Returning Home Early From Freiburg to Madison

By Jacob Bartelt (AYF 19-20)

My transition back to the United States in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic was, to be frank, stressful and disorienting. I know I can speak for many students in my AYF cohort when I say how deeply disappointing it is to miss out on the second half of our year in Freiburg.

I myself was abruptly torn from a trip with my sisters. We arrived in Lucerne, Switzerland from Freiburg the day the program was cancelled. We had been exploring the city and planned to climb one of the snow-capped Alpine summits the next day, when, at 20:00, I received the email explaining AYF had been cancelled. After some contemplation, we decided to continue with our trip.

However, I received notification around 02:00 that President Trump was going to ban all travel from Europe to the USA. Unaware as most were that American citizens were exempt, I panicked and woke up my sisters and told them to start finding a flight. After rushing to pack and get to the train station by morning, my sisters tearfully departed after a mere 48 hours in Europe. It was their first time. As they headed to Zurich, I took the first train back to Freiburg.

In front of the Münster with my sisters.

I arrived and began packing my things right away. My friends and I said our goodbyes, promising we would see each other back in the States someday. On my last day in Freiburg, I took a stroll through my neighborhood Herdern and the Altstadt, visiting all my favorite locations like Curry & Fritz and, of course, the Cathedral. Later that evening, my flatmates insisted on dinner together; we shared many laughs and reminisced on the last couple months. As the ICE pulled out of the Freiburg Hauptbahnhof, I reassured myself this was not tschüss, but rather auf Wiedersehen. I spent my last two days in Europe in Frankfurt, exploring the city and waiting on hold for several hours since I had to find a new flight after mine was unexpectedly cancelled. Finally, on March 15th, as my flight landed in Milwaukee, I could breathe a sigh of relief (and maybe resignation) after a week of constant stress and little sleep.

Being back in Wisconsin now for two months has been bittersweet. On the one hand, it’s comforting to be back home during these strange times. On the other hand, none of us has returned to any real normalcy because of the stay-at-home orders, online classes, and other things. Despite all the aspects to which I could point that show why this has been difficult, I also want to take a moment to acknowledge a few positive developments over the course of the past two months. For one, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how grateful I am for the financial support I continued to

Euro symbol in Frankfurt am Main.

receive in the form of housing payments following my early departure. These continuing scholarship funds lifted a big weight off my shoulders because it meant I had one less thing to worry about. It also meant one less additional charge I’d have to deal with during the transition back home.

I also want to acknowledge the support I’ve received from AYF during these hectic months. I wasn’t sure what the next step was after coming home in terms of academics: I worried I’d have to take another semester in Madison and suffer the financial consequences. AYF was originally only going to offer two courses for the summer semester, but Ulli and Peter promised they would try their hardest to get more options for us. I was skeptical at first – I still felt disillusioned by all this and didn’t know how I’d feel taking online courses through the program. However, the two directors were able to offer us nine different options for summer semester classes through AYF. Because of their efforts, I was able to fulfill all my credit needs this semester. On top of this, Ulli and Peter have been there for us every step of the way, consistently supporting our transition home by offering Zoom sessions and aiding us in tying up loose ends. I’m very thankful for the personal care we’ve received from them.

All in all, it was heart-wrenching to be torn away from Germany so soon, and online classes have been difficult to adjust to especially as the weather gets nicer. Yet all my time at home has given me a chance to think about how lucky I am it wasn’t worse. The tireless work of Ulli and Peter as well as everyone else involved with AYF has proved a boon to us at a time when everything else has deteriorated. The financial support of the sister city committees has also made the transition process a lighter burden to bear. I want to thank everyone who has helped us AYFers not only throughout the coronavirus pandemic, but throughout our whole time in Germany.

I hope everyone stays healthy and has a good rest of the year despite this all!

Inside the Münster with the historical Fastentuch (a 400 year old painted Lenten Cloth) covering altar and apse.

We welcome your contribution to our communal story telling via the AYF Alumni Profiles Project page!