Gaila's Adventures in Germany

Quick Facts...

	Nickname	Gaila
	Birthday	February 15
	Hobbies	German Club, camping, hiking, modeling, snow skiing
	Education Goals	Study in a German-speaking country then attend college
	Hometown	Claremore, Oklahoma USA
	Sponsoring Rotary Club	Claremore and Claremore Reville, OK Rotary Clubs
	Hosting Rotary District / Club	District 1850 / Quakenbruck, Germany

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Notes from Germany...

Most Recent Entry is at the top of this list

Thursday, July 26, 2001 8:08 AM I arrived in America okay	Hello everyone,   I just wanted to let you all know that I made it back to America okay.  It was a long trip and I had some trouble with my luggage since I had one to many suitcases and they were all to heavy but in the end everything worked out okay and I got all of my stuff home with me.  It is good to see my family again but also different then I expected.  Also, almost everything here is the same as when I left but I see it completley different then before.  It is also way to hot for me here so I have to be careful about being in the heat.  Well, I will write again as a closing to my exchange after I have been here in Claremore for a few more days so I can explain what it is like coming back.    until then,     Gaila
Thursday, July 19, 2001 5:19 AM   Last update from Germany!	Dear Friends and Family,   So, I have 5 days left and then I head back "home". Wow, this year has gone by unbelievably fast and I have experienced so much.  I have been all over Europe and seen things I have only dreamed of seeing.  I have been to cities where I never thought I would have the opportunity to go and through it all I have met so many amazing people.  I have learned how small this world really is and how people are all, in principal, the same it does not matter what language they speak or what country they come from.  I can now say I  have friends all over the world and hope some day to visit them all.  I have learned so much about the German culture this year and the only way I did that was to learn the language.  I believe that one can not learn another countries culture with out getting to know the people there because the people are who carry on the culture and make the country what it is.  This year has been a year to learn how it is in Germany and at the same time get to know who I am better and what I want in life.  The things that were once important to me are no longer so important and I now know what my priorities are.  I have fulfilled a dream of mine by coming on this exchange and I have many more dreams that follow.  This year has been one of the best for me and I love it here in Germany but I know as well that I must go on with fulfilling my other dreams.  I have made it through one incredible year and have many more to come.  I also am able to go back to America knowing that the friends I have made here will stay my friends and we will keep in touch with each other.  I also plan to come back and visit as soon as possible. This was one awesome year and I thank you all for supporting me throughout it.  With out all of your emails and support this year would not have been such a success for me.  Thank you.   Sincerely,    Gaila
Wednesday, May 23, 2001 4:54 AM Europe Tour Update!	Dear Friends and Family, I recently arrived back to my home in Deutschland after my two week long Europe Tour with Rotary exchange students. It was so great and I would love to tell every little thing that happened but that would take forever and I just do not think emails are allowed to be that long. So I will give a broad overview of what we did and the cities we saw. First we left on Saturday the 5th of May and all arrived on the bus at different stopping points according to where in Germany we live. In the end there were 47 exchange students, three leaders, and one bus driver. We drove the first day south through Germany to Straßburg, France. We spent Saturday and Sunday night in Sraßburg and on Sunday had the chance to look at the city. On Monday we then headed off to Switzerland. There we saw Luzern for several hours and then stayed over night in Engleberg, a very small ski town but cute. We then went on a hike on Tuesday before heading off to our next country which was Italy. On the drive through Switzerland I fell in love with it. It was so beautiful with the green mountains and the natural water falls but the tunnels got a little annoying after a while. We then arrived in Italy on Tuesday evening and stayed the night in a town called Lavagna. It was a smaller hotel but it had great food and was within a 5 minute walk to the beach where we spent most of our nights just sitting in the sand talking getting to know each other better. On Wednesday morning we got up and drove to a port where we then took a boat to a little enchanting town called Portofino. This was one of my favorite towns on the whole trip and I took a ton of pictures. We got to look around the town, swim in the Meditteranian Sea and lay out on the beach. We stayed most of the day there and that evening stayed in Lavagna for our second night. At this point I learned that in Italy unlike in Italian Restaurants in America they eat Pasta first and then eat meat and potatoes after and a dessert last, where as in America the Pasta is the main meal and after the salad. On Thursday we spent part of the day in the bus but had longer stops in certain cities to see specific sites. We got to see Pisa and the dome right next to it. That was so cool because it is something I have always seen in pictures and heard about but to actually be there and see it for myself, that was amazing. We then arrived in Florence in the evening and after dinner all went to a disco which was tons of fun. On Friday we got the chance to see Florence which is a very pretty city. I especially like that we got to see David, the statue by Michel Angelo. That was unreal and so cool to get to see yet another thing so famous. We also ate the