Day 21: June 27

Today was definitely the hardest day of the entire trip, the day we left to go back to America. We had to be at the Gymnasium at 7 in the morning to catch our 7:15 bus that would take us to the airport. I made sure I woke up at 5:45 in the morning, just so I could be absolutely sure I had everything packed and ready to go. Unfortunately, this small time window means we didn’t have very much time to say goodbye.

A few people from our group were so upset, they were crying. Dara and Hannah were very sad to have to leave. They had very close relationships with their host families and their partners. One thing that really touched them is that they were given matching yellow lunch boxes by their host families, which made them extremely emotional every time they saw them in their backpacks. Other people weren’t so sad, but still felt like they would miss their host families, like Hunter, who said leaving was bittersweet. I was extremely saddened that I had to leave Felix and his friends, but I reminded myself that this would not be the last time we were together.

The planes were quite a train wreck to get on. We were barely on time for our first plane because all of our luggage was being flagged for the amount of food (chocolate) we had packed. Luckily though, that flight was delayed, so we made it in plenty of time. Our second flight was also a struggle, as we had to go through a long line to have our passports checked. We also had to have all our luggage moved and checked again. Thankfully, that flight was also delayed quite a bit as well, so we made it to our flight just on time. The plane took a while to lift off, but when we did, we all felt much more relaxed and guaranteed that we were getting home.

When we finally landed, everyone was extremely antsy to get our things and leave to go home. Everyone pretty much immediately left, which I understand, because when I finally got home, I felt so relaxed, even though I was still sad about leaving Germany behind. That night, I fell asleep at 10 PM because I was so exhausted! Overall, it was upsetting to have to leave, but it’s okay, because I know all of the Americans and Germans will reconnect one day.

-Victor