The Benet foreign language department offers study in four classical and world languages. While the large majority of students opt to take Spanish, French, or Latin, a select group of about twenty students per grade choose to take German. The small size of the academic participants in the language, however, did not diminish the pool of interest in the class summer trip. The ten day excursion took fifteen students and several chaperones, including German teacher, Mrs. Lynette Sterner, through four European countries.

The first stop of the trip was Heidelberg, Germany. The city is home to the majestic Heidelberg Castle and the Black Forest and is just three hours away from Rhine Falls of Switzerland. Following Heidelberg, the company traveled to Lucerne, Switzerland, to traverse up the seven thousand-feet-tall Mount Pilatus and explore the city. The next day, on the way to the city of Innsbruck in Austria, the group made a quick stop in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. Innsbruck’s attractions include the Hofkirche and the Renaissance mausoleum of Emperor Maximilian. Before departing to Munich, the trip stopped at the castle of Neuschwanstein out in the German countryside. This drive also took them through the Alps of southern Germany.

Senior Sarah O’Connor said her favorite part was driving through a valley in the Alps. “It was eerie with the mountains looming on either side. It was just breathtaking,” O’Connor said. The final three days of the trip were spent in Munich, where the tour participated in a biking tour and sightseeing at the Marienplatz and BMW world. “The culture in Munich just screamed out throughout the whole city,” said O’Connor. “All the little shops and markets were just a novelty, and those made it a beautiful scene.” On the final day, each group member had the option to travel to the Dachau Concentration Camp Memorial in Poland. The gravity of the visit was somber yet moving.

The language department rotates the annual summer trip through each language every four years, so it will be 2022 before the next Germany trip. This class of German students had an extremely memorable and wide-ranging trip that is sure enough to secure a wonderful reputation for future generations who may consider attending.