On June 26, senior Mira Sparacino boarded a plane in Pittsburgh—a plane that would allow her to embark on a journey across the Atlantic where she would get to tour castles, view churches and cathedrals, visit the city that houses the Reichstag building and try Schnitzel and Leberkäse for the first time.

“My trip over the summer was through a foreign exchange program called the Friendship Connection. For three weeks during the summer, I lived in a German household and attended a German school. While I was there, I went to so many different places. I went to Berlin and Munich. I went to Bruckberg,” Sparacino said. “There were so many things that I saw and so many experiences that were completely unforgettable.”

The Dawn of the Adventure

Sparacino’s decision to travel to Europe was made in her junior year when three German exchange students traveled to the United States to experience American culture: Till Ney, Anna Bachmann and Aurinia Breinlich. Sparacino was partnered with Breinlich during the trio’s three-week stay in Altoona, organized in part by the foreign exchange program.

“I found out about the Friendship Connection by my teacher at the time, Frau Mitchell. She has been working with them for a really long time and thankfully, Covid restrictions were lifted, so we were able to travel again,” Sparacino said. “At first, you had two choices. You could either just host a German student, or you could choose to both host a German student and then go to Germany. I chose to both host and go to Germany because I didn’t know if I’d ever get that experience again.”

The German exchange students left Altoona on April 17, but Sparacino would soon see Breinlich again—this time, in Germany.

The day before her transatlantic flight, Sparacino was anxious because she was unsure how the host family would react to her presence.

“I was nervous, especially because I hadn’t really met the family that I was staying with. I knew the girl I was staying with, her name is Auri, because I had met her and she lived in my house for three weeks, but I hadn’t really met the rest of her family. I was a little nervous to see how they would be and how they would react, but they were very lovely people,” Sparacino said. “I was also nervous about flying over the ocean for so long—I have flown before but not nine hours. So that was a little stressful. But I looked at the positive side of things. I was like, ‘this will be one of the best experiences of my life. I know I’m nervous now, but I just have to get through it all.’”

Turbulent Flights

Sparacino’s first flight was scheduled for June 26 from Pittsburgh to Atlanta, where she met the rest of the Friendship Connection students.

“My first flight was out of Pittsburgh, and that was entirely me alone. Then, I flew into Atlanta and there were the rest of the students who were flying with the Friendship Connection. So there were about 30 of us on the flight from Atlanta to Frankfurt,” Sparacino said.

On the flight to Germany, the Friendship Connection students encountered several obstacles.

“My flight from Atlanta to Frankfurt was hectic to say the least. The first plane we were on, the generator was broken. So we all had to [get off]. The flight was then delayed because they had to switch out the plane. We were supposed to be in the air by about 7 p.m. We did not get on to the next plane until 10 p.m. We didn’t take off until about 10:30 p.m. so it was a lot of waiting and it was really frustrating,” Sparacino said. “And then I sat next to a little fussy baby who did not want to sleep. There was a lot to deal with, and I desperately wanted to go to sleep. But I got through it and I didn’t yell at anyone. I just kept my composure as best as I could in that situation.”

A ‘Magical’ Experience

Sparacino arrived in Germany on June 27 and stayed for three weeks.

“I stayed in a city called Fulda. It is about an hour outside of Frankfurt. It was a very nice city. It had a lot of culture and history that I had never heard of before, so that was cool to see,” Sparacino said. “It was also interesting to see how a city probably about as big as our own is similar but also completely different in a different country.”

After her first day of living in Fulda, Sparacino had established a first impression of the German environment.

“I kind of felt like a fish out of water because everything was similar and yet so different. I was jet-lagged. I had to adjust to looking outside and, to me, my brain thought it was about 4 p.m., but it was actually about 10 p.m. I’d stare out the window and it was completely dark; I didn’t feel like I should be going to bed, so that was weird,” Sparacino said. “It was a very unique experience, and I think that was something fun, especially waking up. I remember staring at the sun and thinking it feels like midnight, but the sun is rising. It was really interesting.”

Sparacino gradually became accustomed to the German lifestyle and language. 

“I would say the environment was really interesting because it was similar but also not quite how it is in the U.S. It took me about a week to get used to everything, and to get used to the fact that people around me were speaking a completely different language. Once that first week was through, I was kind of used to it, and I was able to step out of my comfort zone a little and interact with more people,” Sparacino said.

Throughout her stay in the Breinlich household, Sparacino was exposed to German customs and the German language.

“English [was spoken] mostly to make sure I understood what was happening, but [the Breinlichs] would often have conversations in German around me so I was still actively learning German,” Sparacino said. “What I found was, after the three weeks, I knew more German than I had before, which I thought was really cool because I wasn’t sitting there looking at the definition of each word. I was suddenly learning what it meant, which was very interesting, but also a little terrifying at the same time.”

During her visit, Sparacino attended the Marienschule in Fulda, an all-girls school, which is a combined middle and high school. Her interactions with the students resulted in some surprising discoveries.

“I found a lot of similarities in the students I interacted with. A lot of the people I talked to had the same interests that you’ll find people here having. I met people who were into Marvel and Star Wars and popular TV shows here,” Sparacino said. “I thought that was interesting that even though I was across an ocean, everyone still liked the same things.”

While in Germany, Sparacino tried many new things—including some samples of traditional German cuisine.

“I had to step out of my comfort zone. I’m a bit of a picky eater usually. But I figured, hey, I’m in Germany, I might as well try some food. I had a lot of schnitzel, which is like the German equivalent of a cheeseburger. You could get it anywhere,” Sparacino said. “My least favorite thing that I tried was Leberkäse. It’s like meat with an egg on it, and they just did not work quite well together with me. But I’m so glad that I tried it because I never would have done it here.”

In addition to trying new things, Sparacino viewed sights and landmarks that one wouldn’t be able to experience in the U.S.

“I saw so much while I was [in Germany]. I went to the Reichstag in Berlin. I saw so much of Berlin; I saw the Berlin Wall. I went into so many castles. Actually, the city I was staying in had its own castle. I went in there and that was really cool. I love castles, and we don’t have any [in the U.S.], which is such a shame. I saw a lot of beautiful churches and cathedrals too,” Sparacino said.

Among all of the things she experienced, Sparacino’s favorite part of the trip was seeing Berlin.

“When I was in Berlin, there was a bicycle tournament happening. That was really cool to see. There were people from all over Europe, competing in this bicycle tournament. I also saw things in Berlin that I just thought were so beautiful. Even with all the things that I saw, Berlin is one of the most gorgeous cities, and I have really fond memories of being there. I’m so glad I got to go,” Sparacino said.

The Sunset of the Adventure

Sparacino’s trip came to a close on July 17, when she flew back to Atlanta with the other exchange students.

When thinking of Germany, Sparacino recalls elements that contrast to the U.S. environment.

“I think of how clean it was. Even though people were driving, there wasn’t all that exhaust. It felt a lot cleaner to me. And people seemed a little more friendly, I would say. I felt like more people interacted with me there than would typically interact with me here,” Sparacino said.

Sparacino is grateful that she accepted the opportunity to host a German exchange student in March.

“Everyone should take the opportunity to do things that they would never have thought to do before. I would have never thought that in my 11th grade year I would decide to travel to Germany and live there and sit in a German school,” Sparacino said. “I am so glad that I did because I have become a more well-rounded person, and I’ve learned so much about myself. If you’re ever thinking there’s something that sounds interesting, but you’re not sure you feel comfortable with it, I say you should try it because you might find out that it’s the best thing you’ve ever done.”