Bangkok: One of the best decisions I have ever made

The last month, November, was once again full of new experiences and last but not least, the task to finish all courses successfully. At the beginning of December we took a night bus to Chiang Mai for a few days, of course in lecture-free time. We did this because of the light festival Loy Krathong. Here we let flower arrangements illuminated with candles float on the river or also let lanterns rise into the sky. The 14-hours bus ride was worthwhile, for the beautiful scenery of the lights alone, although a slightly bitter aftertaste spread due to the environmental pollution caused by the lights (a fact that is often pointed out in Southeast Asia). We also rented motor scooters and explored the nearby national park on our own. The breathtaking nature and the cool climate offered us a welcome change from Bangkok and cleared our minds for the upcoming exams.

Another absolutely recommendable experience was to take a taxi boat over the Chao-Phraya and rent a bike in “Bangkok’s Lung” and enjoy the nature there while you can see the skyline between the trees. Apart from other exuberant evenings in the nonsi-residence and visiting art exhibitions, there was not much time left until the project work and examinations had to be completed. Since we often had to do a lot of small work in many courses during the semester, the effort was however kept within limits.
In general, I can say that the level of workload in Bangkok is much lower than in Germany. Nevertheless, you learn a lot here, even if it may be in other areas. On the day of the last examination, a farewell dinner was organised by the university. We crossed the river with a ship in the evening and enjoyed a delicious buffet. Definitely a successful conclusion and a great opportunity to say goodbye to everyone. All in all we got along very well and often did something together in a bigger group.

The four months, which were just a sequence of highlights, passed unfortunately much too fast. It is hard for me to believe that it will be Christmas soon, but I can’t go home yet. Since the semester started in the middle of August, I still have extended semester holidays. That’s why I flew to Singapore for a few days, together with other Macromedia students from Munich and Hamburg, who have now all become good friends of mine. From there to Bali and then by ferry to Lombok. Here we sat in a private villa for 10,70 Euro per night and still talk about the great time we all had together in Bangkok. None of us regret the decision having chosen Bangkok as our destination for our semester abroad and are just grateful to have had this fantastic opportunity.

Nevertheless, I would like to add that Bangkok is a somewhat chaotic metropolis, which may not be suit everyone. But if you get fully involved, then you will certainly spend one of the best times here.

Many thanks for reading and enjoy your hopefully upcoming semester abroad. If you have more specific questions and are thinking about going to Bangkok, please feel free to contact me by mail 🙂