Guide to Tübingen Germany for Umass and other Students

Intro to Germany

            To start this guide off, one must realize that Germany and the United States are very different countries in their everyday life.  You cannot come to Europe and expect to live the same way in which you live back in the States.  First off and most obvious Germans speak German, for the most part students and young middle age people will definitely be able to understand you, so you don’t have to worry about getting too lost or hunger.  Just ask somewhere where the closest bus stop/bakery is at.  Another big difference especially if you are coming from a University in the US is that dorms here are very big and you will never have a roommate (the idea is unheard of here).  Also don’t expect to be going to your Universities soccer or football games every weekend because schools here don’t have private teams, if you want to see a lot of soccer games it would be a good idea to choose a town/city in Germany that has a team.  Also another note on student life here is that there is no campus.  For the most part student apartments will be spread out over a town and the same goes for university buildings.  Expect to buy a bike or use the public transportation quite a bit.  When you go to the supermarket bring your own bags and expect to find smaller size portions of everything, there are no Costco’s here.

That being said this guide is going to about a fair size town called Tübingen.   It lies along the Neckar River and it is about 30 Kilometers south of the Capital of Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart.  The town has about 88 thousand people living in it, and there are between 20 to 30 thousand are students.  It is a good place to be a student; the town revolves around the university.  

Getting to Tübingen

                It is not a difficult place to get to when first arriving in Germany.  Your best bet and easiest way to get here from the states is to fly to the airport in Stuttgart.  Once you land you walk out the door and between 8 am and 10 pm there are buses to your left, that leave twice an hour at: 18 and: 48.  You will then take a 50 minute bus ride and get off at the very last stop, which are Tübingen Train and Bus Station.  From here there is an extensive bus transportation system throughout the town, and it is easy to travel to any part of Tübingen.  You could also fly into the airports in Frankfurt or Munich, then from their use the machines to get to Tübingen or just take the trains to Stuttgart Train station and it’s a simple 45 to 60 minute train ride from there.  Otherwise it takes about 3 hours from Munich and about 4 from Frankfurt. 

                A note for students coming from Umass or getting housing here through Stadtwerk for the first time:  You have two stops when you get here, first is to pay for your housing which is in Fichtenweg 5, in the very north part of town (take bus 3,4,5 there).  Then you have to go to the complete opposite side of town in the French Quarter, it will take about an hour to get there if not longer.  There you meet the Hausmeister (zero English) and get the key for your apartment from him.  They also have horribly inconvenient work hours here.  The house master is only there from 8 to 9:30 in the morning as well as 3 to 5 in the afternoon, and the people in Fichtenweg take an hour off for lunch from 12 to 1.  My recommendation is to try to arrive in Tübingen around 12:30 in the afternoon then take one of the buses and arrive a little before 1:30 and get your papers, and head over to the French Quarter to get your key.  Also do this during the week preferably not Friday, because if you miss them you will have to find a friend or hostel to stay in, because they are closed all weekend.

Sights in Tübingen

Tübingen's Castle

First off all the buildings in Germany are built completely differently than in the United States.  Many have timber frames called Fachwerkhäuser, they are really cool to look at and give the area a traditional feeling.  Also in Tübingen, which is in many German towns, is an Altstadt (old town) which is usually a pedestrian zone and it is a great place to walk around, hang out, and grab a cup of coffee.  Tübingen also has a couple things that one should check out while staying or passing through here.  Like many German towns, Tübingen has a castle.  It is free to get inside and it gives you a great 360 degree view of Tübingen.  It is particularly cool from the late fall to early spring when there are no leaves and you get a beautiful view of the Neckar River and all the houses in Tübingen.  Also in the castle is a museum, with all the university’s archeological collections from all over the world.  They have a sculpture of a horse that dates back 35000 years.  The museum is free for students, and it also isn’t a bad place to study.  It is pretty quiet.  Also if you like museums the town has a Stadtmuseum, which talks about Tübingen’s significance as well as giving a history of the town.   Not far from Tübingen is a monastery which has its own little town.  Technically it is part of Tübingen, but it is outside of town on its own.   It’s called Bebenhaus, and it takes a serene hike to get there and it is also a good place for a relaxing walk through a monastery.  The jewel of Tübingen though, is probably the Neckarbrücke.  It is the bridge in the middle of town between the Old city and the train station.  The Tourist Office is right there as well.  During the summer, from May to September it is lined on both sides with flower boxes full of flowers of every color.  It is a pretty sight to see and one side of the bridge looks over a large stretch of river, while the other overlooks the island as well as many houses each a different color.  They are a gorgeous site to see.  

Things to do

                Being a University Town there is plenty for students to do.  The University doesn’t have any sport teams, but that doesn’t mean that there are no sports here.  In fact, Tübingen has an extensive intramural sport program with everything from soccer, archery, judo, and a crew team.  Most of these are free for University students with some requiring a 40 Euro commitment at the beginning of each semester.  There are also a couple areas of town with soccer and basketball courts where you can go after classes to play some pick-up  games of either of the two earlier said.  The biggest area is at a middle school up in the WHO (where Fichtenweg is).  There they have one large soccer field, an “indoor” soccer field that is outside; also they have three basketball courts up there.  Another interesting sport that is available all over the city is ping-pong.  They have tables in between many buildings, one being in the French quarter. 

