A Pre Goodbye!

22.01.2014                                                                                                                                  Thursday

A Pre Goodbye!

“Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.” 

The 22nd of this month was exciting and upsetting at the same time. There were just twenty four hours left, to say goodbye to those very people who had now become more than just "foreigners". They had now become a part of our everyday lives and saying goodbye would be the hardest thing ever.

Since this entire trip was indeed about the project on the last day the various groups set up their charts and projects and presented them to the heads of the Nasr faculty, divulging into the various aspects of life in the year 2040 as well as today.

After this and a lot of group pictures (according to some we took an average of 2 group pictures per day)  the Germans said goodbye to Nasr. We then left to get some ice cream and well a last hurrah and finally dispersed to our respective homes for last minute packing, forgetting, remembering and basic chaos.

Not only was this a hallmark in the entire trip as it was the last and final working day but it was also an important day for all of us realised exactly how close we had gotten over the past few days.

“How did it get so late so soon?” 
― Dr. Seuss

                                                                      Mika: Almost every 5th person is an Indian! #TrueStory


















Ramya explaining how cinema influences Indian Culture.

A final group picture!

Robert "The Big Guy" Hasselgruber with the "Tiny Tots".

Ramya: Hey! Who ate all my ice cream?! 

TSCHÜSS!

TSCHÜSS!

 23rd January, 2015

Friday

It was an early beginning for all of us. We dragged our tired and heavy-hearted selves out of bed at 4:30am and got ready to go to the airport. My buddy Lena and I feasted on the hot and delicious puris that were made for breakfast at home. Then we drove off to the airport.

At the airport, Lena and I met up with the rest of the group. Large suitcases and heavy bags surrounded us. The Indians made an ingenious plan of stealing the passports of our buddies just to keep them back with us. Sadly, the plan epically failed.

We spoke our last words and laughed together for the last time in India, as the clock soon struck 7:30am and it was time for our beloved buddies to walk into the airport, which was guarded my the bulky and scary looking men in khaki (police, guards) .

We gave each other the tightest hugs possible by mankind, as our eyes filled with tears. Goodbyes are always the hardest part! We students managed to block the entire entrance of the international terminal in the process. As each of the German students and teachers passed the guard to enter the terminal, the loudest goodbye yells came from us Indians! Not one German did we miss. We will miss them ALL!

But, it's not the end yet! After a long…long three months wait, we must meet them again in Germany and rejoice! Each of us are waiting for that moment eagerly. Till then, it's a goodbye from us. TSCHÜSS!

Ramyatara Mullapudi.

                            MARIE AND CLARA SAY GOODBYE, WHILE JONAS FAILS TO HOLD

                                                                        BACK HIS TEARS!

                                    NAINA: ALREADYY???! NOO, THEY CAN’T LEAVE SO SOON!

                                                  

  HUGS!    

                                               

                                            HUGSS!!!


                                           

AND MORE HUGSS!!!!!!

Spirited Away!!...

20th January 2015                                                                                                                 Tuesday

   Instead of starting leisurely we began on an energetic note ! We played dog and the bone, basketball and then Kho-kho, which our buddies found very fascinating. As Bishop sir introduced these new games to them, they took them up with good spirit and displayed their amazing sports skills.
  Then Angie ma'am gave a presentation on Demography which was an eye opener as it emphasised that "the future lay in our hands". After a scrumptious lunch at school (where our buddies had the famous Hyderabadi biryani and Khubani ka meetha), we did block printing. Each of us designed a shawl and soon the fashion designing lab was soon filled with vibrant colours. All of students proved to be very creative and full of ideas.  At about four , all of us , stuffed in cars went to Vrishali'a house to celebrate Louisa's sixteenth birthday . We also practiced for the dance for the farewell party there. As the Germans swayed elegantly to their music, the Indians moved to the frisky desi beats. Then all of us dispersed to our own houses . It was a lovely but hectic due to the physical activities. And as usual the day ended with a smile but also with a sigh as to gulp the fact that there were just two days left for our friends to leave.

