Published on: June 23, 2025 By: Amaan Nizam
On 4th January 2024, I landed in Germany for the very first time. That moment still plays on loop in my head ...
On 4th January 2024, I landed in Germany for the very first time. That moment still plays on loop in my head: cold air, unfamiliar roads, and most unforgettable of all, the first snowfall of my life. Coming from Delhi, where even winter feels more like extended autumn, this was something else.
However, the journey didn’t begin at the airport. It had started over 15 months earlier, filled with forms, exams, delays, and just enough hope to keep going.
Getting to Germany as a student isn’t a one-step process. I had to crack TestAS, a test designed to assess academic aptitude for German universities. Alongside that, I took TestDaF, where I scored B1 level not the highest, but good enough to move forward. Every step felt like a checkpoint.
Then came the APS certificate a nightmare most Indian students will relate to. Verifying documents, chasing approvals, and constantly refreshing embassy pages became part of my daily routine. That alone stretched the process for over a year.
Eventually, all the pieces came together. Visa stamped, dreams intact I was finally off to Berlin.
One of the first cultural shocks was how early everything shut down even in a city like Berlin! Coming from Delhi, where food, markets, and chaos are available 24/7, it was surreal to see stores closing by 8 PM.
On the other hand, Berlin had its own rhythm. Over time, I found comfort in the small routines coffee from the same bakery, the quiet evening walks, and the absolute calm of the city.
And if there’s one place that always lifted my mood? Alexanderplatz. That square became my go-to spot a blend of crowds, lights, and a strange sense of belonging.
I spent six months at BIC until I gave my final exams in June. A month later, in July, I received my results. With my BIC degree in hand, I boarded a flight back to India.
But this time, I wasn’t just going home.
I was leaving a piece of me in Germany.
The memories, the lessons, the cold streets, and the friendships—I carried them all back with me.
Because I knew that in just two months, I’d return.
Not to Berlin, but to Schweinfurt to begin the next phase of my journey at THWS as a Mechatronics Engineering student.
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📍 Part 2 coming soon:
Starting from zero (again) in Bavaria, university life, and everything that came after.