Returning Home -- June 24

What an early morning this was.  We all had to be ready to go by 4 AM to begin with breakfast.  Many of us spent the morning by reliving some of the moments we cherished as our favorite.  But before long, the group was divided into two.  One group leaving with Mrs. White to come home, another heading back to Pfaffenweiler to stay with family or friends.  I came with Mrs. White.  After breakfast, we all loaded onto a bus and headed to the Berlin Airport.  We all got through security and other miscellaneous airport business, before we sat for a while, waiting.  That is one thing I really don't like about travelling.  There seems to always be long periods of waiting.  However, before long, we were on the plane headed to London.  It was a short flight, being approximately an hour and fifteen minutes.  We landed, and embraced ourselves for more waiting.  About four hours.  Many of us gulped down the coffee, reminiscing some more over Germany.  After getting through the gate and security, we sat there waiting to board, and came across another American school group, from Terre Haute, Indiana.  Ironic? Yes.  Before we knew it, we were on the flight headed to Chicago.  This flight, we were pretty scattered on the plane, so I can't really say what we all did.  I, however, watched some of the media they provided and slept several hours.  The flight was rather unevenful, much like the entire day.  But after about seven and a half hours, we had landed in Chicago.  We immediately went through customs, finally being back on American soil, which felt really good.  We could understand people and fluently communicate again! After customs, we had to claim our luggage and re-submit it for the flight to Evansville.  Bryor ended up losing a carry-on, almost causing a few of us to miss the flight. However, we all luckily made it onto the flight.  The short flight caused anxiety for me.  We were so close to being home, but yet we weren't actually there.  But after landing, it was over.  We all quickly grabbed our carry-ons and hurried into the airport, to quickly be greeted by all of our parents.  As requested, my mom was waiting for me with a jar of Jiff peanut butter and a spoon. After minutes of hugs and excitement, we went to collect our luggage.  Unfortunately, my luggage was the only one that hadn't been there.  It was still in Chicago.  This is one of those moments where you just think "Why? Is it too much to ask to just simply be here to go home?"  Luckily, it arrived at my house early the next moment. Anyway, after collecting luggage, we all went our own ways, ending up at our houses to sleep for our first night in four weeks in our own bed.

I would like to take just a minute to thank everyone who helped with our trip.  Thank you Mrs. White and Mrs. Wehr, for doing everything you could to make our trip great.  Thanks to Sister Cities for donating such a generous donation for our exchange, it really  means a lot.  Thanks so much to the Deutscheverein for everything they've done, you guys are very kind.  Thanks to the Schnitzelbank for allowing us to host meetings and events in their facilities.  I want to give all the thanks I can to all of the teachers and citizens in Germany for all of the activities you planned, tours you gave, and just for making our stay in Germany a very positive one.  You guys will be missed.  I want to also give thanks to our host families and partners for giving us wonderful places to stay.  Lastly, I want to give thanks to anyone I may have forgotten. This trip will always be one of my favorites.  Thanks again, everyone.

Taylor Reutman

June 23

    Today began with a short breakfast at 9 am. We then made our way to Alexander-Platz. At Alexander-Platz we boarded a hop-on hop-off tour bus. We made a complete circuit of Berlin, then we started to go again and got off the bus at the DDR (East Germany) museum. The DDR museum was a fantastic learning experience. It had plenty of exhibits that show how the life of an average east german citizen was. They had all sorts of different interactive exhibits that all the students had a good time playing with.
    There were many interesting locations on our tour. The Berlin Dome is the largest Protestant church in Germany. The stretch of road that has been named "The Museum Garden" has 5 museums on it that were built between 1830-1930. The Brandenburg Gate was at one point the main entry way into East Germany. Across from the Brandenburg Gate is a wall with many crosses one it. Each cross is for a person who died while trying to escape across the wall into West Germany.

   -Kyle Robbins

June 18th.. a little bit behind.

A little bit behind indeed. This trip is just flying by and we are doing so many fun filled activities! I had no idea what day it was until just recently! So I must apologize. Time to rewind!
     Today, Saturday, June 18th, 2011,  was another day for family fun. Once again I couldn´t tell you what the others did, but why not entertain you a little with what I did, for those of you interested anyway.
     I got to sleep in a little bit today! But don´t mistake that for the start of a lazy day! We jumped right into it. We started off by visiting Feengrottenpark which is kind of like our Marengo Caves. Fun fact for the day: Feengrottenpark was in the 1993 Guienness Book of World Records because nature made them to be the most colorful of its kind in the world. It is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Thuringia and is also an impressive example of medieval mining.
     After our splunking adventure, we headed to Heidecksburg palace. It was HUGE. When they told me about it, my first impression was "Oh cool, another castle!". Boy was I wrong. I´m talking gold plated doors and such. The rooms were big enough to fit 100 people each. If you are interested, here is a link.------------> http://www.heidecksburg.de/cms/pages/en/home.php?lang=EN.

