Talk about a weird day.

After breakfast at the hotel, we finished packing up our bags and headed for the bus stop.Luckily the hotel we're staying at right now is really close to the one I am staying at for the seminar, so we didn't have to lug my bag very far.My room at the new hotel wasn't ready yet when we got there, so I left my suitcase in the luggage room.

Luca's mom wanted to visit Hackescher Markt, so we headed there from my hotel.It was a really cool area, one that I think my mom will enjoy, too.We wandered through a series of connecting courtyards with some really cool little boutiques, including an even better Ampelmännchen nostalgia store, a cool hat store, and some really great clothing stores.I'll definitely have to make a trip back here with my parents and our car =]

The seminar started at 1:30ish today, so after we checked out the New Synagogue we grabbed a quick lunch and then headed for the SBahn.The Institute for Cultural Diplomacy is back by the Zoo on the Ku-'Damm and Luca and his parents were planning on checking out Checkpoint Charlie next.Since both locations required taking the SBahn to Friedrich Str. first, we decided it would make the most sense to go there together and say our goodbyes at the platform.

I'm pretty sure I've been in denial of the fact that I would have to say goodbye to Luca for the past couple weeks, and it only started to hit me as we left the restaurant.The Sbahn from Orianberger Str. to Friedrich Str. was exceptionally fast, and before I knew it, the four of us were standing on my platform waiting for my SBahn.As soon as Luca grabbed me for a hug, my eyes started to swell up.Luca realized it immediately, and whispered in my ear "YOU can't cry because if you cry, then I'll cry and then my dad will REALLY think we're dating," (or something to that effect) and of course that made me laugh.I said my thank yous and goodbyes to Mr. and Mrs. Patrignani, and they told me I have to visit them in Italy (won't have any problem doing that!).Then I gave Luca one last long hug and hopped on the train as the doors were about to close.

I really started to cry as the train sped away from my favorite Italian family, if you can believe it, even more so than when I left my friends in East Lansing.I never imagined that such great friendships would be possible to form in such a short amount of time.I knew it wouldn't be easy to say goodbye, but I never dreamed it would be quite so difficult. I'm so fortunate to have such amazing friends in so many different places, but it sure is a lot easier to say "goodbye" when you already have a plane ticket booked to say "hello."I've decided that the only good part about saying goodbye to all of the amazing people I have met this semester is planning really awesome trips to visit them.

I didn't have enough time to run to the hotel and check my eye makeup before the first session of the seminar started, so I crossed my fingers that I didn't look too awful and headed towards Ku'Damm.Luckily I had gotten fairly familiar with the area and I was pretty confident I knew where the ICD House should be.Sure enough, I did =]

A few participants had already arrived by the time I arrived, one being one of the other DAAD students who studies at U of M and has spent the past semester in Köln.I have to admit, it was a little weird being around someone who understands Big Ten rivalries again (Germans just don't get the interschool rivalry concept), but I think we can be friends.At least while we're on this continent ;]

Ashley from Leipzig, the girl who let me crash at her apartment when we went to Krakow and Auschwitz, was also invited to this seminar.It was so nice to see a familiar face, especially after saying goodbye to Luca.I also met the fourth DAAD student, Hayden.He's actually Canadian, but Ashley and I aren't sure if we believe him yet.

Our group is fairly diverse, with students, professors, and young professionals from literally all over the world, and I think our unique backgrounds will add greatly to the discussion.The seminar began with an opening lecture from the director and founder of the Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Mark Donfried.In addition to basic concepts, we were also introduced to the intern team that organized the bulk of the week for us.The interns, like the group of participants, are all from different, but mainly European, countries.

Following the opening lecture we went to a brief reception at the Indian Embassy.To be honest, we were all a bit confused about what was going on at the embassy, and it didn't help that most of us were thinking about food instead of cultural diplomacy.Although I guess you could totally argue food is a vital part of culture...

After the reception we went to a Mexican restaurant near Potsdamer Platz for dinner.I haven't had Mexican food in five months, so my excitement was pretty high up there.It wasn't as spicy as I might have liked, but still very tasty and pretty much tripled how much I am looking forward to returning to El Az.Salsa... Topop salad... and finally margaritas!Yeah, I think it will be a pretty good reunion =]

I know it's my third night in Berlin and I still haven't seen a night in Berlin, but today was absolutely exhausting and I want to get up to go for a run in the morning, so I'm calling it an early night.I might have been tempted, but when I was stumbling this morning I saw that the Tiergarten is rated #1 for urban runs.My hotel happens to be a block away from the park, so yeah... I'm pretty excited =]