The first day of Orientation week

 Tiring, but awesome. I think that is the best footnote of my first day in Tübingen.  We almost all of the “new kids”, that is how they called us, have already met each other beforehand.  Joe, a British man, had hosted a gathering at Neckar Müller on Saturday, which is a well known bear garden for local people. Neckar Müller brews their own beer, and people can just drink beer while talking and enjoying the amazingly beautiful Neckar river in Tübingen.

Today is started with a visit to the Sparkasse, the most densely located bank in Tübingen. The staff there nicely expatiate everything we want and need to know, with great patience and friendliness, making me feel Germany may not be that rude or bossy as some of my friends living in other city described.

We also have a third party responsibility insurance purchased there, so should we accidentally damage others property, the insurance will cover it.

The documents are in German, so it takes a little bit longer to clarify the doubts and sign all of the pages. Then, we go directly to AOK for our health insurance, which is located in Mensa, i.e. student cafeteria. 

It is my first time really get into the Mensa, and the staff of AOK is really nice to help us out, even she haven´t eaten her lunch, and the closed time had already passed.

We grab some Turkish food at a stand located right at the head of Neckar Brück. We went back to GTC, inside old anatomy building, and start filling forms for our residency approval.

Then, the German course starts, people are introduced to each other totally in German, and I find most of people actually can speak German quite well. Then we have some scenario practice, in which we pretend we were in restaurant or bookstore. Finally, we go on streets to have some field test of our German. We bought ice cream in one of the best ice cream shop in Tübingen, called Eiscafé San Marco,  in German.

‘Ich mochtet nehmen kugel yugurt ’ then you get a ball of yugurt ice cream. It tastes really good.

We go pass the Plaza where the chocolate fair will be held, and the Klinkgasse which is a very thin ally by which you can get directly to the bank of Neckar, and a Student Jail, almost a signature for any historic campus city in Germany. Unfortunately, the Jail is closed. I must come back someday.

We go pass the place where a plate read “Goethe puked here”, and “Stiftkirchen”a church where open concerts of classical music are held on every Saturday.

We stop at bank of Neckar watching sunset, with a row of punts rest along the bank. Looking at the crimson reflection of the sun in the river,  touched by the twigs of old willows along the river, I feel everything here are melted into a huge oil painting of Monet. How beautiful the city, and how fortunate I am to be able to come here but not some many other culture deserts to pursue my master degree. 

Kepler has lived in here, Goethe has lived in here, and in the same building you still can see students taking class in it. What can be more wonderful when you find this well-preserved old city keeps its charms that captivated Goethe and Kepler ?