Jonas and Louisa working on their masterpiece!!

The eye opener!

Run for your lives!!!- kho kho

The spectators ..

EXPLORING THE CULTURE!!

The 19th of January started with Ms.Faiza Hasan explaining about the ethnic art. She told us about the Madhubani paintings, Warli paintings, and tolu bommalata. She further gave us a presentation on it which was loved by all of us, truly.   We then  had to do an activity where we had to make either a warli painting or a madhubani painting on a piece of paper.  That activity was filled with lots of fun and everyone did it with enthusiasm . Next,We left for Chowmahalla palace. The lunch was served to us in the bus itself. 

Having reached Chowmahalla Palace or Chowmahallat (4 Palaces), which is a palace of the Nizams of Hyderabad state, we all went across the place and every bit of the palace fascinated each one of us. From the courtyard, Photo gallery, clothes worn by the king and queen, roof top, the antique furniture, to the clock tower was beautiful. After  viewing the gorgeous palace we went back to the school by the bus. After reaching the school our teachers gave us the instructions for the next day and everybody dispersed looking forward to the coming days..  

Written by,

Vrishali Bashetty

The relaxing photoshoot day!!

18th January, 2015.                                                                                    Sunday

After a tiring (but fun filled) trip to Srisailam, today, the 18^th of January was a day when everyone slept in for a long time and woke up in the afternoon!! As it was a holiday, many of us just lazed around while some of us went out to places like the Salarjung museum and the zoological park. Then at four in the evening, all of us met at Tanya Malhotra’s  home and did an incredible photo shoot for the new ‘rent-a-dress’  store called “Wrapd” started by Tanya’s mother Mrs. Ritu Malhotra. The photo shoot was totally enjoyable, amusing and fun!! All of us dressed up in traditional, dazzling and bewitching clothes which we didn’t feel like removing! (But we had to anyway). Beautiful snaps of all Indians and Germans were taken after which we changed our clothes and ate!!  In the end we cut a cake for the birthday of three students- Louisa, Mika and Niralasa, after which we relaxed for some time and left for our respective homes.

All beautifully dressed up! 

The really happy birthdays!!
Maleeha Fatima
XI B
Nasr School

AN UNFORGETTABLE DAY The 17th of JANUARY

After a very long and a satisfying day at the Srisailam Dam, all of us were looking forward to an equally exciting day. We got up at 6 o' clock in the morning and woke up to the refreshing rays if the sun. We got ready by 6:30 for the trek. But before we started the trek, we energized ourselves by a lovely hot cup of tea or coffee. Then we had started our trek  by 7 o' clock  and  reached a lovely valley. The scenery was just unbelievable, pristine, untouched by the greedy hands of the humans. It was a sight to behold. Then after the trek we had our breakfast. We had poori alu for breakfast and later went to the hotel to freshen up and  we checked out of the hotel as well. After checking out, all of us went to Malaletheertham Waterfalls. It was a really long bus ride from the hotel. So before splashing into the icy cold water, we first filled our stomachs with some hot and tasty food. After the sumptuous food, we went down almost around 380 odd steps to reach the waterfall. But once we went under the waterfall, it was difficult to get out from there. The water was so pure and crystal clear. It was just Amazing. After that, we started our journey towards Hyderabad, we went through the Nagarjunasagar Srisailam Tiger Reserve for the last time, and we were one of the lucky people who could spot around 2 spotted deer. The bus journey was just unforgettable, we had so much of fun, we played dumb charades, played some pick up lines, and danced through the whole journey. On our way we stopped for some snacks, and had hot 'mirchi bhajji' and 'alu pakoda' with hot tea. It was really needed. Then though none of us wanted to get back to Hyderabad, we had to bid goodbye to Srisailam.Finally we reached Hyderabad at 11 o' clock in the night.It was indeed an unforgettable day. 

 The Sunrise at Srisailam 

Malaletheertham Waterfalls 

Written by Tanya Malhotra 

Kite Flying!

