Oberursel, Germany

Birthday celebration

Munich town hall

Central Munich

New shoes

Olympic Tower

View from Olympic Tower

For this entire long weekend, Julia, her family and I have been about three and a half hours away from the rest of the exchange group near Augsburg, Germany to celebrate the 82nd birthday of Julia’s grandmother (see picture above). Yesterday we visited the main part of Augsburg city, and while it was nothing less than gorgeous, it couldn’t be compared to Munich, which is where Julia, her father, and I took a day-long excursion to today.

As seen in one of the pictures above, Munich was PACKED with people. Honestly I don’t think I’ve ever seen more people in such a small area. If you’ve never been to Munich, specifically within the main parts of the city, I definitely recommend it.  My experience was definitely a 10 out of 10 (once I bought shoes that didn’t give my feet blisters, as seen in picture above).  To best describe the city, I ask that you imagine a large open concrete field, and then line that field with small shops. Beyond what in Munich was solely shops and small cafes, the city was historical, beautifully made and purely gorgeous.

When we first arrived in the city, we decided to take a double-decker-bus-city-sightseeing-tour. I wish I could say this was my favorite part of this excursion; however, the ‘20 minute tour’ turned into an hour and thirty minute tour around the city.  We sat in direct sunlight, and in backed up traffic for much longer than we paid for.   While the experience of the tour wasn’t the greatest, I did learn some of the history of the city. We learned about the outdoor opera house, the Hofbräuhaus, and all of the most monumental buildings. Before the tour fully ended, Julia, her father and I got off the bus and decided to fully embrace the impact of the city by foot.

One would think that I wouldn’t learn as much about the history of the buildings this way, but my host father is comparable to both Bill Velto (I have permission to call him Bill) and Mr. Coven, in the way that he knows everything about everything and in the best way. He knows the history of every building, every monument, and every blade of grass. Luckily he knows all the small details that makes it so interesting to learn about and to experience.

After buying small gifts to bring back to my family, new shoes for the sake of pain-free feet, the best potatoes I’ve ever had, and too many single Euro coins lost to public bathrooms, we walked to the English Garden, comparable to Central Park in New York City.   Here we saw people enjoying their day while sunbathing, small kids laughing while playing in the fountains, and countless smiles. A small (mainly calm) river traveled through these gardens, making the experience more serene. This small river moves under the main parts of the city, and where the tunnel opens to lead into the English Gardens, a rush of water is constant. Imagine a white water rafting course condensed into a few feet. Here, we watched surfers jump into the rushing water and try to surf on this wave. I don’t think I saw even one of these surfers stand on their board for more than five seconds before diving under. With that being said, it looked insanely fun. Beyond watching the surfers, we walked both sunny and shaded paths while in the gardens, and this is where I’ve been closest to the wildflowers, which are more diverse in Germany than in North Carolina, and in my opinion are much more intriguing. I genuinely believe I could spend days exploring Germany just discovering and falling in love with the wildflowers.

After the English Gardens, we got in the car very ready to get back to Julia’s grandmother’s house an hour away in Augsburg; however, we made the last minute decision to drive 10 minutes further to the Olympic Park in Munich, where the Olympic Games were played in 1972.  Here, just like in Berlin, we went to the top of the Fernsehturm, and to say I was speechless might be an understatement. From the top, we could see the Alps.  In the picture above, where it looks as if it was taken from the top of the world, you can make out the outline of the Alps on the horizon. I could have lived on the top of this building and never gotten bored of the view. So much to see, and so much to learn from the view.

Today’s excursion to Munich was incomparable.  ~Paige G.

