Year 9 spent a long weekend in Germany to visit their pen friends at our longstanding partner school in Ludwigsburg. They had a great time together at the Christmas markets and also visited Heidelberg and Stuttgart. Lia (Year 9) tells us about her experience.

Early December, thirty year 9 German pupils were accompanied to Germany by four teachers from the German Department. We stayed in a Jugendherberge, or youth hostel, in Stuttgart and spent the weekend exploring the Staatsgalerie and castle in Stuttgart. We also visited Heidelberg, and our pen friends in Ludwigsburg.

In Stuttgart, we visited the local art museum, which had a very impressive selection of art from a wide range of movements. We were able to recognise the names of famous artists next to their artwork, and I particularly enjoyed the Perseus collection by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, a series of ten images following the adventures of the hero Perseus on his quest to kill the gorgon Medusa. After the trip to the gallery, we visited the Stuttgart Schlossplatz which is a castle surrounding the perimeter of the town square. During December, the square is used as a facility for the Christmas markets, and we enjoyed the opportunity to explore the square independently and buy food in the market.

The highlight of the trip, for me, was the opportunity to visit our pen friends at the Goethe Gymnasium in Ludwigsburg. We were warmly welcomed by our friends and their teachers there, and it was an honour to learn about this historic exchange partnership between the two schools. It is rather overwhelming to think that this partnership with the Goethe Gymnasium dates back almost to the end of the Second World War, when a Jewish teacher at NLCS established the exchange together with a friend from pre-war years in Ludwigsburg. As we have been writing to our pen friends since last summer, I was very excited to finally meet Nadia, my pen friend, and I had a great time exploring Ludwigsburg with her and her friends. I know that I made friends for life with the German pupils at the Goethe Gymnasium.

On our final day in Germany, we visited the old university city of Heidelberg. We enjoyed seeing the beautiful old German architecture and the grand, old-fashioned interior of the University Library. The views in Heidelberg were spectacular, especially at the Schloss where we had panoramic views of the city, Neckar river and surrounding mountains. We also went on a highly informative tour through the castle and learned lots about the Palatinate and king Frederick V.

We all had such a great time in Germany, and I am certain that I learned a great deal of German, especially Christmas market vocabulary! I also loved spending the evenings with my NLCS friends. I am delighted that we were able to meet our German pen friends, and I know that I will remember this trip for years to come.