The weekend and Monday

So the good news is all the kids survived their weekend!  It was pretty filled for most of them.  From our discussions during the day, some of the highlights are- shopping in Stuttgart, Kulturnacht in Reutlingen, Grandparent 50th anniversary parties, family time, castles, highropes course, airplane flying, glider flying (Pat you may need to invest in  new sports equiptment).  All in all the students had a very good weekend.  We collected some of the journals today and the experiences are very positive.

Today we met early at the old bus station for our trip to Dachau and then Fussen and Neuwanshwein (that spelling is wrong but I'm too tired to correct it)

Dachau.  This is my third trip there and while I think I am prepared emotionally for the visit, I am always caught a bit off guard.  Our tour guide was really good and focused on the idea of survival in the camps specifically from the prisoner point of view.  He engaged the students and our 2 hour tour went very quickly.  Most students would have liked to have some additional time.  The only drawback was it was cold.  Poor Lyl shivered most of the way through. Additionally, the reality of walking through those grounds and digesting what actually occured there is emotionally exhausing.

We then got back on the bus and headed to Fussen for a short break- Most students got something to eat before heading back to the bus, then up the hill to the Disney Castle.  At this point, the weather was far from cooperative.  Drizzle, fog - we had no sense of being as close to the alps as we were.  Honestly you had to trust the photos we saw that the mountains were there. A short walk (?) up to the castle separated the Americans from their German friends pretty quickly.  Again, I always find it amusing when the students want to know why casles are on the tops of hills and more importantly why we have to walk there!  And we wonder how the Germans stay so fit.  The tour of the castle was pretty short but beautiful.  From an artist point of view, the carvings and painting insides are enough to satisfy. 

So at this point I think it safe to say that everyone is learning something about themselves, their culture, options and opportunities - the exchange is fufilling all of our expectatins.  Tomorrow we meet in small groups in the morning then off the bake brezels!