Outbounds 2009-2010

Adriana’s Bio

Ni hao! Hello! My name is Adriana and I am a junior currently attending St. Petersburg Collegiate High School. I live with my mother, father, younger brother, grandmother, and two pet bunnies in Palm Harbor. I am interested in Asian cultures and languages (especially Chinese and Japanese), and I’m planning on majoring in Asian Studies in the future.

My most significant hobby is traveling, staying with local families, and seeing their countries through their eyes…definitely not as a tourist. I also enjoy hosting people from other countries and showing them around ours. I became involved with Clearwater-Nagano Sister Cities Organization in the eighth grade when I went with a group of students and chaperones affiliated with this club on a two week trip to Japan. I’ve also traveled to Ireland, Mexico, and Costa Rica (where my father is from). My family and I have hosted two junior high school students and two English teachers from Japan through the same Sister Cities Program.

Some of my other hobbies include language study, drawing, playing soccer, reading, and listening to music. I played soccer last year for my city’s local team. I also like drawing realistic portraits and manga (a Japanese style of cartoons). I enjoy reading too, and my favorite books are Kafka on the Shore by Yukio Mishima, The Winter King by Bernard Cornwell, Confessions of a Mask by Mishima, the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, and Lord of the Flies by William Golding. I love music from all over the world, but my favorite groups are Arashi (Japanese), Fahrenheit (Taiwanese), and Dong Bang Shin Gi (Korean).

I wish to express my deepest gratitude to Rotary for the amazing opportunity that they are presenting me: not only am I advancing towards my college major and future, but I am lucky enough to have been granted a country that dovetails perfectly, Taiwan. I know this experience of living outside of my own safe haven for an entire academic year will provide me invaluable new self-knowledge, life skills, and cultural awareness, as well as my fourth language, Chinese.

Thrilling doesn’t even begin to cover it!

 Journals: Adriana – Taiwan 2009-2010

August 27 Journal

After 25+ hours of flights and layovers, and a delayed flight that had my next flight being held up for me, I finally arrived safely in Kaohsiung … and the greeting I received at the airport could not have made me feel more comfortable. I felt as if I had just gotten home from that long trip, instead of arriving in a completely foreign country. One Rotary officer even spoke a little to me in Spanish! I was so surprised and happy that she did that.

The first thing I noticed after leaving the airport that night was that my trips abroad (especially the trips to Japan) really helped prepare me for this trip. I haven’t yet experienced any culture shock. Also, had I not gone to Japan, I think I would be fairly uncomfortable here, in the rural township of Daliao, as every single person that I walk by stares with astonishment at the only foreigner this town has probably ever seen…me. Many people back home told me that I was lucky; they said that my dark hair and eyes would help me blend in with the people of Taiwan, but they couldn’t have been more wrong. In fact, I really don’t think these traits make much of a difference, because my appearance is still very different from theirs.

However, my family here in Taiwan is very similar to my family back home, in so many ways. I felt like they were really related to me the moment we met. Here are some of the similarities:

1. My host family, just like my real family, is very caring with each other; Xiao Yi (my 7 year old host brother) always holds my hand when we’re walking somewhere, and Jin Wen (my 16 year old host sister) links arms with me. The parents also hold the children’s hands a lot too.
2. Jin Wen and Xiao Yi really show their love for each other and get along, just like my real brother and I.
3. Xiao Yi is exactly like my real brother, but younger and a little more hyper. He’s hilarious! He is constantly talking, which is really helping my listening and comprehension skills.
4. My host family is multilingual; everyone speaks Taiwanese and Chinese. Ba (which means Dad in Chinese) also speaks Japanese, while Ma also speaks an indigenous Taiwanese language. My family back home can all speak Spanish and English, my parents also speak French, and my dad can speak Portuguese as well.

The weather here is also very similar to the weather back home; it’s in the 90s here, but according to the weather channel, it feels like it’s 105 degrees.

Although my families and the weather may be similar, the food here really is different. However, there hasn’t been one thing I haven’t liked. The first day I arrived, I ate what I think was jellyfish, but I’m still not sure. It was delicious! The second day here, I went to a night market, which has many small street stalls that sell 小吃 (xiao chi) which are small snacks. I ate goat sausage, tiny conchs (which were definitely my favorite food so far!), spicy grilled squid on a stick, tiny octopi, fresh and fried oysters, snails, a soup with seaweed and tiny fish, and for dessert, chunks of the best mango I’ve ever had on top of shaved ice. And yesterday, I went to a BBQ party with my host sister and her friends, and ate chicken hearts (among other things like shrimp and beef)!! I tried one chicken heart, wondering if I’d like it or not, and I liked it so much that I ate 5 more…haha. Ironically, the most distasteful thing I’ve eaten here was a greasy, grisly fried chicken leg my host sister got for me from McDonalds, along with soggy french fries.

