Wandering the World
Oxford, England, United Kingdom
July 27: We landed in London and Tara navigated us through the airport to the bus terminal. Finally, we arrived in Oxford! After finding our rooms (which involved six of us dragging our suitcases up a seeming-endless winding staircase) we had a little time to unpack before we met Dr. Ransom in the Buttery. Dr. Ransom gave us lunch - nothing fancy, just some sandwiches and snack food - and gave us some more information about Oxford. Then we left to meet our tour guide for a brief tour of Oxford. We were all pretty jet-lagged, so most of us got sandwiches for dinner. Next we stopped by the grocery store to grab a few things and then went back to St. Edmund Hall (aka Teddy Hall, our home for the next month). Several us attempted to stay awake for a while longer by exploring the various buildings we were all staying in and playing some cards. Eventually the last of us couldn’t stay awake any longer so we each went back to our rooms and finally went to sleep.
July 28: Dr. Ransom gave us all our weekends free, so a large group of us got together to explore Oxford now that we were all fully rested. It took a while for everyone to gather and form a plan, so we started with lunch at the Turf Tavern. The Turf Tavern has a pretty rowdy history - Americans might know it as the place where former-president Bill Clinton “smoked but did not inhale” marijuana. Honestly, the food and drink was fantastic and we had a great time there. We intended to climb the tower at St. Mary’s University Church, but there was a line so we decided to skip it and come back another day. Instead, we went shopping since a number of us had a few small things we needed to get. As our groups broke up and changed we all had fun exploring the British shops that many of us have heard of but never had the opportunity to visit until now. We finally all met up again at Teddy Hall to go to a bar (The Jolly Farmer) for happy hour and to play some cards. For dinner we went to another notable historic pub called The Bear (the oldest pub in Oxford). Once again, the food and drink were pretty good and we even got to enjoy their open-mic night.
July 29: Today was our first day of class. The course was structured so that we had class discussion from 9am to 12pm every Monday through Thursday. These days we also got to eat lunch in the Teddy Hall dining hall, which continuously served fantastic food. In the afternoon we had outings around Oxford. Today’s was the Pit Rivers museum, which was heavily focused on archaeology and anthropology. To save on time, several of us bought dinner at the grocery store and had a picnic on the lawn of the library (St. Peter’s of the East). After dinner we went to Oxford Castle to see a performance of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night (my favorite Shakespearean play). This is another aspect of the course: every week we went to see one play.
July 30: Following lunch we toured Christ Church college. Our tour started at Saxon Tower, the oldest building in Oxford. Our tour guide, a local university student, made a point to point out some of the locations that inspired the filming of Harry Potter. This included the building next to Saxon Tower, which was an inspiration for Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade because of its style and the way it leaned out into the street. Next we went to Christ Church college, which was the inspiration for the Hogwarts dining hall and actually served as the film location for the staircase and some of the cloisters at Hogwarts. This is a pretty big tourist attraction so it was quite crowded. As a part of our course, we found Christ Church notable because it is where Charles Dodgeson (aka Lewis Carroll) taught. In addition to the dining hall, we also went to Christ Church’s cathedral where you could see where Dodgeson used to read to Alice Liddell (the Alice he based his stories on). Finally our tour guide took us to the Boudelain library, an incredible library and the film location for the room containing the goblet of fire in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Several of us then went to Blackwell’s book store, the oldest book store in Oxford, to explore the Norrington room. This is the underground room of books that is absolutely huge! We then returned home and several of us ate dinner in our rooms (it had been raining pretty hard through the afternoon) before going to The Swan and Castle, a cheap pub that had been recommended to us. Not only were the drinks there cheap, they were also delicious and we had a great time!
July 31: We went to the Bates Collection - a large collection of many musical instruments in many of their different forms from throughout history. It was pretty cool but definitely not my cup of tea, so few of us stuck around. The rest of us went to Alice’s Shop, a former candy shop frequented by Alice Liddell and now an Alice in Wonderland merchandise shop. We also went to the secondhand book shop next door. Next, we went home for some naps before dinner at The King’s Arms. Following dinner we went to Exeter College (where J.R.R. Tolkien studied) for a medieval music concert in the chapel. Weekly concerts are another part of the course experience. We then went to the Buttery at Teddy Hall to study some poetry for the next day’s class.
