Melissa Seuffert (archive)

7/13/08

Hello all!

The time has come for me to bid farewell to Germany. As I sit here in my apartment on this Sunday afternoon, I’m filled with mixed emotions about leaving and going home. This huge chapter of my life has no come to an end and I have to say, what a chapter it was! This year has been simply amazing ... what am I going to do now? I have this new sense of self, can speak fluent German, have seen a huge chunk of Europe and have formed an addiction to German bakeries that I sadly have to say “Auf Wiedersehen” to. I have to say goodbye to my friends and my family and head back to real life after what seems like waking up from a wonderful dream. Back to school to finish my last classes and graduate, and then we’ll see. Maybe I’ll find myself back here in a few years working on a master’s, but only time will tell I suppose.

The only advice I can give you is this: If you want to learn the language, if you want to be immersed in a culture so rich and full of life and history, and if you want to simply have a life-changing experience, then come to Germany. Study, work, do research, or just get on a plane and come over for a vacation! Take advantage of all the study abroad opportunities that are out there, because while we’re young, this is one of the best chances we have to “figure out” who we are and where we want to be. Without DAAD, there is no way I would be here, and so for one last time, I have to say a big thank you to them! I will never forget this experience and will remain eternally grateful for the chance you gave me this year.

And for all of you out there teeter-tottering and wondering if you should go for it, just do it! Apply for the scholarships and take the chance, I promise it will be worth it.

So I must be off and end this blog, feel free to contact me with any questions you might have about my experience in Germany and with DAAD! Thanks to all out there who have kept up and joined me on this journey, I wish you all the best and hope that one day, you’ll all have a German adventure of your own J

Liebe Grüße aus Mainz,

Melissa

Posted by melissa.seuffert at July 13, 2008 11:34 AM EDT

6/11/08

The end is near ...
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Again, where has the time gone? It seems like every day is shorter than the one before, and before I know it, I'm in the (almost) middle of June! So here is an update on life the past month:

It has been beautiful outside, classes are going good, and I'm doing everything in my power to enjoy every last minute in Germany while I can. At the end of May, DAAD held a meeting for a section of scholarship holders in Aachen, and I went, not really with any expectations, but ended up having the greatest time! I met people from all over the world from Africa to Asia to the British Isles to Mexico, and even someone from good ol' Houston (small world, huh?) It was a wonderful opportunity to put faces with names and get a chance to meet some of the people responsible for giving me this opportunity in Germany. Aachen itself is a beautiful city (I had been there once before), and so the combination of cultural, educational and fun activities they had planned were great. Thank you DAAD!

Direct after Aachen I shot up to Amsterdam to visit a friend from home, took in two days in the Dutch capital (trucking through rain, might I add) before heading back to Mainz. It was a gorgeous city and getting lost wandering along the different canals was by far my favorite part of the exploring. I did fit a lot into the two days though, visiting the Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh museum, Rijksmuseum and a photo exhibition. I have to go back sometime, just unfortunately not on this trip!

Then, the following weekend it was off to Hannover to visit family friends, always a pleasure to be able to do! We even took a day and went to Hamburg, which I fell in love with! I do have to say, however, that I don't know if there is any place in Germany that I'm not in love with. Have you been here? I mean, it's great all around :)

You can probably know now guess what the most exciting and amazing and highlight of June is for me: The European Soccer Championships! My life now consists of sleeping, eating, class and soccer. Between public viewings and fluttering around catching games when we can, it has been so much fun. Germany beat Poland 2:0 on Sunday and plays Croatia tomorrow, so I have my face paint ready and cannot wait. What can I say? I am my father's daughter, the German blood in my veins prevents me from being anything other than a soccer aficionado. The atmosphere and optimism throughout the country is amazing, only time will tell but I'm keeping my fingers crossed they go all the way!

I have only 5 and a half weeks left before heading back to Houston. I can't believe that a year has passed and before long, I'm going to be back to real life. I don't even want to THINK about all of the stuff I'm going to miss here, even though I am excited to get back to my family and friends at home.

5 and a half weeks. And I still have a long list of things to do ... I better get started on that.