I can’t wait to start school! My family took me a few days ago to see the route along which I’d be going to school. I’m going to ride on bike about 15 minutes to get to the MRT (mass rapid transit) station, then get on and ride the MRT until the ninth stop, after getting off, I’ll walk another ~5 minutes to arrive at my school, 高雄高商 (Gao Xiong Gao Shang). My school is huge…I can’t believe how big it is; it’s about 9 stories tall! I visited it again yesterday and met my principal and the other exchange student, who is from Finland. Everyone was so kind.

Also, one of these past days, I think I came close to experiencing what it feels like to be one of the locals here in Daliao. It’s probably as close to feeling like a local as it’ll ever get, since I’m probably always going to be stared at. That day, I went with my host sister, Jin Wen, to play basketball with her friends. We got on our bikes and rode down the narrow, winding road that leads to Daliao’s Junior High School and the basketball courts. On the way there, as usual, cars and scooters barely, yet expertly, missed us as they drove by us. As usual, the warm, muggy air had my hair sticking to the back of my neck. As usual, Jin Wen and I yelled 你好 (hello) to Zen Ma, the best cold tea seller in Daliao, and we passed her on our bicycles. Then, when we arrived at the basketball courts, Jin Wen and I played a little as we waited for all of our friends to show up. Once they arrived, we all played together for a while, and then Jin Wen and I sat down and let the guys play amongst themselves. Then, she and I walked back down to Zen Ma’s little street shop to buy 20 cent, ice-cold, large cups of green tea.

That night, after returning home and showering, my host mother, Jin Wen, and I went out onto the street so I could meet the neighbors. Here, on Lane 100, Daliao Township, the neighbors all congregate around a single, sturdy wooden table. They sit on small wooden chairs, drink tea and eat sesame seeds, and play some Taiwanese board game which I still haven’t come close to figuring out. They also speak by mixing Taiwanese (the local dialect) and standard Chinese, which can be slightly confusing at times. Although they were all meeting me for the first time that night, they all accepted me with open arms. In fact, I have never felt more at home, so far from home. I was sitting with them around the wooden table, drinking tea and sweating, speaking Chinese and listening to them speak Taiwanese, laughing at their jokes and even telling one or two, and swatting flies and petting the dog that hangs around there. These people have shown to me that the Taiwanese people are indeed the most open and kind hearted people I’ve ever met. There is absolutely nothing I’d trade for this experience here in Daliao, with these amazing, admirable people.

And before I finish, I’d like to thank my Chinese tutor and friend, Yen Fen Wu. Had it not been for her, I would be completely lost these days, not being able to understand the language and perhaps culture of this wonderful country, Taiwan.

燕芬, 真的謝謝妳!!

Furthermore, I’d like to thank Rotary for giving me this once in a lifetime opportunity!

Until next time (I’ll have pictures next time, I promise),

安娜 (Anna)

September 28 Journal

Staring out the window of my bus on my way to school one of these past days, I realized that I am completely at home here in Taiwan. I could read many of the signs I passed. It didn’t faze me that the bus came close to hitting a number of people on bikes, walking, and on scooters. The sight of an outside market, with live seafood, slabs of mysterious meats, stray dogs, and elderly women butchering chickens was an everyday sight. The hundreds of school kids crossing the street in matching uniforms was normal. For the most part, the Chinese conversations of the students and children around me flowed through my ears almost as if it were English, and the Taiwanese conversations between the elderly sounded nicely familiar. When I ate lunch at school that day, I happily devoured the pig blood with rice, stir fried ‘mater convolvulus’ (a vegetable that apparently has no common English name … this is what came up when I translated it from Chinese), fried fish cake, and sausage. Actually, all the food here, which was so different to me at first, has become my comfort food.

This past month, I’ve eaten duck’s tongue and throat, pig blood with rice (which was named the world’s strangest food … it’s not strange to me at all now), duck blood blocks, pig and chicken feet, and an entire goat meal, which included stir-fried goat, boiled goat, goat stomach and goat soup (my favorite!). I was also fortunate enough to eat the famous Taiwanese oyster omelet and Taiwanese stinky tofu. I must admit, though, that stinky tofu is the one food I have not yet liked here. I tried it on three different occasions and each time it tasted worse … haha. There are probably other strange foods I’ve eaten that I’ve forgotten to write down because it all seems so normal now.

I’ve done many things this past month, including starting school. I started on September 1st and I am in Class 1-11. The 1 means I’m in first year (equivalent to sophomore year) and the 11 just means I’m in the eleventh first year class. I love my class!!! All my classmates (45 of them) are very caring, friendly, and always positive. There’s never a day when they seem down. My first days of school, however, were crazy! The second day I attended school I had to give a self-introduction in front of the whole school (2,000+ students…) and of course, I missed my bus and had to take the MRT to school, so I was almost late … and of course I tripped while walking up to the stage to give my introduction. But all was well in the end, and no one cared about my tripping, or that I was nervous so my speaking wasn’t that great.

