Schüleraustausch Offenburg - Borehamwood (26.3. – 2.4.2011)
Auch in diesem Jahr fuhr wieder eine Gruppe von Siebtklässlern, die wir aus wesentlich mehr Bewerbern auslosen mussten, in den Großraum London zum Austausch mit unseren Partnerschulen, der Haberdashers‘ Aske’s Boys‘ and Girls‘ School aus Borehamwood. Aus organisatorischen Gründen waren wir dieses Jahr wesentlich früher dran als sonst, hatten aber dennoch wieder großes Glück mit dem Wetter und mussten nur wenige Tropfen aus dem englischen Himmel über uns ergehen lassen.
Nach der langen Fahrt mit Bus und Fähre am Samstag, konnten alle Beteiligten am Sonntag bei einem Tag in der Gastfamilie neue Kräfte für die kommende Woche sammeln. Der enge Kontakt zu der englischen bzw., beim Rückbesuch, deutschen Familie, in der die Schüler während der ganzen Woche unterkommen, ist das zentrale Anliegen dieses langjährigen Austauschs. Kein noch so ausgefeiltes Touristenprogramm kann diese unmittelbare und sehr individuelle Erfahrung ersetzen. Von zentraler Bedeutung ist in diesem Zusammenhang auch der Besuch der Schule und der Klasse des jeweiligen Partners, wobei eine aktive Beteiligung am Unterrichtsgeschehen durchaus gewünscht ist und eingefordert wird.
Aber auch das eher touristisch-kulturelle Programm hat seine Berechtigung: Mit dem Boot ging es beispielsweise von Big Ben zum Tower, auf der gleichnamigen Brücke über die Themse, vorbei am Globe Theater zur Kathedrale von St. Paul. Dort erhielten wir eine der berühmten Führungen von Maurice, einem 94jährigen Urgestein der Kathedrale, der unsere Gruppe schon seit Jahren führt und sich das glücklicherweise auch nicht nehmen lassen will. Eifrige Hochzeitsvorbereitungen konnte man am zweiten Londontag beobachten: Trafalgar Square, Horse Guards, The Mall und Buckingham Palace samt Rückweg über St. James‘ Park, Westminster Abbey und die Houses of Parliament entsprachen ziemlich genau den Koordinaten des großen Ereignisses vom 29. April. Ein wenig lockerer lief es dann im Covent Garden ab, wo die vielen Gaukler und Einkaufsmöglichkeiten die Schüler begeisterten. Die anderen Tage waren ausgefüllt mit einem Ausflug nach Cambridge (inklusive Stocherkahnfahren im Regen) und einem Besuch der nahegelegenen, altehrwürdigen Provinzhauptstadt St. Albans mit Kathedrale und Römermuseum.
Nach dem, was wir bisher erfahren konnten, waren alle Beteiligten sehr zufrieden. Die Schüler fühlten sich in ihren Gastfamilien wohl und so freuen wir uns schon alle sehr auf den hoffentlich sonnenverwöhnten Gegenbesuch der Engländer vom 9. bis zum 16. Juli. Der Austausch feiert dieses Jahr sein zwanzigjähriges Bestehen und wir hoffen, dass es uns gelingen wird, diese wichtige Institution unserer Schulen noch lange zu erhalten.
Interview - Students‘ exchange with England 2011
Here is an interview with Mila and Niclas (form 7a) who took part in this year’s students’ exchange with Haberdashers Aske’s school in Borehamwood, England. They were interwied by their classmate Isabelle.
Isabelle: What did you do in England?
Mila: We did a lot, for two days we were in London and went sightseeing.
Niclas: We were in Cambridge with my group. And with my exchange family I was in Madame Tussaud’s in London.
Isabelle: How long did you stay in England?
Niclas: For one week
Isabelle: And how long did you need to get there?
Mila: I think we needed 11 to 12 hours by bus and ferry.
Isabelle: How was the food in England?
Niclas: I stayed with an Indian family and they cooked very spicy meals. I don´t like spicy food. One day I went to Mc Donald’s with my exchange family. On one trip I ate Fish and Chips. It was very very good.
Mila: I found the food very yummy, and I love the cookies from England.
Isabelle: What did you do on the first day?
Mila: Everybody was in his or her host family and made some activities with them.
Isabelle: How were your exchange students like?
Niclas: My exchange student was very nice and his family too. He likes to play on the computer J.
Mila: My exchange student was so funny and we laughed a lot together.
Isabelle: Would you recommend the exchange to England?
Mila: Yes, of course.
Niclas: Yes, because it was very exciting and we learned new English words.
Isabelle: Thanks for this interesting interview !
Going abroad – my great six months in Oconomowoc 2007
Sometimes it seems like yesterday that my host family welcomed me warmly at the airport in Chicago, holding up a balloon and a sign with my name on it.
Before I departed from Offenburg I was, of course, very excited and perhaps even sometimes a bit uncertain whether it was the right decision to leave my family, my friends, my school… for such a long time. But as soon as I arrived at my new home in Oconomowoc, there wasn’t very much time left to mourn after all these things. For me, as I’m an only child, it was especially interesting to experience family life with one sister, of my age, and an older brother. I felt at once comfortable with my host family and they made me feel a real member of their family.
Oconomowoc is a nice small city in the state of Wisconsin with about 14,000 inhabitants and is located in a beautiful area with lots of lakes, which I have circled by bike several times together with friends. It is located right in the middle between the bigger cities of Milwaukee and Madison, the capital of Wisconsin.
During the weeks I spent most of the day at high school, as school doesn’t finish here until 2.45 pm. School offers a much wider variety of subjects than here in Germany, so everyone can find those in which he/she is interested. My favourite subjects were US history, American government and an entrepreneurship class. In this class we had to start our own fictional business and had to write a complete business plan for it, which included doing research at the local businesses. But naturally there was also much time left for breaks. Together with my friends we had lunch at school, we went on excursions, e.g. to the musical performance “Westside Story” in Milwaukee or we spent two days in Chicago at a current affairs debate weekend for students all around the Midwest.
And after school we went running around the city or we went cross country skiing in the local nature reserve. Never in my life had I seen so much snow as I did in Oconomowoc. And it was even so cold, that it was too dangerous to go to school, which meant for us a day off!!! (My first one because of cold instead of heat :-) )
As music is one of my passions, I became an active member of the Milwaukee Senior Symphony Orchestra and the local church choir, where I got to know so many other nice people. With them I went on some great trips to Milwaukee, Madison, Chicago, where they showed me around the cities. Over Spring Break my host family took me to one of the largest water parks at the Wisconsin Dells.
Other special experiences were the Twirp Dance and the big Prom Dance at the Hilton Hotel in Milwaukee, which are organized by school every year. Everybody gets dressed up and before the dance you meet for a photo shooting.
Of course there were also some hours in which I longed for my family and friends in Germany when it was difficult to decide everything on my own. But in the end when you receive the school certificate from the principal, you are definitely proud and glad that you’ve done that important step in your life. And speaking for me, I am sure that this experience will mark my life for ever and it will always remain something special and wonderful for me.
Berenike Ladwig, Klasse ehem. 12a
Emily, Julie, me and AJ - saying good-bye after a good time together
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