Perspectives of an Ami

I think that in flying over eight/nine time zones that the speed of time also increased. I'm quite sure that I have neither been in Berlin for the month my calendar claims I have nor could it possibly be February already. Wow!

This past week I went to the Allied Museum, an old Stasi interrogation jail, and spent last night wandering the city for the Long Night of the Museums! I have also begun planning my trips outside of Germany and just today, booked some tickets! I can't believe I only have six months left.

For each of our content courses (courses outside of those in German Language), we need to attend different museums or installations around the city. So on Tuesday, for our course on Integration and Security, Madeline and I went to the Allied Museum. It tells the story of the relationship between Germany and the Allies in the post-war years, especially focusing on the West Berlin Airlift in 1948-49. Much of the museum is dedicated to honoring the mostly American troops and civilians who are perceived as bringing democracy and invited Westernization to Germany.

The museum was interesting and definitely provided an accessible source of Cold War knowledge. And although it was very much favorable toward the States, I felt out of place and unsure of the responsibility I had there. Being not overly patriotic, to say the least, it is normally quite easy for me to be overly critical and disassociate myself with my homeland. I would say that the majority of Germans share my opinion about the U.S.: the government has sucked for the past 8 years, a lot of the people are uneducated and ignorant, most of us are arrogant, but there are some fantastic people too and they thankfully don't hold the negative things against us. But then to attend a museum dedicated in gratefulness to the "hospitality" shown by the U.S., I don't know how to take positive responsibility for it. They had some "artifacts" from the Cold War period in my Germany and my heart hurt a little when I saw the blue and white U.S. Postal Service box...

Friday morning we had another full group excursion where we bundled up, piled in trams, and dragged our tired feet to what used to be a Stasi jail and interrogation facility. During the Soviet occupation period (1945 -1949), it was a much more crude holding facility where inmates (anyone from anti-socialists to capitalists to nazis) were barely given bread and watery soup. These are a few pictures of some of the torture methods used. One of them is called water torture... but of course we don't use that one anymore.

When East Germany was founded in 1949, the Stasi (E. German secret police) took over and built a building next to the existing one. Although the Stasi is not thought to have used physical violence, their methods of emotional and psychological torture are ridiculously intricate and sophisticated. At its height, the Stasi employed more than 90,000 people, none of whom were professionally punished after the fall of the wall. Al of the doctors who broke all oaths of secrecy, all of the psychologists who used their degrees for harm and inhumane treatment, all of the people who caused undeserved jailtime, familial separation, and death still have their licenses, jobs and are still living here. I know there were a lot of redeemable qualities about East Germany, but the Stasi sure wasn't one of them.

This is one of the interrogation rooms used. There is so much strategic symbolism in where everything is placed, even in how the interrogator dresses and interacts with the prisoner.

The tour was very informative, if not bloody cold, but it's still very difficult to imagine the types of things that were happening to innocent people 20 years ago.

Yesterday I did a lot a homework- I wrote a three page paper all in German!- and then met up with my German friend Marco and three Americans friends and we went to what is called the Long night at the Museums. We walked around the Bode Museum on Museum Island and then went to a museum behind the Neue Wache where we watched a neat concert of like Indian/Pakistani music meets Japanese meets American blues. And although I was exhausted and had to sit on the floor, it was really neat. I will post the name later, but I would definitely look it up.

All in all, it's been a good week. It's ridiculous how completely immersed in the culture we all are here. Even if you miss one point the professor makes in class, chances are you'll read about it in reading, talk about it with your host family, or randomly come across it again on an outing. So crazy. Maybe I don't need to study for tests, I can just learn through immersion! Just kidding, Fr. Cobb!

Speaking of cultural immersion, I've planned some trips for the coming few months and just bought tickets today! On Thursday, I'm flying up to Norway where my friend Lucas, from Seattle U is getting his masters. I'll just be there for the weekend, but it will be nice to get out of Berlin for a minute and see him! Then two weeks after that, I'm going to Spain with Madeline for our week long "spring break". I don't know if you can call it spring break when it's in february and it's still 54 degrees in Madrid, but it will be lots of fun! Then, I have a friend who is staying in Florence, so Madeline and I are going down there for a weekend as well! Finally, we have our full group excursion to Paris and Amsterdam coming up in the end of March, which leads us right up to the end of the semester when I should probably be studying anyway!!
If anyone has any suggestions of things to do in these places or places to go (or avoid) and people to see, let me know! Especially Spain!

Well, it's Sunday afternoon and unfortunately, the last page of my German essay just won't write itself. I love hearing from you all, so drop me a line sometime!
Again, I love you all so much and just the fact that you are reading this (and have reached the end) means the world to me.
Love,
Tess