Also, there are many differences between my school here and my high school in the U.S.:

There are only blackboards in the classes.

The teachers, who change classes instead of us, use microphones to lecture with.

Of course, we all have uniforms. There are three different uniforms that we wear on certain days. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we have to wear the “exercise uniform,” which is a white shirt with blue pants and any sneakers of our choice. On Tuesday, we have to wear a more formal, white collared shirt with dark navy blue dress pants, and “pixie,” which are just formal, black shoes. And on Thursday, we have to wear the same formal, white collared shirt with a skirt (our school’s skirt is pink, white and blue plaid), socks, which have to be at least above our ankles, and our black “pixie.”

As in many countries, we, not janitors, clean the school. Each student must do one of the following: sweep, mop, take out the trash, clean the windows, clean the blackboard, sweep outside, or wipe the desks (which is my job).

Hardly anyone asks questions during class.

Along with the uniform, students aren’t supposed to dye their hair, wear jewelry, or wear makeup…

The students don’t form cliques as much as the students in the U.S., and everyone in the class gets along with each other.

School lasts from 7:30 in the morning to 4:10 on two days a week, and until 5:10 three days a week.

During the school week, I have three days in which I have Chinese lessons. On Monday and Tuesday morning, I have about 30 minutes to an hour of one-on-one Chinese conversation with a teacher at the school, and on Wednesday I have one-on-one tutoring with another teacher. Because of this, I feel that my Chinese is really improving. In fact, about 60~70% of the time, I can understand what is being said, or at least the main idea of people’s conversations. Though, my speaking is not yet as good as my comprehension, of course. But I really feel that the time I spent back in Florida studying Chinese really helped me so much. If I hadn’t studied Chinese back then, I feel like I’d probably only be comprehending about 20~30% of what is being said most of the time.

Apart from school, I attended a Rotary meeting in the beginning of September, and a Rotary get-together/dinner in the middle of the month. At the Rotary meeting, I did a self introduction with a PowerPoint and met many Rotarians. Everyone was so kind and happy to meet me! And last week my Rotary Counselor (Teacher Hong) took my host sister, another Rotarian’s daughter, and me to Kaohsiung’s history museum. We had so much fun! I went there to prepare for a Chinese presentation that I will do in December, introducing the city of Kaohsiung.

The last thing I want to talk about in this journal is the diligence of Taiwanese doctors (especially when they’re also Rotarians), schools, Rotarians, and the Taiwanese people in general. Earlier in the month, I got H1N1, aka the swine flu. I came home from school one day feeling like I was extremely lacking energy, so I went immediately to take a nap. When I woke up, Ma and Ba noticed that my face was pink, so they took my temperature and learned that I had a 104 degree fever. They then took me to one of the only American-trained doctors in the area. Not only was he also a Rotarian, but he also spoke Spanish! I was so surprised (I’ve actually met about three or four people here who can speak Spanish)! Anyway, after a test at the doctor’s, they found that I did indeed have H1N1. Unfortunately, because I got H1N1, I couldn’t go to school for about 4 days and I couldn’t go to the District 3510 inbound orientation. However, I was able to go back home that night, but the next morning I woke up with another 104 degree fever, so I had to be taken back to the doctor’s. Thankfully, all is well now and I feel better than ever here in cozy, home-y Taiwan.

Thank you again to the Rotary Clubs who are supporting me: Rotary Club of Kaohsiung North and the Rotary Club of Clearwater East; thanks to my family and friends for their support and love, and for understanding that I’m not at all homesick :p and thanks to my wonderful Taiwanese host family and my amazing new friends here in Taiwan.

Until next month,

安娜

October 29 Journal

It’s time again for my monthly update! This month was filled with a special holiday, a trip to northern Taiwan, a trip to southern Taiwan, new cultural experiences, much time spent with friends and family, and very many ups and no downs 🙂

I’d like to start this journal with a few lists I’ve compiled regarding Taiwan.

First, some things I love about Taiwan:

My host family. I truly believe I am the luckiest exchange student in the world to be placed with this family. I have a 15 year old host sister who I can relate to and talk to about anything, a 7 year old host brother who doesn’t care if I make mistakes when I speak (and who understands me even if I do make mistakes), and two loving host parents who spend so much of their time, energy, and love on me. My whole family is always home and chatting with me, correcting my mistakes (and explaining what those mistakes are and how to fix them), teaching me how to cook and read and write, and teaching me more about myself and my life than I could have ever imagined. They inspire me everyday to work hard and study well to learn Chinese, because it is very important for my life now in Taiwan, my future, and my future career and schooling.

