Amazing day hiking in the alps yesterday. 5 hours going through the valleys and canyons (decided the peak hike would be a little much). Ended up missing the Pope this morning, but at least got to see the motorcade. Time for a day of resting my legs and doing homework then off to watch football and grab burgers (very german, I know). Unfortunately I didnt have my camera battery charged yesterday so I only have that one good picture. Ill steal some from other people and post them up later.

Bis später!

First week of a full class schedule complete. Each of them is quite interesting but EU/US relations EU and the Muslim World seem the most interesting to this point. Weekend full of adventure coming up. Tomorrow will be spent hiking the Swiss Alps and Sunday the Pope comes to Freiburg! Should be a good time and many pictures to come. Still working on getting pictures from around Freiburg but I do still have a few months to add those.

WOW! What a week in Berlin and Prague..

 View of the tv tower that dominates the Berlin skyline.

 First day in Berlin we went to a former stasi prison where the communist party held and questioned east germans that were viewed as threats to the party. This was an area of german history I was not very familiar with so this was an eye opener for sure. Following the tour of the prison, our program arranged for a lecture and Q&A session with two people directly impacted by the stasi and the prison system. One of them was caught on 3 different occasions trying to escape to the west and spent 10 months in prison and the other had her family torn apart by stasi accusations.

 The following morning we went to the Reichstag, home of the German parliament (outside seen above, inside main parliament hall below).

 Later in the day came a city tour of Berlin with an emphasis on the post-war history. 

The Brandenburg Gate (seen above) is miraculously still standing despite much of Berlin being destroyed during WWII. This was the start of many of the Nazi propaganda parades through the streets of Berlin. 

 The most disturbing thing seen in Berlin was the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (seen above). The monument features over 2000 of these blocks with no significance of the number. None of the blocks are the same size. The abstract design was intended to leave much of the memorial up to personal interpretation. As you walk to the middle, the blocks reach around 20 feet in height and you feel surrounded by the dark stone. Ive seen many memorials for different events, but this is right up there with Ground Zero for the most impacting.

 Next stop on the tour was the Topography of Terror which stands just next to the Berlin Wall on the former site of the Gestapo and SS headquarters. This memorial outlines Germany from 1933-1945 and the rise and fall of the Nazi party.

 Area of the Berlin Wall by the Topography of Terror

 After the tour we explored Berlin and headed to the famous East Berlin Wall Gallery where there is around 3/4 of a mile of street art that artists were allowed  to use after the wall came down then later touched up and restored.

 The famous Berlin Cathedral which has been restored following WWII bombings.

 After a few days in Berlin we headed to Prague. Above is the statue and museum that are the main parts of the big Wenceslas Square, home to many restaurants, bars, clubs, and farmers market.

 Off in the distance from the Charles Bridge is the Prague Castle (largest in the world)

Many people gather in Old Town Square on the hour to see the Astronomical clock strike on the hour.

Not too many pictures from Prague, but both Prague and Berlin were an amazing time despite battling a horrible cold. 

Starting a full class schedule tomorrow but am hoping to get around Freiburg with my camera some more to post up some more pictures of the town.

Heading off to Berlin and Prague in the morning for 6 days. Will have plenty of pictures to upload once I return. Found an Irish pub that shows college football on saturdays and nfl games on sundays. Needless to say we are regulars already (just have to pretend to be a bears fan for a few months) and the owner loves us. Had drinks there with the Freiburg rugby team last night and that was quite the experience to say the least.

First full weekend in Freiburg is just about finished. Got to go out and explore the town and got a nice hike in the rain through the Black Forest today to cap it all off. Start a week of seminar and german class tomorrow.

 The bächle are streams of water running through most streets in the main part of the city. 

Locals say if you step in it by accident you will marry a Freiburger. (which doesnt seem too bad for guys..)

 Who knew I would come to Germany to have pizza and beer..

 Stream right next to our favorite lunch cafe just a 2 minute walk from our classes.

 View of a portion of Freiburg from a hill in the Black Forest

The wildlife we encountered in the Black Forest. 6 inch snails.

Ok.. I LOVE THIS PLACE! 
The town, the culture, and the program are all amazing. The language barrier is a bit of an issue but hand motions have been able to help out with that. Finally caught up on sleep (I hope) and ready to see more of what Freiburg has to offer. 
The food (and beer) is great. Had some crazy seafood feast on a pizza and a cold local hefeweizen the first night and besides that alot of different sandwiches. Ate some potato and meat German dish that my suite mate Karl cooked last night and in return I get to cook him "something American" tonight. 
Today is the last main day of orientation, then tomorrow get to hike to the Zähringer Burg castle, and then start my EU seminar and german classes on Monday. 
More pictures soon to come once things start to slow down at the end of the weekend!