I love politics

a little bit of politics here and there can get you just a little further now and then. a bit of diplomacy here, a bit of charm there, that doesn't only help with MUN or boosting your school grades.

today i went to the dance casting for formation dancing (latin). i dont really dance that well, but hey, i at least dance better than half my dance school, if not three quaters. anyways, they didnt seem to want me. i was a tad upset and a tad pissed, because i didnt really understand why. however, i then talked to a guy in the formation i would have gone to. he said that i should come to the training anyways. so that was my plan b. 

then after doing some standard (for fun, im no where good enough to join the world champs nor the bundesliga), where i had the priviledge of dancing with one of the standard formation world champions , i had another chat with one of the girls that did get taken. i knew her from a tournament i had visited, as she currently dances for sinsheim, another team. in the middle i got appoached by the trainer, who asked me my name. i got into some sort of conversation, which ended up with him telling me to come to trainings anyways, and us shaking hands. sometimes im rather happy to have learned how to "chat people into what you want", even though im not a master of the skill (yet ;), but lastly i suppose my dancing isnt as gruesome.

stubborn me is going to work until i get it right- or get to be "off the bench"...just wait

msn conversations

Julia:

hey

sabeth:

morning

Julia:mr kelly is coming to stuttgart and i wont be able to see him!!! =(

Sabeth:

when is he coming???

Julia:

dont tell anybody, ok?

Sabeth:

ok

Julia:

next week

Julia:

when were ****** sailing

sabeth:

nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!

sabeth:

why!!!!!!!!!

Julia:

ya

Sabeth:

why then!!!!!!???????

Sabeth:

sniff sniff

Julia:

because its his only week off

Julia:

and he wanted to go to prom

Sabeth:

that sucks

Sabeth:

thats another reason not to go sailing!!!

Sabeth:

=(

parents...

*sigh*

why do parents always have the talent to spoil your mood, your day and / or anything? 

mine are especially talented or maybe im just a bit grumpy at times ;)

however, if after 3 hours of gardenwork, a bit of science, violin, and whatever else you were supposed to do and did, you get one on top by being brainwashed you end up feeling like me: not even able to enjoy dancing.

-.-

i cannot really put my finger on it. was it my being really late for dancing, was it the big "julia i dont want you to have a bf so dont even start and dont you dare bring him home, and by the way your grades are going to suffer" talk, or was it that too many people i knew were dancing and i couldnt dance the stuff i wanted with the people i wanted? no, i am not in the right to complain about that. whatever. it might just be teenage hormones on crack...I wonder where they get that from, as i dont give it to them...

oh well a bit of sleep, school and a heap of homework will fix it.

ballroom dancing-episode one of many

dancing is amazing!!!!

yesterday, after all my other day plans had for some lucky coincidence fallen into the water, (I wasnt as happy at the time), a friend of mine doing tournament dancing called me up and asked whether i could train with him today. for the record: me dancecourse student, he d/c class tournament dancer...

in other words i didnt think he got  lot of the 1.5 hours, but i did. at least i have a lot of homework to do. right, by the way are my shoes. they kill your feet after about 3 hours, but until now my feet are fine.

first we starded doing some standard as he has a tournament next thursday, and apparently hes not very good. I was worse, but it got uglier for me when we started on latin, as that is his favourite part and hes good at it.

I think we spent something like 15 mins doing one womens turn, so me turning. I didnt get the hip movement, that you have to point your toes tha whole time, the standing straight, in which direction you look etc. I think i got it right like 3 times, but im not satisfied myself. I need more hip, straighter legs, better timing and more pointy toes on that one. 

then we commenced to do half a "hockeystick". we only got to the beginning, as my movements again were not sharp enough. it didnt take so long until we gave up on that.

