Pergamonmuseum and Post-Grad Musings

Hello, all!  I hope you had a lovely and relaxing weekend.  It was 100 degrees here, which was frankly quite terrible, but I went to the Pergamonmuseum, so it wasn't a total bust!  Sadly, the museum was not completely air-conditioned, though it was cooler than outside.  In spite of this major shortcoming, I had an enjoyable time.  The Pergamonmuseum is home to several reconstructed gates, altars, and statuaries from the ancient Middle East.  The Museum of Islamic Art is in the same building, as are (supposedly) ancient Greek statues and coins, though these sections were either closed to the public, or I just failed to see them.  Most of the descriptions were in both German and English, so I read them in the latter when available and stumbled through the German well enough to get the gist.  Visitors can check out headphones with audio commentary, available in several languages, but I didn't want to spend too much time in any one place, and didn't really care about the more precise historical facts.  My self-guided tour took me through the museum in under 2 hours, and I was exhausted by the end, not least because you're not allowed to drink water in the museum for fear of ruining the exhibits (even though they managed to survive 2500 years in the bare elements...).  Here are too many pictures for your enjoyment, some taken from online sources due to the internet being super-slow to upload my pictures:

The Pergamon Altar, after which the museum is named (way more crowded the day I was there).

The Ishtar Gate, taken from Babylon and reconstructed using original bricks and modern recreations (originals are nearer to the ground)

Some of the super-fierce lions that decorate the Ishtar Gate (I would put up a close-up of the dragons too, but I'm sending Jasper a postcard of one and I don't want the awesomeness to be diluted by his having previously seen it)

I had some really lovely pictures of Arabic calligraphy and some frightening stone lions, but 5 minutes after starting to load, it was still working on it, so I'll just have to put them up on Facebook.  I'll post the link once I've got it!

I have been working on post-graduation stuff the past few days.  I registered to take the GRE a week after I get home (and won't that be a pile of fun!), and have started typing in Qwerty again (for those of you who don't know, I have been typing in Dvorak, an alternate keyboard layout, for the past couple years, in part because I find it easier and linguistically cool, and in part because I love watching people try to use my computer and have no idea what's going on).  It's easier to learn this time than it was the last, but I really have to concentrate if I want to do it by memory, so I've been having to look at the keyboard.  I wouldn't bother to practice, except that the GRE is on a computer in Qwerty, and I would like to not have to worry too much about typing fails when writing my essays.  I'm using Dvorak right now, though, because I don't have to think extra, which in this heat is a definite plus.  I also ordered a prep book to have delivered to the apartment (free shipping, here within 2 days!), after much research into what the best options are.  Hopefully I'll be happy with the one I picked, since it was almost $40.  Gross.  I've also been thinking about what to do after graduation; I know I want to go to grad school at some point, given what a gigantic nerdball I am, but at this point I don't know what I would want to study, or where.  I'm going to be ready for a break from linguistics after this year, and I've realized I don't want to spend a significant amount of time studying religious texts, so pursuing my minor is out now, too.  There are several options for fellowships I can apply for, though many require a very clear idea of what you want to do (Fulbright, for example, or Watson), which I am lacking.  There are a couple promising possibilities, but I need to look more into them, and other options, before making any firm decisions.  The Peace Corps would be awesome, of course, but there's no way I would get accepted with my health, and 2 years is longer than I would probably want.  I'll just have to try and keep an open mind and have faith that something will somehow work out.

Yesterday it was pleasantly warm, but today it's back to being "who left the oven door open?!" kind of hot.  It's apparently going to be high 90s on Friday, but then over the weekend it should cool down somewhat.  Peter has put forth the idea that he will cook an awesome Italian feast soon, but he'll probably have to wait for a cooler day so we don't all die in the kitchen.  Beforehand we'll go to KaDeWe and browse the food floor to get the necessary ingredients, which I am considering a field trip of delights.  I made more flan yesterday and topped it with sliced strawberries, but I didn't let the caramelized sugar cook long enough, in part because I did not want it to burn horribly and let off noxious fumes like last time.  Still yummy though!  I had half of one for breakfast this morning, along with a piece of toast with Nutella.  Shh, it's totally a healthy way to start the day!  When we go to KaDeWe I'm going to buy some peanut butter because I am missing it like whoa.  And it could help upgrade my breakfasts from cavity-inducing to artery-clogging.  But peanuts are healthy!  Sort of.  Speaking of food, I am quite hungry and it's approaching dinnertime, so I'm going to end this post here and head home to make some food.  Bis bald!