Wednesday 5/3/17
As the countdown gets smaller and smaller, I started to feel a wave of sadness overcome me. I did not know how I was going to say goodbye to some of the greatest people I have ever met. I knew deep inside that some of these people, I will never see again. I tried to keep my mind off that topic because I knew I was going to have a hard time saying goodbye. By this point, I have completed all my finals and trips and I was a sitting duck waiting for my flight home. To begin my goodbyes, I created my own personal “Goodbye Tour” because I did not want to begin packing. This is where I would walk around town doing something for the last time in Vallendar before my departure on Friday (5/5/17). My first stop on my “Goodbye Tour” was a hike through the rolling hills just behind Vallendar. I took this trip on my own because I wanted to have peace and quiet along with time to reflect. I left my apartment just shortly after lunch (13:00 or 1PM) and began my hike with only a time of 18:00 (6PM) to be back before it would start raining again. As I left, it started to sprinkle, but I kept walking towards the woods. I had no clue how far I would go or what I would see. When I made it to the trails and walked past a water building, I began to think of the funny stories and adventure my friends and I had previously taken in the semester. I smiled and kept walking. At one point, I came across the spot where we turned around saying “we will have to come back and hike the full trail.” (This never happened unfortunately.) I walked past the point, and did not turn back. Just ahead, I found a bench overtaken by weeds and I sat down just looking down on the valley. After sitting down for a while, I began to keep walking and I got deeper into the woods where some other trails met up. I looked at my map on my phone and I was close to the town of Höhr, which is on the other side of the hills from Vallendar. I climbed down the hill to get onto a new path home. At the bottom, I found a cool reclining wood bench and I sat there for a while. While sitting, I thought to myself how much I would miss everything and everyone. I knew that this would be the last time I would go hiking in the hills of Vallendar. I began to make my way back towards Vallendar when I came across a small cabin. It was kind of creepy the way it was situated in a secluded space. It reminded me of a place a murderer would drop a body. As I reached the end of the trails over 4 hours later, I said my goodbyes to the nature of Vallendar and headed back to my apartment where I sat in sadness and watched Netflix. My attitude at this point was “I don’t want to leave - I love it here.” Little did I know this would be a foreshadowing event. (You’ll see.)
Thursday 5/4/17
There is one day left until I would depart for home. I had no real plans for Thursday besides packing and going to Korova one last time with some friends who finished their finals. I tried to put off packing for the longest time because I could not stand it. The week before, there was a contest through the International@WHU Facebook page. The contest consisted of submitting up to 3 pictures along with captions of “what exchange means to you.” Prizes were awarded to the top 3 most liked pictures. When the contest concluded, I had won 2nd-4th place of most liked pictures. As a result, I was awarded a WHU hoodie. I decided to pick up my hoodie and when I went to the IRO, I found some friends who just got out of an exam. Since I was trying to procrastinate, I decided to stay with them instead of pack. We sat in Burgplatz, or the central square of WHU, with some gelato that I was sad to say goodbye to haha. In Burgplatz, I said my goodbyes to my friends who still had exams on Friday and who would not make it to Korova that night. I got sad thinking about all the new
friends I’ve made that I was leaving behind. Does it really have to end? Why can’t we just pause in life and keep what we have? I knew when I got back to the states, I would have lifelong friends from all over the world, especially in Germany. That night, we had one last meal with some friends and went to Korova one last time, as part of the “Goodbye Tour.” That night, I forgot all about how hard it would be not to see everyone on a daily basis. I think we all did not want to think about goodbyes; however, that night we said goodbye to the owner of Korova. On the way home, we stood in the streets upset (nearly in tears) saying goodbye to each other. Saying goodbye hurt because I have no clue when I will see some of them again. I remember all of us hugging and wishing each other luck in the future. They say that the culture shock coming home is worse than the culture shock than arriving in a new country and I’m starting to believe that. Some of us have already planned dates of when we are going to meet up again and I am looking forward to meeting up with the others in the near future. Until next time my friends.
