May 4: Boarding the bus to head to the airport I finally start to feel the excitement of the Plus3 Germany trip. A quick jump to Chicago and the group gets to rest/shop/eat before the dreaded 9 hour flight to Munich. Everyone is getting along so well I am happy to be a part of such a diverse group of students. The bonding has already begun over chips and crispy tenders in the Terminal 2 Chili’s – who knew a waitress could have so much attitude.
May 5: Movies, naps, and a surprisingly good breakfast sand which later… hello, Munich airport! The learning has already begun on our ride to the hotel here in Augsburg – did you know the bright yellow fields of rapeseed are how canola oil is made? We meet Elisabeth and Nico who give us maps and bus passes we will use time and again during our trip. The group is treated to butter pretzels from a local bakery and the exclusive Feick walking tour begins! After pointing out the crest of the city on a manhole cover, a green pinecone on top of a golden crest, I realize they are everywhere.
Sylvia, a lovely tour guide at the Fuggerei, taught us how a century old tradition is still managed today. I appreciate that the goal of the Fugger family was to help poor people/families get on their feet and strive to live better lives. It costs just 88 cents a year to the Fuggerei and the Priest each for a family to live here – so incredible. We were able to walk through museums of what the original Fuggerei rooms looked like, and even a bomb shelter fit for 120 people full of historic pictures.
My favorite time of day is meal time when we get to try authentic and new dishes. We also met and mingled with many of the Augsburg University students we will be spending the remainder of the trip with. While I will not try to recall the name of my dinner, I will say it was very good and the conversation was even better. The exhaustion is settling in but of course many group members need to stop for some gelato before turning in. I chose Hasselnuss – go ahead and take a wild guess as to what it could be. It has been a very long 30-ish hours and I am ready for bed; I wonder what will be in the breakfast buffet?