What is it like? To come to a foreign country without knowing anyone? And that during Corona? We interviewed some of our expat members about it. Today you'll meet Luis.

 

ABOUT LUIS

  • Loves math (he reads math books for fun), CrossFit and Dancing
  • Profession: PhD in Mechanical Process Engineering (in German: Mechanische Verfahrenstechnik).
  • More specific: Numerical simulation of membrane technology

THE INTERVIEW

You can watch the whole video on YouTube (highly recommended) - or read it below.

Where are you from and what made you move to Düsseldorf?

I am from Brazil, and I decided to come to Germany to do my PhD study.

What do you miss most when you think of your home?

I would say I basically miss family and weather. That's I miss the most.

How would you describe your first days in Düsseldorf in one sentence?

Yeah, I lived in Köln before which was different, but it didn't take so much time to get used to it with the city and yeah, I kind of like it.

How did you hear about CrossFit 40477 and why did you decide to become a member of our box?

I was doing research on Google. So, CrossFit 40477 was the first one Google shows to me. So, I came here to talk about it, to get some information and I came after Corona, so I needed something outside. Yeah. So, I ended up here. I liked it immediately. So that was the main reason.

If you have already trained in other boxes: What would you say distinguishes us from other CrossFit boxes?

In my experience for sure the effort that the owners here do in order to make actually a community inside of the box. So, once you come, you immediately feel you are part of it.

What did CrossFit 40477 mean for your arrival here in Germany/Düsseldorf?

For me, it was nice because it gave me the opportunity to make connections in terms of friends. So when I came, we had - I think one month later - an event, and then I attended the event and then there, I met more people who was not doing the same classes I usually attend. So I get to know more people

What do you associate with our box - in one sentence?

Eu vou ser um pouco repetitivo e reafirmar sobre as conexões e amizades que fiz dentro do Box.

(I'm going to be a little repetitive and restate about the connections and friendships I've made within the Box)

Anything else you would like to say?

I'd like to, to thank you to everybody here, the coaches and, especially, to the owners. Definitely after this time inside of houses, because of the lockdowns and such. I mean it makes my life so much easier to come here every day. I mean, my day starts here because I come at 6am for the classes, I'm an early bird person…. So. I would like to thank you for everything.