26 June 2026
Seven Year 9 students recently enjoyed a wonderful opportunity to immerse themselves in family and school life on an exchange with peers from Sophie Barat Schule in Hamburg. Emily, Phoebe, Aayan and Anjali tell us more.
Emily
The idea of taking part in an exchange seemed really scary at first, but being able to contact our exchange partner before we went meant I wasn’t going to be staying with a stranger’s family at all, but with a close friend. So, my week in Germany was like a huge sleepover filled with great experiences such as visiting the Berlin Wall, sightseeing on a boat trip and eating traditional food. I was nervous on my first day at school, but the group of girls in my class were really nice and welcoming. Thanks to the German exchange I have re-fallen in love with the language and culture and would recommend it to anyone considering it.
Phoebe
When I arrived, I was impressed by how pretty and clean Hamburg is - it felt like a really nice community. My host family was very welcoming and the food they made was delicious, though we also ate out a couple times. We did lots of different activities, including rowing, shopping, sports day, going on pedalos, swimming in the river and seeing famous landmarks. The main reason I signed up to the exchange was to improve my German and I really feel that I have. I also made new friends and experienced a different culture, and I would thoroughly recommend this trip.
Aayan
My host family were very welcoming and I had a great experience with them throughout the week. In Hamburg we did all sorts of activities including rowing, which I hadn’t tried before but enjoyed very much. We went to Berlin for a day and saw many famous landmarks such as the Brandenburg gate. We tried many traditional meals such as wiener schnitzel and traditional currywurst, curry sausage, which was very good. All seven of us all had the best time with our exchange partners and are excited to host them in the UK.
Anjali
During my time in Germany, I learnt a lot about the language, the history, and the everyday life in the country. We went to many places, including the Berlin Wall, which was very cool. We also ate the traditional German meal of Currywurst. The exchange was very enjoyable and I learnt a lot!