5596kmawayfromhome-blog

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Let the final games begin

Here we’re! The last week has started. Honestly, I don’t really know how to think about it. On the one side I’m more than happy that I finally can go home but on the other side going home means that everything is over. Another chapter is closed after the Highschool. I was so excited for the time here. After the booking I counted the day to go here. Than when I arrived I counted the day  until I can go home again and know only 5 days left. It’s crazy. I’m excited what will come know. I know that I’m gonna start studying but I don’t know where. But back to the point. Going home means saying goodbye to so many people I probably will never see again e.g. my roommates. I have the most amazing and best roommates I could ever ask for. By the way I changed my room from a double to a multi room the day before Christmas break that is the reason why I have two roommate know, my old one and a new one from Argentina. 

In the last two week nothing special happened. This weekend I had my final TOEFL test so I had to study the last week. The weekend before we went to the One World Observatory again and it was amazing even though it was my second time there. 

I already know that I will miss New York so much. The feeling going there, seeing all the different people and strolling through the streets is special. New York is a world on its own. When I go there I feel kind of different. I’m the same person but going there means feeling a strength I never felt before. I don’t know how it well be coming back one day but I know that I will always connect something special and exciting with this city. It was my home for half a year and as everyone says “once a New Yorker always a New Yorker”.   

Coming home is different. I go back to my old life. Everyone goes back so we will never be together like this. I will miss my friends here and it will be strange not being around them the whole day. But I know we will meet. Moreover, I have my friends and family at home back so I think I will spend most of my time in the upcoming weeks with them doing all the stuff we weren’t able to do the last months.  

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Washington DC.

Last Saturday, we made the way to Washington DC. to see the center of power. I really wanted to go there during my stay in America and the fact that it was the weekend before the Trump becomes president of the United States was a oath and blessing at the same time. It was cool to see how the city looks shortly before the inauguration because it’s not usual but on the other side we didn’t have the opportunity to see the front site of the White house and many streets were blocked. 

We started in NY at 6:45 am an when we arrived in DC the weather was terrible. We left the bus and got wet immediately. Even though we made the walk though the city seeing the White House, the Washington memorial and in distance the Capitol. Our guide always gave us information about all the different presidents and the meaning of all symbols we saw on our walk. After that, we went to the Lincoln Memorial. I really like the gardens and the view from this place but because of the preparations the view wasn’t as it is supposed to be. The Jefferson Memorial was the next stop. I really like the fact that Washington reminds its visitors of the long history of the US with all the memorials. Every presidents links to a different period in history. Our last stop was the J.F. Kennedy Center of performing arts. It’s an opera house but it has a gallery with the flags of all the countries having an embassy in DC. Moreover, the flags of every US states are presented there. The architecture of the building is breathtaking with its red carpets and all the chandeliers. 

Day two started with the visit of the J.F. Kennedy tomb in the Arlington national cemetery. The view was amazing form the top of the hill of Arlington you are able to look all over Washington. Moreover, we saw the tomb of the unknown soldier and ceremony there. After that, we had time to explore the museums in Washington. We went near to the Capitol and took some pictures. Than we wanted to see the original Deceleration of Independence. The museum of national achievements hosts many historical papers we always talked about in my history class in Germany. 

All in all, it was really nice weekend and Washington wealth a journey.        

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going back home

When I stepped out of the security zone at Duesseldorf Airport the day before Christmas I honestly felt strange. I was back home after 14 weeks abroad. I didn't expect my friends being there but when I walked through the door I suddenly saw all my friends and my parents standing there and waiting for me. They woke up at 5 am just to pick me up from the airport. Obviously, I knew that my parents would be there but that I never expected others waiting for me. I was very tired because I wasn't able to sleep the whole flight but at the same time I was more than happy seeing all these people again. I wanna say thank you to everyone who was there because I thought that you would do this. I'm glad to call you my friends and as I wrote weeks before these times show me on who I can count on. I'm already exited for the day when I completely come back home in five weeks.

After that surprise I went home and my grandmother was so excited that she stood in front of the door to see me coming back. When I walked in out house she started crying because she was so happy that I was back. Christmas in general was like every year. I spent time with my family and friends and I ate too much.