best ice cream there. It was so delicious and it is true that the Italeins know their ice cream. We then headed off to our next destination which was Ludo di Angela (spelling?) A quant little town where we had a hotel right on the beach and they had a strip with just shops and restaurants. It was a neat town. We spent Friday and Saturday night there and on Saturday we went to my other favorite place. A city I have always dreamed about going to and a city I hope to visit again. We went to Venice. I expected it to be beautiful but to stink and to my surprise it ditdn't stink at all because they are working on cleaning it up. It was a gorgeous city and amazing that the whole thing is built on wood in the middle of the ocean. I went on a gondola ride through the city and strolled through the peaceful streets. It was like a dream. I defanitley want to go bake again when I get the chance. On Sunday we headed on our longest drive which went through Austria to Hungry. We stayed overnight in Hungry and the next day we saw Budapest and at night took a boat ride with dinner through Budapset. That was lots of fun and the city is really pretty lit up at night. On Tuesday we headed back to Austria and went to Vienna. That was a beautiful city and one I would have loved to spend more time in. We got to see a lot of beautiful buildings, the famous Spanish ridding school and the balcony where Hitler made one of his first big speeches. That was unreal and we would have never seen it if we hadn't have met an American guy who had been there for two weeks with the University. We saw Vienna on Thursday and that evening we drove to Prague in the Czech Republic. We saw Prague on Friday and had the first bad weather of the whole trip and on the last night in Czech our bus was broken into. There were two video recorders and about eight jackets (including mine) stolen. That was not so great because we then had to sit in the hotel for five hours on Saturday and didn't get to see Dresden. We all tried to look on the bright side though. We also got to stay in one of the nicest hotels on the whole trip on Saturday night in Germany and got to go to a disco. On Sunday, all of us being exhausted we slowly said good-bye to people at every different stop and we had a very emotional time. All of us had become so close after two weeks being together almost every second of every day. Some of us also knew that it would be the last time we would see each other again before our year in Germany is over. I had such an amazing trip that really can not be put into words and made so many friends for life. I also got to see and go places I had, before, only dreamed about. I would not change anything about this year or my Europe Tour and I would do it all again. I also took a ton of pictures to remember it all by...9 rolls of film in 2 weeks. Also, just a little side note to say that I will be going to France on Thursday the 24th of May until the following Monday so I will not be able to respond to all of your email right away but still would love receiving them. Sincerely, Gaila
Friday, May 04, 2001 5:07 AM Guten Tag!	Dear all, I am just writing to let you all know that I will be going on a European Tour from May 5th until May 20th and will be unable to check my emails so when it takes a while for me to respond then that is why. I will also be writing a long detailed report about everything that I see and experience when I get back from my trip and will be taking tons of pictures. Talk to you all when I get back Tschüß, Gaila (Germany)
Saturday, April 28, 2001 11:33 AM	I am writing all of you to let you know that I am moving to my third and last family on Sun 29th of April.
	Dear Friends and Family, I know it has been a while since I have written but things have been kind of busy here. I got moved into my second host family okay and they are really great. The parents, Ruddy and Gittie, are so very nice and treat me like their daughter. I also have three host brothers in this family but only the youngest one, Tobias, lives at home. I have met the oldest son, Thomas, and his wife and three kids and in two weeks I will meet the middle son, Mathias, his wife and kids. Both of the sons I have met are really nice and are like brothers to me. Also, Thomas' kids are so sweet. There are two girls and one boy the ages are, 8, 6, and 2. This family is really great and I am glad that I have the opportunity to live with them for three months of my exchange. The last time I wrote it was at the end of January and I had been on my ski trip and since then I have not had a lot of things going on besides normal school, sports and hanging out with friends. The only things I have done that are not normal events are the Rotary Youth Exchange Orientation and celebrating my 19th birthday. First the Orientation, this was the second orientation I had been to. All of the exchange students from Australia and South Africa went back home after Christmas and new exchange students from these areas came at the beginning of February because that is when their new school year starts. So we had an orientation for all of the new exchange students and all of us "old" exchange students got to talk about any problems we were experiencing or any good points we wanted to share with some of the Rotarians that were there so they could help us if needed and to know what is good and bad about our exchanges for helping out with future exchange students. Okay, so we arrived Friday evening and discussed all of that and then Friday night we had a talent show that was absolutely hilarious and lots of fun. After, the talent show some people went to bed and others just hung out together and talked the entire night until breakfast. I was one of the ones who stayed up all night and got no sleep what so ever, it was fun but I was so tired on Saturday on the train ride home. The other out of the ordinary everyday things that happened was my 19th birthday. I still can not believe that I am 19 but it is true. My