Oberursel, Germany

We started the day going to class with our partners. Around 11:00 we took a bus to Bad Homburg and toured a castle that was for a time the residence of the last German Kaiser, Wilhelm II.   We ended the tour by climbing the castle tower.   At the bottom of a tower , there was a skeleton.  In the afternoon I meet up with Lena in Bad Homburg, and we walked around a bit and did a little shopping. Lena and I then went to castle number 6. (Yes, another castle!) I climbed yet another massive tower. The castle was SO pretty (and a little creepy at some points).  In the evening we finished our day by watched kids shows!  ~Kate

This morning we headed to the train station near school where we rode all the way to Würzburg, with only one train switch. After a measly hour long ride (plus a 30 minute delay) we had made it to the city. After walking around a little and seeing the Main river which flowed through the city, all the groups broke apart for lunch. Carter, Wells, and I decided on Döner; we found an authentic Berlin Döner shop. 15 minutes later we had figured out how to open a bottle with no bottle opener, and we were done with our food, which was very filling.  We walked back to the meeting point, talking about our ingenious plan to open a Döner truck in North Carolina, before stopping at an ice cream cafe due to our extra time.  Two scoops later and we were back with the group and heading to the castle nearby, which we strolled around, taking in all the beautiful sights and even taking a walk through their wine gardens. Unfortunately we weren’t actually allowed to try the wine, but it was still a more than enjoyable experience.  We finished out time in the city with another ice cream cafe; however, still full from lunch, I decided to pass on this one.   The group all finished their cones and cups and headed to the train station, where we learned that our express train home was cancelled, so that we had a longer 2 hour ride home, which pushed the arrival time from 6 to after 7. A quick nap on the train, however, and it was over in a flash. I arrived to my home at around 8 where I was greeted by a dinner of Chinese takeout and the stories of the parents’ time in Berlin, as they had just came back from a concert. Socializing with family was how I ended the day, and overall I’d say it’s been one of my favorite days being here. I really enjoyed getting to see all the historic land sights and it was really a wonderful last field trip.  ~Cam

After an exciting Saturday afternoon at the Bad Homburg pool yesterday, I relaxed and slept in this morning.   For breakfast, my host family picked up fresh bread and pastries from a local bakery in Oberursel.  I tried a croissant paired with Nutella, which was delicious!

In the early afternoon we visited my host family’s friends. The weather was warm and sunny, so we all relaxed outside on the patio while all of the dogs played together in the yard. After relaxing for a bit, I practiced soccer and watched the younger kids play card games while cooling down. My exchange partner, Kim, and I took a walk through the neighborhood before heading to the farewell party.

Later in the evening the exchange students, parents, and teachers all gathered for an exchange party.  Every family brought a variety of foods to share at the potluck, ranging from Apfelkuchen (apple cake) to giant homemade pretzels. Everyone was chatting and bonding over delicious food; afterwards, the group ended the party with an exciting drone photoshoot! As the sun was setting, a combined group of American and German students gathered for a fun photoshoot in the backyard. After 45 minutes of posing (including a human pyramid, Charlie’s Angels, leap frogs and cartwheels), we ended the day with a lot of new photos and so many fun memories on our last weekend in Germany.  ~Bella

This weekend I woke up with this furry little creature, Fenris, sitting on my bed, so naturally I had to stay there until it left. Then I proceeded to eat some of the best bread and jam I have ever had for breakfast, being spectacular in flavor and twice as good as in the US. Shortly after getting ready, we went go karting, which is surprisingly different here; unlike in the US there was qualifying and actual competition. It was quite enjoyable even though I am a horrible driver and may or may not have spun out a few too many times. Promptly after, we went to the exchange party hosted by Kavi’s host family. There was a lot of poker and talking to people along with delicious food, such as meatballs and this delectable pasta salad with some type of seed in it. I apparently am quite hard to read at poker since I was able to get away with stuff that I should not have been able to get away with. Now as I write this, I have freshly showered and am laying in my bed, eager for what awaits me tomorrow.   ~Zack

