Emmanuel “Cebo” Cruz | Class of 2022
“Wait, shouldn’t I be doing something?” was the first question on Emmanuel’s – endearingly known as Cebo – mind, the morning after his final exams. After all, his first semester at Jacobs as a Biochemistry and Cell Biology student was nothing short of gruelling.
Cebo, like many others at Jacobs, decided to stay back at university for the winter break. But Jacobs is a strikingly different place over the holidays – far from the hustle of the semester. “With most students returning to their home countries, and others traveling out and around Europe, there seemed to be a lack of liveliness on campus,” said Cebo. However, this strange quiet that descends over the campus is all but unnecessary. “The silence on campus provides one with the opportunity to explore outside and realize that university life is not about caging oneself in academics, but instead, the holistic experience of life on campus and outside the university.”
In spite of being located a 17-minute train ride away from the noise of downtown Bremen, life within the boundaries of Jacobs University is noisy and frenzied in its own way. “During the fall semester, the hectic schedules and busy life of students make time seem so fast-paced. But after the finals and everything reaching a sudden calm, the days may seem to drag if one does not find anything new to do,” said Cebo. The ‘calm’ over winter break is almost like the calm before the storm of the new semester.
So how did Cebo spend his breather between two semesters? “I spent most of it trying to get out of bed and going off-campus either alone or with my friends, mainly to Hamburg, the Waterfront Mall, Downtown, or even Vegesack. It was indeed an opportunity for me to actually see Bremen and the nearby locations, taste the food, and ultimately feel the culture without the looming dread of stressful exams and lab reports,” said Cebo. A self-declared foodie, Cebo also visited the Christmas Market over and over again for all its delicacies. “Almost every day, I would visit the Weihnachtsmarkt again and again for the mouth-watering steak-and-onions sandwich or the seasonal Glühwein or the sweet and fruity Himbeer Crepes!”
On campus, Cebo spent time with his friends cooking food from home that they missed and watching Netflix. “During the nights, my friends and I would settle for a couple of movies – ranging from cliché romcoms to my forever-favourite genre: horror.” There is nothing more university students love more than a good night’s sleep and Cebo and Co. were of the same opinion. “We then reclaimed the three weeks' worth of sleep lost during the finals period by staying in bed until the afternoon!” exclaimed Cebo.
Despite heart-warming trips to the Christmas Market and “long periods of heavy sleep”, spending Christmas away from home and family was difficult for Cebo, who hails from the busiest city in the Philippines, Metro Manila, where yuletide celebrations begin in September. However, he spent Christmas day with a close friend and her family in Bremen, catching a glimpse of how Christmas is celebrated in a German home. “We had a filling soup lunch, followed by a wonderful cake. We played family games and 'Secret Santa' and enjoyed a raclette cheese dinner coupled with tasty salads. What was most special about the occasion was the hospitality, company and the feeling of home, which I most certainly missed as it was my first Christmas away from my family.”
Cebo’s festivities didn’t end there, for Christmas celebrations was followed by a loud and vibrant New Year’s eve in Berlin. Exploring Berlin and it’s famous tourist spots “shopping, eating, and staring in awe at the buzzing streets and alleyways” Cebo experienced a Germany from a new perspective.
The lull of the winter break is an opportunity for self-reflection and a chance for one to pick themselves up and prepare for the challenges of the new semester and the year according to Cebo. “It gives us a pause for contemplation: Why do I need the rest I am I having now? Because I did the best I could in the previous semester and I worked hard to live to see another semester!”
BY USHASHI BASU (INDIA) | CLASS OF 2020