August 1: Today was really exciting because we went on a Mad Hatter tea party cruise on the Thames River. We got to experience a proper English tea with biscuits and sandwiches while also taking in the beauty of Oxford and its neighboring countryside. The boat’s skipper was really awesome, answering our questions and telling us about Oxford and this stretch of the Thames River. We also got to see the boat houses belonging to all the colleges along the river and the skipper told us about the regattas. For dinner a majority of us went to Swan and Castle and then went exploring through town. We found a nature preserve and walked along the paths (which led to a river) until we got to a pub called the Punter where we stopped for food and toilets. I didn’t stay long but walked back home with a couple other group members.
August 2: On Fridays, Dr, Ransom had a different day trip planned for each week. Today we went to Warwick to see Warwick Castle. We were warned that it was like an amusement park, which was absolutely true but we all had so much fun there. First though, on the train ride we couldn’t find enough seats so we ended up sitting in the entry way and reading our assigned poetry out loud. When we got to the castle, another girl on the trip, Morgan, and I did the Horrible Histories maze. It was meant for children, so it didn’t take us long to do but it was still fun and we got a prize for collecting all the stamps. Then we went into the castle’s Great Hall. We walked through all the rooms, which had artifacts and mannequins to show the history the castle’s owners and notable guests. Then we went to Time Tower, which gave a video history of the castle’s construction. Next Morgan and I got lunch and crossed the bridge to see the trebuchet. Here we met a few of our other group members and found a spot on the hill to watch the bird show: The Falconer’s Quest. The birds were incredible (the show was accompanied with a story) and several of them we got to see up close as they flew overhead. We then climbed the battlements leading up to Guy’s Tower, which gave us an incredible view from the very top. Our group then split, with some of us going to the fortress, looking over the other side, away from the castle. The walk up to the fortress also gave a military history of the castle and on the way down we could see the little kids learning to be medieval soldiers fighting with swords. After stopping at the gift shop, we then went to Warwick’s church to meet those who had left before the fortress. We went down into the crypts, but they were not very exciting, so we met our group in the cemetery and then walked back to the train station. On the walk back from Oxford train station, a few of us stopped at the grocery store to get some dinner.
August 3: Since we had our weekends free, I went with a few other girls (Morgan, Halee, and Rianna) to London for a day trip. We first went to Buckingham Palace and spent some time there taking pictures before heading towards the London Eye. On our way there, we passed Westminster Abbey and the House of Parliament. We walked around along the Thames for a while, taking pictures before going to The Sherlock Holmes for lunch. The food there was absolutely amazing! We then set off to do some shopping. Next we got dinner at a pub called Shakespeare, which was near our bus stop so we didn’t have to rush to catch the bus back. Since we had been walking around London all day, we were extremely tired when we got back to Oxford.
Bruges, Belgium - 15.05-19.05
May 14, 2018: Mom drove me up to Green Bay where I met most of the UWGB group. We took a bus down to Sheboygan where we met the rest of the GB group and continued to O'Hare airport. Our overnight flight went well.
May 15, 2018: We arrived in Amsterdam and then caught a connecting flight to Brussels where we met our group members from St. Norbert's College. We took the train to Bruges and went on a very long and hot walk to our hostel. I volunteered to room with the girls from SNC along with one other GB girl. After we dropped our stuff off and settled into the room, we went to check out the city. We found a neat windmill along a canal and then walked towards the city center. We found some cool spots along the way, checking out the canals and some street art. The markt square was also really cool. We were all pretty tired, so we got a quick dinner and returned to the hostel for a beer and sleep. Tomorrow, the learning begins!