Frankfurt old town panorama

Frankfurt skyline

downtown Frankfurt

On Sunday I woke up around 9. In Germany, the sun rises much earlier than in America, and it was initially hard to sleep in past 5:30-6:00 am. Now I am used to it, but it was confusing the first few days! My exchange partner’s mother made us a nice breakfast of croissants and fruit, and Rexy came over a bit later. We were all going to go into Frankfurt together, but Monique (my exchange partner) wasn’t feeling well, so she dropped us off at the U-Bahn station to go into Frankfurt. The ride was amazingly short, and soon we had gone from a small town to a massive city. We walked past an old square quickly on our way to the boat tour. The weather was extremely hot, and we were sweating by the time we reached the boat. It was worth it when we started moving down the river and saw the incredible skyline of Frankfurt behind us. After the boat completed its round trip back, we disembarked and walked back into the city. It was interesting how quickly the buildings went from modern stores to old traditional German buildings. We wandered around a square lined with these old buildings, then walked for just a few minutes and found ourselves on a street lined with sleek storefronts like Gucci and Burberry. There was a festival celebrating the firefighters of the city, and one square was filled with old models of fire trucks. A large shallow fountain was nearby, and to ward off the heat a bunch of small children were splashing around and playing. It was nothing like the stereotypical idea of cold, serious Germans. I can’t imagine something like that happening in the center of New York or a large city in America. Overall, the day in Frankfurt was hot but an interesting comparison to other larger American cities.  ~Sara M.

Breakfast

Bad Homburg

Spaghetti-Eis

Bike tour break

Today, we slept in, per usual. After waking at about 11 AM, Mikal and I went downstairs to an excellent breakfast of Brötchen (sections of baguette cut in half) with Turkish sausage, various fruits, and Apfelsaftschorle. Please keep in mind that the picture above regarding breakfast was after we had eaten, not before. After wasting some time at home, Mikal, his parents, and I embarked upon a biking journey of grandiose proportions. From Steinbach, we traveled through trails and visited Bad Homburg and Oberursel, among other wondrous places. Prior to this journey, I was unaware of how naturally beautiful this entire area was; I was truly amazed by what I observed. A highlight of the trip was when we stopped near a castle in Bad Homburg to enjoy some Italian ice cream. After hearing so much about it during German class, I felt compelled to try out the fabled Spaghetti-Eis.  The fact that a master of culinary practices possesses the ability to disguise ice cream as spaghetti, whilst maintaining the former’s refreshing, frozen glory, accurately displays the astounding progression of humanity. During another break for drinks at a local brewery (I drank orange juice), I had a productive discussion with my host family about the elusiveness of perfection regarding the use of German grammar. At the same place, we briefly saw two familiar looking, German-fluent American tourists. For me, it has been most helpful to speak always in German, and to ask (in German) every time I make a mistake. I then try to incorporate the newly learned word or speaking tactic into the following conversations. After about seven hours of being out, we came back home and wolfed down a tasty dinner of curried fish with rice. Mikal and I then listened to music for a while before heading to bed. Overall, today was a splendiferous experience that allowed me to witness the wonders of nature, get a solid workout in, consume delectable foods, and better my understanding and usage of the German language.  ~Xavier

Münzenberg

Riding competition

Riding competition

Riding competition

Currywurst

After I woke up on Saturday, I was greeted with a fresh German pretzel for breakfast. As I enjoyed my tasty treat, I thought about the bread and other pastries that I am able to get at home in the US, and started to realize how spoiled I am getting with all the amazing food here. Following this, we took a scenic drive out to Münzenberg for a horseback riding competition that my exchange student was competing in. The views from the drive were absolutely beautiful, and I was able to see the small towns and nature that Germany has to offer. After we arrived, we spent time getting the horse ready for competition and watched other riders take their turn. It was so interesting for me to be able to see the differences and similarities between horseback riding in the US and Germany. For one, we were able to drive to the competition, ride and return home all in one day. However, in the US, competitions are usually very far away, making it so that riders and horses have to stay overnight at the competition. For lunch, I decided to try my share at a German classic: Currywurst. I went all in and had it with fries with mayonnaise and it was delicious! After lunch break, it was time to show, and Mariana did an amazing job. We then had to wait for a few hours to hear her placing, but it was worth it because she scored her first placing in M level dressage! For this, she won a cool ribbon and even some carrots for her horse. We even got to cheer her on as she rode in the victory gallop!  It was so nice to get to spend the day outside in the gorgeous German weather. Finally, I got to learn lots of horse-related terminology in German that will be very useful once I return home. I can’t wait to experience the rest of this amazing trip! ~Eva H.

