Hallo! Our adventure started in Wittenberg, a rural, homey town with massive historical significance. This is where Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses and sparked the Protestant Reformation. Standing in front of the Castle Church where it all began made us reflect on how powerful just one man with an idea could be.
From there, we paid a visit to Neuschwanstein Castle, one of the most beautiful sites we have ever seen. In the Alps, it looked like something straight out of a Disney movie… because it was! Built by King Ludwig II, this castle was the inspiration behind Cinderella’s castle. We also visited Linderhof Palace, one of Ludwig’s “smaller” but so detailed and ornate palaces. These visits gave us insight into royalty, architectural trend during the time, and lavish lifestyle of King Ludwig II.
We then took a deep dive into the city’s past with a city tour that highlighted everything from medieval architecture to modern infrastructure. Munich has a vibe that’s hard to describe, it’s quite laid-back but the culture and people are so lively, traditional and fun! We loved seeing how the city balances history with innovation at every corner.
One of the highlights of our free time was taking a trip to Salzburg, Austria, only a short train ride from Munich. We couldn’t resist hopping on a Sound of Music tour. Seeing the actual gazebo used in the movie to frolicking through the hills that were definitely alive, this part of the trip was magical!
A major academic component of our study abroad experience was visiting two industry giants: Celonis and Siemens. At Celonis, we learned how process mining is helping global companies streamline operations through data analysis, personally something that I had no idea was a big field in Germany. At Siemens, we saw how engineering and sustainability come together to power smart cities and technologies, and how cybersecurity is important to the current “technological warfare” that the world is slowly moving towards. These visits tied directly into our coursework as business and technology students.