By Travis Weber & Nathanael Breeden
Staff Correspondents
HEIDELBERG—“It will be the best experience of your life,” they told us.
And having no reason to think otherwise, we believed them.
We met in an airport, traveled roughly 11 hours by plane and bus, and arrived in Heidelberg, Germany, ready to begin what would end all too soon.
And so our story began. Our story is unique –– it is ours –– yet to anyone else it’s the same old story.
“It will be the best experience of your life.”
Everything was new, everything was exciting and nothing was stopping us from having that “amazing experience.”
But soon we learned the meaning of their words.
You want water? To drink? You must be kidding.
You want to eat something other than pizza or McDonalds? We take Visa and MasterCard.
Welcome to Europe.
You’re still thirsty? No problem, we’ll bring out another shot of cola. That will be three Euros.
And of course all of this is said in German. You understand nothing.
Moore Haus is a mansion; it will take weeks to explore the vastness of this beautiful house overlooking the town. Just beware that the rooms will shrink with time, and with more than 50 people walking in and out each day, this mansion will begin to feel like a giant elevator.
Oh, and by the way, there is no elevator, escalator or any other means of ascending and descending the commute to class and back without walking. Walking a lot.
Now that you’re comfortable in Heidelberg, it’s time to tackle the rest of Europe.
First, pick where you’re going. A plane to Athens, a rental car to the Black Forest, or a train to Paris. You choose the train.
Because of three transfers and a late train, sleeping on iron benches at the train station becomes second nature. After finally arriving in the City of Lights, you realize that languages change and communication remains tedious and difficult.
Agua. Wasser. Water! No luck, but at least you tried.
Welcome to Europe. Still walking. No rest.
Traveling is a success.
You near Heidelberg and a sense of peace and rest comes upon you. You’re home and there is everything but peace and rest in Moore Haus.
With homework to do, you join the chaotic throng of voices desperately sharing the adventure, danger and valor of weekend travel.
But you’re home, to the place you love.
“It is the best experience of our life.” Yes, they said it would happen.
But there’s so much they didn’t tell us, so much the orientation didn’t cover.
Not everything stayed new and exciting. We often took for granted that the Eiffel Tower and the snow-covered Alps stood in our backyard.
Plenty threatened to dampen our “amazing experience.” We ordered water, but we received pictures of poverty, questions of faith and a deeper understanding of the world.
We had to grow up, confronting responsibility and diversity. We learned that communication is more than just language.
It was nothing that we expected, but exactly what they told us to expect.
“It was the best experience of our life.”
April 03, 2003