After my holidays the day of saying goodbye again was there. It wasn't so hard than at the first time because I know that I'll be back soon but it was again a strange feeling leaving everything behind again and going back. But I have to say that I missed my friends in NY and my roommates during the time I was home. It's like living two lives in one. Being home was a completely different than being in NY and at the same time it was strange going back on campus. It's not that I don't like it but it is so different that I can't even describe.

All in all, I can say that my visit at home showed me how lucky I am that I can be in the situation to have two different lives at the same time.

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Almost Christmas

Home isn’t so far away anymore. Four days left until I’m going home. This means that more than three months are over and only six weeks in NY left. 

I’m more than excited going home for Christmas seeing all my family and friends again but at the same time I’m a bit scared how it will be being at “home” after such a long time. Moreover, I’m asking if the relationships to some people changed during the last months. I’m not sure if I can call Germany my home when I come back because in this moment it feels more like going on vacation than going home. I know that it’s my real home but I was’t there for such a long time and my life changed so much in the last few months. Sometimes, I’m thinking about if some people will say that I changed myself in some parts. Honestly, I have no clue about it if I changed. It feels like I’m the same person with different habits in a different place who lives in another place. I build myself a new life which is completely different from the life I lived before and I can say that I’m a bit proud about how I managed the last months abroad. I can’t say that it was always easy, especially in the beginning I had some difficulties, but I figured it out and in a few days I’m gonna sit in the plane and it’s almost Christmas. 

By the way, I made it for the first time in my life to have all my Christmas presents more than one week before Christmas Eve.

I didn’t write so much in the last weeks because of several reasons. Firstly, I changed all my classes into the TOEFL preparation class so I had to leave my blogging class where I wrote most of my blogposts. Secondly, we didn’t make so much in the last weeks. We had visited all the important sights in NY and during the christmas time the whole city is always so crowded. 

This weekend we wanted to go to Jersey Gardens again but the girls who wanted to join us rejected a few hours before the trip and four people aren’t enough for the taxi ride. So we just went to the mall near to the campus. Today, the 4th advent, we stayed on campus and watched some movies. 

Next week I have to start packing my bag for home but honestly I don’t know what to pack. I know that I have many clothes at home but I really don’t know which and I have to take all the presents I brought for many people home.  

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ups and downs of a weekend

This weekend was a good one but at the same time one of the saddest in my time here. One of my friends here left because her time in NYC was over. She left on Saturday afternoon so we planed to eat pancakes for breakfast. So we got up early an went to a mall near campus. One of my teachers recommended ihop as a typical American diner with tasty pancakes. At first, we were totally confused of the menu but in the end we all took different pancakes and omelets. I had a breakfast combination out of two pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausages and a kind of potato fritter. My pancakes were the chocolate chip pancakes and they were amazing. I had never eaten so good pancakes before. The eggs, sausages and potato fritter were vey good, as well, but the pancakes were the special thing because in Germany we don’t have the opportunity to eat something like this. In the end everyone was completely full and we all felt a bit sick because we ate so much. So we strolled around the mall, went to target and brought some daily-life stuff. 

After returning to campus one and a half hour with our friend left so we just sat together and talked about our time here. Before she left we took some last pictures together. 

Friends are your family here on campus and when a member of the family leaves than it’s always sad. So when the moment of saying goodbye was there we all cried and it felt strange to let one member of our group go. On the upcoming weekend another friend of mine gonna leave so from our family with six people only four left. It will be a strange feeling but we all know that we gonna see us again in Germany when we all are back home. We are in the lucky situation that we all are from the same area.  

On Sunday I went to Manhattan with a friend. We wanted to see the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center and going in some shops. I had to buy a NBA jersey for my cousin and some key chains for my friends at home. The Christmas tree looks amazing especially in the dark. Even though, I have to say that I don’t like colored lights for Christmas. After a stop at Times Square, which is by the way always breathtaking no matter how often you’ve been there before, and a coffee  we went back to campus. 

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Once you lived in NY and made it your home, no other place is good enough

This week we went to the One World Trade Center. It is the highest building in the western hemispher and today a special place for everyone. When you walk though the 9/11 memorial you can only imagine what this date changed in the lives of many people. Especially, when you see the height of the building the imagination that people jumped out of such a building is horrible. 

