Author: Bobby McCaw

Throughout our time here in Europe, I have learned a lot about the culture of the countries we have visited. One of the biggest things I noticed revolved around the various means of transportation. Similar to the US, many people use public transportation such as trains and buses as did we many times. When it comes to personal vehicles, however, that is where things are different. For one, a much higher percentage of people ride bikes. It didn’t matter how big or small the city was, I have never had to check my shoulder for a biker so much in my life. There are also bike lanes in the middle of the sidewalk so we really had to be careful. It appeared to me as if bikers had the right away in most places and traffic moved around them.

A lot of people drove cars as well though, but there are a lot of different rules when it comes to cars. The soonest you can get your license is 18 which, for someone who loves driving like myself, is very annoying. Some of the people I talked to said their first cars were BMW’s or Audi’s or a Benz and that that wasn’t uncommon, and that surprised me too because a lot of my friends back home drove “beaters” for their first cars but you don’t see that here. That is mostly due to the extended list of annual checks that cars must go through. One thing I found very interesting that I learned during our boat tour in Hamburg was that all of the cars that don’t pass those standards are shipped to other countries that don’t have the same rules and can be driven for many more years. I think this form of recycling is a pretty good idea and benefits many people.

The last thing that is just a little different in Germany is that the speed limits on the autobahn are only suggestions and not mandatory. This can be good and bad, but it would be quite interesting if they brought that concept to America. Don’t worry though, Joop kept us cruising just under the speed limit safe and sound!

• Bobby McCaw

Today, we visited the Mercedes Benz plant in Bremen and it was absolutely incredible. We walked into their customer service and showroom and got a peak of their current master piece vehicles as well as the future of Mercedes. Before we started the tour, we got some quick facts from Spencer that are a little shocking. During their 5-6 day work week, the Mercedes Benz plant in Bremen produces 420,000 cars every single year, and they have over 12,000 employees. Unfortunately, the timeline for one vehicle was considered “classified information”.

Walking through the various buildings in the complex and seeing how every part of the car was made, made it clear to me how they could possibly produce at the numbers they do. In parts of their plant, they are up to 95% robot automation in their assembly which was fascinating to watch all of them move at the same time. Along with that, every robot can work on every car seamlessly, and it was interesting to see a sedan followed by a SUV followed by a convertible. They also use every square inch of their facility when producing their vehicles which shows how much they value efficiency. Like our tour guide said, “they aren’t building a car, they’re building your car” and they want it to be perfect so every extra thing they do has a unique purpose to increase the overall value of the car to the customer.

Overall, I thought it was a great visit. The facilities were very well put together and we got to learn a ton about how they operate with robot integration. This was absolutely my favorite visit of the trip!

Today is the 13th day of our trip which means we are almost ⅔ of the way done! This trip has been incredible so far but also very, very busy. Every day has been filled with many breath-taking tours, adventures, company visits, and bodacious food stops. The days are long and tiring, but every bit of it is worth it. So far, we have been to five countries, and each one is unique and poses its own challenges. We have been to huge, bustling cities like Amsterdam and Paris that are always moving all day and all night. We have faced multiple language barriers. We conquered public transportation on the trains in France. Some of us have even been measuring our steps and we have averaged almost 9.5 miles of walking a day! Having all of this pile up together can really be draining.

With that being said, the devotion that we read today was about refreshment. Based from the book of Proverbs 25:13 it says, “Like a snow-cooled drink at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to the one who sends him; he refreshes the spirit of his master.” I took this to meaning that we are only truly refreshed by God, and at this point in the trip, I think we could all use a little refresher to reflect on everything we have seen and done so far and prepare ourselves for the last bit of the trip so that we can enjoy it with the same energy that we had on the first day.

Everyone finds their refreshment in different ways. For me, I found my refreshment on the bus ride to Hockenheim, our first day in Germany. On the way, I was just sitting in the back looking at my phone and listening to music like usual when Professor Betts summoned me to the front. After a couple moments of panic, I found out that I was not in trouble but rather it was just to catch up and see how the trip was going so far. After talking for awhile, I moved forward into the fold up seat next to Joop, our legendary bus driver. At this point, I finally began to look out the window, and I was so glad I did. We were in the Rhine River Valley driving alongside the river with beautiful mountains on either side and sun shining down on us(a rare sight to this point). As we went along, Joop informed me about all of the small communities on the water’s edge and pointed out all of the castles that overlook those communities as well as many fun facts. Seeing all of this gorgeous region just reminded me that God’s beauty is everywhere on this earth, and combined with the pleasant interactions with Joop and the professors, I received that renewing feeling that I think we all need on a trip like this. I can’t wait to see what comes next in this last leg of the great European adventure!