Snapshots of Barranquilla: Public Transport

The Puerto Colombia bus makes its way into town Photo: Xevi Zafra Torres

When I first arrived in Barranquilla, the public transport system was a mystery to me. Seemingly hundreds of huge, multicoloured buses whizzing around, suddenly jerking to a halt to eject some poor passenger from their nether regions and racing off again at breakneck speed, with a cough and splutter to boot. The inexplicability of it all was heightened by the fact that there seemed to be no stop signs, and therefore absolutely no indication of where the bus was going, or at what time it would arrive there. Now I've been initiated into the ways of Barranquilla buses, I thought it only fair to share this knowledge, partly for educational purposes, but partly for your own amusement (I do hope). Also, I'm pretty proud to have got this far without getting lost. Too many times.

Cartagena: Land of the Pirates

Welcome back! I've not written for a couple of weeks, because I've been Just. So. Busy! However, this weekend I've got a bit of downtime, and I intend to capitalise on it to tell you lovely people all about what I've been up to these past few days. Apart from the time I spent sitting at home, planning lessons, and running around Barranquilla, being sociable (I know, it's a hard life), I managed to get a bit further afield and visit the beautiful city of Cartagena de Indias!

The atmospheric Cartagenero seafront

German Humour... You must be joking!

When I told people I was preparing a presentation on German humour, the reactions were fairly typical; disbelief, mocking, confusion... ok, they weren't really that bad, but there was certainly an edge of questioning about it. 'Why would you choose to present such a topic?'. 'What kind of humour do German people have?'. 'Do Germans even have a sense of humour?'. Well, I took it upon myself to delve into this controversial matter, looking deep into the history archives and doing extensive research, and here is what I have found out:

(Really Far) Out of the Comfort Zone / An InterRailing Adventure

Our route (inc. very artfully-drawn aeroplanes for flights home)

This week has been incredible. I've spent the last 9 days interrailing through Europe with one of my language assistant friends from Germany, and we've had some amazing experiences - some mishaps as well, as to be expected - and met some very interesting people (in both senses of the word). It's been an adventure!

I'm currently on the train on the way to Budapest from Prague, having also made it through Vienna and Florence from our starting point in Lyon, France. We also had an impromptu overnight stop in Dijon, which was rather amusing, if nothing else, as we ended up not being able to take the train we wanted to get on overnight to Florence, and so spent the night at a (very bad) karaoke bar with an Australian traveller who was on her way from Barcelona and hadn't slept for for several days... Like I said, rather amusing!

Other incidents include almost missing our train in Florence due to laid-back Italian bus drivers and a lack of tickets on board the vehicle (we had to get off when the ticket inspectors came because we hadn't been able to buy any tickets); and a night-time excursion through Vienna due to missing the last metro by minutes (see a theme here?), and having to take the night bus back to our hostel - much more complicated than you would think (although the bus driver was very helpful this time).

A gorgeous strawberry & elderflower and grapefruit ice-cream I enjoyed in Budapest

Revising this at a later date, I feel I have to add our hostel stay in Budapest, which was easily the weirdest hostel experience I've ever had (and I've been to quite a few hostels this year). Having to wait for our beds to be constructed wasn't the best start, but then we discovered that our only exit was through the bathroom, which was always flooded, often occupied, and also had no locks.... Awkward situation probability = high.

Other experiences, however, were more positive, although some equally strange - being proposed to by a random Italian guy definitely lived up to the national stereotype, although sharing a train carriage with random Austrian and Czech strangers actually turned out to be not as scary as it sounds. We've also journeyed through some incredible scenery, for example the train ride through Austria, full of glimpses of mountain villages and sky-blue lakes - absolutely beautiful.

Thankfully, despite all previous incidences, we've made it safe and sound thus far, and haven't had to sleep in the woods as one of our fellow travellers resorted to doing when she couldn't find her hostel (please, no!!). It's been a great week-and-a-bit, and given me again an appreciation for those things we often take for granted (a bed to sleep in, for example AHEM Dijon). If anything, this trip has shown me that travelling is a great exercise in risk and trust. Out of the comfort zone!

Liebes Deutschland

Dear Germany,

I came to you as a very tanned, slightly apprehensive, rather French-sounding English person, full of expectations. And you did not let me down. Thank you for proving and shattering stereotypes; showing me the fun of travelling; the joys (and grievances) of teaching; the beauty of friendship, and making me into 'one of yours'.

I will miss your wonderful array of herbal tea; your fabulous Brötchen (and bread as a whole), and your amazing knack of making a night out last several days, even if that is just the repercussions of having left the house at 10 in the evening and not coming back until 6 in the morning (the club, incidentally, not even having closed yet). I'll miss your people's keenness for sporty activity, thus rendering the question ' Do you play sport?' useless, and replacing it with 'What kind of sport do you do?' (ahem, volleyball). I'll also miss their penchant for travelling ridiculous distances for a holiday, even if it's just for the weekend and half the time will be spent on the road getting there and back (it's just good to get away, you know?). On a similar note, I'll miss their incorrigible interest for different cultures and languages, and just how much they love to demonstrate this, even if it does make practising German a little difficult at times!