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark tour

Hessenpark residents

Hessenpark resident

Hessenpark residents

Don’t Feed the Animals!

Hessenpark family

Hessenpark family

Weaving workshop

Weaving workshop

Weaving workshop

Weaving workshop

Weaving workshop

Weaving workshop

Weaving workshop

Half-Timber workshop

Half-Timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Half-timber workshop

Indigo dye workshop

Indigo dye workshop

Indigo dye workshop

Indigo dye workshop

Indigo dye workshop

Indigo dye workshop

Medieval car show?

Lunch at Hessenpark

Lunch at Hessenpark

Lunch at Hessenpark

Lunch at Hessenpark

The majority of the exchange group gathered on Friday for an outing to the Hessenpark, an open-air museum featuring a collection of over 100 half-timbered houses and other historic buildings from the local region.  After a tour of the park, the students divided into smaller groups to participate in workshops on three traditional crafts:  weaving, indigo dyeing, and half-timber construction.  We then enjoyed a late buffet lunch together in one of the barn buildings before the students headed off again in various directions to spend the rest of the afternoon and evening with their exchange partners and host families.

As it turns out, the CA student assigned to write the blog post for Friday did not participate in the Hessenpark excursion, but instead traveled with her host family to  Bavaria for the long holiday weekend.  I’ll post her report separately as soon as I receive it.  In the meantime, all the best from sunny Oberursel!

~Frau Greene

View of Bad Homburg from my host family’s house

Breakfast

Schloss in Bad Homburg

Square in Bad Homburg

Kurpark

Together in Kurpark

Spaghettieis

Street in Oberursel

Today was our first full day with our host families. First, we drove from Bad Homburg to Oberursel to enjoy brunch with other exchange students. It was interesting to see what was prepared, with many cheeses, cold-cut meats, pretzels, and fruit all included, even Weißwurst. Everything was very good and I enjoyed talking with everyone about many different things. Then, we left to Bad Homburg to go geocaching; however, we missed the bus and needed to go on the train. It was a little complicated and difficult to understand in German, although we managed to get through a good part of it before we got completely stuck and ended our geocaching excursion. Despite it being difficult to understand, it was fun to do and also a good opportunity to walk through the Kurpark and see the art installations. I learned about how Bad Homburg is famous as a spa town and its connection to Kaiser Wilhelm II.  I was also surprised to found out that Bad Homburg is home to the Germany’s oldest golf club and a Russian chapel. We then went to an ice cream shop where I ordered Spaghettieis, a typical German ice cream dish where the vanilla ice cream is shaped to look like spaghetti noodles with red strawberry sauce on top so that the whole dish looks like a plate of spaghetti. Afterwards we visited a castle in Bad Homburg,and it was interesting to notice that our exchange students found it completely normal to just have a castle nearby, while we thought it was cool to see, as we simply do not have historic buildings truly like that in America. After going out for dinner, we came back and played Kniffel, a game with dice that was almost the same as Yahtzee. In all, it was a very fun day which has me looking forward to the rest of the trip.  ~Koa K.

