Emily (Germany) Ich bin heir!

Hey everyone! I arrived in Freiburg on Monday but haven't had internet access until today. I'm currently stealing it.
Don't be surprised if I never come back to the United States. I already love it so much here. I haven't met that many people yet because everyone is unpacking and jetlagged, but I know soon I'll have some really fun people to hang out with for the next four months.
Freiburg is really an adorable city. It's the perfect size with about 200,000 people. There's really good public transportation (and it's German, so it runs on time!) and a lot of things are within walking distance for me. I'm a block away from an organic supermarket that's kind of like whole foods. They have vegan nutella and a ton of meat substitutes as well as organic.. everything. There's also a market in the afternoons practically in my backyard. One of the street car stations is right near my room, too, so I can get almost anywhere in the city center in about ten minutes.
My roommates are really nice, too. I have my own room, but I share a kitchen, bathroom and common area with three other people, just like a townhouse arrangement, only the kitchen is bigger. All of my roommates are German. Two guys and a girl. I haven't met one of them yet, but the younger girl and the guy have both been extremely helpful and friendly.
I also love how environmentally friendly everyone is here. They recycle everything... I even had to pay .25 Euros for a bag at IKEA. Of course, I didn't realize this until after I paid for everything and had to stand in the massive IKEA line all over again. Schade. (don't be surprised if I use random German phrases in any of my posts. I just kind of do that. Schade=sad)
An American student also lived in my room last semester, so she left all this stuff that she couldn't carry home. A comforter, two giant pillows, a hair dryer, etc. It's really making everything a lot easier and more colorful. When I first walked in, I saw white EVERYTHING. Now I have a bright pink comforter and other colorful things. It's almost as comfy as my bed at Beloit.
And the best part about everything is that my German is starting to come back. I can understand a lot of what people are saying. I still can't speak it very well, but that will come with time. I'm going to speak German with my roommates once my two week long intensive language sessions are over, so we'll see how that goes!
Gute nacht!