tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37843164392831944082024-03-13T14:45:03.694+01:00Zweite HeimatA bilingual blog about my study abroad experience in Germany <br> Ein zweisphrachiger Blog über mein Austauschstudium in DeutschlandMax Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-52974323602381446202012-04-13T23:00:00.000+02:002012-04-13T23:18:04.485+02:00Venice - A Tourist Trap Worth VisitingFor the first day of my trip around Europe I got up early, got on my train to Venice, and enjoyed the view out my window for the next six hours. I watched snowy, steep Alpine landscapes transition to wide, flat plains covered with vineyards and square, terra-cotta roofed houses before my train finally crossed the bridge that leads from the mainland to the Venetian island in the middle of the Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-58924461411279635222012-04-08T11:30:00.001+02:002012-04-08T11:32:05.424+02:00Southern Europe trip updateWell, I've had quite an amazing tour so far of Italy, Spain, and France. The number of sights I've seen, people I've met, and stories I'll be bringing back is staggering in retrospect. I've been so busy trying to see as much as possible of what each city has to offer that I really haven't had time to write good, comprehensive posts about each visit. But, as my trip draws to a close, I'll soon Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1366069 11.577085147.967062399999996 11.2612281 48.3061514 11.892942099999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-53226589224704620572012-03-21T23:04:00.000+01:002012-03-21T23:06:11.541+01:00Tour of Southern EuropeAs long as I'm in Europe, I decided it would be a good idea to visit some of the most famous cities here. So, I bought a three-week rail pass (it's the cheapest form of travel, especially with discount passes; see the Transportation Systems article). I'll be leaving tomorrow.
I'm going to visit Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, and Paris, with shorter stops in Venice, Florence, and Genoa. I've roughly Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-83157009067459447642012-01-25T22:44:00.000+01:002012-01-25T22:57:23.521+01:00WinterspaßI'm going to try something different today. My previous posts focused on comparing the cultures of Germany and the United States. Since this is by no means a simple topic, the posts got pretty long and were extremely time-consuming to write. Also, I realize they say little about what I'm actually doing to get the most out of this experience as possible. So, for those of you who actually are Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1448353 11.558006747.9753153 11.2421497 48.314355299999995 11.8738637tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-45473581548222077662012-01-14T22:07:00.000+01:002012-01-14T23:03:07.139+01:00Christmas TraditionsWell, it's that time of year again! At least it was, a few weeks ago. I thought I would wait until well after Christmas to give those who were sick and tired of preparing for, reading about, and being bombarded by advertisements centered around the holidays some time to recover from their holiday burnout.
The first question you may have right now is why I'm writing about Christmas and not the Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1448353 11.558006747.9753153 11.2421497 48.314355299999995 11.8738637tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-54317075862893511492012-01-12T03:16:00.002+01:002012-01-12T03:16:28.140+01:00VerkehrssystemeDer Verkehr beeinflusst uns alle jeden Tag. Wir denken aber meistens nur daran, wenn er uns nervt oder nicht richtig funktioniert. Jede Woche fahre ich mit der U-Bahn von meiner Wohnung zu meinen Ausbildungsort und zurück, und fahre mit der Regionalbahn am Wochenende zu Verwandten, aber denke fast nie daran, dass es solche Verkehrsmittel in Minneapolis-St. Paul überhaupt nicht gibt. Die Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1448353 11.558006747.9753153 11.2421497 48.314355299999995 11.8738637tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-52352600654941821342011-12-28T23:41:00.000+01:002011-12-28T23:50:49.533+01:00Transportation SystemsTransportation is something most of us use every day, but notice only when it bothers us or stops working correctly. Every week I take the subway to campus and back and take a local train to visit nearby relatives, but I rarely stop to think about how this wouldn't be possible at all in Minneapolis because of the lack of reliable rail service and infrastructure. On the occasions that I do stop toMax Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1448353 11.558006747.9753153 11.2421497 48.314355299999995 11.8738637tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-69871615898323809092011-12-09T23:00:00.000+01:002011-12-09T23:00:03.060+01:00... und TrinkenDies wird ein langer Eintrag sein. Wenn Sie nur über minderjähriges und überschüssiges Alkohol-Trinken in der USA und Deutschland lesen wollen, können Sie fünf Absätze weiter lesen.
Erstens möchte ich eine Ergänzung zum letzten Eintrag machen: Ich erwähnte, dass es in der USA so wie hier die drei Mahlzeiten Frühstück, Mittagsessen, und Abendessen gibt. Ich habe aber nicht erwähnt, dass man hier Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1448353 11.558006747.9753153 11.2421497 48.314355299999995 11.8738637tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-12189455522752796502011-12-09T00:00:00.000+01:002011-12-09T00:00:03.944+01:00... and DrinkThis is going to be a long post. If you'd like to hear my thoughts on underage and excessive drinking, skip down six paragraphs.
