Here is a post from one our fellow Drake students abroad in Tubingen Germany.
As soon as I knew I was going to be in Tubingen for the semester, I naturally began to construct an idea of the place in my head. I looked at pictures, I looked at tourist information, I looked at maps, all in an effort to try to figure the place out a little before I got there. That could not have been less effective. Tubingen is huge, beautiful city with a culture that is still very new to me. I immediately learned that I was in a new place when I had to walk for 45 minutes to get to some of the academic buildings from my dorm. This is no Drake University. Aside from that, we were given alcohol at the orientation week activities. Lots of alcohol. As it turns out, that is a pretty good way to encourage people to meet each other, and all of us found friends quickly.
The German educational system is also wildly different from ours back home. Most classes meet once a week, and most of the work is done outside of class by the students. This makes me wonder why I’m even bothering to study here if we won’t be taught anything, but I’ll give it a few weeks before I make any final judgments. Aside from the school being so different, the simple culture of living here is way different. For example, fraternities fight with swords as part of their initiation process! Personal injury is apparently not a big issue here. Neither is history. As one European I met put it, “We have so much history here that we just don’t care anymore”. This is clearly shown by all the graffiti here, even the castle! That would never fly back home.
On the growing list of things that snap me back to the reality that I’m in a different country, there is a parking lot here that is the real life version of the game Rush Hour. No one puts their parking brake on, and they just park wherever in the lot. When they want to leave, they push the cars that are in their way somewhere else. So strange. Also, living every day surrounded by a different language is hard on the brain. I feel like I’m never leaving the classroom, but it’s interesting and I want to learn, so it’s definitely ok with me. So far, I’m exhausted, insanely busy, and sore from walking everywhere, but I’m definitely enjoying it. Studying abroad, so far, has proven to be a great decision.
http://tubingenejw.blogspot.de/2012/04/first-week-in-tubingen.html
