Thanks to CIEE, I attended a lot of excursions they organized and those excursions were good ways to explore the German history, culture, and local people. We've been to beer brewer, BMW motorcycle plant, the German Parliament building, etc.
One of the best excursion I have ever been to during the three month period was a "walk and talk" event hosted by a Syrian refugee living in Berlin. He talked about the refugee history of Germany and his personal story of how he escaped from Syria as we followed him and visited some historical sites such as the Berlin Wall Museum. Refugee problem has been debated over and over again in German society. It's hard to not come across this issue while living in Berlin. Such event is really a good opportunity for me to get some insights from someone who has personal experience of it. I like this event not only because it existed in German society, but it's a ongoing global issue and new headline around the globe. It's always good to hear voices from both sides. It allows me to look at this issue from a different perspective and be more objective. I definitely enjoyed the excursion as not only because they allow me to know things that I didn't know, but also it changed the way I look at certain things to some extent.