Friday 5/5/17
A peaceful night’s rest was quickly interrupted when I woke up and saw sunlight under my curtains. I checked the time and immediately jumped out of bed screaming. My mom was about to get the worst news after being away for 4 months. I facetimed my mom upset and said, “I missed my train and I’m going to miss my flight.” I also told her that was the only flight going back to the states. This was not something my mom wanted to hear at 2AM. I had a text saying “Ethan??? Are you on this train???” I had 5 alarms set for 05:00 because my train departed Vallendar at 06:00 and it was a 2hr train ride to Frankfurt International Airport. I woke up at 09:00 and my flight was scheduled to depart for Detroit at 11:30. Unfortunately, there was no way I would make it to Frankfurt before 11:30. I was very upset but I am glad mom was there to calm me down. She called Delta and somehow a miracle happened. Delta told my mom that if I flew the same route on Saturday (5/6/17) from Frankfurt>Detroit>Indianapolis, I would have to pay around $400; however, they said if I flew from Frankfurt>Atlanta>Indianapolis, it would be free of charge. Of course, I chose the free option. After I calmed down and took a nap, I told my friends at WHU who were leaving on Saturday that I missed my flight. Now, it is something I will look back on and laugh about, but then, it was no joking matter. Remember when I said I didn’t want to leave? Well now I was ready, but I couldn’t. Luckily, I had time to complete my 2 online final exams for my UIUC courses on Friday. The exams opened on Friday and would close on Sunday. I knew that since my birthday was on Sunday and I would be tired on Saturday, it would be best to finish them before I left. Most of my friends who were leaving WHU on Saturday were going on the end of the year boat party. They told me to come but I insisted that I am not missing my flight again so I was going to stay in my apartment. There was one thing I wanted to do in Vallendar all semester but never had the time to do it. Just across the bridge on an island, there is a small village called Niederwerth. Niederwerth is an island surrounded by the Rhine River with a few homes on it. Since I had the time, I was able to walk around the island with a friend. It turns out that we were going to be on the same flight to Atlanta on Saturday. That night, I finished my exams and made sure I had enough alarms set for Saturday morning at 05:00. I also had mom call me (10PM CST).
Saturday 5/6/17
Saturday morning went a whole lot better than Friday morning. I was awake and ready to go. As I left my apartment for the final time, I felt sadness because it was a place I called home. I checked out and headed to meet up with my friends that would take the same train as me to Frankfurt. That morning, there was a beautiful sunrise over Vallendar and the view from my apartment was breathtaking. This would be the last time I would wake up to views like that. As I headed down the hill, I remembered what it was like when I first got to Vallendar. It doesn’t seem that long ago when I arrived. If I am being honest, it feels like I have only been gone for a week when I arrived home and was back to work. Still, the departure of Vallendar is a touchy subject, as in it makes me sad to think my semester abroad is really over. Vallendar, Germany is not just a place on the map, but a place I will forever call home. We all boarded a bus for the last time to Koblenz and struggled to carry our heavy bags onto the train. Finally, it was our time to split up once we arrived at the airport and I had to say some more goodbyes. I checked into my flight and boarded a 9-hour flight from Frankfurt to Atlanta. I departed at 11:30AM and arrived in Atlanta at 3:30PM. The flight seemed to take forever. I watched 3 movies and maybe got an hour or two of sleep (since it was bright from the sun).
My connecting flight from Atlanta to Indianapolis departed at 5:15PM and landed at 6:45PM. As I was landing for the final time in Indianapolis, I felt sadness as I knew my semester abroad was officially over. No more Tauschie Tuesdays – No more Ryanair flights – no more WHU. When I came out of the terminal into the main lobby of Indianapolis’s airport, I could see balloons, my family, and cousins waiting to greet me. This was a surprise to me because if I would have arrived on Friday, my cousins and sister would not have been there. My brother made me a welcome home sign and there were balloons for my birthday as well. I gave everyone a big hug and it kind of felt unreal that I was really back. After leaving the airport we headed for Olive Garden because I was craving that since being over in Europe. After an enjoyable evening, it was time to head home. I was exhausted when I got home. I had been up for nearly 24 hours. I woke up at 10PM central time Friday and arrived home around 10PM central time on Saturday.
WHU is not only a university, it’s a family and I loved every moment of it. The people I met from all around the world will forever hold a special place in my heart. I hope that we all will keep in touch and meet up in the near future.
As I end my last blog post, I want to look back on myself before I left and tell myself that “you see, there was nothing to worry about.” Sadly, all good things come to an end at some point but I will cherish my time abroad.
It’s not a goodbye – it’s a see you later,
-E
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(For more from my semester abroad or if you are looking at studying abroad at WHU, please see below my notes and tips I kept over my time abroad.)
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Things I've noticed about Germany:
Stores typically close from 13:00-15:00 (1-3PM) for a rest period by German law (typically mom and pop stores).
Everything is closed on Sundays so get your shopping done before then.
They observe different holidays depending on the state and region. Typically, the west and south celebrate Christian holidays and the north and east celebrate Protestant ones or none at all.
Whenever you ask someone if they speak English, they almost always say “a little bit.” When they say that, they are practically fluent in English.
Weather gets progressively warmer as the days and months continue. The weather in Germany has mild winters and summers meaning it typically ranges from 30-60 degrees Fahrenheit. (In Europe, they use Celsius. A good tip to see what it translates to Fahrenheit is take the degrees in Celsius and multiply it by 2 and add 30. For example: 20 degrees Celsius would be about 70 degrees Fahrenheit.)
