Living Overseas
Ok, for those of you overseas this semester...
Please share your wisdom with those who are placed on your bases next fall. Things you wish you had known. Answers you can share about paperwork, access, transportation, costs, weather, internet access, calling home, etc.
Also, make sure you see the previous post about a general reflection for everyone. There are 2 prompts posted today, April 27, 2011.
Safe travels and a STRONG finish to student teaching!
Heidi
posted by Heidi @ 8:34 AM
6 comments
6 Comments:
Honestly, there are plenty of things I wish I had known, but probably only would have truly figured out simply by being here... So I hope this helps but...
First of all, if you are placed at the high school in Heidelberg, you will be living on one base and teaching on another. There are about 5 different bases, and the apartments are placed on Patrick Henry Village and the high school is on Mark Twain Village. KNOWING THE BUS SCHEDULE IS GOING TO BE CRUCIAL! Also -- simply knowing the school schedule is really crucial so you know when to utilize the bus schedule. We usually catch the bus leaving PHV (Patrick Henry Village) at 6:45am in order to get to MTV (Mark Twain Village) around 7:20am.
Also, I would have loved to have a heads up about how much Germans loooove recylcling and sorting their trash! If you thought Washington was green, think again. :) Before you start dumping all your stuff into one trash bin, find the sheet of paper that explains EXACTLY where the garbage goes. Study it. Memorize it. Put it on your fridge! If you mess up the garbage, the whole apartment stairwell gets in trouble. I think every apartment (that interns live in) have been lectured... So try to be the first to get it right!
As I'm sure you know and I'd hope you'd know -- going abroad and traveling is EXPENSIVE. So... Make sure you are financially ready for this experience. Try to travel as much as you can! It's absolutely worth it and incredibly educational. You will benefit your class so much if you can relate to them on a traveling level. Also, don't be affraid to take your students advice on places to travel to. They have had the awesome opportunity to do lots of traveling.
Lastly, I say this because we're currently in the midst of a scary situation.. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE A CELL PHONE THAT HAS MINUTES ON YOU AT ALL TIMES. Make sure that SOMEONE knows where you are going. And if you plan to take longer trips or bigger trips, it is smart to go with somebody. Again, it's easy to forget about carrying your cell phone because there are few times you'll use it to text or call people.. But always have one in the instance that you need to be contacted or wind up in trouble and need to contact someone else.
This has been one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I'm sure you'll have a blast as well! Remember to take a camera with you; you'll regret it if you forget! :)
This experience has been amazing. To whoever is reading this, I am so glad that you are considering it. You are going to have an amazing time, the people you are with will become lifelong friends and there is so much to learn.
First off thing to realize is you are coming here to teach. Get out and see Europe when you can, but you are not always going to be able to get away. That being said, I suggest making sure you get out as much as you can early on. You have a little more free time, and it’s a great way to quickly bond with your roommates. On that same note, make sure you over-plan where you are going. Know how the transportation works wherever you are going and have your hotel or hostel lined up.
Also, make sure you utilize your roommates. You are all having the same experience and part of what made it so amazing was the ability to collaborate, and get feedback and even just to empathize. At some point or another we all struggled and having people there to support you is important.
Finally, I would like to re-emphasize the point that you should make sure that make sure that you have a cell-phone and that people know where you are at all times. You become so close to the other student teachers. There is nothing more terrifying than worrying about where they are or what has happened to them, and it is easily preventable through a little extra communication.
Relax! You are going to have an amazing time here and it will be an experience that you remember and are grateful for the rest of your life.
Ok, I wasn't on a base so I guess I'm off of the hook on this one! I would just say stick to your guns, be confident, and have fun!!
Hello future interns! I wish you the best of luck! Words of wisdom.... Okay let’s see, first for your Visas, yes you are supposed to get them, but if you wait for the principals to help you, it might not happen. Just take care of it yourself. Before you leave please complete a ZAB form, I am going to email these forms to Chris so that she can print them out and give them to you. It’s about 50 euro, also you will need a letter from the school lawyer and the army. You take all of this down to the city hall and they process it and you have to give up your passport for a week. I suggest getting it as soon as you get here so you don’t have to worry about it and our principal put it on the back burner until it was too late, so be persistent.
There are some Ids that you get on post and they need pictures so bring your extra passport pictures that you get for your ISIC card. By having those on us, we saved a lot of time and energy. You have to get an installation pass to get on and off post but then you have to get a privilege card to use the services on base. It can be a timely process, you need your passport, passport pictures and a form titled 600-700b. The secretary was very helpful but I did have to go to the office three times because the paperwork wasn’t correct and I didn’t have everything. It was a nightmare.