a traditional German breakfast

Oberursel train station

geocaching directions

geocaching device

hot chocolate

Kurpark in Bad Homburg

Bad Homburg town center

Leo, the neighbor’s cat

Netflix with Leo

playing pool in Bad Homburg

After getting a long night’s sleep (about 10 hours!), I woke up on Thursday around 9. I was happy to discover that the shower worked the same as it had in the hotel, and that saved me a bit of time and strife. Then it was off to breakfast at around 10. We ate a traditional (and also very large) German breakfast at Kyle’s exchange student’s house – I was very surprised to see that they eat Nutella even at breakfast. Then, we went geocaching in Bad Homburg with Kyle, Koa, Will, and their exchange partners. The city was adorable and very walkable, and it was nice to get there so easily with short bus and train rides. After seeing a few monuments in Bad Homburg and walking through the gorgeous Kurpark, we were unable to find one of the geocaching spots, so we decided to go back into the middle of the city and get some ice cream. While the others ate German Spaghettieis, I settled for a hot chocolate because I am still getting used to the colder weather here. Then, Olivia and I went back to the house with our exchange partner because she had a horseback riding lesson. Olivia and I stayed home, where we watched some Netflix and spent a very long time petting the neighbor’s cat, Leo. We also tried a little bit of German candy – I really liked the Katjes Grün-Ohr Hase. When my exchange student was finished with her riding lesson, we ate some dinner and went out together with her mother and brother to play pool. Olivia and I played against my exchange student and her mother, and, although we spent a solid hour and a half playing, I somehow did not get any better. When we were finished – around 10:30 – it hadn’t been dark outside for long. That was very surprising, even if I’m used to it staying light outside in summer. When we got home, I was very tired and went quickly to bed, ready for another night of good rest before our visit to the Hessenpark.  ~Claire F.

MONDAY
Monday got off to an earlyish start at 9:30, after breakfast at the hotel.  We had our first ride in the U-Bahn to Bernauerstraße and the Berlin Wall Memorial.  The Memorial site had metal poles showing where the wall was, and rectangular plates showing where the tunnels were.  It was very impactful to see where everything actually was, instead of just pictures or descriptions, and even though I didn’t use it, I appreciate how the audio recordings were in English as well as German.  We walked to a lookout point over the Berlin Wall Memorial, where we could see for miles around us.  The museum that accompanies the Memorial was unfortunately closed, so we got to walk around Berlin.  Thankfully, it had warmed up a little by then.  We got to split off from the group to eat lunch wherever we wanted, but we ended up all eating at the same restaurant.  The food was good, but it took some time to get through the process of ordering and paying, and we actually ended up being a little late for the tour of the escape tunnels, but it all worked out in the end.  The tunnel tour was incredible; we got to see some of the surviving tunnels people used to escape to West Berlin and hear some of their stories.  The tour guide was very nice, and I could understand most of what she said!  We then made our way to the Fernsehturm, which is a restaurant/museum/lookout that’s kind of like the Seattle Needle.  We had coffee and cake in their rotating restaurant, where Sara tried to take a panorama that failed miserably.  After some time in the Fernsehturm, we walked through Berlin to dinner.  There were some beautiful historic buildings and many more flowers than I expected for a city.  We moseyed over to dinner in two groups and successfully ordered and paid for food yet again.  Zillemarkt, the restaurant I went to, had a very pretty patio with lots of flowers and plants. I split some veggie burgers with Sara, and we made our way back to the hotel to get some much-needed sleep.   ~Rexie B.