May 16, 2018: The first site we visited was the Waterloo memorial and museum. I thought the museum was really interesting as it explained why Napoleon's final defeat was significant and how the Battle of Waterloo shaped the first World War. What I found most significant was the way in which warfare was changed because of the Waterloo - the use of technology and old battle strategies, civilian soldiers, etc. After the museum, I climbed 226 steps to the top of the hill with the lion statue on the top. The view was well worth the work-out. From the top you could see the farms which were used during the Battle of Waterloo. Next, I went into another building which had a panorama painting of the battle. I thought that this was a really neat way to use art to show historical events. The painting as well as some of the images from the museum did a really great job of showing how brutal and destructive this battle was. After a break for lunch (the small group I was with wasn't able to actually get lunch, but that's another story), we went into the town of Waterloo to the headquarters of the Duke of Wellington. Here there was some more information about the Battle of Waterloo and a really interesting section about the French fashion and style of the time of Napoleon's defeat. Next we went to Napoleon's final headquarters. Again, it talked about his final defeat and what happened to Napoleon afterwards. In the yard we learned what an ossuary is (a crypt with bones) and had some fun with the statue of Napoleon. Then we returned to Bruges for the evening. For the majority of the trip, we were responsible for finding our own dinner. I liked this system because it gave us the opportunity to have fun and get to know group members in a smaller group. It also allowed us to be more familiar with the city in which we were staying and take in some of the local culture. The group I went with, mostly from SNC, got pasta and pizza at a nearby bar and spent much of the evening getting to know one another.
May 17, 2018: Today we went to the town of Ypres (Ieper). First we went to the In Flanders Field museum, which gave a broad overview of the First World War in Belgium. There was also a lot of personal testimony and artifacts in the museum. I enjoyed a video that told the story of the first Christmas in the trenches from the perspectives of a British, French, Belgian, and German soldier. At the end of the museum there was a digital section where you could search for soldiers that served. There was also a bell tower that you could climb up, with 231 steps. Needless to say, I am getting a good work out on this trip so far! As rickety as climbing the bell tower was, the view from the top was absolutely incredible! I was with a small group of GB girls so we got lunch from a nearby convenience shop. In the afternoon we visited a number of cool, interesting, and important World War One sites. First was Hill 60. The site had been preserved so that you can still see the impact that the massive bombing had on the landscape. There were a couple of old bunkers, one that you could even crawl into. In addition, there was a HUGE crater that had filled with water. I found it to be a really great visual for how nature conquers the destruction left behind by war. Next we went to Hill 62. There was a memorial to the Canadian soldiers of World War One and then a small museum with pictures of the war. Outside the museum was a trench recreation. Because it had recently rained, the trench was muddy as we walked through and ducked through tunnels. We also visited the site of the Yorkshire trench, which was located in an industrial area. Most of the trench had been filled in but was outlined above ground with plaques explaining what each room was. There was also a small section that you could walk through with a tunnel that went deeper underground but was gated off. We returned to Ypres for dinner, which for me consisted of ice cream and a beer. Finally we went to the Menin gate for the Last Post ceremony. It was too crowded to be able to see very well, but it seemed like a very nice ceremony, mainly consisting of the laying of poppy wreaths. Because the ceremony was later in the evening, by the time that we got back to Bruges I was ready to call it a night.
May 18, 2018: We first went to the German World War One cemetery at Vladslo. One of the soldiers buried there was the son of artist Kathe Kollwitz. After the cemetery, we visited the Kathe Kollwitz museum and looked at her artwork. She was very critical about the condition of the working class and her depictions of war were very dark. We then visited Dodengang (aka the Trench of Death) along the Yser River. There was a small museum and then you could walk through the trenches. For lunch, I went with a small group of girls and ended up with a giant bowl of spaghetti. Near the restaurant we ate at was another significant historical site. There were two towers, one old and destroyed, the other new, with the AVV VVK logo on the top. This was a Flemish nationalist group that came out of World War One. There was also an arch there that promoted the idea of peace. Next we visited the Brooding Soldier monument dedicated to Canadian soldiers who were gassed during the war. Next up was the Tyne Cot cemetery. In the visitor center there was a display of personal artifacts, including fill-in cards for soldiers and officers to send home. We then went to the Passchendaele museum, which turned into an underground tunnel that later let out into an outdoor trench. There was a bunker simulation as well. This was our final stop of the day, so we returned to Bruges. I went with some of the GB girls for dinner at a restaurant in the central square and we were joined by our bus driver. I finally tried some Belgian waffles with ice cream and chocolate sauce!