On the 14^th of January we had a holiday and we woke up pretty late. Most of us went to our friends house for breakfast whereas some of us decided to stay home and laze. At 2 pm we met at Secunderabad club for kite flying and we had a good time of bonding with our buddies. 

We then went to our friends house to spend some time with each other.

Group picture in our friend’s house.

         The Calm Before The Storm

15^th of January, a day when all of us got a chance to sleep late since the Germans had arrived.

Some of us started the day with a lazy morning. Whereas the others got up early as they had to perform Puja (religious prayer).Special dishes were made for the festival at home. It was a holiday so all of us got a chance to do what we want. So there was no particular plan or schedule or itinerary, we just went with the flow. Some of us went shopping to get our Buddies Indian clothes. Some of us baked cakes. As today is Sankranthi (the festival of Kites) most of us flew kites. After this some of us met up at a friend’s place where we danced, played and ate. As we have to wake up really early tomorrow we all went to sleep early.

I am eagerly waiting for tomorrow as it is a hectic day with an exiting schedule, and i am hoping to see at least one tiger at the tiger reserve.

         Thank you.

Niralasa Rao

11C

Food food and more food!!!

13.01.2015

Our day started off with a presentation on what we love most- food. We learnt about the genetic modification of food and the process of modification. The presentation and pictures of the virtual food left us wanting real food and luckily enough we had lunch right after that.

After lunch we put our dancing shoes on and learnt garba and bhangra the folk dances of the states of Gujarat and Punjab respectively. All our buddies loved it! Later, we boarded the bus and went on toward Goethe Zentrum, where we played a number of games like kabaddi and tag of war. We made rangolis which is a pattern drawn with colored powder and flew kites- well, we tried.

The long day left us tired and a few of us went right home from there while the rest went to Tanya's house to unwind. We just relaxed there, listening to music, taking pictures (selfie time!), watching television and eating pizza. After much discussion, we finally laid out the next day's plans before going our separate ways home.

Pranathi Karuturi

Nasr School

Class 11 B

A better way of living your life!

12.01.15                                                                                                                                      Monday

  

It was a wonderful morning. I was really excited as we had the opportunity to go and get Ayurveda treatments! We went to Addlife, where we all first did yoga and then got massages done! It was all extremely interesting. The yoga session was for an hour. We did various aasanas and learned the Surya Namaskar too. After the yoga session we all went for the massage. They massaged our bodies with warm oil, and then we went to the stem room for about 5 minutes. Everyone had an interesting reaction, while some liked it the others were a bit too shy and so felt it was a bit weird.  I felt so warm and comfortable. Then we had a very nutritious lunch. Our Yoga teacher made sure that the ingredients of the balanced diet were spot on! After that we went for a tour around the place. 

Then we had a presentation on Ayurveda at the Auditorium of Indo-American Cancer Institute. There were four lectures in total. The first one was on Ayurveda which means the “Science of life”. We also learned a lot of home remedies which was really helpful. The second one was about Magneto therapy. The third one was Acupuncture. It was awesome! Most of the students tried it. It looked a bit scary at first glance but it wasn’t painful at all! The last one was on Yoga and Naturopathy. After that we had the day to ourselves. Aparajita, Aaron, Pranitha, Marie, Jonas (thope mama) and I went to Mc Donald’s and then took them to a supermarket. We then retired for the day! 

                                                  

                                                            The Magneto Therapy 

                                                       

 Acupuncture

-Tanya Mehta
Nasr School
XI C

                                                                        

The fun filled Sunday- 11.01.2015

Our third day together was overwhelming .

It was filled with fun, food and knowledge.

Our morning started on a good note as we all first visited a gurudwara (religious worship place of punjabi’s and Sikhs) along with germans and teachers .

We showed around the place to the Germans  and explained to them our norms and traditions of the Punjabi culture .

Then we were guided by our teachers to serve food at the gurudwara itself.  Which is known as ‘langar’ in India. It’s when all the people who visit the worship place irrespective of caste or community sit together, eat and serve food .