Beautiful view from the river

                If sports are not your thing, there is still plenty to do in Tübingen.  There is a pond not far from the train station, only two stops away in a place called Hirschau.  But take note, in Europe it is much more accepted to swim in public places like a lake without clothing.  So if you do go, which I recommend doing, be prepared to see at least a couple people in their birthday suit. Tübingen also has a free swimming pool for everyone.  It will be the same bus as the one going to Hirschau, but it’s the first stop.  They also have an outdoor track here. Also a very popular thing for people to do here is take a boat out on the Neckar River called a Stocherkahn, it is difficult to describe what it is, but it is propelled by someone in the back who uses a stick.  Also there are two great parks here where it is great to grab a coffee or ice cream and lounge in for a couple hours.  One is an island on the Neckar River, and the other is the Botanical Garden which is near the University buildings.  On any sunny day there will be tons of people there.  You can try your hand at walking on a tight rope; they have those in the park.  Or you can watch people fall off, also quite fun.  Another awesome thing in Tübingen is that it is bordered on the North and South by fairly large forests, which have an abundance of hiking and walking trails.  There is also bike trails going through town, which lead out of town and can give you some great scenic views.

                Also available to students are a couple groups that encourage meeting new international students as well as German ones.  The group called StudIT, has many activities and excursions throughout the year.  These are a great place to meet other international students and have a great time.  Some of the events they organize are trips to Berlin, France and Switzerland.  They also have many events that take place in Tübingen, for example, weekly Stammtisch’s (weekly dinners at different restaurants in town) as well as pretzel making sessions in a real German bakery.  The other group is also affiliated with StudIT, is called the StudIT Tandem/Mentor Program.  For the mentor program, they pair you up with a German student and they help you get acquainted with Tübingen, they are there to help you find things, and are good too because they become a good friend while here.  The other program, tandem, and pairs you with a German student who is interested in improving or speaking his/her English.  And in turn is good to improve the student who is abroad, German skills.

Also for the students traveling abroad, don’t be afraid to speak to the Germans.  If you are here to learn or work on your German, having a few German friends makes it much easier and quicker to get better.  And if you’re here for the culture, many Germans have good English and they like practicing it.  They can give you heads up on Festivals and recommend great places to travel to.  If you live in the French Quarter in Tübingen, there are three grocery stores very close to you (10 to 15 minute walk).  They are called Lidl, Kaufland, and Marktkauf.  Lidl is the cheapest, but has the worst selection.  But you can still get all your staples here for a good price.  Kaufland is the best, with a good selection as well as good prices.  And Marktkauf is the closest to you, and they have the best selection.  They are almost like a Walmart and grocery store combined.  But everything there is a little pricier.  Sometimes the same exact thing you would buy at Kaufland will be a whole Euro more expensive at Marktkauf.  Also for other things to do in Tübingen the Tourist Office is a great resource.  You can sign up for theater shows there, or get recommendations from the clerks who are working on what you can do.

Places to Eat

                German food service is not at all similar to the States.  The good news is that you barely give them anything for a tip.  Usually you round up to the nearest Euro, or give them 25 cents.  If you really liked the service you can give them 10 percent.  The downside is the meals are a little more expensive if you factor in the Euro to dollar conversion.  Don’t expect the same service you get in the States.  Once you order and get your food, you won’t see the waiter or waitress until you flag them down.  Also on that note it is not frowned upon at all to stay at a table in a restaurant for several hours and only order a couple of small things.  Another great thing is that beer is usually the second cheapest drink on the menu.  Soda is always more expensive and there is no such thing as free refills here, so keep that in mind.  Also another mistake a lot of Americans make is when you order water, it is not from the tap and therefore costs money.  If you want tap water you have to clarify that that is what you want.

Tübingen in not far from the Schwabian Alps, so the regional cuisine as well as the dialect, pulls heavily from Schwabish tradition.   There specialties include Käsespätzle, which is like a thick dish of Mac and Cheese.  Also there is Maultauschen which are similar to raviolis but with more veggies inside.  Wurstsalat is a salad made of shredded meat which isn’t as bad as it sounds.  Of course a hugely popular thing in Germany is all sorts of sausage and potato meals.  Naturally there is beer; there are so many tasty brands that it is useless to recommend any.  I do recommend Hefeweisen though.  It is a type of beer, like Pilsner is, and the Baden-Württemberg region is well known for it.  During the winter a very nice treat is Klühwein, which is warmed wine with some seasonings in it and sometimes some rum.  It is a great way to enjoy a Christmas market.

Neckarmüller overlooking the river

Tübingen has many great eating establishments all over the city.  You never have to look very hard to find a restaurant near you.  The biggest and most famous is probably Neckarmüller.  It is a restaurant/brewery on the Neckar River, with a very large outdoor sitting area, that many people sit during the summer and drink beer and eat bratwurst.  It is a little more expensive than most places but it has a good selection and fine beer.  You can get many regional dishes here.  Another good one is Manufaktur, it is a pizza shop just outside the Altstadt, and they have a very large selection of delicious pizzas all for 5 to 7 Euros.  Note: Most of the times in Germany pizzas are usually for one person.  They are about a foot in diameter.  There are also 3 different places that are owned by the same person or family that are a great value for your money.  They are called Stern, Unkel, and Hades.  They have a good selection between lots of different things from hamburgers to pasta to pizza, and the majority of things on the menu are 5 Euros and some are 6.  They are pretty good, but don’t expect a Chilies or Applebee’s hamburger though, it’s a bit smaller and not as flavorful.  There are restaurants all over the town, especially in the Altstadt.  If you are in the French Quarter, a very good one is Credo.  It is right across the street from Aixer Straße bus stop.  The meals are reasonably priced, and they have the best Käsespätzle that I have ever tasted.  There is also a fantastic breakfast place in the Nonnenhaus shopping center, it is called Eis Mara.  They have a very large choice of breakfast you can order, and they are also an excellent place to get some ice cream.  They make many fantastic ice cream creations, from very classy looking sundaes to caterpillars made from scoops of ice cream.

