At the end of October 2024, we did our annual excursion to Berlin and Weimar. Here are some insights on what our students did during the excursion.
Berlin Excursion Fall 2024
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Tübingen Cultural Trip
by Makayla McCloskey ’26 and Crosby Wilkin ’26
With a very generous donation from a Dickinson Alum, six Dickinson students were able to afford a weekend trip to Tübingen, Germany. While there, we were able explore the city and visit Professor McGaughey, a Dickinson Professor currently on sabbatical.
On Friday afternoon after we finally arrived, Professor McGaughey gave us a quick tour of her favorite places to grab a drink and helped get us oriented with the city. We ended our evening with Professor McGaughey at the Neckarmüller Biergarten, which sits right along the bank of the Neckar River.
We started our Saturday by taking the Regional Tram to Bebenhausen, a small village just outside of Tübingen, famous for its rich history and beautiful Klöster (monasteries). Naturally, we toured the Klöster and learned lots about the local history.
Afterwards, we met with Professor McGaughey and her Stepmother, to learn about the Tafel in Tübingen, a foodbank where young people often volunteer. Next, we moved onto a city tour. We hiked up a large hill to the University of Tübingen, where we got to look over the city and take in the sights of some of its most important and historically significant locations.
Sunday morning, we took one more turn about the city and explored the Hölderlin tower, a building famous for being the place of residence of famous poets, most notably Friedrich Hölderlin. Although the trip was short, with the help of Professor McGaughey we received an exclusive look into life in Tübingen and had a ton of fun in the process.
Internship Experience in Bremen
Former Dickinson-in-Bremen Vanderbilt Student Ben Wiggins ’24 talks about his internship experience in Bremen.
If you are also interested in doing an internship during your study-abroad time in Bremen, please contact us early on and we will support you with the process.
Volunteering with the Bremer Suppenengel
by Nina Grafton ’26
When studying abroad with the Dickinson in Bremen program, students are required to earn 15 to 18 hours of community service. While it can be challenging to balance this in addition to the other requirements of the program, it is important to serve the community you are living in for an extended period of time.
Starting in May, I volunteered weekly with the Bremer Suppenengel. The non-profit is a soup kitchen on wheels: after preparing the food, volunteers bike or drive to various distribution points around the city. The Suppenengel use donations from big grocery retailers and bakeries to make soup and sandwiches to distribute for free. Individuals in need can also take fresh fruit, vegetables, and other food items that aren’t used in the soup.
As a volunteer, my job was to make sandwiches using bread donated from local bakeries. While buttering bread and assembling cheese sandwiches isn’t the most exciting task, I was able to practice my German speaking and listening skills with the other kind volunteers. One of my favorite aspects of volunteering was seeing their familiar faces every Monday.
Nina and Crosby Take on Berlin
by Nina Grafton ’26
Thanks to a generous donation to our program, Crosby and I had the opportunity to travel to Berlin for a long weekend. Despite the very hot weather, we were able to see many of Berlin’s important buildings and museums. We did many of the “traditional” things to do when in Berlin, like visiting the East Side Gallery or the Brandenburger Tor. But we also visited places like the Schwules Museum and even climbed to the top of the Berliner Dom! Our trip was rich in history and culture, and we hope we can go back to explore Berlin again sometime in the future.
Volunteering with the Klimawerkstatt (Climate Workshop)
by Naomi Mathewson ’26
To complete my volunteer hours, I decided to work with the Klimawerkstatt in Neustadt, allowing me to effect change right in my neighborhood. I learned about the Klimawerkstatt through my class “Kultur- und klimapolitische Stadtteilarbeit” (roughly: “cultural and climate-political city cooperation”). In this class, we came up with creative artistic projects to benefit the local area, as well as the Lucie Garten- the garden across the street that has been built by the community to create more green space in the city. For my volunteer hours, I had the opportunity to do different kinds of volunteer activities. For example, I helped with a zine-making workshop and made my own zine. However, the majority of my hours were spent on Thursday evenings gardening in the Lucie Garden. A couple of my friends usually accompanied me, and it was a great bonding experience.
I would recommend visiting the events of the Klimawerkstatt and the Lucie Garten even if you aren’t volunteering! I loved going to the flea markets and other workshops!
Dickinson-in-Bremen Alumnus Liam visits us in Bremen
Mid-June, Dickinson-in-Bremen Alumnus Liam Pauli ’19 came to visit us in Bremen. Together with our current Dickinson-in-Bremen students, we had a delicious dinner as well as “Kaffee und Kuchen” (coffee and cake) with amazing cakes.
Our students and Liam shared their experiences and favorite moments and places in Bremen, and Liam also provided our students with valuable insights on how it feels returning home after a semester abroad, as well as on possibilities after graduation.
Thank you so much for visiting us, Liam, it was a pleasure to have you here and we are looking forward to your next visit!
Auf Wiedersehen – Time to say goodbye
It’s hard to believe, but unfortunately, our students’ time in Bremen is already over and it is time to say “goodbye”. We hope that you enjoyed your time here and wish you all the best for your future. And if you ever get homesick for Germany in the future, you are always welcome to visit us in Bremen!
Auf Wiedersehen und hoffentlich bis bald!
40th Anniversary – Anniversary Movie
Our anniversary movie presents a beautiful bag of memories with pictures, videos and impressions from student adventures over the years. It was first screened during the Alumni reception at the program anniversary celebrations on June 2nd.
40th Anniversary – Wednesday June 4
On Wednesday, President Jones and his wife Beth visited the Mercedes Plant in Bremen together with some of the current Dickinson-in-Bremen students.
Due to security measurements, we unfortunately weren’t able to take our phones inside of the plant to take any pictures or videos, but believe us, it was truly spectacular and mesmerizing.
In the evening, we concluded our anniversary celebrations with a wonderful dinner at Restaurant Ship Alexander von Humboldt with the current Dickinson-in-Germany students as well as many of our guests of honor.
from left to right: Beth Jones, President John E. Jones and current Dickinson-in-Germany student Delaney Bright ©Antonia Gabler
We would like to thank everyone who took part in our 40th Anniversary Program celebrations. We are so grateful for our Dickinson-in-Bremen community, friends and supporters all around the world.