First, I'd like to make a correction, or rather an addition, to last week's post: I mentioned that in Germany three meals are generally eaten in a day. I forgot to mention that it's often customary to have coffee and cake anywhere between three and five in the Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1448353 11.558006747.9753153 11.2421497 48.314355299999995 11.8738637tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-51175435714966762352011-12-02T19:01:00.000+01:002011-12-02T21:59:59.507+01:00Essen...Ein Teil der Kultur, der uns alle jeden Tag bemerkbar ist, ist das Essen und Trinken. Aus diesem Grund kann man vieles über eine Kultur lernen, indem man merkt, welche Rolle das Essen und Trinken in der Kultur spielt.
Frühstück, Mittagsessen, und Abendessen gibt es in der USA so wie hier. Der Unterschied leigt in die Größe des Mahls: In die USA ist das Abendessen meistens die größte Mahlzeit. Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-73688152782823381672011-12-02T19:00:00.000+01:002011-12-02T19:00:02.071+01:00Food...One aspect of culture that affects all of us each day is the topic of food and drink. For this reason, it's possible to get many insights into the way a culture works just by looking at the way eating and drinking are treated. Here are some of my observations:
In Germany (and probably elsewhere in Europe, although I can't confidently make that generalization) breakfast, lunch, and dinner exist Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1391265 11.580186347.969588 11.2643293 48.308665000000005 11.896043299999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-85493128772571619932011-11-28T20:38:00.001+01:002011-11-28T20:43:57.964+01:00AkzenteNach den etwas langen vorigen Einträgen schreibe ich heute zur Abwechslung etwas kürzeres.
In einen Gespräch mit zwei deutschen Studenten heute besprochen wir regionale Akzente. Obwohl die deutschen Studenten Englisch kannten, meinten sie, keinen großen Unterschied zwischen gesprochenem amerikanischen und britischen Englisch zu empfinden. Das hat mich etwas überrascht, weil ich, als Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1391265 11.580186347.969588 11.2643293 48.308665000000005 11.896043299999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-35369934861622940572011-11-28T18:52:00.001+01:002011-11-28T20:45:20.516+01:00AccentsSince the first two posts here were kind of long, I'll try a short anecdote for a change.
In a conversation with two German students today, the topic of regional accents came up. Like many German students, they spoke enough English to hold a conversation. However, they don't notice much of a difference between an American English and a British English accent, even though, as an American, I can Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1391265 11.580186347.969588 11.2643293 48.308665000000005 11.896043299999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-13877474027703537972011-11-24T23:27:00.001+01:002011-11-24T23:58:01.653+01:00Bildungssysteme, Teil 2Vor einer Woche protestierten Studenten in München im sogenannten Bildungsstreik. In die Liste der Forderungen habe ich ein Paar Sachen entdeckt, die auf wichtige Unterschiede zwischen die Bildungssysteme und, noch allgemeniner, die Gesellschaften, von Deutschland und der USA weisen. Insbesondere fordert der Bildungsstreik eine komplette Abschaffung aller Studiengebühre sowie kostenlose Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1391265 11.580186347.969588 11.2643293 48.308665000000005 11.896043299999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-18091943485440972142011-11-24T21:27:00.001+01:002011-11-24T21:39:37.348+01:00Educational Systems, Part 2
There's a relevant current event I wanted to write about before it becomes old news: The Bildungsstreik (Educational Strike), which took place last Thursday, was a large, organized student protest on a whole variety of educational topics. The whole list of demands is here. Since the website behind the link is in German, I'll summarize: It reads at first like a typical list of idealistic demandsMax Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0Munich, Germany48.1391265 11.580186347.969588 11.2643293 48.308665000000005 11.896043299999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-32698175743807039762011-11-19T01:29:00.003+01:002011-11-19T02:25:33.114+01:00Bildungssysteme, Teil 1Die auffälligsten Unterschiede zwischen Deutschland und die USA, die ich jeden Tag begegne, sind die in den Bildungssysteme der Länder. Hier sind einige allgemeine Unterschiede, die mir aufgefallen sind.
Bei der TUM und, glaube ich, ganz Deutschland sind mehrere Aspekte des studentische Lebens weniger formal und geregelt als in der USA. Zum Beispeil gibt es in den Vorlesungen und Übungen hier Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784316439283194408.post-33086574682129892282011-11-17T23:02:00.005+01:002011-11-19T01:39:27.729+01:00Educational Systems, Part 1The most prominent differences between the USA and Germany, and the ones I encounter each day, are the differences in the styles of higher education. These are some of the more general differences I've noticed.
Many aspects of university study at TUM and, I think, in Germany in general are less formal or regulated than they are in the USA. For example, regular lecture and discussion attendance Max Veithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15125368848907905714noreply@blogger.com0