When you get out of class and are looking for a quick bite to eat, you have a couple of options.  If you want a decent meal at a great cost, the best places are Clubhaus and the student Mensa.  Both are in the middle of most of the university buildings.  Clubhaus is right next to the library and has a large selection of drinks, pastries, and sandwiches.  Everything is already made and you take the items you want off the shelf and put them on your lunch tray then pay for them.  The sandwiches are really good as well as being very cheap.  It is difficult to find anything more expensive than 2 Euros.  The student Mensa is also a good deal.  It is straight across from the University Library and you get an entire meal for 3.5 Euros.  They usually have a meat deal and a vegetarian dish, with a salad and a side dish.  It also comes with all you can eat soup.  The downside is that the food is not something you speak great things about, it is very similar to school cafeteria food, but it is a full meal.  Also it would be a good idea to bring a drink with you because they don’t give you one here.  Also for an after class meal Unkel is right there in the middle of class buildings as well.

On a side note, a very popular snack in Germany is a Turkish snack called the Döner.  It is kind of like a taco, it has meat, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and peppers all tucked in a pita bread shell.  It is an extremely tasty treat.  There are 4 or 5 places in the main part of town that sell them and they are always open pretty late.  It is a great thing to buy and eat after hitting the bars and clubs of Tübingen.  Also something else that is interesting, the Chinese food we eat in the States is not real authentic Chinese food, neither is the Chinese cuisine here. But the Chinese food here doesn’t taste at all like its U.S. counterpart.  It is slightly blander, but still good.

Cafes and Bakeries 

                There are no Dunkin’ Donuts in Tübingen, there are actually very few in Germany and Europe as well.  You will see quite a few Starbucks in Europe but there are not any in Tübingen.  Instead if you want your coffee fix there are a very many café or bakery that will help you out.  Bakeries usually have a very large selection of pastries, cakes, sandwiches and breads.  No bagels though.  The breads here are incredible there are lots of different types and they are on a whole new level then the average bread back home.  There are also so many types of pastry that it would be an accomplishment in itself to try them all.  The prices for pastries area very reasonable, usually they are not more than a Euro or two.  The most popular item to buy is a butter pretzel. It is a large soft pretzel which a baker will cut in half and put some nice thick butter inside.  Extremely good.  Another thing to realize, there are no extra large or large coffees.  German coffee is stronger than in the States but it is also much smaller, most of the time it comes in a cup around the size of a tea cup.  There are no extra large ice coffees either.  If they even have ice coffee they charge an arm and a leg for it.

                Like restaurant there are many, many bakeries and cafes to eat at. Café Lieb at the Friedrichs Straße bus stop has the largest selection of things to purchase.  They also have one of the biggest cups of coffee.  A good deal that they offer is there cup of coffee with a butter pretzel for 2.50 Euros.  The best deal in Tübingen though for coffee and a snack is a place one street parallel to the Wilhelm Straße’s Neuphilosophie building.  It is called Gauker and they offer a butter pretzel or pastry and a coffee for only 1.29 Euro.  It is a great and delicious snack for in between classes.  In the Altstadt, you will see lots of tables in most streets and all over the square.  These are also great places to grab a bit to eat and sip a coffee.  You can sit here chat it up and follow the European tradition of people watching. A good bakery close to the French Quarter would be Weit, also across from the Aixer Straße bus stop and right next to Credo, it offers a decent selection that doesn’t require a trip into the heart of the town.

                A very popular thing in Europe is grabbing an ice cream and walking around town.  It might almost feel like being back in the 50’s.  Tübingen is no exception.  There are four or five ice cream places, and every sunny day, it seems that every other person has bought one.  The ice cream here is the same as back home.  They got all the good flavors.  The prices are also realistic, it cost only a Euro per scoop, and you can get them in a cup or cone.  