Some things I won't miss, however, are getting up at six in the morning to go to work while it's still dark; your people's seeming obsession with sparkling water (Tap water is fine. No, honestly!); the permanent lateness of your trains, particularly when you want to get somewhere important/have a connection to catch (Note: after my journey back home was punctuated by having one train come late, one being cancelled at the last minute and one bus just not bother to turn up at all, I stand by this point. German public transport, you suck!). I'll not miss your people's inability to form a queue (letting the person that was there first go to the new till in the supermarket? Just not the done thing. And letting people off the train before you plough on with all your suitcases/prams/children in tow? Not a chance!), and their terrible Europop/Club music mix that is all there is to be heard on the radio all day long (actually, I might miss that a bit. Just the Europop part. And only sometimes).

All in all, I've learnt a ridiculous amount during these six months that I've been here, not least a rather hefty amount of German! I've also developed my sense of organisation, my directness, and my general knowledge of the world as we know it (so far, so German). Also my guitar-playing skills, a nice addition to the group, if not as predictable as the others!

Let me finish with one final thing that I will miss about your wonderful country. Your lovely people and their fabulous sense of occasion, which I have had the luck to experience often of late, in saying my goodbyes to the various friends and acquaintances I have managed to gather in my short time here. I will be forever grateful that they decided to take me in, welcome me and call me friend (or even family, in some cases). To leave that behind will be hard. But there is one things you can be sure of:

I will be back!

All my love,
Natalie

Time is speeding up.

I know it has been almost a month since I last posted, but there is a reason for that. Basically, I've been very busy! Time seems to be speeding up and I have a feeling it's not going to stop until I fly off at the end of February. Things are going better than ever - coming back to a place always seems to make you appreciate it more. I've been doing all sorts of fun things with our amazing group of assistants, and also actually spending time with German people, who are no longer just some sort of language-practising device but actual people that I'm getting to know and becoming friends with. This is such a nice feeling, I want to appreciate it all the more while I can.

Some of the things that I've been experiencing lately in the lovely Lipperland:

Snowwwww!!! Plus the ridiculously freezing temperatures that come with it. Minus 10, anyone?

Frühstück am Sonntag - a very German breakfast with my church friends, consisting of many, many bread rolls, jam, spreads, OJ, coffee, and the ever present (but oh so unnecessary) ham and cheese (really? at breakfast?)

Making my host family the typically English meal of beans on toast the other day - they loved it! I tried to tell them it was a cheat's way out of cooking dinner, but they were massively impressed nonetheless. Well, what can you do? Obviously I'm just massively gifted in the beans-on-toast area. That is a gift not to be scoffed at.

And some not so much in Lippe:

I went on a choir trip, with the school (no jokes) - was pretty good, actually! Lots of snow and singing, and a bit of socialising in there too. Some interesting stories that came out of that one (I definitely know the students better now than I did before)...

Weekend trip to Dresden (in the East, on the border to the Czech Republic) - a really amazing place, and very cool to be able to compare what used to be East Germany with the Western side, where I'm living now. My conclusion: more friendly and more alternative. But that could just be Dresden. Anyway, I liked it! Except the part where we had to sleep on the night train and missed our stop by an hour because we overslept. Not good.

Finally, the pièce de résistance... a surprise birthday party for my Scottish friend! I don't know who looked more awkward, her standing there being rather befuddled by our sudden appearance or us trying to sing Happy Birthday in the street. Anyway, it was great fun and we eventually got to see this little town and Scottish pub she's always talking about! Schön.

Also, as you may be able to tell, I am getting rather Germanised in my speech and thinking (Denglisch is definitely the way forward). As fantastic as this is, it could cause minor problems when I go to Spain in a month's time (basically, no one will understand me). For this reason, I would really appreciate prayer in order to prepare me for the coming change and that God would provide me with the strength (and vocab!) to get by, particularly at the beginning.

Next time I write, I shall be one year older (21 on Sunday!!). I'll be sure to let you know how it feels. Until then - tschüss!

Normality...(or not)

Having read Hannah Garside's latest, along with a couple of other year abroad blogs, it seems that now is the point at which life overseas is starting to feel like normality for many of us. This 'normality' has several distinct effects - principally, that many things which seemed alien to us at the beginning are now becoming as second nature  - for example:

Being able to pay separately at restaurants/cafés - a very useful little device that means the waiter/waitress does all those awkward little sums that you inevitably get wrong anyway and never have the right change for...

Deciding who to say 'du' to and who to say 'Sie' to - the tricky concept of, basically, who to be polite to (Sie) or not (du). If you're someone's friend you don't have to be polite (no Sies there), but if they're older than you you probably do, but if they're a bit more modern they might ask you to 'duz' them (pronounced 'doots' - yes, really) and might be a little bit offended that you were so polite to them (makes them feel old). Ok, I'll be honest, I haven't quite got this one down yet.

