On the business side of things, the most remarkable person I met on the trip was Oliver Barth, the creator of Flexheel, who we met at the Strascheg Center for Entrepreneurship. His product Flexheel is essentially a convertible, height-adjustable pair of heels. He said that he was struck with this innovative idea when his girlfriend complained about her feet hurting from wearing high heels all the time - to which he thought, what if you could adjust the height of the heel to suit a range of activities, such as clubbing, walking, or just going to work? He collaborated with his engineer friend to design the heels, and now Flexheel is a growing product. Oliver is a prime example of what entrepreneurship can accomplish - I'm extremely impressed by his ability to take an idea and make it into a real, successful product.
An another note, the most remarkable person I met overall was Professor Oliver Schlake (pictured to the left). Professor Schlake was the epitome of a perfect study abroad professor - professional but still personable, easygoing but still on top of things, and extremely knowledgeable about everything. He took us to his favorite cake shop in Munich and bought enough cake for the whole trip of twenty-one students desserts - all because he wanted to make sure we enjoyed authentic German pastries. When he gave us all a tour of the BMW museum, he had a wealth of knowledge about BMW engines like it was nothing at all. Above all, my favorite memory was during lunch at BMW World, when he told me the cutest story about how he met his wife - a prime example of how he respected us enough to treat us like more than just his students. Professor Schlake, or "Ollie," as we liked to call him, was an incredible study abroad professor.
|
Our trip was made up of an extremely diverse group of students of all different interests, ages, and races. Yet, we were all interested in two things - entrepreneurship and traveling. This diversity coupled with similar passions was the perfect environment to grow and learn - the amazing people I met on this study abroad program made this experience unforgettable.