May 19, 2018: Since it was our last day in Bruges, we had the day free to explore the city. From the time we had already spent here, I had a lot of ideas about what I wanted to do. Unfortunately, I didn't get to do most of what was on my list but I'm looking at it as an opportunity to revisit Bruges some day. Most of our group had gone out the night before and slept in, so I paired up with Alyssa from GB and got an early(er) start after we finished our laundry. Then we went to the Jerusalem Chapel, which was built by an old Belgian family and is a replica of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. We then returned to the hostel and got some more of the GB girls to go get lunch. We found a nice cafe and then ended up splitting up again since we all had different agendas. Alyssa and I found a chocolate shop and then went to the Saint Salvatore Cathedral. We made a quick stop at a souvenir shop before meeting up with some the other GB girls. We looked through the shopping area, stopping in a few shops and then headed back to the hostel. I had a few more things I wanted to check out, but by the time we left the hostel again they were closed. Instead, we went back to the windmill I had visited on the first day. To keep it simple, we just got dinner and drinks at the hostel pub, then went back to the Markt for some live music. Half the group then went to a club, but I went with the other half that went back to the hostel since I needed to re-pack my suitcase.
Dinant, Belgium - 20.05-22.05
May 20, 2018: It was finally time for us to leave Bruges behind and head for Dinant. Along the way we made our stops for the day. First we went to the Vimy Ridge memorial, venturing into France. This memorial is dedicated to the Canadian soldiers of the Battle of the Somme. We then continued on to Thiepval memorial and museum. The museum really focused on the Battle of the Somme, detailing how it fit into the timeline of the war. There weren't a lot of options in the area for lunch, so we experienced European McDonalds. After lunch we went to a really awesome museum that was an underground tunnel designed to house the town during times of war. Centuries old, it went 10 meters underground. There were artifacts from World War One as well as small coves that replicated life in the underground trenches. I particularly enjoyed the displays of trench art because of the beauty and creativity. The tunnel ended at this beautiful park area and the rest of the town had small WW1 memorials. Next we visited the Lochnagar crater, which was astonishingly huge. Pictures cannot capture how wide and deep this bombing crater is. This was our last stop before we drove to Dinant. We would be staying in a Norbertine abbey, also the home of Leffe beer. We had a delicious dinner and then I went with a group from SNC to explore the town. Dinant is absolutely beautiful, set along a river with a huge church and a citadel placed high in the cliffs. Adolf Sax, the inventor of the saxophone, was from Dinant, so there are decorative saxophone statues throughout the city, designed to represent different countries. Additionally, Dinant marks the furthest advance of the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge in World War Two (more on that later).
May 21, 2018: After breakfast at the abbey we went to Verdun and visited the memorial for the Battle of Verdun. There was a museum that we were going to visit but after a long walk through Verdun, we gave up on finding it and returned downtown for lunch. After lunch we visited a fortress that, though built prior to World War One, was able to withstand the bombing. Next we went to the Douemont ossuary. Near this site was also the Trench of Bayonets where soldiers were buried alive when their trench was bombed. There was also a memorial to Muslim soldiers (from the French colonies of Algeria and Morocco) across the street. The Douemont memorial was stunning. Then we visited the remains of the town of Fleury, which was destroyed by the war. There were paths and markers to show you how the town used to look, but it pretty much looked like part of the forest. We returned to Dinant and had dinner at the abbey. There was a storm, so I decided to stay in and spent some time getting to know the other Emily on the trip, who is from SNC.
