The view from abroad.

Moving abroad was always a dream of mine, and I’ll admit I may have over-glamorized it in my head. From delays with a work visa, to adjusting to the bureaucracy of a new country, to getting the stomach bug on a trip, it’s been quite a ride. Just as we were finally getting settled in, a global virus decided to hit, halting all of our travel plans we had so looked forward to and moved abroad for. While it’s been upsetting to have to put these plans on hold, it’s also been an extremely interesting experience to watch and hear about America from abroad.

Before the virus took over, watching the elections play out from afar was quite the experience. No political ads on our TV or canvassers at our door, we got to explore our candidate options in peace and send in our absentee ballots. I thought watching the Iowa caucasus mess from here was bad, but it was no preparation for what was to come next.

The virus outbreak seemed to cause little concern in Europe until it hit Italy. While things quickly escalated, the fear did not. Cool, calm and collected; that’s how I would describe the handling of this pandemic in Germany. Cancellations of travel and large events have occurred, but the day to day life has remained relatively unchanged. I’ve watched the videos of my friends in Boston as they struggle to get goods at the grocery store and prepare to work from home, while I sit at my desk in my office and look out onto the calm, rolling countryside of Germany and head to a fully stocked grocery store. While people are concerned, there is no mass chaos. The way the information is communicated and the systems people are confident in here seem to ease any panic or concern. Much like everyone else around the world, I have no idea if the way things are being handled here is good or bad. From my perspective though, I am happy to be riding this out from Germany, and the lack of panic has helped ease my own concerns.

This has also allowed me to fully embrace the slower, European way of life. Perhaps that’s why they feel so calm and unbothered; they are used to a slower pace of life. Everything is closed here on Sundays, it takes forever to get the check after dinner, and most people sit and have their morning coffee in a cafe every day. While I didn’t get to spend the weekend in Prague as planned, I instead got to embrace my new home. I met new friends, took a bike ride, and enjoyed the first nice weather of the year. So while I’m upset my travel plans are on hold at the moment, I feel grateful to be living in a country that is handling this global pandemic with grace and calmness. Who knows what the future holds with the changes here on a daily basis, but for now, that’s the view from abroad.

Never miss a post - join the mailing list!

My favorite things about living abroad.

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.

1. 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.

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. 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.

Never miss a post - join the mailing list!