Nightlife in Tübingen

                Now for the part you have been waiting for, Tübingen’s nightlife.  There is always plenty to do.  The wildest places depend on what you want; there are lots of different things you can go for chilling, partying, and dancing to name a few.  Tübingen has three or four popular places to go to dance.  The biggest and most extensive being Top10, it is a ten minute walk from French Quarter.  It has a large dance room with DJ’s 3 bars and a couple stripper poles, no one strips on them though, and it is either for hired dancers to use or drunken people to attempt to use.  They also have another room with a revolving center dance floor, the room is not at big and has more tables and places to sit.  There is another whole room on the second floor dedicated purely for people to smoke in; it has a monster bar in the center and lots of tables and stool all around.  The last room has more of a bar feel with a Mexican theme.  Those are all the rooms to dance and drink and they also have a room when you enter Top10 that you can order and eat food all night.  The best night to go is on Wednesdays, on that night it is student night, and all students enter for free and get half price drinks all night.  Any other day of the week it costs 4 or 6 Euros depending on what is going on.  Definitely an exciting place to be, a little on the expensive side though, I recommend if you want to drink a lot do so before going.  Another dance place which is usually hit or miss is a place called Kuckuck.  Their big nights are Friday and Saturday.  They are in the same building as Fichtenweg 5, where you go the first day in Tübingen.  It has a small dance floor, which is completely packed by 1 o’clock.  The drinks here are priced very well, beers are 1.50, mix drinks 3, and shots are one.  It’s a long trek to get to, but usually worth it.  Usually at least once a month Kuckuck will have a theme for the evening, these are always fun to go to and you can expect themes like Suspenders party, 80’s,or dress like famous people. Sometimes though, it gets a little too crowded and it is difficult to move through the tightly packed crowd.  The last dance place I will talk about is called Clubhaus, during the day it’s a student lunch café and on Thursday nights it become a student Mecca.  Every Thursday Clubhaus has a big party for all the students who want to start their weekend early.  It is kind of like a combination of Kuckuck and Top10.  They have two large dance rooms upstairs and then they also have cheap beers.  There are also plenty of places to chill away from the music and chat with friends.  It is purely for students only, so if you are traveling through or have friend or family coming to you here, it would be wise that you have a student card from your home university available.  Entrance is free and occasionally you will get the university to fund the party for different departments of the school.  Germans do not dance the way Americans are use to.  You will rarely see the bump and grind being performed here.  In fact, people have been kicked out of clubs for dancing too provocatively.  Germans dance more so in groups, almost like a middle school dance, it is weird to see when you first get here.

                For those of you who do not like dancing there are plenty of alternatives.  There are many bars and pubs, so much so, that there is almost one on every street.  These are all pretty good places to be, you can grab a drink, listen to music, enjoy the scenery, or do whatever it is you do when you drink.  There are several places though that do stand out, Neckarmüller, has a large outdoor seating area overlooking the river.  It has a very German beer garden feel to it.  You can order beers as well as light dishes of bratwurst or pretzels.  It is a great place during the summer to meet up with friends and have a good time.  Another gem of Tübingen is named the Blauer Saloon; it is also called the Karl Marx or Communist Bar because they have a large picture of Karl Marx on the wall.  This place is great because the beers are so cheap, only 1.50 Euros.  It has a cool atmosphere and occasionally it even has live music.  It is located right around the corner from the large church in the center of town but it might be difficult to find because there are absolutely no signs on its building.  Another good bar as well is called the Last Resort; they are open every night until pretty late.   This place is great as well.  They have an entire room closed off for people who are smoking, so if you do smoke you can enjoy a cigarette inside, and if you don’t then you don’t have to worry about smelling or being in the presence of smoke all night.  The beers here are you average German price, around 3.00 Euros.  They have a bunch on couches, a foosball table as well as a Nintendo 64 which are all free to use.  This is a good place to stop off at any point in the night, whether it is first stop of the night, mid way through the night or a place to grab that last beer before calling it quits for the night.  It is located not far from the bus station, right across the street from the Deutsche Bank.  Another place of note is a place called Shooters.  It is a spot bar on the outskirts of the Altstadt that have a selection of over 100 shots, with names ranging from the Monika Lewinski to Mercedes.  It has a lively atmosphere and is always fun place to be.  The shots are 2 Euro for each one, but they are not that alcoholic.  Right across from Last resort is another excellent nighttime place.  Every Monday a place called Tangente gets a huge crowd and also its karaoke night, it is great everyone sings along with the person who is singing and it creates a immensely fun experience.

                The French Quarter also has a few fine establishments as well.  Latour is a place midway up Aixer Straße.  It is a relaxed place, and has a very chill environment.  They often play jazz music and the staff is very friendly.  Once or twice a week they even have live music, usually jazz performers from the area.  If you play jazz music yourself, inquire if they need a live performance, and they will help you out.  Also not far from that is a place called Sieben.  It is a student run hang out bar, that is only open on Wednesdays and Fridays.  It is great for the people who live in the French Quarter because it is so close.  They have plenty to do from a whole closet full of board games to pool, foosball or darts.  They sometimes bring in a DJ but it is always a great place to meet Germans or other Americans as well.  They have plenty of couches as well as really cheap drinks, 1.50 for a large beer and 3 Euros for strong mixed drinks.  The students run the bar not to make lots of money, but rather to provide a great place to relax and hang out.

Places near Tübingen

View of Heidelberg for afar

          Tübingen is in the geographical center of Baden-Württemberg and there are plenty of easy day trips not far from here.  Heidelberg is a beautiful old German city only two hours away.  It has an awesome castle plus there are very scenic walks you can talk along the River.  There is also the capital of Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart, which is only a meager hour away.  There are quite a few museums there that are worth checking out, most notably is the Mercedes Benz Museum.  Stuttgart also has lots of different shops that you can pretty much buy anything you need there.  Also if you are into hiking and nature walks and paths, Tübingen has a great location because it is situated in between the Black Forest and the Schwabish Alps.  There are plenty of picturesque hikes within an hour of here.  There are two castles on top of mountains that are certainly worth the hike, one is the Fortress Hohenzollern which is only 15 minutes away on a train.  This is where many of the Wilhelm Dynasty’s family members are buried.  It is your classic German castle and is quite the site.  The other is castle Lichtenstein which is 30 minutes away.  You hike for about an hour before you come to the castle.   It is ideally located and quite beautiful.  You get a magnificent view of the entire valley below that quickly makes you forget you aching calves.  There is also a nice restaurant at the top which has good regional food and is not too expensive.

