By Nettie-Rose Reynolds, member of St. Paul, Easton

My name is Nettie-Rose Reynolds, and I was chosen to participate in the 2005 Saxony Youth Exchange. That's me in the black t-shirt on the right, above.

It’s been about four months since the trip took place, and yet I still remember it all as if it were only yesterday. I would love to give you a detailed story of how everything went, but that would take a few hours, so I’ll give a brief but good one.

I’ll start with the country first. I always thought Pennsylvania was beautiful, but nothing compared to Germany. Everything seemed 10 times prettier and that may have been because it was 20 times cleaner. I can’t remember seeing litter populate an area more than people, and that was even true when we went into the bigger cities from our host home villages.

Everything is separated and recycled, which is something we have to fight to do here. And even though we were told to be careful of the water because we were not used to it, the water seemed to taste sweeter than water here.

The little villages that were over a thousand years old were well kept and looked just like they would have back then. I always wanted to live out in the countryside, and I hope that if I still do, that just maybe it will be a German countryside.

Our hosts were truly amazing. I had a bit of a heads up on the German youth, because I had met most of them when they came to the United States in October 2004. In the first city of our stay, two girls who actually stayed with me had a little quarrel about who was going to take me. I felt special to know that they still remembered me and were eagerly waiting to see me.

Everyone was very welcoming and ready to make our stay with them the most they could. I’m going to get into food in a bit, but I have to say this here. Germans like to drink carbonated water, and for me, someone who won’t even drink soda, that’s just gross. I tried to explain to Kristin, my host sister, that if possible I would like her to get water with no bubbles. She looked at me questioningly and said, “You mean water with no gas?” We both laughed and I told her yes.

People here in America are hospitable to a certain extent, but no one here compares to families in Germany. They made me feel like I was truly a part of their family and that I belonged.

Food; everyone’s favorite subject. I think I’ve eaten more sausage (or bratwurst) in 10 days than ever before in my life! Everything I ate was delicious. I remember one night, we were all together and Andreas, our main host and tour guide, made Hungarian goulash. A major part of my heritage is Hungarian and I remember my mother trying to get me to eat goulash as a little girl. It looked gross to me and I hated it. When Andreas made it, I enjoyed it and couldn’t believe that years before I had rejected it.

On our last night with our first hosts, a few of the German youth decided to have a cookout and eat together. There was so much food on the table! It had to have been enough to feed a family of 20 at Thanksgiving! By the time the fourth dish had finished cooking we were getting quite full. Our hosts looked at us in surprise because we weren’t eating anymore, and so a few of us tried to eat more to make them happy. I don’t think I have ever been that full.

My experience was truly amazing and transforming. I missed my high school graduation to go to Germany, and in the long run, my trip is proving to be far more beneficial to me. If I were given the chance to relive the month of June, I would do it all the same again.

I thank God everyday for the opportunity he has given me. Without God, none of it would have been possible and everything that happened, every way that I was blessed and was a blessing, was a gift from God. Some time within the near future, I hope that God blesses me with the chance to go back again.