birthday was on a Thursday so I had to go to school but while at school my friends sang me three different birthday songs during one of the breaks and everyone congratulated me. After school I had lunch with my host parents, Schnitzel, peas and carrots, and Bratkartoffeln, my request. Then I had a few of my closest friends, my first host mom (Annette), and my host grandmother of this family over for coffee and cake. Then in the evening I had a party where I could invite more of my friends over. It was all really great and I got a lot of cool presents and had a lot of fun with all of my friends. Other then that, like I said, I have just been going to school, playing sports, and doing things with friends on the weekends. Just an ordinary life in Germany. Although I will say that my exchange is going by extremely fast. I have been here almost seven months and I can not believe it. I am really having a great time here and know that it will be hard to leave but I also know that through everything I have experienced a lot and have changed a lot. I have also learned a lot of lessons and will come back with a totally different perspective on life. I really can not express enough how important this year has become to me and how thankful I am that I came on this exchange. I know this is not a really long detailed letter of everything I have been doing but I just want to let you know some of the highlights and let you all know that I am still doing great here and enjoying everything. Sincerely, Gaila
Saturday, Jan 27, 2001 10:31 AM Ski trip in Austria!	Dear friends and family, I have officially been in four countries in Europe. I just recently got back from a school ski trip to Austria. It was so great! We took a big bus and it was students from my school in the 12th grade and students from Bramsche, a neighboring city, who are also in the 12th grade. It was a long trip but definitely worth it. We stayed in a town called Stumm in Zillertal. There were four teachers 14 students from Quakenbrück and 20 or more students from Bramsche. There were also a couple of people who are finished with high school and went on the trip when they were in the 12th grade and just wanted to come along, they have that every year. We stayed in a lodge type place owned by a husband and wife. There were four floors and a cellar, the family lived there as well. On the first floor there was a small area with tables and a small kitchen/bar, there was also a tv room. The other floors were for sleeping. There were about six rooms on every floor, three toilets and one shower. Three of the rooms were for three people, two were for two people and one for one person. It was nice and we had a lot of fun all of us staying together. Not all of us stayed in the same house, though. Some of the boys had to stay in another house across the street because there was not enough room in the main one. The older people who were not on the trip for the class were also in another lodge a little further away. All the students ate breakfast together at the main building where most of us were staying and in the evenings we all got together there for playing cards or talking. The older ones also joined us in the evening but not for breakfast. We left at about 5 in the morning on the 10th or January and arrived that evening. The next day we started skiing, because I went with the school this was not just a free do what you want skiing. We were in different groups according to experience with skiing. There was one "professional" group, one middle group, and three beginner groups. Each of us worked on different technics and improving or learning how to ski. We started skiing at about 9 every morning and would all meet at about 11:30 for lunch, skiing was over for the day at 3:30. We would then go home and have time to shower, eat something, or sleep. We all met at about 6:15 for supper in another building where they cooked warm meals for all the people staying in the different lodges in the area. After that we would get together for card playing or just hanging out. This was the basic schedule but on one evening we went sledding. There were two people to a sled and there was a path way that was lit to sled on. We took a tran type bus to the top and then headed off, we took a break at a small lodge to buy drinks on the way and then sledded to the bottom. It was fun but was a little dangerous. The whole thing took about two hours or so and was a blast. We skied everyday until the 19th, when we headed back home. I had so much fun these ten days and got closer to several of the people that I go to school with. I learned a lot more about skiing and am now a lot better. I never knew I could ski so much and not get bored or worn out. On the last day I was totally exhausted but with a full day of rest I could have skied another week. It was so great and really an experience of a life time and one I will never forget, or hope to never forget. I even got a certificate. All of the students received one with a new ski name. I am named Cherokee blizzard because I come from Oklahoma. They said I added an international touch to the trip. It was great! Sincerely, Gaila
