Join me in looking back at my time abroad as I prepare to finally return to my home in the U.S. Rather than finding pictures of my big adventures and landscapes, I decided to focus on the moments of everyday life, whether I was in Freiburg or on a trip. 

February

Dreiländereck, Basel, Switzerland.

Fasnacht in Basel, a version of Karneval. What’s unique about the Basler Fasnacht is that it starts on the Monday after Ash Wednesday, rather than before. Read more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnival. 

Wasserschlössle, Freiburg. Literally meaning “water castle,” this is a façade for the water tank that supplies Freiburg with all its drinking water. Fun fact: it’s entirely gravity-powered, with no pumps! Read more here: https://visit.freiburg.de/en/attractions/wasserschloessle-water-castle-in-freiburg. 

March

Pizza vending machine in StuSie! Featuring a friend.

A statue of Dionysus/Bacchus (I assume) in Seepark, Freiburg.

Exhibit at the Natural History Museum of Basel: “sexy: the driving force of life.”

Bison at the Mundenhof Tierpark.

Petting goats at the Mundenhof Tierpark.

Ampelmann pasta in Berlin (https://www.ampelmann.de/en/). 

April

Thrift shopping at Spinnwebe in Freiburg (highly recommend!).

Flyer for zuka solicafe, an “inclusive meeting place with sustainable gastronomy” that provides food and drink with a “solidarity pricing system.” Read more here: https://www.jbw.de/zuka-solicafe/. 

My hair after being braided by a friend at Seepark :).

Playing with shadows in Leuk, Switzerland on a class field trip.

May

Funny fountain in Freiburg (near Galeria Restaurant).

Political posters for MERA25, a party for “radical change.” Read more here: https://mera25.de/en/. 

The tallest tree in Germany (Waldtraut vom Mühlwald). Fun fact: it’s a Douglas fir tree, a tree native to Turtle Island/North America! They were brought over to Germany to sustain the German lumber industry.

Sticker at a tram stop station: “Still not loving Zionism!”

Graffiti on a political ad for the AfD, a far-right political party in Germany. The ad reads: “Unser Land Zuerst” (Our Country First), and the graffiti responds: “Nein Danke!” (No Thanks!).

June

Informational card for the Pink Party, a Uni Freiburg student party to celebrate Pride Month, organized by the Regenbogenreferat, a “student advocacy group for gay, lesbian, bisexual, a_sexual, trans*, inter*, poly*, and queer* students.”

An informational poster about the Nakba and colonization in Palestine, presented at the Camp of Return by the Students For Palestine Freiburg (https://www.instagram.com/studentsforpalestine.fr/). 

Carnations given to me for my birthday by my German teacher :).

Model of a proposed redesign of the Mathilde-Otto-Platz, designed and built by my group partner and me for the ESS Sustainable Urban Design class.

Combination farewell BBQ and double-birthday party, organized by a fellow student.

Delicious vanilla ice cream with crushed Oreos and homemade caramel given to me by a friend as a birthday present.

Decoration and sign from the UnderVauter Sommerfest at Vauban.

Weathervane on top of a 46-meter tower.

July

Measuring leaf area index.

Cleaning a rain gauge.

Assembling gas measurement equipment.

Choosing which postcard to send to my dad.

An orange-red Arion slug, possibly Arion rufus. 

An “American” cookie, aka a black and white cookie, at the Obere Metzgerei Franz Winterhalter in Freiburg. Look to the cookie, Elaine!