Even though, it was a strange feeling to see all this we went up to the top. The One World Observatory is between the 102 and 100 level of the building and nobody who hasn’t seen it before can imagine the feeling of being up there. Who ever said a helicopter ride is the best way to see Manhattan from above lied. We went up to the top by one over the fastest elevator I’ve ever used. It took only seconds from the ground up to level 102. During the ride you can see the history of NY from fields to an impulsive city. When you come out of the elevator you go into a kind of theatre, at first. A short movie presents the building time of the One World Trade Center. In a moment when nobody expect it the screen opens and you see this breathtaking view. It was one of the best things I’ve ever made and I’ve ever been to. Normally, you walk though the streets of Manhattan and being scared of the high buildings is normal but suddenly everything feels so small. You go around the circle and you can see every site of Manhattan and NY. On the one site you see the Statue of Liberty and ten meters along you see the Brooklyn Bridge or the Empire State Building. It’s more than amazing. Our tickets were booked for 4 pm so we went up during the gloaming. Seeing all the city light in the darkness makes you feel different. 

This moment was the first time I realized that this feeling is special. I always read the quote from the title before but I couldn’t imagine that’s true because I’ve seen many places in my live so far and I know that the wold has many special places. But in this moment seeing the city lights and NY out of this special perspective I understand that NY and Manhattan are different. It spreads a special feeling no other place will ever give to you. I’m just a normal girl for a small town in Germany but when I stood up there NY became my home and no other place will give me these special NY feeling of freedom and singularity. Thank you, NEW YORK, for this! 

“These streets will make you feel brand new”  

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Missing German Christmas Tradition

Yesterday, I talked to a friend from home and she told me that everyone at home decorate their houses and that you can feel the Christmas mood there. Honestly, I really miss this feeling. These days are my favorite ones of the year and here in America I have the feeling that everything is a bit different. The houses here are mostly not decorated yet and when I go into a supermarket or into a mall I don’t have these very special Christmas feeling even though they play Christmas music. Probably, it’s because of Thanksgiving which is this weekend. I’m not used to this day and I don’t know how to celebrate it. I hope that after Thanksgiving the Americans have these Christmas mood, as well. I love to walk through the streets and every house is full of lights and everyone spreads this joyful Christmas mood. When Christmas music is all around me and everything smells like cinnamon and other Christmas stuff I’m really in and I’m more than excited to go home and see all my family and friends. I hope that my teacher is right and all the Christmas stuff comes after Thanksgiving because without the time before Christmas it’s not a real Christmas.   

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every moment counts...

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about SOHO, Flatiron building, Colette Miller and a shopping marathon

This weekend was a really funny one. On Saturday we went to Manhattan looking for the Colette Miller wings, the Flatiron Building and strolling around SOHO. We arrived in NYC at 12:35 and caught the Subway to 23th street. We immediately found the Flatiron Building and I have to say that it's probably one of the funniest things I've ever seen. It's true that it looks like a flatiron. After taking some pictures we looked for the famous Colette Miller wings. First, we walked on the wrong street but after asking a friend we found them. We took so many pictures that it was sometimes a bit embarrassing because of the bunch of people walking on the street.��Than we decided to walk to SOHO. On our way we strolled around a nice food market on Union Square and we found the Christmas Market there. In SOHO we just walked through the streets and took a look in some shops. I brought my first Macaroon at Laduree. It tasted really good but it's probably a bit too sweet for me. While we walked around the streets we saw a famous judge from "Germanys next Topmodel". It was the first famous person I saw in NYC but we were all to shy to ask for a photo.

On Sunday another trip to Jersey Gardens was planed. Last time I only bought presents for my friends so I wanted to buy some stuff for myself. We all freaked out at the mall. Everyone bought so much because there were many shops having discounts on the reduced prices because of the upcoming black Friday. In the end we sat in the taxi back to campus and everything was full of bags.

All in all, it was a really nice weekend but I think the next one will be much better!   

