Jonnas Posted March 3, 2013 Posted March 3, 2013 So, I moved to Germany! So far, so good, Weimar is great (I don't usually post stuff about my daily life around here, but this was major enough, I guess ) So far, getting used to the snow, the new language, and the suddenly-better beer. Also, the lack of rice and fresh fish. Right now, I don't have a connection at my residence, so I'll only be able to come here sporadically, for now. Here's hoping my German's good enough to get through the semester.
Debug Mode Posted March 3, 2013 Posted March 3, 2013 Congratulations man! How long are you due in Germany for and how long have you been studying German? I've actually never been so wouldn't have any idea how to expect to live my life outside of the stereotypes of god-tier sausage and beer. On an exchange myself, but because I'm in the very last year that my university is offering language courses, I'm wondering whether I'm actually going to have any Japanese exchange students to talk with once I'm back..
Jonnas Posted March 3, 2013 Author Posted March 3, 2013 I'm staying until the end of July. I've been learning German for 2 years, actually. Feels like it was just last year I started! And thanks for reminding me about the sausages. Weimar has typical ones, too, and I haven't tried them yet. The beer was actually good, for once (I actually hated every beer I ever tasted until I came here ) The most amusing part is that I've already met two people who speak Spanish, English and German fluently. It's surreal, switching between those languages successively (plus, I get to practice my German and the sort-of-rusty Spanish).
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted March 3, 2013 Posted March 3, 2013 Suddenly you're pretty close to the rest of us! If you ever feel like taking a detour to Denmark, let me know! It's pretty cool that you're "suddenly" an exchange student. We don't hear so much about your personal life, so it's interesting to get a glimpse of it! What is it that you're studying?
Jonnas Posted March 4, 2013 Author Posted March 4, 2013 Suddenly you're pretty close to the rest of us! If you ever feel like taking a detour to Denmark, let me know! :wink: Well, that's obvious! (And technically, I'm now farther away from the UK than I was before ) It's pretty cool that you're "suddenly" an exchange student. We don't hear so much about your personal life, so it's interesting to get a glimpse of it! What is it that you're studying? Civil Engineering. My original intention was to make part of my Master's Thesis here, but as things turned out, I'm going to complete some of the courses I left behind, instead. It might be the better option, though, as a thesis done internationally would've been more complicated, and I would've stayed here less time.
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted March 4, 2013 Posted March 4, 2013 Well, that's obvious! (And technically, I'm now farther away from the UK than I was before ) Really? It still looks a bit further away when I look at a map, but then again that's not very exact. Civil Engineering. My original intention was to make part of my Master's Thesis here, but as things turned out, I'm going to complete some of the courses I left behind, instead. It might be the better option, though, as a thesis done internationally would've been more complicated, and I would've stayed here less time. Interesting! How does civil engineering differ from "regular" engineering?
Jimbob Posted March 4, 2013 Posted March 4, 2013 Best bit of Germany, the beer and sausages. Worst bit of Germany, the unshaven women "shudder".
Jonnas Posted March 4, 2013 Author Posted March 4, 2013 Interesting! How does civil engineering differ from "regular" engineering? I do buildings What is generally called "regular" Engineering is actually more in line with Mechanical or Electrical Engineering (depending on what we're talking about). Civil Engineers take care of the more technical aspects in construction projects (like sizing pillars, slabs and beams). Basically, we guarantee structural integrity, and that it won't collapse for the next 50 years. The ones who are tasked with things like Waterworks and Electrical plans* in a building are also engineers. In other words, a lot of what Ted Mosby says in HIMYM isn't actually planned by the Architect The one who should be held accountable for the Death Star's explosion is the Engineer. *I may have gotten the English names of these wrong.
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted March 4, 2013 Posted March 4, 2013 I don't know much about engineering, hence my curiosity.
MoogleViper Posted March 4, 2013 Posted March 4, 2013 Basically, if you take an Architect, and remove all the fun, you're left with a Civil Engineer.
bob Posted March 4, 2013 Posted March 4, 2013 Civil engineering is 10% inspiration, 10% concrete and 80% thinking you're better than all the other types of engineers.
Shorty Posted March 5, 2013 Posted March 5, 2013 Basically, we guarantee structural integrity, and that it won't collapse for the next 50 years. 50 years? That's how long they give a building these days?? Remind me not to go up any skyscrapers made before the 60s...
Jonnas Posted March 5, 2013 Author Posted March 5, 2013 50 years? That's how long they give a building these days?? Remind me not to go up any skyscrapers made before the 60s... It's 50 years in Portugal, at least. One of my professors once said that other European countries (including the UK) actually settle for lower lifespans. But don't worry, building maintenance is a thing, after all. Buildings get renovated all the time. It's abandoned buildings you should look out for.
MoogleViper Posted March 5, 2013 Posted March 5, 2013 50 years? That's how long they give a building these days?? Remind me not to go up any skyscrapers made before the 60s... Depends on the building. Most houses are only built to last 30 years. More expensive structures are generally built to a higher standard, and longer lifespan.
Jonnas Posted March 17, 2013 Author Posted March 17, 2013 Finally have internet in my bedroom! Just took some time to post in a bunch of threads I had previously only looked at, and now I'll check the behemoths that are the Gender/Tropes vs. Women threads. For now, I'll leave you to guess what Germans call those thick wooden novelty pencils.
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