Guess I've vividly, though not exhaustively, described the lesson structure of such an immersion programme in the previous post. However, as 'immersion' implies, the trip is not all about studies. What differentiates such trips from normal tours is that you get to mingle with the locals. To experience their culture and ways.
German beer is but of course known to anyone and everyone. Beer is a way of life here, to the extent that areas termed as beer gardens can be found all over town. Beer gardens are places that emanate a consistently festive aura, where people make merry, exchange conversations and just relax. One can fathom, how easy it is to immerse oneself in the German culture with the beer garden serving as an opportunistic avenue. On Tuesday night, we had the opportunity of having such a beer garden experience with Prof Englert. It was awesome. the Germans like to have what they call 'Pretzels' together with their beer. Huge twines of bread, sometimes somewhat salty.
On Wednesday, we went to the Allianz Arena. This is a majesticly standing soccer-dedicated stadium. We went through a guided tour that made clear the various considerations and consequent ideas that went into the development of the stadium. From acoustics to carpet grass, everything was given due care and concern. What draws people from all over the world to the Allianz Arena is the Arena's ability to change the colour of its outer-walls that are made of some type of thin durable plastics. There are three colours to observe- Red, Blue and Green- Colours that render the stadium a sparkling jewel embedded upon open fields. We were able to see the stadium's lights on Thursday. Other than the Allianz arena, we visited the Oplympiad tower, one of the tallest stuctures in Munich. Standing close to 200m (186m) high in the sky, the view was simply breathtaking. A side trip to the English Gardens that is of humongous proportions accentuated the sight-seeing experience.
Another way in which we had the opportunity of immersing ourselves in the German culture was through the faculty. The physics faculty of at least a thousand people, had a chill-out session. There was good food- beer, burgers, ice-cream. There was good music- a live band. And of course, there was great, great company- my Singaporean friends.
On Friday, we all headed down to a huge beer garden to watch the opening match of the World Cup- South Africa vs Mexico. The soccer fervor at the beer garden was ecstatic. The Germans simply love their soccer vis-a-vis their beer. We brought our own food to the beer garden, as is the culture here and had a 'group meal'. Another effective way to socialize.
Shall talk about Saturday and Sunday in the next post because I must do the visit to the concentration camp some justice. Till then, here are some pictures.... :)
...aNgeLs BrOuGhT mE HeRe...
No comments:
Post a Comment