When the Lax and Schreyoegg families first met in Hanoi in 2016, a friendship begun through UNIS Hanoi quickly grew into a lifelong connection.
The children, Simon, Eva and Jacob Lax, and Felix Schreyoegg, spent their early years together at UNIS, from Discovery through the primary grades. The parents, Konrad, Jutta, Anna, and Rainer, soon became neighbours and close friends, sharing school life, community soccer on Saturdays, and the simple joys of Hanoi living.
In 2020, when COVID struck, both families made the difficult decision to return to Germany. Although they live an hour apart, they have continued to meet regularly every few months, keeping their Phoenix bonds alive.
This autumn, after five years away, both families returned to Vietnam for a two-week visit. At the top of their list was a stop at UNIS Hanoi. The moment they stepped onto campus, memories came flooding back. “As soon as I arrived, I recognised the special smell of UNIS,” said Eva, now a little older but still full of sparkle. “There’s no cooler school in the world!”
There was laughter as Rainer remembered Felix’s first visit to a German school after leaving Hanoi. “He looked around and asked where the tennis court and swimming pool were. He thought every school had them,” Rainer shared with a grin.
Both families spoke fondly about how UNIS helped their children stay connected to their roots. Thanks to the German mother-tongue classes, the children are now confidently bilingual. “Their German was strong enough to pass entrance exams when we returned,” said Anna. “We’re really grateful that UNIS valued and encouraged our home language.”
During their campus tour, they were amazed by the new developments, the modern sports centre, and new swimming pool, even the covered walkway leading from the welcome centre, and that despite all these modernising touches, the spirit of the school felt the same.
With hearts full of love and bellies full of phở bò, nem rán, and đậu phụ sốt cà chua, the families left feeling reconnected and inspired. They have promised to return every five years, to keep those memories alive and remind their children how special UNIS Hanoi is, one of only two United Nations schools in the world, and forever a part of their story.
- Alumni News