berlin, germany.

day 33 // tue feb 13th

We met at the train station at 7:30AM to head out for Berlin. This is a class excursion which means all 35 A&M students travel together for the week. This is a great experience for them and Berlin is a great city full of history, technology and culture!

We arrived in Berlin around 1:00PM. The Berlin train station is probably the nicest one I've seen thus far on our journey. We had about 45 minutes to grab something to eat before our hop on hop off bus tour started. We grabbed some asian food from a little place nearby.

We met our tour guides for the evening and got onto a super nice (& warm) charter bus. The first stop was the German Reichstag. Marissa and I have a classic jumping in front of this building, so I did my best to recreate without her, sad. Also, hey Drift!

Next up was the Brandenburg Gate, a very cool structure. From here we went to square and walked to the Bebelplatz. The Bebelplatz is known as the site of one of the infamous Nazi book burning ceremonies held in the evening of 10 May 1933 in many German university cities.

Once it got dark, our bus drove us to our hotel. We checked into our hotel, Hotel Alex. We freshened up then all met downstairs for a group dinner.

day 34 // wed feb 14th

The next day was what we called "My Berlin Day" at the program. The students were divided into groups to partake in different tours and experiences. That evening they were asked to give a short presentation of what they took away from their Berlin Day. I went with Wade's group to the Wall Museum (Museum Haus am Checkpoint Charlie). From here I met our program coordinator to check out the Buchstabenmuseum, or the letter museum. I had found this place years and years ago when pinterest first came out. I had it pinned as "places to go one day." I did some research and was super bummed that the website said it was closed. I reached out to our coordinators to see if perchance they could call (since I don't speak fluent German quite yet). They responded and said they were still closed. THEN the heavens opened up and I got a text saying 'plot twist there is a private tour at 2PM'. HECK YES.

We met at 2 and the fun began. The museum itself is actually not fully finished or functional yet. They relocated into a new bigger space underneath the metro (very cool) but are waiting for permits and legal things before being fully operational, thus why the website saying they were closed. We met a tour guide and she gave us some history on some of the neons in the collection. It was a cool experience. We also just explored for awhile—stacks and stacks of letters and neons. Some of them were in working condition, others in need of restoration.

"The Buchstabenmuseum is the first museum in the world to collect letterforms from public spaces and display them as part of urban history. We preserve and document three-dimensional letters and signage, and their history, as well as providing information about their origins and construction. Our collection has captured the imagination of visitors from all around the world for over 10 years. Hundreds of letters have been saved from being battered by the elements or ending up on the scrap heap."

SO. COOL. day made.

After the evening presentations from the students Wade and I left to find a nice spot for our Valentine's Day Dinner (did I mention it was Valentine's day?). We found another cute Bao Burger restaurant—we're not obsessed, you're obsessed. It was a tiny little joint with a line so it must be good, right? We ended up only waiting for about 10 minutes. I had a salmon burger again and Wade had a classic Cheese Burger. We ordered both the sweet potato fries and the reg ones. Both good! Overall a pretty dang good day.

day 35 // thurs feb 15th

Today the group went to the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp. A pretty heavy day, and I had gone as a student so I decided to stay and get some work done. I ventured out to Father Carpenter coffee shop. The baristas were Australian so it was nice to hear english speaking. Then I had been eyeing this blush pink denim jacket from H&M. I decided to make the jump. Later that day when Wade returned we went to the Computerspielemuseum (Computer Game Museum). It was fun museum with a lot of interactive parts (like games). Berlin is a great city that is very design oriented and design-conscious. I wish we had more time to go to some of the markets and street fairs, next time!

heidelberg, germany.

day 15 // fri jan 26

Our train left Bonn at 3PM on Friday and headed South down the Rhine. It was such a pretty train ride. I lost count of all the castles I saw along the way. We arrived around 5:45 at the Heidelberg main train station. From here we stopped by the information desk. *Pro tip–I always recommend stopping by the tourist desk or info desk at the main train station—even if you feel lame, they most always speak English and have good info to share. We got a city map and she pointed us in the right direction of our Airbnb. We found our cute little place which was about a 15 minute walk from the station. Airbnb tour coming soon!

We settled in for a bit then decided to venture out for dinner. Wade and I were traveling with our friend from school, Lin. We decided on an Asian place and split food family style. I know, I know not traditional German food, but hey we are here for awhile and I will definitely have my fair share of schnitzel before the time is up!

day 16 // sat jan 27

Holy walking Batman. We walked 10.51 miles or 23,862 stinking steps today. Worth it, though! We started bright and early and ventured toward Old Town. There were only a handful of people out and about at this hour. I played my basic card and got a skinny caramel latte at Starbucks. Partially because I really was craving it, and partially because we had to go to the bathroom and you had to pay, so might as well get a coffee with that money and pee for free. Sorry, TMI. I also love the way Germans tend to spell “Gill” maybe I’ll start spelling it that way, spice it up a little.

Okay, enough of that. We walked through the streets of Old Town Heidelberg which was like an outdoor shopping mall mixed with historically beautiful storefronts. We found the well-known Karl Theodor Bridge, literally called the "old bridge." But we were sad it was so foggy and hard to really see a lot of the cool landscapes and castle views.

