7 am came a lot sooner than expected. After what felt like 5 minutes of sleep, my alarm was going off telling me it was time to start day two of our time in Germany. We first had breakfast in the hotel which was irregular from American breakfast, but I would say is much better. I highly recommend the milchkaffee. I have come to notice that our food tends to be a lot sweeter than what I have tried while in Germany.
Once breakfast was over we made our short walk to the tram station down the street to catch a ride to the university. The trams come about every five minutes which is very different from what our buses are like in Pittsburgh. The university was much different from what I imagined. The university is a continuation of the city in that it is all greenery. There are trees, long grasses, and even a pond on the campus. Much different than our campus back at home. I also noticed that none of the buildings are labeled like “business building” as we do back in Pittsburgh. They do however have signs that point you in the direction of the building you are looking for.
When in the building, it doesn’t vary much from what you would expect back in America. The main difference I noticed was the keyboards in the computer lab. Everything is in German when you log into a computer, but some letters on the keyboard are switched around (specifically y and z) and there are some different keys. This was a challenge when typing up our presentation as I was not used to it.
After presenting we went to the mensa or the dining hall which had different serving stations of different food (Bavarian, Asian, Vegetarian, and more). Unlike back at home the staff serves the food and you do not get it yourself. You also pay at the end after getting the food.
Then we did a scavenger hunt around the city exploring different fountains, buildings, churches, and even a stadium. I think my favorite spot was the Doma or the cathedral. It was beautiful inside. Sadly photos were not allowed so I am unable to share that beauty but the architecture was so old and there were tombs of different people within the cathedral which is something that you would not see in the US. The cathedral was abnormal from our typical cathedral as it was double in size and had more relics. I think this is due to it being an older cathedral and the history of Germany being mostly Roman Catholic.
Finally, we went to dinner at an Italian restaurant where I got salami pizza which is our equivalent of pepperoni pizza. If you order peperoni pizza from the menu don’t be surprised when you get a pizza with green peppers back. I am also still a little shocked that I can find other cultural restaurants in Augsburg such as Italian, Mexican, Vietnamese, etc. I originally thought that was only common in the US not elsewhere. But I enjoy seeing their take on the different cultural food and having more natives in the restaurant unlike at home.
Even though today was an amazing day being at the university and exploring the city, I am very excited for our first company visit and hiking through the mountains tomorrow.
