
Felix Garkisch's Travels to Bayreuth and Leipzig
Thanks to the generosity of the Friedman-Kline Foundation and their support of students like me who wanted to spend summer quarter in Germany, I was lucky enough to be able to stay for eight weeks with significant financial assistance in two cities in Germany, Bayreuth and Leipzig. Both cities were situated in culturally rich surroundings, so my time was of course brimming with all sorts of cool experiences, including seeing landmarks like the church where Bach once worked, learning about former East Germany, and of course trying both the national and local culinary specialties (Leipziger Lerche and Frankish Bratwurst remain favorites of mine). In addition to being immersed in the culture, I of course drastically improved my German-speaking skills, even after taking just one year of the introductory sequence at NU. Herr Ryder and the German Department at Northwestern helped find language programs that aligned with my abilities going into the program and my goals for continuing German when returning. On top of everything, I also became a more global-minded person through the countless meaningful connections I made with people from all around the world who participated in the courses I took. I wouldn’t trade this last summer in Germany for anything. I gained exactly what I wanted from it and so much more. So, if you’re even considering doing a summer study abroad, I strongly recommend Germany as a worthwhile option.