The euphoria of project week has begun to die down, and it has honestly left me a little bit sadder than before we left.
This was supposed to be published on Oct. 12.
Hello! We’re now back into the swing of things.
It’s a bit strange and busy getting back into the school routine and not seeing the people in my project week group everyday. At first, I was still riding the PW high, but now it’s a bit… muted. I’m not unhappy, but I was really happy right after PW and now normal life has started again.
TUESDAY: I completed my first blue path at bouldering! (I’ve been working mostly on yellows and greens, the two easiest levels so far) I was one rock away from the top, but I was very tempted to just come down and try again some other time. I didn’t want to fall and hurt my ankle, and I sincerely felt that I couldn’t do it… but I thought to myself, I’ve already made it this far, so I might as well take the risk and give it my best try to reach a little farther. It took some time, but I was able to make it, and I’m so happy that I did! Next week, I think I’ll try the same path a few more times and see how I can do it using my muscles more effectively. For the latter part of the session, I worked on a blue traverse that started a relatively steep angle and so required some upper body strength. I wasn’t able to make much progress, but I’m happy I didn’t lose the resolve to keep trying. I’ll also work on it more next week!
THURSDAY: Each school year, we have four Special Focus Days: one on interfaith topics, the second on inequality, the third our Model United Nations conference and the fourth on sustainability. On Thursday, we had our first Special Focus Day which revolved around interfaith topics. The keynote speech was titled Faith in Art and Architecture and it was quite a fascinating presentation on the role and influence of Christianity on art and religious architecture.
The bulk of the day was made up of two sessions of student and external speaker-led seminars on different faiths, religions, and cultural philosophies. I attended student-led seminars on Confucianism and Sunni Islam, both of which were interesting and very different from the customs and beliefs that I am familiar with.
After lunch, we got the chance to see some of the pieces of a global art project on spirituality and mysticism led by two German women who are travelling and collecting opinions and artwork from people of very different backgrounds, cultures and religions.
This was followed by a documentary and presentation from the non-profit organization HAWAR.help on the plight of the Yazidi people in Iraq and their part in the Special Quota Project to bring 1 100 of the most vulnerable women and girls who were in IS captivity to Germany (to the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg) to heal. It was a very powerful presentation that evoked a lot of emotions in the audience.
In the afternoon, students participated in hands-on workshops on religious / spiritual practices such as Buddhist meditation and calligraphy. I attended a workshop on Cyrillic Calligraphy and the Russian Orthodox Church which I enjoyed.
FRIDAY: I practiced piano after school in preparation for a short performance before Monday’s college assembly, and I realized that I definitely need to practice piano more for a number of reasons. First of all, I’ve been playing piano for so many years that it would be a huge loss to “become rusty” or lose my abilities and musical fluency, but more importantly, playing piano is such an enjoyable activity that is mentally engaging, takes my mind off of everything else, and provides specific challenges that I can focus on and continue to work at. I’m so lucky to be able to play and I shouldn’t forget the benefits that practicing brings me!
In the evening, I attended the play Eurydice performed by a project week group and their supervisor, my English teacher. It was a wonderful play that was funny, endearing, and sad, and I’m really glad I went. I was very impressed by the talents and efforts of the students and my teacher!
SATURDAY: Today I went for my first Mountain Hamsters hike (a school group of students and staff who go for monthly hikes in the Black Forest) to the top of Feldberg, the highest mountain in Baden-Wuerttemberg. We hiked for about four and a half hours in beautiful weather and among gorgeous autumn colours. We reached the top very quickly, and I was a bit confused because when my family goes for hikes, it takes us half a day or more to reach the summit. When I came back, I searched it up and realized that the mountains of the Black Forest are about 1300 – 1500 m high, and the Rockies at home are over 3000 m high. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the hike and conversations we had!
Jack, the dog of our director of student life 
I was calling my parents in the evening and when I walked into our house’s common room, where some students were cooking Indian food, I mentioned to them that it smelled good. I went back upstairs, and a few minutes later, one of them came up and invited me to eat with them, which I was quite surprised about. I joined them for a delicious dinner of fried rice, sweet potatoes, and an egg dish with onions. It was really nice to be a part of a group I haven’t talked to very much, to share food with others, and to not eat in the Mensa for once… I love the Mensa and I’m so grateful I don’t have to cook for myself, but I’m always open to some new flavours.
Later in the evening, I was finally able to call my friend who is a first-year at Adriatic. We are from the same city, and we used to go to the same high school, but among the busyness of UWC, we haven’t had a chance to catch up since last seeing each other at the beginning of August. It was wonderful to talk to her about how she’s doing, the similarities and differences between Robert Bosch College and Adriatic, and to reflect on all that we’ve done so far.
It was a wonderful week, and I look forward to all that the next one has in store 🙂
Until next time!
all that jazz 
That is nice! Please keep us posted about your school activities.
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