international – Page 4 – eMag Uni Augsburg

Brazilian road trip in a VW Kombi

I’d like to tell you something about my beautiful country, Brazil. In fact, we’re heading for Pantanal, the world’s largest tropical wetland area, in a Volkswagen Kombi, attached to which is a 1966 Willys jeep. On top of the Kombi, you can see a kayak and two bikes. Everything’s set for an unforgettable family road trip with lots of adventures!

It was March 2016 when we set off from São Paulo heading up to the state of Mato Grosso, where Pantanal is located. We drove a total of almost 1,600 km, and spent two days on the road and a few hours of sleep in a cheap motel somewhere. The amazing caimans welcomed us; they were everywhere and we could see them the whole time – what a feeling!

The local road is called the Transpantaneira. It isn’t asphalted, so the cars struggled in the mud caused by the previous day’s rain. The trip along this road is 147 km long and has 120 wooden bridges in an extremely poor state of maintenance. Yes, the rickety constructions play a big role in this adventure, because going over them is a very risky business, as you can see below. But the reason why using up so much adrenaline was worthwhile was meeting so many amazing creatures. These guys impressed me quite a lot: giant otters. Seeing a pair of them right in front of me was a dream come true; I didn’t know if I should take a picture or step back a bit and be sure I was safe. Giant river otters are extremely cute and are innocent-looking, but they’re very dangerous and are capable of attacking and even eating a caiman! Take a look yourself and see how photogenic they are – one of them even looked into the camera! How adorable is that?

The next lady is very special, a seriema, a large, long-legged terrestrial bird, which had me enthralled because of those eyelashes. Girl, you look fabulous! (I’m not sure whether it’s a “girl” at all, but I wish I had these lashes. Don’t you girls?) We also saw anacondas, blue macaws, toucans, southern crested carcaras, capybaras and lizards. The only animal we didn’t bump into was the gorgeous jaguar. Maybe we’ll be luckier next time, on another road trip around Brazil. Until then, let’s keep an eye on the natural world around us and enjoy it as best we can!

Author & Pictures: Gabrielle Pinheiro Machado Rehm

Time flies when you’re in the air

Shortly after my seventeenth birthday my father and I decided to approach one item on our bucket list we’d both wanted to tick off for a long time; learn how to fly. So we booked a paragliding course. The basic class we participated in, took about four days and aimed to teach every student to fly by themselves. The requirements were pretty simple: we should be able to run in a straight line and – of course – not be afraid of heights. And the equipment was provided by the flight school.

Learning to fly

Our course began with a bit of theory and school introductory course videos on the mechanics, equipment and paragliding techniques. We learned how to understand local weather forecast accurately and how to decide when to fly and when to stay at home. For our first practical exercise, we moved to the training hills to practice inflating and controlling our wings on the ground, learning to take off, land, and steering skills. All these exercises were simple but also very exhausting, as they consisted of running, stopping and running again for nearly an hour.

On the third day, it was time for our first training flight. We launched from the side of a hill at a height of nearly 200 meters, we had to run downhill until the chute would open and lift us up in the air. In the meantime, the teacher gave us instructions from the ground through a walkie talkie. One of these training flights lasted around a minute and a half but it felt much shorter. Time just flies when you’re in the air!

In order to be prepared for the final flight on day four, we had to start at least 15 times from the practice launch site. What didn’t sound like too much of an effort at first definitely became the hardest challenge on the entire course, one reason being that the full equipment weighed around 15 kg and we had to carry it 200 meters uphill on a small path, which the instructor fondly called the “channel of sweat”.

Reward for the hard work

On the last day, we were ready for the first flight completely on our own. We started from the top of a 900-metre mountain. For a change, we didn’t have to carry our chutes to the top because there was a special lift installed. We flew for nearly ten minutes, enough time to relax and enjoy the beautiful landscapes from above. Everybody reached the landing zone safely and the course ended there and then.

Altogether it was a memorable weekend and if you haven’t put paragliding on your own bucket list yet, make sure to note it down immediately.

Author & Picture: Philipp Soballa

“Mir schwätzat Schwäbisch” on International Mother Language Day

“I hol mer zerscht mol en Kaffee in dr Kafede, sonschd schlof I glei wieder ei.” If you hear this at university in the morning, you might not understand it as a non-Swabian. Of course, there’s a wide spectrum of dialects in Germany, some of which aren’t easy for outsiders. Since our noble institution is located in the Swabian part of Bavaria, some of the residents speak Bavarian varieties (“Boarisch“), whereas others „schwätzat Schwäbisch“, with the river Lech as a linguistic border. Augsburg, as the capital of Swabia, has its own Swabian variety: Augschburgerisch. In fact, you will be easily detected as a „Zuazogner“, if you say Augsburg instead of Augschburg.

Regional dialects mix due to people moving within Germany and Augsburg is a city with a lot of transition, which, in turn, contributes to an individual’s own dialect, or idiolect. For example, I didn’t like hearing the answer „A Ebbserl und a Nixerl“, after coming home from school and asking what my father had prepared for lunch – as it literally means „ein Etwas und ein Nichts“, therefore nothing.

