Phase 2, May 12th - 30th: DAY 1

The Second Phase of the Indo-German Student Exchange begins on the 12th of May. The project on renewable resources which was started by the Indian and German students in Hyderabad during January, will now continue in Germany. 

The countdown has begun. Each of us is definitely counting each second to our departure from Hyderabad. Packing clothes, pulling out a few unnecessary things, last minute shopping, beautifying and sooo much more keeps us all busy today.
Somewhere in the middle of all this, we wonder what project we will be working on soon, whether we'll be able to work on them with ease, whether the presentation will impress the teachers, whether our efforts will gain applause. But more than all this we're definitely thinking about our host families, the fun times planned for us and most importantly, how we are going to make the MOST of the eighteen days lying ahead (both project-wise and also enjoyment-wise)

With mixed feelings of excitement , nervousness, sleeplessness and much more, we wait for the sun to rise to the new day which takes us all the way to Germany. :)

Ananya

DAY 17

Day 17. The day of their departure.  I cannot remember a moment sadder than when they left us behind, walking past the security check point at the airport.

  My partner and I woke up at 5 a.m and left by 6 for the airport, even though we had been up very late the previous night.  She had been very enthusiastic about the henna tattoo, commonly known here as mehendi, so we had stayed up late while I applied mehendi to her hands. 

We were the earliest to arrive but soon enough, everyone was there.  Saying their goodbyes, hugging each other for the last time and giving each other small gifts to remember them always.  Tears were a major part of the last farewell and just as fast as the seventeen days had gone, all the German students and teachers left. 

What I realized later was that we were going to meet them in Germany just after 3 and a half months and this was not goodbye forever, but our return to India would be much more difficult and sad than this one.  But just like Aashima said at the farewell dinner, "Goodbyes are not forever, goodbyes are not the end.  They only mean we'll miss you, until we meet again." :)

DAY 16

23rd was the day we were to present our projects.  We had worked on the projects long and hard.  Early that morning, we arrived at school to give little finishing touches to our presentations.  Then at 11 a.m, we were told to assemble in the Art room.  We sat there, excited and nervous at the same time, as the parents arrived one by one.  Then the presentations began.  Each better than the previous one, putting forward their point in their own way.  Praises were received from the teachers and the parents.  The parents left after, and we had lunch, followed by a feedback session.  We were to write a general report about the entire program and also our opinions on teamwork and our peers.
  Soon came the time for us to depart, and seeing that that was to be our last day together in school, most of us broke into tears.  Somehow, we controlled ourselves tpwards the end and left.
  Some of us went shopping with our partners, while some wanted to just rest at home and spend some quality time before they were gone for good.  I took my partner to Secunderabad for some street shopping..
  That evening, Nasr organized a farewell dinner, where we, our German partners and our families were invited.  It was unanimously agreed that the theme would be Indian, so everyone was dressed in the most traditional clothes they had, with the boys in kurtas and the girls in salwars or sarees.  Mr. Bruhn and Miss. Hutmacher, two of the German teachers spoke about how they had enjoyed their experience in India.  Then a few students from Germany came forward and spoke about their time spent here too.  One of them, Susanne, spoke a few lines in Hindi, thanking us all for the wonderful time that they all had in India.  After dinner came the goodbyes again, and soon we were all on our way home to pack and prepare for their departure the next day.

DAY 15

On the 22nd, our day started at 9:00 as usual.  For the first time, every one was on time, as it was our last day to finalize the work on our projects.  We did not have a brief introduction about the day.  We just threw ourselves into the ocean of project work we had left, and went on with it for quite a long time.  We had started our projects at 9:30 and were good to go by 1:30.  In no time we were called by our teachers for lunch, after which we had an official group picture which included even our Principal, Mrs. Madhubala Kapoor. After the group picture, all of us rushed back into the computer lab as it was time for us to present our projects to our teachers. We got feedback from our teachers about how to improvise on our projects for the big day the next day.  Some of us left to surprise Moritz with a birthday party that had been planned for him, whereas the others went into the city for some last-minute shopping their buddies wanted to do.
Ritika Anem

DAY 14

On the 21st, we started an hour earlier than usual, because we had a guest, Mr. Gautham Reddy, the head of RAMKY Industries, who came to address us. He shared with us a lot of valuable information about waste management and waste recycling.  He informed us about how our city alone produces about 4000 tons of waste EVERYDAY.

His speech was very informative, and  through it, he informed us about the importance of segregation of waste. Through his speech he made it possible for us to think on a broader spectrum about how if we produce more waste and do not segregate it, we would have to face the consequences.  He had to leave early for Delhi, so his speech was short and to the point.  We wished it was longer as we wanted to talk in more detail about the problems being faced by the people due to production of so much waste.

After his speech, we got some time to work on our projects after which we were off to the Sewage plant in Necklace Road . This sewage plant did smell terrible, but it was interesting to find out how the dirty water is treated to make pure water that is sent to the Hussain Sagar Lake. This water contributes greatly as it helps purify the lake bit by bit.

We had an amazing guide who explained to us the three different steps of clearing the water and also explained to us the Sewage Plant's objective  to produce an environmentally safe fluid waste stream (or treated effluent) and a solid waste (or treated sludge) suitable for disposal or reuse (usually as farm fertilizer). Using advanced technology, it is now possible to re-use sewage effluent for drinking water. 

After we returned to school, all of us decided that it was time we got serious and started doing our project work, so after that we worked on them until 3 o' clock, after which we left for home. 

DAY 13

Day thirteen was a free day for our buddies to interact with their host families. Many spent their morning sightseeing or shopping. It was a combination of visits to the city’s magnificent monuments, the lively markets, cultural centres, and so on.

  The most exciting part of the day however, was the party in the evening. It was one of our favourite exchange student, Susie’s, birthday.  Her buddy had organized a surprise party for her for which we all gathered at her house.

  Finally, Susie arrived, all the planning paid off, and she couldn't contain her excitement. We feasted, danced and even taught our buddies some ‘desi moves’. By the end of the day they were all singing ‘chamak challo’!

DAY 12

19th January was spent with the host families.  It  was a day post our return from the Srisailam forest reserve, so we all slept in a little late, exhausted from all the tiring activities along with lack of sleep. Everybody had a wonderful day in the city with their host families while sight seeing, shopping, etc.

Each family chose to take their guest to see the city's monumental sites, shopping at exhibitions or just regular malls according to their own interests. Our buddies were thrilled to see the historical monuments of Golconda Fort, Charminar and the Salarjung Museum of the Nizams of Hyderabad. They appreciated the ancient architectural style of the monuments. They were excited about shopping at local markets and in this way learnt about the daily life of a Hyderabadi. They tried interacting with the local vendors and artisans.  Last but not the least, they were happy to enjoy the street food and coconut water. They evinced a keen interest in helping in the kitchen so as to learn the Indian style of cooking.