In Amritesh’s words, “It was an amazing experience traveling across 18 different cities and towns across Germany over a period of 2 weeks, wherein not only did I get to attend a variety of scientific talks but also got educated about the German history and the major events that shaped up the country in the last 100 years. The visit commenced with a lovely lunch reception at the Humboldt Stiftung headquarters in Bonn. Some of the tour visits that I really enjoyed were to the Bonn Museum, which provided a comprehensive knowledge of German history; ongoing aerospace research at Braunschweig Research Airport, including an experience inside an aircraft simulator, Young Euro Classic Concert in Berlin; and the visit to the Hartmann Organic farm in Oberelswald who not only set an example of how to achieve a sustainable future but also win you over with their warm hospitality.

Other informative events included visits to Wattenmeer National Park, scientific talks at Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology in Jena, a visit to the German Bundestag (parliament), castle visit and Wine tasting event in Wuerzburg, a boat trip around Hamburg port, a visit to Berliner Tafel in Berlin and scientific talks on climate change at the German Climate computing Center DKRZ, Hamburg. I met many fellow Humboldtians and forged amazing friendships during this tour. I am extremely grateful to the AvH Stiftung for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and event like this is what makes the AvH fellowship stand apart and ahead of the rest.”

In fact, the visit to the organic farm was published as a German news article in Öko-Modellregion Rhön-Grabfeld and Main Post.

It is heartening to see the international researchers interested in knowing Germany outside the lab walls, because mutual respect and cooperation is the need for the scientific community more than ever before.