Notes from Bernburg-Kothen

After a leisurely stay in Gottingen for our "mandatory rest period," we arrived in Bernburg Monday evening. We had a Rotary meeting which also involved the mayor and the press. Apparently, we are quite the celebrities here, especially Lindsey and her Zumba classes. I'll let her provide all the details on that for you.

Tuesday morning Debby, my host, and I went for a run/bike ride along the Saale River. It was great. One of the rotary members met us halfway for a water stop. He is a retired veterinarian, so he took our pulse to make sure we were okay and then stamped our hands with his seal to show we were healthy!

Later in the day we went for a city tour with Albert the Bear. We learned a lot about the history of Bernburg, which is part of the former East Germany. There is a large castle here, and it is guarded by both a moat AND a bear. Pretty cool! Following the tour we had lunch and then went on a boat ride on the Saale. The weather was perfect and we all had a wonderful time. We also got to hang out with Nico Hippe, who was one of the German GSE representatives to Illinois earlier this year.

Wednesday was our vocational day. I started my day at a Lutheran school where they combine the primary school (grades 1-4) with the kindergarten (ages 3-5). They also had a place for younger kids (ages birth-3). They are doing some very interesting things at this school, including the incorporation of green classrooms. They also do not use a bell to separate class time. Instead the teachers can spend as much time as they think is necessary for the students on each subject.

In the afternoon, we went to my host's work. He is in charge of a large bank. It was very interesting, and I even got to see the vault! (but if I tell you what was in there, I'd have to kill you...haha). Then we went to an old theater which does local and amateur performances. Following that, I went to the music school and sat in on a violin lesson. That was also fantastic to see, and the 8 year old student I saw was quite impressive!

Later, I went to the gym with my host, Helmut, and then we joined Lindsey for Zumba. There was a huge turnout and the newspaper was there as well. Finally, we ate dinner and had the chance to socialize with our host families and each other. Just when we thought we were going home, Debby, Tim, and I were kidnapped by our hosts and taken to Dr. Clemens' house. We got to taste wine that is grown in that region, and even though we were exhausted from the day and still needed to pack our luggage, we all enjoyed ourselves.

 

Then we had a transfer day from Bernburg to Naumburg. We left early in the morning and made a trip to Wittenburg, where we went on a tour of the city and walked in the steps of Martin Luther. It was very interesting and we had a great guide.

Sara