First of all, it is better to start with the history and buildings of the city. During our trip, we were able to visit some important sites, such as the town hall, which was restored in 1957. A more modern site, the newly built concert hall named “Elbphilharmonie,” was also an architectural masterpiece with its unusual shape. However, there is one thing that makes Hamburg an extremely different city from other European cities. Mr. John told us that the city was targeted by a terrible aerial attack in 1942, reducing the city to ruins. The effects are still visible today; we can see that most of the buildings were constructed after the Second World War, and seeing old buildings like those in Rome is a rare opportunity.

However the people and the Culture of a city is also what makes it special. Needless to say, Hamburg has a diverse population made up of different cultures, ranging from Turkish people, Arabic people, Africans and occasionally Poles and Ukrainians. The fascinating thing is that we never felt a feeling of “discrimination” in Hamburg, as racism is surprisingly almost non-existent. Another huge shock to us was the charm of the German people. They are usually portrayed as cold, soulless and unfriendly in popular media, but I can confidently say that it is the exact opposite. Apart from a few incidents where we got scolded in German by strangers for taking up too much space on the sidewalks, German people and host families were always there to give us a helping hand and make sure we had a good time. In any case, German people were much warmer than expected, and their metropolitan culture was also a peculiar thing to witness.

Knowing the environment and nature of Hamburg is also crucial to truly understand the city. Since it is located on the banks of the Elbe River, there was a vast harbor filled with dozens, perhaps hundreds, of large ships. Besides that, I could infer that the nature conservation laws are very strict. There was a large park in the middle of the city center, and I never felt like I was in a concrete jungle. The total area of the city is also large, which allows for the construction of houses with big gardens. As a result, they were everywhere. It was such a green city, despite its rapid industrialization. The weather was exactly as the stereotypes suggest; it was cloudy and rainy almost all the time.

One thing that also deserves to be briefly mentioned is the German cuisine. Most German people prefer to simply enjoy the dishes of other nations living in Hamburg: Turkish Food, Arabian Food, Chinese Food etc. When I asked my host family about traditional food from Hamburg to eat, they just left out a nervous chuckle, before giving me the names of a few Italian and Asian restaurants. However, they also showed me a German recipe book. That book was extremely thick, filled with different German dishes, most of which are mainly made out of potatoes, showing us the importance of that vegetable. This led me to deduce that while German culture does have a rich kitchen, German people chose not to enjoy it at all for some reason I am unaware of.

Now let’s get down to business. MUN in Germany was much more different than the ones in Turkey. The rules of procedure and the general understanding of MUN was different. For instance, the opening ceremony was much longer than those held here. We also have to acknowledge German people for their creativity of finding offbeat but logical solutions and persuasive speeches. There is no doubt that they were the ones who made this MUN interesting, and being able to see these new and bizarre points of views throughout has been extremely informative for us, we certainly learned a few things from them. However I also have to remark that they were sometimes not very experienced on the rules and procedures of MUN. We were more experienced than them on this subject, and many of the other members of the Hamburg trip also mentioned having to correct the chairboard for various errors of procedure. In the end, for most of us the conference was generally well perceived and our delegation even saw the face of success, such as one of us winning the “best first-timer” award and another receiving an honorable mention during the award ceremony, both of which are really impressive feats.

In conclusion, while some found themselves more experienced, one thing was the same for everyone: everyone appreciated the opportunity to visit a new city, meet the German people, and experience their culture. After returning to school, one of my friends from this trip explained to me how much he misses Hamburg and that he wants to go back. Hamburg was an extremely convenient city for attending a MUN conference, and being able to experience one in Germany for the first time was an extremely useful experience for improving our MUN skills. I am sure that most of us would like to experience such an event once again in the future.

When my fellow companions were asked for their opinion on the trip, almost all of them responded positively as well, highlighting the remarkable nature of the city and their experiences during MUN. Here is what they have to say:

“Our visit to Hamburg was amazing both academically and culturally. We got to see the city center as well as the historic places. The conference we attended, MUNoH, was also great in how they curated the debates during committee sessions. Selen”

“It was such a great experience with tons of MUN and other adventures. Hamburg was a beautiful city with a lot to do, I really enjoyed it. Can”

“ I consider my trip to Hamburg nothing short of a perfect visit and a perfect MUN conference. The host family was hospitable, so was the establishment. I not only got to learn and practice the daily flow of a foreign country, I also got the opportunity to get to know Germany under an educative frame, considering the country to be one of my top 5 options regarding my higher education abroad. The school provided easy transportation as well as a tour of the city in collaboration with the conference organizers. Hamburg’s culture and history was a standout. If I had the chance to redo it all over, I definitely would! I recommend a trip as such to anyone in the process of picking an ideal university and a country to live in. Eylül”

“Munoh was an amazing experience where I got to improve myself and befriend people from other countries. Deren”

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