My Freiburg Appreciation Post

Today marks about 2 months since I arrived in Freiburg, but it honestly feels like I landed in Germany two weeks ago. In those two months, I have actually done a lot of traveling, but each time, I realized that I would always go back to the place I called “home.” The longest I spent out of Freiburg was about 10 days, all in non-German-speaking countries, and I often found myself missing German and being around German people every day. Freiburg has really proven itself as my new safe space, even if I’m only here for a little while.

My Everyday Life

My life here in Freiburg is a complete change of pace from what I’m usually used to. Back home, I have classes throughout the day, club meetings, jobs, music lessons, mentor sessions, etc. Here, I got lucky enough to be free after 12:15 almost every single day. With this abundance of free time, I have been trying to see as much of the city as I can. Sadly, I haven’t seen as much as I would like, but ever since I got back from my ten-day trip, I have made it a top priority. One thing I’ve noticed is that there truly are always people everywhere, which I personally love a lot. In Altstadt, the historical heart of Freiburg, there are often mini-music performances on the side of the street, which I love stopping to listen to. Depending on the week, sometimes I walk over to the Münstermarkt, which is the market in the plaza outside of the Freiburg Münster. I usually get the famous Freiburg Lange Rote, which is a long sausage, usually with bread. I often love to also get a crepe there, making my lunch total out to be less than €10! 

After that, if it’s a Monday, I tend to do my grocery shopping because shops are closed on Sunday, and I tend to be too lazy for productivity on Saturday (😅). Freiburg has sooo many grocery stores that offer something for everyone, and I usually end up going to more than one in a week. This obviously takes time, but again, I tend to have a lot of that here. Penny, which is closest to my student apartment, is the cheapest and where I go if I need something quick. Aldi is usually where I go for my meat of the week, as well as my fresh produce. Rewe is the only place that has the specific 18-pack of Biscoff biscuits that I love (although I buy the Biscoff/Kekscreme spread from Aldi), and Edeka is where I go for my Ritter Sport chocolate because it’s the cheapest there (€1.11 vs. €1.90… not a crazy difference, but it’s worth it if you buy it every week like me! I usually get the marzipan flavor because the only thing I love nearly as much as Biscoff is marzipan). I honestly haven’t shopped for groceries much in America, but I usually don’t spend more than €70-€100 a week on groceries in Freiburg, which is great! At night, if I don’t make dinner for myself, I like to go to a friend’s apartment and make a bigger group dinner with them in their apartment, which is something I don’t get to experience a lot back home because of my college’s meal plan. It's been a nice change of pace.

This isn’t to say I don’t eat at restaurants, though… This week, for example, I found myself far too lazy to shop, so I grabbed a couple of lunches at Dönermann Freiburg, which has its famous €5 kebabs. Some other affordable options I highly recommend are La Piazza and Levante Kitchen. If you're willing to spend a bit more, I recommend Harem (honestly, all you need; that place is incredibly good. Totally not my only recommendation because I'm averse to spending money....).

In terms of what I do for fun, I love going into little shops and markets to see what they have to offer. I got a few things from Freiburg’s Wiehre Flea Market @ Urachstraße 40 last month, and I would highly recommend others check it out. There is another small “market” that I unfortunately do not know the name of, but it is located around here on most weekdays, depending on the weather; I have gotten a lot of beautiful jewelry there. And of course, I have to mention Heartlight Vintage, which I love browsing (although I’ve never actually bought anything there…).

Before it gets freezing, I wanted to spend as much time outside as I can, so I love going to Seepark, which is a park with a gorgeous lake within walking distance from my apartment. I’ve been here to relax in the water, have picnics, and just enjoy the surrounding area, which tends to be filled with locals of all ages.

Overall, I just love being around other people. Outside of IES Abroad students, I have become friendly with my flatmates, none of whom are IES Abroad students (which was done on purpose). I’m actually really glad this is the case because it gives me the chance to learn from people who are from not just Germany, but all across the world (I have multiple non-German flatmates!). I've even gotten to meet the flatmates of fellow IES Abroad students, so I often have all kinds of people who are down to play cards, study, and of course, relax at a nice beer garden 😄

My time here has truly been remarkable. The IES Abroad Freiburg Staff have been nothing but supportive, and they really encourage students to explore the city with their helpful recommendations and community events. To be completely honest, I had no strong desire to study in Germany (or Freiburg, specifically, for that matter) before choosing where to study abroad. I don’t know German, I knew almost nothing about Germany before coming here, and I had never even heard of Freiburg. However, these past two months have reassured me that I made the right choice. It may not be the most popular destination in Germany, but Freiburg has proven to be somewhere that everyone should know about. For instance, did you know that Freiburg has Germany’s tallest tree?? Neither did I, and I’m sure most Germans don’t either! So, if you take one thing away from this post, it’s that the big names like Berlin, Munich, and Hamburg may be nice, but the smaller names like Freiburg deserve love as well, because they have a lot more to offer than you might think.

Take care,

-- Dana