exiting the subway at Benauer Straße

Berlin Wall path markers

Leftover Wall segments

Escaping soldier

Fernsehturm

TUESDAY
Tuesday was our second full day in Berlin. After eating breakfast, we traveled by U-Bahn and by foot to the Brandenburg Gate and the Holocaust Memorial. Both sites were interesting to visit because they are both well-known throughout the world, and they are both important historical monuments. In addition, both are set up in a manner with no gates or barriers that allows people to go up right to them, and in the case of the Holocaust Memorial, in them. After a brief stop at these places, we made our way to the Bundestag, the main event of the afternoon. After going through security to get into the building, we listened to a speech in the room where Bundestag meetings are held, which was very exciting. Later, we got to have a question and answer session with Markus Koob, a member of the Bundestag. This opportunity allowed our class to receive in-depth information from an important politician, including his opinions and stances on various issues. After the session ended, we received books about the German political system and then when to lunch in a cafeteria building in the Bundestag. Later, we went on a river cruise on the Spree, which allowed us to see Berlin from a different perspective. At dinner, we were given the option of where to eat, and the group that I was in decided to go to food stands for a Döner and a soft pretzel. This meal was a great way to experience German culture, as these are two staple products in Berlin food. Our final activity of the day was going to the theater to see a play. This experience was unique for many students, as most do not see plays very often, and even those who do don’t see them in German very often. The play, titled Welttretten für Anfänger, featured a wide array of music, political humor, and action, allowing audience members with different interests to enjoy the play very much. It this point, it was very late at night, so all of the students went to bed quickly after returning to the hotel. Overall, a lot was accomplished today and a lot was learned.   ~Matthew C.

Brandenburg Gate

Holocaust Memorial

Reichstag building with glass dome

Plenary hall of Bundestag

Bundestag eagle

Bundestag observation gallery

Q&A with Mr. Koob

Glass dome atop Reichstag building

Inside glass dome of Bundestag

Inside glass dome of Bundestag

Ampelmann shop

Ampelmann shop

Spree river cruise

Spree river cruise

Spree river cruise

Spree river cruise

Spree river cruise

Outside the Distel Theater

Scene from “Weltretten für Anfänger”

WEDNESDAY
Wednesday was our last day in Berlin, and we woke up earlier than usual to go on a tour to the Olympic Stadium. All but two of us gathered in the lobby at 8:15, desperate to get going on our exciting excursion.  After sending what seemed like a whole army to retrieve Xavier and Max from their room, we finally headed to the U-Bahn at 8:45.  We had a nice stadium tour were we got to see the VIP seats (I got to sit in Angela Merkel’s seat), the locker rooms, and the press room.  The entire Olympic Stadium complex was unlike anything we have in the US, complete with many different facilities–the stadium itself, an outdoor swimming and diving center, a track and field center, and many soccer training fields.  After that we went straight to the KaDeWe for lunch and some shopping. We got an expensive but tasty meal on the top floor of the department store.  After that, we went through the many floors of clothes and accessories, and even got to walk down the street to go to the Adidas and Nike stores. Amidst heading back to the hotel to pick up our bags and leave, we made one final stop in Berlin at a public balcony where we could look at the monkeys in the zoo.  Then, it was time to travel to Frankfurt. We had a nice flight and arrived with our host families greeting us and taking us home!  It was nice to meet the family and get my room set up for the next few days.  After getting settled, I walked to a nearby restaurant with my exchange partner to go watch the Europa League Final. When we got back, it had already been dark for a few hours, and I was not hesitant to get some much- needed sleep.  Overall, it was an action-packed day in both Berlin and Frankfurt, filled with sightseeing and the joy of meeting our host families!   ~Kenny E.

Olympic Stadium

Olympic Stadium tour

Inside the Olympic Stadium

1936 Olympic Pool

Hmmmm….