now came the goodies, the formation specialities: the roundabout and the "lankenaus". the first is a figure in the samba, where i had just learned the easy boring style of it in my regular dance class. this is completely different. i get to crouch down, almost sitting (god my leg muscles seem nonexistant!!) and then turn arond each other. its somewhat like the spinning that little kids do, just that you dont lean, keep your shoulders straight and have the steps. im realising how much stronger i need to get, and  how much tension i need to develop-its hard, and i think im going to spend the rest of my time until next week getting my leg muscles somewhat fit.

next was my favourite part - because i got it somewhat :D: the lankenaus. they are like pirioettes, on one leg, the other in the air, and led by your "man"(aparently im a women that likes doing things by herself...). i managed 4 in a row multiple times, once 5...my goal is 8 for now and 12 for the near future. so that gives me balancing homework to do. apart form the fact that i almst broke the fingers of my partner, was like a cm away from smashing my foot on his (with some power), and fell on him some several times.

my dance partner, david, didnt get completely pissed off with me, and afterwards on msn he wrote "it was ok", which i take as a compliment...seeing he has a reputation for being impatient.

first training of many to follow...

holidays?

this week is stuffed. im strenuously trying to fit in 2 friends a day, while thinking about my homework with worries. It has worked so far. not today.

aaaaaaaah! i need to do work!! history, science, french are urgent (and big). music, english, german, yeh i could have a shot at that...

unfortunately my motivation is close to 0%. i just did half an essay outline, and already had grabbed the telephone...when i realised pragahti couldnt tell me my work is fine on this one. im pretty sure it will be though - if i ever do it.

its somehow funny how productivity decreases proportionally to temperature increase...it works for me. =(

ok in other words: history and an article of french, as well as cooking until 12, that gives me 2 hours and i can call up suzane to go to the pool without that bad of a conscience. ok, make that 2 aticles of french.

I CAN DO IT! I WILL CONCENTRATE!!

*nerv*

go to work julia, go to work, hi-stor-y!! g-o t-o w-o-r-k!!!!NOW!

ok

henna, icecream and casablanca. the last day

pragathi met me at her ubahn station today. she wasnt allowed to the cinema, nor downtown, so i took the innitiative visiting her. she surprized me by asking what i am doing the next two hours- and hence i visited her house for the first time. its all packed now, so we had the choice between matrasses and floor. we're already used to the floor, so we took that. 

by the way, left is the henna i have on my hand, designed and painted by pragathi. it goes up to my shoulder, almost reaching it, even though thats not conventional. i just finished painting on my leg with the leftover of the henna, and i still have a quarter left!

back to pragathis place. as soon as i arrive i already got stuffed with food. funny that, it seems to be universal that as soon as guests arrive you take out your food and hold it in front of their nose- not that they just had lunch at home. my mum is exactly the same.

even though my mum had just stuffed me an hour earlier, i gladly accepted. its indian after all, and also good manners. while munching away the essence that had kept me alive he past year or so (i pretty much always get half or pragathis lunch), we played a bord game with her sister, in other words we played a 

bord game and played for her sister. then, we watched casablanca on her laptop. i have only seen the end of it so far, and currently am obsessed with old classic movies. therefore we left current block busters in the bag.

the movie also is about departure...ironically fitting. however we never came to the parting scenes as pragathi needed another suitcase. 

i was supposed to be dropped at the train stop.  but we went to the next as it was just as close. we were at the stop too soon. i didnt feel like leaving. so i went with them to get the suitcase. black, square, just as mine is. then we got ice cream. pragathis last one, as the hygene in india isnt the best and ice creams are apparently often flavoured with cholera or typhoid. yummy.

too quickly; the train stop again. talking about trivial things. school, india, germany. a few words about leaving but not too much, as if the event were far in the future and we would see each other in history on monday morning after the break.

suddenly the train came, one last hug, where I had to supress tears. me running a few steps to jump on the train before the doors close. it departs. the express has finally pulled out of the train station.