Travel in Germany and Europe

ARRIVAL

Taking a trip to Europe is always an exciting experience, especially for people from America.  I realize, now that I am here in the great continent of Europe, how infrequent we Americans travel to Europe and how different our culture is.  I am going to write this essay, from my own experience and from the experiences of my friends, so others from Umass Amherst and America in general can have an idea of what to expect when they first get to Europe and to offer my knowledge to help them travel and get around.  The first topic I will discuss is, my arrival into Europe including my flight to Heathrow, trip to Stuttgart and then how I got to Tübingen and figured out got my housing situation figured out. 

One thing to expect on your trip to Europe is for things to not go as plan, expect to arrive tired, confused and very stressed.  I can vouch for this because that is how I and many people I have talked to arrived in Deutschland.  I had a 7 hour flight from Logan Airport in Boston to Stuttgart.  I naively thought that I would have the luxury of catching a few hours of shut eye and arrive fully charged to Germany to find my home for the next year. What ended up happening was that I got on the plane and found myself next to a very chatty man from England.  Seven hours later I arrived in Heathrow, where I had to wait for two hours until I could get on my flight to Germany.  Now I am tired, it is the equivalent of four in the morning back in MA.  The first day in Germany is very important, unless you want to stay the first night or so in a hostel, you will have a lot to do to set up your living situation.  Although, staying the first night in a hostel is not a bad plan, it makes it much less stressful and you will have actually had some rest.

The flight from Heathrow was much quieter.  The two hour flight passes by surprising fast, before you know it you will be already landing at Stuttgart.  The whole process of getting through the airport takes less than thirty minutes, you get your passport stamped and grab your bag, and then you’re all set.  I was fortunate; when I walked out of the airport into this land of unknown I saw a bus across the street with the big letters Tübingen on the front of it.  There is a travel center in the airport as well, they can tell you when the next bus will be arriving, or how you can get to the train station.  This would be the scene of my first encounter with a non English speaking German.  Before I came here, everyone told me that everyone if Germany speaks English.  That is somewhat true with students, but I have seen that there are a lot of adults who can’t speak it at all.  The bus ride cost 5,30 Euros and a train ride cost about 12 Euros.  My unfortunate friend didn’t have the luxury of seeing the bus outside when he arrived so he did the easiest thing in his mind and that was to grab a taxi.  This approach is good because you can get the driver to deliver you precisely where you need to go.  The downside is that it costs 60 Euros (about $80).  

A nice view of Tubingen

In Tübingen I had a stressful adventure of getting into my apartment.  First off I had no l clue when I had to get off the bus, I had no idea what the right stop was.  The bus made several stops in Tübingen, until it finally arrived at the main bus/train station of Tübingen.  The stop you want is the very last one, if you take a train it is the same deal.  There is a Tourist information Store a quarter of a mile down the road from the train station, you will see it on the way there. They are helpful in the tourist information store, they can speak English and tell you which buses you need to take to get where you need to go.  Also I would advise buying a map in here as well, it will be useful the whole time you are in Tübingen.  What also added stress to the situation was that I had arrived on a Friday and the housing offices where I had to pick up my key where closing at 3, in 2 hours, and would be closed for the whole weekend.  Arriving Monday through Thursday is the best plan because you don’t have to be stressed about finding all the places you need to go to get your apartment. You can take bus number 2, 4, and 5 to get to the Fichtenweg stop and that’s the street you want.   When you get to the housing office you have to fill out a couple of papers as well as paying your first month’s rent as well as a deposit on you room.  Don’t expect you are done here though, they don’t give you the keys here, and you have to go to the opposite side of town to get to your apartment and key.  They put all the international students together in the same areas and if you arrive in September, there won’t be many Germans because classes start in October and they are still at home enjoying their summer break.  The house masters in Germany all seem to speak very little English and are never friendly or happy. The rooms you can expect to receive in Germany are better and bigger than any room they have at Umass.

Tubingen's large spacious rooms

HOMETOWN

Europe has a lot to offer, one of the best things about studying abroad for a semester or year is that you have a command post from where you can travel to and from.  This allows you not to have to worry about having trips planned back to back because you can’t experience the German culture in your own home. 

When you are abroad, you will realize that you will not have as much homework as you are use to back in the States.  This makes for much more free time than you are use too.  The good thing about University towns is that there is always something to do.  There are many organizations that cater towards not only students at the University but also many specifically for the international students.  

        For example, in Tübingen there is StudIT, a program run by students at the University.  They organize great trips at very good prices as well as offering a Mentor Program, where you are paired with a German student who helps you get familiar with Tübingen.  This program is a great way to meet people and build a group of friends.  Another called Tandem Program pairs students with a tandem partner.  Both students are looking to improve a language, he or she with English and you with German.  Plus all the departments at the school offer outing, trips and parties (that’s right parties hosted by the school for students and with beer) for students in their department or anyone interested in going.  The best way I found to meet other students is to take a intensive German class before the semester starts, the students are all international students who also know no one and are very interested in meeting new people.

TRAINS

A regional Train

                Germany and Europe are big places, for most destinations the fastest and easiest way to travel is with the trains.  They offer a much cheaper alternative to flying, plus you can get to more places this way.  Usually there only a few airports in each country so you must take a train the exact town you want to get to anyway.  It is also great because the countryside of Germany is beautiful and while you ride the train you can watch from your window.  Some of the trains have two floors I would try to get on the top one if you can because the views are that much better.

