German Exchange Program 2010 - Gymnasium und Internat im Stift ...

German Exchange Program 2010
By Nishad Sanzagiri (On behalf of all Exchange Program students)
Indian School Muscat, Oman had launched a student exchange program to Germany with a
view to further inter-cultural interaction. The exchange program provided an opportunity of a
lifetime to us, the students, to experience the atmosphere and culture of a different country
while being goodwill ambassadors of our own culture. This program helped us become selfreliant
and to contribute to the changing global community.
A group of 12 students went to Germany as part of the exchange program with Gymnasium
Im Stift Neuzelle, Neuzelle from May 3 to May 9. The students were Sasha Nankey, Shreya
Rajendran, Ritwika Bhatacharjee, Deepthi Vijay, Anwesha Sen, Janavi Gupta, Akshita
Silambu, Maninee Sharma, Manish Raju Gangwani, Richa Cibbar, Gautam Nair and Nishad
Sanzagiri.
Mr. Aklary Sajindran was the teacher coordinator accompanying us.
On the afternoon of 3 rd May our group reached Neuzelle which is about a two hours drive
from Berlin. Everyone was very excited as that was the time we were going to meet our hosts.
There were 12 German students ready to play host to the students from Oman. Roxii Gieseler
(host for Sasha Kaur), Devyn Janisch (for Shreya Rajendran), Henriette Lahmann (for
Ritwika Bhatacharjee), Emma Schmidtchen (for Deepthi Vijay), Leila Biljal (for Anwesha
Sen), Phoebe Nicette (for Janavi Gupta), Hanka Kempe (for Akshita Silambu), Aanja Heiman
(for Maninee Sharma), Eric Urban (for Manish Raju Gangwani), Gina Karnasch (for Richa
Cibbar), Johannes Karge (for Gautam Nair) and Dominik Shulz (for Nishad Sanzagiri), were
the gracious german students.
The afternoon and evening of 3 rd May was arranged by our respective host families. It was the
day we got to know each other. The next day, we went to school. We were given a brief but
warm welcome by Mr. Kaspar Kaiser, headmaster of the school.
Mr.Kaiser, Mr. Karge and Mrs Kanig then showed us the school. We had a short walk from
the school to the gymnasium, which was followed by breakfast at the boarding home
(dormitory). We then attended a few lessons in school, after which we had a guided tour of
the monastery.
It was the first time for all of us from Oman to live in a foreign country on our own without
our parents. But our own excitement and the wonderful hospitality of our foster families gave
us confidence.
We all were astounded by the beauty of the monastery. We were informed about the
architecture and history of the church building. The same evening, we went for bowling and
then to Pizzaland for dinner. That was a time when we all came to know a lot about each
other.
On Wednesday, the school had planned a special trip to the capital city of Berlin for us, the
guest students. We all were waiting with bated breath to see the historically important city and
capital of Germany. We felt a part of history visiting the world famous Berlin Wall which had
separated West Germany from East Germany until 1989. We then had a short city tour
followed by shopping at a local mall. We also watched the stupendous performance of the
“Blue Men Group”. It was the most amazing show anyone of us had ever seen! It really forces
you to think ‘Out of the box’. On Thursday, we went hiking to the Oder River.

Everyday till Friday, we used to attend classes at the school. We were surprised to find
ourselves getting up happily in the mornings, eager to reach school and have fun while
learning something new. The school had a wonderful atmosphere. We still remember the
canteen with its healthy menu and the wonderful green lawn separating the old and new
buildings.
Friday was the last working day and so, Mr. Kaiser gave us a very nice farewell. Although the
boat trip to Lehde and visit to the open-air museum was very enjoyable, we all felt very sad to
leave our wonderful class and our new found friends.
Saturday, was arranged by our host families and each of us enjoyed it in our own way. We
were very sad to leave Neuzelle.
Inspite of the language barrier, we all communicated quite well as the thirst to learn about
each other’s customs and culture was very great. That in itself was the success story of this
visit.
The rural setting of Neuzelle, with its greenery and calm environment was a refreshing change
from the city life that we normally lead.
We all are grateful to our Indian School Muscat and Gymnasium Im Stift Neuzelle for giving
us this opportunity and our parents and the host families for allowing us to gain an experience
we are not likely to ever forget.
We hope to meet our German friends in Muscat the next time!