I am sure that everyone reading this post is confused to why I haven't posted sooner and is mostly interested in what I have been up to since I landed in Germany last week. To fill in those who don't know what I am doing in Germany or what my program is about, here are the details: If you want to skip to what I've been up to since I arrived, you can skip this paragraph. :)
Last year, I moved to Darmstadt (DA) (please note it is in fact the city in Germany, not Indiana) for three months, in hopes of finding work. I moved in with my boyfriend Maik and his roommate who live in DA and graciously opened their home to me. At that time I found this program and couldn't apply because the deadline was already past. After my three months were up, I couldn't renew my visa and was forced to head back home to Indiana. Early this year, I looked into the same program from last year and decided to give it a shot. I applied for a two-year Master's Program in DA. To my surprise, I actually got accepted! The program is at the Hochschule Darmstadt and is called the International Media Cultural Work program for Digital Media. This program isn't on the main campus in Darmstadt, but rather on the International Campus in Dieburg. With this degree, I am hoping to expand my knowledge in Photography and dive into the world of Digital Media.
My flight took off from Indianapolis around 1:40pm on Sunday September 11th. My parents dropped me off at the airport and waved me off onto my new adventure. Hurricane Irma was starting to come through Florida and everyone was worried about my flight because I was flying into Charlotte, NC. Luckily, the wind and rain was just starting to come through. I heard a few workers talking about the heavy rain on the runway and I was concerned that they would postpone my flight, but they didn't. Once I landed in Charlotte, I got off the plane, exchanged the cash I had, and then it was time to board.
I landed in Frankfurt on Monday September 12th and was picked up from the airport by my boyfriend, Maik, whom I have not seen since I left Germany last year. He is German and is in school, for those who are wondering why he lives in Germany and why he didn't return with me to the States. It has definitely been THE definition of a long distance relationship. However, somehow we have stuck together through not only this past year, but two and a half to be more precise. Being on the opposite side of the world hasn't been the easiest, but now we are finally taking our chance on the possibility of figuring out a future together.
Things have been falling into place pretty well leading up to my acceptance. Maik had just graduated with his Bachelor's Degree in Architecture and is now beginning his Master's program along side of me. We also found out that his roommate was moving out at about the time I would be coming for my program.
When I arrived in Frankfurt last Monday it was about 7:30am when I landed. Maik and I grabbed a coffee to start off our day. Once the bus dropped us off in Darmstadt, Maik decided that it would be a grand idea to walk to the apartment with all of my luggage. We walked through town with two heavy bags each and definitely began the morning with a great workout. Once we cooled down from the tremendous walk, we unpacked a bit and went to get another coffee, this time, from Starbucks. We got the PSL and had to laugh that our names were correct, but both spelled wrong. I definitely count this as a win though.. Germans usually think my name is Melanie. He took me to a nice dinner that evening at one of the new Asian places in town. It was fantastic. It was really nice to spend the day catching up in person and having a nice dinner together for the first time in a long time.
The rest of the week sort of runs together for me. We spent the week sorting out all the documents I needed to get enrolled into my program and figuring out if I needed to get insurance and all the other important things that dictate whether I am able to stay in the country for the program. We filled out a lot of papers together and walked the town a lot being guided to where we needed to ask our questions. We found out that I needed to purchase a German insurance and we set up that appointment. We got our appointment with his landlord and also was able to find the office to enroll in my school program. Talk about chaos. Once we found the right places to be and the right people to ask our questions to, things went pretty smoothly. Everything we needed to do got done during the first week of me being here. The only thing we didn't have was my visa which is the most important thing I need. It allows me to actually stay in the country. Today, we went to the foreign registration office and had to wait 2.5 hours just to get in to talk to someone. It is very relaxing to have everything we are doing confirmed as being the right thing to do. She was able to take down my information and as soon as my residence goes through, which should be the next few days, then we are able to make an appointment for my visa.
Aside from all the documents and stress from needing to get things done, we also had some fun throughout the week. Maik and his friends took me out to some of the local bars a few nights this week. It is always nice to see familiar faces in a new-soon-to-be-somewhat-permanent town. We also went with his friends up to Frankfurt for a car exhibition show that is put on every two years. We had the opportunity to sit in some of the fanciest cars! We had a blast and his friends are always incredibly welcoming and happy to include me.
Maik has always been a great host in the past and continues to be. He is always eager to show me his favorite things and his favorite places here. He is a great tour guide and so far we have been more than decent roommates to one another. He is constantly pushing me to be a better version of myself and encourages me to reach my fullest potential. I'm not sure what this journey has in store for me, but being able to have a great supporter by my side has definitely helped. As school gets closer, I am continuously more nervous about beginning this program, but I know it'll be a good experience and I can't wait to share it with you guys.
I am going to try and post more often and hopefully provide more details about my days and what I am up to. I would also love to include a few posts of my whole experience. For example, the process of what all I went through to get my visa, how I was able to get accepted into a German University, how I decided what all to pack for the next two years, and all of that fun stuff.
I meant to post this at the beginning of the week, but had technical difficulties and it pushed my post to being made today instead of two days ago.. oops! On the plus side, I received my Campus Card today which makes me officially a student at the University here. I think that calls for a celebration!
Until next time friends! <3
