The Last: A reflection on 10 months in Germany
Just got back from a long, sweaty, wonderful summer day of "Abbi" festivities. Abbi is the rigorous test that German prep school students have to pass in order to even THINK about applying to college. 6 hours long in each subject, the Abbi covers every school topic in extreme depth, its material spanning all the way back to 9th grade. Makes the SAT look like a picnic side dish. Anyway, my hostbrother Thor passed his Abbi with flying colors, and therefore I was able to experience a real life Abbi diploma ceremony, as well as an Abbi Ball! It's all basically the same as an American graduation and prom, just more honest. The principle had no trouble announcing that the class of 2015 was an annoying bunch, yet despite his low expectations, did pretty well. "Pretty well" as in the best grade average the school has experienced in years, but let's not get too excited, ok? Everyone calm down. In other wor...