Orientation just finished and it was not all ice breakers and learning about the program and the semester ahead. I have now been in Freiburg for a little over two weeks, and am loving it so far. The past two and a half weeks have I been pretty busy with my German course, along with various day trips which were sponsored by IES Abroad. There have been a few day trips which have been fun adventures, along with two weeks of intensive German courses. On our first weekend in Freiburg we had the opportunity to go hiking in Engelberg, Switzerland, and visit Luzern, Switzerland as well. We did a winter hike through the snow in the Swiss Alps. It was an amazing experience, and the view was beautiful. I personally am not a fan of snow but I enjoyed every minute of that hike and would recommend it to people to visit.
The trip to Switzerland was a day trip which consisted of two stops, Engelberg and Luzern. These two cities summed up Switzerland very well, all they were missing were a few St. Bernard Dogs. We hiked through the alps in Engelberg first. It was easier than I thought it would be to hike in the snow. I have hiked in the alps before, but it was summer so I was curious how it would be in the winter. It was just as beautiful, just had to be slightly more careful because of the snow. Luzern was a pretty town as well. It had a lake, along with a beautiful view of the alps. Another thing that Luzern had that made it special was a famous sculpture by the name of Löwendenkmal, which serves as a commemoration of the French Revolution of Swiss soldiers who died.
The following week was another day trip sponsored by IES Abroad. This time we had two options and we could choose which trip we wanted to do. Students could either participate in Snowshoeing, or they could tour a brewery, and visit Titisee, a town in the Black Forest. I chose the brewery and Titisee trip. During this trip, I tried Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte or Black Forest cherry cake for the first time. It was delicious, and the scenery around the Black Forest was beautiful as well. The Rothaus brewery tour was also a fun trip to see part of the process of how beer is made. I hope to go back to the Black Forest and hike once it gets warmer.
Freiburg has been treating me well so far, and I love the city so far.
Yocom Yocom
Hey I am Claire, and I am from Des Moines, Iowa. I am studying International Relations, Russian, and German. I am a Midwestern girl who loves to travel, and I can’t wait to see what adventures are ahead this semester.