Monday, Dec 18, 2000 11:15 AM	Dear Friends and Family, It has been a while since I have written and I am sure you have wondered what has happened to me. The last time I wrote was at the end of the fall break here in the schools and I was starting a two week internship in the kindergarten here in Quakenbrück. I worked in the kindergarten from the second of November until the 17th. It was a lot of fun. Although kids play the same as they do in America, the system for the kindergarten is different here. I worked in the Catholic kindergarten. There are three different "groups" and each has about 25 kids and two teachers. Each group has kids of assorted ages, from 2 two 6. They put the older and younger kids together because they say it helps the younger ones to learn faster, the older ones help the younger ones out. The kids arrive at about 8 in the morning and stay until about 12. They play at the beginning as all the kids arrive and then have breakfast all together at about 9:30 or so. After breakfast they either read a book together or sing songs in a circle. Then at about 10:30, if the weather is nice, they go to play outside until the parents pick them up. Also, once a week each group goes into the gym room and places with assorted toys. There is a small trampoline and a ladder to climb and more things such as that. It was a very fun two weeks and believe it or not I learned a lot of German. It was really quite funny when the little kids would correct me or tell me what something was called that I had never heard of before. Also, I was forced to speak German since the kids can not understand English. The kids are so sweet and I have gone back to visit once since I have completed my internship. I am really glad I had the opportunity to do that. It was really a great two weeks. They even made me a candle holder and threw a party for me on my last day. After completing the two weeks, I have returned back to school and it is much better now. It was good before but I really understand some of the lessons now and I even participated in answering the questions in some of my subjects. My German has improved to, like I said. It is not a drastic, all at once change; but it is a steady, everyday a little better change. I have not done any traveling since the fall break but I am having a good time none the less. Just having an everyday routine with school and sports and hanging out with friends. I really do love it here and could not have asked for a better town to live in. I am so blessed to be able to live here, if even for just a year. The Christmas season is here now and it is starting to get a little colder. It is really nice, every town has a market place and during Christmas they have what is called a Weihnachts Markt. They have booths with assorted Christmas things that people can buy. The bigger the town the bigger the Markt but even in the small towns it is a quaint little Markt. All the towns are decorated with Christmas trees and lights along the "main street". It really brings out the Christmas spirit. Christmas has actually come really fast for me but I am excited that it is here. It is a busy time though, in any country. I am learning a lot of the traditions for Christmas too. Here they celebrate what is called "Nikolaus", it is on the sixth of December. There are many stories to go along with this celebration but one that I have learned is that Nikolas was a Saint and helped out a family who was very poor by putting a sack in front of their door at night for three nights in a row. The first night the sack had food, the second night clothes and the third night shoes with toes put inside the shoes. The last one is the important one because now before going to bed on the fifth kids put their shoes, nice and clean, in front of their bedroom door and Nikolas puts candy and toys in them while they sleep. The Nikolas today looks a lot like our Santa Claus in America but not as fat. There is also another tradition. In America people put the Christmas tree up any time between Thanksgiving and Christmas but here the tradition is to put it up on Christmas eve. There is also another tradition different from ours in America. In America Santa Claus visits us on Christmas eve but here the "Christkind" visits them. This is a angel that has a sleigh like Santa but with horses instead of reindeer. There are several different stories for this in each family but in the one I am staying with their sons when they were little would go upstairs with the grandparents or one of their parents and sing Christmas songs or tell a Christmas story and when they heard a knock on the door it was the Christkind and there would be presents wrapped for them from this angel. Of course they also celebrate the birth of Jesus on Christmas eve as well. We also have cooked Christmas cookies already and done a little bit of Christmas decorating in the house. They do not fix the yards up as elaborate as in America though. Only a few decorations, not a whole yard filled with lights. I miss my friends and family in America through the holiday seasons but I know that it is just for one year and an awesome opportunity to get to be here in Germany for Christmas and see what they believe here. I am still loving it here and have a very busy holidays ahead. I hope that all of you are having a great holidays and are spending it with your family and friends. I thank all of you for the way you have all touched my life. Each and every one of you mean something very special to me and have helped me to become who I am in some way, big or little. You will all be in my thoughts through this Christmas season and into the new year. I wish you all a Fröhliche Weihnachten und alle guten Wünsche zum neuen Jahre. Merry Christmas and best wishes in the New Year. Sincerely, Gaila
Wednesday, November 01, 2000 5:24 AM	Dear Friends and Family, Okay before I update you on what I have been doing for the past few weeks, I need to give you some background information on my living situation. My host family's name is Raue, they have three boys. Jan Simon, 18, Niels, 16, and Joost, 14. I am in Germany through the Rotary program and in Germany to host a student it is usually required that the family has a student in another country at the present time. Therefore, Niels is living in Wyoming, USA, for a year through the Rotary program. I will be living with the Raue family until about February and then I switch families with another exchange student who is here from the Phillipines through Rotary also. I do this because Rotary likes to give us the opportunity to see how several different families live because not all families are the same. The school I attend here in Quakenbrück has what is called a sister city. This school has many different sister cities through different organizations in the school. One