Today, May 9th, was the first full day of my abroad experience. After traveling for about 14 hours total and taking three planes, two taxis, and 1 train, I finally made it to Cologne, Germany. Upon arrival at the Hotel, I checked into my room and then explored Cologne with Caroline and Colleen. We ate Mediterranean food and then met back at the hotel to go on a walking tour of the city. During the walking tour we saw various monuments and sights relating to the Roman Empire, the Holocaust, and religion. The main attraction of the day was the Cathedral. At the Cathedral, our tour guide Nadia took us up all 500 stairs. It was extremely tiring but it was all worth it once we made it to the top and saw the view of the city! After, we explored the Cathedral and Nadia explained the history behind many of the stain glass windows, and important aspects of the Cathedral such as the 1 ton gold case that holds the bones of the three wise men. Following our tour, we went to a local cafe and then made our way to a traditional German dinner. After dinner, Caroline and I adventured to the store to get shampoo and conditioner. We had to ask another customer to help us decipher which bottle was conditioner. I never thought something so simple could be so difficult in another country! It was an exciting and exhausting first day!
One thing that surprised me most today was the abundance of memorials and statues commemorating those who lost their lives during the Holocaust. I expected to see some of these monuments, however, I was surprised to see so many. I was not sure heading into the trip how often the people of Germany would mention the events of the Holocaust. I did not know whether they would try not to mention it or bring it up a fair amount due to the sensitive nature of the topic. Thus, I was surprised to see that Cologne has poured a lot of effort into the memorialization and honoring of those who passed away during the horrifying events of the Holocaust.
Furthermore, many questions come to mind when I continue to think about the events of the Holocaust. Specifically, I wonder how the Holocaust effected the mental health of those experiencing torture and imprisonment. I wonder how it effected the mental health of the Nazi’s who were directed to kill millions of Jewish people. Henceforth, I am interested to understand how the mental health of German people today is effected by the events of the country’s past. Hopefully as the trip continues to unfold I will be able to draw some conclusions on this topic. I look forward to furthering my education in regards to Psychology and Culture in Europe over the course of this trip.