The Old Town Hall (in German, the Altes Rathaus) in Munich was one of the many sights Nicole Ambrose visited during her study abroad in Germany. The Knoch High School senior traveled there in August and returned Jan. 7.

Knoch High School senior Nicole Ambrose lived life outside her comfort bubble, 4,114 miles away from home for nearly five months.

“A lot of people in Cabot and Saxonburg do not live outside of our little bubble,” said Nicole, 17. “It's information that helps me broaden my perspective and understand the world a little more.”

As a participant in the German American Partnership Program, Nicole studied abroad in Weiden, a city in Bavaria, Germany, with a host family from August 2018 through Jan. 7.

After Nicole took advanced placement courses her junior year, she wanted something new and different for her senior year, she said.

“It was a great chance to step out of my comfort zone and travel across the world,” she said. “It was an opportunity I couldn't pass up.”

Although she was not afraid to fly for the first time, Nicole felt the sting of emotion as her best friend and her father, Wes Ambrose, waved goodbye at the Pittsburgh International Airport. From there, she and her mother, Tracy Ambrose, flew to Charlotte, N.C., and then on to Frankfurt.Once in Frankfurt, Nicole and her mother navigated the train system across Germany to Weiden.“It was my first time outside the country,” she said. “The farthest I've ever been from home is on my family's vacations to Georgia.”Nicole's world noticeably changed at the German train station, she said.“It was just surreal to me,” she said about the different German advertisements. “I was going to be in that country for five and a half months; it was hard to take in.”Munich was the first stop on their travels, where they stayed with her aunt and uncle, Nicole said.Forests with 50-foot-tall pine trees dotted Bavaria's scenery, she said.She also visited Neuschwanstein Castle, which was built for King Ludwig II between 1869 and 1886.After two weeks of sightseeing, her mother flew back home while Nicole began school.Nicole attended FOS/BOS Weiden, a technical school in Germany, while at the same time she took online classes for Knoch because she would not earn high school credits during her stay, she said.“It was very different from your typical American high school,” she said.The school offered students different programs specific to careers, while American school focuses on general studies, she said.

Language was not a barrier for Nicole, who has studied German for four years in high school.“Sitting in class the first week, I didn't understand, but by the end of the year I could follow along with everything the teachers were saying,” she said. “It's incredible how much more I understand.”The German people were accommodating when she could not speak German, and she felt comfortable asking for help translating, she said.“There's the stereotype that Germans are cold and uptight and strict, but if you get to know them, that's not the case at all,” she said.The members of her host family included three children, one who attended school with Nicole, she said.Among the German staples Nicole ate, some of her favorite foods became schnitzel, a breaded and fried pork chop, and currywurst, a steamed then fried pork sausage seasoned with curry ketchup and topped with curry powder or a ready-made ketchup seasoned with curry and other spices.Liverwurst and blood wurst, traditional German cuisine, did not quite make the cut with her, she said.“It was a cool experience to live as they live ... to experience how they celebrate different holidays,” she said. “That's something you wouldn't get if you were over there on vacation.”

Instead of a Thanksgiving celebration, Nicole attended Oktoberfest, she said.Summer was drier and hotter and went on forever in Bavaria, she said. In winter, the snow did not fall quite as it had in Pennsylvania, she said.Her favorite part of her trip was exploring the different cities and learning their history, she said.“Each city has its own unique twist,” she said. “It's a new experience everywhere you go.”After high school, Nicole plans to attend college and pursue a career in the medical field, genetic research or medicine.She has been accepted to Yale University in New Haven, Conn., which is her dream school, she said.Nicole said the study abroad experience introduced her to a different culture and way of life.“You can go on vacation and see sights and cities, but you don't understand the mind set,” she said. “Life and the world from an outside perspective is something really cool.”

<br />

Knoch High School senior Nicole Ambrose, 17, visited castle ruins in Flossenbürg, Germany

Schnitzel, a breaded and fried pork chop, became one of Nicole’s favorite staples during her time in Germany.

Knoch High School student Nicole Ambrose studied at the FOS/BOS Weiden in Germany during the first half of her senior year.

While Nicole Ambrose was in Berlin during her study abroad, she visited the Brandenburg Gate.