of the sister cities is Conway, Arkansa, USA. My current host mother, father and youngest brother have gone to Conway with the school, leaving the oldest son and I here in Quakenbrück. Because of this I am staying with my sport teacher and his family until the Raues return. They left on the 16 of October and return on the 4 of November. Our fall break for school started on the 19 of October and lasts until the 2 of November. On the 2 I start what is called Prakticum. Every student in my grade, 11th, has to do this for two weeks instead of attending school. The students choose a job that they are interested in doing and they work there for these two weeks to see what it is like and to help them decide if that is what they want to do as a career. This is for school so they do not get paid and the "class teacher" checks to see how things are going and they get a grade for their work. I will be working in the catholic kindergarten. In Germany they have Preschool and Kindergarten like in America but the Kindergarten is like the American Preschool and the Preschool is like the American Kindergarten. There are two different Kindergartens, protestant and catholic. Even though I am protestant I will be working in the catholic kindergarten because my host family is catholic and my host mother knows the head sister who runs the kindergarten. The family I am staying with until the Raues are back is the Meinicke family. The father is my sport teacher at school and the mother works for the doctor of the Raues and the doctor is the father of one of my friends. The Meinickes have a daughter, Claudia, 21, and a son, Christian, 23. Both of them still live at home and they are all very nice and have welcomed me into their family for this short time. During the break I have been to two different places, Großhartau and Alecon. First Großhartau, this is a town in East Germany near Dresden. I went there with Frau and Herr Meinicke and the protestant church group from Quakenbrück. It is a mini exchange between the two cities and the protestant churches. We left on the 20 of October and stayed until the 22. It took most of the day on Friday to drive there, we stayed in families, I was with the same family as Herr and Frau Meinicke. On Saturday the adults went to Dresden by bus and all the youth walked to a castle. It was neat but exhausting, there and back it was about 10 miles, walking. Then after we got back we played volley ball. We then eat supper with the families and then the youth got together for a worship time and a little message from the Bible. It was nice. Then on Sunday we went to church and headed back to Quakenbrück. The next trip was to Alecon, this is a town in France. This town is a sister city of the school through the sport program. Three different sport groups went, handball, tennis, and canoe. Herr and Frau Meinicke also went and we went by charter bus. We left at 10 pm on Thursday the 26 of October. We drove all night and arrived in Paris at about 10 in the morning on Friday. We got to tour Paris for about four hours, which is not much at all but it is better then nothing. I got to see the Arch of Triumph and the Eiffel Tower. I also go to see the tunnel where Princess Diana died. It was all very interesting but Paris is completely different then I expected it to be. It was not as pretty as I expected it to be and it was very expensive. I ordered tea which turned out to be three cups of tea and it cost 5 dollars, insane huh. Well, after our tour of Paris we got back on the bus and drove four hours to Alecon. Alecon is a beautiful city and I like it better then Paris. After arriving we were put into host families. I was put with a girl who is 18 like me, her name is Aurile but her nick name is Lili. She is finished with school and is a cook at a French restaurant in Alecon but lives in a neighboring town about 20 minutes away. She speaks no German and about as much English as I do French. A little background information for those of you who don't know, I have taken about a month and a half of French here in Germany and half the time I am gone on trips and miss class. So we used a lot of body language and a dictionary. She was really nice though. She lives with her parents and two brothers and sisters. We went to her house and eat supper and then went back to Alecon to meet some of the French students who were hosting German students. We went to a French carioke bar. It was really cool but I was so tired from the whole night and half the day on the bus and touring Paris. The next day we went with some of the French and German students to look around Alecon then we had a picnic by the river where the canoe club is. The three sport groups did their own things and because my host sister canoes I went with her even though I don't canoe. After the picnic I borrowed some clothes from one of the French girls to go canoeing. It was lots of fun but so very cold it was about 10 degrees Celsius which is 50 degrees Farenheit. I rode in a two person canoe with my host sister and we went to a mini water fall where you can go down it and then climb a rock to get to the other side to do it again. That was fun to but I got soaked and in 50 degrees with the wind blowing it was just a tad pit cold. Then after that we went to the store and got some drinks and then went back to one of the French students house for an all night get together. We eat so much food. First there was chips, then some sort of rice salad with bread, then pizza, kiesh, and a fruit salad. Between every dish we would take a break so all the students could go smoke. I don't smoke but I was one of the only ones out of about 12 people. We got to sleep at about three or so and then got up the next morning and hoped on the bus to head back to Quakenbrück. It took the whole day but we got to see some beautiful country side. Suprisingly enough I didn't see any vineyards, we may have passed some while I was sleeping but while I was awake I didn't see any but France is still a beautiful country. Well that is my very long update. I hope you could understand it and enjoyed hearing about my adventures. I think about all of you often and am so blessed to have so many people supporting me. With out all of you I would not have been able to do this. Thank you. Sincerely, Gaila Lillie
