A week in the life of an exchange student

Have you ever wondered what a week in the life of an exchange student is like? The experiences as an exchange student are, of course, very different for everyone, so in this article I will talk just about one perspective – mine.

Mondays are always the days of studying because at the beginning of the week I still have some fresh motivation for it. I wake up at 6am, when the sun hasn’t even set yet and lay in the darkness for about 30min. When I get up, I have a quick early breakfast and then prepare for the day. As I leave my dorm and walk to the ferry stop, I can see an incredible sunrise and, of course, take pictures and post them on social media (because, honestly, why not?). In between the two lectures I have, I go back to my dorm to eat lunch as I have four hours for that. After that, I get back from university only in the evening as I have the second lecture until 7pm and just relax in my dorm room. I swear, the rest of the week is more exciting, so keep reading!

Tuesdays usually begin with a quite late breakfast due to the fact that I don’t have lectures in the morning and I can actually sleep more. When I wake up, I take a walk to my favorite park I have found in Kiellinie and sit down for a bit inhaling the fresh air. I highlight the things that come to my head in my notebook and write a poem which I will later make into a song. When I get back to my dorm, I get ready to go to my class on 4pm and as I walk to the ferry stop, romanticize my life once again (I love doing that). Tuesdays are kind of exciting because there are Karaoke evenings happening at the Pogue Mahone Irish Pub. Even though, I don’t sing there, it is fun just to hang out with people I may have met before or not. So, on that note, after my class ends, I go back to my dorm room by bus or ferry again and once I have relaxed a bit, I start to get ready for the evening. I do little shopping, have dinner and go the pub. There I meet some other exchange students because that is one of the main places we hang out nowadays. As a person who likes to have a good time and meet people, I really enjoy the Tuesday nights at Pogue Mahone.

Wednesdays, on the other hand, are completely draining most of the times because I have to get up at 6am once again and have two really long lectures. I always have a two-hour break in between two lectures and that is annoying because there is not enough time for me to go back to my dorm. I want to study on the break but end up taking a walk around the campus and discovering new interesting places. I eat lunch that I have prepared on a bench in some park and then go back to the university for my second lecture of the day. After the university is done for the day, I go to a cafe and do some additional work. Wednesday evenings are usually very spontaneous because nothing much is happening then. Sometimes I meet up with my friends and we just have dinner together or sometimes, for example, this week there is an event by ESN (Erasmus student network) in a bar: just chatting over a couple drinks. If you are not familiar with ESN and planning to go on exchange, definitely keep it in mind! ESN in every country organizes a bunch of events specifically for Erasmus and international students, it is a really great way to meet people from all around the world and have fun.

Learn more about ESN Kiel here: https://kiel.esn-germany.de/

What can I say about Thursday? The day starts with me, of course, waking up and making a small breakfast. It is pouring rain outside and the sleepy mood is sinking in. I go to the music room in my dorm and play some of my songs (I do that to feel better). When it’s 3pm, it is time to go to the university for my one and only lecture. I am really trying not to fall asleep in the class because of the whole sleepy atmosphere. When the class is done, I go to the Asian shop because in the evening we are planning a dinner with Asian food. After the dinner, we all chat for a bit longer and it is time to slowly go home. I walk back home by the sea at Kiellinie, it is really beautiful at night too. I fall asleep quickly after getting back from my walk.

Fridays – party days! I wake up pretty late and so I eat lunch as the first meal of the day. In the afternoon I go to study and write this article to a café with my friends. Time is going very fast, especially now, and I don’t even notice how 6 hours pass. I have done my homework and studied, I feel pretty proud of myself. There is a party organized by ESN happening today and I think that I should check it out. Tonight is all about having fun and feeling free.

The weekends as an exchange student are usually very different every time because sometimes the parties just drain me and I have to rest and sometimes I still keep going. Saturday: I eat some lunch and then decide to go for Fishbrötchen at Moby café in Kiellinie. Today me and my friends are going to Hamburg Reeperbahn street to party. The Deutsche Bahn is always late, you don’t even have to live in Germany to know that. Therefore, we arrive to Hamburg a little later than we planned. We have dinner on the way and than the party begins! Exchange life is very fun until you remember that you also have to study.

As no stores work on Sundays in Germany, I don’t work too. Sundays are usually meant to do laundry and prepare for the next week. Fully resting once a week is really important too, so nothing happens on Sunday as I step forwards to the next week!

This is about it. In all seriousness: the week in the life of me – an exchange student in Kiel. What is your week like?