In 11th grade we had the opportunity to go to Scotland.

Our journey started on Wednesday 12 June at 5 am. Everybody had to bring a lot of food because it would take us 36 hours to go there.

First we went by bus and after that we changed and traveled with a ferry overnight. The sea was rough so a lot of people were feeling bad. We had small cabins, where 4 people had to stay.
However, the 36 hours weren't that long. We talked a lot and had so much fun, but we were really tired when we arrived in Scotland on Thursday and visited Stirling castle. It was beautiful and antique. We had an amazing view over the city.

In the evening we met our host parents. Everybody was happy with their family. They were all friendly. The only thing we didn't like was the point that we stayed far away from the other groups so it was difficult to meet in the evening.

On Friday we visited the capital of Scotland Edinburgh. We had a sightseeing tour on our bus and learned a lot about the city. Edinburgh is the greenest city in the UK. The old town was impressive. Next to the city is a hill from where you can see the whole city. It was the perfect place to take beautiful pictures. We had a lot of free time so we could explore the city on our own. There were a lot of shopping opportunities.
The next day we visited Loch Katherine where we went hiking. It was rather tiring but it was great to be in the countryside.

On Sunday we went to Glasgow. We visited many museums for example the Scotland Street School Museum and the modern art museum which were for free. After that we had a lot of free time as always.
The following day we started our long way home. We had a stop at a supermarket to buy food for the journey. It was important to have water because you can't drink the water from the ferry. After that we stopped at Tantalon Castle on the coast. The castle was huge und we enjoyed the view of the sea. On Tuesday we arrived in Berlin.

We liked all the free time we had but liked Edinburgh the most, because it was so green and the buildings were impressive. We always had to get up early but we explored Scotland and we really enjoyed our stay. Unfortunately, the weather was rainy and cold. Sometimes it was difficult to understand the Scottish accent. But all in all it was a funny and exciting trip.

 

 

 

 

Eindrücke aus dem Vorjahr: Year 11 – buzzing for Scotland!

 

After thinking about what trip to go on, about 44 of the people who were attending year 11 in 2018 decided to go to Scotland.
First, I am sure most of you imagine the weather in Scotland being quite rainy and chilly but we were lucky enough to catch the warmest, sunniest and therefore loveliest days Scotland had had for a very long time. Through these stereotypes, we were surprised and certainly glad by the sunshine that awaited us once we arrived.
After all the preparations, the adventure finally began and surprisingly, as nearly everyone in the bus was chatting, listening to music or playing cards even, the time we had to pass during the long journey in the bus and on the ferry went by fast.

 

On Wednesday, the 28th of June, we eventually arrived in Tullibody, the town in which our host families stayed and where we would be spending the mornings and evenings.

Luckily, my friend Maike and I had a very friendly host mother called Lisa who has three sons and a lovely old dog. That is the reason why we felt like home from the very start. Although, I would never try to brag, in the end Lisa told us that she would love to let us stay even longer because we got along very well. Even though it had been hard to understand the Scottish accent, we got used to it.

On Thursday, the first day we got to actually spend in Scotland, the bus driver took us to Edinburgh and we were already excited about what was going to lie ahead of us.

As soon as we started heading to the capital of Scotland, we all exchanged our experiences with our host families and our first impressions of them.
Furthermore, everyone in the bus talked about what they had for the packed lunch our host families prepared for us. Shortly after we realised that they were somehow very similar, for example the typical bag of crisps everyone had with them, some with rather extraordinary flavours; I doubt anyone ever had "Roasted Chicken" flavoured crisps.
First of all, right after arriving in Edinburgh, we had a little sightseeing tour in our bus, followed by free time for everyone for the rest of the day, in which we split up in groups to discover the capital of Scotland individually.

A few of us went shopping for souvenirs, some went in one or multiple of the various museums of Edinburgh, such as for instance the National Museum of Scotland. Others also just took a walk around the city to discover its stunning architecture, which is a mix of ancient and modern.
Once everyone arrived back "at home" and had eaten dinner, most of us met up somewhere in Tullibody to enjoy our time together, which we decided to repeat the next evenings.
The following days, we had day trips to various places of Scotland, such as Loch Kathrine, which is located in the Lowlands, as well as Glasgow and last but not least New Lanark, in which we visited an Open Air Museum.
In my opinion, one of the most enjoyable day trips was the trip to Glasgow, because I really loved getting to spend so much time with my friends, waking around the city as well as just enjoying the great weather in Scotland.

