Last Day In Germany
By: Devin Kim, Foster Undergraduate
“Farewell, fair cruelty.” Shakespeare said in his famous quote. I actually didn’t feel that cruelty until I had finished all of my packing and cleaning up my room because I had returned from Rotterdam late yesterday. After everything was set ready to leave, lying on my couch, I felt that void I was expecting to feel.
The first things that crossed my mind were my dearest landlords, who were all supportive and very warmhearted. I remember the first day I landed at the Frankfurt International Airport and took the train to Koblenz Hauptbahnhof (main station). My landlord Hardy, came to the station to pick me up. As we arrived at his house, I met his wife Gitti and 2 French guys that were staying there until the next day. We had dinner together, which is something I heard rarely happened with the other Tauschies (Exchange students) who moved into private apartments. The next day, Hardy even took me on a ride to introduce most of the parts of the town and helped me shopping some basic household items and food. He even paid for all the stuff because my credit card was not working in the store. I paid off with cash after we got home of course. Thanks to Hardy and Gitti, it was not hard for me at all to settle safe and solid in Germany.
Another thing was for sure the Tauschies. We shared such great times together and it’s hard to pick one specific event that was the best. As some of you reading this will experience later on, building friendships with these folks is one of the most exciting and valuable things you will experience during the study abroad period. I would describe them as companions who take part of a journey taking place in a dream. In a totally different place, environment, culture, and so on, they were really the ones I could rely on. As a relatively small group of 150 students, we got to know each other very well and going on trips with some of them is the most fun thing to experience as you are study abroad. Of course, getting along well with your fellow exchange students can make your exchange life extremely richer. In my case, there was Cynthia with whom I celebrated Thanksgiving together and also studied together for the exams. I really thank her for all the great memories we shared in Germany.
Besides, there are plenty of other things I would like to mention, but I sorted out the previous two because I thought they are really the most important assets and values I got from the program. But have no worries about the farewell. The return makes one love the farewell.
