First: Yes there will be more updates from the last; I've been too busy trying to deal with what I'm about to describe to write posts about all the really incredible experiences I've had since the Bulgarian party.

"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education." - Mark Twain

Part of my "mission" here is to encourage other geeks (Software & Info Systems, Comp Sci, etc) to study abroad. At UNCC, our college lags behind all the others in the percentage of students who take advantage of our pretty solid education abroad programs. So, while the business students are enjoying Australian beaches and German beer, and getting a totally different and fresh perspective on their discipline at the same time, geeks are stuck in Charlotte to continue to in-breed ideas without significant external influence and with a growing vitamin D deficiency.

"A fool's brain digests philosophy into folly, science into superstition, and art into pedantry. Hence University education." - George Bernard Shaw

However, I just can't in good conscience encourage other geeks to explore the world. It's too damn risky in our college at UNCC... Australia went off pretty smooth because I fulfilled all my honors requirements when the SIS people wouldn't work with me. Now I'm in Germany, with no honors requirements, and in serious danger of losing my whole scholarship because I didn't apply for classes with other UNCC students... a month before lists of classes were even available in Germany! That's right, even though the German semester is one month behind the US, if you're in Woodward then you'll be expected to somehow predict which German classes will be offered during the following semester and to apply for their respective counterparts at UNCC.

Here's how it's supposed to work:

Since it's often impossible to register for classes or even to know which classes are available in the destination country before you arrive, the office of education abroad reserves a special "blank" 12 credit hour class for you. Once you return with your transcript from the foreign university, the office of education abroad then uses a grade table to translate the foreign grades into local grades, and substitutes the courses you took abroad for the 12 credit hour placeholder.

"College isn't the place to go for ideas." - Helen Keller

And that's a great system! If your professors will go for it... otherwise, you end up stranded in another country weeks after UNCC has started classes, and maybe that other country doesn't even HAVE class registrations (*cough* Germany) so you find out about the courses by attending their first lectures. Once you painstakingly translate everything that's in (German) to English on the various websites where the course outlines and books get posted, and try to get in touch with your professors back home to work out an exchange agreement, you're told that UNCC registration has already closed and you just won't be getting any credit this semester. Now your scholarship is in peril. Awesome!

"A university is what a college becomes when the faculty loses interest in students." - John Ciardi

So anyway - just don't do it. If you're a geek and you want to travel, go to a university whose version of Woodward embraces international exchange. Chapel Hill, for example. Or Caltech. Something more low-key? Wilmington! Anyplace but UNCC...

On my way to being a pauper,
Hunter

My whole life I've been underestimating the amazing fortitude, tenacity, and determination shown by any immigrant who's just trying to integrate into society. /Especially/ a society with a language in which he is weak and where he has a limited support network. I've lived in something like 10 apartments since I was 18 (I'm 23 now) and it has /never/ been this hard to find one. I imagine how I would respond to a request to live with me in, say, Spanish back home, where the guy says, "Lo siento, pero no comprendo mucho ingles. Espero que hablas espanol. Tienes un cuarto para mi?" I probably wouldn't respond, either. Well - that's how I'm being treated now.

Also, I just discovered that the laundry room requires some bullshit laundry card. Great. I figure, if you make something more difficult for a guest than it would be in a cheap hostel, you're doing something wrong. Tonight, I shower with my clothes. I hope I'm not allergic to laundry detergent...

(photo of me with clothes)

It seems like my bad luck always turns to good. After I washed my clothes, I heard a sort of thrumming sound, like a party in the distance. I opened my window and it sort of sounded like it came from outside, but above me. I followed the sound through the stairwell and came to a very loud door with pulsing music. Curious, I opened it into a crowd of surprised Bulgarians. Apparently the Bulgarian student association decided to throw an impromptu party... they thought I was upset, and turned down the music. It took a moment for me to explain in English that I wasn't bothered, just curious, and then they pulled me into the party and gave me drinks. Guys - you've never seen a woman dance until you've seen a Bulgarian woman dance. It's ridiculous. So... now my clothes will be wet tomorrow because I just hung them up to dry, and I think it's time for bed.

Ouch. First bad day of the whole trip. Bureaucrats are the same no matter where you go, I think. So here's the deal: Alex and Melanie helped me check into Steingarten today. They're freaking troopers. I need to buy them flowers and chocolate. Two groups of problems: the contract and the place.

