From May 19 to June 2, 2023, our G10 students traveled to Shanghai for their oral exam. The exam format was challenging: each student had only 20 minutes to prepare before answering questions for another 20 minutes. The stakes were high as well: the oral exam, along with the written exam in March, would make up more than 50% of their final scores. Our students faced a lot of pressure during this period.

Monday

We were full of excitement when we met at Shenyang Taoxian Airport at 11:30 am on Monday. Teacher Bauer helped us get our boarding passes and go through the security checks. Even though this was our second trip, we felt nervous about the oral exam that awaited us.

We reached Shanghai and checked in to our hotel, where we left our luggage. We had some free time that night, so we decided to go to a restaurant on the Bund and enjoy some hamburgers and fries. The night view of the Bund was stunning. We took a stroll along the river before heading back to the hotel.

We were happy to see our beloved teacher Bauer again in the evening!

Tuesday

We were all so nervous the next day that we could sense the panic in the air. We got to school at 8:30 after breakfast, but we didn’t have any classes. Instead, we learned about how the oral exam would go. Later, we participated in a “learning salon” in the classroom of Yangpu German School in Shanghai. In the evening, Teacher Bauer treated us to pizza, which we ate while reviewing for the oral exam. At 10:00 pm, we went back to our rooms to get some rest.

Wednesday

Many of us didn’t sleep well that night. Some of us had to leave early at 7:30 am because our exam preparation started at 8:10 am. The exam went on from 8 am to 2 pm, so Teacher Bauer split us into two groups to reduce our waiting time at school. But David still had to wait for more than three hours. We could tell that everyone was more anxious than before the written exam, as we all walked around nervously in the waiting room. After the exam, we felt relieved and went back to the hotel to freshen up. Around 4 pm, we went back to school because the teachers had already announced our exam results at the grade meeting. They invited us to the meeting room to get our transcripts. Not everyone was happy with their results, but luckily all G10 students passed the exam. We celebrated by going to a restaurant for dinner as usual. This time it was a Spanish restaurant. We ate so much that we had to take a walk in the city to digest our food. That was how we ended our day.

Thursday

Although the exam was over, we all got up at 7 o'clock and were ready to set off for Disneyland at 7:30. It took us an hour to drive there, and we realized that it was Children’s Day. There were kids everywhere in Disney. We had a lot of fun in the park. We took many photos and went on the Roaring Rapids ride first. It was so warm that we didn’t mind getting wet. We wanted to buy some raincoats, but we only had cards and the vendors only took cash. Then we went on the fastest roller coaster in Disney, “Tron”. It was a thrilling experience for all of us. We also met Captain America and Spider Man, and went on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, but they were not as exciting as “Tron”. We had hamburgers for lunch because there were not many options. At 5 pm, we watched the Parade in front of the Disney Castle. Four of our male classmates drew the attention of all the Disney characters, which was very funny. At 9:15 pm, we saw the most spectacular show of the park, the Fireworks Display. We spent a total of 13and a half hours at Disney, and we were so tired that we fell asleep as soon as we got back to the hotel by taxi.

Friday

We had to catch an early flight today. We checked out of our hotel and took the bus to the airport after breakfast. We all fell asleep on the bus because of how early we woke up. The flight back was rough. We hit some strong turbulence and we were so scared that we held each other’s hands. Thankfully, we landed safely in Shenyang.

We were greeted by a lovely surprise at the airport. Our families, Principal Pitzner, and Principal Liu were all waiting for us at the exit. They congratulated us and gave us gifts, flowers, balloons, and yummy bread.

We are so grateful for everyone who came and for the welcome ceremony that the parents prepared. Our wonderful trip has come to a perfect end here!

David, Sissi and Hans (G10)