With an afternoon on our own, we chose to visit several of the historical churches that not only have played a significant cultural role, but also a historical role in this vibrant city.  Our first stop was the St. Nicholas church. From my previous post, you might remember this is where the Peaceful Revolution first […]

Our first full day in the city of Leipzig began with a tour following the traces of the “Peaceful Revolution of 1989”. Our walking tour led us through Leipzig’s historical center with Ms. Irmtraud Hollitzer a contemporary witness. The city of Leipzig has been known as a cultural and musical hub for centuries, but has […]

Upon arrival in Leipzig we quickly checked into our hotel and spent an evening exploring the city. Leipzig is a large city with over 500,000 citizens and was once a major cultural hub of music in Europe. After WWII, Leipzig was located in the GDR and in 1989 it played a major role in the […]

Departing Geisa this morning we headed off to the city of Leipzig. However, on the way to Leipzig, my TOP fellows and I stopped in the nearby town of Vacha, Germany. Here we were given the opportunity to visit the Johann-Gottfried-Seume-Gymnasium of Vacha. This is a 5th-12th grade school located in the heart of the […]

After a short break we met our next contemporary eye witness Mr. Kuk Stroeber. Before I share his story it is importance to mention that neither of our eye witnesses spoke fluent English, therefore, our fantastic tour guide Jörg translated both interviews (a total of three hours of back and forth translating – how impressive)! […]

We began our afternoon by walking “The Way of Hope”, which consists of 14 monumental sculptures erected on the former death strip next to the inner-German boarder that marked the division between the free west and the oppressed east. Several of the sculptures reach nearly 18 fee tall and tell the story of oppression, suffering, […]

Waking up from a refreshing night’s rest (I mean how can you not have a great night’s sleep in a castle) my fellows and I took a ten minute drive to Point Alpha. This location is extremely historically relevant in regards to post-war Germany and the division of the country. On April 2nd, 1945, the […]

Our last morning in Göttingen began at the BBS II Göttingen technical school. This vocational school was developed using the “Commercial School on Ritterplan”, which was first created in 1853. Since this schools primary focus is on technology and design, students are given a variety of opportunities for vocational networking in the Göttingen region. BBSII […]

After a memorable morning with students at the Göttingen school our local guide Klaus volunteered to show anyone interested the farmers market. The people of Göttingen pride themselves on their local farm to table markets and restaurants that are available in town. To my excitement, strawberry season had a few weeks left and we were […]

Waking up this morning I truly wondered how my day could be topped by yesterday. Monday had been packed with subjects that I spend so much time on with my students throughout the year and I began to wonder if I had completed a highlight of my trip on just the first day. Little did […]