A sweet adventure

Moving abroad to pursue the career of your dreams can be filled with challenges and obstacles. Dídac, a young apprentice pastry chef, moved to Munich to learn about the culture, discover new recipes, and, above all, expand his work experience. This adventure also meant stepping into a new environment with new people and a different language. Dídac had to overcome the language barrier with his colleagues as well as adapt to the German way of working. This experience has not only been challenging, but also deeply enriching.

In this interview, Dídac reflects on his daily routine, the cultural differences between working in Spain and Germany, overcoming homesickness, and how this international experience change his discipline, and future perspective in the pastry world.

Q: What is it like to work in a pastry factory in Germany?

A: Working in a pastry factory in Germany is actually pretty cool. Every day I get to do a lot of typical German pastry things. I really enjoy it because I like to learn new recipes, so it has been a great experience overall.

Q: How does working as a pastry chef make you feel?

A: I feel good, actually. I have always wanted to be a pastry chef, so it’s beautiful to do what you like. Being here in Germany is great too, because I love learning new things and discovering different cultural perspectives.

Q: What made you choose Germany for your training?

A: I chose Germany, specifically Munich, because of its culture. I arrived in September, so experiencing Oktoberfest was really cool, and now I’m looking forward to all the Christmas traditions. Also, Germany is right in the center of Europe, which makes it very easy to travel to other places. And, above all, I have always loved German pastry.

Q: Could you describe your daily work routine?

A: I start at 6:00 AM. I always begin by working with croissant dough, baking items like croissants and pain au chocolat. After a 30 minute break, I move on to pretzels, strudels (we make a lot of those), and various cinnamon rolls, with vanilla, cinnamon, or apple. By 12:00 PM, we start cleaning the workspace, and once that’s finished, we head home.

Q: What differences have you noticed between working in Spain and working in Germany?

A: In Germany, everything ismuch more organized and polite. In Spain, work can sometimes be a bit chaotic, but in Germany, everyone strictly aligns with the guidelines and stays focused on their tasks. People here are more willing to follow established rules.

Q: How would you describe the working enviroment at your work here?

A: It can feel a bit cold, but not because the people are rude, they are actually nice and you can talk with them. The issue is that most of them don’t speak English. I spend the whole day listening to German conversations whithout understanding a word, what can make me feel unwelcome sometimes. I often rely on hand gestures and pointing to communicate, because of the language barrier. I feel sometimes like an outsider. Back home in Spain, I feel more comfortable expressing myself, whithout pressure.

Q: What has been your biggest challenge working in another country?

A: Aside from the language, being here alone, away from my family and friends was the hardest part. During the first few weeks, I felt quite homesick and missed Spain. However, 1 think that phase is over now, and I’m starting to feel much better being here on my own.

Q: How does your work schedule affect your life outside of work?

A: Waking up so early at 5:00 AM is what affects me the most. When I get home, all I want to do is take a siesta. I need to sleep to revive myself. But on the positive side, since I leave work at noon, I technically have the whole afternoon and evening free. I do have time because I finish at 12:00 PM. I eat lunch and have the rest of the day to myself. Even though I usually sleep from the time I get home until 5:00 or 6:00 PM, it doesn’t affect my plans that much.

Q: How has this experience changed the way you see your future as a pastry?

A: It has taught me how to work effectively outside my comfort zone. I’ve learned that things don’t always go exactly as planned or expected. Now, I focus on not having strict expectations and giving my absolute best every single day in my job. And with this expirience l’ve learned a lot of traditional German pastry recipes. But since this is my first real job in the pastry world, l’ve also learned how to stay focused and do my job well.

Dídac at his pastry factory (courtesy of Dídac)