Things have been off to a bit of a bumpy start here so far, so I wanted to force myself to write a post about all the positive things about living in Germany. Everyone thinks living abroad is much more glamorous than it actually is; it’s currently cold and rainy most days here, and at the end of the day, I have to do the same things I would in the U.S. (grocery shopping, laundry, taking public transit), only with a language barrier and different norms. That being said, there are certainly some things I like better abroad.
Bakeries EVERYWHERE
There is a backerei on every corner here, with fresh bread, pastries and cappuccinos for prices far lower than I’ve ever seen in the U.S. My favorite bakery near by has the BEST chocolate croissant I have ever had in my life. I have that and a large cappuccino almost every day for under 4 euros.
Inexpensive but delicious wine and cheese
Known here as wein und käse, the selection of cheese and wine under five euros in the grocery store had me speechless the first time I went. Now I just need to accumulate some friends here to continue to make my over the top cheese boards, only at a much lower price than the ones I made back home.
The train system
I find the train system here extremely easy to follow and efficient; you can get just about anywhere by train, something we definitely do not have back home.
The cost of rent
Granted I was living in Boston before, one of the most expensive places to rent in America, I was still astonished by the price of apartments here. All the places we looked at had two bedrooms and were recently renovated, and the cost was about the same I used to pay to rent one bedroom in a shared apartment.
The ease of travel
I’ve been here for only three weeks and have been to Bamberg, a gorgeous town which happens to be where my grandmother grew up, the Alps, Austria, the iconic Neuschwanstein Castle and have another trip planned to Heidelberg this weekend. On top of that, the architecture everywhere is so beautiful and charming, it puts even old cities like Boston to shame.
It’s funny because when I started my semester abroad in Dublin five years ago, I had all the same feelings of struggling to find my way, but by the end, I didn’t want to go home. I just have to remind myself that new beginnings often have their hardships, but the end result can be far better than I ever imagined.
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