The Contract.
At the WG office we met another exchange student, Marie-Claire, from Quebec. She's similar to me in that she barely knows German, she plans to travel a bit at the end of all this, and she's at the same stage in her housing stuff. So when she was about to sign the housing contract and saw that they had converted her "1 Semester" (which is literally what it says on our application) to "1 Year" (except in German, so it's difficult to notice the difference if you aren't a native speaker), she decided not to use the Uni WG and warned me about /my/ contract. So I went in to ask about that and, yes, they also changed /my/ term from one semester to one year without informing me. Nice, eh? Apparently they don't even offer 1-semester terms but they don't know how to change the website.

So I said, "Sorry, that won't work for me." No dice. They claim I've already signed the contract... which isn't true. I've signed ONE contract that exclusively says "Mannheim is allowed to withdraw from this account to pay rent," but I never signed (or even really understood) the other, much more complex, 100% German contract about the location and terms of my lease. So no, I didn't sign that, and that's easily provable because I haven't /been in the country/ so anything I've "signed" has been via e-mail, and my e-mail records show nothing of any contract with dates or locations on it. I asked them to provide me with a copy of the signed contract they claim to have, and they were unable to locate it in their records. She then told me that I should go the Steingarted itself and talk to the housemeister because he should have the contract. So... I made the 40 minute journey (later we found out it can be done in 20) out of Mannheim and into Wohnheim, where Steingarten is hidden in a big forest of nothingness and other apartments that look like mental institutions. The housemeister has no contract from me, either. On the other hand, I don't really have a place to stay right now. I've been sleeping on Alex's couch. So... the housemeister gives me the keys anyway, so now I have a free room. Cool. I'll use this as a home base while I look for an apartment that's actually in the city.

(thumbnail of the one I signed) (thumb of the one I didn't sign)

The Place:
As I mentioned, Steingarten is in a separate place linked by train to Mannheim station, called Wohnheim. Original, yes. So there's absolutely nothing here... every time I mention to a local that I live in Steingarten, they either ask, "Where is Steingarten?" or they suck in their breath, shake their heads, and look at me with pity. There's a park, a bowling alley, a retirement home, and a kindergarten. The train/bus stops coming here at 11. Now I'm doubly glad I didn't sign the contract. There has *got* to be something available in the city.

So now that I'm here I planned to get my room at Steingarten ("Rock Garden"). It's a university apartment... when I went to Sydney I chose to not do Uni housing at first in order to find a better deal myself. After discovering the paucity of apartments in the area I eventually went with the uni anyway. This time around, I decided to save myself the trouble by applying for uni housing from the beginning. Unfortunately, the WG office (Wohnen = "Apartment") is only open for a few hours on Tuesday and Thursday. Weird, huh? I guess I'll get my keys tomorrow.

I also met Alex, my VISUM buddy. This "buddy" program is a great idea... they hook you up with a local student who helps you out with stuff, and you actually /know someone/ when you get here. Fantastic. Plus, Alex is really great... she's fun and extremely patient and excellent with English. And she has weird (but good) friends. So tonight we went out with Melanie and Mira and Christoph to a fantastic club in the Jugenburg (sp?) area, "SoHo." I can't vouch for other nights but on Mondays they play a really groovy lineup that makes for great dancing. Average bar. Good atmosphere; gets hot - wear ventilated clothing. The whole Jugenburg (sp?) area is very hip and bohemian... I'd like to live here.

Richie let me stay over at his place last night. Today I left Berlin for Mannheim at 2:30 after kisses from Julie. It was hard to get on the train. I was getting some food in the restaurant car when the Mannheim stop was announced... the train was overbooked so, between that and all the people lining up to leave, and my car being 5 cars away, I missed my stop and had to "circle" back on the next train. I arrived late into town and all the hostels were full (all the students on the train were returning to school). I was pointed to another hostel further from the station, which was closed, but I met two other travelers, Philip and Eva, outside its door. We couldn't afford rooms on our own but we split a hotel room together.

Park with Dustin, then went to Rich's, then to a beach bar on top of a tall building. That's an interesting mix... you feel like you should be at sea level, but you're looking out over the city. Tried to get in touch with Julie but nobody's phone was working.

