Items

• 
  2022-06-20

  Mask in Germany

  I found this mask on the ground outside of a subway in Germany. At the time, masks were still mandatory on transportation, which was surprising since most of the world didn’t make masks mandatory. They even had someone walking around to either give people masks or to remind them of the mask mandate.
• 
  2022-04-03

  Man in Germany gets 90 COVID-19 shots to sell forged passes

  This is a story by The Hill about a German man from Magdeburg getting the COVID vaccines a copious amount of times in order to make forged vaccine cards. The man in question is 60 years old and was caught in Eilenburg in Saxony. The article states that we do not know what effects will happen after getting the vaccine 90 times. The German government has been trying to crack down on forgeries of vaccine cards. This probably speaks of a bigger nationwide issue, where people will want forgeries if forced to get the vaccines that they see as against their will. With that, brings people like this man who will get the vaccine many times in order to make money off of selling forged vaccine cards.
• 
  2020-12-31

  No More Travel

  One of the main benefits of being in the military is the opportunity to travel overseas and experience other places, cultures, and people. I was stationed in Germany and had lost of ideas of where I was going to travel all across Europe during the summer and winter months, unfortunately, Europe locked down hard in the spring of 2020. I wanted to travel during the summer months and go to the beaches across the Mediterranean and see England when it wasn’t raining. During winter I had looked forward to seeing the famous German Christmas Markets and traveling to Switzerland to see the Alps covered in snow. Due to lockdowns none of this happened. For many the pandemic made if feel as if our lives were on hold. Not only were we missing out on small events here and there but also large chunks of our lifetime. I feel as if I was stuck waiting to live life, not able to really enjoy what was around me.
• 
  2020

  International Discussion

  This conversation was interesting to me because it is an example of how the internet has been able to give people an idea of what the pandemic has been like in other parts of the world. It also presents a strategy some leadership enacted to control the spread of the virus.
• 
  2021-09-19

  Berlin Travel

  In September my family and I were able to travel to Berlin via the Deutchbahn (German Train). Our weekend in Berlin was fun, but from the picture, you can see we had to mask up. Many places in Europe still require face masks in public places. It is interesting to experience this as most places in America do not require masks.
• 
  2020-08-03

  Europe Travel 2020

  After being locked down in Germany for months, the European Union lifted their travel ban briefly in August of 2020. Me and a few of my friends took advantage while we could and drove to Brussels, Belgium to eat chocolate and drink beer.
• 
  2021-08-01

  Germany Travel Quarantine Guide

  Germany would update its travel policy multiple times a month, depending on the number of COVID-19 cases in the country. As the rules would change so often, our command would release simple-to-follow articles that clearly explained what we had to do. This photo is a snapshot from an article that explains quarantine requirements when traveling into Germany from other countries.
• 
  2021-05-20

  US to German Vaccine Memorandum

  The attached is a letter from the Rheinland-Pfalz state secretary that explains and validates the COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card that the CDC gives out with vaccinations. Many US military members in Germany received the vaccine, but our vaccine cards were not recognized by local German establishments as German and other European vaccine cards looked very different. In Germany, people were not allowed to eat inside restaurants if they were not vaccinated. By carrying the attached letter with our CDC-issued vaccine cards, we were able to visit local establishments.
• 
  2021-01-19

  Meme about the Pandemic in Austria

  I saw this meme in January 2021. It was created by an Austrian online news platform called "k.at" and was posted on their Instagram channel. The first picture on the left shows a hamster who is hoarding (or rather "hamstering") toilet paper. This showcases a phenomenon which occurred in Austria as well as in Germany: some people bought as much toilet paper as they could in the beginning of the pandemic out of fear of a lockdown (also other things as e.g. noodles, rice etc.). The result was that most people couldn't buy any toilet paper because it was sold out at most places and the manufacturers of toilet paper couldn't keep up with the production. It was kind of absurd. The second picture on the right also shows a hamster who seems to have a great time skiing. This should represent the third Austrian lockdown. At this time (around January 2021) many Austrian tourists went skiing even though the numbers of Corona cases were rising. It was quite a controversy at the time because a lot of other activities (like social gatherings) were regulated by the state for health precautions, but the skiing resorts weren't affected (and the Corona cases were also rising in these places). A little sidenote: The Coronavirus allegedly came to Germany in 2020 because of German tourists who came back from said Austrian ski travels...
• 2020-04-01