Tuesday, October 17, 2000 9:33 AM	Dear Friends and Family, Once again I am writing to inform you of what I have been doing here in Europe. First on Monday, October 9, Some girls from my school and I went by train to the Czech Republic for a school trip. There were about 15 of us and one teacher. We spent about 12 hours on Monday going to the Czech Republic, so the first night there all we did was go to the houses we were staying at and sleep. We were all staying in families, like an exchange. In each family there was at least one student who went to the school in the town we were staying in, Rotniche. I was staying with a boy who could speak fairly good English. He lives with his Grandfather, mother, and dad. He has two older sisters who are both married and have kids. He is my age and is graduating from the high school in the Czech Republic this year. His grandfather could speak a little bit of German but with the accent I couldn't understand, his dad didn't speak any English or German, and his mom could understand a little bit of English and German but not much. They were all nice though. On Tuesday we all met at the school and went to the German and English lessons. Then all of us students with our host brother or sister went on a city search, we had to find names or buildings or the number of lights on the bridge, just things to help us get better acquainted with the town and with our host sibling. On Wednesday we all met at the school and then went to Terezin Stadt. It was just the students from Germany. Terezin was originally built as a prison and eventually was used similar to a concentration camp. We took a tour of it in German so I didn't understand much but the girls explained the important parts to me. It was very interesting to see. Then on Thursday we went to Praha, Prag. This is the capital of Czech. It was very beautiful there. We also had a tour of Prag in German and then had some time to go shopping and just look around. Two things I especially liked were the Church in the Castle and the Karlsbrücke, this is a famous bridge. It was so beautiful and had so many statues along the way and there were people with little picture stands or jewelry to sell. The church was beyond words. It had so many beautiful stain glass windows and such elaborate paintings. Every time I walk into a church here in Europe it amazes me that the people here are not more religious. Not many people go to church here and not many people believe strongly in God but there are so many beautiful sculptures and pictures explaining different events in the Bible that it is unreal. In Oklahoma we have nothing remotely close but I know so many people who are very religious. I suppose it just has to do with the culture and the things that families pass down to thier children. Surprisingly Prag had very many American things, Mc Donalds and Pizza Hut of course but they also had TGI Fridays, an America restaurant. It is not very common that you see this restaurant in Europe. They also had America clothes stores as well. On Friday we met at the school and then went to Mount Chien. This is a sacred Mountain in the Czech Republic. The legend is that the man who founded the Czech Republic was walking over the mountain and saw the beautiful view and decided to settle there and it was named after him. That is how the Czech Republic started. That was nice but quite a steep walk up the side of the mountain. Then Friday evening the principal and some of the students held a party for us with our host siblings on a island in the middle of the Elbe River. That was so great. The scenery was gorgeous and it was a lot of fun. As a whole the trip was great and the people I went with from Germany were really nice and so were the people in the Czech Republic. At first the German students were a bit home sick and quite honestly I wanted to come back to Germany as well, just because it is so different there. It is really hard to explain how but it is so gray and kind of gloomy there. The people don't have much money to make things look modern or very nice and all the buildings are old and the streets are not very well groomed. It wasn't dirty but it looked so different. The entire atmosphere was just completely different. I am so glad I got the opportunity to go and see how they live but I couldn't live there, not even for a year, I don't think. But I wouldn't take my time there back, it was a really good experience. Well, I must go now but I hope you enjoy my update. In a few days I will be going to East Germany for a mini exchange for three or four days with the youth group here and then right after that I am going to France. I will write updates about those events when I get back. Thank you for supporting me, Gaila
Thursday, October 05, 2000 7:18 AM	I am doing good here in Germany as well. I am busy with school, cheerleading, jazz dance and friends. I am enjoying it here though. Also, my host parents and youngest host brother are coming to Conway, Ark. for two weeks. Quakenbrück, the town I live in, is the sister city of Conway. So every year they take students there for a two week exchange with the school. Sounds neat huh. While they are gone, I will stay with a my sport teacher and his family. I think it will be fun because they have a daughter my age and she seems pretty nice. Well, I must go but I will let you know more later. Tchüß
