Germany — December 2016

Madeline Gronotte

Study Abroad – Germany

 

1. Please provide a brief description of your STEP Signature Project. Write two or three sentences describing the main activities your STEP Signature Project entailed.

 

My signature project was a study abroad trip to Germany offered through the Dunn Sport and Wellness Scholars Program and Rec Sports Department during the month of December. During this journey, we were able to explore the distinct history, culture, and sport policy in Berlin and Cologne, Germany by visiting historical sites like the Berlin Wall and East Side Gallery, interacting with locals, for example, at a professional soccer game, and exploring signature centers of culture like the Christmas markets and religious sites like the Cologne Cathedral, Kölner Dom.

 

2. What about your understanding of yourself, your assumptions, or your view of the world changed/transformed while completing your STEP Signature Project? Write one or two paragraphs to describe the change or transformation that took place.

In many ways, traveling in Germany provided a constant reminder that racism and other forms of discrimination are not unique to the United States. Though it has been over 70 years since the end of World War II, the implications of Hitler’s anti-Semitic policies have not diminished in terms of significance to German culture and history. More recently, Germany has made headlines for its acceptance of Syrian refugees amidst the Syrian Civil War. In the year 2015 alone, Germany accepted over 600,000 Syrian refugees. I noticed many more Islamic people (those distinguishable by their wearing head coverings), presumably refugees, in Berlin than in Cologne, It was refreshing to see the acceptance and blending of cultures in a city and country that was once so divided.

As in my previous study abroad experience to South Asia, I was reminded of the hard-to-detect subtleties that differ between our culture and others as well as things I take for granted as a citizen of one of the most privileged countries in the world. Some of these subtleties included restaurant and train-riding etiquette, things I was not prepared to encounter even though I expected some amount of culture shock. Furthermore, I was surprised at the number of encounters we had with non-English-speaking people. Admittedly, I sometimes demonstrate ethnocentric ways of thinking, sometimes subconsciously, but traveling abroad is one of the most obvious ways to rid those tendencies.

 

 

3. What events, interactions, relationships, or activities during your STEP Signature Project led to the change/transformation that you discussed in #2, and how did those affect you? Write three or four paragraphs describing the key aspects of your experiences completing your STEP Signature Project that led to this change/transformation. 

 

Experiencing modern-day German culture and walking in the same hallways as Adolf Hitler once did brings a new meaning and significance to me regarding that slice of history. We visited the 1936 Olympic Stadium (that has since been renovated and restored) where Berlin hosted the summer games and sat in the suite that once belonged to Hitler. These Olympic Games were of particular importance because while Hitler was imposing his pro-Aryan ideals, Ohio State alumnus Jesse Owens – a black man – won four gold medals and became the face of the 1936 Olympics. The chancellor refused to shake hands with Owens, but Owens said he waved at Hitler as he walked by his stadium box because “it was bad taste to criticize the ‘man of the hour’ in another country.” Not until our stadium tour guide explained it did I realize that Owens admitted he was actually treated better in Berlin during the games than he was when he returned home. He did not experience the same types of segregation in Berlin as he did in the United States, even after he came home as a four-time Olympic gold medalist. This helps put the racial issues that divide our country today into perspective and demonstrates how Owens was able to thrive in an oppressive environment while maintaining a great deal of professionalism. Fast forward 80 years and now Germany is being praised by many for being one of the only nations in the Eastern Hemisphere to accept Syrian refugees who are fleeing their home country during civil unrest. This progression toward acceptance of people of other cultures is astonishing given the relatively short time period.

A rather insignificant cultural subtlety we did not at first pick up on concerns restaurant etiquette. First of all, we learned that gratuity is not required or really even expected by waiters. In fact, if guests leave any more than one euro, they are actually viewed as snobby. Secondly, waiters are not especially familiar with splitting the check among many guests. Rather, they prefer we just all put in our share of money for a single check. Lastly, eating out in America is often viewed as a social activity and conversation continues far after guests are finished eating. At many restaurants we ate at, as soon as we were finished eating, we were expected to pay and clear out our table. These are not things I necessarily needed to or even could have prepared for, but nonetheless, they are interesting differences I quickly picked up on as a tourist.

At a few of the attractions we visited, I was surprised to encounter people who did not speak English, which I admit demonstrates a bit of ethnocentricity. For example, when we visited the Old National Gallery Berlin, a 19^th century art museum, we checked our coats as a large group of 20. However, the attendant did not speak English, so when we tried to leave the museum in smaller groups at different times, we could not explain to her that we wanted to retrieve our coats from the group bin, so we had to wait in the museum lobby until the entire group was ready to leave.

As a citizen of one of the most privileged countries in the planet, one thing I take for granted is a feeling of relative safety when I go out in public, even amidst recent trends of racial tensions and political protests. In my lifetime, there have been no wars in the United States and I was too young to have significant memories of the 9/11 terrorist attack. My feeling of safety was quickly and glaringly disturbed during my time in Germany. A day after we left Berlin and had arrived in Cologne, a terrorist attack occurred at a Christmas market in Berlin, one we had just visited days before. Not only was it unsettling since we had just been in that area of Berlin but also because we had already experienced the Christmas markets, which are numerous and are such an integral, spirited, and beautiful part of German culture during the holiday season. While this event obviously led me to be more on-guard during the rest of our outing in Germany, it also makes me realize how fortunate I have been to grow up in a relatively safe environment. At the same time, it reminds me to force those subconscious, ethoncentric thoughts out of my head and realize that horrifying events could occur anywhere in the United States, just as they did at the beautiful Christmas markets in Berlin.

 

4. Why is this change/transformation significant or valuable for your life? Write one or two paragraphs discussing why this change or development matters and/or relates to your academic, personal, and/or professional goals and future plans. 

 

During my time in Germany, I was exposed to authentic, practical experiences outside of the classroom regarding a topic that pertains to my potential career interests in sport. Seeing how the 1936 Berlin games reflected the political policies and community values of the complex issues of racism, sexism, and classism is particularly relevant given the issues concerning race and politics that continue to divide our country and the world today. Additionally, should I choose to pursue graduate school, having relevant experience studying abroad is a unique and valuable quality that demonstrates commitments to worldliness – having plentiful experiences with and knowledge of life and the world – and lifelong learning. Furthermore, experiencing a new culture in general helped me to adjust my routines and social norms, expectations, and judgments in order to understand and extract value from a culture I was unfamiliar with, a tool that will be valuable in my academic, personal, and professional future.

Christmas market next to TV Tower in Berlin