My classmates. Since I stay in the same class all day, everyday, my classmates already feel like another family. They are caring and friendly, and are always willing to help me if I have any questions or problems.

My Rotary club. They have many activities every month, in addition to their meetings, and they are always inviting me and including me in virtually everything they do. And all the members are very, very kind to me.

Going to school. I can honestly say that I’ve ever been so happy to wake up at 6 a.m. on weekdays to go to school as I am now!

The fact that I don’t have to wear makeup or pick out my clothes for school. I realize now how nice it is to not waste time on those things and instead study Chinese, chat with my host family and experience life.

People immediately speak to me in Chinese and don’t speak English unless I really don’t understand what they’re saying, even though no one assumes I’m Taiwanese (many people here have told me I look Middle Eastern).

Taiwanese food. To prove how much I really love eating Taiwanese food, I’m going to tell you all that I’ve already gained almost 10 pounds here. I arrived in Taiwan weighing about 103 pounds and am now 111…and it’s only been two months!

Some things that may have seemed a bit different at first, but that I’m now used to:

升旗 (Sheng Qi). This literally translates as “hoisting the flag” and is when all the students of the school have to sit outside twice a week for a 20~30 minute ceremony. Not only did it used to be extremely hot, but the humidity was almost unbearable. Sitting under the sun with sweat literally dripping down your neck, back, arms and legs was not comfortable. When I asked my friend why we couldn’t sit inside the auditorium during these times, she said that it’s because it would be too comfortable, and she said that Taiwan’s schools are still traditional in that they see their students almost as if they were soldiers. Actually, during these ceremonies, we salute, stand, sit and turn at the same time, and, of course, sing the national anthem while Taiwan’s flag is being raised. It’s a very nice ceremony, and now that the weather is starting to cool down a bit, I am loving it more and more, as well as the students’ pride and love for their country, flag, and school.

Even though we usually have an hour nap at school, the 8+ hours of being at school really got to me when I first started school; I was always super tired and had to sleep at around 8:30. Now, however, I’m going to sleep at around 10:30, like many of my classmates. Haha~

Not drinking anything until after I’m finished eating. And the drink may not be what people from the United States are used to; many times the drink at the end of a meal is hot soup. If I drink something while eating a meal now though, I get full so quickly and lose my appetite, so I prefer to drink last.

Speaking in different languages. One of my friends at school can speak decent Spanish. And when he asks me questions about Spanish in English, I don’t know whether to reply to him in English or Chinese, and sometimes I accidentally reply in Spanish!

The traffic. There are tons and tons of scooters (kind of like motorcycles but smaller and not as dangerous), bicycles, aggressive drivers (that includes bicyclers and pedestrians…haha), and cars that don’t drive in their designated lanes or put their blinkers on. Everyone starts driving at least 2 or 3 seconds before the red light turns green, some people don’t even stop at red lights, sometimes the stop lights at major intersections don’t work at all, and sometimes all the turn signals for every direction are green at the same time.

And the last list, which I guess you can consider advice learned from (culture-shocked?) experience:

Never just bring a bikini to swim in when going to the beach or pool. Bring extra clothes to wear and swim in; and if you really want to wear a bathing suit, make it pretty conservative.

Don’t bother styling your hair unless you have some kind of supernatural hair products that can withstand the 150% humidity. Once, when I straightened my hair in the morning (and used hair product to try to keep it straight), I got to school and people asked me if I curled my hair or if it was naturally that wavy…

When crossing the street, always look very, very, very carefully, even if it seems like there are no vehicles coming. I’ve never been in direct danger of being hit by a vehicle, but I’m always aware of the constant danger of Taiwanese traffic.

When someone says something you don’t understand, don’t pretend you understand; the Taiwanese will always be happy to explain it to you in more simple Chinese.

Now, I’d like to talk about the festival that took place this month. The Mid-Autumn Festival (中秋節) is one of a few big annual celebrations in Taiwan. It’s a time to spend with family, admire the moon, eat barbeque (pork, fish, beef, goat and other meats), mooncake and youzih (kind of like a grapefruit, but not very bitter or sour), and drink hot tea. The Mid-Autumn Festival takes place on the 15th day of the 8th lunar calendar month, which was Saturday, October 3rd this year. That day, my host family and I departed our house in Daliao a little before noon, and began our drive South, towards Pingtung County, where my both of my host parents’ parents live.

