Students Experience Life in Other Countries

The recent Grade 5 exchange trips gave the students the perfect opportunity to find out how children their age live in the countries whose language they are studying. On their return, they wrote about their impressions, a few of which are included below. For more photos, please check the June 2005 Globetrotter online.

Lisa Tobiassen, 5G: In Berlin, things are awesome, because you get to go to lots of fun museums, meet friendly people and just discover new things that you never knew about before. In the museums you can learn about lots of things in a very interesting and fun way. The people there are always in a good mood. Discovering things in Berlin is nice because you really don’t have to do any work. Go to Berlin if you want to have fun!

Philip Mitchell, 5G: On my recent trip to Berlin we went to many interesting places, and we saw German statues, several castles, and many history museums. We could see monuments no others could see. One of my favorite ones was the Siegessäule, a statue on top of a tower 70 meters above the ground. We got to walk up all 285 stairs. At the top of the tower you can see all of Berlin, a beautiful sight. A few other places that we visited were the Reichstag, Potsdam und Schloß Sans Souci, Allied Checkpoint Charlie, East Side Gallery, Potsdamer Platz, Brandenburger Tor, Unter den Linden, Krongut Bornstedt, pieces of the Berlin Wall, and the Funkturm. I would encourage you to take the opportunity to go see for yourself one of the most important cities in the world.

Paula Hunt, 5S: Costa Rica! People think vacation, but it is much more. It has 112 volcanoes, beautiful beaches and many different animals. We got to experience and know the real Costa Rica. We went to 2 of the 112 volcanoes and both of them were active. The first volcano we went to was the Arundel where we got to go in the hot springs. The second volcano we went to was the Pous where we got to go to the Cascade de Lam Paz. During the weekend most people went to Panta Leona. It was really fun but there were currents in the water so we couldn’t swim at the beach. I think the school should carry-on with these programs.

Joshua Eidelman, 5S: Going to Costa Rica at this young age was very special for me. The plane ride there was super short and there weren’t any problems. The teachers have done this trip many times and know all the plans for every single day. If you feel like you miss your family and you want to come back to Atlanta, don’t worry because it’s normal. It happens to a lot of people. Just take it day-by-day. The people in Costa Rica are very friendly and the time there is two hours earlier than in Atlanta. In Costa Rica, you can visit huge volcanoes and forests. You also get to spend a weekend with only you and your Costa Rican family doing fun activities and getting to know them better. Costa Rica is a great place to meet new people and have fun.

Alice Morrison, 5F: My correspondent was called Anais. When we arrived at the school everyone was waiting for us and that was when we had to find our correspondents. The next day everybody went to Mont Pelée to climb it. It was so tiring. That afternoon we went to the volcano museum which was ok because I slept through most of it because I was so tired from the walk. During the 10 days we also went sailing, horse riding, visited museums, visited old plantations and saw lots of things so that we could learn more about the island. When we left the airport everybody cried, but I knew that Anais would be coming next year.

Liam Sohi, 5F: In the end, the four hour plane trip to Martinique was worth it. Actually, even eight hours in a cramped plane would have been worth it as long as we got there. The stay in Martinique was from April 19 to April 29, a length of time that felt like about three days. Everyday, we had activities planned, like climbing Mount Pelée, or sailing on catamarans. We even got to see dolphins and caught turtles when we went fishing! I think this trip taught everyone a lot, and I can’t wait for our correspondents to come back next year.

Michael Pierce, 5F: The fifth-graders French classes went to Martinique. We stayed with families that lived there. We spent about two weeks with them. During this time we did various activities. We went horseback riding, swimming, to the rum factory, fishing and sailing. When we left everyone was sad and crying. We enjoyed our stay in Martinique. However we were still glad to be home in the USA with our families.

Chloe Colberg, 5F: In mid-April the French section of 5th grade went on an Exchange trip to Martinique. Martinique is an island in the Caribbean owned by France. Before the trip everyone was very excited to go and meet their correspondents. While we there everyone had a great time. My favorite activity was catamaran, a type of sailing. It’s a boat that holds up to six people. The boat goes very fast and water sprays in your face. While I was on the boat we almost tipped over! We also had the chance to see some dolphins in the water. After coming back to Atlanta everyone longs for the tropical island of Martininque!

Nicolas Brooks, 5F: Martinique is a tropical island. You always have something to do. First I really wanted to go swimming, but I did a much more fun activity - sailing. The catamaran was exciting, because we were on a boat with six kids, and we also got to see dolphins. What I liked about sailing is that you can control the speed of the boat and control the steering easily. To turn left, you have to push right, it’s the opposite. To go fast you need to pull on a rope. For the optimist, another kind of boat, I sailed with another person. It’s the same thing but there’s a smaller sail. On that boat you have to stay balanced. Horseback riding was pure cool. The horses are very well trained. They don’t kick with their back legs. They were not running around. When I was on a horse, my horse was following the horse in front of me. It was like a copy-cat chain. I had great adventures in Martinique.