Preparations and start of the journey

It was good that I took April off to prepare for the trip, clean out the apartment, and, above all, spend a lot of time with loved ones! I particularly enjoyed the week around Easter. Even though that week was very busy with visiting family and friends, I was able to enjoy the time and everything was very relaxed. It was a 'farewell party' just the way I wanted it. Not a big party where I wouldn't really benefit, but quality time with people who are important to me.

Back in Karlsruhe, the excitement started to build up slowly. Now I had three full days until the big day. That should be enough time to pack my backpack and boxes. Thanks to my great travel packing list, which I can use for almost all of my trips, packing my backpack was relatively quick.

But packing the boxes and storing them was a bit more challenging in my head - I had already started clearing out weeks before. On the day before the flight, I started to panic a bit. I didn't realize how much stuff I still had.

The day of the flight was almost similar to the day before submitting my master's thesis. But with pressure, you can handle any amount of work. By 4 p.m., all the boxes were packed, the last load of junk was taken to the second hand store, the apartment was cleaned and ready for handover, and the luggage was ready so that I had a 2-hour buffer before my train to the airport.