Guess who’s back?!
My hosts and I did another trip to DC to go to the fancy Luncheon with 4 German Bundestagsabgeordneten, other exchange program participants, host families, brothers, sisters and organization people.
As I could take the day off (after tax season), we spend the whole day together and had a lot of fun!
After driving Jo’s granddaughter Kamden to preschool (she’s adorable!) we drove down to Baltimore, because Mike wanted to show me where he works when he’s not doing home office. He works at a chicken distributor (oh, the smell!) in Sales. When he was done with some work (on his day off – always busy), we drove to Greenbelt to take the Metro to DC – what an adventure, especially for my hosts as it was their first time! We were a little lost as the German Embassy didn’t provide any directions, so we asked people, personnel and maps (online and physical) to get there.
We ended up walking 1h from the closest Metro station through Georgetown, which was nice (and warm!)! Georgetown is a nice part of DC with a lot of cute, little, different houses close to the water and so many restaurants, cafes and bars auf einem Haufen I’ve never seen before!
When we finally arrived at the Embassy, we checked out who of those suit and dressHeel people were German and who were Americans #LanguageListening. It was actually pretty funny to hear the German staff talk English with such a strong German accent! I met a bunch of nice American & German participants & host siblings, most of them were High School students though.
After an introduction/welcome speech from the German Abgeordneten (and translator), 2 loads of Schnitzel, potatoes, bean/pea risotto, fish and salad (& dessert) on the patio, we were called inside for a Stuhlkreis meeting. Hosts were separated from students and asked for feedback & suggestions. It was great to have the chance to talk about our positive experiences but also to explain what didn’t go smoothly and what could be improved. They really listened, asked and cared. Even though I had some struggles speaking formal German again – English is just so much easier!
After that, we checked another point off the list that hasn’t been on there before – taking Uber! I’ve done it once at the very beginning of my stay in DC when I stayed with Laura. Jo used her app and it worked – twice! It works without cash – only card to prevent robbing. You pay for the miles and a start price. It is a great way to get somewhere quickly while meeting new people! We visited the huge, impressive, beautiful Washington National Cathedral. Unfortunately, the top that allows an amazing view over DC was closed already (5pm!!) but we went out- and inside and took some selfies #SelfieSkills (But only outside as a sign inside prohibited selfie sticks – Generation Y)
It was a great day!