, with its own entrance. That is where you should wait for the Hausmeister, not inside the main building. 

My apartment is pretty cool. It dwells up floor flights of stairs that will surely mean I will never need a gym. There are twelve students in the apartment, each with their own room. Mine has a bed, a closet/wardrobe thing, a bookcase, and a table with a chair. I have a cool window, but no curtains, and only one overhead light, so it is slightly dark. Though I brought three suitcases total, I must say my clothes look sparse in the wardrobe. I brought about five t-shirts, three sweaters, two long-sleeve shirts, seven pairs of pants (jeans, dress pant, sweatpant), pajamas, five skirts, three dresses, and a bunch of socks. I will mention at the end of this blog (possibly throughout it) how much of that was necessary and what I should have brought but didn’t.

This ends the frenzy of day one. I shall entertain you next time with: Day Two: A Journey to the End of the Bus Line!