Woke up late with a headache. I begin to see a pattern forming. We met Dustin's best ladyfriend Julie at Zoologischer Garten station. At first I thought she was shy but she's really vivacious; it just took some time for her to acclimate to speaking with me in English, and she's quite good at it. Dustin & Julie used me as an excuse to explore the most turistic parts of their city. Here's Julie in the Beateuhse sex shop:

(Show photo of the sex shop (Beateuhse) w/ Julie)

Later in the night we met up with Richie and ventured to the Bar Der Visionare ("The Bar of the Visionary" - guaya, ya?). Julie drove - stick shifting like something out of the Bourne identity in her tiny little car. This place is a beach bar (sand-filled areas, tiki torches, right by the river) and has the best Long Island Iced Teas I've ever had. Really, I think that's the test of a bar tender: LIITs that taste like delicious iced tea and not some horrid coke nightmare, but still knock you out sip by sip. Met some Americans there - Chris and Suzy. It's great how you meet Americans (/Australians/Canadians) just by speaking English somewhere. They left with us, and then we got lost on the way to the car (somehow) and went dancing at some random 80's bar because Dustin saw a tall girl with nice legs inside. Getting lost turned out to be great (it usually does) after dancing to (examples of music?). Lots more drinking from Dustin & me (Julie was driving) and a really great night out. Eventually we got to Dustin's around 5am, chatted for a while, and fell asleep.

We woke up pretty late today, after hanging out for so long last night. Dustin made a fantastic breakfast of eggs with bacon and tomatoes.

There's a geek conference tonight, the Online Marketing Lounge. This sort of thing is common in places like New York, Silicon Valley, LA, Tokyo, London, Berlin, etc, but not really in Charlotte. Since I'm a professional in Online Marketing I think it would be really cool to check out. Dustin is in a related field, and has some great ideas of his own about web development. We're both looking forward to this thing... problem is, Dustin and Robert (a friend of his, also a geek like us) both have tickets, but I was "at sea" on the ferry while the ticket option was available. Dustin has come up with a scheme to get me in: I'll announce that I'm a big-shot Web Developer from America when we get there, and flash some business cards, and boom: free drinks.

(photo of Online Marketing Lounge flyer)

Catch is, I don't /have/ any business cards. I mean, I do, at home - some quite nice ones... rounded corners, gloss, full color, custom design... the works. I wasn't really planning to pick up business in Germany though so I left them behind. There's a print shop down the road, so I have a sketchbook, Photoshop, and about twenty minutes to make business cards. I think /these/ are actually much hotter than my fancy cards. I plan to replace the design when I get home with my new sketch theme:

(photos)

We got bad information from a quick google search about standard biz card sizing, so it was a little too wide and had to be cut off. Doesn't lose much though, makes it look edgy and artistic I think. We literally printed them on one sheet of card stock and cut them out by hand.

Somehow that crazy German's scheme worked! I left some cards with the girl checking tickets and joined Dustin and Robert for free drinks all night! These Berliners know how to throw a Web 2.0 party: open bar, lots of big digital displays, a kicker (fuseball) table, venture capitalists and angel investors from all over the world. We were pretty young at 23, but the oldest guys were about 35 and there was a steady stream of absolutely stunning women making the rounds. I'm pretty sure they're not developers or entrepreneurs... my guess is the German version of Silicon Valley groupies. It was pretty exciting; the looks they were giving us suggested that they thought we were successful "Online Marketers" rather than a few geeks still in uni with hand-made business cards for somewhat defunkt businesses.

The Train to Berlin. This was my favorite ride yet; first, I discovered that German trains sell very good beer. You can get something like a pint of (look it up... hezestanzle? heizenkeiner?). After a few of those, the train ride seemed quite exciting and I got into an artistic mood. I took out my sketchbook and did a couple illustrations from newspaper and mag photos, and some self portraits in the dark glass of the train:

(photos here)

Eventually I was building up something of an audience in the restaurant/bar carriage. One nice fellow introduced himself: Moustafa Mohamed Hazaa. who runs Moustafa Mohamed Hazaa & Co. out of Tanta City, Egypt. They manufacture automobile parts for Toyotas, Hyundais, and a few other makes. He was a really cool guy and asked if I'd do a sketch of him, which of course was great practice for me. So I did - here they are side by side; I took a quick snapshot on the train before I gave it to him. He was such a nice fellow that he invited me to stay for a bit in Egypt to tour his city and factory. I'm trying to work that into my plans right now.

So, I got to Berlin and Dustin, who I'll be staying with while I'm here, met me at the station. I think he deserves some background - he's quite a character. I met Dustin in Sydney, Spring 2007. We lived together as neighbors for months, except it was something more than neighbors. There was a whole gang of us, and I think Nikki said it best: "(I hope she doesn't mind me quoting her - ask first)." Here's a photo of all of us - Dustin is the two-meter-tall one:

(photo)

It was really fantastic to hang out with him again... we parted ways over a year ago, but I felt transported back to Australia. Dustin immediately introduced me to Doner, which is the famous and popular Germano-Turkish fast food common throughout this country. They slowly cook giant sections of meat on rotisseries and shave off slices into a sort of flatbread, top it with vegetables and sauces, and usually charge about $3 EUR. Later that night we met up with Richie (also from Australia, but Dustin's longest friend) and they gave me the walking & drinking tour of Berlin. I was dazzled by the public drinking and the beer at every shop imaginable. Bars are rendered useless because you can just buy beer wherever you are, and when you finish it you are inevitably standing next to another place with a large selection of beer. It took a while to get comfortable just putting the bottles in random places; apparently they're worth something if you return them, so instead of throwing them away it's common practice to sort of stash them somewhere so people who need the money can collect them.

