Discovering Myself from Eins in Munich

Hallo! My name is Jangmi Lee, and I also go by Rose since Jangmi means ‘rose’ in Korean. As mentioned, I hail from Korea. I reside in a small city called ‘Ilsan’ nestled next to Seoul. Seoul, a city where I go to school and live my daily life, is a city with fast pace, bustling crowds, yet undeniably charming and its liveliness persists even into the midnight hours.

I have lived in Korea with my parents throughout my life, so I wanted to step out of my comfort zone, and I saw the exchange program as a great opportunity to do that. Among many cities, I selected Munich as my exchange destination due to Germany’s renowned education system, with Munich being a hub for international students. Also, geographically situated in the heart of Europe, it offers an ideal base for exploring Europe.

So far, Germany is very interesting for me, coming from an Asian country which has a vastly different cultural background. I have already noticed differences, such as the liberating atmosphere of the educational system and the prevalent use of cash. Overall, I felt a sense of freedom compared to the standardized and automated aspects of life before. Additionally, the higher cost of dining out has led me to try to cook by myself, which I barely tried back home. Though, it is a newfound passion that I’m fortunate to have discovered.

I expect that this experience in Munich and LMU would present an opportunity for self-discovery. Immersing myself in new environments always reveals different facets of myself which even I didn’t know before. As I turn into my final year, when I go back to my home university, I aim to discern my passions and understand myself better through novel experiences and leisurely moments. In that sense, for the next three months, I would like to focus on things that I cannot do back at home, such as socializing with many other students from diverse cultural backgrounds or exploring quaint towns nearby Munich. I hope to fulfil all my aspirations for my semester at LMU and look forward to making many unforgettable memories here. I believe the memories from Munich will serve as valuable fuel for my future.