BONNito Viaje

 I've learned to count to eight in German!  This certainly sounds like an un-astonishing feat, but the reality of our travel to Bonn was that I neglected to truly realize the language barrier and cultural differences that awaited me. The eight new numbers I've learned are among many new vocabulary terms that have been gathered and learned from a full immersion setting into German language and society.  I learned the number "two" first, ironically. While our home during these six weeks is across the Rhein in a sleepy neighborhood called Hozlar, our days are spent in the bustling city of Bonn. I can consistently be found with Grace, my travel buddy, as we wander and explore market places and food stalls. One of my earliest surprises in this country was the unexpected diversity in the city. There are the expected biergartens and bratwurst spots, but also a large variety of Asian, Italian, and Middle Eastern restaurants and people. It was at one of these Italian food truc...

 Traveling abroad is all well and good if your thoughts are fixed on the destination and adventure ahead. The travel part itself...not always as fun. So many explorations lie in wait once we arrive in Bonn, Germany, but first we must brave the impending international flight, long lines, and bus rides. No journey is complete without these in-between steps, though, and we must persevere in order to reach our intended destination.  What is the destination, though? I applied for this adventure abroad with my partner in crime, fellow lover of medicine and science and religion: Grace Garwood. Consulting the program overview offered a straight-forward answer to our question, with Germany set as our destination for the next six weeks. But is our destination just geographical? Our journey will be physical and challenging, but there is an expectation of a greater result that awaits us, one that will be the consequence of new knowledge, cultural experience, and personality growth. This d...