Category: Study abroad (Page 1 of 3)

So here we are, a week after I came back from Tübingen and I’ve only just mustered up the energy to write this post.
In all seriousness, coming home has definitely been the hardest part of being abroad; not exams, not going there – leaving. I don’t want to focus too much on the negatives, but I think there’s definitely a reason people (half-jokingly) call it post-Erasmus depression, and I’d advise some preparation before you go home; plan things to keep yourself busy within the first few days (seeing family, friends etc.), else you (like me) may end up moping around and feeling homesick for abroad.

However, looking back on the past year it’s been incredible. I wouldn’t change my experience for the world. I feel like I’ve grown in so many ways; I’ve met people from many different backgrounds, taken a vastly different range of courses than I’d be able to in Lancaster, and got in touch with my half-German side, meaning that I feel fairly confident speaking to my relatives now. I’ve traveled to different countries, seen people skating on the frozen river, figured out how to sort my rubbish correctly, realised that the Biomüll needs taking out at least every week, and that not all stereotypes are true (shout out to the number 4 bus, which was maybe on time twice).

Going abroad is not easy, it’s not always fun and it’s not always comfortable. It forces you out of your comfort zone, but that’s why it’s so beneficial. There will be great times, and probably some bad ones (these mostly coincide with periods of stress, I’ve found), but with a good support system in place and people around you, it’ll work out well.

Just a tip: don’t underestimate the power of social media at the beginning! Look for international groups, course groups etc. so you can find people to hang out with at the start of the semester.
Also: if you’re invited somewhere I would definitely advise going! You never know who you’ll meet, maybe they’ll be your best friends.

I know I’ll have a hard time piping down about my time abroad for a long while to come, because it’s what I’ve been used to for the last eleven months (but I think if I don’t I might lose all my friends; I don’t want to be that person).

I’d also like to thank everyone who’s made my time abroad the amazing year that it was; my flatmate who made me feel welcome, the Erasmus group that kept me sane in my first semester (fulle ska vi bli alle) with copious amounts of coffee, the ISCL guys (FrieFore, without whom I may not have passed some classes) who were my rocks in the second, and the first, semester, all the great people I met in my classes, and- thinking about it- pretty much everyone I met. Thank you all so much.

Finally, thank you for reading this! I hope you’ve enjoyed getting a glimpse of my year abroad- maybe it’s inspired you to go, or at least made you consider it. I’m sure this won’t be the last time you hear from me, so I guess we’ll talk… soon?

As the days start to get shorter again (??) it’s still roasting temperature in Tübingen; last week it got to 34 degrees. And, if you’re wondering why I’m still abroad, semester continues til the end of July here (and yes, I am jealous that you have already finished your exams).

If I had a word to describe how the last few weeks have been, it would be “stressful”. I’ve had an exam, a presentation, and more are looming. Other, completely random things haven’t been going particularly well- my kitchen has been redone, so I couldn’t cook anything for a week, and there were people in my flat from 7:15am to 4pm. It’s definitely a strange feeling to feel out of place in your own home.
Due to the heat, I’ve been sleeping pretty badly, and it’s difficult to concentrate when I’m studying, which- with exams coming up- isn’t the best thing in the world.

And, the icing on the stress-cake, is that I managed to (somehow) spill antibacterial hand gel on my phone, and repairing it is expensive, which leads to my next point…

All these things going wrong really makes me appreciate that they usually are fine; it’s like that feeling when you get a cold and your nose is blocked, and you realise how lucky you normally are to be able to breathe easily. The time without my phone has really helped me to be more productive, and to reevaluate how much I really need it. Funnily enough, it half-breaking has inspired me to stay without my smartphone (I still have a brick German one) until I come back to England, as having a month without my phone has always been something I’ve wanted to do, and there’s no better time to be productive than just before exams!

So, I guess the lesson to be learned is to make the best out of a situation, even when it seems that things aren’t going particularly well. There’s often a silver lining, and anyway, you can be almost certain that in a job interview they’ll ask you about a challenge you overcame- these experiences have got to come from somewhere!

Anyhow, I need to get back to revising for my exam (it’s in just over a week now)- talk soon?

So– it’s been a while. My last post got lost in the computer system, which is why there’s been a break. However, I am evidently back again to tell you about the *cough* interesting weather we’ve had, and about the weekend trip I took to Berlin (and probably some other things too).

Within the past month and a half we’ve essentially had all four seasons- no joke. One week it was around 25 degrees and I (laughably) got a slight tan, then there was a lot of rain- I think all the rain we ought to have had the rest of the year- and hail and snow (yes, snow. In April.) and then we’ve come full circle back to summer weather again. In a word: unpredictable.
I can’t lie though, I love this summer weather. I swear we’ve had more sun within the past month than in a year in Lancaster (see also: reasons to study abroad).