Thursday, September 28, 2000 7:21 AM	Dear friends and family, I am just wanting to update you on the things that I have been doing here in Germany. Through Rotary I have experienced the opportunity of a life time and something I never thought would happen. All of the exchange students from my Rotary district here in Germany got the opportunity to go the the world expo and Berlin. We left on Thursday and headed by train to a small town near Hannover, where we stayed at a camp in tents. Hannover is where the world expo was held. On Friday and Saturday we all went to the expo together. We split up into groups and spent both days exploring the expo. It was great but we walked about 12 hours each day so we were all very tired. For those of you who do not know, the world expo is set up like a theme park would be except there are no rides and there are tons of different buildings with exhibits in them. Each country got the privilege of representing themselves at this expo. Some countries did big exhibits and others small. There were countries there that I had never heard of, but it was so neat to see different things that represent the countries. For example, clothes or foods from a country. Shops where they sell jewelry or rugs, anything that is common in the country being represented. It was a huge place and even though we walked so much and saw so many things I still didn't get to see everything I wanted to. I was also very dissapointed because America was not represented there, I do not know the exact reasons but in the book about all of the countries it said that America backed out after going to the press. Well, none the less it was very exciting. The expo stays for I believe five months here in Germany and then moves to another country. I am not sure how often it moves but it goes from country to country so everyone gets the opportunity to see it. After the expo we went to Berlin. All of the exchange students, about 40 of us, went by train to Berlin on Sunday. When we arrived on Sunday we took a bus tour, in English, through the city. I have never seen buildings so old with so much history before. Also, I got to see the thing I didn't really ever expect to see in my life, the wall. Of course most of it is taken down now since Germany is no long separated, but there is still a portion of the wall left and I got to see it. It is so hard to imagine what went on in Gemany while it was separated and all the awful things the people endured. It is amazing to think that it was only ten years ago when the wall came down and Gemany was reunited. We got to see many more things on the tour, but this was the only thing that we got out of the bus for. After the tour we went to the place that we were staying. They call it a hotel but it is not like most hotels. Hotels like this are usually for big groups of students and there are lots of rooms with several beds in each room and community showers and restrooms. It was better then the tents at the other camp though, and a lot warmer. Sunday evening after putting our things in our rooms we were allowed to do what ever we wanted in Berlin. We got bus passes for groups of five people and were allowed to do what we wanted. Some people chose to go to diskos but some of us went to eat at a restaurant, I was in the restaurant group. Then on Monday we got more bus passes and had the whole day to go where ever we wanted in Berlin. In my group we went to Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche. This is a church where over half of it had been bombed in the second world war. There have been two buildings built next to it as add ons but the original part that is still standing is magnificant. It was truly breathtaking in side. Then my group went to a palace that was built as a summer house for one of the Prussian Queens. We didn't get to go inside because on Mondays almost all museums are closed but the outside was gorgeous and way bigger then any summer house I have seen. We then went to the famous Checkpoint Charlie. Again this was awesome just like everything else. Thankfully the museum was open and we got to look inside. It was a big awakening call, because it showed all of the things people tried to do just to cross the wall into freedom and all of the things people endured. I can not imagine what it is like to want freedom so bad that some one would risk their life for it. I have been blessed to grow up in a free country. The next stop was the Brandenburger Tor. This is a famous gate in the city. It is so big and magnificent but it is not like a gate where a door swings open. It has huge pillars and between the pillars are places where cars can drive through. The last historical stop for the day was the parliament building. This was really nice too. Although I got to see a lot of things, one day of sight seeing in Berlin is definatley not enough and I would love to go back again. On Tuesday one of my friends and I got up early and went to the main strip of Berlin and shoped in some of the stores. It was nice and I was amazed throughout the whole trip how easy it was to get around Berlin and how safe the city felt, even really late at night. Berlin didn't have any "bad parts" like most big cities in America, and Berlin has so much history in it but it also has a lot of construction going on as well. Another thing I forgot to mention was I rode a subway and a double decker bus for the first time in my life. Both were really fun and convienent. Well, after a few hours of shopping with my friend all of the exchange students headed to the train station to leave. We got to go right by an event that will probably go in history because several thousand semi truck were blocking one of the main rodes as a protest to the high gas prices. We were right by there but left before the actual protest began because it was a long train ride home. I had an awesome time and would not trade a minute of it. All of the exchange students got really close and I got to see so many historical things that I would love to see again. If any of you ever get the opportunity to go to Berlin don't ever pass it up. You won't regret it. I am going to stop writing now because I have already written so much but I thank you all for being so supportive of me on my adventure and I hope you enjoy my up dates.
