From Hamburg to Home

iylahernden
Dec 28, 2025
4 min read

Today, there was no time for sleep in my schedule. I spent my night (or morning, depending on how you look at it) packing, trying not to wake those who were too tired to keep their eyes open. We got ready to leave at 3 a.m. I was more sleep-deprived than I have ever been on the program, and that is saying something. The bus ride lulled us all to sleep, and no amount of red-bull was going to save me. I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that in an hour, I would be in the air, leaving Hamburg behind and my friends with it.

We said a rushed and tearful goodbye, giving each other one last hug. We promised we would see each other again, no matter what. After a few times looking back and chaotic waves goodbye, we continued. It's safe to say I couldn't stop myself from getting emotional, as we made it through security and rushed to our gate.

Thankfully, one of my counselors (shoutout to Joe!) was flying back with us, and I still had my American friends with me. They were nothing short of supportive. After making it to our gate, we boarded a small airplane. Next stop: Munich.

I was tired beyond belief, still emotional from leaving my friends behind, and quickly shut my eyes on the 1-hour plane ride to Munich. I awoke with a push from the older woman sitting next to me. I had fallen on her shoulder, and I quickly apologized and rushed to leave the plane and the embarrassment behind.

Then we rushed through Munich's airport to board the next flight to Newark. There were some complications, however, as the plane was running out of seats, and there was a problem with tickets. They asked people to give up their tickets and catch the next flight to allow room for others. We barely made it onto the plane, almost leaving our camp counselor behind, as the flight attendants scrounged for seats. Luckily, we all made it on the plane, and we departed.

After 8 or 9 hours stuck in the middle seat, covered by a little blanket, legs begging for more room, we landed in Newark. This is where most of our group would depart, leaving my counselor, two other participants, and me. I said another tearful goodbye, promising to call and text when we were all back home.

Then we said goodbye to our counselor and boarded the next airplane to Denver. Little did we know the weather took a turn for the worse, and we were delayed an hour, then two, then more, and soon enough, I had to accept that I was missing my first day of senior year. The flight was then cancelled, and we all had to de-board the plane. We found some food and contacted our counselor and another AFS agent. We found eachother, booked flights for the next day, and stayed in the same hotel we had stayed in the first night of travel at the beginning of this journey.

That morning, we packed up, and I left the counsellors and my other two friends behind. Another goodbye. It seems like the past few days have been filled with them.

I finally got out of Newark (worst place ever) and arrived in Denver. I got some much-needed food and took my last flight to Albuquerque. I arrived, very happy to be home, but sad to have left my friends. My mom picked me up, and suddenly, I was back home. Everything had a little less color than I remembered, and I found myself wishing I were back in Hamburg, taking the bus. There were so many stories I wanted to tell, but I couldn't tell all of them, and every time I tried to tell a story about my time there, I wanted my family to feel the experience. Instead, every story fell flat. It wasn't the same. The only people who understood what I had gone through were the people I had left behind. More than that, I needed time to readjust and sleep. Let's just say, readjusting was much harder than I expected, and I had to be patient with myself and realize that there was a lot here that I had missed.

It's been a few weeks, and I can say that I couldn't have asked for a better experience with better people. We still stay in contact, like we promised, and send each other memes and updates once in a while, with the occasional happy _____(insert holiday) message.

One message I will leave for people who are looking to travel, or are presented with the opportunity: don't let anything stop you, just do it anyway. Traveling, especially alone, is one of the best experiences you will ever have, and I hope to continue searching for these kinds of opportunities. Who knows, maybe I'll end up back in Germany someday, and that reunion will be well worth it :)

Lastly, I couldn't have had such a good time without my counselors (shoutout to Joe, Monty, Melf, and Ezra) and all the participants, German and American alike. Thanks for making these two weeks special.

Until the next adventure.

More photos in my favorites album :)