I have many thoughts about this trip; however, one of my main takeaways is that things tend to not be as scary as they originally seem. When I left the US for Munich, I was so nervous as it was my first international flight and my first time in a different country which was made scarier when realizing I do not fluently speak the common language. However, within the first week of the trip it felt like I was just in a different city where most people spoke German and I rarely thought about being far away from home. It almost reminded me of going to Pitt fall of my freshman year and learning how to navigate a new city all over again; however, on this trip I had more built in support because of going with people from Pitt. Another thing I was nervous about was random people coming up to me because they heard me speaking English and would comment about me being from the US. This did not happen no one seemed to care when I spoke English with others on the trip the only time a stranger approached me to say something was when I was waiting for a bus and I wasn’t speaking at all and I still am confused about that interaction. However, most things on this trip were not as scary or intimidating as I thought they would be beforehand.

     There are way too many memories from this trip to just pick one. However, the thing that stands out most from this trip is getting to meet people on the trip that I probably would not have met at Pitt. I came away from this trip with some friendships that I cherish, and I look back to my interactions with gratitude that I was able to meet more amazing people.

                  Some advice for a future student considering this program is that if you are able to financially make it work do it. This trip was amazing and I am so thankful that I have had the chance to go to a different country and get to learn the language. So, while this program may not be for you specifically there are many different study abroad programs and if you have the chance take it because it is so worth it. This is a bit odd; however, I wish I knew that certain products are different in Germany specifically eye drops have slightly different ingredients than in the US and I have dry eyes, so I wish I brought my eye drops. Also, highly recommend a portable charger as I did not bring one and I had to ask to use other people’s chargers so my phone wouldn’t die. Lastly, I wish I had known before this trip that I am good at finding solutions to many problems so I would be okay on this trip and in general; however, this was one of the most valuable lessons I learned. Being able to problem solve gave me confidence in knowing that I can be independent and successful in the future as this trip threw a few curve balls; however, all was okay in the end.