Today I’m sharing a conversation I had with Jessica from Room for Gelato, who moved from Michigan to Germany last year with her husband, and plans to live there for the next two years. She has lots of great stories, experiences, tips, and insight into moving abroad as well as day-to-day life. If you love to travel, and especially if you’ve ever dreamt about moving abroad (*raising my hand*), you will love this episode!
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As an Indian student who has just moved to Germany for my MA, I cannot say how true ALL of this rings! In many ways, the pace of life in India and the US is so similar: FAST. Having grown up in a culture where you’re constantly competing, trying to get ahead (not a bad thing!) to then finding yourself in a place where everything is so slow, and just…calm? is such a culture shock.
I also really liked what you said about the people — they might not be outwardly warm or friendly, but most are very kind when you do approach them.
It’s funny that I listened to this now, because I’m actually on my way to a Christmas market in a few hours! I live in Regensburg, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the Christmas markets are situated around the old cathedral here, which is just so beautiful.
As a university student, I thought I’d mention another German thing that might strike both, Americans, and Indians, as strange — the drinking culture on university campuses! A few days ago there was an Irish Christmas festival at university, and Gluhwein and other drinks were being sold, and no one checked IDs. Similarly, I’ve seen students buying beer between classes, and no one is IDed. Of course, this may have to do with the fact that the legal drinking age here is 16, so people assume that you’re of age if you’re a university student.
Thanks for this episode, Blair and Jessica! It’s nice to know that there are others who struggled with moving to another country! Some days are still really, REALLY hard, but I’m telling myself that there’ll come a time when it pays off.
And Jessica, do come to Regensburg! It really is a beautiful city. 🙂