News and Social Media

Our trip to Germany was exciting and interesting for all. As soon as we got off the plane, we took the S-Bahn to Mainz, where we were warmly greeted by our host families and taken home for the first night.

On Thursday, we had five lessons before visiting the Gutenberg Museum, where we watched a demonstration of the original printing press. (Maita had a hands-on approach during the demonstration!) We were also able to see original copies of the first printed Bible, the Gutenberg Bible, before going to the printing workshop and making a few prints of our own. We explored the Mainz Christmas market, trying goodies such as Kinderpunsch, Kartoffelpuffer and crêpes. We then returned home to our host families after a joyous day of fun.

On Friday, we had more lessons in school, which were entirely in German. It was a nice challenge trying to decipher some of the phrases we were unfamiliar with! After our lessons, we went ice-skating in Wiesbaden and visited the Sternschuppenmarkt, where a Weihnachtsmann spooked some of us. I tried chocolate-covered strawberries, while others bought Lebkuchen and tried some new foods; they were all sehr lecker!

On Saturday, we celebrated Nikolaustag with our host families, where we received gifts and sweets in our shoes as a German tradition. With my family, I went to see a play, Aschenputtel (Cinderella), set by her cousin. Afterwards, Abby and I had a sleepover with my host sister, and we ate a lot of Haribo and chocolate brought to us by Nikolaus in the morning.

Our last day in Germany was Sunday. Abby and Grace, we went to a youth group and church, which was interesting and enriching. After the service, we went to the Christmas market in Rosenheim and tried a traditional German pastry, Baumstriezel, which is similar to a sweet Yorkshire pudding with sprinkles or cinnamon sugar.

Grace and Abby, LC3

On Saturday, my host family and I met up with some of the girls, and we all went shopping together, which was a nice experience. I got to buy a souvenir for my family and lots of German sweets as well, like Haribo, which had many different flavours that we couldn’t get in the UK. I got to practice my German speaking skills at the shops, which was interesting to try.

On Sunday, most of my day I spent at home, where I got to bake Christmas cookies with my host family. We made marzipan treats and Gebrannte Mandeln, which are nuts coated in caramelised sugar. They were both amazing and sehr lecker! I then got some time to talk to my partner, where she taught me some German phrases, and I taught her some English phrases, although her English was definitely better than my German! In the evening, I had dinner with her family, where I had Schnitzel and an interesting talk with her family.

Beth, LC3

I did many activities on the weekend, such as ice skating, going to Christmas markets, and going to town. I really enjoyed the Christmas markets and was able to try many new foods. My favourite was, of course, Bratwurst as well as Kartoffelpuffer. Alice and I went around together with our host partners!

Monday brought some sadness as it marked the end of the exchange. We returned to London and took a CLC minibus back to school. We are extremely grateful for this opportunity, and it will be an experience we will never forget! Thank you to the Maria Ward-Schule teachers, as well as Frau Salge-Dexter and Mr Campbell, for taking us!

Natalie, LC3