ICE train

                The Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s train line, offers many types of trains.  The three main types of trains that they offer are ICE, Regional Trains, and City Night Line.  The ICE stands for Intercity Express Train it’s the fastest way to travel to all the main cities in Germany.  If you are lucky to board early enough they have spacious rooms that are perfect for small groups to hang out in while they travel.  They are the fastest trains in Germany, equivalent to Japan’s Bullet Trains.  If you want to travel across Germany and money is not a big problem then I highly recommend this method of travel.

                The trains I most frequently use are the regional trains they have the most extensive network of rails and are go everywhere there are tracks.  Though they are not the fastest, but they can get you anywhere you want to be.

                Now my favorite train, the City Night Line, also called just an IC train, is another train that you can take.  The train drives from Munich to Paris and Amsterdam every night.  They have 3 seating options: first just plain seats nothing special and not that expensive, I wouldn’t recommend these.  The second option requires a 5 Euro reservation.  Essentially you have a reclined chair in which you can lay down and sleep.  The problem with this though is there is still a lot of light in the train car and you have to like sleeping with people walking by you and making noise at every stop during the night.  For the third option you need a pricey reservation of 20 Euros, but they supply you with a bed, pillow and sheets in a completely dark room.  In the long run it is definitely worth it.  The best part about it is that you fall asleep and then you wake up in your destination.  The downside is that, to my knowledge, only runs from Munich to Paris or Amsterdam, and visa versa.  None the less I recommend this means of transportation if you live in Baden-Württemberg and want to visit any of these three cities.

                I wouldn’t say that I have mastered the train system here in Germany, but I do feel that I am pretty well aware of how it runs from many uses and experiences from it.  That being said I came here with an image of Germany as a country of engineers and all things are punctual and on time.  Now after being here and riding many trains I could never say that again.  Germany is known in Europe as having the worst train service in terms of an efficient train system.  I have made many trips which resulted in frustration, anger, and the urge to never leave Tübingen again.  Often times getting to a destination requires a couple train transfers.  Meaning you have to get off at a station and wait around to board another one.  When a train is behind schedule, very rarely will the next train wait.  This can complicate things resulting in long wait and even force overnight stays in train stations.  Of my say, 10 trips or so, about 4 of them have had problems associated with train trips.  The more you ride them the better you get at using them, so after a couple trips you will have a better understanding of them and this will avoid potential problems.

Bored on Board a train

BUSES

Now I will cover the most commonly used form of transportation of the international student, buses.  Every day I take at the very least four buses in Tübingen.  Usually in whatever town or city that you are in there are specials and deals that are always the best thing to buy.  For example, in Tübingen the best deals are you can buy a day pass for 4 euro or a semester pass (about 4 months) for 55 euro.  This covers both the traveler living there and a traveler there for a day trip, either way you are spending very little to get around the town.  This is also often the case when you visit a big city there are good deals on day or weekend passes. 

In whatever city you reside the benefits of the bus pass are incomparable.  For the small price of 55 Euros a semester or 110 for the year you get unlimited rides in your own city with all the buses.  You also receive unlimited train rides in usually the 20 or so towns around you as well.   Tübingen is an alright place to shop but with my rail pass I can travel to Reutlingen or Mezlingen as well and they have many more stores where I can find whatever I may need.  Another huge benefit is the fact that it gets cold in Germany and it stays cold for many months. In that time the best way to get around is via bus.  It takes about 30 minutes to 60 minutes to walk to the main part of town from most of the student living areas, but with a bus the time is cut to a mere 15 minutes.  Plus it is much warmer on the bus.  

Typical bus

There are a couple downsides to bus system, but in the long run, are not huge problems at all.  The buses are all on a schedule so often times you must coordinate your plans with the buses.  It’s good though because for most parts of town you can catch a bus relatively close to where you are about every 10 minutes.  There are many lines and each comes every half hour.  For myself there are 6 different buses I can take every hour that are all within a 2 minute walk from my apartment.  Occasionally, especially at the busy times of the day (usually mornings and afternoons) the buses run a little behind schedule. So, you must stand in the cold for a bus that can be 15 minutes late.  But compared to Umass where buses on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights don’t come until about 30 minutes after they are suppose to, it is not a big problem.

Depending on what city you are in there are usually different means of making sure people boarding the bus have a ticket.  In Amsterdam people had to scan a card through a reader as they got on and off.  In Tübingen and most of Germany I have seen so far it is based on the honor system.  They do have people who check tickets on buses but these checks happen extremely rarely.  In the four months I have been here I have only once been checked.  My friend has yet to buy the semester ticket and has never been checked.  The cost of the fine they give you is only 40 Euros, cheaper than an actual semester ticket.  Buses comprise the major means of transportation in most towns.  They are always a good deal and definitely worth every penny you spend or don’t spend to ride them.

OTHER MEANS OF TRANSPORT

                I have already talked about buses and trains, the main two ways of traveling through Europe and Germany.  But there are a couple of other great options.  Perhaps the simplest means of travel is via airplane.  It’s easily the fastest way to travel anywhere; consequently it can be very expensive.  Many airlines do not even fly to some airports, for example a lot of international flights are from Munich or Frankfurt, and not from Stuttgart (closest airport to Tübingen).  However you can find specials for certain destinations occasionally if you follow the airlines websites.

