Day 17, 29.10.2019

Today some of us had zero hour so we had to be at Norman North High School at around 7.20 am. For zero hour some of us had Maths class or Band rehearsal, but if we wanted to we could also stay at the CCC (which is a part of the school where students can study) to catch up on some work from our school in Germany because we are missing two weeks of our classes. Then we had to meet with our teachers at 8.30 am ready to depart to the Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum. To get there we had some parents and teachers drive us. Today it was pretty cold and a little rainy, too. 

Our tour in the museum started with us watching a short film which talked about the basic facts about the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995. It also showed us how strong Oklahomans are and how they all stuck together and helped each other in such a terrifying situation, like one big family. We got to read a lot of interesting stories of other people who experienced the bombing in different ways. Later we went downstairs where a man who had also experienced the bombing and is now a volunteer worker at the museum told us his story. He explained to us how he was sitting at his desk with his back towards the window and because the bomb was so strong the glass of the window broke and flew towards him. The wave of the bomb was so big that he slammed his head on his desk. As a result, he was  unconscious for several minutes and had some broken glass stuck to his scalp. As soon as he regained consciousness, he looked for his friends and colleagues to see if they were okay. But he sadly found one of them dead. When he later got to the hospital he went straight to the emergency room to get the shattered glass out of his scalp. Luckily, the doctor got all of it out without any problems except for one small piece of glass which is still in his heads, because the doctor explained that it would be more dangerous to get it out than to just leave it in because the bone would just grow over it. He talked a lot more about the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building and other things he experienced. 

After that we had the chance to learn a lot more about the bombing, for example from and about the persons who sacrificed their lives for others, so the heroes of 1995, the people who survived but who are still struggling with the consequences and the people who died during the bombing, which was really emotional. We got to read a lot about the assassins and their tools, for example how they even managed to get the bombs and hide them from the police. We also saw a lot of documents and properties of the deceased people. The museum as a whole is very interactive so there are, for example, many touch screens for better understanding. 

At the end of the tour we got 15 minutes to go outside and explore the memorial. The memorial is made up of two walls. The wall on the left says 9.01, which not only shows the time when the explosion happened; it is the last moment of peace. On the opposite side is a similar bronze wall that says 9.03, the minute healing began. 

Between these two walls there is a wide water fountain which is very relaxing and peaceful. Next to that is the area where the Murrah Building was placed originally. Now there are 168 empty chairs with names carved into their glass base, representing those who lost their lives in the bombing. 

Overall the museum was very interesting and informative. We all got to learn about a really big part of the history of Oklahoma. The memorial was very emotional for all of us. But we also learnt how strong and hopeful many people in that situation were and how they all managed to live with such a traumatizing event. I can easily say that it was a very inspiring experience. 

We left the memorial at 12.15 pm and went to Bricktown. As soon as we got there we took some group pictures and walked around in smaller groups and ate our lunch at Heyday. The food was really yummy. After that we visited a souvenir shop and we also got to try fried oreos which some of us liked and some did not. That was the end of our trip to Bricktown and the OKC Memorial. 

Next the parents drove us back to school and there we all got picked up by our exchange partners and all of us went home to get ready for the Spooktacular at Norman North. The Spooktacular is an event where everyone (mostly kids) come into the school and trick-or-treat in each classroom. So all of us came to school in crazy, funny and spooky costumes and handed out candy to the kids. We also had a little party in our classroom with music we all liked, which was a lot of fun. Everyone just got time to hang out with each other and enjoy the party.