As the lyrics “Und ich flieg’, flieg’ flieg’” from Tim Toupet’s 2009 song, “Fliegerlied” blare over the library speakers, Chief Kanim Middle School students dance alongside exchange students from Osnabrück, Germany.

Inside the library, a few of the 18 eleventh-graders from an urban city in northwest Germany, an hour from the Dutch border, are giving a presentation on the difference between Germany and the United States.

For these students, many of whom are visiting the U.S. for the first time, life in the Snoqualmie Valley is a bit different from the one they know back home.

“Everything is exciting because everything we know is from movies,” said Odilo Eisenhut, one of the exchange students. “When we’re here it’s like ‘I’ve seen that on TV.’ Things that are not that special are kind of crazy.”

The exchange students are here as part of a partnership between Mount Si and their school, Integrierte Gesamtschule. Last summer, members of Mount Si’s German Club traveled to Osnabrück for two-and-a-half weeks, while Mount Si welcomed Osnabrück students stateside about two weeks ago.

Nina Herkt, a teacher traveling with the Osnabrück students, said after the pandemic she connected with Mount Si over a Facebook meet-up page to establish an exchange program.

“It’s a big thing,” she said. “Not too many schools in our city have an exchange program.”

Marc Krischket, another teacher from Osnabrück, said they have been blown away by the nature in the Valley, including the elk in Meadowbrook. In Germany, he said, students start learning English in the third grade, allowing them to understand and experience classes.

“We’re happy to see them in classes,” he said. “They get to see what an American high school is really like.”

Conor Wilson / Valley Record. Chief Kanim Middle School students dance during a presentation by German exchange students.

So far, students have spent time in Seattle, marveling at its skyscrapers and visiting art museums and Pike Place Market. They also took a trip over the pass — including a trip to Leavenworth, which Krischket said the students enjoyed.

Mati Siern, another student, said one of his favorite parts of the trip was getting to hike Rattlesnake Lake.

“Where we come from, it’s only flat lands,” he said. “Here you have mountains and it’s pretty beautiful.”

The biggest difference, the students said, was a car-centric transit system that lacked residents taking public transit or riding bikes.

Students have also spent time inside classes at Mount Si High School and attended football and volleyball games. They note how different it is from school in Germany, with more students and a greater variety of subjects outside of core classes.

“My favorite class is pottery, and we don’t have that in Germany,” said Julia Ramler.

Leonard Wolch noted that they feel like celebrities walking through the halls, with students always excited to meet them.

“They’re like ‘you’re German? Dap me up’ — it’s funny,” he said. “Everyone has been very friendly.”

German exchange students Leonie Knoll (left) and Julia Ramler give a presentation at Chief Kanim Middle School. Photo by Conor Wilson/Valley Record