I woke up at 5am on Monday morning, and I left at 6am for Loerrach. Immediately upon arrival, I went by the Auslaenderbehoerde (city hall) to figure out everything for my Visas. Since I won't have my apartment until October 1st, I'll have to wait until September to get my Visas (but this luckily won't be a problem at all for my University and Work).
Then I went directly from the city hall to my University to meet up with the Head of Department International Business and his secretary (I've been emailing them back and forth for 2 years now!) It was amazing to finally meet them in person; and they were SO nice! The Head of Department read my story from my U.S. College and said he might even suggest to a few local newspapers to write a column about me. Everyone I spoke to was quite impressed with how much work I've put in to even have the shot to study in Germany.
About 30 minutes after my meeting at my University, I had a 2 hour meeting with the bank to open my account and go over all my documents.
Then immediately after, I had a meeting with my land-lady for my apartment. I didn't get to see my bedroom yet since there was still someone living there, but I got to see everything else. It kind of smells, but there are plenty of windows that I can OPEN! :D And I have 2 beautiful windows in my bedroom (which is amazing since I couldn't open my bedroom windows in America). My room is 18.5 m^2 (which is the biggest room in the apartment). And it's centrally located; the main shopping strip and campus is only a few blocks away! ;-)
I spent the night with Margret and her sister, and got to meet her other sister and niece again (I haven't seen them all for 3 years now). They are all amazing people, and it was wonderful to spend time with them!
Lastly, I FINALLY got to meet my company. I've been emailing the HR Plant Manager back and forth now for about 2 years, so it was great to finally meet him face-to-face. I really didn't know what to expect, and I honestly prepared myself for the worst, BUT I think this is in fact one of the best decisions I've ever made. He was extremely nice, welcoming, and helpful! And I met a few other members of the company and a few other students, and they were just as wonderful. Besides the fact that I was nervous in regard to the language barrier, and that was obvious since I could not stop fidgeting, but I was very confident and I think I made a good first impression. (And I'll have the opportunity to continue learning German at a Language-School) :)
PICTURES:
The best Italian ice-cream in Germany ;-)
Burger King in Germany
I found a delicious Mexican restaurant in Karlsruhe!
The modern-art museum in Karlsruhe. Very interesting.
I finally found my University! :D
A few pictures of my new home-town! It's wonderful! :)
The Milka Chocolate Factory!!! (btw the whole town does NOT smell like chocolate. You can't even smell it outside the building ;-)
I had the cutest little German-breakfast this morning. We even moved everything outside and sat on the back porch since it was so beautiful outside. LOVE the German culture/food :D I still can't believe I'm actually here...I don't know if it's hit me yet xD
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