Last weeks in Pittsburgh

Dear followers,

We are writing to you one last time on our blog. Because tomorrow (29.05.25) we are heading back to Germany.

The last three weeks since our vacation have flown by. Between working and packing, we tried to make the most of our time here. I think we succeeded quite well. Since we had taken care of all the organizational matters for the move back in February/March, we thankfully only had to 'just' pack in the last few weeks. For those interested: We have now become richer by 2 large suitcases and one carry-on suitcase.

We spent our last three weeks taking many walks by the rivers, meeting friends, and enjoying the good weather. And now it's already Wednesday... one day before our flight. We used the last days to reflect on this year. And what can I say: We had an incredibly wonderful time here. On one hand, because we had the opportunity to experience the USA from a completely different perspective. On the other hand, because we met many amazing people who made this year something special. There were so many new encounters, whether at work or in our free time, that constantly reminded us we made the right decision to move here for a year. Julian was able to grow in his job, establish a new position that brought new challenges, and I could grow in my volunteer work and then even more in my job in physiotherapy, learning quite a bit from colleagues and patients.

Over the year, we learned a lot about ourselves. We realized on a completely different level how much we value our family and friends, who always stand by us, support us, and whom we missed. We often had to step out of our comfort zone, make phone calls, deal with official documents, go to doctor’s appointments, approach people to make connections, etc. All of this would not have been a problem for us in Germany. But in another country, with a different language/culture and different processes, it always proved to be a challenge, which we mastered. Thankfully, it is known to become easier over time. I think you can somewhat understand what I mean.

To conclude: We are very, very grateful to have had the opportunity to live here for a year. We collected many new impressions, grew personally, and got to know the country. It will be a year that we will look back on fondly and will always remain in good memory.

Now we are looking forward to coming home again, because that is what we missed the most: Our home! We always felt very comfortable, but it never completely felt like home for us. Therefore, the anticipation is of course great and yet somehow unbelievable that in just over 24 hours we will already be sitting on the plane, leaving everything here behind.... But everything has an end and that's a good thing.

Here’s a fitting quote to finish: 'Don't cry because it's over, Smile because it happened!'

With these words, we now say goodbye on this blog. We hope you always had something interesting to read, and we could take you with us on our year in the USA.

See you soon! We are looking forward to seeing you all back home!