After this we found another info desk and the nice lady informed us the fog was out of the norm and she hadn’t seen it this bad in pretty much ever. coooool. She did however sell us tram tickets plus entrance to the Castle for €4 euro a person (with the student discount), we will take it!

We eventually stopped for lunch at a little cafe. I had a mozzarella and tomato focaccia sandwich. It was cheap and definitely worth the carbs. Wade had ham & cheese pizza bites, which was essentially a calzone with a garlic sauce.

THEN, my nerd dreams came true again and we found a packaging museum. It was €3 a person and a cute little spot. They were showcasing a traveling exhibit on Stollwerck. Stollwerck is a German chocolate manufacturer. It was founded in 1839 and expanded internationally in Europe and America, becoming the second largest producer of chocolate in the United States by 1900. The museum showcased an assortment of packaging designs, processes and tons of really beautiful intricate designs.

After our museum visit we took a tram up the mountainside to the Heidelberg Castle. This was very cool. They had a free exhibit of the history of pharmacy. They also had what I assume is the world’s biggest wine barrel. That thing was massive!

We started to head back to the Airbnb but were pleasantly surprise when we stumbled upon a little store front with loads of people outside. I asked what they were waiting for and they said Schneeballen... um sure, sign us up! Turns out they are essentially a fried crunchy dough covered in your choice of chocolate, cinnamon, or whatever option you could dream up. We got an apple cinnamon sugar one and one with chocolate inside. So good. The stranger in the street really sold us on them, maybe he was secretly getting paid by them, who knows. He said they were a Heidelberg tradition, but he could also be making that up. Nonetheless they were yummy. After our accidental find we took an afternoon break and relaxed at the apartment for a bit.

Being the culturally adventurous people we are, we went to an Indian place for dinner. Then we were pooped. Fun day.

day 17 // sun jan 28

Totally writing this from a McDonald’s waiting on our train. I forgot from my last study abroad that Germany closes shop on Sundays. Like everything. That being said, we had a little time to kill before our train so here we are. ALTHOUGH, I am usually never disappointed in McDonald’s coffee. Isn’t that right, Netta? Haters gonna hate, but the flavor of their coffee is pretty good.

Our train leaves soon then back to Bonn we go! We have a busy week with several excursions to Cologne for school things. Tomorrow we go to a cinema to see the moving ‘Loving Vincent’ and then again on Tue/Thursday for museums visits.

Brussels, Belgium this weekend. We also bought our tickets to Spain which I’m pretty pumped about! Also, Ris and Jarrod have officially booked their flights to France for Easter. All the good things to look forward to, or as my boy Mat Kearney says, “all the feels tonight are real. All that’s real you can’t buy or steal.” Except train tickets to different countries, those you can totally buy.

Lastly, here are some pictures from our Airbnb! I love the way it was styled. We rented this space for two nights. The owner was a photographer and had a very cool style/vibe in his apartment. We picked up the key at a restaurant across the street which made it feel even cooler? Maybe that was just me. Here's the link if you're interested.

gutenberg museum.

day 6 // wed jan 17th

You guys, for real. Today didn't even seem like real life. It was my heaven on earth—what design nerd dreams are made of. First off, we woke up in a CASTLE, then we took a train to Mainz, Germany. Which is birthplace of Johannes Gutenberg, who introduced the world to mechanical movable type printing and essentially started the printing revolution. Meaning, he was a big freaking deal. We went to a huge museum dedicated to printing and I even got to see 1.5 Gutenberg Bibles. These were amazing and under very tight lock and key. Meaning no pictures, BUT the memory will for sure last forever. The museum currently owns 1.5 original Gutenberg bibles. They were so big and heavy that the book binders back then decided to make the bible into two seperate books.

After our tour we got to do a letterpress workshop and make some really cool prints that I will treasure! We then had lunch at a local fish market recommended by our tour guide. *pro tip-always ask your guides and/or a local where to eat. This is something I didn't do my first go round in europe cause we (Ris & I) were on a strict budget and probably a little scared to venture too far out of our comfort zone. Wade and I both had fresh cod and different types of potatoes. Very delicious.

Still on a high from this experience. I told Wade I could spend an entire day there. Who knows, maybe we will go back!

day 7 // thurs jan 18th

We've been exactly a week, which to me seems impossible! We have already explored and seen so much. Official classes started today and our days will be a bit more structured now. I am teaching a class on motion design with specific emphasis on cultural reflection and exploration. I think the results will be very cool.

transitions + circles co.

There's a lot of transitioning happening in my life right now. I left my nice marketing job and I feel semi-guilty about it. It was all packaged so nicely, tied with ribbons of health insurance and a 401k plan, but I just wasn't creatively fulfilled. I didn't wake up each morning chomping at the bit to get to work. Don't get me wrong, the people are great, such an amazing group of architects, but that alone cannot fill one's creative soul.

Something needed to change. I needed the change, desperately.

As of today, I am working with Circles Co. full-time and pursuing my career as a freelance designer. I have toyed with both of these ideas for quite some time now. It's a scary, yet totally satisfying, transition.

Here's to new & exciting things!