Got to see Katerina in her natural habitat (the Hotel Vivienne... a really nice place, btw, if you want to stay in Paris in style). I haven't seen her in a long while and just dropped by as she's leaving for the Czech Republic, her home, in two days.

So, I took a train to Rosslare from Dublin, then took a ferry from Dublin to Che...something in France, where I stayed for roughly one hour to eat lunch with some really nice girls I met the night before on the ferry. Rant about ferries and eurail later...

For now, I'm in Paris. Got here last night with enough time to catch a train at 7 to Mannheim, but Katerina is here so I'm seeing a little of her, first time in two years. I don't really like Paris so I'm looking forward to visiting her in the Czech Rep. Catching that train later today after checking out the museum of Erotic Art.

Note to single guys:

I recommend Richard's Hotel in Paris. Don't be fooled by the name, it's a Hostel. In a decent location near some cheap shops, and it's cheap for Paris ($20 EUR/night). Plus, from what I can see, it's the favorite hostel of girls from Spain, Italy, and other parts of France. I didn't realize I booked a mixed quad (as I don't speak French) until I walked in on the 3 girls.

I'm not exactly single right now, but maybe someone will benefit from this.

Last night was my last in Dublin. The other guys from the hostel were headed out for some pool and clubbing, but I felt a little like being alone. Backpacking around you're constantly around people - you wake surrounded by people, shower with people, go out with people, eat with people, and go to bed with people. So - sometimes, it's nice to take a stroll by yourself.

In this case, I got lost. I wandered south of the river hoping to find some Irish music in a pub at Temple Bar. However, Temple Bar is a place for fun, but not genuine Irish-ness, if you get my meaning. It's become Dublin's main tourist attraction. So I didn't find what I was seeking... instead, I kept walking, hoping for something a little more cozy. I didn't find that either and ended up lost in the eye of a storm at St. Patrick's Cathedral.

Charlotte also has a St. Pat's. It's across the street from my parents' house, so I saw it every morning as a child waking up. Being near its big brother made me feel almost as if I were taking a stroll at home, so I sat by it for a while.

I asked a young thirty-ish man walking by to "point me north," because I could find my hostel from the river. He (Glen) asked me where I was headed and, upon hearing I wanted a pint and some food, invited me to have a drink with him. He was on his way to some late work at his office in the city and wanted a walk first, because like me, he does a lot of work alone, indoors, and from home. Of course I followed him and he took me to my now-favorite bar in Dublin: The Lord Edward. The Guinness is cheaper than anyplace I've been, and better, everyone is pleasant, it's very intimate, and the atmosphere takes you back to when England, rather than the US, was colonizing places. Go there.

In any case, we planned on a pint but spent the whole night there - Glen invited his girlfriend Pilar over, and she was quite nice. They're both fascinating people who have traveled all over the world - Glen is a designer as well (I think much better than me) and he builds graphics for an Irish TV station. We kept drinking over stories of African bribes and South American extortion, and eventually Pilar went home. A couple hours later Glen and I stumbled somewhere to get some food and then he led me to a point from which I could find my place. It was maybe the nicest night I've spent with a complete stranger.

Anyone planning to visit Dublin - I do recommend Brown's Hostel. You can't beat the price ($11 EUR) and the location is spot-on, the group hangout area is fantastic, they provide free wifi, and for the most part it's reasonably clean. The bathrooms and showers, however, could use some work:

I highly recommend it. I've traveled before with friends and girlfriends (and both), and each method has its particular benefits. With a traveling companion, you always have someone to hang out with and someone to watch your back; shared responsibility can certainly ease the stress that comes from being in unfamiliar places amongst unfamiliar cultures. This is the first time I've had to bear that alone.

However, the people who gain the least of the unique benefits of backpacking, hosteling, etc, are invariably the couples or large groups. Especially romantic couples. I've seen many pass through the hostel over just the last four days and none of them have really mixed with the rest of us. And how could you make such a sacrifice?


