One of the biggest differences between the U.S. and Germany is the ubiquity of public transportation. Every day, I take a public bus to the city center for my classes. The main train station takes you all over Germany and Europe via connections and I’ve used it to go to Karlsruhe, Frankfurt and even Switzerland. The fact that I can get around without a car is absolutely wonderful. There are lots of cars here too and people bike all the time, but the option of public transportation is always there in any German city. It’s excellent. Not only that, but the busses are clean and punctual. The trains aren’t as punctual, but they’re mostly reliable, you just have to plan around possible delays.

Taking the bus every morning gives me some time to think and chill before and after my classes, which I enjoy. When I have to drive places, I have to think about my driving, so I can’t get absorbed into an audiobook or podcast in the same way. It makes the commute enjoyable. I do miss my car sometimes, mostly for the independence it affords me. It’s hard to travel at night here because there are very few busses, so I can’t do a night trip like I could when I have my car. I also miss it because it makes planning a little easier, since I usually know exactly when I have to leave to get somewhere at a certain time but I have to prepare far more in case the busses are late or I miss one. But again, they have lots of cars here, so if I had one, I wouldn’t miss that aspect of the U.S. at all.

---

Learn more about this blogger’s study abroad program: Eberhard-Karls University Tuebingen