Today, I woke up pretty late. Cam stayed over at our house since his host parents didn’t want him to be home alone. We started our day with a large breakfast of items like cereal, fruit, and bread with a variety of spreads, including butter, marmalade, and honey. After finishing our breakfast, we drove a bit to the German wine country by the River Rhine. We parked in a small town on the border between the states of Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate and began our hike. We began walking through old towns with numerous quaint wineries. Unfortunately, we were not permitted to sample any of the wine. As we continued up the hills, we started seeing miles and miles of vineyards, all filled with rows and rows of young grapevines. The grapevines turned into rye and barley as we trekked further into the hills, before stumbling on Kiedrich, yet another small German wine village. There, we visited St. Valentine’s basilica. Though it was closed, the beautiful statues and stained glass were still visible through the doorway. After walking through a brief section of forest, we reached the top of the hill. Walking down, we crossed more grapevines and more small towns. After a brief stroll along the flooded River Rhine we made our way back to the parking lot.  After our long hike, Cam and I were both starving. Cam, unfortunately, does not like sushi, so we settled for some Kentucky Fried Chicken. After sending Cam back home, I went home as well, glad to have had the chance to see the wine country.    ~Wells

Today marked the end of our first week in Oberursel! This Friday consisted of an entertaining VR experience, a walk about Frankfurt’s beautiful Neue Altstadt, and ended with a tour of Goethe Uni Frankfurt.

I woke up this morning to a wonderful breakfast laid out for the family! We had many varieties of bread, as well as watermelon and the typical German hard boiled eggs. I decided to try the pretzel roll, and it was absolutely delicious! After breakfast, my exchange partner, Anna, drove me to school and dropped me off in the Haupthalle, where my teachers and friends were waiting. From there, we briskly walked to the S-Bahn station and boarded the train to take us to the heart of Frankfurt. The train ride was smooth, and when we exited the station, we were greeted by the hustle and bustle of a big city! As we walked, I saw many stands on the street selling beautiful flower arrangements, and various shops selling everything from decadent chocolate to cheese! We shortly arrived at our VR experience, Time Ride, and had a few free minutes. I decided to make use of the time by photographing the nearby church. The architecture in Germany is stunning, and is entirely different from anything I’ve seen before.

After snapping a few shots, our VR experience began. As I stepped through the doors, it felt as if I had been transported back in time to a kitchen in the olden days of Frankfurt. There were lots of wooden cabinets lining the walls, filled with elegant dishes, jugs, and teapots. Hanging from the ceiling was a wooden rack with wooden utensils and dried herbs, and on the counter laid containers of coffee, chocolate, and cinnamon. We also passed around an ornate slab of tea that could’ve served up to 3,000 people, according to our guide. Our steps through the next doorway took us into a library, with shelves of old books and paintings lining the walls. And in our final room, we put on VR headsets, which took us back in time to experience a horse-led wagon tour around Frankfurt over a hundred years ago. I found that it was incredibly interesting to see what the city used to look like, and how much it has changed!