Somewhere on the Ku’damm

on our way to the Olympic stadium

Olympic stadium

Olympic stadium tour

Olympic stadium tour

Olympic stadium tour

Berlin bears

Berlin bears

Berlin bears

Berlin bears

Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church

KaDeWe department store

view over the Berlin Zoo

Berlin Zoo

Meeting our host families

Meeting our host families

Meeting our host families

We started our final day in Berlin with a tour of the Olympic Stadium, the site of the 1936 Summer Olympics and currently the home of the Berlin Hertha soccer team.  We then headed to one of the most famous avenues in Berlin, the Kurfürstendamm, for some final impressions of the city.  This beautiful boulevard–lined with shops, luxury boutiques, hotels, cafes and residences–was the leading commercial street in West Berlin during the Cold War period.  While on the Ku’damm, the group took some time to visit the ruins of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, which was badly bombed during World War II and now stands as a tribute to peace and reconciliation.   Our next stop was the Kaufhaus des Westens, or KaDeWe, the second largest department store in Europe (after Harrod’s in London).  There, we enjoyed lunch in the store’s famous food hall, which has a huge glass winter garden overlooking the historic Wittenbergplatz.  After that it was time to go to the airport for our short flight to Frankfurt, where we found all of our host families waiting for us.   Frau Burgbacher and I were a bit sad to say good-bye to the students, but it was easy to see that they were all in very good hands and excited to begin their homestays with their partners from the Feldbergschule.  We are all looking forward to the next 11 days in Oberursel, and starting tomorrow, I will turn the storytelling over to the students.

For now, a fond hello to all of our families and friends back home!
~Frau Greene

Berlin Wall Memorial on the Bernauer Straßee

Berlin Wall Memorial

Berlin Wall

Leaving the Bernauerstraßee

New Synagogue

Park with TV tower in background

Lunch at the Hackescher Markt

Lunch at the Hackescher Markt

Escape Tunnel Tour

Tunnel markers

Escape Tunnel Tour

Atop the TV tower

Atop the TV tower

Atop the TV tower

Enjoying the view from the TV tower

Enjoying the view from the TV tower

Alexanderplatz

Restaurant Zillemarkt on the Savignyplatz

Dinner at the Zillemarkt

Our first full day in Berlin was a busy one!  We started off by creating our own inexpensive sightseeing tour with a ride on city bus #100, which passes by several of the main landmarks in the city, including the Brandenburg Gate.  We got off the bus at the Alexanderplatz  and then made our way to the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Straße, where we were able to see how the wall was constructed and guarded.  Next on the agenda was a walk down the Oranienburgerstraße to admire the beautiful gold dome of the New Synagogue, followed by lunch in the lively Hackescher Markt area.   Then it was time to meet our guide for an underground tour of the escape tunnels built to help East Berliners trying to flee from the GDR.   After our tunnel tour, we made our way back to the Alexanderplatz, where we enjoyed some coffee and cake in the revolving restaurant high atop the Fernsehturm (TV tower).  We then took a stroll down the grand boulevard Unter den Linden, where we were able to see the Berlin Cathedral, the reconstructed City Palace, the Humboldt University, and many other impressive buildings and museums.   We ended our day with dinner in two small groups on the Savignyplatz, a popular area for dining in West Berlin.

Typically, a student would have written this blog post, but given our packed schedule in Berlin,  we thought it  best to let the students get their sleep while we’re here without expecting anyone in the group to stay up extra late writing for the blog.  Instead, I will keep you updated over the next few days with photos and a brief description of our activities, and the student reports will begin once we arrive in Oberursel, starting with three students sharing their reflections on their experiences in Berlin.

For now, all the best from Germany!
~Frau Greene

Tegel Airport

Hotel Leonardo

Schlossgarten Restaurant

Dinner

Dinner

Dinner

Dinner

Dinner

Charlottenburg Palace

Charlottenburg Palace

Charlottenburg Garden

Charlottenburg Garden

Charlottenburg Garden

Charlottenburg Garden

Hello everyone.
After a bit of a bumpy flight to Washington, a long but smooth transatlantic flight, and a quick change of planes in Munich, we finally arrived safe and sound  in Berlin.   A charter bus brought us to our hotel, where we had an hour to drop off our luggage in our rooms and freshen up a little.  We then made our way as a group to the Schlossgarten Restaurant, where we enjoyed an early dinner of traditional German foods in a pleasant setting.  After dinner we walked over to nearby Schloss Charlottenburg, a beautiful rococo palace that was once the summer residence of the Prussian royal family.   It was nice to have a chance to stretch our legs a bit with a stroll through the palace garden.   Then it was back to the hotel for some much-needed sleep.  Tomorrow our adventures will begin in earnest, starting with a day exploring the eastern side of the city and learning more about the GDR and the Berlin Wall.

For now all the best from the German capital!
~Frau Greene