Tuesday, August 29, 2000 9:27 AM	Dear friends and family, Well, I have officially been in Germany one week today. It is nice here but I will definately have to buy sweaters for the winter because it is the end of the summer here and I am wearing winter sweaters to school. Not because it is cold but there is a cool breaze and when riding a bike it can get preety chilly. I am getting the hang of the ridding, but I am not so sure that I prefer it over driving. School is nice but it is very different. This is my schdule for the week. Times 1)7:45-8:30 5min brake 2)8:35-9:20 15min brake 3)9:35-10:20 5min brake 4)10:25-11:10 15min brake 5)11:25-12:10 5min brake 6)12:15-1:00 10min brake 7)1:10-1:55 5min brake 8)2:-2:45 Monday / Tuesday / Wednesday / Thursday / Friday 1)Religion / Biology / Geography / English / Math 2)French / free time / Geography / English / German(11) 3)German(7th grade) / French / Math / free time / free time 4)German(7th grade) / free time / French / Biology / German(7) 5)Biology / German(11th grade) / French / Math / Art 6)free time / German(11) / Religion / French / Art 7)Sport 8)Sport After the last lession I come home and eat lunch. Here we eat the warm meal for the day at lunch time and usually sandwiches for dinner and at school I take a sandwich and some fruit for a snack during free time or in between classes. During free time I can talk with my friends or do homework, if I want I can even come to the house but I usually don't. Also when a teacher is sick instead of getting some one to fill there place they just don't have class, so I have not been to sports yet because my teacher was sick. Oh and for those of you who knew that I was worried about gaining weight I would like to inform you that I have done just the opposite. Because of the way they eat and my host mom cooks very healthy low fattening food and because of the amount of excersise I get from ridding my bike and walking I have lost weight. Whether or not I will eventually start gaining weight or not I do not know but we will see. I have met many new people through verious activities. I went with Anika, my neighbor, to her church youth group and went with Jan Simon, my oldest host brother, to a birthday party. There have been different people at each place because they are in different groups but it is neat beacause I am getting to know people from each group and am accepted in both. That is one thing that is very different in Germany from America. In America in school it is always a fashion show and there are many cliques, not that this is bad it is just how it is. In Germany people wear what they want and do not spend a lot of time on their hair or makeup, most girls do not wear makeup, and there are groups but they are not as diffined and it is not determined by popularity but by interest. It is nice here but I am at the stage where Germany is not better then America and vise versa they are just different. And suprisingly enough I am not really homesick. Yes I miss every one of you and think about you at least once a day but I do not want to come home because I want to have the most of my experience here and I will be home in a year to see all of you. It sounds like a long time but it really isn't. I know that a lot of it if not all is from God. He is with me even though not many people here believe in Him and I thank all of you for your prayers. I feel His love through many of you even though we are so far apart. I am also praying for all of you in all of your every day adventures. I am sure I am leaving out so much but for now I will close and tell you more later. Bis Später, Gaila
Thursday, August 24, 2000 1:27 PM	Guten Tag, Germany is good. There are many differences but also many similarites. I started school today and that was quite an experience. The schools here are a little different then in the US and it is hard to understand what they are saying. I have only been in Germany 3 days, but everyday my German gets better. The weather here is much different then in Oklahoma. It is cool in the morning and evening and warm during the day. Also, everyone rides bikes, I am a bit rusty, but like they say you never forget how to ride one. I must go, but I will write more later. Sincerely, Gaila
Tuesday, August 22, 2000 8:24 PM	Dear Friends, Just wanted to send you an update on Gaila. She left Tulsa International Airport on Monday, August 21 at 11:00 a.m. She called us from Frankfurt, Germany at 4:00 a.m. this morning. Her flights went well and, although she was very tired, she was excited to be in Germany. After a lengthy lay-over in Frankfurt she traveled on to Muenster, Germany. She called at 1:30 p.m. today to report that she AND HER LUGGAGE were at her first host family's home. Her host family arrived at the airport with flowers and hugs and made her feel very welcome. They then traveled to Quackenbruk by car. Her host family had prepared a large, traditional German dinner for her. Since 1:30 p.m. our time is 8:30 p.m. their time, she had been traveling for 26 hours and was looking forward to dinner and a good night's rest in her new home. Her host mom asked to speak with me. Her English is very good although her accent is quite strong. We were able to communicate very well. They have three boys (one in Wyoming at this time as a Rotary exchange student) and her host mom is excited to have a girl in the family to go shopping with. Since you all know Gaila you know that she couldn't be happier with this situation! They have planned a party for her tomorrow night and are inviting several girls from the high school for her to get to know. School starts there on Thursday so she will be very busy from day one. Her host family has agreed to indulge her by speaking English for the first 24 hours, then they are switching back to German! The high school, gymnasium there, is grades seven through 12. The school has approximately 500 students and her host mom is a teacher in the school. We are so thankful that she has arrived safely. Thank you for your continued support and love as Gaila has made this transition to another country. Please keep her in your prayers (and E-mails!). Although she is miles away and on a very exciting adventure, your love and prayers will do much to sustain her as she struggles with homesickness, as she surely will.