Exploring Tübingen Altstadt

by Otshepeng Buckwalter

When coming to Tuebingen, I didn't know exactly where I would be staying, but I remember as soon as I got my host family - I looked the address up and saw that I was in the heart of Tuebingen. I didn't know how close I would be to where we would have our classes, but I knew that I was close enough to immerse myself in the city because there was so much to see around me! Upon arrival, I learned that I would be staying in Altstadt, or the Old Town of Tuebingen, which is so rich with history. 

I remember on my first walk home with my host mother - I was convinced that I would never get used to the scenic route, and lo and behold, I didn't. There are millions of 'Gassen' or small, alleyway-like roads that I've utilized throughout the month of January, and often, I try and find a different way to walk through the Old Town on my way home. I have the heart of an explorer, and I love to immerse myself in my surroundings. Being in Altstadt - hearing the church bells ring, running my hands across the walls and feeling their stories through their texture, experiencing the morning markets, asking for directions to Hauptbahnhof in very broken German - those moments have been the highlight of my trip in Tuebingen. The tours and excursions have been superb, but getting to know a city intimately, and on my own terms, has proved to make me fall deeper in-love with this city. 

I feel as though with travel, it is so important to open your heart up to where you are so that you can soak as much of it in as possible. I am bittersweet with the incoming conclusion of our trip, but I stand by the notion that I will be leaving a part of me in the Altstadt. Being able to navigate myself, and then having to leave the city as I get accustomed to it is definitely one of the leading reasons I am going to do my best to come back to this town.