Leo Chu & Achim Schommer
What memories do you have of your GAPP exchange?
ACHIM: I only have positive memories of the exchange. First of all, I was delighted that I was selected for the exchange by my school. There were thirty people interested but only ten exchange places. I was delighted to read Leo's first letter and his "Student Information Form" in January 1988, in which he presented himself and his family in a funny way. I still have this letter today. It gave me the feeling that I could travel to California with peace of mind. The only communication was by letter. Phone calls were very expensive. Everyone was happy when the letter arrived and we waited patiently for the reply. The excitement grew when we took off for San Francisco with TWA shortly before Easter. It was the first transatlantic flight for all of us and the first stay in the USA, which we only knew from movies or dreams. It was a dream come true.LEO: Spaghettieis, toilets, and Achim’s motorcycle -- that’s all I would talk about right after my trip to Germany. Sure, there were castles and amazing churches, but I ate an unreasonable amount of Spaghettieis. If you are unfamiliar, it’s a German ice cream dish made to resemble a plate of spaghetti. My teen boy brain thought this was genius! I was also fascinated with the construction of German toilets. There was a shelf that you pooped on, and when you flushed, a jet of water would blast it away. Also genius! And then there was Achim’s motorcycle. We rode it to school every day. I even had my own motorcycle jacket. We would wind and bank through the hills of Wadern – looking so unbelievably cool. Or so I thought. I had never been on a motorcycle before, and I remember feeling terrified – I mean, cool. Did I say cool?
But what I remember most now are the people – all the ones who made me feel welcome during my trip. There was the village priest in Weiskirchen, who worked me into his sermon. Afterwards, everyone knew who I was and would greet me around town. There were our high school German teachers who not only chaperoned the trips, but matched me and Achim. And of course, there were the families -- Achim’s and my own. I feel like the role the host families play in the success of the GAPP program is often underrecognized, or at the very least, underdiscussed. Achim’s parents were so warm and delightful. At that age, it was fascinating seeing the inner workings of another family other than my own. His mom was a dedicated housewife, who effortlessly whipped up stunning home-cooked meals and introduced me to regional specialties like Kappestiertisch. His dad loved showing off the cars at his Opel dealership, hearing me say “Kappestiertisch,” and teaching me how to use his cash register. Somehow he always found time to nap after every lunch, which he insisted was “good for the digestion.”
ACHIM: With Leo's family, I was lucky enough not only to get to know a part of the USA but also to get my first impressions of Chinese culture. I would never have thought that I would learn how to eat with chopsticks in the USA. Davis was an ideal city for us country kids who grew up in the structurally weak northern Saarland. Davis was at its best in spring with pleasantly warm temperatures; a city to feel at home in, without crime and with a high level of education. My exchange family took great care of me and even took me to L.A. to Disneyland and Universal Studios.
LEO: As for my own family, it was a big deal to host an exchange student. I would say that we’re pretty private. It might be cultural, I’m not sure. But for some reason, in high school, I got it in my head that I really wanted to participate in the GAPP program. It completely caught my parents by surprise. They had no sense of how much time it would take or what it would be like having another person living in the house. Plus, my dad worked two jobs, and my mom worked full-time, so taking care of another teenager in addition to me and my brother was probably not high on their list. But for some reason, they said yes. (I would find out years later that my dad was the one who pushed for it. He loved the idea that I would be able to visit another country, something that he had never done – except for the one time he immigrated to the U.S.)
Any doubts or anxiety quickly abated when we all met Achim. He was so open, upbeat, and to be honest, kind of a sweet goofball. He quickly became a part of the family, and my tough guy dad even insisted on a road trip to Disneyland – which caught me by surprise. Afterwards, my mom would get excited every time we received a letter or postcard from Achim and has saved every one of them to this day. Not only did the GAPP exchange open my eyes and change me for the better, but it also unexpectedly did the same for my entire family.
How, when and where did you first meet? What do you have in common?
LEO: I think I was asleep when Achim arrived. I remember hearing him arrive at the house, but for some reason I was already in bed. I have no idea why, but I didn’t see him until the next day. I can’t seem to remember the exact circumstances of us meeting. I was a terrible host!The biggest things that Achim and I have in common are that we are both open, have a good sense of humor, and love to travel. We love sharing our cultures with each other and learning about other cultures too. I have this theory that there are what I like to call “international people.” I feel like most of my good friends are “international people.” These are folks who love to travel the world, embrace different cultures, and believe that we have more in common than differences. They are cross-cultural and value human connection. I think Achim and I are both “international people.”
ACHIM: The first meeting was in Davis (near Sacramento in California). Leo's mother picked me up at the Greyhound station in the middle of the night. Leo himself wasn't there because he had an important exam the next day. I met him for the first time live the next day at noon at his family's house. It may come as a surprise, but we don't have much in common. Leo loves movies (and makes a living from them today). I, on the other hand, don't care about movies at all. If everyone was like me, Leo would definitely be unemployed. Nevertheless, we've always got on well. Perhaps what we have in common is that we are very open to everything and can adapt well to different situations.
Over the years, which milestones have you celebrated together?