From there, we continued walking to the U-Bahn to take us a few stops up to Goethe Uni. However, as we walked, we passed by a small bakery, and we were able to order something if we wished! The food looked delicious; there were pretzels, sandwiches, and various pastries! Although I didn’t get anything this morning, I tried a cherry pastry a few days ago, and it was heavenly. In my personal opinion, no one does baked goods as well as the Germans. Alaina actually got a similar cherry pastry to the one I tried previously, and she agreed that it was delicious. After our brief bakery stop, we continued walking, passing through the Neue Altstadt of Frankfurt. There typical German architecture made me feel as if I was in some sort of storybook. It feels unreal to be surrounded by such picturesque buildings and churches, especially compared to the architecture I’m used to in the US. We eventually reached the U-Bahn, rode up a few stops, and exited close to the University. With the promise of lunch, we hurried to reach the campus. I was quite surprised by the layout of the campus. Although it was beautiful in its own way, it was very different from colleges and universities in the US. There were many buildings made out of cream stone that all looked very similar to one another, flanked by sidewalks and green spaces. We had lunch in the cafeteria, and I decided to go with the classic pasta and salad. There were many other options for entrees, as well as a yogurt bar, a wall lined with drink options, and ice cream for dessert. We ate in the large indoor cafeteria, which housed many tables and even more seats! Although there were outdoor spaces as well, we opted to eat inside, as it was in the high 70s and sunny! After we finished up lunch, we were taken on a tour around the campus by Feldbergschule Alum Moritz K. He answered lots of questions about the University, showed us many buildings, and even let us try the open Pater Noster elevators in the library. The elevators work in a loop, and could transport you to any floor. They were a little terrifying to get on and off, but fun to try out!

The tour wrapped up our time in Frankfurt, and I took the train to return back to the house to get ready for dinner.   ~Maddie

We took a field trip today to the nearby city of Mainz. After an hour-long train ride and a walk along the Rhine river, which was unfortunately flooded, we visited the Mainz Cathedral. Located in the middle of a marketplace, the cathedral was filled with pews and religious art works.

After walking around the marketplace a bit, we visited the Gutenberg Museum. Gutenberg, who was born in Mainz, invented the first movable-type printing press, and printed what is now known as the Gutenberg Bible. At the museum, we learned about Gutenberg’s life and saw an original Gutenberg Bible (we weren’t allowed to take pictures of it). Then, we got a demonstration of a model Gutenberg printing, seeing how the letters were made, learning about the mechanisms, and Wells even got to print a page.

For lunch, we had some free time to roam the marketplace. Lily, Fiona, Augustus and I chose a Japanese place to eat ramen and Poke bowls. We then walked around, looking at the shops and cafes.

Finally, we spoke with an author who goes wrote a fantasy book for young adults under the pen-name Mary Wyllt. She spoke about her writing process, where she gets inspiration, her favorite book, and more. After a long day, we departed Mainz, riding the train back to Frankfurt      ~ Aviva

Today was our first day of classes here at Feldbergschule, and we spent the day diving in to all variety of subjects in German. Some attended classes on finance or economics, math or German; sometimes even English. After 4 blocks of normal classes (and maybe a Pausenbrot squished in the middle there) it was time for a presentation. A representative from International Justice Mission (IJM) explained to us and 3 English classes their mission of ending slavery worldwide. IJM is a group of lawyers, activists, counselors, and volunteers who work through on-the-ground operations to strengthen justice systems protecting impoverished people from slavery, to rescue and resettle those enslaved, and to bring enslavers to justice. They also lobby governments and push for anti-slavery policies worldwide. After that, a few more hours of lessons: I shadowed a wonderfully energetic biology class discussing chemical reactions in the mitochondria.

Germany is a truly beautiful country. After dinner, I walked around the local forest with my partner’s brother, and went up in the nearby lookout tower for the second time. The view was marvelous today, with no fog and sunlight bleeding in from behind the clouds, lighting the Königstein castle ruins and proving a beautiful background. The Frankfurt skyline was clearly visible in the slanting light of a sinking sun. The forest itself was beautiful: flowers, immense old trees, and the fresh smell of mountain air.