     
                  Alex Hilger

June 21, 2011

Today, started out like most days. We got up and got ready for school. On the way to school, it rained the entire time. By time I got to school, I was drenched. We met at school, as usual, at 8:00 in the main lobby area of the school. Then, promptly after, we headed for the Berggold chocolate factory. We finally arrived after a leisurely walk through the pouring rain. To our dismay, once we got there we found that the factory was closed! But, on the bright side, the chocolate store was open. They had a lot of chocolates and other candies for our liking. Most of the chocolate was at bargain price! I got a big bag of chocolate for only €1,50! After visiting the chocolate store, we began the return trip to the school. On the way back to the school, we stopped to get something to eat if we wanted something. Once we got back to the school, we all waited in the main lobby until our exchange partners got out of their classes. When they got out of class, we could choose to either stay in the main lobby or go with our partners to class. Most of us went to class. Then, after my exchange partners classes were over, he and I went back to his house until 6:00. At 6:00, we had the goodbye party. At the goodbye party, we ate, socialized, and had fun. There was a lot of food that included chicken, meatballs, chips, cakes, noodles, drinks, and much more. There we some sports like volleyball, soccer, and frisbee at the party too. I went back to Heiner's house at 9:00 to type this blog and get ready for bed.

P.S. I would like to give a big thank you to the people that helped make our trip to Pößneck and the various day trips possible! Thank you for your help!

Logan Rademacher

June 20th, 2011

Today was the normal morning routines for everyone, except for me. My German partner Marie is sick, so I had to get on the bus by myself and get off at the right stop to catch the connecting bus to school. Thankfully, I made it there safe and on time. I was quite proud of myself, because German public transportation can be so confusing!
After everyone arrived to school we boarded a bus for our trip to Weimar. After the hour ride we got off and toured the city. We were able to see many museums and monuments. The main topic of the day was the poets/philosophers Goethe and Schiller. There are many museums and monuments throughout the tour that praise both the genuis men. The hard part of the tour was that we were given a worksheet to fill out during the tour. It asked questions such as name 5 museums in Weimar, name 5 important people who lived in Weimar (Bach, Carl August, Goethe, etc), and other trival facts that could be learned if you payed attention to the tour guide. It was a great way to learn about the history of the city and the importance of it. Whoever had the most answers won; and the winner was Zach Grewe, with Mrs. Wehr as a close second place! Also during the tour we went to a indoor museum/movie. It was more like a story, with each room containing a different scene from history and narration to explain it. The topic was the history of the city Weimar. It was very informative and a neat experience.
After the tour was over, we had a little over an hour to eat lunch and shop on our own. For lunch I had Döner, which is a Turkish food. This is pretty much a wrap with meat, onions, lettuce, etc. It is quite a hit with all the American students. Many people went to the "best ice cream shop in town" according to our guide. We then browsed through the little stores and made our way back to the bus.
The next stop on our trip was the concentration camp, Buchenwald. This is something that I will always remember. As we drove onto the campsite, the eerie mood was set by the strong breeze and dark rain clouds. We walked to the entrance gate, and crossed into the camp. It is extremely quiet throughout the entire area, everyone is in complete remorse. As we went through the barrack living chambers and the cremetorium where the dead bodies were burned, you cannot help but to think of all the horrible things that once happened here. It was truly shocking to see the small prison like cells that people were crammed into. The part that shocked me the most was going into the cremetorium and walking past the huge ovens that bodies were burned in. The oven doors were open, and it was truly scary to imagine bodies being dumped here. It is so  hard to explain the feeling you get while at a concentration camp, it is just so creepy and sad. We were truly walking in the path of history. Next we watched a very informative movie about how Buchenwald was run during the war. This specific camp was used as a labor camp. Our guide pointed out that there are no gas chambers on the campus, because they did not need them. They worked the inmates to death. After the movie, we walked down to the memorial site which had many paintings portraying the harsh life that people had while at Buchenwald. We also saw three mass burial pits. They are big crater-like holes in the ground;  but at the time they were used they were said to be completely level with the ground. That put in perspective how many thousands of lives were lost at the camp. The experience of going to a concentration camp is truly moving.
After we were done touring the camp, we loaded back onto the bus. The original plan for this evening was to play beach volleyball and go swimming. But due to rain the plans were cancelled. I spent my evening at home with my host family and started packing.
Lauren Mann