I sit down and realise I will only be seeing pragathi through words the next couple of ... what? months? seasons? years?

i didnt cry, because that would have just been awkward in public. Id have enough time  for that later.

it was a nice last day, the first time i saw pragathi completely outside of the setting of the school. i already miss her, and cannot wait to see her again. india or germany, mun, holidays or just a short sidetrip. it will happen.

an evening of complete cheese

yesterday i got invited to a free kylie minogue concert. so i slapped a bit of eyeliner on, did a bit of hectic phone calling and there i was.

the music is not really my taste, its too electronic for me- not that thats bad, but if you really want to listen to electronic mugge (sorry gerlishing again), there are multiple french djs that really know their stuff without acting the pink shiny pop princess. or you go to the dancefloor of the next abiparty, thats not live, but works.

the show was actually not that bad though. the background dancers were absolutely amazing (they in my opinion made the show) its not really my type of dance, but you clearly could see that these people knew their stuff had loads and loads of talent, and probably trained their bodies 24/7. the costumes were paritally completely weird, a weirdness some superficial people might call creative, and also the bass was nice. the music sounded too good to be live. im still not sure how much, especially of the singing, was modified. i could have heard a cd and done a dance to it- well i couldnt have danced like those dancers did... but in general it was completely different to any concert i have been to.

my precious concert experience is limited to classical music, and rock. but not too much of the latter yet. I was amazed how much kylie minougue was different. the audience consisted mainly of well to do middle aged "spießer", that mucked around when we completely coincidentally met friends that were standing at the front and wanted to see the concert with them. and no, they did not moan at the first person that went forewards, but at the last, which was a korean girl. she was going out the first time, barely speaking german and definately too shy to be brutal and just get her way with her elbows. there was as good as no pushing around, and the crowd was not that crowded as i would have expected it. that has a good side, but eventhough you're pushed and ellbowed, have no personal space and sweat like a pig, i prefer those types of concerts - at least at my current age.

now to the show itself. it was very plasticy, seemed superficial and probably was. each of the masses of outfit changes smeared through yet another cliché, without seeming to ever run out. let me see:

there was a starwars mixed french fencing in the 19th century (or earlier) set. 

followed by the high school band / cheer /american football set, where the idea was probably stolen by gwen stephani.

there was an awkward pseudo communist dress paired with an overly polished pirates of the carribean scull. there even was ballroom dancing immitating some sort of ball, the beach, the marine, japan and so on and so forth. neither intellectually stimulating nor with a message exept for- wow im a showgirl, shut your brain off and watch!

im not saying i wasted my evening. it was a good show that fulfilled expectations, expectations of  a pop concert by a women selling her image as the perfect international pop icone. but i wouldnt spend 60 euros on it, nor would i go again (ok if i got it for free i would). 

pictures will follow as soon as i get them!

-Julia

what a day

well lets start with the beginning- an assembly were the 3 macbooks finally gave up their spinny wheels of doom in favour of our MUN presentation. aparently we were too quiet, but then again nobody can be more quiet than our principal so its ok. 

a certain girl in our class won a potential uni stipend. It was a teacher based judgement, which might expain the choice a bit. a friend of mine came up to me afterwards asking in a devastated and slightly nerved voice why i didnt get it. i have no idea either, because of the nominees (I saw the list by accident) the one chosen was my peronal least favourite, i would have been ok with any of the tehr getting it. not that id plan to study at that university anyways, but things like that are always nice spices on your cv.

then of course pragathis last day. i copied off the last maths question trying to look for the error in mine. I laughed at the last of my science teachers horrid jokes with her, filled out the last handout in collaboration, shared the last food.

im still hoping to meet up wth her before she leaves. i further am already mentally warming up to the idea of her not being there, maybe thats why i was one of the few that kept dry eyes at the end of todays schoolday. and i know its not a goodbye for ever but more like an extensive summer holiday. in other words: we will meet again.