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Let the good times roll

Today, 31 days left until going home for Christmas, so one months left. Honestly, I can't imagine how it will be coming home, being alone in my room and having all my stuff. It probably sounds weird but I got used to my life here and I like it.

Two months are already over and only one months left so we have to plan what we wanna do in the next weeks until Christmas. The upcoming weekend is the Thanksgiving weekend and we have already plans for these days. Moreover, it's a friends birthday this weekend so we will celebrate her birthday on Friday night. On Thursday we wanna go ice-skating and the One Word Observatory is another destination for the weekend. I'm really excited about it because a friend told me that it's like a helicopter ride. Furthermore, a friend of mine from home will visit me this weekend. I think it will probably be one of the best weekends in my time here but at the same time probably the most exhausting one.

Regarding to the title of the post, the fact that not so much time here left shows me that we have to enjoy every minute. Sometimes it feels like dreaming the best dream ever but than I realize that all this here isn't a dream because I don't wake up in my bed at home. It's crazy because in the beginning I didn't imagine that it could change like this but I really don't want to leave this place even though I miss my family and friends. I'm more than scared about the day in February when I have to leave my life here behind. That's why every moment here counts no matter if it's good or bad one. I don't wanna remember only the good ones because I know that there were bad times and that there will be but a "bad day in NYC is still better than a good day anywhere else"!

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Q & A

How did I change in the last weeks? I don’t know how to explain my feelings about these question. When I think about the version of myself who came here more than eight weeks ago I can say that I was definitely scared about living in one of the biggest cities in the world for five months. I come from a small town so it isn’t normal for me to use the subway or being around with many people out of different counties and cultures. This fear changed. Now it’s normal to use the subway. I don’t feel scared to go into the subway station and it is just normal to see people form different cultures. I love NY for its diversity and all the different things you can discover every time you go there. It shows me a complete new site of life and gives me a complete new feeling about what life really means. Now I’m more scared about going home in my small town than about staying in NY. But, I think I will really realize how myself changed when I’m back home. 

How did my English improved? I can’t say that I speak English all the time. I have mostly German friends so, at breakfast or dinner we mostly speak German. If there is another person on our table who doesn’t speak German we speak English. However, I have to admit that I’m more confident using English and it became easier for me to speak English on a daily base. When I came here I was often scared of using English because I didn’t wanna blame myself because of mistakes. But I understood that I have now choice and that it’s just normal to make mistakes for everybody here. After more than eight weeks I have the feeling that my speaking English improved. I have now problems with speaking English anymore and I can understand everything people wanna tell me. I mostly watch English movies and I have no problems to understand the content and the idioms. Moreover, it has become normal for me to write in English. For me it’s the thing that improved the most. Last week I wanted to write a letter to my parents and I was just unable to write in German. It sounded so weird that I wrote an English letter after more than five  German tries in the trash. Sorry, mum and dad! 

All in all, I can say that it the course here doesn’t have the effort my parents and I expected because I don’t speak English all the time but I definitely improved my English and the fact that it’s strange for me to watch German movies and write German letters shows me that English has become normal for me. 

What did I learn? I’m proud to say that I can make my laundry on my own. Probably many people will laugh about it but I wasn’t able to make my laundry before I came here. I had no clue how to separate all my stuff and how to use a washing machine. My mother did my laundry at home and I think that it’s not stupid to say that I’m happy when I’m back home and she will do it again. But after five months of being self-responsible for my stuff I know what it means to make it every week and that I have to thank my mum for doing it the last 18 years. 

Furthermore, I learned how expensive life can be. When I go into a supermarket at home I just put in the trolley what I want no matter what the prize was. Here it’s different. I always look on the prize and if there are special offers. The online-banking app is my best friend here. Every week, I check my bank account and try to handle to spend money only for things I really need. I hope this behavior stays when I’m back home. 

Another thing I learned is what friendship really means. I wanna thank the people who always write me the latest gossip form home, talk to me every week via facetime or skype and always make me laughing even if they are thousands of kilometer away. Furthermore, I realize that some people I ever thought to be friends with aren’t my real friends. So, the quote “never forget the people who take time out of their day to check up on you” is true.       