Last weekend (it feels like ages ago) I was in Berlin with some friends who are/were also on Erasmus and I had such a good time! I was there for a day less than the majority of people, as I had class on the Friday and most people didn’t, but it was really nice to catch up with some of the people who left last semester (even for a short while). We really lucked out with the weather as well- originally we thought it would rain the entire weekend but actually it only rained for a couple of hours on the Sunday. It felt great to get away from Tuebingen and be somewhere a bit bigger; whilst I had been to Berlin before, it was at least 5 years ago so I was able to wander around and get a new feel for it. I think to experience Berlin in its entirety I’d have needed slightly more time than I had, but it was great to be there. One thing that wasn’t as great was the transport there and back- 11 hours on the Flixbus (Megabus but for all of Europe) and 12 and a half hours back, due to delays and, excitingly, being checked for passports by the police. To this day I don’t know why.

Whilst the bus was not the best part of the trip, it’s very cheap- a lot cheaper than flying or taking the train- which is why when I go to Amsterdam in Pfingsten (the first week of June) we will also be going via Flixbus. There’s a lot of exciting things coming up soon: my mum is coming to visit in a week and a half, then I’m off to Amsterdam, then I should probably study a bit as I have a midterm (ok, maybe that’s not an exciting thing), but life has good things coming, which I’m really happy about.

That’s about it for now, I’m off to get some rest– talk soon?

A very late happy new year from Germany!

I thought I’d do a bit of a catch-up post from the frosty land of Tübingen, before I properly put my head down to revise for the second lot of exams (how exciting), and the topic today is how *enter exclamative here* cold it is here.
I’m not even kidding. The lowest it’s been (I think) was -12 celsius and these days it rarely gets much above freezing.
Whilst this is an absolute pain (literally, my face hurts from being outside), it’s quite refreshing to be somewhere the seasons are identifiable; I’ve seen proper snow for the first time in several years and it’s amazing.

Speaking of unusual sights in England, the Neckar has completely frozen over (much to my amusement), with a tributary (a smaller river flowing into the main river; I had to google it) containing a street sign.

On a side note, I want to gush about how great Tübingen is for a second.
I really think that once you’ve seen how beautiful a place is/can be (for example I came here for the first time in the middle of July and it was absolutely stunning), then you can never really lose sight of that- even by the train tracks. Every time I walk to my classes or just go on the Neckarinsel it reinforces how much I love the place, especially with a clear blue sky.

Keeping along this theme, one thing that I’ve seen a lot more here than in England is graffiti, especially the political kind (though I may be biased, I live near to a hippie-house). Whilst it certainly took a bit of getting used to, I think it really brightens up the city and can make you think about things you usually wouldn’t (and it also provides something to look at whilst waiting for the bus).

I’ll leave you with the newest addition to the hippie-house, and I guess we’ll talk soon?

Life definitely gets busy around this time of year (hence my lack of posts), and unfortunately it’s not just due to thinking about Christmas. Unlike last year at Lancaster, I haven’t got coursework as such to work on (though I did have a 30 minute individual presentation, *gulp*), rather I’ve just had one exam and have another on Thursday- this doesn’t quite allow the festive spirit as much as usual. To avoid thinking about that, I thought I’d give you some information about the term dates in Germany and the differences to those in England.

The academic year over here isn’t the same as in Lancaster; instead of three terms (Michaelmas, Spring and Summer) there are two semesters (Winter and Summer). Winter semester lasts from (for Tübingen) the middle of October until the middle of February, with a two-week Christmas break (from the 24th December until the 8th January). From mid-February to mid-April there is a two month long semester break; I think some subjects have to write essays in this period, but this isn’t the case for my course. I’ve heard that most people use this time to work, travel or return home (unsure which I’m doing yet, but I know it’s not working!). The summer semester then runs from the middle of April to the end of July, and then August until mid-October is their summer holiday.

It’s quite important to keep these dates in mind, as the summer holidays are quite different, meaning that you need to be careful when applying for summer internships or placements, as many start in the middle of June (when there are still exams). Anyway, that’s the boring part over… now a bit about Christmas!

Unlike a lot of Erasmus students I know, I won’t be back in England for Christmas day. This is partly due to the late semester finishing date, but mostly because I’m half German, and nearly every other year we spend Christmas with my German relatives (obviously it makes sense for this to be when I’m already in the country!) After those few days I will be returning to England, to see friends, my cats and celebrate the New Year. Coming home has been a long time in the making, and I’m really excited; whilst there are so many things I love about being here, for me the holidays are a time to be at home, and I’ll definitely make the most of it!

Alas, back to procrastinating revision… talk soon?