To think I am entering my 5th week in Berlin already is shocking. Week 4 might have been my favorite so far. Being in Berlin is exciting not just because I love this city, but also because I look forward to going to work everyday. My mornings and afternoons at work are just as fun and rewarding as my evenings exploring the city. The team at HEYL has elevated my experience abroad to another level, and when I chose to apply for the IIP over the GBI program, it was with the hope of having an experience like the one I am having now. This past week I started new projects with the sales team in addition to my tasks with the marketing department. I thoroughly enjoy being able to work with different people and learn the importance of everybody’s role at the company.

This week was definitely not all work, though. I made good use of my evenings and the weekend enjoying everything Berlin has to offer. I planned a picnic at Tempelhofer Feld with friends, visited the DDR Museum, went to Hamburger Bahnhof, and had the best Vietnamese food of my life, just to name a few highlights.

This past Saturday I went to Dresden, which is only a 2.5 hour bus ride from Berlin. I was blown away by how gorgeous it was. The moment I stepped off the bus I could not stop thinking about how there is nothing that stunning just 2.5 hours from Pittsburgh. The buildings were so interesting to look at, if it not had been pouring rain I would have spent much more time taking in all of the architecture. Despite the rain, we still had a great time in Dresden visiting museums, sightseeing, and eating Eierschecke, which I highly recommend. We spent most of our time at the Zwinger Palace, a huge complex that was constructed between 1710 and 1728 for Augustus the Strong. Today, it houses multiple museums. My favorite was Old Masters Picture Gallery, which featured an informative exhibit about Hercules.

Since I have been here for 4 weeks, I have noticed a lot of cultural differences in public life. Some are easier to adapt to, like waiting at red lights and not jaywalking, spending more time at restaurants after finishing your meal (asking for the receipt never fails to be slightly awkward), and not needing to scan a ticket when entering public transit, which honestly needs to be implemented in the U.S. as soon as possible. Some smaller, less important differences include pet owners not having their dogs on a leash and letting them free roam the streets (adorable) and Coke Zero being more widely available than Diet Coke. In the office the most obvious difference is the dress code. It is common to dress very casually at work, which makes a lot of sense because, honestly, why wouldn’t you want to be comfortable at a place where you spend eight hours a day? The other huge difference is work life balance. When the day is over it is time to go, and there is no expectation to stay late. There is so much respect for your time and the separation between work life and private life is pretty much sacred. In the U.S., working overtime is often praised as “going above and beyond”, and at some companies it is simply expected. After spending time in Germany, it seems ridiculous to demand so much of people’s personal time.

Obviously, 4 weeks is not enough time to fully understand a culture, but it has been enough to appreciate a different way of living. I am super excited for another week in Berlin!