By Charlotte Francoli, Summer Times Staff Writer
It is all coming to an end. Many would say that these past five weeks have been the best weeks of their lives. Either friends, experiences or even love…everyone has gained something after this incredible summer.
Many have been enjoying all the classes they chose, not only the normal classes but also the sports. “What I have noticed is that I have really looked forward to every single class” Martina Campagnoli from Milan, Italy, said. “This has never happened to me in my normal school before.”
There the classes work differently; here, on the other hand, the Harkness method really makes everyone enjoy their classes more. Being at the same level, the students and even the teachers having a discussion and sharing opinions helps with getting to know new perspectives and the people behind them. “In my normal class the teacher is usually explaining the topic we are talking about and if we have a question or we want to contribute something we have to raise our hand,” said Martina, in Dunbar dorm. “This method is fine and has worked for a long time, but at the same time it is a little boring.”
It is interesting to know what people will miss or miss less after these weeks.
Many will miss the conversations and people they met from all over the world. “I have met students from South America, many European countries, USA, Africa, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and some parts of Asia,” Aston Justus,16 said “The most interesting conversation I had was with an American Trump supporter. He told me that he is supporting him because he would get rid of Obama care, which apparently resulted in his family having to pay more taxes. In my opinion it would be good if America would have a universal healthcare, just like Obama care.”
On the other hand, the students are going back home with mixed feelings but will have to continue with their normal everyday activities. “I am excited to be able to go back into my kitchen and cook the food I want,” Martina said “The reason is that I am not the biggest fan of the dining hall and in general of the American food.”
General privacy is another thing that a few students miss. Being constantly around people is wonderful “But sometimes I just need some time to be by myself,” Martina confirmed. But just like in any other situation, people have different opinions. “I have to admit that I am not excited at all to go back home,” Aston said. “I don’t really like my school in Hamburg, Germany.”
Because it has been such a great time, not everyone has been missing their relatives back home. “I am sorry mom, but I don’t really miss my family,” Martina said. ” love them and all, but I feel like I have found a new family here in the summer school. I have been away from home a ton of times so I am used to homesickness. Adding on to that, this has been the longest that I have been separated from my parents and not being home, but I have been completely fine with it.”
Every day has been a great experience for the students and faculty members. When asked about the best experience, most of the students replied with a trip they participated in.
“My greatest experience was when I went to Boston, to watch the Red Sox game,” Abby Will,16, from North Carolina commented. “I have never been to Fenway Park so it is very exciting for me. It has always been in my family to like baseball and especially the Red Sox. Back at home I go to many baseball games and we even have season tickets. At the trip to Boston I got a shirt from them and all that cheesy, touristy stuff.”
When we all pack our stuff, get into the yellow school buses and drive down the well- known road for the last time, tears will be shed for sure.
“ I think I am going to be sad,” Abby said “Both of my brothers went here and they were both really sad when they left. My oldest brother, he cried on the way back from the airport, and I was like, ‘no I don’t think I will cry.’ Now that I am in this situation myself, I am not so sure about that because I am really going to miss everyone and it is just starting to really hit me that..we are leaving.”
You know that people really interact with each other when their view on any points in life changed over the summer here.
“I broke down a lot of stereotypes and I got to understand how different all the cultures even on one continent are,” Martina said “We are used to thinking that all the countries in Asia and Africa are all the same, but that’s so wrong. They have different cultures and traditions and I really understood that here by meeting so many people from all over the world. Now I have a wider vision on things and will pay better attention to the different ways of living.