Schüleraustausch mit Nottingham 2011
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Our trip to Nottingham
For some years our school has had an exchange with Trinity Catholic School in Nottingham. Some months ago, Mrs Geschwentner came to us and told us we could go there for five or six days – all of us were happy.
The trip itself began on Tuesday, 4th October 2011 at 8:40 at Karlsruhe Main Station after many weeks of planning and talking about the trip. That journey took more than nine hours, so we were all tired when we arrived at Igloo Backpackers Hostel. However when I saw the room for the first time, I was really shocked: A room smaller than mine at home should be shared by six girls! There was even no wardrobe or table! But there was no chance to change it and so we had to adjust to it – we did. Late in the evening, after eating at Pizza Hut, we went to bed.
The next day we visited Trinity Catholic School. We met our exchange partners who we had only known from e-mails. Trinity Catholic School is very strict. All students have to wear uniforms and even the same clothes for PE and Dance.
At the beginning of each lesson, the teacher controls whether everyone is there. They are not allowed to enter the rooms without the teacher or eat and drink in those rooms. At that school, every teacher has got a room and the students have to change rooms after each lesson.
A lesson there takes 60 minutes, the first one each day even 75 minutes.
British students have got lots of interesting subjects like Drama, Food Design and so on.
They have also got better technical equipment, most time the teacher uses PowerPoint presentations and an interactive whiteboard instead of a blackboard.
After school had ended at 3:30 pm we had freetime to go shopping.
On Thursday we did something like sightseeing. We could choose between going shopping, visiting the new Art Gallery or going to Nottingham Castle. I chose the Castle – it was really funny to wear clothes which looked like the ones Robin Hood must have worn many years ago. In the afternoon we went to see the Council House, which looked nice with all the flowers everywhere, and our guide was nice too. We also visited the Galleries of Justice. After playing a trial, we went to see prisons from different centuries. Well, the beds in the modern cells looked like the ones in our hostel…
Many of us seemed to be a bit scared. I was glad we went to the cinema after it to see a film called “Crazy, stupid love”. On Friday we went to Trinity School again. This time we joined a German lesson in year eleven. It was really surprising how well some of them were able to speak German!
Drama was very interesting too but Music was a bit strange. The teacher wanted to show us something “new”, so we had to sing British folk songs…
In the evening we went bowling with some of the exchange students.
Saturday was the last day in England; we spent it with our partners. Most of us went to the famous Goose Fair or shopping.
Although I didn´t like the hostel, the food and the weather, I wanted to stay for a longer time. The British students were all really nice to us and it became easier to get along in English.
The journey back to Germany took a long time, it was not so nice. We arrived in Karlsruhe at 10:30 pm and we all were happy that the journey was over. All in all it was a great trip – I would be happy if the British students could visit us one day.
Journalist: Good morning! I’m writing an article about a trip to England for the newspaper. Have you ever been there?
Clara: Oh yes, I was there last week with my class. We stayed in Nottingham.
J: In Nottingham? Wow, great! It’s the city where Robin Hood lived, isn’t it?
C: Right, it is.
J: Well, that’s fantastic! Let’s talk about that trip. How long did the journey take? And how did you get there?
C: It was a very long journey from Karlsruhe to Nottingham. It took ten hours, I think. We went there by train, so we had to change a lot.
J: That sounds a bit stressful and boring…
C: Oh no, it was never boring. With the whole class and all my friends, we had lots of fun. But yes, it was a bit stressful and we were all tired when we came back to Karlsruhe after such a long journey.
J: Okay, how long did you stay there?
C: Almost one week.
J: And what did you do in Nottingham?
C: We have a partner school in Nottingham and we had exchange partners. On two days, we went with them to school and on Saturday, we could do something with them. But on Thursday, we visited Nottingham Castle, the Council House and the Galleries of Justice. In the evening, we went to the cinema, to Pizza Hut and we went bowling.
J: Well, let’s talk about your exchange partners and the school. Did you stay in their families? And what are the differences between German and English schools?
C: No, we slept in a hostel. It wasn’t really comfortable and it was very small, but I got used to it. There are so many differences between the schools…
J: Fantastic, tell me about them!
C: Well, in Germany, every class has their own class room and they just sometimes have to change for subjects like PE, Art, or Music. But in England, the students haven’t got a class room, they have to change rooms every break. And school begins at nine o’clock in the morning, that’s really late. Then they have a long lunch break. School ends at three o’clock in the afternoon, sometimes later. Of course they also have some different subjects, for example Food Design, Drama or Business.
J: That’s really interesting, I’ve never heard about that.
C: Yes, and the English people were very friendly to us. We talked with them really often. I hope they will come to Germany soon.
J: Well, would you go there again? Maybe for a longer time?
C: I’d like to go there again with my class, but just for one week, for me it’s enough. I don’t want to go there alone for one year or six months.
J: Yes, I understand you. Well, that’s going to be a great article. Thank you very much!
Änderungsdatum: 15.8.2014
One star and the fire in our hearts
Nottingham.
So far away from our homes.
One simple small star in the black night.
But it is like a fire in our hearts
Since we were there.
Nottingham.
A star, so far away from our homes.
The fire born in our hearts
Grows every second
Eats us from the inside up.
Nottingham.
We had a great time
But we wanna go back again.
Back.
Back to our small star, that set fire in our hearts.
Nottingham.
So far away from our homes.
But forever in our minds.
One small star, that set fire in our hearts.
Änderungsdatum: 15.8.2014
Quiz
It´s a city as big as Karlsruhe.
It´s great there.
You can visit a Castle, a Council House,
the Galleries of Justice and other things.
Bowling there is great too.
The cinema is so much louder than a German cinema.
In October there is a Goose Fair.
And you can go to a barn dance.
The students are nice.
And when you have come there once,
you don´t want to come back home.
Which city is it ?
Nottingham
Änderungsdatum: 15.8.2014