June 19th

Happy Father's Day!
Today was another free day with our families in PÖßneck.  I woke up around 9 o'clock, and waited for everone else to wake up.  We all ate lunch at 11:30. I had goose for the first time, it was actually good! We then all took showers and left around 1 to go to Museum Schloss Burgk. It was so beautiful. There was another building/park that was also there. It is called The Sophienpark. In the Schloss Burgk, there were many different rooms and also each room had a different meaning for the room. The Kitchen, Knight Hall, the hunting room, Damensalon, Kleiner Saal und Vorraum (translation- Ladies' drawing room, small hall and anteroom), Schloßkapelle (The chapel of the castle), Weiße Zimmer (white room), Musiksalon (Music Hall), Chinazimer (China room), Roter Salon (Red Hall), Prunkzimmer (Splendour Room), Neue Gallerie, Pirckheimer Kabinett (New Gallery, Pickheimer Cabinet), Exlibris-Sammlung (Exlibris-collection), and last but not least Bibliothek (Library). There was also a certain floor for children's art work from school. they were representing the different rooms of the Schloss Burgk. I then went to get ice cream with my family and we came home. I hope everyone has a great Father's Day!
Allison Rominger

June 17th

     As always, the day began with the normal preparations for the day and breakfast.  Then, we made our way by bus, car, or foot to the gymnasium.  The day began with English class.  We were split into three groups.  One group went to an 11th grade class, one went to another 11th grade class, and one went to an 8th grade class.  We were there to help the German students since we are, of course, native speakers.  In my class, the German students interviewed the Americans and then reported their findings to the class in English.  We also had to unscramble a series of American history events into chronological order.  The last task was to assist the students with their homework.  They were learning about adjectives and adverbs and also American culture and patriotism.

     After English, special classes just for the American´s began.  The first lesson was chemistry.  We made our own butter and then spread it on some freshly baked German bread.  It wasn´t always easy to follow a recipe in German, but somehow we made it through.  Although, some made it through faster than others.  My butter seemed to take a lot more churning than anyone else´s to finally solidify.  Regardless, it was a delicious snack.

     Next, we had Russian.  For most of us, it was our first experience with the language.  The teacher began by showing us how our names are written in Russian.  Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet, so it looked more like gibberish than actual writing.  The teacher also taught us how to tell our age and what our name is.  It took a while for us to grasp the rather strange pronunciation, but by the end we were reasonably well trained.  The rest of the lesson was spent showing us all the characters of the Cyrillic alphabet, the pronunciations of numbers one through seventeen, and singing Frere Jacques in four different languages:  English, French, German, and Russian.

     After Russian, we had astronomy.  This lesson was just about entirely in German.  It was a little hard to get all the details, but it was still very interesting.  He began by giving us an envelope containing slips of paper with the constellations´ names in both English and German.  We had to try to match them up.  Some were simple cognates, but others were trickier.  Next, the teacher talked about the horribly unfortunate loss of Pluto´s planetary status.  He said he felt sorry that a planet discovered by an American had to be demoted.  We concluded the lesson by labeling a German star chart.

     The final class was German.  We began with a fun German song that is actually more like a game.  As you sing each verse you have to remove the last letter from a frequently sung word.  So Wanze becomes Wanz and then Wan and then Wa and then W and then _.  If you ever pronounce more of the word then you are supposed to you are out.  It was a lot of fun.  The next part of the lesson was spent interpreting the poem Erlkönig by Goethe.  She began by setting us up with the setting and characters.  Then we read and translated.  As w read, she had removed words from the ends of lines and we had to fill them in (harder than it sounds).  It was a very fun class.

     After school, I went with my family to Kaufland: the German equivalent of Walmart.  It is very similar to Walmart except it only sells groceries and other basic goods.  That means no clothes, tools, electronics, or home furnishings.  To use a cart, you had to make a deposit.  If you returned the cart, you got the money back.  That was very different.  Another huge difference was the recycling room. Just beyond the entrance, there was a large room full of plastic and glass bottles.  If you bring your bottles back to Kaufland you can get money off of your next purchase.  It´s a cool way to encourage recycling.  Beyond that Kaufland was similar to an American grocery store.

     For dinner, we went to a beach themed restaurant called Tolle Knolle. I must admit it was a little strange seeing a beach themed restaurant in Germany, but they went all out.  The ground was sand covered and they had palm trees, surf boards, and a little cabana bar.  It was pretty cool and a fun restaurant.  Despite the theme, though, I ordered a Thuringen (the German state in which Pößneck is located) specialty.  It was beef rolled around a vegetable filling, red cabbage, and a sort of baked potato.  The potatoes were cooked and then shredded and then put back together in a sphere.  It seemed like a lot of work just to make something very similar to a baked potato, but I´m just an American. It was all delicious.

     After dinner, I finished the night at a little get together at one of the German´s gardens.  It was a lot of fun. We played some ping pong, talked, laughed, sang some songs with a guitar, and instead of roasting marshmallows we roasted bread over a fire. They had this sweet dough that you wrapped around a stick and then you can bake it over the fire.  It was pretty cool. It was a gret way to finish a great day.

