I bet you thought you’d seen the last of me, but I’m back! Now that classes are in full swing and I have re-adjusted (for the most part) to being back in Evanston, I can’t believe that I was in Berlin just over a month ago! I’ve gotten back to my routine at Northwestern, and classes keep me more than busy. However, there isn’t a day when I don’t think about my time in Berlin. My room is filled with constant reminders of Berlin. From the Berlin hat I bought at Primark, the bottle caps from the many Fritz Kola’s and hipster Club Mate’s I drank, and pictures of the friends I explored Berlin with, my room has a sort of a (small) time box of my many memories of Berlin.
Berlin, you’ll never be forgotten
Study Abroad was a Victory (Tower)
Coming back to campus was definitely hard at first. I wondered where the U-bahn was, why there were no Currywurst stands, and forgot that I had to order things in English (not to say that my German was that good, but I was pretty good at ordering food in German, and honestly that’s all I needed). I think the biggest shock was seeing the friends I made through the program, back at Northwestern. Even though we all came from the same school, we did not really know each other very well (or at all), until we were abroad. We made our first memories together in Berlin (unforgettable memories), so hanging out together on campus definitely felt weird, it still does a little. I remember taking the U-bahn into different parts of the city to explore all of the sights and gastronomy around (to be honest that was the main reason, every trip had food as an end result). Whenever I hang out with them now, we always talk about our adventures in Berlin and break out some german phrases (Genau, Lecker). We always get emotional and state how much we miss Berlin and how we need to go back. Although we are not in Berlin anymore, so much good came out of our experience abroad. When I feel sad about not being in Berlin, I remember that I came back with some amazing friends, friends who I became close with in such a short period of time, friends who I share lifelong memories with, friends who I am so grateful to have.
When people ask me, “why study abroad,” aside from all the cool things you can do and experience, I will tell them that the most rewarding part is the friends you make while abroad. It is such a magical time in your life, and you are experiencing it together with them. Something about that just makes those friendships different and special. I am officially a cliché study abroad student who says, “Study Abroad changed my life” and “I made some of my best friends while abroad,” and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
I just want to say thank you to IPD, Frau Meuser (for trusting a kid with no German experience whatsoever to go to Berlin), Sonia Li, MC Trill, Trillvers Benjamin Trivers, Prof. Anna Parkinson, Prof. Erica Weitzman, all of my Humboldt Professors and classmates, and of course to Mauricio and Alex (thanks for letting me tag along with y’all/tagging along with me) for making this the best experience of my life (you’ve set a high bar for any other experiences).
That’s it for now! (Or is it?)
Auf Wiedersehen,
Jesus Campos
Mein Stadt (My City)