Pinehas Nakaziko
Windhoek
Fun, good, enjoyable, amazing are the adjectives characterising the varied experiences of 10 learners from the Deutsche Höhere Privatschule (DHPS), St Paul’s College and Delta Secondary School in Windhoek who just returned from an exchange programme in Germany.
The pupils, all of them ambitious learners of the German language at school, were accommodated in different towns in Germany and attended their partner children´s schools for the duration of their stay. They not only experienced German life, but also showed Namibian culture and way of life to their German friends and other people.
Peka Karamata (15) from DHPS says she got an opportunity to travel around Germany and meet new people. “Attending school in Germany also helped me to improve my German language skills,” says Karamata..
“I enjoyed their type of food, and teenagers from that country are so independent, that they can go just anywhere without parents,” says Alina Niipare (16) from St Paul’s College.
Cameron Cohmann (16) also from St Paul’s College says she learned that most young people in Germany don’t really know much about Namibians. “But I really enjoyed my experience and I will be happy to go back there again,” says Cohmann, adding that it was interesting to see how foreigners live in their countries. “This gave me insight on whether I want to study abroad or not,” she says.
“I experienced things like snow-boarding, and standing inside one of the tallest German television towers, viewing the most beautiful sunset,” says Danzille Strauss (17) from Delta Secondary School adding that he had found a university where he could further his studies in the future.
Sebastian van Niekerk (16) from St Paul’s College says he learned how to get out of his comfort zone and travel on his own. “Berlin city is so enormous that seven weeks we stayed there were just not enough to see and do everything we wanted.”
The pupils who returned mid-last month, were invited to the Goethe Institut on Monday by Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, Christian Schlaga and representatives of the Association of German School Societies in Namibia (AGDS) to share their experiences.
The German embassy has been supporting the exchange programme financially and logistically for many years now.