Yesterday (Saturday July 24th, 2010) we arrived in Osnabruck, Germany. We all checked into our residences for the three week program. My apartment is wonderful and only five minutes from where I'll be teaching public health and yoga. I'm also only 5-10 minutes from three grocery stores and 10-15 minutes from the city center where most of the shops, restaurants, and pubs are. I met with Susanne from the University of Applied Sciences-Osnabruck and we had a good long talk over coffee and a tour of the facilities.
For the evening of Day 1 (Sat 7/24), we had an welcoming reception with wonderful German finger foods (awesome schitzel, potato salad, chicken skewers, fresh veggies, and lots of sparkling water over hours of conversation). Afterward, we went to a wine festival in the city center. The pictures above are of me (on the left) and of my German faculty colleague, Kai, and Marion (on the right). Kai is from Northern Germany and their beers are small whereas Marianne is from Southern Germany where the beers are Weissen and large. I met some wonderful new people and exchanged travel/life experiences. A highlight was learning of travels to Maui and how 50 people saw Jack Johnson at a small beach bar. I am enjoying my time with my colleagues (faculty/staff) in Germany and so thankful for the wonderful accommodations and support.
Today (Sunday/Day 2), we were able to take a tour of the campus and the city of the Osnabruck. The students all sounded like they enjoyed their first day and especially some, their night. The city is beautiful and I learned why it is called "The City of Peace." For dinner, I enjoyed one of my strange European favorite dishes of Hawaiian pizza (fresh pineapple, wonderful natural cheese (does not take like American mozarella) , and a sweet tomato sauce & crust that is similar to fresh pastry). Once again, I'm falling in love...with Europe.
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