Missing Deutschland

A little over a month back in America, yet I am still reliving all the little and big moments I had while in Germany. It felt so surreal being in a totally different place and emerging myself in another culture. From the moment that I landed in that foreign land until the day I took off, I can genuinely say I enjoyed every aspect of the trip. There is a balance to everything and all the "negative" things from Germany was compensated with many other wonderful things. Not having still water to drink was different, but being able to taste various delicious drinks was awesome. In addition, it was great to have safe drinking water right out from the faucet. It was weird having to pay to use the restroom, but heck, the restrooms were literally cleaner than the ones from model homes. The food was amazing and I miss everything. I miss all the types of bread, the spreads, the cheeses, all the different cafes with great coffee and delicious pastries. I also miss the various excursions we went on. Every place had its highlights and I really learned a lot. While being in class this semester, I have caught myself several times referring to the things I learned from Germany. I think that is one of the best feeling - where you can recall learning something and referring to it. Another big part that I miss a lot are the people. The group of people I interacted with are wonderful and each one had interesting stories to talk about. I learned a lot just by being with them. This includes all my peers, Dr. Wasser, Suzanne, and even most of our tour guides. Although having to wake up super early to accomplish each day's agenda was a little too much on some days, it was delightful seeing everyone first thing in the morning and always being surrounded with so many people. I am so glad I got talked into going to Germany on this program. This is definitely one of the best experience I have had in college and this is what I will take away with me when I graduate. However, if there was one thing I had to criticize about the program, I would say that it would be nice if the "Morning Exercise" excursion was omitted from the program. It was fun to know what the horses did in the morning right before their shows, but it would have been better if everyone (including the professor and coordinator) to have more sleep time that day. Waking up a little later would have been great or having a more interactive alternative activity would have been pleasant, too. Nonetheless, I enjoyed everything because I have never experienced anything like this before. I have no complaints and I believe I would not have traveled to Europe any other way.