After the lovely visit to the gurudwara, we all went to “Sports bar” where we first  fed ourselves with some food at Mc Donalds, played the game of laser tag and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Later, some of us went to Starbucks Coffee shop where we had  snacks and coffee.

And, returned to our respective houses along with our buddies only looking forward to the coming days and its fun ,yet to come along our paths in the near future..
Thank you,

Gehna Maheshwari,
class-XI D . 

The Third Day! 10.1.2015

Our third day together started on a cold note. We woke up to extremely cold weather, but still, enthusiastic spirits. After breakfast, we headed to the nearby village. On returning from the village, we interacted with the village sarpanch, who explained to us about the various problems regarding education, water and cleanliness in the village. We were then divided into two groups and played two games. One was a balancing game. and the other one was all about team work and coordination, and they were followed by lunch.

 After a much awaited meal, we then discussed our experience in Greenfields. We were joined by our parents for tea, and soon departed with them, everyone going their separate ways. The busy day came to an end with everyone retiring for the night, eagerly looking forward to the activities in the next few days.
-Ananya Reddy
Class XI-C 

Second Day. 9.1.2015

The ninth of January was a very eventful day for all of us. We were all very excited as we were going to go to Greenfields, a wonderful camping site owned by our counsellor Mrs. Zanobia. We had to report to school by nine in the morning. Around ten o' clock, Mr. Srinivas, a green architect, gave us a very interesting presentation on the importance of water in architecture and the benefits of sustainable architecture. We( Indian student and her respective German buddy) were then given a task to envisage a plan for a city in 2040. This activity was very thought provoking...
     Around 12:30 we left the school premises for a visit to the Golconda fort. It was a very fascinating visit. Our tour guide was so enthusiastic that he had all our attention grabbed by his words. We also clicked many pictures in this 400 year old historical fort. By 3:50 we were done with our visit and started towards Greenfields.

    After reaching greenfields, we first put our bags in the tents and the places where we were supposed to sleep. Then we went to a government school just beside the farm house. It was an amazing experience to interact with the school children.
   Then we had a look around the farm house and had a group activity. The biggest challenge of the day was when we were divided into four groups to prepare our own dinner! Though the recipe and instructions were given, it took us two hours to finish making the dinner. The end product was totally worth waiting for.
    Before going to sleep, we had a bonfire and we also danced around it. In the end, it was a very long but equally fun-filled day.
-Pranitha Goel
Class XI -A


                                    

The First Day!

08.01.2015                                                                                                                                                                 Thursday

8^th Jan, 2015.The first day at school. We all met up in school at around 8:20. Then at 8:30 we had the Welcome Assembly. The Assembly started with a few exercises, a prayer and the news reading, which is usually done in our school assembly. After this the students of the last year batch spoke few words about the exchange programme and how they miss it. They also sang songs, then each of us introduced ourselves and our buddies, and the German teachers spoke a few words. We ended the assembly with both the Indian and German national anthem.

We were then given some time for us to get to know each other and talk to them. We then taught each other dance steps.

 At 11am, Mrs. Zenobia started an Initiation Activity with small exercises. In the first exercise we spoke to our buddies friends, about hobbies and our interests. After which we were divided into 3 groups and each of us taught each other Hindi and German. We were all given a strip of paper onto which we had to write our name, favourite motto, what we value and three things that describe us.

At around 1:30, we were served lunch. The food was yummy. Though many of the Germans found the food spicy they still enjoyed it.

Mrs.Komal then introduced the project to us and divided us into six groups. After she had finished explaining it we all dispersed and left for our respective homes.

After reaching home some of us left for Shilparamam which is the arts, crafts and cultural village in Hyderabad, where some of them put Mehendi, whereas the other went out for ice-cream and met at other friend’s house. Today being our first day was interesting and I am looking forward to tomorrow as we are going to Green Fields for the night. Thank you.

-Narne Veda Samyuktha

XI C