Zachary Grewe

June .......16?

Considering yesterday was "where all the bad people go" today was a gentle breeze equipped with colorful butterflies and an everflowing stream of chocolate. I woke up and enjoyed my favorite meal of the day, breakfast. I've been introduced to a delicacy that I spread on all my bread, a sort of chunky nutella. It's heavenly. Christopher and I walked to Robert's house (again) and walked with Robert and Clay to school. When we got there, we met up with the rest of the "Amis", including Herr White (I guess that's what we call him?) who, we were told, is suffering from jet lag. We immediantly saw opportunity..

Our journey began as we walked towards the third building of the Gymnasium. We had already seen and been in the Sporthall and main building, the building we visited today though was for the 11th and 12th graders that are nearing the Abitur and freedom. The rooms were tiny and quite, but there were lots of stairs. There are lots of stairs in general in Germany, I might as well just add I'm living a rapunzel life at Christopher's house- highest room in the tallest tower (three sets of stairs to the bedroom).
After visiting the third building and taking a moment of sympothy for the sad system of schooling in Germany, we set out for the 5k walk. (I don't want to kill you with suspense, so I'll go ahead and exlpain that last note. In America, our school is paid for and upgraded basically with taxes and such. Here in Germany, no one really wants to pay for the schooling so when a wall is rotting or stairway is creaky... you just have to suck it up and keep walking.)
We walked... and walked....and walked some more. We walked up hot stone roads and through mud-drenched woods. We walked up hills and down hills. We walked on the left side of the highway and in between pretty houses. We walked near construction and through a meadow. We walked through the blistering heat and the freezing shade. We walked.
Hours later, we arrived at a cute little place where we Kegled? Keglen: A game similar to bowling, but also very different. This game consists of two lanes, narrower and shorter than your average bowling lane. Instead of ten pegs, there are only nine kegles (?). Instead of a big ball you squeeze your fingers into, there are small balls you hold on to and roll under a rope.  We split into two teams, red and black. Our first game was basically a count-up-your-total-scores competition... the only catch was if you reached a double number (11...33....88) your team had to start back at 0. Then, we played a game where you had to knock down certain numbers and everytime you knocked down that number, it was erased off of your to-do list. Red fought hard with all their little hearts, but proved to be no competition for the dominating black team.
Then we ate brats.
Dear Axel,
Thank you very much. The food was delicious.
After eating, we walked once more. We walked all the way up a hill to an over-priced ice cream shop where we all stood aroud eating soft ice cream. It was delicious. Then, we walked some more. We walked down a hill to a buffalo viewing place. Here, though, they aren't called buffalo. They're called something else.
We eventually hiked to a spot where we saw a small numbered but big sized buffalo family. They heavily breathed for us for a few moments before walking away.
Then, and I know you won't believe this, but we walked some more. We walked back to the road and up the hill. I want to spend a sentence or two on this hill..... it was unlike any hill I've ever walked up before. I love Germany and am counting down the days until I return, but I pray I never, ever have to walk up a hill like that one ever again for the rest of my life. If you've never been to Germany but plan to go one day, be prepared to walk. and walk. and walk.
In the end, everyone survived, some more than others, and we collapsed on the side of the road at the top of the Hill where we waited for our partners to pick us up. Some people went to visit a castle, but I came home to relax and write my last blog. It's been a pleasure..

Jenny Price
(P.S. This is me mentioning Hungry Shark)

Today started like many others. As usual we had an early start. We met at school around eight and then had a nice welcome. The principal, Herr Steffens Heerwagen, was kind enough to do announcements just like Mr. Hacker does in Jasper. After the announcements, Herr Heerwagen took time out of his busy day to make sure that we got to see the school and everything in it. We then headed to city hall. There we had a small meal with the Burgermeister and recieved a warm welcome to Pössneck. Following this wonderful welcome we headed out for a city tour. The city was once a wealthy, prospurous city. Until reunification, it was an industrial hub. We then got to witness Zach Grewe play an amazing piece on the pipe organ in the oldest church in the town. We then got to take part in our favorite activity...walking. We walked up the hill for what seemed like forever. Then we came to Christopher's house where we got to once agin climb a hill. At the topnof the hill however, you could see most of the city. We walked back down and then proceeded to school. At school we were told to find food and be back at the school at 1pm. A majority of us went for a German cusinr known as döner. After lunch we headed tO he gym for sports. It was much different than our gyms in America. There were grave type storage units in the walk which greatly helped to store things and conserve space. All In all today was a good day for he most of us.
Jack fleck