Being waited on in pubs - I do love this one, just an excuse to be lazy really. I'm sure I'm going to forget to go up to the bar at all when I go back to the UK.

...and finally riding a bike on the right hand side of the road, while having cars and even pedestrians stop for you, who aren't angry when you ring your bell to tell them to get out of the way!

However, there are still some things I'll never understand: namely, always opening the window (bad air apparently), even when it's freezing cold outside and you're required to put your jacket on to counter to rush of cold air that blasts into the room when you do so!

Also wearing jeans to go out. I am currently undecided on this matter - it does make things a heck of a lot easier to prepare (spontaneous clubbing plans can occur within half an hour of their conception), but where are the party dresses? I do actually like getting dressed up every once in a while!

Having to pay to go to the toilet. Not in the house (obviously!), but in public toilets there's always a charge of 50 cents, which you have to put in a little machine (like a ticket barrier) before it will let you through. Madness!

The sum total of all this German-ness is that I am actually starting to forget English words! It took me ten minutes yesterday to think of the word for 'tug-of-war', and I gave up trying to work out what 'meringue' was in the end and had to look it up. Not that these are particularly important words (you  never know!), but this is distinctly worrying - I'm hoping it doesn't go further, otherwise I'll get to the end of the year and not even be able to remember my own name. Helga, anyone?

p.s. There's a great list of Germanisms that someone else made on their year abroad a couple of years ago - pretty factually correct, if not exactly scientifically observed.... Have a peek: http://www.uberlin.co.uk/what-i-know-about-germans/

Choices, choices.

Week three of my German adventure (already!!), and things are starting to get philosophical again. I have been thinking (I have quite a lot of thinking time at the minute), and at this point in my life I have come to the conclusion that never before have I been presented with so many choices. The thing about being on your own in another country, in another culture, with a lot of free time, means that you are very much in charge of your own life, and have to make decisions accordingly. Having never been much of a decision-maker (ask my parents!), I am finding this rather new - but exciting! I'm now realising the power that comes with decision-making, and at the moment I have the opportunity to really use this time to do something interesting. But this also requires a fair amount of energy - I often underestimate the effort it takes to always organise your own activities (especially in another language), and the temptation is often to stay at home, wrapped-up warm with my duvet and hot-water bottle (and possibly some Kuchen alongside...). Hey ho. It's a good challenge, and one I'll take on with pleasure. We'll see what comes out in half a year's time!

Eine interessante Woche.

How has life continued? Hmm, hard to pinpoint exactly what has changed, but things are definitely different to how they were last week. Things develop at a slower pace here than they did in France - I have to keep reminding myself 'Relax! You're here for six months!'. One thing that I have noticed: I can now manage getting up at 6 in the morning much better than before! I'm pretty sure I'll never get used to it, but I can bear it now a little more. Another thing - it's strange, to be starting from scratch again in yet another foreign country, but a lot of things have stayed with me (the accent, for example - see last post!). My attitude towards people and situations as well - I know now that if there's an opportunity that presents itself, grab it! And that sometimes you have to go out and make your own luck - otherwise I would be tempted to just sit at home and watch TV (although we have started watching Doctor Who together - but I count that as intercultural education, don't you?). All in all, things are getting there. But it is tiring to always make your own way - so prayer for energy, courage and strength (as always) - beginnings are hard, but I see many opportunities on the horizon!

p.s. One of these is to start playing volleyball - I have totally joined a volleyball group and plan to be amazing by the time February comes around! Unfortunately, at the moment my play leaves much to be desired...

All Change!

So, after a week of walking the fine line between icy cold and over-friendly, I think I have managed to work it out: basically, you have to make it dead obvious if you like someone - if not, it's all fun and games! No worries there.

So, this week - everything is starting to change! The fact that I've been here already for a month (which makes me halfway through my placement here), added to the fact that my housemate went back home last weekend, and there are even more people leaving soon - it makes me realise that I really don't have long left here at all. What's more, I've been moved to a different club this week - instead of being with the Kids, I'm with the Juniors - bye bye littlies! It definitely doesn't do to get too comfortable here - before you know it, everything is different again. I suppose that's a lesson in life - never take things for granted. Things change!

On a different note, as my spoke French improves, people are starting to notice less and less that I'm a foreigner. Obviously, I still have an English accent, but either it's becoming less noticeable or people just care less! This gives me an interesting opportunity - I can either tell people that I'm British, or I can carry on without mentioning it, and stick with the French. However, I'm finding that, more often than not, I choose to tell people where I'm from - and I'm proud of it! Why not? We have the les J.O. (Olympics), London, the Queen, Adele (who they LOVE here!), Ed Sheeran, etc. etc. Vive l'Angleterre!