When we arrived at the city it immediately felt like I was walking into a museum and a city blended together. It was way more walkable than every city I have been in back in the United States. It was very easy to move through the city, more walkways, more methods of public transportation, bike…
Looking Beyond the Factory Floor
After seeing how companies operated internally for the last couple of days, we got to see a birds eye view of the broader automotive market from a market analyst from Bloomberg Financial. One of the things he mentioned was that broad shift in the geopolitical landscape with trade wars, embargos, and tariffs affecting everyone involved….
Germany Beyond the Factories
After being in factories and also being in Augsburg for the last 3 days, the trip to Neuschwanstein was not only a breath of fresh air, but a very surreal experience. Standing inside the castle did really feel like I was in some sort of retreat built for a king and I know why he…
Automation’s Human Side
One of the most interesting parts of visiting KUKA was realizing that even in a facility filled with advanced robotics, people still were the driving force behind the company. There was next to no automation in the company itself which I found quite ironic. The company was basically making all of their robots top to…
A Symphony of Machines
When we started the tour I was immediately amazed and more entertained than I had been the entire trip. The amount of robots (mostly from KUKA) that were automated and working on every single aspect of the cars was absolutely amazing to me and unlike anything I had ever seen before. Everything was working together…
Leaving with More Than I Brought
Looking back on the past two weeks, it is hard to believe that this experience is already over. When I first signed up for Plus3 Germany, I knew it would be an opportunity to learn about business and experience a new culture, but I never expected it to become one of the most meaningful experiences…
Breaking News: I Can do Hard Things!!!
Reflecting on my experience with Plus3 Germany since returning home, the biggest emotion I feel is gratitude. The German students who graciously welcomed us in, the cities we had the privilege of visiting, and the automotive companies who shared their insights with us made the trip special. Each time I told people I was going…
Day 13: We Made it… Presentation Day
I would be lying if I said I was excited for today. Not only because it involves a 30 minute presentation, but it also marks the end of our trip which I am definitely not ready for. We had a later start this morning, so Brooke and I headed down for breakfast around 9:30. My…
Day 12: The Last Site Visit
Today we went to Audi in Ingolstodt and I have been highly anticipating this one as it is my group for the project and we definitely had some final questions that needed to be answered! It was a pleasant start to our morning because we did not need to be ready at the crack of…
Day 8: Learning about history helps us to not repeat it
This morning we were greeted by beautiful blue skies and the sun shining brightly. It felt strange to be excited to visit Dachau today, but I knew it would feel very powerful to be there and learn more about exactly what occurred at the first concentration camp in Nazi Germany. The minute we arrived and…
Day 7: Missing Munich like an old friend
Out of every activity and excursion planned on our itinerary, our free day in Munich was the day I was most looking forward to! I love the rush and excitement of a big city. I think all big cities feel familiar in a way, but they also have very stark differences. To get to Munich,…
My Final Blog
I truly believe that everything happens for a reason. As I reflect on the past two weeks, I am filled with overwhelming gratitude. I remember being scared to go to an unfamiliar place with people I didn’t know very well. I wasn’t sure how much I would gain from this experience. Now, I can easily…
Day 15: A Bittersweet Goodbye
I was looking forward to sleeping in for the next couple of weeks. After snoozing three alarms, I finally got out of bed. I finished some last-minute packing and got ready for the airport. Once all of my bags were ready to go, I headed downstairs. I am really going to miss the Ibis Hotel’s…
Final Blog Post
The trip taught me a lot. It definitely helped me relax and understand the importance of patience and remaining calm in a very unfamiliar environment. I learned very quickly how different things are from home, from everyday conversations to the average day to day traditions and activities. I feel that I generally adapt well to…
Final Blog: Reflection
The first thing I have to say is that Plus3 Germany was one of the greatest experiences of my life. The week before I was having second thoughts about it. I was thinking maybe I signed up impulsively. I can say without a doubt, that I am so thankful I did, it was truly amazing….
Day 14: The Hills Were Alive!
Today was our first chance to fully plan and explore on our own. About 16 of us decided we wanted to spend the free day in Salzburg, Austria. I had previously heard that crossing borders within the EU felt seamless, and that could not have been more true. We woke up early and caught a…
Day 14: A Very Sad Day, Have to Go Work a J*b Now…
Waking up this morning was like getting punched in the face. Straight up. I still had a bit of packing to do so I got up early and did that. It was honestly just sad. I remember opening up my suitcase when I got there and thinking packing is going to suck. It did. After…
Day 13: Free Day In Austria
Take a moment to look at me with these cows. Pretty cool right. Anyways, outside of all the workdays, this was the day I was looking forward to the most. Finally done with work, and a free day all to us. I was debating between going to Munich or Salzburg but ultimately decided to go…
Day 11: Business Students in Lab Coats
Today we headed to Aumovio, an automotive tech company that specializes in smaller circuit parts for automobiles. First, we got a presentation that gave insight into the specific parts Aumovio manufacturers and the need for these parts. We got a chance to pass around some of the intricate circuit boards that are produced here. Before…
Day 6: Museums, matcha, and more car talks
With a start time of 1:30pm at the University, I was able to sleep a little later and take my time getting ready for the day and eating breakfast. Although I was excited about this, when I woke up I almost missed the rush of an early alarm and racing to make it down in…