May 22, 2018: Father Bruno took us on a tour of Leffe abbey, showing us how incredibly beautiful it is. We then went to the Dinant citadel, which showed its history of the city's defense, beginning with the Napoleonic Wars. There was a replica of a WW1 bunker, built at an angle as though it had been bombed. Then we went to Hackenburg fortress, driving through Luxembourg on the way. This fortress was the first one built as part of the Marginot line after World War One. During the tour you could see how certain features were inspired by the First World War, such as the air purification tanks in case of gas attacks. When Germany invaded France in 1939, the French soldiers in Hackenburg were able to hold out for a month before the Germans took the fortress and used it for machinery production. American soldiers took the fort in 1944. Our guide gave us demonstrations of the retractable turret and the cannons. Hackenburg was the main event of our day as we returned to Dinant for our last night.
Mondaye, France - 23.05-25.05
May 23, 2018: This morning we left the Leffe abbey and Dinant. Like Bruges, I hope to return to Dinant one day and spend more time taking in the beautiful town. We spent nearly the whole day driving, leaving Belgium behind for France. Our only stop of the day was in Bayeaux to visit the Bayeaux Tapestry museum. The tapestry was created after the Norman invasion of England in 1066 and depicts the Battle of Hastings as well as the events leading to William the Conquerer's invasion. It is over 70 meters long! I was super excited to see the tapestry as it was something I had studied during the spring semester and is incredibly important to the formation of the modern English language. We then continued on to the Mondaye abbey. After getting settled into our rooms, I went with a small group to explore the area. Unlike Leffe abbey, Mondaye is pretty much in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by fields. Still, the abbey is incredibly beautiful. We explored some of the grounds and came across a frog pond and some lovely flower beds. One of the SNC group members had had his birthday, so I joined the rest of the SNC students to have a small celebration.
May 24, 2018: First we visited Pointe du Hoc. There were several informational displays along the path to the bunkers with a focus on the individuals who helped take the Pointe. I also loved the view from the top of the cliff; it really gave you perspective of how difficult it was to take this location. You could walk along and through the remains of the German bunkers there. Then we went to the town of St. Mere Eglise and the Airborne museum. The exhibits contained a lot of artifacts and information about the Allied air invasion during D-Day. Across from the museum was a church where a paratrooper's parachute got stuck. There is a mannequin dressed as a paratrooper hanging there. Inside the church the stained glass windows show images of war and soldiers, which was really cool. We were supposed to get lunch and then meet back at the bus but there was an issue getting the bus to start, so we had some free time to explore the small town. I went with a small group and checked out some souvenir shops, got ice cream and drinks before the bus started working again. Then we continued on to Utah beach. The museum was super interesting and detailed. Then we went down to the beach and walked through some of the memorial that was along the beach. We were getting ready to leave when the bus stopped working again, so we had to push it onto the side of the road and wait for a new bus to come. In the mean time, we went back to the beach and tried to make the best of the situation. We got a new bus and stopped at McDonalds for dinner since we had missed dinner at the abbey. It was late by the time we got back to the abbey, but I had so much fun, even though the day didn't go as planned.
May 25, 2018: This morning we went first to Omaha beach, then to the Omaha beach museum. We got a quick lunch and then went to the American cemetery near the beach. There was also a lot of information about the war and D-Day invasion. Next we went to the German cemetery followed by the British cemetery. It was interesting to compare the different ways that each country preserves their cemetery and commemorates their fallen soldiers. Back at Mondaye abbey we checked out the gift shop there and then had a reflective discussion with the whole group before dinner. Afterwards some of the SNC girls came to my room and we hung out.
Caen, France - 26.05-27.05
May 26, 2018: We left Mondaye abbey this morning and drove towards Caen. Along the way we stopped first at the Batterie de Longes, a line of German fortresses. We then went to Arromanches to visit Gold Beach and get lunch. It was foggy out so I couldn't see the port built by the Allies. Then we went to Pegasus bridge and saw the current bridge and the original bridge. Next we went to the Caen Memorial museum. This was a huge museum so I went with a smaller group through the exhibit on World War 2. This connected the events and outcome of World War 1 to the causes of World War 2 and also talked about the entirety of the war, including the Pacific front. I then went to the exhibit on the Cold War, looking at each decade of the conflict. We then arrived in Caen and went out into the city for dinner and some exploration. A small group of us did some laundry before going back out with the course leaders and the SNC students.