LEO: Achim and I have met all over the world and have weirdly marked many of our major life milestones together – albeit, not necessarily by design. After the exchange, he came back to visit me and my family in Davis, where he spent the summer. I remember him going swimming and getting his clothes stolen. It turns out Davis wasn’t that safe after all. Less traumatizing (hopefully) was celebrating my 18th birthday together. After that, he visited me when I studied in Berlin, and I celebrated Christmas with his family that same year. He later came to see me when I moved to Los Angeles and he stayed in my first apartment in Venice Beach. We’ve been to Paris, Switzerland, and Strasbourg. He even drove out for an afternoon so he could meet my partner Eric for the first time as we were passing through Frankfurt on our way to Italy in 2001. Later, we all met up in Washington DC in 2003, where Eric and I met his girlfriend, Marie. It was right after a massive hurricane hit the city, and all our pictures of the White House are strewn with debris and fallen trees. A political commentary perhaps?We met up again with Achim and Marie in Vienna in 2005, except now they were engaged! In 2006, we celebrated Achim and Marie’s wedding in the Black Forest, and then visited again the following year in 2007, where I remember going on an epic bike ride to the Kaiserstuhl with a very pregnant Marie. We saw them in 2009, after the birth of their daughter Theresa and right after my dad passed away. I don’t think Achim knows how much of a comfort he was during that time, sharing memories of my father. But I guess he will now when he reads this. We visited Stauffen, where the Faust legend originates -- and to my surprise, is apparently a true story. (We even saw the hotel where the devil came to claim Faust’s soul!) And then life happened… We kept in touch, writing, emailing, etc. but we didn’t see each other in person again until last year, 2023 in Chicago – which I’m realizing now was coincidentally the 35th anniversary of our friendship! I finally met Achim’s son Johann for the first time, and the now teenage Theresa was anticipating her own exchange in Chile.
After reconnecting, we confessed we were both kind of nervous, because we hadn’t seen each other for such a long time. But it turned out that there was nothing to be worried about. He was exactly the same, and he said the same of me. It was as if we hadn’t missed a day!
ACHIM: A year after the official exchange, I spent my summer vacation in Davis, where I was able to celebrate Leo’s 18th birthday. I was pleased that Leo and his partner Eric traveled to Germany in the Black Forest for my church wedding in 2006. We have also seen each other several times, which has always been a reason to celebrate: Switzerland, Los Angeles, Washington, Vienna, Freiburg and Chicago.
Leo, do you still use your German language skills?
LEO: I’ve hit the point where I’m much better at reading and understanding German than I am at speaking it. That said, I’m still astounded when I can watch German movies without subtitles or notice that the subtitles aren’t quite capturing what the characters are saying.Perhaps the most impressive use of my German came during a trip to Hungary in 2005. Eric and his family went to their ancestral village in Varoslod, where they found some distant relatives. The relatives invited all of us to their winery in Somló. The trouble was that they didn’t speak English, and we could only swear in Hungarian. The only language we had in common was German. So between their broken German and my rusty language skills, I played translator for an afternoon in a vineyard overlooking the Hungarian countryside.
Could you describe in which ways your language skills helped you build your career?
ACHIM: Knowledge of English was, is and always will be a prerequisite for international communication. It was (along with French and Spanish) an essential requirement for my dual training with a focus on "International Marketing" and my university degree in Economics. Without English, I would never have been able to work in export for an international textile company, a global tax consultancy and ultimately in an internationally growing energy company.LEO: I’m not sure that knowing German has directly helped me build my career. It has been more indirectly beneficial. As a writer, producer, and filmmaker, it has expanded my appreciation and knowledge of the arts. When I was in Berlin, I was able to watch plays in their original German at renowned theaters like the Deutsches Theater, Bertolt Brecht’s the Berliner Ensemble, and the Schaubühne. I will never forget seeing Robert Wilson’s staging of Heiner Müller’s masterpiece Hamletmaschine at the Deutsches Theater. It was breathtaking. And all this has fed my lifelong love of theater. German has also expanded my love of film, where I’m able to watch German movies without or with a minimum of subtitles, and opened up the world of design, where I’m a big fan of the Bauhaus.
If you could talk to your 15 year old selves– what would you tell them?
LEO: I would tell myself not to lose my sense of adventure. And also not to worry so much.ACHIM: I would tell him exactly what I tell my children today: you don't learn a language for school, you learn it for life. Even if you only speak a few sentences in the language of the country you are traveling to, it opens not only doors but also hearts. Only through the language can you learn to understand other cultures. This is an important building block for a more peaceful coexistence.
Why would you recommend participating in a GAPP exchange?
ACHIM: A student exchange is a first and simple step towards active international understanding. It is uncomplicated, because with a GAPP exchange you can rely on years of experience. It is also reassuring that you do not travel alone but with a group of classmates and possibly even with a teacher from your school.LEO: I tell everyone this: Study abroad if you can while you’re in high school or college. Traveling afterwards is great, but it’s much more impactful when you’re young enough to have it expand your worldview. The GAPP exchange is truly one of the best things I’ve done in my life. Not only does it broaden your mind and your language skills, it’s your first taste of independence and having a sense of who you really are. I love who I am when I’m traveling. You have to rely on yourself, and you’re tested in unexpected ways. When I participated in GAPP, I had no idea that the exchange would keep on giving and open the door to a life-long friendship and love of travel. It has impacted not only my life, but the lives of everyone around me in a positive, lasting, and significant way.