the rest of the day was pure hectic. pragathi did henna on my arm. it was her first try and therefore a bit squiggly, but i like the design that turned out...and its from pragathi. then i rushed to the train, then i ran home, then i came late for piano, then i ran home, then i was there for about 10 minutes before running to catch the train again to go downtown, to an ad hoc kylie minogue concert. dont worry, thats not really my type of music, but i got invited to go to a free concert so i might as well go. a review will follow as soon as my brain starts functioning again after a long sleep. sleep is actually a good keyword. my brain keeps telling me i need more of it, and i think ill take the advice for the moment.

good times in stuttgart or, the first stop of the express

the whistle blows and the smoke rises...the scene outside the windows turns into a silent blur...the transeurasian express.

the announcement: stuttgart. the beginning of our travel and all our future travels; my home town. A sleepy town, also being compared as the largest village in germany. and truely it has the village feel to it, huge masses of park area, extensive suburbs that start right at the center. but then there is the other side of stuttgart, the commerce, mercedes, bosch, soccer, the(night)"life". nothing compared to those west european travel highlights like munich, paris, berlin or london. but there is no need. it is a beautiful place I have been priviledged to have been brought up in, and im quite sure I will always identify some sort of sense of home with it, even if i am an international student that will settle for something larger, smaller, completely whack or just different later on.

it is an equally enriching experience to come from a gigantic city full of people, cars and smoke to stuttgart - that has apart from exposing me to a diferent culture, cleaned out my sooty lungs as well. as i stepped onto the german soil in suttgart for the very first time, my reaction was: brrr...it's cold!! Before I could think any more, my brains were frozen. slowly as my homeostatic temperature control system kicked into life, i saw for the very first time in my life...the subway! a universal and ingenious invention i owe much of my current "liberty" to. the wind streams past my face and i have arrived in great speed and excitement to my institution of learning - my school.

the school. the place Pragathi and I met, sat through hundreds of more and of less interresting classes together, had fun in. learned in (i hope at least) and in future will still be the setting of numerous more of less stressed out sniplets of life. the place we are writing from this moment. its a colourful school, both in physical apprearance, faculty and student body. it has humungous potential, and a lot of unfortunate plot twists. lets hope the administration finally gets their act straightened out next year.

the school is jinxed. you really miss it when you are away from it. the energy, the hustle-bustle, the people, the classes and (maybe not as much) even the homework. the international setting can take your breath away if you haven't experienced something like that before. teachers pile on work and swamp our already marshy minds, but behind the groans there is the strive todards a better person, a more knowledgable, cuturally versed and grownup character... ;) ...and a certain bit (okay...much more) of respect for the teachers for handling hormone powered teenagers bobbing off the walls half the entire day. With eight more hours left (the countdown goes on...), I am trapped under the spell the school has cast. I will surely miss the school and my friends, more than the number of atoms in this entire universe, if you ever measure my grief.

then again there always is the evil overloard plan to abduct pragathi, lock her in the maths cupboard( our teacher has volounteered it!) and repay her bit by bit for all the food pragathi has donated to our own internal freerice.com progam (not advertising the site at all). likely eh?

the train departs

dear friend, aquaintance, family member, blogsurfer,

 

and yet another new blog has arisen the shreds of binary encoding...but this is a special one. it will be scribbled on by two teenagers soon living on opposite ends of this world. in other words, half this blog will be written my best friend Pragathi, and the other half by myself, Julia. 

as our names might hint, for those lost souls in the wide world of blogs that have bumped into this and dont know us, i'm german, and pragathi is indian. two cultures, two timezones, two best friends and one blog. it will contain daily life, culture clashes, arguments, literary pieces of genius, news and random bits and pieces of our osmosing minds.

there, that should be enough for the conventional blog introduction shouldnt it?

so, the transcontinental train (the flight on sunday morning) is ready to take off. can all passengers please board; emergency exits are here here and here; we are waiting for the ok signal by the tower, and are ready and set for take off. please keep all umbrellas ready, for the almost perpetual indian sun could easily be bothered by some shivering german rainshowers. the osmosed flight company hopes you have an enjoying flight!

or as my favourite science tv show says:

"bleiben sie uns treu, empfehlen sie uns weiter!"

- julia