Students of I Liceum Ogólnokształcące in Bolesławiec spent just under a week in Siegburg, Germany. “We met many new people,” says Eliza Bandrów from class I a. “We had the opportunity to see with our own eyes that the culture of our western neighbours is not just beer and sausage, although some people may think so,” notes Katarzyna Chłopecka. “People say that Germans are very different from us. That is not true. We are very similar to one another,” adds Marta Ircha from class I f.
The exchange participants emphasise that the trip helped them overcome the language barrier. The Bolesławiec high-school students worked in groups with Germans, Filipinos, a half-Russian girl, a French girl and an English boy. Despite this, they communicated brilliantly, and not only with their peers. “By staying with a German family, I could feel like one of the household,” says Natalia Ogonowska from class III a. “Sometimes they would turn on TV Polonia and ask me to explain what was being discussed. It was nice: they wanted to learn more about Polish culture.”
The leitmotif of this year’s project was culinary art. “We were able to showcase our skills in the kitchen,” Eliza says with a smile. In Siegburg, the Bolesławiec students had the opportunity to prepare, among other things, roast in beer and potatoes with rosemary, drizzled with lemon juice.
The I LO students were not bored in their free time either. They visited Bonn and Cologne, where the bridge made the greatest impression on them: couples attach padlocks to it as a sign of love and throw the keys into the Rhine. They also visited museums of history and chocolate.
“None of us regrets taking part in this exchange,” says Katarzyna. Everyone agrees that they learned a great deal. Some of them are thinking about studying or even working in Germany. “We made new friends there and have already received invitations for next summer,” the high-school student adds.
The exchange with Siegburg is coordinated by Magdalena Malińska and Wojciech Markiewicz. “This year, what surprised us was how many people wanted to take part in the initiative,” says the teacher. “A truly excellent group went to Siegburg. They were very involved in the activities and got along perfectly with their peers.”
“It is worth organising trips of this kind, if only to be able to see the students’ smiling faces afterwards,” says Wojciech Markiewicz. “What is more, by taking part in the project, our students became more independent,” he adds. “Such an exchange also develops intercultural competences. Our students had the opportunity to see what life is like in another country. We can already say that if they decide to go abroad, they will manage perfectly well,” adds Magdalena Malińska.
According to Wojciech Markiewicz, the October trip to Siegburg proved something else as well: that there are no major differences between Poles and Germans. “We try to challenge stereotypes,” he emphasises. “Young Germans have the same problems, joys and interests as Polish young people. The point is not to look for differences; rather, we should look for the things that unite us. During this trip, it turned out that cooking together could be one such thing.”
The German return visit is planned for the end of November this year. The project was co-financed by the Polish-German Youth Office and Euroregion Nysa.
(information: ii)