May 27, 2018: It was our free day in Caen today, so I grouped up with some SNC girls to find some shops and check out some of the city's churches and abbeys. We came across this huge city market with all kinds of things for sale. It was a blast exploring the city and went up to this castle not far from our hotel. After a quick stop back at the hotel, we found some churches and the Abbeye aux Hommes. We also found this cool, run-down church. We got a quick lunch and then went back to the hotel to get some rest and organize. Then we met up with the rest of the SNC girls to make plans for dinner. A couple of us went and got pizza and ate at the park near the castle. I decided not to go out again tonight but stayed in and chatted with one of the other girls.
Bastogne, Belgium - 28.05-29.05
May 28, 2018: After breakfast this morning we left Caen and headed back to Belgium. We spent nearly the entire day driving to Bastogne, stopping in Amiens for lunch. I went for dinner with the GB girls.
May 29, 2018: We visited the Bastogne War Museum. I really liked that the audio guide shared the stories of four people that were in Bastogne during the Battle of Bulge. In short video segments, we got to see how all four people came together during the battle. Behind the museum was a memorial to the American soldiers who fought in the Battle of the Bulge. It was really inspiring to hear how they held out against German invaders, especially when the weather was not in their favor. Next we went to the Forest of Peace where trees had been planted in remembrance of the Allied soldiers who were killed during the battle. We split into groups to find lunch in Bastogne and then did a bit of shopping. In the afternoon we went to the 101st Airborne museum, which dealt with the Battle of Bastogne. In the basement was a bombing simulation which was really spooky. I ended up going for a walk with one of the SNC girls and we met another girl from our group on the way. We found a really cool hiking trail that took us out of town and gave us some amazing sites!
Weimar, Germany - 30.05-01.06
May 30, 2018: Leaving Bastogne and Belgium behind, we drove towards Germany. It was another long day of driving to get to Weimar. Our hostel/hotel is about a 20 minute walk from central Weimar, so I went with a group from SNC to find dinner and check out the city.
May 31, 2018: This morning we went to Buchenwald concentration camp. Most of the buildings are no longer standing, though there is a sign to tell you what stood there. There was a museum that had a lot of artifacts and information about the atrocities that occurred at Buchenwald. There was also an art exhibit that reflected the atrocities of the Holocaust. Just being there was really powerful and horrifying; I felt sick thinking about what had occurred. After eating lunch on the bus we went to the Soviet memorial, which was built to remember the Communist prisoners at Buchenwald. We then drove to Mittelbau-Dora, another labor camp that was a part of the Buchenwald system. The museum here created a timeline of what happened at Mittelbau-Dora, sharing a lot of personal stories from survivors and officers. Like Buchenwald, the camp site was mostly empty with signs, but still very powerful and somber. Then we returned to Weimar and Mark, our bus driver drove us into town for dinner since it was his last day driving us. I went with most of the SNC group to a restaurant to try schnitzel and ended up waiting a long time for food, with me and one other girl being the last ones to get our food. On our walk back to the hotel we stopped and got some ice cream.
June 1, 2018: We had a free day in Weimar today. I went with two other girls with the intent of finding a couple places, but mostly just wanting to walk around the city. We found the central area of the city and did some light souvenir shopping. Then we checked out the Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul. Not far from there we found a museum with a cool tower, but didn't actually go in. Behind the museum was a really pretty park along a river. Walking along this path we found Goethe's garden house. We were having a lot of fun just walking around and seeing where we ended up, so we kept doing this. We came across Parkhole: an underground tunnel. Taking a break from the heat, we went to check it out. It had a lot of history of the city, including during World War Two. It also had some automatic doors that scared us when we didn't expect them to move. After some more wandering around the city, we finally found Goethe's house but had no real interest in going in. We found an ice cream cafe for "lunch". We ended up spending some time in the city's mall in order to relax and find some of the things that we were each looking for. Finally, we decided to head back to the hotel and stopped and got some doner to take back with us. The doner was almost as big as my head and so very delicious! I met the SNC group in the evening for a couple drinks to end the night.