We first stopped in the rural town of 萬巒 (Wan Luan), which is my host mother’s hometown. There, we visited her mother and a sister of hers, I listened to them speak Hakka, and then my host family and I ate pig feet, and pig thigh which is that area’s famous food. After lunch, my host dad drove us to his hometown, 四重溪 (Sih Chuang Xi). His hometown is close to Kenting, which is definitely one of Taiwan’s most beautiful places. It’s near the ocean, rural, filled with fresh air, decorated with traditional houses and buildings, and surrounded by towering, lush, green mountains and a rushing river. We stayed in his hometown until Sunday, and there met with my host father’s older brother, and his brother’s wife and two children. During those two days in 四重溪, I learned to play Mahjong (a VERY popular game in Taiwan), saw the true, rural life lived by both Taiwanese and Aborigines, prayed for the deceased at a temple, made friends with my host father’s family, laughed a lot, learned new things, and ate all the typical foods that are eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Also, two weeks ago, my host mother took me with her on her company outing. It was so fun! She and many of her co-workers went on two buses (equipped with karaoke of course) on a trip to northern Taiwan. The bus ride was half the fun; I made a few good friends with some of my mother’s co-workers and learned so much from them (from some phrases in Taiwanese, to certain aspects of Taiwanese culture). On the way north, we stopped at a national park to hike up a mountain and view some waterfalls. After that, we continued our trip up to Tao Yuan, near Taipei. There, we stayed in a hotel, which also had a spa and hot spring! We stayed there one night, and the second day, we all went to see Chiang Kai Shek’s son’s coffin. It was a very interesting experience. There were two soldiers standing outside the room with the coffin who weren’t allowed to blink or even move anything at all for an hour at a time. And when we entered the room, we weren’t allowed to talk.

The park in the surrounding area was also very beautiful. After seeing the coffin, we went to another historic area and market. My friends and I bought Taiwanese 小吃 (“small-eats”), played games (similar to the ones at the Florida State Fair), won a bubble-blowing gun, and rode around on bicycles that we rented that day. We departed after a couple hours and were on our way back to southern Taiwan. On the drive down, we sang Chinese and Taiwanese songs, ate chicken feet and oranges, chatted, and joked. Finally, around 7, we arrived at Kaohsiung city, and then my host mother took some of her coworkers and I out to eat goat, which has become my favorite meat 🙂

Finally, I’d like to say that there are times here in Taiwan when I really feel like I’m Taiwanese. Like when I was sitting in my host father’s parents house, around a small table, playing Mahjong with my host sister and her cousins, listening to the adults speaking Taiwanese, and joking with them in Chinese. Or when I’m at school, chatting with my friends (in Chinese of course) about Taiwanese culture or asking them questions about some things I don’t understand. Or when I’m riding on my bike in the morning to my bus stop and people are no longer staring at me like they did two months ago. Or even when I’m at the 7-11 down the street buying milk and bread for the next day’s breakfast, while texting my Taiwanese friends. I feel like I really fit in with this culture. I can’t recall any moments here when I felt really frustrated because of the difference in cultures, languages or religion. There may be many differences, but I understand fully that they will not change, and that there is no reason they should change. Taiwan honestly feels like my second home; I feel so comfortable here. My host family feels like they’re my real family, I definitely connect more with my Taiwanese friends than the other exchange students, I feel like I’ve known my Taiwanese friends my whole life, when I hear Chinese, it sometimes just sounds like English, and life just feels completely normal. Time is already flying by and I am begging it to slow down so I can relish my life in Taiwan just a little longer.

I truly can’t thank Rotary, and the Rotary Clubs of Clearwater East and Kaohsiung North, enough. “Thank you” will never be enough to show you all how thankful I am for this experience. Nevertheless, 謝謝你們!! Thank you all!! 🙂

Until next month,

陳安娜

November 27 Journal

Another month has passed here in Taiwan, and winter is nearing. The weather is finally cooling down! …for the most part…although it sometimes gets up to 85 in the middle of the day. And life here is still a breeze, so easy to adjust to, and so easy to love. I’m honestly enjoying being here so much. Really, when there’s so much to learn, so many people to be with, so much fun to be had, a language to learn, I don’t want to waste any time sulking around. I only have 8 or 9 months left, after all.

This month I took a special trip to Ping Tung County to visit the Taiwanese Aborigine Cultural Park. When we arrived, the day was cold and rainy, and seemed just like the perfect day to try and ruin our trip. But what my family and I got to see that day made up for the weather…in fact, what I saw that day moved me to tears and made me feel a much stronger pride in my own indigenous heritage (my father is half Indigenous American).

The entrance fee to the park was free that day, because that day (November 14th) was meant to honor the recently named, fourteenth “official” aboriginal tribe of Taiwan, the Sakizaya tribe. While walking around the park that day, we realized that there were almost no people there, even workers. We looked around at the old houses of aborigines from many years ago, with cliffs and mountains as a backdrop. The mist and light rain actually made for a different sort of beauty in that landscape. Then, we took a small bus to the performance center, where we watched the tribes’ traditional dances and singing. We were able to watch an amazing performance by each of the fourteen tribes, all having their individual movements and singing. But what really moved me was the lyric-less performance by the Sakizaya tribe, telling about their history.

