German Culture and Cuisine: A Field Trip

On a cold, dark day before Christmas break, eighteen HHS German students and I took a field trip to a southern destination. After a couple of hours on a very cold bus, we were hustled into a warm Brownstone building in central Boston by Herr Goodall-Heising, our German teacher. The building, owned by the German government, houses the Goethe Institute, which is a program that the German government runs to promote the German language and culture. The Goethe Institute actually has over 149 locations around the globe. 

After a short introduction by our hosts at the Institute, we set off in small groups to explore the building and complete a treasure hunt that they had arranged for us to test our German skills and build up our knowledge of German history and culture.

After going around to each station in the scavenger hunt, we researched and answered questions while munching on delicious German Christmas cookies and other refreshments.

As the sun began to set, we left the Goethe Institute, climbed on the bus and headed to the Bavaria Restaurant in Hooksett, NH. The restaurant is owned and operated by first-generation German immigrants, and it was all ready for us when we arrived. We read through the menus and selected delicious dishes containing sausages, potato salad, späztle (a traditional German pasta), sauerkraut, breads, soups and much more. After thoroughly stuffing ourselves, we then indulged in one of the much-awaited deserts, apple strudel, after which we loaded the bus again to head for home.

Experiencing a non-traditional school day like that day made us all appreciate how much fun it can be to learn about a subject in a different way.