Many things here are better than in Europe
It was Stephan’s first time in Asia so some things definitely took the German students by surprise. Especially the humidity inThailand’s capital city was surprisingly hard toget used to.
– I also got lost during my first school day. I had a map but it wasn’t scaled so I had no clue how long the distances really are. Luckily one of the helpful localsgave me the right directions and Ifound my way, Stephan tells now, after nearly four months of living in the massive Bangkok.
During the four months Stephan has defeated the culture shock and now he is really enjoying his life in Bangkok and the studies atSiam University in Western Bangkok.
– Many things here are better than in Europe. People aren’t always in a rushand, for example, food is much cheaper than in Germany, Stephan says.
During his stay, Stephan has gotten to know the local culture both in the university campus area and outside of it. The German student has had time to make trips to many parts of Thailand, for example to some of the Southern islands along the coast. He hasalso visited Malaysia and there’s even more to come. After the semester ends, Stephan is heading to China, where his friend is living at the moment.
– I’d like to seeBeijing, Shanghai and HongKong.
Travelling hasn’t been the only way to learn about Asian culture. Stephan has taken a Thai food cooking course, for example. There he learned to make real spring rolls and curry food. In addition to student activities, Siam University has providedsome great opportunities to learn more about the Thai culture as well.
– For example, we had aThai boxing course which was held by the actual former champion of Thai boxing. Meeting him and taking part in this coursewas a really great experience.
Stephan is also very happy about the fact that he has had a chance to get to know many students from Myanmar. They have had same projects and conferences and it’sbeen really interesting for both the European and theMyanmarianstudents.
The studies at Siam university aren’t, of course, comprised of only Thai boxing and conferences with other students. During the semester Stephan has been sitting in manybusiness classes. In Germany, Stephan studies Engineering but in Bangkok, he chose to take business courses because they’ll probably help him in his future plans, especially because Asia’s importance in the global business is growing all the time.
– Ihave both International Economics and International Banking courses. It’s good to know more about supply and demand and exchange rates, Stephan says.
Besides business courses, Stephan also studies Thai civilization and Spanish. He has already studied Spanish inGermany and decided to continue his studies in Bangkok because Siam university offered him a great chance to do that.
Though it’s hard to believe, Stephan’s semester in Bangkok is almost over. The final exams take place in the middle of October. Then Stephan flies to China and after that, he’ll travel back to Germany. Although the culture shock has been defeated and Stephan has really enjoyed his stay in Bangkok, he is alsohappy to fly back home. Still, Stephan’s sure that he’ll never forget all the great experiences he has had during his time as an exchange student.
– The best thing here is the mixture of all different experiences: great parties, studying, traveling, meeting new people and much more.
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