I spent three weeks in the summer of 2022 in Eastbourne, England, with EF. My school recommended EF to me because I was very interested in a language trip. Following the tip, I turned to a teacher who gave me brochures from EF. They spoke to me immediately and it quickly became clear that I would spend my summer holidays with EF.
The start of my adventure
Before mine Foreign adventures I didn't really think about it that much. Of course I was excited – after all, it was the first time I had lived in another country without my parents. However, at the airport I met seven other Germans who would also be spending the entire three weeks in Eastbourne. We hit it off immediately, which took away a lot of my nervousness.
However, when I arrived in England, it took quite a long time until I was finally with my host family. I was worried that they wouldn't let me in at 1:30 in the morning. But all my fears were unfounded: they gave me an incredibly warm welcome and even gave me something to eat. The next morning I also met my four host sisters, who came from Spain, Belgium, France and the Czech Republic. A special surprise was waiting in my host parents' garden: foxes lived there and regularly ventured close to the house. We were even allowed to feed them – a real highlight!
The first day of school
The first day was very exciting. I drove to school with my host sisters. I lived over an hour away, so we had to travel by bus and train. But luckily everything worked out well.
At school I met my activity group, with whom I did many different leisure activities over the next three weeks. I also got to know my German group and I got along well with them straight away. I was very lucky to make friends quickly. I was also able to communicate easily in English with the other international participants, which made communication much easier. They even taught me some words from their own languages - that was really funny! We were all the same age and shared similar interests. I still keep in touch with many friends from England today.
My goals and experiences
I planned to improve my language skills, gain more confidence in speaking English, meet lots of new people and simply have a great time in England. In short: everything I set out to do was not only achieved, but even exceeded.
I also really wanted to go to London and see Buckingham Palace. To my surprise, I found out that we would be taking a day trip to London on the first weekend – I was really excited about that! When we got there I couldn't believe I was actually in London. Even today, looking back, I still can't fully realize it. It felt like I was in a movie. I was standing in front of the gates of Buckingham Palace, and the Queen was still alive at that time. Afterwards we visited Camden, and for all Harry Potter fans: we discovered the famous Platform 9 ¾! There was a cute little Harry Potter shop right next to it, and the lady at the entrance reminded me a little of Professor McGonagall.
More highlights
We also took a trip to Brighton and explored the city there.
We organized lots of great activities with the whole school in Eastbourne. For example, we made funny outfits out of garbage bags and had a color fight where we wore white clothes that then glowed in all colors.
Conclusion
Overall, this language trip was an unforgettable experience. I can only recommend everyone to go on a language trip once in their life!
