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My Arrival to a New Life in Hannover: Studying Abroad in Germany

April 13, 2018

I’ve only been in the beautiful city of Hannover, Germany for a short time, but I couldn’t be more content. Getting here took around 20 hours from Guayaquil, Ecuador (I had a stop in Amsterdam for 7 hours) but the trip was worth it! My last few days at home were a bit chaotic since I had just finished my semester at my home university, Universidad Casa Grande, so I really didn’t have much time to prepare for my trip. Since Europe is very different from Ecuador, I had to buy adapters for my electronics, new clothes for the colder weather and I had to change my money for euros.

The first night I arrived I met one of my roommates, a really cool girl from Slovenia named Lara. She had planned to go out with some friends from Slovenia and Croatia and I joined them to go to a club nearby. What caught my attention was that this club followed the “Pfand system” that they have here in Germany, in which you pay a deposit or “ransom” for drink containers like bottles and cans, and you get the deposit or “pfand” back upon returning the containers. This system acts as an incentive to reuse and recycle containers. The music at the German club was a lot of pop, rock, folktronica and deutsche rap, which is totally different from Ecuador where we dance to reggaeton, salsa and cumbia cheta. Overall, the night was a success, I truly enjoyed it and I made some really good new friends.

The next day I met my other roommate, Luna from Vietnam, and we went together to the “Frühlingsfest” which is the Spring Festival here in Hannover. There were a lot of carnival games and Luna and I drove the bumper cars. Everyone was bumping into me so when it finished my whole body hurt, but it was really fun! At the festival there was a lot of international food like pommes frites (french fries), crêpes, churros, sangria, etc. I had some typical German food for the first time: bratwurst, a type of sausage, and some fries which they call “pommes.” Everything was good and I will definitely be having more of it!

For the rest of the week I had university orientation sessions, tours and meetings with the other international students. I don’t miss anything from home yet because the people I’ve met make me feel comfortable and safe and I’m having a great time. I’m very excited for my German courses to start soon!

Ich mag Deutschland sehr! (I really like Germany!)

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