My First Week in Vallendar, Germany

My name is Andrew Popadiuk, and I am a rising junior from Cleveland, OH majoring in Information Systems. I am currently taking part in a 3-week summer exchange program at the WHU Otto Biesheim School of Management in Vallendar, Germany. I have always dreamed of visiting Germany, so having the opportunity to live, study, and fully assimilate myself into German culture was something I could not wait for.

My first day of travel was filled with a rollercoaster of emotions. First, a little bit of anxiety, since this would be the farthest I'd ever traveled alone. Second, excitement, as I would be living in a country I've always dreamed of visiting. My anxiety slowly dwindled and excitement intensified as I approached the departure gate. I was ready for the long journey ahead.  I faced my first challenge soon after landing at the Frankfurt Airport. My bag never made it out of my connecting airport. I was told I would be without luggage for the first few days of the trip. Although this would be a temporary annoyance, I didn’t let that damper my excitement or cloud any initial experiences.

After navigating the baggage debacle, I met up with the rest of the program participants that had traveled that day. I was amazed at the variety of people from all over the globe. There was representation from the US, England, Scotland, and Singapore. It was amazing to meet so many people from various backgrounds. I was excited to continue building these connections as the program got into full swing. A quick bus ride to Vallendar brought me to my apartment where I met my roommates, settled into my new space, and headed out for a tour of the WHU campus. The campus was fairly small but had a very rich history behind it. It was very interesting to learn that the school building used to be a castle! One of my favorite parts of the tour was the wine cellar in the basement. The wine cellar was the oldest and only part of the original castle that survived the wars that took place in Germany. After a quick tour of the campus, we participated in small team activities. These activities gave me another opportunity to continue to get to know the people I would be spending the next three weeks with. After a long, jet-lagged day, everyone called it a night. I was very excited for my European experience to start.

What followed that day was a lot of adjusting to the way of life in Vallendar. One aspect of life in Vallendar that was particularly strange to adjust to was a mandated curfew. Vallendar has a relatively low population compared to its neighbor Koblenz. Because of this, there was a mandatory 10pm curfew which meant all businesses would be closed. This made it particularly difficult when trying to plan out groceries, and find places to eat.  Another challenging aspect was the workload at WHU. The group assignments that were assigned to us were unlike anything I have ever experienced. The questions included in the group case studies were very detailed, required a higher level of research, and forced us to think outside of the box. Personally, I enjoyed this academic challenge. The lectures were interesting and the professors always tried their best to involve the class. Another adjustment that I had to make in regards to academics was the grading scale. After receiving grades from specific assignments, it took some time to remember that I was under a different grading scale. Converting this was made easier through resources provided to us through Fisher's Office of Global Business. Outside of adjusting to the way of life and course load, the remainder of my time was spent getting to know the other people in the program. I quickly built a solid friendship with my roommates, along with other people in the program. I was really excited about all of the other things we would experience together. 

One of the first places I was able to visit during my first week in Germany was the Marksburg castle. I have never had the opportunity to visit an authentic medieval castle, so this became a very interesting experience for me. Learning about the castle's history and ownership, along with the way of life during the time it was an active castle was fascinating. Situated along the beautiful Rhine river, the castle provided amazing, picturesque views of the surrounding area. 

Overall I was extremely happy with the way things went during my first few days in Vallendar. Touring the campus and familiarizing myself with new surroundings, experiencing  amazing historical sights, and slowly adjusting myself to the German way of life made for a fulfilling first few days. Before arriving, I admit to being slightly intimidated about participating in the program. But, by being myself and being open to meeting new people and experiencing new things, I was able to overcome that anxiety and fully take in the first week of my study abroad experience.