If you are in Bamberg, rent for the apartment is just under $800. For two people it was $13.75 a day. Bring your checkbook to pay rent. If you do internet, the box is in the storage room, you have to pay the bill in euros. Take that whole box to the phone store, they will set it up. There is a 50 euro deposit and the first bill was over 100 euro. After that the bill is only 50 euro a month. There is free internet at the CAC (the community center), but it’s a little slow and they close too early. Other than traveling expenses and food, there wasn’t much else to spend money on. Sign up for internet as soon as you can because they put you on a list and it takes forever for them to come out.
You can buy a phone at the Power Zone, it’s a pay as you go. The phone was around $20 and you can buy 15 euro worth of minutes or 25 euro. I didn’t use mine much and I only had to buy minutes twice. I highly suggest getting SKYPE, I used that to call home, talk with friends and family. I used it to call hostels or book tours, SKYPE helped so much. To call home with the German phone was way too expensive.
Here's part 2:
Pack for all seasons! I saw every season here during my time from January to May. There is also a gym here that is free, you just have to show your installation pass. There is plenty of bedding and towels in the apartment. It’s really cheap to do mail because they give us an APO address, which allows us to ship things back and forth with USPS. I even mailed my luggage home; over 100 pounds total for about a dollar a pound. I suggest bringing what you need and then having a package mailed with a heavier coat and boots, etc. No matter what, you will be mailing boxes home.
For traveling, take your ISIC card everywhere, there are a lot of discounts with that. For lodging I used www.hostelworld.com to book hostels. It’s great, it gives directions, ratings, prices, it’s very helpful. Some places like Prague and Munich and Berlin have free walking tours so look into that. If you plan it out, you can travel pretty cheap, especially since it’s not peak traveling times. You can look into buying a eurorail, buy it before you come over. We bought a 21 day flexipass after we were here for additional traveling in May. We had friends who had a 15 day pass they could use within two months. They went a lot of places and it did pay for its self. You can also look into buying a 25 Bahn card. It’s a card you can use in Germany, it’s 25% off for 25 euro. It paid with for its self with a onetime use. Also, you can buy a Bavaria pass to travel within Bavaria. 5 people can be on one ticket which is 29 euro. If you are in Bamberg you can go to Neuschwanstein, Dachau, Salzburg Austria, Munich, Rothenburg, Wurtzburg, all of these places are worth going to. So if you do the eurorail, don’t use it for these places, use the eurorail for further locations. Downtown in Bamberg at the ZOB, there’s a machine where you can buy a bus pass, which really saves you a lot of money. Find that and have someone help you.
Final suggestions, order euros before you get here. The dollar significantly dropped while we were here and it was getting pricey to take euro out. And, if you can, try to come in during the middle of the week, like a Wednesday. There was an emergency and freak storm, post was shut down, the principal’s husband broke both arms from falling on his way to come get us. We had to stay the night in Nurnberg and then we came to post on a Friday. Everything closes early on Friday, we scrambled around, we were lost and confused and then everyone left us and we had no idea what to do about anything. I was thankful to know someone that I could contact, she was a huge help. So, if you have any questions between now and the time you get here, email me, kaylynnfcameron5@yahoo.com I loved my time here in Bamberg. It was a fantastic experience.
Hello! Kaylynn did a great job giving the low down on what you need to know before coming to Bamberg. I don't want to repeat much, but what I do want to say is that coming here with an open mind and limited expectations is the best thing you can do. Some random tidbits: Laundry is free. I'd bring a pair of slippers to walk around in the apartment because it is all linoleum flooring and the floors don't stay clean easily. We're walking distance from the school and the bus stops to go downtown. There is a shuttle bus you can take on post to go out to the post office and the commissary (grocery store). There are reusable bags to bring there. The credit union on post allows you to take out money in dollars or euros without a fee. I like Amy's and Brandon's comment about having someone always know where you are. A few good places for food in Bamberg are: La Comida (hole in the wall Mexican- amazing!), King Doner (something close to that name), ambrusiamo (again, spelling?). Basically, a little planning ahead of time never fails. If you do choose to buy a bavaria ticket, it is good for the buses in town. Make sure you go into town as often as you can and greet the locals. Germans are friendly and I've striked up good conversations. When you're packing, pack as light as you can. You'll buy things here and you can do with less than you think. A pair of ugg boots and leather boots were a good idea, and of course a nice winter jacket. Layering is key. There is a Px on post that you can buy toiletries and electronics from- anything basic. I bought a pair of running shoes and make-up. There is a place to get your hair cut for about $20. The rooms are a decent size. You can buy adapters for about $4. I wouldn't spend the money on a converter. There are also two U.S. plugs in the kitchen (great for camera/phone/ipod chargers).
Be brave and adventurous. You only get this chance once. Prioritizing your time and making the most of the experience will guarantee you personal growth. Bring a journal and a camera. Any kind of outlet is important to process the emotions you'll go through.
Best of luck to the future student teachers!
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