My first day of work at Siemens! The bike ride there was a circuitous one that lasted for about 20 minutes. There seemed to be a dominant direction to the trip although I couldn't identify it for the life of me...this country is so non-Cartesian in every way that I've lost all sense of true North. Matt rode with me and had to ride back after work as well, as I realized there was no way I was going to be able to retrace our steps.
When the enormous Siemens complex finally appeared on the horizon, the closely packed streets gave way to a winding road through a green field. Red poppies were growing along either side. I was off to see the wizard...
Corporate Technology (CT), the division I work for, is on the sixth floor of building 33 near the center of the Siemens campus. This morning I met Pablo Gussmann, my project manager, and already have taken a liking to the guy. Most of the day was spent running around from building to building getting documents signed and processed. As a result I now have German Health Insurance. It is very unlikely that I'll actually use it on such a short stay, so maybe I should break my leg or something before I go back in order to get my money's worth.
Lunch was fabulous, and big. I was the last one done, slower even than the French intern who's on my project team, and this seemed to please him. People are always happy to get off the bottom rung. I could have chosen pizza but I went for (what I take to be) more authentic German food, the best dish consisting of small hamburger/sausages with bread crumbs baked into them. After work, though, I broke down and got the closest thing I could to American food. Cornflakes for breakfast, and bread and peanut butter for dinner. There was only one kind of peanut butter but many kinds of Gnutella-like chocolate spreads. Matt claims he's never had a peanut butter sandwich, and I've promised to remedy that.
Of all the people I've met so far, Matt and I have hit it off the best. Still, I realize that we have only talked of the past, i.e. what it's like in my country, things we've done, his job at Siemens, etc. and of the future, i.e. how I should go about getting an adapter, what working at Siemens will be like for me, etc. We haven't really shared any experience "in the moment," so to speak, and this is the stuff that human interaction is made of. You can digest the past a thousand times over and speculate idlely about the future with a person, but you won't really connect unless you interact in the present. You know what I'm talking about. Everyone, everyday, participates in relationships that remain grounded in things past or future, and there's always a feeling of distance in them, because there really is distance there--in time.
But I suppose it is customary to proceed chronologically. First people want to know your background, they want to read your resume and have you write essays about the most important event in your life, they ask you about your parents and brothers and sisters and where you come from. Then if they like what they hear they share the moment. After enough of this, if there is still any shred of mutual respect between the two parties, you are close enough to discuss dreams and hopes and things yet to come.
Looking out the sixth floor window after work I got a good look at the enormous construction project that I saw from the S-Bahn on my first day in Germany. A total of 11 cranes are putting together what I've been told is an office building. It looks more like a shipyard to me. at least at this stage. Rumor has it that the company behind the project has declared bankruptcy, so I'm going to ask around to see what else I can find out about it.
Posted by Alan at April 21, 2002 12:00 AM