International Immersions

On the 6th day of March Durgadevi Saraf Institute of Management Studies [DSIMS], commenced its International Immersion with the students of First year PGDM to Germany and Switzerland. The immersion was scheduled for 7 days with its reroute to India on the 13th of March 2016. The ramble consisted of visits to the cities of Frankfurt, Munich, Heidelberg, Stuttgart, Neuschwanstein, Zurich, Engelberg, Luzern & Schaffhausen. With scholarly visits to the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, the Mercedes Benz Museum, the BMW Welt, ETH University & the Ayinger brewery; where the gratifying visits were inclusive city tours, City Squares and the Penultimate visit to Mount Titlis.

The Voyage commenced early morning from Chatrapati Shivaji Terminal 2 with flights of Emirates and Oman Air successfully leaving a tick mark on the bucket list of many students as their 1st travel to an international destination along with the 1st ever experience of travelling by air. All the built up excitement and enthusiasm was unleashed upon reaching the connecting halt at the busiest airport in the world the Dubai International Airport with a shopping spree at the Duty Free Shop. And after a change of airplanes and 4hrs of journey the initial destination was reached; Frankfurt, the airport welcomed everyone with fresh breeze and windy atmosphere of 20 C with mild sunlight into the financial heart of Germany. The Coaches arranged took the lot to the place of halt Leonardo Royal Hotel.

After refreshing up everyone was taken to the city to have a view of the illuminated city square late in the evening mesmerizing the hearts and filling the ears by the sounds of the local folk. The following morning began with a kings way of having Breakfast followed by a city tour with a guide who explain the evolution of Frankfurt over the year and about the Goethe architecture and how high rise buildings became a part of the city along with globalisation. Being the financial Hub of Germany the 5th largest city in Germany was home to over 700,000 people from all across the world most of them Germans followed by Asians (Japanese). Then after was the visit to the Frankfurt Stock Exchange the home of the DAX, the largest in Germany and the Third largest in Europe. the stock exchange holds back its history beginning in the 9th century AD and coming into the global recognition since the 16th century owned and operated by the Deutsche Börse and assisted by the Xetra Trading System it handles over 15% of the worlds trade.

Post Lunch everyone headed for Heidelberg for a visit to the University and a tour of the city. Heidelberg was the city preferred by the Prince Electors of Germany and thus the city carries a vast variation in the architectural styles and a castle at the prime spot of the city damaged by war over the years. The city has the significance of a Bridge that depicted the utilization of tax money and also a monkey calling and reminding people of the toll that was to be paid to come into and leave the city. The trip was enhanced by the snowfall experienced by everyone and the smell & taste of hot coffee from the coffee shops lined up on the roads. The day came to an end at the gates of the university where knowledge about arts and sciences was delivered to its students.

The next morning the trip continued to Stuttgart city. The city had evolved through a number of different cultures and there was also a time when the church served multiple religions in partitions. Shown through its Baroque architecture in the buildings and its churches. The city got this name after the galloping horses of the city during the Roman Empire. the city know for its automobile industry and the Mercedes Benz the museum of the same which was to be reviled after lunch the museum had showcased all of Mercedes and Daimler’s creations from their very first car to the Mercedes SLG series. The museum had given the experience to check and feel through vehicles which otherwise would not have been possible under one roof. The evening was through the road trip to Munich which came to curtains as all took halt to have dinner at Munich and check into hotel Holiday Inn to rest for the night.

The following day began with a journey to the Ayinger Brewery where everyone was shown the process of making beer from cultivating hops and barley to making of the malt and the fermentation by yeast, a process that takes over 7 week for achieving the taste of perfection. Followed by the mind indulging tasting of beers and the business know of such family brewers. Post lunch the trip continued to the hilly regions of Neuschwanstein to engulf the serene scenic beauty of the snow capped hills and ranges of pine covered with laces of snow. The evening followed with a road trip back to the restaurant for dinner and rest for the upcoming day.

After the morning breakfast the destination that followed was the city tour of Munich followed by the BMW welt the delivery area of the head office of BMW and place that showcased all the works and models of BMW, MINI, and Rolls Royce vehicles. With a guided tour that shows all cars and motorbikes of BMW and described the way these cars are made with the detailing and specifications that go with the designing of the cars. The experience to see touch and feel behind the wheels of these cars can be termed ‘Astronomical’. The evening followed with a halt at the Allianz Arena the biggest football arena of Germany. Later the journey was routing towards Switzerland via Austria by road.

Arriving at Hotel IBIS in Zurich Switzerland to rest for the night the up-head morning was to the home of many Nobel laureates; the ETH university one of the highly ranking universities in the world for Science and Arts. The guided tour informed about the history and the reasons for the creation of the university and the achievements and the success stories of the university which are many to list down. What followed next was the extreme of all the visits, the adrenaline rush of 10,000 feet height, the rush of swift wind and the thrill of -6o C temperatures; the scenes of and through the cable cars, the epic feeling of the ROTAIR, and the stunning emotions on the Ice Flyer. These were the highlights of mount Titlis where everyone had the best 3 hrs of snow ice and excitement with friendship and bonding which turned to memories etched into everyone’s lives.

The next morning was to the beautiful waterfalls of Rhine with a boat ride to the core of the waterfalls. What followed was a visit to the lions monument an epoch of a war depicted as the murder of a lion by a pig. A treason in the thoughts of the Swiss. The afternoon was the time of hassle and a battle with the running clock as all souvenirs and takeaways had to be bought and packed.

The evening everyone was with dimmer but sparkling eyes and with longing of home as we headed to Zurich Airport to take the flight back home. But with them came knowledge with them came learning and with them came memories etched into their hearts for years to come along with a promise to live life to the fullest to have such experiences again and to transform into a transformation not seen before so as to become global citizens and leave the mark into the canvas of the world.

Penned by Mr. Arbez Karbhari