As she’s originally from Durbanville outside Cape Town, South Africa, the comparison is a bit of a surprise. “It’s more the lifestyle and being by water,” says Nelson. “The feel of the Rhine promenade with all the walkers reminds me of the promenade by the sea in Cape Town.”

She also loves Bonn’s green spaces and forests, where she jogs, just as she used to back home. “I lived in Cologne when I first came to Germany but it wasn’t green enough and I found it harder to make friends.” Now most of her friends live within walking distance of her Rhine-view Plittersdorf apartment and that’s just how she likes it.

Nelson joined the Deutsche Post DHL Group just under five years ago, working in Cape Town before transferring to the Bonn headquarters in 2013. She moved into her current role with DHL Express in August 2016 and this is her first overseas posting. “It can be hard for a South African to work overseas because of the work permit situation,” she explains.

While DHL Express is headquartered in adjacent offices, the Post Tower is, of course, the symbol of Deutsche Post DHL in Bonn. Standing 162.5 metres high, it dominates the city skyline and can be toured by the public. Designed by the German-American architect, Helmut Jahn, the glass tower is illuminated at night by 2000 lights and inside, 12 high speed lifts whisk employees and visitors up and down the 40 storeys.

And Nelson is delighted that at least one woman, Melanie Kreis, has made it all the way to the top of the Tower to sit on the Deutsche Post DHL Group Board of Management. “Melanie’s a great role model for women in the company,” she says. She finds it surprising that although Angela Merkel has been running Germany for years, there are relatively few women at the top of big German companies. When asked if things are different in South Africa she says: “The discussion in South Africa is more about racial equality,” adding that while there are laws about gender equality in the workplace, they are not prioritised.

As a South African, she joins about 30 other nationalities at DHL Express in Bonn and although the official office language is English, other languages are often spoken between the 2000 or so Bonn-based employees. And with Afrikaans as her first language, Nelson finds it relatively easy to understand and read German. “Speaking is harder though, especially with my accent!” she laughs.

Still, she finds Bonn is a welcoming place for expats to live and work, though she does sometimes struggle with German regulations and processes. “Life in South Africa doesn’t have so many rules,” she says.

Some German rules, such as not crossing the road on a red light, are now second nature. So much so that she managed to infuriate colleagues on a team road race round Istanbul by stopping at every traffic light to wait for the green man to appear. And while Sunday opening restrictions mean Saturdays can be jam-packed with chores, she’s learned to appreciate having more time for herself the next day.

So how does she fill her spare time? “I enjoy the simple things about living in Bonn,” Nelson says. She loves any sort of wine and food festival and hikes in the Siebengebirge. “And the Bonn Christmas market is really special. Much more local and intimate than Cologne.” And then, of course, there is the Rhine: water, walks and memories of home.

For more information on touring the Deutsche Post DHL Tower, go to www.post-bonn.de/post-tower (in German only), email posttowertour@dpdhl.com or phone 0228-182-8039. Tours last about 90 minutes and are available in English.