Prior to the Germany Business program, I had only been to Europe once as a part of the Regents’ Portugal Field Trip program. Going back to Europe, and a totally different side of it, was both intimidating and exciting. When I first arrived in Germany with 3 other students in the program, the people there were vastly different. Of course, the obvious shift was the language where now everyone was speaking German and many shopkeepers did not speak English. Heading off to our hotel was a fun way to see all that Munich had to over. All around we could see huge buildings for car dealerships like BMW which are a popular commodity in the country. Beyond that, we quickly learned how accessible the city is with public transportation all around. We walked around all over the hotel and Marienplatz, which is the city center, to find new stores like TK Max and learn what Germany had to offer beyond the beer. Going to the grocery store the first week was also an experience. At the stores, the produce was way more fresh than anything you would find in America, and beyond that many of the food were not as processed. Munich even has its own grading scale to tell you how healthy something is before you buy it. I quickly fell in love with the orange juice (something about it is addicting) and also made sure I was cooking for myself. While I do try to cook, I have gone out to eat a couple of times with a kebab place right around the corner of our hotel being my favorite so far. I can’t say I’m the biggest fan of German food but seeing all the different types of meets and sausages was a huge shift from the US. So far, Germany is a beautiful country with rich historical implications, and I am learning all that it has to offer.
Center for International Business Studies Blog