Introduction
During spring break in March 2022, I participated in a study abroad called Culture and Commerce in Central Europe, traveling to Germany and Holland. As part of the course, we needed to publish daily posts on the professor's blog. In fact, it was this trip that inspired me to start the Bear Den. Unfortunately, my writing was significantly worse then, so the quality will be much lower. I thought about rewriting the posts, but decided to preserve them, as is.
3-13 Munich Day 1
Beginning the trip with a visit to Dachau is a rather sobering experience. Whilst surrounded by the gray concentration camp buildings, one can’t help but feel the chill of the past, a sort of spiritual unease that comes with a place that is haunted by so many dark memories. Although not ‘enjoyable’ in the conventional sense of the word, there is definitely something special about the opportunity to visit such memorials to the tragedies that mankind can inflict on itself. In a more positive cultural memory, dinner at the Hofbrauhaus heavily played into the stereotypical German image both in terms of the cuisine and music. I never thought about it before, but the merry and laid-back attitude that comes with this atmosphere is in stark contrast to the rational, humorless attitude represented by the low indulgence score on the Hofstede rankings. It’ll be interesting to continue to observe how this contradiction plays out.
3/14/2022- Munich Day 2
One of the traits that the Hofstede rankings emphasized for Germany was practicality. This plays well with (a rather interesting) law in Munich- that 1% of construction costs need to be earmarked for art. Thus, to dedicate money to heritage preservation while still fulfilling this requirement, TUM (one of Munich’s technical universities) used the art fund to save old stained-glass windows during their remodels. I just found that to be a creative way to complete both tasks, while saving some beautiful windows.
This morning, I got up a little earlier to be able to wander around the city center for a while before joining the group for a walking tour. The weather was incredible and the tour guide was very knowledgeable, describing Munich’s history in substantial detail. Next, we visited BMW Welt and the Olympic Park. Unfortunately, Corona restrictions canceled the tour of the BMW factory which I had been really looking forward to. At least we were still able to explore BMW’s largest showroom.
Innsbruck – Day 3
Innsbruck – the bridge over the river Inn. Today’s day trip into the crossroads city located about 30 minutes from Germany and Italy was a brief, but incredible look into the city nestled in the Alps. The capital of the Tirol region is both beautiful and full of history and the walking tour and free time were enough to provide a taste of the atmosphere and culture of the city, but hopefully I’ll get another chance to spend some more time here in the future.
Day 4 – Rotterdam
Prior to leaving Munich this morning, I took one last stroll through the quiet morning streets. It really is a pleasant city. Train travel is a greatly underappreciated form of travel in the United States. The ICE system provides an efficient, smooth, and quiet way to move between cities and countries. Using a series of these trains, we shifted our base of operations from Munich to Rotterdam. After checking into the hotel, we went out for a walking food tour to try traditional Dutch foods and learn about the history of Rotterdam. Apparently the Dutch are very into fried foods, because it seemed like everything we were eating was fried- Poffertjes, Krokketen, etc. At least the cheese wasn’t fried?
Day 5- Rotterdam
After an early start and a bus ride to Delft, a walking tour through the slowly waking city unveiled the historic city. Severe damage during the second world war led to a very modernized Rotterdam, so Delft’s antiquity made it an interesting contrast. The windmills we visited next were also rather scenic.
The collaboration with Erasmus was quite interesting. It was my first time taking part in a case competition and it was a great experience. It was also followed up with what was probably the fanciest restaurant meal that I’ve ever had.
Day 6 – Hague, Amsterdam
Another early start to an exciting adventure-filled day. The morning commenced with a trip to the Hague. Apparently, some sort of government meeting was bound to go on because while we were there, we saw the minister of the environment and the minister of health. The openness with which we could stand a few dozen feet from government officials giving interviews with minimal police presence is really astounding, especially when compared to the security preserves at the White House or the Capitol. Then, during a visit to an art museum, we were able to see original Rembrandts and Vermeers.
After taking the train to Amsterdam, the walking tour continued. Of the cities in the Netherlands that we’ve visited, Amsterdam is, without a doubt, the most chaotic and bustling. I do mean it in a positive way, as it felt very much alive. Once again, I must complement the local public transportation- every city to city transit was smooth and convenient.
Day 7- Rotterdam
Today was one of the latest start times of this trip. To take advantage of this, I still woke up extra early to wander through the morning city. I hadn’t accounted for it to be sleeping though (early Saturday morning). On the bright side, empty streets let me enjoy the quiet time.
The group bike tour was informative and brought me closer to their harbor than I had ever been before. No matter how many times one hears about the size of these ships, it doesn’t do much to prepare you for getting up close to them. An incredible sight to behold.
After being set loose on the city again I got to do one of my favorite things- just wander and look around. In my experience, this is one of the best ways to see a city- not too informative in terms of history, but gives an honest look at the everyday lives of the local citizens.
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