My first trip to Europe was also my first trip to any place outside India. That happened in 2007 and had an ever-lasting impression on me. Later, while in the US for my PhD I did get a chance to travel to India via Heathrow Airport, London but never stepped out of the airport. While I was pursuing PhD in Buffalo, my sister was pursuing her PhD in France and later she decided to leave India and stay in Europe, making it possible to have a home away from home in Europe.
While staying with my family in Hyderabad, we decided to visit my sister’s family in Munich, Germany. It was in 2017 that my passport was about to expire so I applied for it and got it within 2 weeks’ time. Later, we applied for the Schengen Visa for our trip to EU nations. This was also the time, I planned to venture into my first postdoc outside India. During our Schengen Visa day at the consulate, our attendant informed us to specifically revise the invitation letter mentioning dates of arrival and return as European Embassy had clarified directions to permit the visa only for the duration of stay. Needless to say, we had purchased tickets and were risking losing all our money if not granted the visa. However, we received it a few months before our trip.
The time between our visa arrival and the trip day was infinitely long as if it were never to pass. Eventually, the day arrived and we traveled to Hyderabad Airport. First, our domestic flight reached Mumbai where at the international counter we were asked to share all the details for our stay in Germany. It was a big fuzz and after a while, we boarded our flight. There were many Indians traveling to Munich on that flight and it felt like just another trip outside, only this time it wasn’t the US but Germany.
After few hours in the flight, we reached Munich and were welcomed by my sister and her husband. It was a wonderful morning, and they had planned place-visit for each and every day of our stay there. I remember that our trip included my birthday as well, so it was an added advantage. Firstly, we saw churches and visited Munich Zoo on a fine day, I have many pictures from there. We even went for a long morning walk nearby with the streets surrounded by flowers and trees. As I was attempting applications for a postdoc to the US, I was interviewed by a faculty while in Germany. While he appreciated my work, I didn’t end up getting hired in his lab. But it was great getting interviewed from Germany!
Then we traveled to Paris from Munich in a eurorail for a 3-nights trip. It was my second time visiting Paris and so while I was visiting after a gap of 10 years, much had not changed in Paris including the major tourists destinations. While there, we mostly used the subway to cover long distances and walked the remaining time. I think amongst 4 of us, I was the only one who struggled to walk long distances.
Later, on our return to Munich, we celebrated my birthday by visiting the hometown of my sister’s husband. For this, we traveled by a local train to a nearby place. They had cooked nice Indian food for us which tasted heaven. Then we visited his aunt’s place in a village for which we traveled by road in their car. I could hardly find traffic unlike what we see in India. There we had nice beer and cake in a cozy home away from home.
Just a few days before our return journey, my sister decided to spend a day in Salzburg, Austria which was located nearby to Munich. We packed our bags and reached Salzburg. It was a small picturesque city where one could see almost everyone walking. It was full of tourists in that warm sunny August of 2017. I remember walking uphill to reach the entrance of a fort and spending good quality time amongst the crowd there. The fort was well preserved however it was not as big as what I had seen in Rajasthan.
The day before our journey we decided to just relax and stay at home. So here we were doing nothing and just chilling. We went outside for an ice cream and that’s all that we did. I purchased chocolates for my colleagues back in India. We ended up spending good quality two weeks in Europe without work stress and trust me it was a blessing!