Tuesday, June 14th

          Today started at 6:30 (German time) for me, enough time to shower, eat, and get ready for the long day ahead of us in Dresden. Everyone met at the school to get on the bus that was supposed to take about 2 hours to get to Dresden. To be honest, the bus rides are usually my favorite part; I like being able to sit and talk and joke with friends in the back of the bus.
          When we finally arrived, we went around the city in the bus for maybe a half hour or so and got a short tour of the more outer parts of the city. We saw a hygiene museum, some old houses and castles; it was really pretty.. The bus dropped us off in at a square in the city, where we started our tour by foot. We stopped by many beautiful buildings, statues, monuments, and other well-known areas in the city. One of the buildings we stopped by was the Grand Hotel Taschenbergpalais; Barack Obama stayed in this hotel for one night two years ago. To stay in this hotel, it costs about $5000 per night, I think is what the tour guide said.
          We saw many other monuments, so many that there's no way I could remember all of their names. During the tour, I learned that porcelain was first made in Dresden and that it's the most expensive there.. On the main church, Dresden Church of Our Lady, the bricks are different colors. This is because after the air raid from WWII, which the church withstood, there temperatures were too hot (they reached up to 1000 degrees Celcius) and this made the church collapse two days later after the air raid. The darker pieces on the building is the original,  and the lighter colored pieces are the refurbished pieces.
         Once the tour was finished, we were allowed about 2 hours of free time. I think the majority of people went to get something to eat and to shop a little. Tom, Allison, and I went to some Italian place and Allison and I got the most amazing pasta we've ever tasted. After this, we got Frappichino's from Starbucks to cool down from the heat outside.
          Everyone had to find their way back to the set meeting place to get back on the bus, which then we drove to the Asisi Panometer. This place was really cool; inside the dome-like building, there was a huge painting of Dresden from back in the old days. When you'd climb to the top of a structure in the middle of the building, you were surrounded by the sounds of the town and a very detailed picture. Eventually the time of the day would change from daytime, to a deep purple/blue which was like nighttime.
         By the end of our time here, everyone loaded back on the bus to go home. This was another fun bus ride home. We stopped once to pee (which cost ,70 Euros) and get some refreshments for the ride. Then we continued home, it rained a bit, and we saw a double rainbow; which was pretty sweet.. After we got back to the school, I think most kids went home with their partners because we have to go to classes tomorrow with them. Others went to hang out with other students; I'm not sure exactly what everyone did. But overall, the day was pretty rad..

Miranda Buffington

June 13, 2011

Today started off with me waking up. It was once again another free day. I started it off by going to Jonathan's grandparents house. After his grandparents house his grandfather drove us into Posneck to meet up with Wade and Marie. After we met them we caught a taxi and took it to the train station. We then bought our train tickets to Gena. Once we arrived in Gena we walked around for a little bit then we went to McDonalds. Then after McDonalds we walked around some more and went back to McDonalds. We finished at McDonalds and walked to the planetarium where we watched some sort of show which was actually really cool I would really recommend to anyone if they have the chance to go see something like that. After the planetarium we caught a train back to Posneck. Once we arrived home we went to the doner stand. We ate then we met up with Alex, Pauline, and Anne. We then hung out at a park for a little bit before we split our ways and went home. That was my exciting day here in Germany.
Joshua Parker Tempel

June 12, 2011

      Today was another free day with our Pößneck families.  It started off when i woke up this morning at 10:30.  I went downstairs and there was enough food on the table for like 8 people and it was all set out for me. :) It was pretty awesome and it was probably one of the best breakfasts that i have ever had.  There were so many meats, cheeses, and breads that i ate. 
      At about 11:30 we left to pick up Marie's boyfriend and we went to McDonalds to have lunch. Even though I was already completely full from breakfast, I still ate a chicken sandwich and a Coke.  McDonalds is definitely better in Germany than back in the states.  After lunch we drove to a campsite  about 20 minutes away where her family had a nice RV type trailor. Once we arrived we set up chairs and a table and just relaxed. Marie's parents brought out 2 bags of assorted chocolates and told me I could eat some.  At first I said no thanks because I was still very full but I ate again anyway.  Marie, her boyfriend, and her mother went swimming in the lake for a short while.  It was way too cold for me to go though. I thought they were pretty crazy for swimming in that cold of water. haha.  After they got done, we went to a nearby ice cream bar type restaurant and we ate there.  I had spaghetti eis mit waldbeere, which is spaghetti ice cream with wildberries.  Once we got done eating we went back to the trailor and relaxed again.  I sat in a lawn chair for almost 2 hours and fell asleep.  It was a very relaxing time.  After I woke up, her father had already begun grilling a lot of food.  It all was very good and it really filled me up.  
        We left the campsite around 8:00 and headed back to her house.  One of her friends came over and we went to a birthday party together.  The party was a lot of fun and im glad I went.  All together today was a really good day and I don't think I have ever ate as much food as I did today.  It was pretty awesome.

Wade Lee Sermersheim

June 11th - Another Super Duper LONG bus ride!

