I finally got the chance to do my Erasmus+ semester abroad! Ever since I was a little kid, I was fascinated by the culture, language and nature of Germany. I always thought, if I ever get a chance to study abroad, I would go to Germany in a heartbeat. Something that made it outstanding was definitely the timing: My semester abroad took place during those uncertain times when the pandemic started to take off in the beginning of 2020.
So how did it go, you wonder?
Let’s start from the beginning
In autumn of 2019 I decided to apply for a Erasmus+ scholarship program to study in Germany. Little did I know that it was going to be something totally different from any other abroad experiences I had ever had... I was extremely excited but at the same time worried about living alone in a foreign country far away from my home. At that point the idea of the beginning of a global pandemic did not even cross my mind.
In March 2020 I packed my suitcase and left for the unknown. Potsdam, a picturesque city 25 km southwest of Berlin's city centre was waiting for me. Potsdam is home to beautiful parks and historical buildings. The city and its surrounding landscape is even on UNESCO’s world heritage list.
My initial plan was to first participate in a 2-week language course offered by the university and start the actual semester at University of Potsdam in April 2020. I have learned German before but I wanted to polish my skills and a big goal of mine was to become fluent in the language. Again, I did not suspect anything as I found my university buddy waiting for me with a big smile at the Berlin Tegel Airport. She showed me the way to my apartment, we chatted about the usual things and I got to practice my German!
Arriving to my new home: BaseCamp Potsdam
(https://www.basecampstudent.com) BaseCamp is a very modern living place and a community. In addition to the coolest room ever, I had a rooftop terrace, a gym, a cinema room and a BBQ area I could use free of charge with other basecampers during my stay. They also rent bikes for free! There are 9 BaseCamps in Europe. If you ever stay in one of the cities they are located in, I recommend staying at BaseCamp. This place made my stay in Germany so much more special!
After settling in I had to go to the university campus in Neues Palais to pick up my language course documents for the next day. I was immediately taken aback as I saw the campus from the bus station. The astonishing architecture just left me breathless.
Everything went smoothly, I got to speak some German with the personnel and understood everything they said about the language course. As I was leaving, we said “Bis Morgen!” which means see you tomorrow.
What a great start, don't you think? Well...now for the plot twist.
A few hours later I got an email that the language course was cancelled...9 days later I was on the last plane to fly back home to Estonia. Was my semester abroad over?
Returning to Estonia
I contemplated for a while whether it’s a good idea to go back home or not. When the last person of those few who arrived for the language course decided to fly back home to Norway, I started thinking maybe I should go too.
We (international students) did not get enough information from the University of Potsdam about the situation and our further options. As every document had to be sent by postal mail, I wasn’t even sure I could start the semester online later...
Unfortunately I could not cancel my rental agreement, therefore I had left some of my things in the apartment, hoping to come back as soon as the situation with the virus was a bit better. I had no idea if it was going to be three weeks or many months. Everything was so uncertain and confusing but in the end I was happy that I decided to return home. Maybe for someone else staying abroad would have been a better solution but for me, I feel like I got a taste of how living independently was in another country and needed to return to my friends, family, familiar streets, grocery shops and mother language.
Studying
Because of my emergency return, I got to re-enroll to my usual classes in TLU. At this point they were already online and I had to do some independent work to catch up. Simultaneously I managed to start the online classes at Uni Potsdam. Studying in German language was definitely difficult because of my language skills but due to online studies caused by the coronavirus pandemic, it was in some aspects easier. For instance a Sport Management course took place in Moodle and in order to pass the course I just had to take 4 Moodle tests with multiple choice answers. Have you ever been a student in two universities at the same time?
Returning to Germany
3 months later in the middle of June I was on my way back to Potsdam to enjoy some summery weather and live in the apartment that was being paid for until the beginning of August. I had to take one exam as well, but that felt like a background task.
My university buddy was again at the airport to meet me. This time she was wearing a mask, so was I. An interesting discovery I would like to point out here is that I am one of those people who somewhat rely on reading lips when trying to understand what someone is saying in a foreign language in a noisy environment. Understanding my uni buddy in the bus while she was wearing a mask was nearly impossible for me as she was talking about an unfamiliar topic quite fast. Of course when I told her we just laughed it off and continued our journey.
Some of my closest friends and family members got to visit me during those strange times in Germany. I hung out with some of the other international students who had returned to Potsdam and found new friends from BaseCamp. We visited the landmarks of Potsdam and Berlin, biked around and enjoyed each other's company. Plenty of cafés and restaurants were opened but there weren’t any big events nor parties. Wearing a mask in public indoor places and public transportation was mandatory. I soon got used to wearing a mask everywhere but after arriving back to Estonia it was such a relief to not wear one constantly.
Here we are, at the end of my journey. I don’t feel like I got a full experience when it comes to an Erasmus+ semester as I only spent 37% of my Erasmus+ semester in Germany. I didn’t even go to regular classes and only had lunch in the school cafeteria once.
But I feel like it was more than just that. I still got the chance to experience independent living for the first time. I also got the time to finally read more books, dive deeper into self-development and also fitness. Exploring the parks and historic buildings as well as the landscape in Potsdam and city life in Berlin was definitely fun. I can say for sure that I want to return to Germany one day to fulfill my dream of getting fluent in German language but only time will tell when that would be safely possible again.
Danke!
If you have any questions about studying in Germany or living in Potsdam, don’t hesitate to contact me an498[at]tlu.ee
Photo caption for the picture gallery!
- The funniest experience was in a clothing store in Berlin when they finally opened their changing rooms but “closed” the mirrors. For many months the changing rooms in this store were closed. After reopening, they used big stickers on the mirrors so clients would only use the smaller mirrors in their changing cabins that they were assigned to by a staff member.
Written by Annely Nõomaa
