From January 21st to January 28th, classes 4am, 4dl, and 4fl went on an immersive language trip to England with Prof. Rotter, Palta-Göktas, Handl and Reichspfarrer. They experienced small town life in York, which was defined by medieval architecture, magical shopping streets, and cozy cafés and pubs. For contrast, we also visited Manchester, one of the first hubs of industrialisation in Europe where traditional brickwork stands in contrast with modern skyscrapers.
Apart from exploring these cities, we also visited different museums – The Railway Museum in York, the Manchester Museum, and, most exciting of all, York’s Chocolate Story. We saw, heard, and smelled what life was like in the first century AD in York’s Viking Experience and got insight into the darker side of history during a ghost walk through the town and a visit to the York Dungeons, which were also prime examples of dark British humour.
Most mornings, students found their way to the language school “English in York” by navigating the local bus system. There, they completed interesting communicative activities according to their level in English, such as solving a fictional crime or facing an interrogation. In the evening, they returned to their host families. By and large, they made a positive impression on our teachers, guides and hosts, who were impressed with the students’ increasing independence. Though their dialects weren’t always easy to understand, the experience of authentically using English to communicate with them will prove invaluable to the students’ language learning journey.
