A small group of students from Waterloo High School enjoyed a trip to Europe last month, spending 10 days traveling through Austria, Germany and Switzerland to expand their world view and sharpen their German skills.

WHS German teacher Julie Jennings led the group – which included eight students – on the trip running from July 13-23.

Jennings offered an overview of the trip, which began in the Austrian city of Vienna, serving as the students’ first exposure to a European city.

During their time in Vienna, the group experienced the central St. Stephen’s Cathedral as well as Hotel Sacher and Schönbrunn Palace.

Along with the many sights, Jennings also noted that students got to experience first-hand the coffee culture residents of Vienna are exceptionally passionate about.

From there, the group traveled to Salzburg, getting a tour of Fortress Hohensalzburg, a large castle at the top of a hill within the city.

She also pointed to the historic inner parts of the city and some of the locals known by many for being featured in “The Sound of Music.”

The next big stop for the group was Munich, Germany. This part of the trip was punctuated with a trip to Dachau Concentration Camp.

Jennings noted how this particular destination served as an especially poignant lesson in history for her students.

“I was very happy to see that was part of the tour that we were on,” Jennings said. “I wanted the kids to feel that. I wanted them to feel what it was like to be a visitor there, because I’ve been there a couple of times before. It’s a pretty powerful experience.”

While students were somewhat sobered by that visit, they were still able to see some of the other sights in Munich before heading off to Engelberg, a village known as a ski stop in Switzerland.

Their trip then took them up Mount Pilatus before their last day in Lucerne, with some of the bigger stops being the Lion Monument and Chapel Bridge.

Jennings emphasized how the trip featured a great many palaces, castles and cathedrals, each serving as a museum of sorts with their respective art, architecture and history.

She also discussed some of her goals for the trip, saying she wanted the tour to help inspire students to see even more of the world.

Jennings spoke about her own experience taking a trip abroad as a high schooler, noting how big the world is and how people can’t be afraid to go out and see more of it.

“I wanted to expose them to that because I went to Germany as a high school sophomore, and it pretty much was the beginning of everything that led to where I am now, indirectly,” Jennings said. “That first time going to Europe can be life changing for some kids. It can set them on a completely different path.”

As a German teacher, she also had hopes for what hearing native speakers could do for her students’ foreign language education.

She noted how students were encouraged to speak as much German themselves as they could throughout their trip.

“To actually hear the language that we’re learning being spoken by people who speak that every day,” Jennings said. “To have them hear that from the moment they get off the plane in the airport to our bus driver speaking to our tour manager to trying to order food.”

Jennings also discussed how the trip was a way for the students to really have a taste of independence. While they, of course, always had to stay in groups, the students hardly hesitated in going off on their own to experience wherever they were during their free time.

“I didn’t have kids glued to my side,” Jennings said. “I was wondering if that would happen, that they wouldn’t want to stray too far… The very first day we landed in Vienna, we were in the city and they took off. I think they really had a good time. I think they embraced it, they learned, they tried to use their German when they could.”

Several students who participated in the trip spoke about their experience, including WHS senior Chase Wagenknecht.

He discussed the many incredible mountain views the group was able to experience during their time in Europe as well as the cathedrals which he noted had a far different look and feel than any he’d seen in the U.S.

Wagenknecht also spoke about the visit to Dachau Concentration Camp, describing it as “shocking” to see in person – though he added it was a very good educational experience.

He also touched on the opportunity he and his peers got to really speak German, additionally discussing the cultural differences he encountered, from food – bread in particular – being far different and oftentimes healthier to every location having far more of an emphasis on walking to get around.

Maddison Taylor, also an incoming WHS senior, spoke about one of the palaces they visited, recalling how beautiful it was having never been lived-in. She particularly noted the tremendous number of candles.

Taylor further spoke about a visit to some salt mines in Salzburg and how their tour manager went very in-depth throughout the journey, sharing thorough histories behind each major site, the palaces especially.

She thoroughly refuted any stereotype people might have in their heads about Germans being rude, saying the folks she met were nice, though often quite direct.

Taylor also voiced her appreciation of the mountains she was able to experience.

“It was like a breath of fresh air, to be honest,” Taylor said. “The Midwest is a lot of cornfields, and the Alps in comparison is the most breathtaking thing I have probably ever laid eyes on. The culture is incredible as well.”

Another student to speak about the trip was Aiden Sanders, a junior.

He briefly discussed some of the cathedrals and castles the group was able to visit – namely St. Stephen’s Cathedral and Dürnstein Castle.

Sanders also spoke to the big takeaways he had from the trip.

“It definitely helped my German a lot, and it also helped me realize how much history there really is in the world,” Sanders said.

Jennings spoke hopefully about the results of the trip, voicing her desire to enjoy a similar traveling experience with students in the future.

She noted the positive response her students seemed to have throughout their time in Europe and reiterated the impact that a trip like this can have for them.

“Exposing kids to this, I think it helps them become better global citizens, a little more understanding of other cultures and that there are differences, but it’s so cool to learn about them,” Jennings said. “You can get so much from a different culture… and in turn they learn from us.”