Lastly, I’d like to point out the little things that really make the exchange. Our exchange is the conversations over the dinner table, the short walks through the town, the storytelling and sharing of cultures. Our exchange is built on homemade marmalade and warm oatmeal, on the radio on the way home and the view off the balcony, on an extra trip to the supermarket and on the sunlight of a warm day. Although blogs may capture the big moments, it’ll be the little things we’ll always remember, and I’m glad of them.     ~Augustus

When my alarm rang at 6am, I only had one thought on my mind: sleep. Half awake, my exchange partner Natalie drove us to school. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted warmly and attended a welcome orientation where we received thoughtful messages from Frau Griesing and the principal. Upon entering the English class, I found the students at the Feldbergschule to be quite fun and charismatic as we discussed the differences between our respective countries. Afterwards, I prepared myself for my peers’ presentations (on elections and environment) – and I was pleasantly surprised at how interesting they were. The class became increasingly entertaining as we learned the ropes of the American Election process with my peers and modeled the system using Frau Burgbacher as a Democrat and Frau Greene as a Republican. It was hilarious as each teacher gave their “campaigning speech” and we voted for a president (which Frau Burgbacher won by a landslide).

Following a long morning, the CA group was led by a few teachers for a tour around Oberursel.  As we leisurely explored the town, there was one particular activity I really wanted to experience: bread tasting. I was already tired at this point, and I desperately needed a mental break from all the words. Finally, there, after all the long historical explanations about Oberursel, I saw a table with platters of bread samples screaming my name in the peaceful courtyard. Bread had never tasted so delectable. The flavors of the apricot and apple marmalade danced on my palate, complimenting the simplistic and rich butter with the soft yet chewy bread. I stuffed my face with these delicious treats, savoring the taste of each and and every one.

Feeling full and satisfied, we continued the tour, exploring every nook and cranny of the old town. We also received chocolates while viewing some sort of jail cell on the side of the historic town hall building. I thoroughly enjoyed the coffee truffle, with this little sweet treat making my day that much better. My legs, unfortunately, were quite sore after climbing 180 steps to reach the top of a church tower to see a beautiful view filled with traditional German houses and flowers. After the grueling climb down, we were finally on our way back. My partner and I dropped our friends off at their house and we went to grab snacks at my now favorite grocery store, Netto. Snacks in hand, we went home and I followed Natalie to her tennis lesson. As I currently bask in the sun writing this blog post, I’m both curious and eager to see what the Feldbergschule has to offer. May the future of our exchange trip be filled with more bread and delicious treats as we delve into life as a German high school student.  ~Lily

Hallo!   This Sunday my host family and I relaxed. A lot of the shops in Germany are closed on Sundays so things were very quiet. In the morning, my exchange partner went to work and I slept in and then went for a jog. Initially, I was just going to jog in the neighborhood, but my host student’s dad recommended a beautiful trail that went through rolling fields with a great view of the mountains. It was absolutely stunning. After that my host family and I toured the reconstructed Saalburg fort. It was from the Roman Empire and was originally built in the 2nd century. The museum was very interactive with opportunities to sword fight (with wooden swords) and shoot a bow and arrow. There were also many artifacts and ancient weapons. The tour was entirely in German, so it was a good opportunity for me to practice listening and asking questions. Surprisingly, I was able to understand most of it!  It took a little while to get from place to place, and the drivers in Germany are much more aggressive than in America! After our tour, we went to dinner at my host family’s favorite Italian restaurant. I ordered a salad and gnocchi in German, and we played Uno while we waited for our food. The gnocchi were excellent and very flavorful! Afterwards, we headed home.    ~Keira

Saturday I woke up after a fun evening exploring Frankfurt with Claudio. Claudio was off to Cologne for the day with his team to watch the football game, which meant I was left with his mother. I made plans with Laurens and Lukas from the exchange, and we went to another friend’s house with Cam and Wells to watch the football game. Being surrounded by a group of 6 native speakers doing commentary entirely in German was interesting exposure to the language and it was fun to watch the football game. Sunday I slept in till 13:00 as I had a late evening watching the football game the evening before. When I woke up Claudio’s sister, her husband, and daughter were there. It was a great experience spending time with his family as well as getting to play with his niece who was adorable. For dinner his sister alongside her husband prepared us orzo with chicken thighs which was very delicious, and then I headed to bed early so I could be prepared to wake up for school Monday.  ~Carter