As a student of the University of Augschburg, the following sentences might be useful and help you not to be detected as a “Zuazogner” in the first place. When asked to take part in a Saturday afternoon class, every Augschburger teacher will accept the excuse “Do ka I leider eda, am Samschdag spielt dr FCA dohoim”. Other important sentences are “D Schdroßabah isch leider zspät komma” or “Auf dr B17 war mol wieder die Hölle los” to excuse yourself for being late.

Unfortunately, dialects are nowadays often smiled at or its speakers ridiculed. The Swabian dialect, because of the foreign and strange quality some people perceive in it, is particularly favoured for parodies of popular films (e.g. Star Wars: check out Virales Marketing im Todesstern on YouTube, where the Swabian dialect of the Imperial officers is infused with Business English) or even a new synchronisation of meetings of the Bundestag.

Held annually on 21 February, the International Mother Language Day was announced in 2000 by UNESCO “to promote the preservation and protection of all languages used by peoples of the world“. As dialects are varieties of a language, which differ in vocabulary, pronunciation and even grammar, they can sometimes be difficult to understand, even for native speakers. So we invite everyone in Augschburg to protect their local dialect and the words that are special in their own family! Dialects are something we inherit, they’re part of our cultural identity; we learn them from our parents and grandparents, neighbours and friends, so we should do anything to keep the tradition, even if it’s just a “bissle”.

Authors: Ariane Scheuer & Elena Mayr
Picture: Elena Mayr

Wings for Life

Some people think walking is a waste of time, but others dream about being able to walk or just move their legs, for example, those affected by spinal cord injuries. This condition takes away what most of us take for granted, the ability to walk. Sadly, those affected are incapacitated for the rest of their lives because there’s no treatment available. One research foundation, called Wings for Life, aims to find a cure for such injuries and has a unique way to gather support. It organizes a running event where everybody can participate anywhere.

Finding a cure

The founders of Wings for Life are the two Austrians Heinz Kinigadner, a motocross racer, and Dietrich Mateschitz, a businessman who co-founded the Red Bull Drink company. They were personally moved by the injury of Kinigadner´s son, which left him paralyzed from the neck down. Soon, they had to realize that not enough resources were being invested in finding a cure, so they started the non-profit organization.

Helping out

Wings for life organizes an annual charity run that takes place simultaneously worldwide. All the money raised goes towards research efforts for finding a cure to help the injured to walk again. This year the world run will take place on May 7^thand costs €43. You can start training for the race now and be fit on time.

Run until you are caught

This isn’t your typical race with a set distance. Half an hour after the race starts, a so-called catcher car starts its pursuit, though very slowly at first. As long as the car doesn´t catch up with you, you´re still in the race. Since everybody has their own fitness level, the catcher car will gradually increase its speed after one hour until it catches up with everyone – except for one man and one woman, the world champions.

Race anywhere

The nearest official location to join the race is Munich. However, you can participate anywhere as a selfie runner by simply downloading an application to your smartphone that simulates the car catching up with you based on your GPS-tracked running distance. As a selfie runner, there’s no participation fee, but you’re encouraged to donate to the cause. Even if you decide you´re not ready to run yourself, you can still enjoy the race via a livestream from all official runs worldwide. So take this opportunity to enjoy the gift of health, and having strong legs that can take you anywhere you want, even closer to your dreams, and run for those who can´t.

For more information, check out: https://www.wingsforlifeworldrun.com/de/de/

Author: Annelise López de Schwarzer
Pictures: Redbull Content Pool

How to cure a New Year’s Eve hangover

Each of us has once vowed never to drink anything again, particularly after having had a hangover. Do you remember the odd feeling when your head is killing you, when you feel like vomiting all day and simply feel like **** most of the time? Well, we all know that sticking to your vow of sobriety is sometimes hard, and even harder on New Year’s Eve when you have the impression that everybody around you does nothing except drink and party. Suddenly, you find yourself looking at your glass thinking: “one glass of champagne has never killed anybody – have just one.” And then you find yourself waking up on January 1^st with a huge headache and start wondering “how did I get here?” Of course, we’re all human and things just happen, so here are some tips how to get over your hangover. In this way, you’ll easily keep the damage under control.

Water

I bet you would never have guessed! We seem to forget about drinking water, although we keep hearing how much water we should drink – doctors, mothers, everybody seems to be obsessed with its benefits. But believe me – they’re right. Water, the essence of life, is the best hair of the dog. Alcohol robs your body of the fluids it needs to function properly. By drinking more water, instead of vodka, you can avoid getting dehydrated. You’ll start feeling better in an instant. Do you want an extra boost? Add some ginger and lemon. It’ll work wonders if you feel nauseous. Give it a try; your body will thank you for it.

Coconut

Coconut? I know I’m nuts for drinking too much, so why do I need a coconut? You shouldn’t have a coconut as such, but you should have coconut water. It’s considered to be the queen or king of fluids and will help you cure your hangover asap. Honestly, this is better than any other remedy, because coconut water contains large amounts of potassium. This is why it’s an amazing drink after a workout because of its ability to provide your body with electrolytes, which you lose while drinking or while engaged in physical activity. And it’s easy to get your hands on coconut water. Because of its popularity, you can find it at any major grocery store.

