Elwira Bartoszuk aus Oswiecim berichtet:
Im Herbst waren wir wieder einmal bei unserer Partnerschule in Kerpen eingeladen. Ich selbst denke schon, dass der Austausch gelungen ist, obwohl da ein paar Probleme waren. Dadurch, dass wir viel Unterhaltungsprogramm
hatten, hatten wir keine Zeit, Kerpen und die Umgebung zu besichtigen. Die Familie, bei der ich war, war sehr nett und verantwortungsbewusst, somit habe ich mich wie zu Hause gefühlt. Sie haben darauf geachtet, dass mir
nichts gefehlt hat. Ich habe oft mit meinen Mitbewohnern geredet und so mein Englisch und Deutsch verbessert. Während des Austausches habe ich viele junge Leute kennen gelernt, mit denen ich mich angefreundet habe - obwohl ich manchmal das Gefühl hatte, dass sie uns anders behandelt haben als die anderen Austauschschüler.
Ben Hobson von der Batley Grammar School schreibt:
Triumph or Disaster. My first Experience of Deutschland.
I was not sure what to expect when I first arrived in Kerpen I was unsure about what I would find in my "new" home. As I left the gymnasium and all my English friends behind, I began to feel the butterflies in my stomach: I was alone in Germany. As I was driven through the streets of Kerpen, this strange town seemed somehow familiar, there were so many things I recognised, was Germany really so much different to England! As we pulled into the drive of "Auf Dem Vorst 33", home of the Familie Clausen, I began to get a picture of where I would be spending the next seven days. We entered the house and my exchange partner gave me the guided tour. There was a kitchen, living room, bedrooms, a bathroom and a garden as well as a cellar containing my bedroom and bathroom. It was so much like my own home, I began to feel secure in what had initially been such a strange place. By the time I had finished looking round, I was in need of a little refreshment, I was given a glass of Mezzo Mix and a slice of kasebrot. I did not recognise either, but both seemed nice enough and I was glad to eat at last. After my meal, I was left to unpack and to think about my first few hours on German soil. Following the settling in and a 'getting to know you' chat, it was time to play football, a great chance for me to practice my basic German. After a few minutes, one thing became clear, my partner's English was superb, my German not so. But, an hour or so with my German phrase book solved that problem. By now, it was 6:00pm and it was time to go back to the gymnasium for the welcoming speeches, I had thoroughly enjoyed my first experiences of Germany, but what of my friends, I heard all kinds of stories, some people had not been able to communicate with their families and others had eaten unidentifiable foods. I seemed to be one of the lucky ones, a great house with kind people and normal food. Following the speeches, I was back to the house for the evening meal. It was a pasta dish with salami sausage, recommended by an English family so I was told! I enjoyed the meal and managed to use some German phrases with the family. After the meal, with the effects of jet lag beginning to creep in, I said "Auf Weidersehen" and went to my room. I knew I would have another new experience in the morning, waking up at 6:30 to go to school! Not something l am used to. So, as I got into my bed, I thought to myself, 'Germany isn't really so different from England after all.' A great day and one which set up a great week in Germany!
Zwei schwedische Schülerinnen über ihren Besuch in Aaachen:
Wednesday our group visited Aachen, an old city on the German border to the Netherlands and Belgium. We had a guide who led us through Aachen. Our tour began at the Elisenbrunnen where sulphur water flew from the springs. Many celebrities have been there to drink sulphur water and one of them was the Swedish king Gustav III in the 18th Century. Some people think that the water has a healing power. The word Aachen means water and that is symbolised by several fountains around in the city. Aachen is also famous because of the special cookies "The Printen". We finished the tour at the cathedral. The legend of the doorknob is very special. The devil helped to build the cathedral and as a payment he wanted the first soul who entered the church. No one wanted to give their soul to the devil so they let a wolf enter the cathedral. The devil became so angry and when he shut the door his thumb got stuck. The legend says that the thumb of the devil is in the doorknob. After one day in Aachen we were very happy to have been part of a city's interesting history.
Anna Richardsson, Kristina Mårtensson
Monsieur Boisseau, der Schulleiter des collège Richelieu in La Roch-sur-Yon, schreibt an unsere Schulleitung:
Madame, Monsieur,
À l'occasion de la rencontre européenne de Kerpen du 22 au 31 octobre 2001, je salue l'initiative de cette grande rencontre avec des jeunes de nationalités différentes et félicite les organisateurs pour ce projet ambitieux et dynamique sur le thème de la musique.
Les presque vingt années d'expérience d'échanges entre le lycée de Kerpen et le collège Richelieu m'ont convaincu de l'importance de ces relations entre jeunes et familles: elles favorisent la connaissance mutuelle, motivent les jeunes pour l'apprentissage des langues européennes, et permettent de découvrir la variété des cultures, des modes de vie et de pensée ; elles aident nos jeunes à prendre conscience de la richesse de cette diversité et à s'ouvrir à la différence. Ces relations régulières entre nos établissements et entre nos jeunes sont des semences de paix.
Je me félicite également de l'accueil depuis huit ans d'un(e) bachelier(e) du lycée de Kerpen comme assistant(e) au collège Richelieu. Je pense pouvoir dire que tant les élèves que l'assistant(e) en bénéficient pour l'apprentissage de la langue et pour la découverte de nos cultures et modes de vie respectifs.
Toute la communauté éducative du collège Richelieu vous souhaite un franc succès pour cette grande rencontre européenne de jeunes.
Avec toute notre amitié,
Le directeur, G. Boisseau