Spring Break 2013

London over spring break, anyone? Or perhaps you might be more interested in helping those folks affected by Hurricane Sandy over spring break? Planning and plotting is underway, and additional trips are being organized and determined. Please contact the International Education office at the Fond du Lac campus (E-176) or call us at 920-924-3163 for additional information about the opportunities being planned for spring break 2013.

Kohlrabi Kartoffel

After a day walking the riverfront in Sheboygan and enjoying the cool waves and breezes of Lake Michigan, Hagen treated us to this special recipe.

Ledgeview Nature Center

Whether trekking through the guided tour in the caves or hiking among the golden showers of the fall colors in Wisconsin, the German students soaked in the natural beauty and wonders of the Niagara escarpment, otherwise known in these parts as the "ledge".

Willkommen!!

Our honored guests from the Hessen region in Germany arrived Wednesday -- but not without delays. While Park Terrace was set with a BBQ and drinks for a 2:30 arrival, Customs lines in Chicago did not move quickly enough. Unfortunately, the group missed the flight from Chicago to Madison, but fortunately, Greyhound Bus Lines came to the rescue. The group arrived at Park Terrace at the college around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday. Understandably, everyone quickly ate. met their hosts, and went on to their final destinations for some rest after 24 hours of travel.

Thursday was the formal college reception to welcome the students and their instructors, Hagan and Corrina. Today, everyone will have a campus tour at 10 a.m. and then enjoy the Ford Family Farm for a hayride this evening. The dairy farm has several hundred dairy cows they milk and feed daily, and the students will get an introduction to the joys of farming (and smells!) this evening.

Tomorrow we head to Ledgeview Cave Tour in the morning, allowing the rest of the day for shopping and visiting. We plan to take Hagen, our guest, over to Sheboygan to enjoy dinner by that little pond called Lake Michigan.

We are delighted our guests arrived safely. Several hosts have commented on the delightful company and conversations. We look forward to the week ahead and teh continuation of this important exchange for our college.

Preparing for the arrival

We look forward to hosting our friends from Germany Sept. 26-Oct. 6. Students and instructors have host families ready to open their homes for their guests. I will post as we get the events underway!!

The Schwenker!!

While listening to NPR one morning last week, a particular broadcast segment perked my ears. The broadcaster was interviewing some German folks in Washington state, and they were talking about how they missed their backyard grills. They built their own Schwenkers and hosted Schwenker parties to recapture a summertime tradition of their own culture related to the backyard grilling party--but with a Schwenker, not a Big Green Egg or a firepit or the gas grill rolled out of the garage. But with a Schwenker. Read or listen to the NPR segment here: Schwenker.

Fortunately, for those students who traveled with us to Darmstadt in June, they experienced the Schwenker in its finest form in its native country. See the photos of culinary instructor Chef James handling the Schwenker earlier this year.

Please consider hosting some students from the Hessen region in a few weeks and then put your name on the list to join us in May/June 2013 to get your own experience of how another culture enjoys their own backyard traditions and summertime festivities.

Summer Planning

The facilitators of International Education are reviewing options and opportunities for the 2012-2013 academic year. At the end of September and early October, we will seek host families to welcome our German guests for a week to 10 days or so. We are also looking to possibly expand some travel opportunities for students this year--more on those possibilities at a later date. If we are successful in our endeavor, students may have an additional travel opportunity for the 2013-2014 academic year. The WTCS colleges are also signing on a new agreement with the technical college system in Ireland to open exchange programs with their colleges. Similar to our German exchange, the goal with the Irish exchange is to send students to campuses in Ireland and learn about their educational, commerce and technical systems while we host an Irish coalition during another time of the year. Otherwise, we are planning for Germany for May 2013, with a possible London trip for March 2013. Watch for the updates related to the international travel and exchange opportunities for students with Moraine Park!