I slept basically the whole bus ride to Augsburg which was about an hour ride because I knew it would be the only sleep I would get that day. The students that did this program before said you need to thug out on the first day, so you can get up to speed on the time difference. We arrived at the hotel and were greeted by Elisabeth Flores, and she gave us a brief overview of the week as well as snacks for the group. The buttered pretzel was unbelievable, and I know I will be getting that more as the trip goes on. The first thing I noticed when we stepped into the center of Augsburg is how much cleaner it is than Pittsburgh, the only things you would see on the ground were cigarettes. Everything is kept so well, the buildings are more historic, and the vibe was a lot different than you would get in Pittsburgh, everyone seemed so much more connected. Everyone is walking too which is something you rarely see in our cities, it is very compact and you only see people getting on the buses or trains if they want to get somewhere. It was a Sunday, so most of the stores and companies were closed, which I thought was very odd, but that is the law here.
We then made our way down to the Fuggerei which I thought was very interesting. I believe his impact is shown throughout the city especially in the architecture and churches that his family funded throughout the years that make the city so beautiful. Also the fact that the Fuggerei is the oldest housing project still in use today with a rent of 88 cents per year attests to the impact he has had on this city. What strikes me the most is if you arrive back at the Fuggerei past midnight, you must pay the watchman a small fee. The one question I have after taking in the whole city is how is it kept so clean with people walking the streets and it being so compact? Also, why are young kids walking around by themselves in the middle of the city? I feel like that says so much about them as a society and culture.
