Gaines Garrett: Germany




Arrival at Frankfurt Airport

June 12, 2013: AATG

        After traveling for 16 hours round-trip, Nick Obremsky and I met our host partners as enthusiastically as possible. However, I soon learned that their hospitality matched that of ours in the South. Martin, my host brother, and his mother drove me an hour back to Wiesbaden where I slept through the rest of the day and night in my own room. Martin and his brother Patrick were sharing their own bed. The next morning, I awoke to the smell of freshly baked bread which I would have for breakfast and lunch. I knew then that I was in good hands.

First day of School

        For the first week, I accompanied my host brother to school where I took a multitude of classes all in German. It didn't matter which class was which. Biology class was German class, Religion class was German class, Math class was German class. We did however spend four hours of our day in our homeroom class which was a safe haven where we still studied German but in English. After a few days passed, however, we were all comfortable with speaking German to the best of our ability. Many of us failed initially, but the embarrassment was mutual. Each little mistake was really an improvement as the nearest German, whether we knew them or not, would politely correct us. We were speaking German!

The glorious Brandenburg Tor

        After each school day, my host partner and I would go into the city of Wiesbaden. Within the city we walked everywhere which gave me a chance to enjoy the local quisine, find the best local shops, and experience the culture first hand. I quickly discovered many important things such as: my favorite food, Döner, my favorite shop, the local candy store, and my favorite custom, honking your horns and driving around in circles when someone is just married.


        I had many fantastic experiences different of what my other AATG group members had. One of which was the time I spent in Frankfurt on the panel for a discussion about the recent politcal speech made by Barack Obama which coincided with the anniversary of JFK's speech in 1963. In Wiesbaden I had the opportunity to be a part of this discussion along with one other American from my AATG group. We were joined by many other German students around the state of Hessen, but we were the only Americans. We were joined by journalists, filmakers, and people who saw JFK'S speech in 1963 first hand. We answered many opinionated questions about JFK's speech, Obama's speech, and comparisons between the two. It was a fantastic thing to be a part of and I relished the experience.

The discussion panel at the Villa Kennedy, hosted by the
U.S. Consulate General in Frankfurt am Main

        Our group spent an exhilirating few days in Berlin as well, where we stayed in a youth hostel and explored Berlin. We saw all the museums, including the world renowned pergamon museum. We saw the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie, the Dome, the Reichstag and much more. Around noon each day though we were given the freedom to explore Berlin on our own. We then enjoyed the Berlin music scene and many fantastic shops around the city.

The Prussian Flag in front of the Reichstag

I would like to thank the Wilson family for their fantastic generosity. My trip helped me improve my German speaking skills tremendously and I made lifelong friends in a different country on a different continent. I will never forget my time I spent in Germany and I will always be indebted to MBA and the Wilson family. Thanks again.