Many people advocated purchasing a bike when you first arrive.  They are not too hard to find, in September and October there are a lot of flea markets where you can pick a decent one up for about 30 Euros.  They are probably more convenient in the nice warm weather, but in the cold I don’t know anyone that would want to ride one.  That means that you cannot ride the bike from November to March.  That’s a long time without a means of transportation.  

                A fantastic adventure that one can purchase is called Germanwings Blind Booking.  The deal is that you sign up a week or two you want to go somewhere, and then you pick a theme, for example Culture, West Metropolis , or Party.  And Germanwings will put you on a plane that is going to a major city that offers something for that theme. The Culture theme could send you to Paris, Rome, or Berlin.  The best part of the deal is that the flight only cost 20 Euros, each way.   This is definitely a great thing to do if you can’t decide where you want to go next or just want an adventure.

                Another means of transport is using a taxi.  I wouldn’t recommend using this for a longer trip, more so for local transport.  These are great, in most of Germany there is a service that provides students with cheap taxi rides in their city or town.  It cost 3 Euros per student and they take you anywhere in town.  This is good but expect a longer wait than for a normal taxi, which cost a little more but if you have 3 or for people with you it will actually be cheaper if you split the fare.  This is a good time if it is too late for buses or if you want to be dropped off right in front of your house.

HOSTELS/HOTELS

Really cool Hostel Boat

Up until now I have mainly talked about the means of travel in Germany and Europe, but for the rest of the essay I will talk about hostels and give you some information about some of the cities I have visited.  Every hostel I have been to while in Europe has been different from one another.  Some have been fantastic while others have been not so good.  Generally they are all fairly cheap you shouldn’t have to pay more than 50 Euros per night, personally I have never paid more than 20 and what I have received has all been worth it. There are different styles of hostels that affect the price as well.  Some hostels have large room with 16 or 32 beds all set up, these ones are pretty cheap.  I like these but you do have to be cautious if they do not give you a locker, most hostels have a storage room that they will put your bag in if you don’t feel comfortable having it with you.  Other hostels give you a small room usually 3 or 4 beds and you get a private bathroom as well. These are nice and I have never paid more than 20 Euros for one. Others have private rooms and as you can imagine these are the most expensive.  Often a free breakfast is included free of charge in the morning, this will consist of your typical German breakfast of brotchen rolls with jam, honey, and butter or selected deli meats.  It doesn’t sound like anything special but it is actually real tasty.  Many also have bars or rooms where you can relax and meet fellow travelers; this is always a good way to find random people to do things with while traveling.

It’s hard to see or find all the information on the website of a hostel needed to make a good decision.  For example, when I stayed in Paris the hostel locked up its lobby at 12 o’clock at night.  This would have been a huge problem if I had planned to stay out any later than that, because I wouldn’t have been able to get back in until 7 in the morning.  Another time in Amsterdam I was sleeping in a cabin at a camp ground outside the city, and because I was leaving the next day before the clerk was going to arrive I had to give them my key the day before, and had to leave my stuff in an unlocked room while I went into town.  I guess what you should look for I a hostel is 24 hours staff.  

Hotels in Europe are nice they are essentially the same thing as what we have in the States.  A nice room with a couple of queen size beds, a bathroom and a TV.  They are usually much more expensive but you can find them for about 30 a night for two people.  If you have money hotels will always be better than hostels.

PARIS

                Pretty much everything you hear about Paris is true.  It’s a beautiful city with a rich history.  The people are beautiful, most of them smoke cigarettes.  Baguettes are eaten by everyone, and all other foods are great.  I stayed here for 3 whole days and it definitely wasn’t enough. Paris was probably my favorite destination so far.  I took the overnight train to get there, great times.  The problem with Paris is that there is so much to do and see.  The best way to get around for students under 26 is a 3.60 Euro day rail pass. You get unlimited trips on all public transportation methods and only for a small cost. Paris has a great metro system.  It is not too difficult to figure out; all you need is about 5 minutes of looking at the map to completely understand how it is set up. There are many great sites all over the city and as long as you have a hostel inside the city you are guaranteed an easy time finding where you want to go to and lots to do.

                There are canal tours that go along the river, you pay 9 Euros and can get on and off as many times as you want in a day.  It’s a good option on the first day or so that you are there because it makes eight stops along the river that all have good sites to see.  If you do take this ride I would advise against buying a day pass on the metro because that is essentially what the canal boat is for, taking you around the city. But after the first day or so I wouldn’t advise it because they only make eight stops and the stops all pretty much all the big sites that you might have seen already. 

                One thing you should take note of thought is that people in Paris prefer to speak French and only French.  Many people that I asked (in French) answered immediately that they don’t speak English or German.  My advice would be to go France with a couple of phrases for basic communication, for example how to order food, buy train tickets, and ask directions.

AMSTERDAM

Amsterdam was a great city to visit.  This trip was the first one where I used the overnight train.  I only stayed for a day and a half, and I can easily say that was not long enough.  Whether you are looking for a party or want to experience the culture, a weekend stay or at least two days are required to fully enjoy Amsterdam.  

        There is plenty to do there and many very beautiful sites to see.  The city is definitely a water city, there are many, many canals going through the whole town.  I would advise the canal tour here as well.  Amsterdam is home to many museums and sites of note; there is the Monet and Rembrandt Museums, as well as a great Dutch Historical Museum.  Even though they are not advertised at all in the city there are over 200 Coffee Shops for those who are interested.  