Sleep

If you have time to sleep, you should definitely do so. The best way to make your sleep especially effective is to darken your room. This will stimulate the production of melatonin – the sleeping hormone. When you sleep, your body has time to restore its cells and work on things it doesn’t have time to during the day. And we all love sleeping, don’t we?

Don’t mix it – never!

Fast rewind back to your party – don’t ever mix the beverages you have. NEVER EVER DO THAT. Stick to one beverage and thank me later 😉

Avocado

You love guacamole? Great! If you don’t want to drink your potassium, just have an avo. It’ll help you restore the electrolytes in your body. And, because of its fats, it’ll also stabilize your sugar cravings, which usually occur after the excessive consumption of booze. Your jeans will thank you for that, too 😉

So, I hope these tips have been helpful. There are many more on the internet, so feel free to google them.

I wish you a Happy New Year and good luck getting rid of your hangover 🙂

Author: Astrid Szegedi
Pictures: Henrike Wilhelm

2016

2016 – What a year, right!? Only one day left until we start into 2017, and I hope you’ll all have a wonderful and sparkling New Year’s Eve and ring in 2017 as is right and proper! But before that, let us just do a very quick review of what happened in the last almost 366 (yes, it’s a leap year) days.

Why would they…?

What’s stuck in your mind? Brexit and Trump I guess, maybe some famous people who died and the most recent tragedies like the Brazilian plane that crashed in Colombia or the terrorist attack on a Berlin Christmas market. But are you aware of things that happened earlier this year? In the world as well as in everyone’s life so many things occurred, so that it often seems that those things must’ve been ages ago, not just months!
As I said before, probably no one has forgotten neither that Donald Trump won the US election in November nor that the Brits decided to leave the EU in June – both were narrow victories and everyone went to bed the night before, confident that the people there would take the right decision. Everyone will probably remember waking up in the morning and being completely shocked about what had happened.

Tragedies, disasters, catastrophes

But this can’t be it, what else happened this year? Satirist Jan Böhmermann presented a scandalous poem about the Turkish President Erdoğan. In Germany, the right-wing party AfD has had more and more success, in Turkey an attempted coup d’état, carried out by a group of the Turkish military, failed. Fidel Castro, Leonard Cohen, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Bud Spencer, Prince, David Bowie, Alan Rickman, Muhammad Ali, Hildegard Hamm-Brücher, Ilse Aichinger, Schimon Peres, Peter Lustig, Max Mannheimer, Götz George, Roger Cicero, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Guido Westerwelle, George Michael and Carrie Fisher died. Jo Cox, a British Labour Party member, was murdered and in the fight for Aleppo thousands of people suffered from war and isolation. In Syria, Brussels, Munich, Ansbach, Nice, Orlando, Rouen, Berlin and in a German train people thought their destiny was to hurt or kill people. Those are just a few examples of death and destruction; things that happen every day somewhere in the world, but often go unnoticed if they don’t really affect us or our loved ones.

But: always look on the bright side of life

Although 2016 was quite a poor year, still a few pleasant things happened. Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”. The Summer Olympics took place in Rio and Germany won 17 Gold medals. In Sweden, two baby princes were born and of course, Leonardo DiCaprio finally won his first Oscar! The “Bayrisches Reinheitsgebot” celebrated its 500-year anniversary and the world went crazy about Pokémon Go. Well, you can decide for yourself whether the last thing is good or sad. And last but not least, the Giant Panda isn’t endangered anymore! Isn’t that great news!?

For 2017, let’s hope there’ll be a longer paragraph about positive things. Happy New Year!

Author and Pictures: Eva Sitzberger

Don’t give up the fight

Tomorrow is probably the most important day of the year for some people. It’s World AIDS Day. There are more than 36 million people diagnosed with HIV worldwide who are invisible for the rest of the year. We don’t see them and we don’t even think about them, but why? What would you do if you met a nice person and after a while he or she tells you that there’s this thing called AIDS in his or her life? Would you leave them alone in this big and sometimes cruel world, or would you decide to stand above it and be a friend?

To understand what the World AIDS Day is about, we need to have a look into the past. Since 1988 the World AIDS Day has tried to inform society and create solidarity with slogans like “Kissing and hugging don’t spread HIV. Ignorance does.” as a reaction to the stigma people with HIV and AIDS suffer from. In addition, it tries to make people aware that the virus isn’t beaten yet. On this day, people all over the world fundraise in the form of dinner parties, bake sales, quiz nights or charity runs like they do at the Positive East’s Red Run on Sunday 27 November in London.

As a sign of your solidarity and to show your support, you can wear The Red Ribbon tomorrow, a red loop that indicates your awareness. Just put it on your bag or wherever you like. It’s very important to raise awareness in order to sensitize people and avoid the further spread of HIV and AIDS. But carrying the HI virus doesn’t mean you’re affected by AIDS. For example, 85% of people diagnosed with HIV in the UK are not infectious.

Back to the beginning, would you be a friend now?

“Don’t give AIDS a chance”!

Author & Pictures: Isabel Roth