 

There was a crowd of people in the city and that, due to the very hot temperature, it was very exhausting to walk around all day. Despite that I highly enjoyed it, especially because of the great atmosphere the friendly people in Glasgow are spreading. Not only were the people being super kind, but we also saw various people who sang on the streets of Glasgow, which immediately changed our mood for the better.
Just as in Edinburgh, many of us went shopping in Glasgow, either getting a few things for themselves or buying presents for our loved ones (to show off that we had been to Scotland, obviously).
Sunday, the 1st of July, we got to visit New Lanark, where we had the chance to see an Open Air Museum that was mainly about the history of a cotton factory. To get a brief introduction, we were guided through the museum by a friendly woman, followed by free time, which we chose to visit a beautiful waterfall.
Unfortunately, that was our last day in Scotland already, because we solely spent the following days in the bus and on the ferry. The fact that we were leaving put us all in a bad mood, because not only was it the first time visiting Scotland for many of us, but we bonded as a group and a few of us probably even deepened friendships.
Ultimately, I can say without doubts that the trip to Scotland was a memorable experience for all of us, although there were a few difficulties due to a lack of planning by the agency. Nevertheless, what would a trip be without ups and downs?

Written by Laurenzia Kiesche

 

 

 

 

 

Let's visit Scotland 2017

 
 

 

Edinburgh, Glasgow, Wandern zwar nicht am Loch Ness, aber am Loch Katrine, und das Open-Air-Museum in New Lanark – das waren die Highlights (obwohl wir gar nicht in den Highlands waren) unserer Kursfahrt nach Schottland im Juli 2017.
Nach zwei Tagen Anreise mit Bus und Fähre kamen wir am Dienstagabend ziemlich erschöpft bei unseren Gastfamilien in Stirling im Herzen Schottlands an. Und im Gespräch mit ihnen wurden wir auch schon vor die erste Herausforderung der Fahrt gestellt: den schottischen Akzent. Doch mit ein bisschen Eingewöhnungszeit war auch der kein Problem mehr.
„Die Kochkünste der Gastfamilien sind sehr unterschiedlich“, hieß es in der Broschüre von Senlac, der Organisation, die unsere Fahrt geplant hatte. Dabei tauschten wir uns so gut wie jeden Tag über unser Abendessen und Lunchpaket aus und stellten fest, dass die sich eigentlich sehr ähnelten. Für uns von grünen Smoothies verwöhnte Hipster aus der Nähe von Prenzlauer Berg war das erst einmal eine Umstellung.

Wenn man aus Berlin kommt, wirkt eine Hauptstadt wie Edinburgh mit knapp 500.000 Einwohnern doch eher beschaulich. Und auch die größte Stadt des Landes, Glasgow (rund 600.000 Einwohner), hatten wir in Kleingruppen relativ schnell erkundet – zumindest die Touristenmagneten wie den George Square, die St. Mungo’s Cathedral, die Gallery of Modern Art, das Glasgow Science Centre und den Queens Park. Zuvor hatten wir noch gemeinsam das Schulmuseum besucht.

Unsere Gasteltern waren natürlich gespannt, wie wir Edinburgh und Glasgow miteinander vergleichen würden. Klarer Sieger: Edinburgh. Die Altstadt von Dùn Èideann (Edinburghs schottischer Name) mit ihren Sandsteingebäuden, die zum Weltkulturerbe zählt, hat uns durch ihre Schönheit und Einzigartigkeit fasziniert. Wie Rom auf sieben Hügeln gelegen, war die Aussicht vom Holyrood Park über die Stadt einfach unschlagbar.
Ausgehend vom National Museum flanierten wir die Royal Mile entlang bis hoch zum Edinburgh Castle, auf dessen Vorplatz vor wenigen Tagen das Military Tattoo beendet worden war. Ein Blick durch viele kleine Torbögen in gemütliche Innenhöfe und schmale Gässchen offenbarte uns Edinburghs ganzen Charme. Dort hätten wir gerne noch mehr Zeit verbracht.
Eine ganz andere Seite von Schottland präsentierte sich uns im eindrucksvollen Open-Air-Museum in New Lanark. Robert Owen, der Besitzer des dortigen Baumwollfabrikationszentrums, setzte in New Lanark im 18. Jahrhundert soziale Reformen durch. Kinder unter 10 Jahren mussten nicht arbeiten, jeder bekam ein Mindestmaß an Bildung, der Arbeitstag wurde verkürzt, die hygienischen Verhältnisse verbessert und die Löhne fairer gestaltet. Ganz schön fortschrittlich, die Schotten!

Doch woran denkt man bei Schottland eigentlich als erstes? An die atemberaubende Natur! Von der konnten wir uns am Loch Katrine und am viel besungenen Loch Lomond selbst ein Bild machen. War das Wandern vielleicht auch nicht jedermanns Sache, die wilde Schönheit der Landschaft hat uns alle hingerissen.
Was von dieser Kursfahrt für uns 43 Schüler geblieben ist, sind auf alle Fälle viele schöne Erinnerungen. Das ein oder andere Wort auf Englisch oder Scots haben wir gelernt, Freundschaften gefestigt und ein Land mit großartiger Natur, sehenswerten Städten, interessanten Menschen und einem liebenswerten Akzent kennengelernt. Und wer weiß, vielleicht kommt manch einer von uns ja zum Studieren zurück nach Schottland?

Von Leonie Bartel, 11. Jahrgang