At some point we would have to leave Münich, and today was the day.  We would embark on our 5 hour long bus ride to Pößneck. We left the hostel around 9 am and stopped at a rest stop to eat lunch about noon-ish. Most of us slpet until the rest stop. Most of us ate at Burger King because it was quick and something we were used to. We left there and went to finish the rest of our trip to Pößneck. We arrived in Pößneck around 1:30 (or 13:30) and met up with our partners to go home and unpack.  Some of us went to the store to pick up a few things with our hostfamilies. After that we went home did our duties and came back to the school for a Welcome Party. There was some good food, but not much entertainment. Some of us went to bowl afterwards, and that was fun. :) After that we went home and slept. Fun day, AFTER the bus ride. :)
                                     Bryor Edward Schepers

June 10th, 2011

Today was our tour/look of Münich(München auf Deutsch). It started out in our Hostles(Hotels) where we ate our breakfast and then we went on our tour of the wonderful city. We first had to go by tram to get to our U-Bahn(subway). Once we got on board we headed for our start of the tour. We reached our starting point for the tour then Mrs. White gave us a tour of the city for about 20 minutes. Then everybody was free to roam the streets of Münich for 30 minutes. When our 20 minutes were up we meet up at the main square where we met up with a man (a relative of Lauren Mann) for our lunch.

We ate our food then we went to the Englisher Garten, for the start of a amazing race type thing, were we have to do three tasks, 1. take a picture of someone with there dog, 2. take a picture with weißwurst, and 3. take a picture with a monument that you haven't saw today. There was 4 teams of 4. I was teamed up with Tom, Allison, and Miranda. Our team name was team Taco Bell. We got all of our pictures in about 10 minutes then we tried to race back to our Hostle. We got lost along the way, but quickly got back on track so then we were fine, we also saw a naked man just standing on his balcony on the way back too. Once we neared the end of the run, we all sprinted as fast as we could to reach the Hostle, but it didn't matter, we were last. Also, the winning team took a taxi to be the first ones there. But that was okay cause in the end, we all got our ice-cream.

Donald Rohlman III

June 9, 2011 -- One LONG Super Boring Bus Ride to Munich, Germany

Taylor Reutman

So I woke up this morning with a bittersweet rush of emotions. I was super excited to see the next part of our journey through Germany.  But at the same time, it was rather sad to be leaving the wonderful Staufen community.  My host family was moving the following day, so I (already still being out of my comfort zone, being in a new country and all) was pushed even more out of my realm when a team of big, husky men came barging into my host-home to begin loading a bunch of stuff up. This was just absolutely fantastic. Okay not.  It was just downright awkward.  So I wake up, shower, and sit down to eat breakfast.  Today, like every other morning, was bread and nutella for me. Und ja, es schmeckt sehr, sehr gut.  I literally scurry to my room when finished to do some last minute packing.  Before I knew it, we were in the car on the way to Faust Gymnasium to say our goodbyes and leave for Munich.  So we pull in, say our sad goodbyes, give lots of hugs, take last minute pictures, load up, and pool out.

So we just start driving, many of us are chatting up a storm, some are trying to capture a few more "zzz's" before we made our stop at the castle, Neuschwanstein.  We pull in, and I'm actually dreading this tour of the castle.  Why?  Well, first of all it's raining.  Everything is just sopping wet, and it is definitely not cute. Second, my shoes, after arriving in Germany, developed huge holes in them, and I knew I was due for another day with soaking shoes and socks, right after the day at Europa Park.  I pretty much was unhappy about the stop.  We end up taking a bus most of the way (unlike the previous exchange, where they hiked all the way there).  We get off the bus up there, and split into two groups.  One is going over a bridge to see a scenic view over the castle, while the other went directly to the castle.  I went straight there, hoping to get out of the rain ASAP.  We eventually arrive at the castle and wait for our group tour (in English) to start.  We eventually go, and we meet out tour guide, named Benjamin Kast.  Let me say just one thing about good ol' Benny.  He was quite interesting and fragile.  Yes, I said fragile. Frail.  I thought me might break a bone going up the stairs. However, in the words of the wise Mrs. Wehr, "We are all God's children."  I thought he was genuinely a great guy.  So our tour takes approximately 45 minutes, and we learned a bit about the king that lived there, and the history of the castle.  I'll omit these boring (but interesting!) details.  When the tour was over, we made our way back to the bus and continued on our way towards our hostel in Munich.

Let me say a couple of words about the second half of the drive.  First, it is really hard to sit on a bus for 10+ hours when you initially thought it would only take 4 to 5 hours.  Second, I thank Germany for at least providing us with the entertainment of stopping for an extra hour because there was a wreck about 200 meters in front of us.  Third, Germany has some interesting people.  Some who decide to urinate on the side of the road, with about 100+ people watching.  And third, it is really hard to get any sleep on a bus.  The ride was generally pretty much a dreadsome part of the trip. However, if it's the worst, I'll be happy with this.

