Kebabs, Castles and Classroom German: My Summer Adventure in Germany

This summer, I was lucky enough to spend two brilliant weeks in Germany. Where I stayed wasn’t the boastful Berlin, nor the historic Hamburg, but instead a small city in the south-west of Germany called Gernsheim, known mainly for its annual fishing festival. I won’t lie, there was a small part of me that felt a little let down by my humble base for the trip. But never could I have imagined how charming the area would turn out to be!

Taking a Chance

For context, I am not the type to sign up for every course available or fill my schedule with after-school clubs. To be frank, I signed up for the course thinking I wouldn’t even get accepted. However, given the opportunity, I would do it again in a heartbeat! In the months leading up to the course, it evolved from being an interesting talking point about what I was doing over the summer to actually having to wake up early and head to the airport for my flight.

I ended up in an awesome group, packed with people from all different places and cultures. Some had German-speaking parents, some had been learning German for four years, and some for only two. I was the only participant from Northern Ireland, so I made sure to represent it well. Everyone was so funny and friendly. I don’t think I’ll ever forget Harry from Newcastle (the English one) and his constant repetition of the phrase, “You what, flower?” after everything I said because he couldn’t understand my accent.

One of the things I enjoyed most about the trip was the solo travel from Belfast to Heathrow. One of my mates from the course and I both had flights landing at pretty much the same time in Heathrow, so I jumped at the opportunity to follow him around the airport and blame him if we got lost. Speaking of getting lost, it’s not my fault that the layout of the airport is exactly the same one floor lower. We ended up looking like idiots in the Café Nero a floor down from the actual meeting point!

Life with a German Host Family

I was welcomed into the Moelbert family home with open arms. From the moment we left the airport, where they absolutely refused to let me carry my own suitcase, I knew that I had ended up with a truly wonderful host family. I knew this because our first stop after leaving the airport was the local Dönerladen for some classic German kebabs.

My German host mum, Christa, worked for die Autobahn (the motorway), so I made sure to loot her impressive collection of stationery proudly displaying the “Autobahn” logo. They all spoke practically perfect English, but I refused to take advantage of this, even if it meant awkwardly stuttering my way through a German sentence.

Over the duration of the course, I attended German school. For me, this meant a 6 a.m. wake-up, as classes began at 7:30. On the plus side, school finished at 12:40. Mornings were very rushed. I got out of bed, quickly showered and dressed, got my Müsli (cereal) in, and then it was straight to the bus stop.

The buses were an experience in themselves. Not only were they often late, which I certainly did not expect from Germany, but they were also packed to the gills. I kid you not when I tell you we were crammed in there like a tin of sardines! I also cannot begin to explain how infuriated seven o’clock-in-the-morning me was when people put their bags on the seat beside them while there were literally people sitting on the floor. That being said, the bus rides were sometimes more like a roller coaster, which made them quite fun.

I was also lucky enough to have the opportunity to sit in on some of my German host brother’s lessons while I was there.

School, Theatre and Exploring Germany

I’ve got to say, if I thought Physics lessons in English were difficult, I was not ready for them entirely in German! Apart from the early start, German school isn’t all that different from Wallace. However, they are even stricter about phones than we are.

My favourite lesson to sit in on was English. They actually teach the entire lesson in English, and yes, I did end up correcting the teacher.

During the course, we all took part in a “Theaterworkshop” (guess what that means!). I won’t lie, theatre isn’t exactly my cup of tea, but we had lots of fun. The workshop involved staging plays based on random topics or German words, such as “Wahrscheinlichkeit” (probability), which somehow evolved into gambling.

Other performances involved me playing a German spy who killed an enemy (French) spy with a baguette. Some people decided to perform in English; however, I tried to keep things authentic by doing all of mine in German, although that may have slightly impaired my acting ability.

Throughout the course, we also went on several “Ausflüge”, or excursions. The first was a tour of our wee town, Gernsheim. We explored its history, visited the local port and admired its traditional German architecture.

After that, we travelled to Frankfurt. Frankfurt is an incredible city and is known for being the only German city with a true skyline. I found the contrast between classic Gothic architecture and towering modern skyscrapers standing side by side particularly amusing.

Our final excursion was to the traditional German city of Heidelberg. The day began with some hectic public transport journeys and roasting bus rides before we finally arrived. Once there, we enjoyed a breathtaking tour of the Heidelberger Schloss (castle), where I steadfastly refused to be scammed into paying €4 for a pretzel.

We were then given free time to explore the city and grab something to eat, with strict instructions to be back at the meeting point by 12 noon sharp. Unfortunately, at 11:50, I was still scoffing down yet another kebab and was approximately 20 minutes away from where I needed to be. At that moment, I realised I might have had a problem.

In my defence, one of my mates had trusted ChatGPT to lead us to “Am besten Döner” (“The Best Kebab”).

We also learnt a great deal of German in the classroom. One translation exercise I will never forget involved translating the following sentence: “Some would define what it means to be British as living in a multicultural society filled with people of a broad spectrum of ethnicity, due to Britain’s lenient policies on immigration.”

I can safely say I did not translate that particularly well.

We also studied several German texts, which I thoroughly enjoyed. There is something incredibly satisfying about uncovering a metaphor in a foreign language.

Food, Friendships and Lasting Memories

One of, if not my favourite, parts of the course was the food. Naturally.

I had already prepared myself for my time in Germany by indulging in plenty of kebabs beforehand, or at least that was my excuse. However, the German kebab is completely different and, honestly, on another level. It contains real, fresh meat, as opposed to whatever it is we’re often eating at home, and is served in crunchy, waffle-like bread filled with fresh vegetables and sauce.

I was also surprised by the number of cold meals. In Germany, breakfast and dinner (which they often literally call “evening bread”) are typically served cold, while lunch is the main hot meal of the day.

I was equally amazed by Germany’s obsession with bread. If you’re familiar with the Lidl bakery, you’ll know it mainly consists of sweet treats. In Germany, that is definitely not the case. From what I remember, six out of every eight bakery aisles seemed to be dedicated entirely to bread.

I also decided to try German “Mett”. For the uninitiated, this is raw minced pork. Yes, raw minced pork.

Does it sound a bit dodgy? Absolutely.

Was it delicious? Also absolutely.

Thankfully, my German family assured me it was perfectly safe.

Overall, I had a truly fantastic time on the UK German Connection trip and will never forget the experiences and memories I made there. My German has improved significantly, although it may have become a little more colloquial. I still keep in touch with my mates from the course (although one of them refuses to snap me back), and I regularly hear from my host family, who continue to insist that I return to visit them soon.

Looking back, I can say with absolute confidence that I came home a far more adventurous and open-minded person. The trip pushed me outside my comfort zone, introduced me to incredible people and gave me experiences I never would have had otherwise.

Thank you, UK German Connection, for an unforgettable summer adventure.

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Teddy is not the first pupil to attend this amazing German Connection programme. You can read about Kate’s story in the article below:

UK German Connection 2025: Erlangen, du warst wunderbar!