A Short Chronicle of a Week
The winners of the annual German language project competition spent last Saturday (6th July) with preparation as at the following night they left for Augsburg where they had the opportunity to spend a week practicing the German language.
We left Pécs and headed for Budapest at Saturday night together with my fellow competitors from Kaposvár and Nagybajom. In Budapest we met the others from the Jászság and flew to Munich. Our flight was smooth and pleasant. After landing we continued our journey by bus and in Augsburg we met our host families. My family was very nice, helpful and humorous; we came to like each other during my stay and the others had similar experiences.
On the first day of the tuition (on Monday) our group wrote a test to assess our level of German. I can proudly announce that all of us became the members of the strongest groups in the language school. During the week the mornings were spent at the language school where we developed a lot and met a lot of new students from other countries. In the afternoons we took part in different programs then we had a little free time before dinner. In the first afternoon, after school we met a very nice, helpful lady, Andrea Keller, who worked in the local inquiry office. She was a great help to us during our stay last year and we could turn to her with our questions this time too. She attended us through the Fuggerei (the symbol of Augsburg), which is a town within a town built by Jakob Fugger for the old, impoverished people of the town, who had to pay only 88 cent for their residence. After this we went to the local river where we could row. Luckily the weather was really nice and everybody remained dry after rowing.
On Tuesday afternoon we went to the local beach. It was really nice to swim in that hot weather. We could also show our volleyball ability. After we finished the supper at our host family, our little Hungarian group met in the city again – as we did nearly every evening – to summarize what happened to us on that day and to chat freely.
Wednesday was a little bit different from the other days, because instead of staying in the school on the whole morning we spent our day in Nurnberg, where we saw the local castle and an interactive museum which presented sensual disillusions.
On the next day we met Andrea again who showed us the sights in the downtown – among the others a garden where Jakob’s wife could host her guest and friends; we also visited the golden room of the town hall and across the historical town we walked to the biggest shopping centre where we could buy few presents to our Hungarian friends and relatives. After the shopping we went to a nice and traditional Bavarian restaurant which was left with a big satisfaction as we eat a lot and our tummies were big.
On Friday we had a sport day, so we went to another beach of the town. Unfortunately the water was really cold, so only few brave people could go in to the pool while the others enjoyed playing volleyball, football and badminton.
On Saturday we went to Munich, where we could use the public transport very efficiently and confidently, but of course we got a big support from our helpers Judit and Ildikó. In the metropolis, Munich we visited the Allianz Arena which was an unforgettable experience for everybody.
Personally, the Munich Formation is one of my favourite teams, so it is still unbelievable that I could step into their dressing rooms, where the tension of great encounters was still perceptible, that I could have a look at the press room, where Pep Guardiola recently gave an interview, that I could admire the tended lawn from the spectator’s terrace and so on. It was a wonderful experience.
Returning back from Munich Judit and Ildikó showed us a wonderful garden that was the high spot of the day. They had a surprise for us; we were given a small card with beautiful thoughts on it and especially titled for each for us. It was a kind gesture that we will cherish.
On Sunday morning we had to say goodbye to our host families. We surprised them with small gifts to return thanks for their hospitality. We hope to meet them next summer.
After travelling to the airport of Munich, we flew to Budapest with fantastic experiences in our heart. We all hope to have the chance to visit this lovely city again after the next year’s project competition. On behalf of my mates I would like to thank the Csányi Foundation for this amazing week. This week is unforgettable for all of us and we could also develop our German language knowledge.
Szabó Gábor
Pécs 1.