Anyway, once we finally arrived in our hostel, we immediately went inside, where we were given room assignments.  I was with Kyle, Donnie, and Logan.  Next to us were the girls (Lauren, Jenny, Allison, Miranda) and beside them were the second year boys (Zach, Jack, Bryor, Tom). Around the corner were the other third year boys (Alex, Clay, Wade, Josh).  We had just a little time to settle before going back down to the ground floor for dinner in the hostel.  It was some sort of pasta with mashed potatoes and vegetables.  After eating, we were permitted to go to the diskotheke that was located in the basement of the hostel.  We all made an appearance and dance, but a few of us decided to go back to my room and play cards and Uno.  At midnight, we had to be back in our room for a roomcheck from Mrs. White, and then we all went to sleep.  Tomorrow's agenda??? Munich!!

June 8, 2011

       Today, we were in Europa Park. Europa Park is Germany's largest theme park. The weather was not very good early on in the morning, but all of the rides were open and everyone had a great time. It has 16 differently themed areas, 14 from european countries, 1 especially for the youngest children, and 1 for fairy tales. The park is mostly based around its plethora of rollercoasters, but it also has many live performances,shops and other rides. Some of the other rides include but are not limited to a 100 year old carousel, several log rides, bumper cars, battle boats and a glass eleverate to see a full 360 degree panorama of the park. Today is our last full day in the Staufen area. Tommorow we meet at 8:45a.m. to get on a bus to travel to Munich.

        -Kyle Robbins

June 7

Do you want me to be honest or make something up? I bet your saying honest. Today we went to Zurich. I woke up a half an hour late and thought I was going to miss our bus. But I was fine. I didn't realize how long the bus ride was. It was quite convenient that we had such a long bus ride because I didn't sleep as much as I would've like to the night before.

We got to Zurich and we drove around, and saw some  of the historic buildings and shopping area. We got to the place where we were supposed to meet our tour guides and split up into two groups: English and German. I (of course) went with the English so I could understand everything.

(This is the part where I'm honest. The tour wasn't that great. I enjoyed the city but I guess I was looking forward to the rest of the day too much.) After the tour we went and ate lunch by the Zurich lake. I just packed a salami sandwich and then a bread with Nutella and butter... YUM! 

We then took a boat ride to another part of Zurich which was where the supposed chocolate factory was... So we got off the boat and walked for (as Frau Burkard says 6 minutes) and went into this store filled floor to ceiling of Lindt Chocolate. I had the same feeling I get before the Fourth of July when I go firework shopping. :) The sad part was that There was no 'factory' but it's okay because Tom still got chocolate :D

Tom Eric Reinsch II 

June 6, 2011

Today, we went to a town called Titisee. A main landmark of the town is a big lake at its center. Most of us took a small paddleboat out onto the water. Toward the middle of the lake, we pulled our boats together and had a little picnic. We were supposed to have a tour of the Black Forest but I have know idea why we didn't. After we paddled in from the water, most of us went to an ice cream shop to get some ice cream. After we were done eating, we had about 20 minutes to walk around Titisee. We then headed to Freiburg to shop for souvineers or to get someting to eat. In Freiburg, most of us went to see the movie Hangover 2. We then took a bus to Pfaffenweiler for a little get together with both the exchange partners and other people from the town of Pfaffenweiler. There was a band there that played music for us and we ate and socialized. After the get together, we were allowed to go our separate ways. Some of us, including me, went to a birthday party. There, we socialized and had a good time.

Logan Rademacher

June 5th, 2011

Today was another free day with our families since it is the weekend. We are allowed to do whatever we want, so today my host partner Johanna and I went to France. Her aunts and uncle picked us up at about 10 this morning, and we drove to France. It was strange crossing into a new country, because it just felt as if we were crossing into a different state, like in America. We drove up to the very top of a huge hill, where the Haut Koenigsbourg is located. It is a castle that was build in the 12th century and used during the Thirty Years War (the castle had informative pamphlets in English!). We were able to walk through the entire castle; it was very beautiful inside. At the very top of the castle, you could see all the surrounding citites and the hills. It was a great spot for taking pictures. After we went through the castle, we drove down to a little park and had a picnic lunch which included an assortment of salami and meats, cheese, tomatoes, and pickles. It was a nice light lunch.
Once we finished lunch, we walked over to the Affenpark (monkey park). When you enter the park, you are given a handful of popcorn to give to the monkeys. We walked through the pathways, and monkeys would be sitting along the path, waiting to be fed. There was so many monkeys! It was really funny to watch them interact with eachother. We were able to see a few newborn baby monkeys, and they were very cute.
After that, we came back home, and stayed around the house for a few hours. We are going to go to Dörthe`s (Tom`s partner) house for a barbecue tonight.
I know that every student has done something different this weekend, but I`m sure everyone can agree that Germany is great!
-Lauren Mann