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If you leave the train please watch the Gap between the train and the platform

This weekend was a real New York weekend. I went to the city both days, so I can recite the sentence the voice in the train says at every stop, and in some parts I really felt like a New Yorker for the first time. 

On Sunday we planed to go to Statue of Liberty again. The weather was very windy but the ferry wasn’t so crowded so it was easier to take pictures. After that we wanted to see the skyline from a park next to the shipping terminal. The Battery Park was a recommendation from another student and my travel journal. It wasn’t that stunning as I expected it but it wasn’t bad. On the stairs in the park is the headline “Gardens of Remembrance”. It is possible true that this place will always have a meaning for me when I think about the statue of Liberty. 

After that we decided to go to the Wall street and the Trinity Church. We found the bull of Wall street but as we couldn’t take a picture with it because there were so many Chinese people who didn’t let us. The Wall street itself wasn’t at that special but it was interesting to see all the building you know form the news at home. Moreover, there is the “Trump Building” and many people who took pictures with an angry posing in front of it. 

 At the end of the day, we made a short stop at Times Square like usual. I think most of the times I went to New York I went to Times Square. But this time it was so crowded that it wasn’t fun. Our plan was to got to the Hershey’s shop but there was a long line in front of it so we skipped it and went back to Grand Central to go home. Even though, I have to say that it’s always nice to see the Times square. Especially by night it is more breathtaking. 

On Sunday, we planed to cross the Brooklyn Bridge, strolling around Brooklyn and eat in a nice restaurants. Our plan worked until we had to look for food. We didn’t find a restaurant. Everything was full. So we walked again across the Brooklyn Bridge but after that we were so cold and so hungry that we just grabbed a Chicken Gyro at a typical food place on the streets of New York. It wasn’t bad but not brilliant and with 8 dollars a bit expensive. 

All in all, it was a really nice weekend and strolling around the street of New York showed me once again that my decision to go here wasn’t wrong. The more you live here the more you feel like a real New Yorker.        

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election 2016

Yesterday was the election day. Everybody probably knows about the results yet many people can’t understand it, me included. From the beginning of the campaigns, I sat in my politics class in Germany and we discussed the upcoming election in the US and what it could mean for the world. Everybody said that Trump would never become the president of the US. Nobody believed that a reality star who has no clue about politics would ever become president of one of the strongest countries in the world. 

Today, we know that we were wrong. Donald Trump became president and he will be the head of the state for the next four years. 

Yesterday, we watched the election the whole night and at first everybody thought that Hilary would win. I have to say that most of the people at my school here are for Hilary. Today, nobody can believe what really happened. At 10:30 pm it became more and more clear that her chances to win were getting less and less than ever before. When I woke up this morning, Trump had become president and I had many messages from my family and friends at home about how it feels to be in the US at this time. 

So, I will describe how it feels to be here in during this time. Before last night, I mostly don’t watch the news or read newspapers because we don’t have the chance on campus. That is why, I always read CNN news or the Washington post on my phone. I was always shocked by the things Trump said and did. Moreover, it was funny because when I read German news in addition to the American, I saw the opinions of my home country and I have to say that I share these critical opinions about Donald Trump. 

In the last weeks here, I began to understand that most of the American people don’t like both candidates but many think that Clinton would be the better solution for the country. Furthermore, I read some critical articles about Hilary Clinton before I came here but no matter what she did in the past, I think that Hilary Clinton would be a better solution for the US because of her experience in the political world. 

Back to the point -- Trump won and now everything became different than what the people had expected. I called my parents this morning and they told me that in Germany everybody is shocked and nobody can understand how this could ever happen. The German news is full of the world’s reactions. Angela Merkel makes demands on Donald Trump about how the work between the two countries could go on in the future. The German foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said that the relationship between the US and Germany will be more difficult in the future. 

I found an article in a popular German newspaper this morning which explains Trumps aims for the country when he becomes president. They point out that every US president has implemented at least 70 % of their aims and if Trump does this, the world will have big problems. 

There was a quote of Donald Trump on Instagram this morning. It says: “If I were to run, I’d run as a Republican. They’re the dumbest group of voters in the county. They believe anything on Fox News. I could lie and they’d still eat it up. I bet my numbers would be terrific.” He said it in 1998.