CETUSA in Heppenheim!

Last week DFSR was a busy hub of trip planning, dinners and new friendships. On Sunday, we welcomed 74 student coordinators, managers and guests from our American partner agency CETUSA to our town of Heppenheim. The trip to Germany gave the coordinators a chance to explore Germany, meet the DFSR staff, and most importantly, meet up with their former exchange students from Europe. We had a busy week planned for the coordinators, and here's a peak at their time in Germany.

Arrival dinner at DFSR

Coordinators met with the CETUSA American scholarship winners

DFSR and CETUSA staff chat in the keller

A cozy evening in the keller

On Monday, about 30 Americans participated in German lessons in the morning where they not only learned the basic "hallo" and "Auf Wiedersehen" but also got a taste of German history from the DFSR history teacher. Later in the day, we took two coach buses to Heidelberg, where the coordinators had a few hours to explore the castle, shop on one of the longest pedestrian streets in Germany, and taste test kuchen and beer at the many cafes.

German Lessons

 

Exploring Heidelberg

Heidelberg Castle in the mist

After another morning of lessons on Tuesday, one of our DFSR staff members took about 50 coordinators to her hometown of Frankfurt, where they received a wonderful tour of the famous city. Others remained in Heppenheim and accompanied some DFSR staff on a walk through Heppenheim's beautiful vineyards.


On Wednesday, coordinators had the option of taking a day trip to Luxembourg City, Luxembourg or to Strasbourg, France where guided tours where provided. Many travelers then ventured off to Paris for the night.

CETUSA exploring Luxembourg

Guided tour through the streets of Luxembourg

On Friday, we had a farewell party for all DFSR and CETUSA staff here at DFSR. For dinner, everyone indulged in a traditional German feast of bratwurst, potato salad and German breads. Bavarian felt hats and a folk band added to the ambiance and completed the evening.

Welcome BBQ: Host Families and Exchange Students Gather for Dinner

American Scholarship winners meet for the first time!

On Saturday evening, we welcomed ten inbound students and their host families, including four American scholarship winners and six Canadian participants of the European Classroom. The welcome party was held at the DFSR headquarters in Heppenheim, Germany and provided an opportunity for the students to meet each other and for the host families to interact.

The weather was perfect for the evening festivities that started with mingling and then a delicious dinner of chicken, Thai kebabs and various salads. The flags of many countries created a mosaic backdrop for the garden area and students made new friends as they met their fellow Canadians, Americans and each other's host families. The evening ended with a presentation from DFSR. In four different languages (German, English, French and Spanish), the participants representing a host mother, student, coordinator and DFSR staff, described the effect that the students will have on their German community. In the end, the purpose of the presentation was to share that not only will the the student be affected and changed, but that the German communities will forever be changed from the student's positive cultural imprint.

The Canadian students are studying in Germany for five months as part of the European Classroom Program.   The students will attend German lessons here at DFSR twice a week and also learn about different European countries. Through the study of Ireland, Italy and France, the students will gain a better understanding of a popular European city before actually visiting it together as a class. All together, the students will travel to Dublin, Paris and Venice and experience the food, people and culture of each city and country. The first trip is scheduled to Dublin at the end of September. The American scholarship winners are studying here in Germany for one year and you can learn more about their journey in this blog post.

Here are some photos from the welcome BBQ:

Canadian students with their host families

Enjoying dinner in the garden

Dinner time!

Mingling in the garden

A warm welcome to our Canadian students - the Inuksuk lives in our garden

Meeting new friends in the DFSR garden

 The students each received a bag of coffee beans as a reminder that, like the coffee beans placed into water, they are being placed into a new environment. The coffee beans do change from the impact of the water, but still remain a bean. The water, however, changes into something new because of the bean. This was correlated to the student and Germany. The students will change during their abroad experience, but still remain themselves; the environment that they live in will forever be changed by their cultural imprint. As cultural ambassadors, the students leave lasting impressions on the community that they become a part of.

American Scholarship Winners Arrive in Deutschland!

On Friday afternoon, we welcomed four American students here to Heppenheim as part of our high school program. The students, Emily, Emily, Dyani, and Quinn, are from all over the United States and applied for the Founder's Scholarship last year which provides a year of cultural exchange here in Germany. They were chosen by our parent organization, CETUSA for their belief in cultural exchange and eagerness to share their open minds with a new community and culture. These students will be joined by the fifth winner, Trenton, next week. All of the American students will live with host families and attend high school in the area of Heppenheim, Germany where the headquarters of DFSR is located.

The students were welcomed at the Frankfurt airport by their anxious host families and two DFSR representatives. We are so excited to welcome these students to our city and look forward to a year of cultural immersion, new friends, and many lifelong memories! Check out the photos below of the students' arrivals, and read about our Welcome BBQ here.

10th August 2012 - American students arrive at the Frankfurt airport

On Friday, 10th August, three excited host families from Bensheim, Heppenheim and Zwingenberg drove to the Frankfurt airport to pick up their new family members Emily, Quinn and Dyani, three of our

scholarship students from America. The DFSR Team jumped from one gate to another to record all the emotional welcomes.

Gate B2  - Emily's Arrival

The host family arrives at Frankfurt Airport to welcome Emily from the USA...

So excited to meet the new family member.

Finally...the doors open and Emily steps out of the gate

Warm welcome

Emily can't wait to see her new home in Germany.

Gate C  - Quinn's and Dyani's Arrival

The host family created a lovely poster for their host student Quinn...

The tension increases...

At long last Quinn arrived safe and sound...

...what an awesome moment!

Obviously Quinn is excited about his host family!

A few steps away at the same gate....

Our third family is waiting for Dyani to arrive...

Here she is...happy and relieved!

We are sure Dyani will have an amazing time in Germany.

Heading towards home

Make sure to follow or 'Like' this blog to follow these students' experiences during their High School Year in Germany!