On our first day, we entered the school excited and nervous. As soon as we entered, we were welcomed by our german exchange friends. Then we introduced ourselves in front of the whole school during their version of chapel at NA. We presented what we have practiced since day one of learning german: name, age, and where you are from. Simple as that, but regardless we were all still nervous! After our introductions we toured the school and met the headmaster as well. Then we chose our classes for all of the days that we would be attending class. We then headed off to our own classes and headed home.

Thursday was the day of the bike tour! After finishing up with a regular school day, we headed off to our own homes to prepare for the bike tour. Many of us were nervous, but the Germans were even more nervous after seeing our mediocre biking skills. After the teachers assigned leader bike riders and cabooses, we set off on our journey. Not even a quarter of a mile into our trip, one student’s bike malfunctioned. However, we kept on moving. All was well until the same bike broke down again, and Herr Mogen sped back to the rescue. Then not one, but two students wiped out on the bike trail. One fell while another wiped out into a ditch. Lovely. After we barely survived, we took a break in a shaded area while we waited for another “problem” to be resolved. About twenty minutes later, it started pouring. By pouring, I mean the rain where you can barely open your eyes. We powered through the rain and eventually made it to our destination. We were rewarded with a delicious barbecue party and played games until the sun began to set.

~ Katherine Chang