Blog Post #2 - Amberly Martinez - Expanding Worldview

     I am very grateful that I was given the opportunity to travel before this. I remember the first time I came to Europe my perspective greatly shifted. The first time I visited London, I was on the underground, and when it reached up onto the surface it revealed a neighborhood of all red-brick British town houses. I was amazed. Up to that point in my life, I had only seen neighborhoods like that in movies and now it was real.

    I have met a lot of local people when I travel and most recently, I visited a friend in Bieselsberg, Germany. My perspective after that trip changed a lot. She and her family taught me many things about living as a sustainable German family. She showed me their garden which was full of a variety of plants, they grow their own vegetables: tomatoes, zucchinis, carrots, mint. I’m not sure if this was a personal household custom, but everybody removed their shoes before walking into the home. I know that some homes choose to do this in other parts of the world too, but it was certainly my first time being a guest at a home that practiced this. Additionally, they do not throw away food but save food scraps for their compost.

    Another shock that I ran into was that her parents did not speak any English, I did not expect them to, but communication became difficult. What I found interesting was that most of the young people in that town speak English, but the older people do not. My friend told me that in Germany children start learning English starting in 3rd grade, which was not a requirement for her parents' education. It also made me question: Why does Germany, among other countries, put such an emphasis on learning English? It has actually become a second language for most educated foreigners. I think this is one of the way’s countries try to imitate or engage with the U.S. I think ultimately the United States has contributed to the expansion of the English language, due to business, politics, tourism, and education.