Berlin, Germany - 02.06-05.06
June 2, 2018: We took the train from Weimar to Berlin which took most of the morning and then walked to our hostel/hotel. We then went to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. The museum section was really interesting and I wish it hadn't been so crowded so that I could've spent more time thinking. The outdoor memorial was also really interesting as it made me feel very lost and hopeless. Most of the SNC group went on their own to find dinner so I went with the remainder of the group. We went to the Brandenburg gate before going back to our hotel. At the train station a couple girls and I bought some junk food for dinner and hung out at the hotel's rooftop bar. We ended up meeting up with the rest of our group and I did some quick laundry too.
June 3, 2018: For our final learning day we started by going to the House of the Wannsee Conference. We got there before the house opened, so we spent some time by Wannsee Lake before going to the actual house. There was a lot of information about the German state and rise of fascism before the Final Solution (which was agreed upon at the Wannsee Conference) as well as the effects of this decision. I liked the balance that was struck between sharing stories of Holocaust survivors and the history of the actions of the Nazi party. I also found it really interesting that the neighborhood this house was in had been comprised of a mix of Christian and Jewish families in the years leading up to the rise of the Nazi party. Despite the awful things that were discussed and set in motion in this place, the house and its yard were absolutely beautiful, which I felt sent a message about how horrible things can be masked by beauty. After getting a quick lunch in the train station, about half of our group left to go to a Guns N Roses concert. The rest of us went to the Topography of Terror museum, which also had a section of the Berlin Wall. I liked how the outdoor exhibit used personal stories to create a timeline of Hitler's rise to power, the implementation of fascism and antisemitism, how discrimination was introduced, escalated, and justified, and what happened in Germany during the war. It also went into detail about the post-war situation in Berlin as the city was divided. The museum was also really interesting and a bit overwhelming in terms of how much information there was. I tried to focus on some of the personal stories that were shared there. I really enjoyed that there was a section that covered the Nazi occupation in each country they invaded, including Norway. Often we don't get to hear some of these stories since they don't come from one of the main national powers of World War Two. If none of the previous museums and memorials had already done this, this particular museum really cemented the idea of the importance of stories and personal testimonies when it comes to passing on and learning about the tragedies of history. Then we went to the German Resistance museum. After spending the last few days focusing on the horrible things that happened during the Second World War, this was almost a happy note. I really liked learning about the way in which everyday people stood up for their values and beliefs, even against such a powerful and oppressive force as the Nazi government. What really stuck with me was the way in which small acts of defiance could inspire other people and send a message. From there, I went with a small group to get dinner and finally tried currywurst - which was AMAZING! We then returned to the hotel and hung out at the rooftop bar again.
June 4, 2018: Since it was our last free day in Berlin, I went with three other girls to check out the city. As in Berlin, we had a few destinations in mind but were content to wander and just have fun. We initially took the wrong train, but eventually figured it out and were pretty proud of ourselves. Our first stop was at the mall and looked through a couple of shops. We then found the French and German cathedrals, which are nearly identical and right next to each other. We looked through a couple of souvenir shops and then found a chocolate store. We got lunch from a food stand before heading to the East Side Gallery. We again encountered some transportation issues, but figured it out and made it there. The East Side Gallery was something I had really wanted to see and I was not disappointed. There was so much amazing artwork there! I think it's amazing that something meant to divide people has become a symbol for beauty and unity. Then we returned to the hotel and our whole group got together for pizza and a final discussion about what we learned from this trip. We finished off the evening by going to the rooftop bar. I am really going to miss this amazing group of people and I am definitely not ready to leave tomorrow morning.
June 5, 2018: This morning we gathered to say our goodbyes before heading to the train station. We took the bus to the airport but the first bus was too crowded so there were a few of us that waited for the second bus. This is where the GB and SNC groups split. Our flight was later than the SNC group's, so we spent some time relaxing in the airport. We flew from Berlin to New York's JFK airport and then had some downtime before our final flight to O'Hare. We then took a bus back to UWGB where Mom met me and drove me back home. Overall, I had a great time on this trip. I learned so much and saw so many amazing things. I would love to go back and see some things again or check out the things I missed this time around.