In September 2018, I got a one-of-a-kind chance to join a weeks-long school exchange to the USA. I cannot properly describe all the impressions that the trip left me with in words, but at least I have some pictures to share here.

How I ended up going to the USA?

In 2017, my first year at vocational school (Berufsschulzentrum für Elektrotechnik Dresden), our English teacher told us about a planned school exchange to Columbus, Ohio - a sister city of Dresden. Later in April 2018, the students for the trip were nominated and selected. I was selected as a substitute candidate, which meant I could join the trip if another student dropped out. Still, this was just a side note to me - who could possibly drop out of such an opportunity?

From that moment I did not hear anything else about the planned exchange… Except that, three weeks before its start, my English teacher called me at the office and asked if I did have a passport and wanted to go to America. Of course I did! And luckily, I still got my passport from my trip to Moscow the year before.

Welcome to the Columbus airport

The journey started on September 5, 2018, at 2 PM at the Dresden airport with ten students and two teachers. We arrived at midnight local time at Columbus airport.

The letters Columbus at the Columbus airport

Exploring downtown

Although we had a full schedule, we still found time to explore the city each day.

Columbus downtown Columbus downtown

Street in Columbus A tower near the Columbus Convention Center

Scioto river

Visiting the Ohio State house

Ohio state house

Showcase in a museum "The war to end all wars"

Tour at the Ohio State University

Since this was still a school trip, we also had an educational mission. Therefore we visited the Ohio State University and later Columbus State Community College. Inside OSU, we had a detailed tour from one of the students and we were shown some experiments.

My first American football game

One of the professors from the Columbus State Community College gifted us tickets to an Ohio Buckeyes game against the Rutgers, thanks Paul Carringer. It was the first football game in my entire life. So impressive and magnificent - no comparison of a German soccer game.

The Ohio stadium in Columbus

The flag of the USA in Ohio Stadium

Football game in Ohio Stadium, the Buckeyes vs the Rutgers

Ohio State marching band in Ohio Stadium

Visiting the Columbus State Community College

Visiting the Columbus State Community College on multiple occasions was an important part of our trip, since it is the closest type of school to our vocational school in Germany.

It was an interesting experience, since it has courses and materials we can only dream of in Germany.

For example, game development in school… A game development course at the Columbus State Community College

… or the robotics lab.

A robot at the Columbus State Community College

Labs at the Columbus State Community College

Electro labs at the Columbus State Community College

Exploring Ohio Amish Country

Ohio Amish country

A house in the Ohio Amish country A garden in the Ohio Amish country

Experiencing Germany in the USA

We also visited the German Village of Columbus. What an irony! - traveling to America to see German culture and visit traditional German restaurants.

A German tradition. Everybody knows the famous Weiner Schnitzel ;) A weiner schnitzel in the menu of a german restaurant

The book loft in the German Village of Columbus. A bookstore with 32 rooms. The book loft in the German Village.

US suburbs

A really weird experience, it seems so familiar from all the TV shows and movies.

A suburb Another suburb

Visiting the Columbus Idea Foundry

Makerspace in the Columbus Idea Foundry Makerspace in the Columbus Idea Foundry

Makerspace in the Columbus Idea Foundry A pinboard with the question "What is a maker" answer: "A savage"

View over Columbus from a skyscraper

Heading home again

We started at around 6:30 PM local time in Columbus, had a layover in Detroit as well as in Amsterdam and finally arrived at 01:30 PM in Dresden. This photograph shows the view out of the airplane on the flight from Columbus to Detroit. View out of an airplane on the flight back to Detroit

Apart from every sentence written here, the most important lesson I learned is the insignificance of all geographical distance and cultural differences between people.

The other thing that certainly came up too short in this post is the kindness the majority of people had with us and how much effort was put into giving us the chance to see the country and gain a small insight in the American lifestyle.