Long ago, Chinese people came to Taiwan from mainland China, and like Europeans did to Native Americans, the Chinese overpowered, dominated, controlled, and killed many of Taiwan’s indigenous people. The Sakizaya tribe was especially in danger because they were notably strong-minded and spirited and did not like the intrusion of the Chinese at all. Unfortunately, though, they couldn’t really fight back because their human strength was no match for the Chinese’s weaponry. Therefore, when the Chinese came to attack the Sakizaya in 1878, the remaining tribe people fled to another tribe (the Ami tribe) for safety. Since the Ami didn’t try to fight against the Chinese, the Chinese didn’t attempt to harm them, and therefore the Sakizaya were safe hiding with the Ami. The Sakizaya have been with the Ami since that time, and it was not until 2004 that the Sakizaya began fighting for their own identity again, saying that they were not the Ami people, but rather, their own tribe.

The performance we witnessed that day at the Cultural Park, was the first performance by the Sakizaya tribe, finally being able to express their own culture and tradition. After a speech by the current Sakizaya leader (in their language), speaking about the importance of this day for them because they were finally being recognized as their own tribe, the Sakizaya performers jumped for joy, laughed and cried, expressing their happiness that day. For their performance, they wore their own traditional clothes, hummed their own tunes, and danced their own dances.

All in all, that day really impacted me and educated me more about the history of the original inhabitants of Taiwan. I am so thankful we went to the park that day, and were able to watch that emotional and breathtaking event.

Now, on another note, the Chinese language. Many people back at home told me I was crazy, that Chinese was the hardest language to learn in the world, and that learning a European language would be so much easier. I must disagree…not all European languages are as easy as they may have thought. Basque, Hungarian, Russian, Icelandic; all languages that make my knees shake. Chinese, on the other hand, is not as hard as many people seem to think. The basic grammar is fairly simple. It follows the Subject-Verb-Object pattern that English does. There aren’t really any verb tenses: present, past, future, etc, a verb always stays the same. There are no verb conjugations or cases according to gender or number, and there are only a few articles. The pronunciation is fairly easy for me now, although there is one sound I used to have trouble pronouncing; the Ü, which isn’t present in English. Writing and reading also comes pretty easily for me, and anyone can learn it; it just takes time and patience (Chinese characters are really not as scary as they may seem). And learning vocabulary is just like learning vocabulary in any other language.

The only thing that hinders me on occasion is the difference in tones. The word “Ma,” pronounced with 5 different tones all mean completely different things. Sometimes the tones sound very similar. For example, if you say the word “ma” with a high tone (just slightly high pitched), it means “mother.” “Ma” with a rising tone (starting at normal pitch and then making the pitch higher), means “flax/hemp.” “Ma” with a dipping tone (starting at middle pitch, falling to a low pitch, and then rising again) means “horse.” “Ma” with a falling tone (starting high and then falling to a lower pitch) means “to scold.” Finally, “ma” with a neutral tone (just normal pitch) at the end of a sentence makes that sentence a question.

Now that I’ve probably convinced you that Chinese really is hard, let me tell you that Taiwanese has eight different tones, and Vietnamese has nine different tones, as do some northern Chinese dialects…so standard Chinese really isn’t hard when compared to some other languages. And the tones just come naturally after a while; you don’t really have to think about it while talking.

On the same note, my English is already becoming a little strange. I spoke English for the first time in a while when I talked to my parents on skype the other day…and I felt myself pausing occasionally and struggling to get words out of my mouth. I said “eat medicine” instead of “take medicine,” and when explaining something about Chinese to my mother, I used “然後,” instead of using it’s English counterpart, “and then.” Also, I have one classmate that one day spoke to me in English and I when I spoke with her, I caught myself making a few mistakes like “I also am,” and “I don’t think so, too.”

Moving on, school is still going extremely well, and I’m loving it more and more with each passing day. I feel so comfortable at school and I really am so close with my classmates. They’re all the kind of people who can comfort other classmates when they cry, laugh with them, joke with them, and make them feel good when they’re down. And that also goes for my homeroom teacher, 程老師 (Teacher Cheng). He is really special and I can see that he’s making an impact on these 15 year olds’ lives. His style is different from many teachers here. When a student falls asleep in class, he asks if he/she is feeling ok, what time he/she went to sleep the night before, if they’ve been struggling with homework, and I’ve even heard classmates say they’re so glad that the teacher can lend an ear for any problems they may be having, whether it be family, relationship, life, or friendship problems. He really cares about all of his students, and there are always past students of his stopping by to say hello.