Daylight savings time is not on the same day as it is in the US. After the time change, you can tell a huge difference in the longer days which is nice.
They write the date differently (DD/MM/YEAR), so it was confusing when they would write 2/3/17 because I didn't know the rule. It means March 2nd instead of February 3rd.
Most places that serve pizza don't cut it for you. You are given a knife and fork and it can take a lot of effort to get one slice.
You must ask for the bill at restaurants. Waiters don't like to rush customers so you could stay in a restaurant for as long as you like without someone bugging you. Most of the time you can expect spending at least 2 hours at a restaurant.
Things I learned:
Confidence
Uncertainty
Cultural awareness
Sense of belonging
Nothing lasts forever
Tips:
Buy a Bahn 25 Card to save 25% on trains and busses for a trial of 3 months. It costs around 15€ and you need to be sure to cancel 6 weeks before it expires or it auto renews and charges you for the full year price of 60€. Believe me, it is worth it if you plan on traveling a lot.
Don't be afraid to go on trips alone. I've had just as much fun traveling alone as I did with other people. You get to do everything you want and at your pace. Also, you can find other people traveling alone and make countless friends. You guys can also exchange taking pictures for each other too.
Be sure to always carry a water bottle with you. Restaurants usually charge you for water but sometimes if you ask for tap water it's free. Also, be sure to ask for still water if you don't like sparkling water because they prefer to drink sparkling water usually.
There are no water fountains but in a lot of places in Europe it is safe to drink water from the sink.
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Germans are very particular about separating their wastes. You also get cash back for recycling your glass and plastic bottles. (Even though it's only .08€ per bottle, it adds up.)
If you go on a trip and will get back on Saturday, be sure to be stocked up on food. Everything is closed on Sundays so you will starve.
Have a padlock on you when you travel so you can lock up your belongings in hostels; otherwise, you will have to pay to rent one.
Get to know your host country and the students who attend the school. Trust me, you'll have a more enjoyable experience. Also, don't just hang out with people from your same school (exchange students). Meet new exchange students from other schools. I've met some of my closest friends through my exchange program and I've heard at other universities that it can be hard to meet people, especially if there is a group of 15+ from your same university. (There were only 7 of us from UIUC during my semester abroad.)
Learn the language. Learning German has actually been very helpful and fun. I didn't think I was going to take the course but I decided to go for it and it turned out to be one of my favorite classes.
Public university students receive free public transportation in German towns like the use of busses; however, WHU is a private university. If you are looking to save a couple dollars every time you want to go to Koblenz to take a train or something, use your WHU student card. Although you can be fined 60€ and kicked off the bus if someone checks for tickets (which is rare), it is definitely worth it to try. Be sure to cover the WHU with your thumb and don’t speak English during the ride. Enter the bus with confidence and keep walking. It helps if you are near the end of the line. The WHU student card works usually because the transportation ticket students use looks very similar. I used it my whole time in Germany and it saved me a ton.
Never be afraid to ask for student discounts or see if they have them. People understand that students have less money and it helps especially if you are a frequent traveler to other cities in Europe. Trust me a couple dollars here and there adds up!
Take advantage of all the Tauschie Tuesdays and WHU parties in the vaulted cellar. These are great opportunities to make friends with fellow Tauschies and meet the WHU students. Trust me, you will miss them when it's the end of the semester and it's the last one.
Order the local currency from your bank in the States before you head for Europe. I had a hard time exchanging my US dollars to euros.
Okay I'm convinced...
Q: Where should I live?
A: Residenz Humboldthöhe. Yes, the apartment is a senior residence building; however, it has the best views and you have a lot of privacy. The walk is a little uphill but I believe it's worth it, especially since it's one of the cheaper ones. Smart-flats is right next to the building (typically a lot of Tauschies live there and tends to be a loud and wild apartment building/party place). The Residenz Humboldthöhe is just uphill from Smart-flats so it is easy to go there to have fun but it keeps the mess away from your place.
Q: What classes should I take?
A: Germany in Europe: an easy class for Tauschies learning about German history in Europe
German: actually a lot of fun and very informative. It helps with basic German needed to get by.
Omnichannel Retail Marketing: one of my favorite professors taught this course and was very engaging. It is also similar to the BADM 310/320 classes if you are taking them online with UIUC
Q: Why WHU and why Vallendar?
A: It's centrally located and it is a little over an hour to 4 different airports. I used the Cologne/Bonn airport the most. It is also a small town and so you will have such a tight connection with fellow Tauschies and WHU students. WHU is also one of the best business schools in Europe.
Q: Would you do it again?
A: Absolutely, I love traveling and experiencing new things. Maybe in the future I will do a study abroad again during a winter break or summer. I would love to go to South Africa or Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.