(but of course, stay tuned for details on the end of my adventures!)

Posted by melissa.seuffert at June 11, 2008 5:17 AM EDT

5/14/08

An unforgettable match
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Last night I had the opportunity to experience something really special. If you've read this blog a little bit, then you undoubtedly saw a post back in November when I attended the Germany v. Wales European Championship qualification match. I guess if you think about it, that's the closest you can come to seeing a national team play in either a World or European Cup game, so of course it was a huge highlight of the trip for me. Here's my story:

About a week ago, roomie Anne (who hails from Darmstadt), told me a little story. Darmstadt has a soccer team, but they're in the 3rd league and therefore not one of the "major" teams in Germany. (Mainz has a team too, they're in the 2nd league, in case you were wondering). Anyway, the SV Darmstadt 98 are broke. Really broke, and they owe a little over 1 million Euros, which if they cannot pay, the team will be dissolved as of next year. From what I've heard from all of Anne's friends that I've gotten to know, the soccer team is a huge part of the city with a solid fan base, but the 3,000 some odd fans who go to games every week unfortunately weren't enough to keep the Verein afloat. That's when some German champions decided to step in.

Now, I don't know the nitty gritty of how this all happened, but, FC Bayern Munich (you know, probably the most famous German Bundesliga team) agreed to play a benefit match against Darmstadt IN Darmstadt. For a stadium that holds 20,000 and a town of about 130,000, this was a HUGE deal. The game sold out, and all that was left to do was go and hope that some of the current "greats" of soccer would be there.

And they were. German players Podolski, Schweinsteiger and Lahm were among those who played, and the first half was also graced with Brasilian Ze Roberto. Luca Toni (an Italian) was also there, and even though he didn't play, he sat on the bench and took a lot of time out to sign autographs. I was a little sad that Olli Kahn and Miroslav Klose weren't there, but for a benefit match against a 3rd league team, Bayern really did give the people what they paid for. There was a little while when we even thought "the Lilien" had a chance ... they were up 4-2 before Bayern kicked it up a notch and took the game 11-5. Either way, the atmosphere there was amazing, the Lilien fans supported their team and a small city gained a little more hope that their Fussball tradition would hold on a little longer. There are still no details on how much money was raised, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

All in all, May has been pretty great so far. I had my birthday at the beginning of the month, which will be one I'll never forget. The weather has been unbelievably beautiful, sunny and warm and not a cloud in the sky. I've spent afternoons laying on the Rhein and enjoying all of the German holidays we've had (and still will have, it's like that this time of year they tell me). It's hard to believe that I've been in Germany 11 months and only have a little more than 2 more to go.

Can someone please tell me where the time has gone and what I gotta do to make it last a little longer? I guess I'll just have to make sure to enjoy every last bit!

Posted by melissa.seuffert at May 14, 2008 10:40 AM EDT

4/28/08

The language barrier
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I'm taking a French course this semester outside of my University lectures and of course, it's French taught in German. I have to say, I thought it wouldn't be too bad, but maybe I was overestimating my "language learning" abilities. Now that I think about it, it did take me a while to get the whole German thing down.

I have English and German grammar in my head, French words that I can't pronounce correctly because we're taught how to prounce them using "German" pronunciation charts, and a class full of people who probably are wondering how I've gotten through the last 10 months at all, seeing as I'm so confused with the 3 languages bundled up in my head that I barely even speak.

It's a challenge, but one I'm taking on full force. I've learned since being here how wonderful it is to be able to communicate with people all over the world, and I'm trying really hard to burst through that "Americans are too lazy to learn our languages, so we have to all speak English" stigma. You really see a difference in how people react to you when you start off with something small in their native tounge.

But right now I'm all jumbled, finding myself saying things to my father like "I transferred the Geld" or "I bought some really good Brot today". Let's just hope that I don't end up with some weird English-German-French concoction. Who knows what that would end up like.

I mean, I am already starting to forget English words. It presents problems when I'm trying to tell a story to someone at home.

IBut 'm working through it, and giving some people back home a good laugh :)

Posted by melissa.seuffert at April 28, 2008 3:48 PM EDT