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Starting a New Life in Germany: Arrival, Home, and First Days

 Starting a New Life in Germany

Arrival, home, and the slow beginning of a new routine

Last Thursday, I arrived in the German city where I now live. It was the same season as my very first visit to Germany three years ago ⎯ frozen snow, quiet streets, and houses painted in calm, muted colors. 

This time, the mission was simple but heavy: safely getting two 23-kilogram suitcases and a solid backpack from the airport to our home. Everything went smoothly at first. My luggage arrived intact, and I thought the hardest part was over. 

But just as the journey was nearing its end, I made a small but painful mistake. While rushing onto an ICE train at Frankfurt station, I lifted my suitcase too quickly and cracked my right thumbnail on the metal steps. Blood, shock, and improvisation followed. In the train restroom, I wrapped my thumb in thick paper towels and secured it with a spare hair tie I happened to have.

I had been imagining a warm shower at home, washing away the fatigue of travel. Instead, that moment arrived with a reminder that new beginnings often come with small, unplanned costs.


Arrival in Regensburg

After three hours and twenty minutes, the train finally arrived in Regensburg. Although I wanted to get off immediately, I took my time unloading my luggage. It was a quiet weekday afternoon. The platform was calm. This time, I wasn't arriving as a visitor, but as someone beginning a life here.

I took a deep breath. The cold air felt sharper than in Busan, almost icy, but it cleared the tiredness that had settled into my lungs during the long journey. As I looked around, I spotted M smiling and running down the stairs toward me. "You're finally here."

On the way home, I felt the distance from my family in Korea like a thin white thread tied gently around my heart. But alongside that thread, I am slowly winding a new one ⎯ the family I am building here.


Choosing Our Home

Last summer, we searched for a place to live together. On the morning of our wedding day, we made the final decision. 

The house has wooden floors, wooden doors, and white walls. What drew me in was the warmth in the space. A large terrace connects both the living room and the bedroom, and a small staircase leads to an attic room that stretches above much of the house.

From the living room, I watched how sunlight moves through the space. Morning light fills the living room and bedroom deeply, while the orange glow of sunset lingers near the dining table before fading away.

Having lived in apartments all my life, this three-story building with a forest just beyond the terrace feels almost like living inside nature.


My Workspace


Returning After Four Months

Less than a month after moving in, I had to return to Korea to prepare for our wedding ceremony. The house was unfinished, furniture missing, boxes unpacked. Coming back four months later felt both unfamiliar and comforting. This is our home now, a place that will slowly take shape around our lives.

Jet lag woke me early in the morning. I walked quietly through the house before stepping into the small room that will become my workspace. This room will likely be the center of my life here. I began moving furniture, adjusting the layout, letting my body grow tired enough to invite sleep again. It felt good to use the waking time instead of fighting it.


Settling into a New Routine

On Monday morning, I joined my company's weekly meeting ⎯ this time on German local time. Because I had already prepared my workspace, I was able to focus immediately.

In Korea, I often relied on delivery food to save time for writing. Here, cooking healthier meals takes more time, and my writing pace has slowed. This very post has been written over several days, a few lines at a time. I trust that as routines settle, rhythm will follow. 

I'll be sharing these small stories from Germany, slowly and honestly, as they unfold.





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