The American Stalker Girl Who Doesn't Even Dress as Nice as a Boy!

Here this statement would probably be a fair description of me by my classmates..... I don;t mean to stalk people, it just happens.  We are going to the same place, but I don;t really know them, so I follow at a safe "no talking" distance.  Then all I get are glances backward like, "Why are you following me?!"  Since I only know one route to all the places I want to go, it's not like I can take another route to make everyone more comfortable.  I'll take being a quasi-stalker over being lost in a foreign country any day.  I am not good about asking/understanding directions in English, much less German.  You know you're getting somewhere though when you say something and they look at you, repeat what you said in a high pitched voice, giggle, and say to you, "so süß!" (which means "so cute!").

EVERYONE dresses nice here.  Every morning I look in my meager exchange student closet, trying to figure out what I have already worn this week and what I haven't.  I painstakingly pick out an outfit - some combination of a shirt and pants - hoping that wearing this shirt with those pants will somehow make them look newer.  Once I get to school and look around though, I know it was a lost cause.  Here I am, in a pants, t-shirt, and sneakers.  I wish I could even say that the boys were dressed the same, but I can't.  How were they dressed?  Nice pants or slim jeans, a button-down shirt or a v-neck t-shirt and trendy sweater, and loafers, boots, or sweet sneakers.  Their hair is also perfectly styled.  Some boys even straighten their hair here.  I am not lying, I've seen it with my own two eyes!  I'm lucky if I remember to brush my hair, and the only thing I know how to do with it is put it in a ponytail.  American men, are you feeling a little underdressed and "understyled" right now? Cause I am.  The inbound boys from America are even more uncomfortable than I am.  One of them told me that the girls at his school told him that they would take him shopping soon to help him out.  Looks like I'm in need of a makeover as well.

The two statements above are from yesterday.  Today, however, I am more of a success story.  I got up early this morning, determined to define my gender as "girl" with my clothes.  I pulled out all the stops on the makeup, threw on my black skinny jeans, and a brown suede tunic-top thingy that I bought for parties and stuff.  I considered the grey leather booties that I bought, but I had to walk a mile downhill to the bus stop and well, let's face reality.  So the sneakers stayed, and I was off to school.  I have never had so many double takes in my life. I really think they hadn't realized I was a girl.  Three girls told me I looked really pretty today, and tons more asked me where I got such a cute top.  I wish I could flip my hair and say, "The States," but I couldn't.  I got it here in H&M, with the help of my host mom and Tiffy, but it's a start.  Too bad it's the only top I have like that and I have one more day of school this week.  Might need to get up even earlier tomorrow to figure that one out.  Bis später!