Alexa’s Blog – Day 3

The following events transpired on 5/14/13.

Before our official visits even started for day 3, the students took matters into their own hands. We had free time until 1:00 pm, when we had to meet up for our visit to Deutsche Welle. But first, we took the train to East Berlin and checked out the East Side Gallery, which is a memorial to the Berlin Wall as well as a showcase to the beautiful artwork painted on the remnants of the Wall from renowned 1990s artists. Each and every piece was so unique and beautiful.

Yesterday and today, we spent copious amounts of time riding the train and just as it was starting to get easier to navigate, we were thrown through a loop and I was confused all over again. Thankfully we have some solid navigators in our little group and we arrived back at the hotel just in time to leave for Deutsche Welle. Which, of course, involved more time spent on the train. We ended but being a bit late for our meeting at Deutsche Welle due to a wrong turn and a lot of walking. My feet hurt just thinking about it.

At Deutsche Welle, we had a fantastic lecture from Fabian van der Mark, the Head of office managing director multimedia global (whew!) followed by a tour of Deutsche Welle’s inner workings. We were able to see the news rooms, control rooms, and even hang out in their studio before a broadcast. And – best of all – we went onto the rooftop and were able to catch a glimpse of the beautiful view of Berlin that these lucky journalists get to see every day.

Following the Deutsche Welle meeting, we had a short group meeting and scattered to find food (“scattered” being a word used lightly – seven of eleven of us decided on Italian next to the hotel) and took a stroll through Arkaden, a shopping center in Potsdamer Platz. And finally, our long day ends early. I can’t wait to get some rest. I feel like I’ve never been as tired as I was today. Here’s to looking forward to a very busy tomorrow.

 

 

Alexa’s Blog – Day 2

The following events transpired on 5/13/13.

What a day! We got our first taste of public transportation by way of the U-bahn to our first big media visit of the trip – a lecture at Freie Universitat by Dr. Elfriede Fursich. She supplied us with a ton of great information comparing German and American media. I was most surprised that Germans rely heavily on the radio and it has been the staple in the media landscape for decades. Still going strong, it contrasts immensely from the United States’ addiction to the Internet and social media. It’s a lot to think about, and definitely got me into the mindset of thinking about why their culture is the way it is.

Freie Universitat is a lovely campus. On our walk to the main building, we passed clusters of housing that were absolutely stunning – traditional architecture, beautiful pastel colors and stucco texture, balconies and flowers – I was ready to move in right then! Dr. Fursich told us that the housing around campus used to be a predominantly Jewish neighborhood.

Our afternoon visit was followed by free time for the rest of the night. I ended up walking through Berlin to exchange my US dollars with our guide, Lorena, along with Aimee, Katie, Connor and Michelle. It was like having our own private tour. It seems like Lorena knows just about everything and she was telling us all about the American sector that we were staying in and currently walking through. There was a piece of the Berlin Wall outside of the Checkpoint Charlie Museum and a sign that alerted travelers that they were entering or leaving the American sector. You could certainly tell – there was a McDonald’s and a Dunkin Donuts not far from the sign.

Katie, Connor, Michelle and I stopped in at the Checkpoint Charlie Museum and were blown away at the history. There were endless rooms full of stories, clothes, and artifacts from the escapees and other important figures from the Cold War and the dark days of the Berlin Wall. The most chilling room of all was filled with terrible stories of abducted and missing children.

After leaving Checkpoint Charlie, we met up with the rest of our group and continued exploring until it was time to leave for the club. I had never been to any kind of nightclub before so I was expecting the stereotypical techno music, strobe lights and fog machine. That’s exactly what we got at Tresor. We had a blast! And it’s great that Germans can’t dance because it made me feel better about how ridiculous I looked. What a great night – and looking forward to day 3!

-AB

Alexa’s Blog – Day 1

When finally we landed in Berlin after a long night and day filled with delays and lost luggage, I was so tired that I could even begin to think about starting our tour of the city. After meeting the tour guides, it was clear that there would be no time for rest and we would be promptly be thrust into all the splendor that Berlin has to offer.

holocaust memorialI am so thankful for our guides for keeping us awake and thinking. Today’s bus tour of Berlin was such an easy and convenient way to see the city and get the overview of some stunning landmarks that I can’t wait to see up close and in person in the future. We made a short stop at the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and, like most Holocaust remembrance sites, the meaning and physical representation wour as chilling.

After taking a moment to recharge and browse some local shops, we ended the bus tour in front of our hotel, which apparently has the strangest and most European things – a pull-out bed, two bathrooms (sort of), complimentary beverages in the fridge, and a quirky layout and color scheme.

Our down time was short lived and we headed out to our first official dinner as a group at a biergarten-style restaurant that pulled out all the stops in our delicious meal. I also ordered my first beer tonight from an actual restaurant! It’s the little things you can do overseas that you can’t do at home that get you excited.IMG_1713

So far, I have been running on about an hour and a half of sleep since yesterday evening when we boarded our Delta flight. I do not sleep well on transportation (trains, buses, cars, you name it), and my parents had me paranoid about the small crack in the plane’s nose from a previous flight. Between the two issues, I did not sleep a wink from Pittsburgh to Paris, leading to a very testy, yet delirious Alexa all day long. Tomorrow aims to be much less stressful and I can’t wait to spend the day at Freie University and exploring Berlin!

 

Alexa

 

Alexa’s Bio

IMG_1229Hello, dear readers!

My name is Alexa Blanchard and I am a rising junior at Point Park University where I major in multimedia and minor in marketing. I am so excited to blog about our once in a lifetime trip to Germany!

It’s hard to believe that in a few short days we will be boarding our plane at the Pittsburgh International Airport and headed overseas. I came from college a few days ago and between working, unpacking, and a collection of other responsibilities, I’ve hardly had time to relax. I can’t wait to get to Germany take a break from life for a while, even though we will still be plenty busy with our dizzying amount of media and cultural visits.

What am I excited the most about? I feel like there’s too much to list: tours of Berlin and Munich, a side trip to Dachau Concentration Camp (honestly I’m just going to cry the whole time), visiting Neuschwanstein Castle, taking in the nightlife, sampling the food, and exploring the country, just to name a few. I’m hoping to make it to a sports bar or two – who knows, maybe they’ll even be nice enough to put the Pens game on for me. It’s not like I can take a break from the playoffs.

That being said, I still have to pack, get some money changed, and just take care of business overall. I can’t wait to head back to Pittsburgh on Friday. Then on Saturday I’ll be ready to brave the Port Authority buses and hope they get me to the airport on time. Here’s to strategic planning!

Bis demnächst – until next time,

Alexa