Letter in Café Ignaz

I wrote a letter to a friend while sitting in a café that accurately describes my current mood and outlook. As such, it the content also seemed fitting for a blog entry. Please excuse any redundancies, like the mentioning of Amsterdam and Barcelona.

21.02.09

Dear Sandra,

I am sitting in Café Ignaz, a vegan restaurant/café here in Munich (there are three really delicious and well-known vegetarian restaurants, the others are most likely also good, but less popular) with a GIANT latte. I feel like a toddler sipping a large glass of milk with my PB & J sandwich, as I have to hold the glass in both hands so as to avoid disaster. While walking here, I saw my professor with her son and husband. The kid is about two and, like all small creatures (dogs included) in the city right now, he was bundled up in a snow suit and barely capable of walking due to all the padding and fabric. It was like that scene in A Christmas Story - the little brother [drawing here].
It is a bit strange being here on my own, I suppose. It is turning from late afternoon into evening, and the place is shifting more into a dinner mood. I don't mind, though. I will just sip my oversized glass and update you on the oh-so-fascinating state of things in my life. Yesterday I finished up a short internship at a Montessori school here, working as an assistant teacher and English instructor.
So now I really understand what you were talking about when you expressed how working with the kids at ACAP was often more enjoyable than your work at the art studio (100 Monkeys??). I hadn't worked in a class setting for neurotypical kids since before ACAP, so my perception was different. Now, however, I see. The kids at this school were great and mostly charming, but the brattiness factor was not minimized by the fact that their parents had sent them to a 'progressive' school.
At ACAP, I would just ask a kid to do something and he would either react negatively, which required an intervention (that was logical and practical) and was probably bound to happen anyway, or the child would just do what I asked. It's a difference in how you, as a teacher/authority figure, are treated, and in this way, many autistic children (or those whom I have met/worked with - small sample size, I know...) are unknowingly far more respectful. Christopher [our boss] said it once, how these kids do not lie - not because they are morally superior, etc., but because it is not seen as a viable option. Why lie? Therefore, they are more honest.
Ok, rampant generalizations aside, the internship was good, and it was really challenging because my reaction time in German and ability to produce an intstructive, concise sentence at the blink of an eye is considerably slower than in English. Still, I feel that I was effective and bonded a great deal with the kids.


This week I will write my psychology paper, which I haven't been worrying about as much as I ought to. I wrote a 20 page paper in German for a literature course, so my confidence in writing in the language shot up. Now, a 10 page psych paper that is pretty much just a summary of the course and articles is far less daunting, although it is in a foreign language. I don't know exactly which psychology courses to take next semester, if any. Four or five more are required to graduate, so I could feasibly do this back in Portland. But personality psych or psych of gender could be fascinating here.
Oooh Sandra, I just returned from the bathroom here and have to share with you the obscene amount of kitsch. Are you ready? So beyond a baby pink door adorned with a ceramic sign with "Ladies" spelled out in cursive, there is a collection of fake orchids in a vase strangled by plastic ivy. On the walls, there are old-fashioned prints of cupid and roses that look like Valentine's Day stationary. There are also small black and white flower photos which could be classy if they weren't streaked with water stains from the people who failed at drying their hands. The grey tile walls are randomly painted (every fifth one or so) with happy little trees and bird shapes, and in the corner is a small wiry statue of a large woman that could pass as a mini coat rack. Oh, it was glorious. So unexpected, too! It's like finding out that a trendy friend of yours secretly collects porcelain figurines!
So, now you are somewhat updated on things, namely the apearance of a café bathroom in Munich. Right. I am leaving on March 4th for a four day trip to Amsterdam and on the 8th I will go to Barcelona. I will live there for a month, renting a room with a friend from Munich/the Ukraine and taking Spanish courses. I am excited to re-learn the language and finally feel comfortable enough with my German that I can do so.
So, as I will be away until April 6th, don't worry about sending a reply letter very speedily, but but I really hope to hear back from you!!
-Sarah