We played "President's Asshole" (a bad translation), a card game popular with these beautiful French hostelers, with everyone drinking and the languages changing from English to French to Spanish ... and I looked across the room to see a couple chatting quietly and playing solitaire alone.

I get a feeling of complete independence... I'm in a place where nobody knows me, where I have the final say over what I do and when. It becomes a vacation from compromises. For example, yesterday afternoon I ran into Karin at the reception desk:


...and ended up having a fantastic night out with her without trying to work her into my group's plans. The only Swede I've met here is also a viking during the summer!

Dublin is a lovely city. There's a mix of old and new architecture, cobblestone streets and paved motorways. The city is divided north and south by the river Liffey. My hostel (Browns Hostel) is one of the cheapest here at $11 EUR/nightly (if you purchase in advance, otherwise $20 EUR) and is about five minutes north of the river and five east of O'Connel street, which is one of Dublin's main thoroughfares.


Just south of the river is the area around St. Stephen's Green which has my favorite bars and nightclubs thusfar. Nearby is the Temple Bar area that hosts most of the small live music shows.

As a refreshing change from Charlotte, Dublin has mostly pedestrian traffic, and the vehicles show a greater variety and economy than is typical of the US:


One thing that's surprised me is the amount of panhandlers here. Apparently Ireland just saw a great economic boom that is now being followed by a quick recession where many skilled immigrants are returning to their homes, leaving a smaller demand for unskilled workers and putting some on the streets (this is all from locals). I've been impressed with some who find ingenious ways of self-employment and expression.

Most American airlines let you carry some pretty serious baggage anywhere you go. In Europe, not so much. Is it because Americans buy and lug around more stuff? Maybe, but European travelers tend to have a "home base" where they can leave the majority of their stuff when traveling to other EU countries. You, crossing roughly 3,000 miles of ocean, won't have that luxury. And they'll charge you for it.

I was planning to use RyanAir for a quick hop from Dublin to Germany ($150 USD). When booking my trip, I clicked on their 8pt font baggage details link and found that I can carry a maximum of 15kg (33 lbs) of luggage, and everything over that is billed at $9 EUR ($13 USD) per kilo! I pack pretty light but I'm staying for five months and two seasons here and also doing computer science research, so I have various bits of heavy computer equipment and reference books with me. Not happy.

That's when I discovered the hottness that is the Eurail Select Youth pass.

And this place is fantastic! I love the city. It's compact and bustling, full of pedestrians and characters. Photos and details soon.

Current (flexible) plans: Leave Dublin on Sunday for Carry - Ferry to France - Train to Paris, visit Katerina - Train to Mannheim, drop off my stuff, meet Alex & Eva - Train to Berlin, stay with Dustin - Train to Heidelberg, visit Philipp - Train to Mannheim, start uni.

Last year (Spring 07) UNCC sent me to study at Macquarie Uni in Sydney, Australia. In two days I’m leaving for Mannheim Uni in Germany via Dublin, London, and Paris. Completing a degree takes most American students 4-5 years, but there’s no reason you have to spend all of them stuck in Charlotte. The Office of Education Abroad will send you elsewhere for up to three semesters! I’m here to show you the good, the bad, and the ugly about studying abroad with UNCC.

4 Misconceptions about Studying Abroad

1. “Studying abroad is prohibitively expensive”

   If you play it smart, you can save tons of money by traveling as a student and taking advantage of the deals UNCC has worked out with places all over the world. Normal tuition at Macquarie is AUD $8,600 per semester, or $7,433 USD. However, as a UNCC exchange student, you’re only responsible for the same UNCC tuition you would pay staying in Charlotte. I paid $2,148 in tuition and used the other $5k to learn more about windsurfing and Australian beer. Plus, UNCC offers a variety of scholarships for students in particular fields or with certain destinations. This semester I’ll be spending less to live in Germany and travel throughout Europe than I would spend at home in my ultra-cheap UT apartment eating Ramen.



2. “My GPA isn’t high enough to study abroad”

   Grades help. Definitely. But they aren’t as important as you probably think, or John McCain wouldn’t even be a contender. Do you have a 2.0 or better? Congratulations, you’re eligible!



3. “Studying abroad will delay my graduation”

   UNCC is great, but there are plenty of other places where you can find classes to fulfill your degree requirements. Depending on what kind of crazy scheme you can talk your department chairs into signing off on through your Exchange Agreement (more on this later), you can even give yourself an academic boost.



4. “I don’t speak another language, so I can’t go anywhere”

   Other than the obvious UK, Ireland, Australia, and Canada, plenty of universities offer courses in English specifically for uncultured people like you and me. Also, you might be surprised by places where English is an official national language. Malta, anyone?