June 4, 2011

Today there was not very much for us to do, so it was a free day. From 9-12 we could go to the gym and do different activities.  There was basketball, soccer, a trampoline (to flip onto a mat), or just sit around and watchthe others. After this we all went home to do our own things.  I went home and Yvonne and me went to Freiburg, and met up with Johanna, Lauren, Tom, Dörtel, Jessica and Miranda to go shopping around the city. It was very interesting seeing all of the different stores and people around the city.  We then came back home and Yvonne and a little get together with Johanna, Lauren, Tom and Dörtel. It was very nice! Sorry I didn't know about what the other students did!
Allison

Today we all went to a climbing garden. It was about an hour train ride then a short bus ride. We partnered up and "learned the ropes". There were nine different courses for us to try. The hardest one was called bär or bear in English. At the end of the hard courses there was a 12m jump, it was a lot of fun. Earlier in the day they had their last day of school for two weeks. Before school we walked to the bakery to get some lunch to eat later. Fabian didn't have a class during the first two periods so we didn't have to go to school until 9:45. Then us Americans had german class where we talked to some 7th graders about what we like to do in Jasper and how we like Germany and so on. Overall I had a lot of fun today, however I am probably going to be sore in the morning from all of the climbing.
Clay

June 2, 2011

      Today was a family day. All students got a day to share with their host familes. So I suppose I could tell you about my day, but if you don't care then just ya know... close the window or whatever.
       Today I woke up later than usual because we didn't have school due to Father' Day (yes they celebrate it on a different day). I went to play soccer with Roman, Marcell, Jack, Phillip, Bryor, Norman, and Zach in a near by town. We had to reserve a field to play on at the indoor soccer place so we reserved one for an hour. After that we headed home and took a shower.
      Later that night Roman and I went to a small get together at Phillip's. We cooked outside and sat around and conversed. We called it " Chillin' und Grillin' ".
      Thats pretty much everything that happened during my day. I'm sure some members of the exchange did some pretty exciting things today and I am sorry that I can't share them with you! But don't worry! There is plenty more to come from the Jasper High School German Exchange! Tomorrow will be a very eventful day!
      Stay classy Jasper, Indiana.
                                                                       Alex Hilger

June 1st

     It is only day three of the Jasper High School German Exchange Group´s adventure, but so much has happened that it is hard to believe it has only been three days.  Today began like any other with breakfast and the usual preparations for the day ahead.  Then, we either walked, rode a bus, or bicycled to the school. Very few people drive here and the public transportation is very efficient.  Trains and buses are often much better than a car.  At school, we spent first and second period with our partners.  I got to experience both a Latin class and an English class.  I was impressed by how manz languages the German students study.  I believe most of them take three foreign languages as well as studying their own.  I was also impressed by their study of English.  There were words in their texts that even I as a native speaker did not know the meaning of.
     After this, the American students went to German class.  Today, we learned about using the perfect past tense and about asking each other what we have done.  As always, it was very informative. After instruction, we were then allowed to use laptops to check e-mail, this blog, our grades via powerschool, or whatever else we might wish to do.  One difference between Germany and the USA is computer keyboards.  The y and z switch places and many of the punctuation symbols are in different places.  Often three characters can be produced by the same button. Then it was time for lunch.  Lunch can be bought at the school cafe, brought from home, or bought in Staufen.  I as well as many other students did the latter.  I tried some Döner from a local food stand.  It was delicious.
     The afternoon was spent in Freiberg.  We took the train to get there which was an adventure in and of itself.  We got on in Staufen and in about half an hour we made it to Freiberg.  One thing that surprised me about the trains and the buses also, was how quiet they were.  Aside from the noisy, excited Americans, the public transportation is a nearly silent affair.  One of the Germans put it best:  "Life is no party.  Here we just chill." Freiberg is a larger city that is very different from the small villages we have seen so far.  Our first activity in Freiberg was a tour of the darker side of the city.  Our guide told us stories of graveyards and ghosts.  It was both historical and entertaining.  One of my favorite parts of the tour was a graveyard.  Unlike the neat and tidy cemeteries in America, this graveyard had trees growing throughout and various plants competing for space amongst the headstones.  It was very different.  After the tour, the various groups of students headed separate ways.  Some went shopping, some were eager to try the local food, and others went back to Staufen to avoid the dreary weather (it was a rather cold and windy day).
     The rest of the evening will be spent by the students in various ways.  Already, our German is getting better and we can understand our partners better as well.  The trip has already proved beneficial for that, and it´s barely been half a week.  We even talk amongst ourselves in German, and some of us end up thinking in German.  We are doing well.  Germany, despite its many differences, is beginning to feel like home.

Zachary Grewe