166 Days of pioneering experience in Remagen

Hallo, Ich heiße Kaaviya und Ich komme aus Indien. I am an exchange student in RheinAhrCampus, Remagen.

Everyone I know who had studied abroad told me that it was the best time in their life, and now I too have experienced this. This semester in Remagen has given me many first-time experiences in life. Before starting my travel, I read the blogs on the RAC website, now I am one among them to write a blog. Time makes changes when you try for it.

It was March 2020; I got the selection mail from RheinAhrCampus for an exchange semester. I am privileged to be the first batch of Pondicherry university students to reach RAC. The COVID-19 has also contributed its part to make me strong and to attain the never give up attitude. I tried hard to get my Visa and reach Germany.

Bags packed, flight tickets booked, all set to land in Germany. Wow! The feeling was incredible. I am nervous but more excited! It was my first flight Travel and more obvious my first abroad travel. I reached Germany in September 2020. Every day is a new experience.

It was the end of summer and I am excited to experience the new season with bright colours yellow, red and orange. Yes, and it was my First Autumn. It has taken 25 years to eat fresh apples for the first time straight from the tree.

Walking through the street and beautiful Rhein is the other happiness. I always see happy faces greeting you “Guten Tag”. It made me feel at home.

Apart from the geographical experience, the internship and academics here have completely changed my way of thinking and behaviour. The department of Languages and International affairs is always giving constant feedback. I improved in How to present myself on an international platform. RAC encourages us to make mistakes and learn from them. I usually hear the phrase “We are not in the medical field and nothing is so critical” during my internship. What I learned in Germany are some important qualities which will help me in my career- Punctuality, Organizing, Planning, accepting my mistake and upgrading. One more thing I learnt here is the “German Language”. I get goosebumps when I manage with my broken German in shops.

In academic class, whenever someone asks me “Where are you from?”, I become the portrait of my country to them. I feel proud to represent India in Germany. My favourite subject is intercultural communication. I got more insights into how the difference in culture creates a difference in opinion.

My surprises do not end here and there comes the winter wonderland. It has given me the first snow experience. I am blissful to see the snow which I have always dreamt of seeing. A place that everyone has talked about. A place that I have seen only in the movies and pictures. It kindles up a feeling of joy and child inside me. Did you know how much excited was I? I did not feel the cold and I even took off my jackets. I am from the Southern part of India where the temperature is always around +30C. When people see the sun in Germany, they go mad, they love it, they start to have a walk. It was a very different experience for me.

At the end of my semester, I have friends to support me in Germany, Australia, Jordan, Azerbaijan, Georgia. The time I spent here will surely help me with professional and personal growth. The time, I spend in RAC has reflected a visible change in my growth.

“When I stayed, Remagen is just a place. But now, it has become a part of my soul.”

Tschüss!! Bis Bald.