The First Few Weeks

Reflections on My First Few Weeks

            My first month isn’t quite done yet, but I felt like posting on what I’ve learned so far in Mannheim. Obviously some of these pieces of advice apply specifically to my experience, but I’d like to think most of them could be useful to anyone studying abroad in Germany or Europe in general.  

1. Making Friends
As part of enrolling through UMass, students are required to attend a month-long, pre-semester language course known as the "Winter Academy." Every morning you spend four hours in a German class of your level with a group of roughly 10 other students. There's a relaxed, joking atmosphere, plenty of Koffeepausen (10 minute coffee breaks), and a regularly scheduled lunch hour where you can meet up with friends from other classes and levels. After class, there are optional additional seminars on topics like German phonetics and grammar, history, and even haggling in German. Uni-Mannheim's student group VISUM also organizes social events like tours and pub crawls, so my first month ended up being pretty packed.

Through all of this, I have met a huge number of wonderful people from all over the world during my month here in Mannheim. We've spent the month learning German, navigating the city, dating ;) and drinking together. With any luck, I'll be traveling Europe with the people I've met here, and after that, I trust the connections that have been made will stay for some time. 

It came pretty naturally for us thanks to VISUM and the Winter Academy, but regardless of where you study abroad, reach out, say hi, make friends, and be open to new experiences. You came here for an adventure, and so did everyone else! 

2. Seid pünktlich! Be Punctual!
As stereotypical as it might be to say, the Germans really are nothing if not punctual. If the bus is set to arrive at 8:33am, do not arrive at 8:34am, it will be gone to its next stop. This makes for an incredibly efficient, if somewhat inflexible, way of running a city. You can always rely on on the bus to arrive when it says it will, but there is no room for error if  you leave your room late.
In sort of the same way, society in Germany can seem somewhat like a well-made clock - everything happens in an orderly manner that's a little faster than what you might expect in the US. Everyone - and I mean everyone - waits until the walk sign flashes green before crossing the street, even if there isn't a car for miles. When checking out groceries at the supermarket, be ready to pack your groceries and pay at the same time. There is no employee paid to bag your groceries, and no additional counter space for you to do it yourself. There is no room for error. This is a well-rehearsed act for Germans, so try to keep up.

3. Monkey see, monkey do

There will be a lot of very idiosyncratic, incredibly German, and seemingly alien aspects to your study abroad experience. You will be overwhelmed by all of the new social rules and strange customs. Things will occasionally appear to be entirely nonsensical ways of running a country. And if you've never been to Germany before, you'll have a lot to learn. But that's okay. That's why you're here - to learn.
So keep your eyes open and your snarky comments to yourself. Learn to find some humor in your daily game of "monkey see, monkey do": Oh, there are forty people waiting in line to use the one and only bottle return machine in the supermarket? That seems efficient. Oh, the office that I desperately need to give paperwork to closes at 2:30 every day? Guess I'm not that desperate.
Learn to accommodate yourself to confusion, because that is the bedrock of adventure.

4. Talk to Strangers

I know your parents taught you not to, but trust me, it's a good idea. The one thing I have noticed throughout my month here in Germany is how welcoming and helpful everyone who lives here has been to me. Four different strangers have told me they wanted to personally welcome me to Mannheim. Even the bureaucrats who can't understand why I don't have my Anmeldebestätigung (real document) on my person at all times will still smile and explain slowly when I look at them like a lost puppy.
Germans (and I would wager most people throughout the world) are always interested in hearing where you come from and how you like their neck of the woods. Be polite, be open-minded, and try to remember that the people who are going about their lives around you are the soul of the city, state, or country you're visiting. They aren't monsters hiding under your apartment, they're mothers, sons, friends, and loved ones. You're in a new neighborhood, and it's time you meet the neighbors. They're happy to have you.   

5. Breaking through the Second Wall

Long distance runners talk about a point in the race called "hitting the wall." On a scientific level, it's when you're body runs out of blood sugar to burn and starts breaking down more complex molecules for fuel. On a personal level, it feels like the dragging a 600lb weight behind you for the last stretch of the race. When you first arrive in your host country, you'll immediately feel the strain of adapting to a new culture, learning the ropes and adjusting your sleep schedule. That's the First Wall. About a week and a half after that, you'll have settled into your new schedule better, but there will still be something a bit off. You'll get stuck in your own head, you'll feel homesick, and you'll be waiting for life to go back to normal. And it will. But first you'll have to get past this Second Wall. So get plenty of sleep, spend time with all of the wonderful people you've met, get yourself out of bed on time, figure out how to use that damn washing machine (30-40C is "cold"), and make friends with that guy at the supermarket or your favorite cabbie. 

I hope that this has been helpful, and I'll right again in a few weeks.
Until then, tschüss!

-BMT