Wrap up : 2025

Many years ago I had read an article about Abraham Lincoln. In some context, it mentionend “Rolling stone gathers no moss”. The phrase has stuck to me. I feel that phrase has quietly shaped my outlook and nudged me into being a bit more experimental in my life – sometimes intentional, sometimes by poor decisions.

This year has come to an end, and it too has brought so many changes in my life. The transition from professional to student has been illuminating. It taught me an important survival skill – cooking. I am also getting more disciplined with time, just like so many other students here, who juggle between studying, feeding themselves, working and enjoying.

But fear not. I will spare you the details. The rest of the blog is about the last month – The Christmas and the new year here in Germany.

Mercedes Museum

My winter break was between 20 Dec to 6th Jan. The first weekend was about meeting my friends from India who had come here. There is something deeply comforting about meeting known faces in a foreign land – it instantly drops homesickness by 37.5 % (They also bring be spices from India)

After a five hour journey, I met my friends in Stuttgart. As always, DB did not disappoint me. It gave my journey an adventurous start with new constructions and diverted trains.

Our first destination was the Mercedes Museum. It was bigger than I expected. The three hours that we spent in the museum did not do justice and I will have to visit again to understand it.

The museum takes you through a timeline, from the oldest to the latest cars. The tour starts on the 9th floor and one has to walk your way down. Every level advances you through the timeline.

I am not a car enthusiast so I don’t know the details of the cars but I can definitely say I can never buy one of those. Some are out of stock others out of range.

Christmas Markets

Christmas Markets are temporary markets that are setup for 1 month before the Christmas. It is about colorful shops, games, drinks, food and lot of people. I tried visiting a number of markets because each market has a different theme and energy.

Stuttgart

I tried the Glühwein (It is a wine which is hot and mixed with spices).

Esslingen

This market was themed like medieval period. The people were also dressed in that theme. Unfortunately, I did not get photos with them. But I have photo with my friends!!

A small hike in the city brought us to this amazing view of the city. The steep hike, on the other hand, led us to collectively scolding the person whose idea it was in the first place. You can try to guess whose it was from the picture. (Comment below and I will tell you if you are correct)

Fürth

This was another Christmas market which was also fashioned as a medieval theme. I enjoyed the most here. I was with a friend, had more time and there was music and axe throwing.

Nürnberg

I was alone here. So, I just made a quick round. It was OK! Not bad, not great.

New year’s Eve

The new year evening sounded suspiciously like the Indian Diwali with fire crackers everywhere. Like even on the streets.

I started watching the crackers go at 6 PM from my room in Erlangen. But the real fun began at midnight. Me and my friends went to the neighboring city of Nurnberg, expecting more action.

The city did not disappoint us.

We emerged out of the train station at Lorenzkirche 15 mins before 12. It welcomed us with a complete chaos and madness.

There were rockets bursting everywhere. I always thought Germany was a rule following, human life and safety critical country. But this one hour made me question everything.

Every 20 meters or so, there was a guy lighting a rocket from the hand. If you weren’t careful you might just get launched along with the rocket being lit next to your leg. Nobody even warns you!

This loud madness of rockets on the sky, ground and everywhere continued for 1 hr. The rockets kept hitting the buildings along the street and residents watched the rockets calmly as it approached their faces – protected by the closed window. They clearly were expereinced in this annual ritual.

Post new year

The shortest day passed on the 21st Dec. The shortest day was just 8hrs long. So the days could get only longer now. I was thinking it only gets better from here.

But I learned that earth takes longer to thaw. And it gets colder in January.

The first week of this month has been very cold, averaging around -2 deg and going as low as -10. With it, it also brought lot of snow which I enjoyed. Especially, given the fact that I did not have to step out of the house.

Things will change tomorrow when my university starts again. So I will walk in the cold.