I knew before I even got to Muenster that I would be buying a bike again- I could not have imagined living in Heidelberg last year without one. Even if I hadn't lived so far from school and the downtown area of the city, my bike was still useful and even took me on a few day trips to neighboring towns with friends. Today, I successfully bought my bike, and I already like it a lot! Whereas last year, my bike was gold (and a piece of shit), this one is a similar style but green. It's got the same basket though- very handy. I paid either 70 or 80 Euro for my last bike, but then ended up paying probably 50 for repairs throughout my semester, so I decided I would shell out the cash for a nicer bike. I paid 150 for this one, but the bike shop owner was really nice (originally from Georgia-the country-where he taught English but he's been in Germany for the last ten or so years) and I think there's something like a six-month warranty on it, so hopefully I won't have to pay extra for repairs...and hopefully I just won't have any repairs!
Biking as transportation is much more serious here though than it was in Heidelberg. Bikes have to actually act the same as cars- driving on the same side of the road, waiting at traffic lights (even though half of the bikepaths are on the sidewalk) and waiting for pedestrians to cross. I had to bike a few kilometers yesterday to meet some people at the cinema, and it was dark- and since that was my first time back on a bike since Heidelberg, I was a little nervous. All was grand, though! I'm just so excited to have a bike again- just have to make sure to know all the rules so I don't get a ticket in Muenster (because yes, that is a possibility) !
Ashleigh suggested doing a weekly or bi-weekly German movie night so we can all get more exposure to German. We already know we won't speak German with each other, but luckily speak it with our roommates, some of the teachers, and of course need to use it to get around the city. Ashleigh, Charles, and I went to see "Das Schwein von Gaza" last night at this cute little cinema on the East side of the city. I had only been to the cinema once before in Germany- to see the midnight release of Harry Potter 7 Part 2 in Mannheim...but that was at a huge cinema and was in English. This one was much more quaint- you buy your tickets and select your seats beforehand, and of course there's beer and wine available at concessions.
I was happy to say that I understood most of the movie- it was actually quite good! Not originally a German film- it was dubbed over. The movie was ultimately about Israeli-Palestinian relations, and ended quite nicely. Again, as an IS major who has taken a lot of classes on the conflict, I ate that up. I'm excited to continue those weekly meetings, though! I didn't concentrate so much on bettering my German was I was abroad last year- more on traveling and making friends, but this time around, I'm abroad in a different context, so I really would like to actually work on my German.
Must go get ready for school now! It was a 15 minute walk but now it'll be about a 5 minute bike ride- hurrayyyy!
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