Amsterdam was a great experience for me, it was here that I did my first “Traveler’s One” tour.  The concept is that you get a free tour from a native of the town or city and at the end of the tour you are expected to give a tip.  The tour I had was fantastic, tour are offered in English and Spanish, and I learned A LOT about Amsterdam with this tour.  Many other cities have them as well, and next time I can I will definitely do another one.

The was one drawback that I had with Amsterdam though was because it is made up of so many canals it was virtually impossible for the city to have any sort of metro system.  It makes thing difficult to find, there was a bar that my friend wanted to go to, that we had seen on our tour.  That night we tried in vain for about two hours to find that place again, we had no luck.  But fortunately there is plenty to see at night as well, so we were able to have a fine time anyway.

Dave Hohrath’s Travelers Tips

                Traveling should be a large part of your experience abroad.  It is important in the first couple weeks to find people and groups of people that are interested in traveling.  It’s good to know many people who want to travel because that will give you options and opportunities to travel more often or at least places that you would rather go to.  It’s important when you find people that they have similar interest as you.  I say this because I have gone on a couple of trips with people who had no interest in going to museums, something I enjoy doing, and we just ended up walking around the cities getting great pictures, but not really learning anything special.  I recommend that you have some sort of goal for when you travel, whether it is party and drink or enjoy the culture, to learn as much as possible or just trying a hamburger in every country. That way you can select of your friends which would be good for each trip.  I think it is good to have a plan so that you just don’t travel to say you have traveled.

                Its good to have a game plan before you go anywhere, this involves having a basic outline of places you want to go and see.  It makes it easier to have a couple sites or museums in mind before you go, so you can go to those first and decide the rest after you have got settled there.  On a couple trips we just decided to walk around and we saw a couple of sites but took a while to find out what else was to see.  This is also why I would advise buying a map or tourist guide when you first get there. It is helpful for finding things like your hostel as well as usually provided locations of monuments and sites.  Very often there are events or things going on in most cities.  A good source of finding things to do is at your hostel.  Many of the clerks will know the best places to go and how to get there.  Usually the hostels will also have a wall with pamphlets with that are going on, this has definitely helped me in the past to find something to do.  It doesn’t hurt checking online before you go as well.

                An important task, best done before getting to where ever you are going, is selecting a good hostel.  Through my experiences I have developed a few criteria to selecting a good hostel.  First what I look for is location; make sure the hostel is close to the center of town and all the sites, especially if you are only some place for a short time. You don’t want to waste precious time commuting to and from the hostel.  Also, if possible find one along the main metro of bus line.  It is incredibly handy to be able to quickly access and travel places. When I was in Amsterdam, I stayed in a hostel very far out of the way of the main city.  To get there or back took an hour long bus ride, my friend and I spent four of our 18 hours there traveling.  After that experience, I learned that it is completely worth paying an extra 20 or even thirty Euros to stay within the city. 

Cauldron of German Culture

                Using the trains to travel has been very miserable.  Here is a basic guide line of some things you can do to avoid, horrible waits and bad train experiences.  Trains don’t run from 2 to 6 in the morning.  If you don’t want to wait overnight in a train station I would suggest planning to arrive at you stop around 11, this gives you some wiggle room if you cannot catch all of your connections. Also, try to find trips with as few connections as possible, the more connections you have the more likely you will miss one because your train was late.  Also look to have around 10 to 15 minutes in between connections as well if you have the possibility.  And always when you travel it is better to arrive at the station a little early, I found that planning to arrive 30 minutes early has always been good.

                When traveling it is very convenient to not be carrying a heavy or bulky backpack or bag everywhere.  If you are only staying in a place for a couple day I would recommend bringing as few things as possible, because it makes traveling and walking around cities that much better.  Many times I have brought “entertainment material” for the bus or train rides, this might entail a couple of my school books.  Often during these trips, I never open these books.  They are just a waste of space and weight.  Something I did find useful to bring though is a single bed sheet.  Hostels will usually not supply you these and they will cost extra if you want them.  Hostels will give you a pillow with a clean sheet as well as a nice blanket.  I am sure the blanket and mattress are clean for the most part, but I have found it is usually much more comfortable sleeping with a sheet that I know is clean.  In Germany the bed sheets are different than in the United States. In the States they are just a one ply sheet, but in Germany everyone I have seen has been 2 ply with three sides sewn together, similar to a sleeping bag, or with a long and short side sewn together.

                Another criterion that you should also factor into your plans is weather.  Summer time is almost always a better time to visit most places; they are expecting lots of tourists so the towns cater more towards them.  For example, Tübingen has a beautiful bridge that during the summer, winter and fall is lined by flowerboxes full of flowers of all different colors, it is quite the site.  But during the winter they have to take them down and it loses some of its image.  The same goes for most places I am sure, plus some are naturally better in the warmer weather.  I am waiting until better weather to visit Italy; I feel that that is a place where it can really be enjoyed in the sun and warmth.  Amsterdam was a great place to visit in the cold or winter weather.   I went there in November and that was perfect time.  There were a lot people there and I almost got run over a couple times by the many people bikes there.  I was talking to my tour guide, and she had said that in the tourist season there are so many more people and bike riders that it’s almost a nuisance. 

                Last but not least, you are going to Europe, most people in America never have this opportunity or at least don’t take advantage of it.  You should make the time you are here in Europe a great time.  While here you should explore every possible chance to do or try something new.  There are so many things here to do that you cannot do back in the States; I would advise trying to do things that you wouldn’t normally try or do back home.