Last Thursday, on 5th December, a group of 40 year-11 students of our school visited the American Consulate in Leipzig.
After being scanned and checked by security staff, we were led into the building where we were able to listen to a 90-minute presentation of a diplomat who is currently on assignment in Leipzig for the next two years after having served in Istanbul and Chisinau amongst others. Before being a diplomat, Dave Panetti had been working as a teacher in the east of Minnesota, near the two twin cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, for 20 years. He talked about his way of life in America, including his first job and left room for questions about anything, such as how schools in the U.S. prepared for school shootings.
After the presentation, we had an hour of free time to wander around the Christmas market, which is really big and fun. Later, there was the opportunity to visit the University of Leipzig and take part in a guided tour led by a former student of our school. We learned a lot about the university’s structure and gained a comprehensive overview of the main campus.
The bus departed at 4 pm and until then we had some more time to look around the beautiful city. It was a tiring but indeed educational day. We gained more knowledge about American culture and got an idea about what it means to be a student at Leipzig University.
Overall, it was a great day with new experiences. We can highly recommend a visit of the Consulate for years to come.
text: Ella Meckert, Marlene Dresch, Mrs Rabe, pictures: Mrs Rabe