After eight hours of sitting on a plane and an unholy amount of snacks, I finally made it to Munich Airport in Germany! Getting off the plane was initially stressful. This Plus3 Germany trip was my first time out of the country, so I was extremely excited to see a country other than my own and learn more about the culture in Europe.
Getting off the plane I could sense that I wasn’t in Pittsburgh anymore. There were so many people in the Munich Airport. It felt like a dream trying to navigate around a completely new place after only two hours of sleep that I got on the plane. At this point, I was simply energized by the excitement of the trip!
After getting on our bus to Augsburg, I had the opportunity to admire the beautiful greenery and large fields that we passed along the way! 40 minutes later, we were in Augsburg! Off the bat, Augsburg felt different from America in many ways. I initially noticed how the city was fairly quiet. I am so used to the hustle and bustle of Pittsburgh and the chaos that happens in most cities around America. It was interesting comparing the way people presented themselves as well. I remember noticing that no one in sight was wear sweatpants! This was interesting as athletic wear is what the majority of people are wearing in America.
After dropping our belongings at the hotel, we had the opportunity to get a tour of the city of Augsburg! As we walked around I learned so much about the details of the city such as the “Zirbelnuss”, a pinecone figure representing the official symbol and coat of arms of Augsburg. We got to see parts of the Townhall along with other significant buildings. Additionally, we walked through the Fuggerei house while on our Augsburg Tour. This is the world’s oldest social housing complex!
As our night was coming to an end, we got ready to go to the welcome dinner with the German students who would be working with us on our automotive industry company projects. I walked in and sat with some of the students and met people who would be in my group! It was great meeting people who were also interested in supply chain and the automotive industry. This dinner made me excited for the upcoming weeks and hopeful for my friendships with the people I would be surrounded with!
After socializing with the students from Germany and Pittsburgh it was time for me to try and sleep my jet lag away and get ready for the next day!
