Anna DeYoung – Calvin University Summer Program in Germany 2019

Elevator Speech

Wow! Germany was phenomenal. It was a summer filled with learning, about traveling, culture, German, and engineering. We took a 6-week engineering course, and I can now say that I will never look at bridges the same (“In trusses we trust”). We also took a German class, but the extent of my German knowledge is ordering food, saying please and thank you, and asking how to get somewhere, basically the essentials. We had a fantastic group, 37 students, and I did not know most of them to begin with. It was a lot of fun meeting them all. We stayed in Berlin, but were able to travel on weekends and then also the last week. We pretty much went everywhere in Germany that you could possibly want to go, like Heidelberg, Köln, Wittenberg, Neuschwanstein Castle, Munich, and more. I was also able to go to Paris (watch out for those pick-pocketers!), Salzburg in Austria, and Prague in Czech Republic. We did some hiking in southern Germany, which was amazing. Seeing more of God’s creation, especially in the mountains, is always fantastic. Germany is absolutely gorgeous. I had a blast and would highly recommend to anyone considering this trip.

Some Pics to Show What It Was Like

This picture was taken in Klobenz. Before we walked up to this statue, Professor De Rooy said, “There is a famous statue ahead. I would tell you the name, but I just can’t seem to put my thumb on it right now.”

It is very common in the United States to see a UPS truck. It was a little bit of a shock to see the UPS delivery man riding a bike with his packages behind him! This was not a huge culture difference, but still took us by surprise.

When you don’t reserve a seat on the train, be ready to sit on the ground! We played cards on the ground of the train to pass the time. We still had a lot of fun. Well… I might have had more fun because I lucked out with still getting a seat.

As engineers, we can make supports out of anything and we like to engineer all the time. At dinner, we had to balance 3 knives with 3 glasses of beer and have it support weight.

Reflections on Köln

I really enjoyed Köln. It was such a cool little city. It had a cool lock bridge and some fun restaurants. The most impressive part was the massive Köln Cathedral, which serves as the landmark for the small city. We were given directions based off of where we were relative to the cathedral. Continue reading “Reflections on Köln”

Reflections on Wittenberg

Wittenberg was an amazing experience! I enjoy learning about church history, and Martin Luther is definitely a main character in it. Continue reading “Reflections on Wittenberg”

Reflections on Sachsenhausen

I was eager to see the concentration camp, to see and stand at the site where so much history we have studied took place. It was an emotional experience. Continue reading “Reflections on Sachsenhausen”