The Beginning

I created this blog to keep track of everything that happens in the next 6-7 weeks in my time spent in Europe. I am spending 6 weeks in Leipzig, Germany living with a host family and taking a couple of classes. The last week will be spent traveling through the rest of Europe ending in London, England where my flight leaves back to the States on July 3, 2009 just in time for Independence Day.

My host family lives on the edge of the center of the city on the North side. The parents have a 3 year old daughter named Sonja. I have found that she can be quite a handful for the parents. I do not know if this is a worldwide thing since I am the youngest in my family and never ever spent more than a couple of hours, at most, with a child so young.

Any ways, I have my own room in their apartment, which is bigger than my own room at home and strongly resembles the size of a Marianist room (for those of you who might actually know what that is). The apartment in-of-itself is also big. There is a so-called half bathroom; a bathroom where there is a shower, a bath tub, a washer and a dryer; a kitchen; 2 more bedrooms; a living area; a work area; and of course, a balcony. This is where I am writing this little blog right now. It is awesome. Most nights we eat dinner on the balcony, and the view ain't too bad either. On the left side there are trees and a little river and in the background and on the right are buildings, which all have their unique style depicting different times in the life of the city. (There will be pictures at some point showing all of this.)

Besides living with a host family, I have a mentor that helps me to get to know the city better and, at times, help with my ability to speak German. Her name is Kathleen, and she is currently studying at the University of Leipzig. She spent two years in Chicago and mentored a UD student last year as well. She is very nice and helpful in trying to make my experience an unforgettable one.

There are many things I want to say but will try to break them down on a day-to-day basis as the thoughts first occurred in my brilliant mind. I have already taken many pictures on my trip, so those will be coming soon as well.

If you have any questions or would like to know more information about certain topics, you are welcomed to ask me whatever you wish. However, that does not necessarily mean I will answer your questions. Also, I do have a WebCam and I have a Skype account. My screenname is david.rathman and I welcome you to invite me to chat whenever the notion might move you.


Tschüss