Traveling. Everybody wants to have the chance to do it. Whether a child or an adult, we all want to explore and discover. In the Global Studies and World Languages Academy in Tallwood, students—and even teachers—get that chance to explore and discover.

Recently, nine students from Tallwood and the German teacher, Julie Davis, had the fortunate chance to travel to Germany. They left on the 30^th of September and came back on the 10^th of October. In total, the trip lasted 11 days, but students had 9 days to explore. They flew from Norfolk to Atlanta, then to Stuttgart, Germany. During their whole trip they didn’t just get a chance to experience the German lifestyle but got to explore the Mercedes Benz Museum, Porsche Museum, Dachau, a chocolate factory, and other cities like Munich, and Esslingen. The Tallwood students also gave presentations about Virginia Beach, the environment, culture, and education to German students.

Upon being asked about the benefits of traveling, Ms. Davis highlights, “Making friendships, relationships even, gain cultural awareness, and see from different perspectives.” Wherever you travel to, you will experience those benefits. Davis enjoyed herself as much as the students did, but when asked her favorite part of the whole trip, her response was, “students enjoying their time.”

German delegate Kimberly Molina said of the trip, “There are words to explain (the trip), but I just can’t figure out which to use” said Molina, when asked about her overall experience. The students all enjoyed their time. From simply being at their host’s house to exploring the city, each single event was special and amazing to them.

“You got enlightened by the Germans, like you got submerged in the culture itself” said Morgan Magner, when asked about her overall experience. From being around their host student, experiencing German school life, and the family of the hosts, the students were surrounded by the culture. Nobody was complaining, they all enjoyed it and were very fond of it.

“It was amazing.. the sceneries were absolutely beautiful, the people were absolutely amazing…the food was really awesome,” said Bret Dawson, when asked about his overall experience. As someone who has traveled to Germany before, Dawson was still amazed nonetheless.

“Lots of crying…lots of hugging…lots of emotions,” said Magner, when asked about leaving Germany and coming back to the U.S.

“It kind of sucked…like it was coming back to reality, and facing your problems again,” said Dawson when asked about his leaving experience. To the travelers it was like a break from the daily realities of school and American life.

From tired flights, to overjoyed teenagers, overall the trip seemed magnificent. In the end, some crying occurred, but bonds were made, memories will be forever remembered. Traveling, through very emotional, especially towards the end, is a fun experience and will stay with you for your whole life.