My voyage begins in Chemnitz

First impressions

Grüße aus Chemnitz! Greetings from Chemnitz!

(Formally Karl-Marx-Stadt during the DDR)

Over the weekend was my third month living and working in Chemnitz, Germany. It has taken some time to begin to understand and acclimate to my new “home”, the language, and my role at the Landesschule für Blinde und Sehbehinderte (The State School for the Blind and Visually Impaired). I haven’t felt that I have had enough time to write about my experience, but I am already one third of the way finished with my Fulbright Fellowship. There have been highlights and lowlights, as my grandfather would have said, but overall, I am really enjoying my time in Chemnitz.

When you travel to a glamorous destination or you visit somewhere for the first time, it can be intoxicating and the words to describe your experience are easier to find. However, when on vacation, and even sometimes studying abroad for only a semester, you experience just the tip of the iceberg. With my background studying German and multiple opportunities to live in Germany, I feel that I am finally now understanding the different modalities of German life.

In class I used this quote to introduce a lesson about the United States, but I also feel that it applies here as well.

“The only true voyage would be not to travel through a hundred different lands, but to see the same land through a hundred different pairs of eyes.”

I am living in Chemnitz, Germany. During the DDR, it was called the Karl-Marx-Stadt to honor the “Father of Communism” that was recognized by the Soviet regime. The second largest bust in the world (first is the Sphinx in Egypt) is of Karl Marx’s head in the Chemnitz city center. During the Second World War, the city was almost completely destroyed, therefore many DDR-era apartments and buildings were built and haven’t been renovated since. There are abandoned factories, construction projects, and unembellished buildings throughout the city. Officially, Chemnitz has the oldest population in Europe. It is not like the romantic western German cities that you see in tourist guides. People do not wear Dirndl and Lederhosen (that is only a Bavarian thing!). From the outside, Chemnitz does not seem like the ideal German city to visit. I tell family and friends that visiting former East Germany can be a bit of an acquired taste. However, I have quickly found many aspects and areas to appreciate in Chemnitz.

Karl Marx Kopf in Chemnitz Zentrum

In my opinion, Chemnitz has an undeserved reputation. For example, some have apologized for my location in Chemnitz, telling me that it is not an ideal placement for an American to live. Or they said they have only driven past it on the Autobahn. BUT when I am asked, why Chemnitz? I can honestly say that I asked to be placed in the German state of Saxony. It is arguably one of the prettiest states in Germany with a very rich and resilient history, Chemnitz included.

During my college years, I came to understand the East German history, culture, and its challenges — I feel that I can recognize and appreciate it in its forms, while still learning more everyday. Living, working, and studying in Chemnitz is very immersive for my German, and it allows me to find and acknowledge situations and places that are “off the beaten path”.

I work with colleagues that grew up in East Germany and we often discuss their life in the DDR. They are even trying to teach me some Russian, the second language that they learned in school. We have also discussed the gap of English and understanding American history and culture. Most of the teachers in the schools of Saxony did not learn these topics when they were in school because of the restrictions in DDR. So I am here working with very open minded individuals and able to adapt the materials and my activities to the levels of all my students.

My students and colleagues at the Blind and Visually Impaired School are teaching me to think of Germany through another new perspective — not relying on what my eyes can see. I am here learning and experiencing life through the eyes of blind and visually impaired individuals, people who spent their childhood and adulthood in the DDR, and also through the lens of expanding diplomacy and education. Everything is off to a great start.

More to come!

Mit freundlichen Grüßen

Emily