  Finishing my Undergraduate Degree during the Pandemic

  I was starting the last semester of my undergraduate degree when the pandemic hit the globe. At this time (around March 2020) I was planing to work on my senior honors thesis and happy to start my master's degree in October 2020. But in order to finish my thesis, I had to do some intensive research first: my plan was to visit a big German archive in Berlin and also to do some research in a couple of libraries. But just before I could do so, all German institutions went into lockdown and closed for months due to health precautions. As somebody who studied History and had to visit an archive for my thesis, I felt like I was totally stuck in my academic studies. I felt like it was impossible to finish my studies in the scheduled time, and for months I didn't know how to continue my academic work. Luckily, my university was considerate enough to extend the submission date for my thesis. After a couple of months of not knowing if I could start my master's degree in time (and in general not knowing how my academic and financial future would look like if I didn't finish my undergraduate degree in time) the archives and libraries opened up again, and I could continue my research and finish my thesis.
• 
  2020-06-19

  Is Working Remote A Blessing Or Burden? Weighing The Pros And Cons

  This article discusses the pros and cons of changes to productivity caused by the shift to teleworking during the pandemic in countries around the globe. Major themes are mental health and work-life balance.
• 
  2021-02-13

  Six Key Advantages and Disadvantages of Working from Home in Europe during COVID-19

  This article discusses an European study investigating individuals’ experience of working from home during the pandemic and the disadvantages and advantages of this work model. The advantages were a better work-life balance, improved work efficiency, and greater work control. The disadvantages were home office constraints, work uncertainties, and inadequate tools.
• 
  2020

  Weihnachten steht vor der Tür

  In Germany and many other countries apparently, there is a Santa alternative known as the Christkind or Christkindlr, thought it was interesting to think about this upcoming pandemic holiday season. Translation, Literal: [ Fuck the ChristmasMan, with all my home-is comes the Christ Child ] Translation, Nonliteral: [ Fuck Santa, all my homies are with the Christkind ]
• 
  2020-11-06

  イタリアとドイツで新規コロナ感染が過去最多（2020年11月6日）- Highest number of new corona infections in Italy and Germany (November 6, 2020)

  イタリアやドイツでは５日、新型コロナウイルスの１日の新たな感染者が過去最多を更新しました。 新型コロナウイルスの感染の第２波がヨーロッパで深刻化しています。 イタリア政府は５日、新型コロナウイルスの感染者が前の日に比べ、３万4,505人増え、累計で82万人を超えたと発表しました。感染拡大を受けて、イタリアでは６日から午後10時以降の外出の原則禁止など、感染拡大防止のための制限が強化されます。 また、ドイツメディアは５日、１日の新たな感染者が２万594人となり、初めて、２万人を超えたと伝えるなど、ヨーロッパで感染の第２波が深刻となっています。 In Italy and Germany, the number of new infections of the new coronavirus in one day reached a record high on the 5th. The second wave of infection with the new coronavirus is becoming more serious in Europe. The Italian government announced on the 5th that the number of people infected with the new coronavirus has increased by 34,505 compared to the previous day, and the cumulative total has exceeded 820,000. In response to the spread of the infection, restrictions to prevent the spread of the infection will be tightened in Italy, such as the principle prohibition of going out after 10 pm from the 6th. In addition, the second wave of infection is becoming more serious in Europe, the German media reporting that the number of newly infected people on the 5th was 20,594, exceeding 20,000 for the first time. Video translated by Youngbin Noh