Next month my school is having their annual school festival, honoring the anniversary of the day the school was built/established. For the festival, every class must participate in the sports day, which is similar to the field days we had in elementary school, and every class must also participate in the other activities. For the festival, my class is doing a fashion show and we are making all the clothes out of paper. My friend told me that it’s class 1-11’s tradition to make a paper fashion show.

Lastly, I’d like to say good luck to all the 2010-2011 outbound candidates!! 加油!! I hear there are many from my high school applying 🙂 I’m so glad to see so many people are going for this wonderful opportunity. This really is a once in a lifetime, life-changing experience; there’s really nothing like being able to live an experience like this at such a young age…learn a new language, learn a new lifestyle, learn new things, meet new people, eat new things (haha), see the world through other people’s eyes, gather information to make opinions, learn more about the world, learn more about yourself and about others.

Probably one of the most significant things I have learned here is that people, under the skin, really are quite similar…if not exactly the same. Sure, there are cultural and language differences, but when you look beyond that and look into a person’s heart, thoughts, sentiments, feelings and emotions, you realize that we’re not as different as we seem from the outside.

So, in conclusion this month, I’d like to say “thanks” again to everyone; to my parents for their undying love and support :), to my Taiwanese friends and family, my Taiwanese classmates and teacher, to the Rotary Clubs of Clearwater East and Kaohsiung North, and to the past exchange students who mentioned Rotary to me…thank you so much. Thank you, Rotary. 我非常愛台灣 <3 天天都很開心!!

我下個月再寫

Wo xia guh yue zai xieh

I’ll write again next month

陳安娜

December 25 Journal

I wake up at 6:30 on Sunday morning; a brisk breeze blowing in through my open window and rooster calls coming in from the small land plot on the end of our street. I walk downstairs and my mother and I eat a small breakfast together, chatting about what foods we plan on buying today at the market; fish and mussels, fresh chicken (always killed just an hour or two before being sold), green vegetables and probably some pineapple.

At around 7, we step out our front door and the soles of our shoes silently greet the old cement road, like every other day. I stretch my arms and take a deep breath, wrinkling my nose a little at the faint smell of the perpetual pollution cloud that lurks around this area of town. As my mother and I get onto our bikes, my little brother stumbles out to us, both shoes untied, rubbing at his tired eyes…he says he wants to go with us and see what we’re going to see, too. He climbs up into the seat in the front of my mother’s bike, now just a little too small for him; his legs hang precariously close to the front wheel.

The time-worn wheels of our bicycles take us down that old bumpy road, across a tiny intersection, and when we pass two small buildings on either side of the road, my viewpoint opens up to crisp, green vegetable fields on all sides, sparkling with early morning dew. I take another deep breath, this time enjoying it much more. There is the slight smell of vegetation…and nothing else; no pollution or chemicals, since the vegetables grown here have no pesticides. Here, there are only a few scattered cement buildings in the background, no cars, a handful of people, fresh air and a stray dog or two. There’s an elderly woman on the side of the road, calling out to the few passers-by, asking us if we’d buy a bundle of corn for twenty cents; a faded, slightly warped straw hat shading her aged face from the rising sun.

I feel elated as I glide on my bicycle down the road, maneuvering around the small potholes here-and-there. The warmth of the sunshine fights for my attention against the sharp whip of wind against my face; the distant barks of dogs rise up countering the buzzing sound of a motor scooter up ahead, turning and driving down another street I hadn’t been down before. As my mother and I continued on our bikes, a flower field appeared in the distance, at first just a small patch of color, and soon growing into 花海 (Hua hai), its name, which means “an ocean of flowers” in Chinese.

Fluorescent orange, vivid pink and bright white flowers wave at us, flowing from side to side in the breeze. There are unmanned food stands and kiosks, which will be emitting the delicious smells of roasted squid, grilled corn, fried fish cakes, and fresh squeezed orange juice in the afternoon, when the street will be filled with people from all over who came to see the beauty of my town, Daliao. —

This month passed by even more quickly than the last. So much is has been happening: my school had its annual school festival, I gave my first Chinese speech, I took a trip to Sun Moon Lake, and I spent a lot of time learning new things, experiencing more and more, and of course, being thankful for this experience 🙂

My school’s annual festival was like nothing we have in schools back home. If anything, it was somewhat like the field days we used to have in elementary school. It lasted two days; the first day started off very interestingly, with a show of each class’ special costumes. Our class won first place in the costume contest out of all the first years! My classmates are very skilled and I’m so thankful they were so helpful and helped me with my outfit, or I think it wouldn’t have been able to participate in the costume parade 🙂 haha~ I was dressed as a Chinese legendary character named Ba Ye, and my friend dressed up as Qi Ye, another legendary character; their story is very intriguing:

— Qi Ye and Ba Ye used to be very good friends, so good that they said they couldn’t live without the other. Every day they met at the same time to drink tea under a bridge. One day, Ba Ye was early waiting for his friend as usual, and suddenly the weather changed; it began to rain very hard, making the water of the river under the bridge rise quickly. Qi Ye was on the way to the bridge when it began to rain, so he ran all the way back home to get an umbrella for he and his friend. Meanwhile, the water of the river kept getting higher and higher, but Ba Ye didn’t dare to move, because he was afraid that Qi Ye wouldn’t be able to find him, and he didn’t dare break their appointment. Seeing as Ba Ye was extremely short, he was drowned. When Qi Ye arrived he saw that Ba Ye was drowned, he was so sad that he decided to hang himself from a tree. When the Devil saw the way the two friends kept their promises, he was moved and asked God if these two could be made into the messengers of death, and God agreed. So Qi Ye and Ba Ye are said to be the messengers of death, those who take bad souls and bring them to Hell. —

After our costume parade, the rest of the day was composed of running contests, like three legged races and relay races. The second day (Saturday), had more races (our class got third place in the girls’ relay race!!), each class sold drinks and foods, and there was a fun performance by all the school’s clubs, including the Aborigine Club, the Dance Club, the Martial Arts Club, and the GuQin Club (the GuQin is a traditional, Chinese stringed instrument).

I also was fortunate enough to have my Host club take me on a trip to Sun Moon Lake (日月潭)! It’s one of Taiwan’s most beautiful places and it was such a great experience going there. There is a group of aborigines that used to inhabit the whole lake area (the Thao tribe), but now the lake basically belongs to the Taiwanese government. However, the aborigines still live there (although there are only 600 left), and there is even a small island in the middle of the lake, said to be sacred to the Thao, and it’s forbidden for anyone but the aborigines to step on the island. The water of the lake is pristine blue-green, and it is surrounded by lush mountains. The air is fresh and the land around it still maintains a rugged beauty to it, despite the hotels here and there spotting the lake’s banks. I was so happy I was able to go there and see the beauty of Sun Moon Lake first-hand. The photos I took really do no justice to the beauty there.

Last week, I gave my first Chinese speech. When I heard it had to be 7 minutes long, I thought “Oh no, I can’t do that…” but in the end, I had to correct my speech 3 or 4 times to make it short enough~ haha. I even surprised myself by getting first place out of the fifteen exchange students in my district, 3510! But the next time we have a speech, I will prepare more, so that I can say the speech without any papers or cards in my hand. It was really fun to write my speech about all the experiences I’ve had, all that I’ve learned, and the people I’ve met. The other exchange students also had great speeches; they had everyone laughing! And it was so fascinating to hear and see the experiences, thoughts, and new knowledge of the other exchange students here in Taiwan. (If you want to see the actual speech, here’s the youtube link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIFXpS6uIK8) 

A lot of people have been asking me what Christmas is like in Taiwan. It’s pretty different from Christmas in the U.S. For example, students still have to attend class, and workers still have to go to work. Also, there are some people that give gifts, and some that have dinner with their families, but it depends; some people feel December 25th has little or no significance whatsoever. Here in Taiwan, Christianity is a minority religion, Buddhism and Taoism being the major religions, so Christmas doesn’t have the same significance to many here that it does to many in the United States. A lot of people here still see it as a fun day to celebrate and spend time with family, or exchange a card and some chocolate, but it usually isn’t more than that. Please don’t take my description as a complaint, though! We exchange students are all around the world in different countries to learn new people’s way of living, new customs and cultures, so I see nothing saddening or melancholy in not being home for Christmas. I’m here with a wonderful family, wonderful friends, and I’m living a life I wouldn’t change for anything. Also, I know my biological family is back at home, happy and safe, so no worries 🙂

Happy holidays everyone & happy winter vacation!

安娜

January 31 Journal

I’m sitting in my new host family’s living room (which I’ll talk about soon), writing my sixth journal. The days are flying by and I feel like I’m fighting to keep time on my side…five months have already passed and I only have about six months left here on this beautiful island of Taiwan.

Seeing the new outbounds for this year, I remember this time last year when I was wondering what it would be like to live in Taiwan, only about a month after learning Taiwan was indeed my final destination…how would life change for me? Who would I meet? How would living at such a distance from my home (literally and metaphorically) change my perspectives, outlooks, and interests? How long would it be until I could speak the language? What would school be like? What if I couldn’t connect with the Taiwanese people the way I connected with people in the US, because of all the different barriers between us? There were so many questions I was dying to ask. Look at me now, though: more knowledgeable and independent, living in a new country! I feel like I’ve gotten a few years older here, in only a few months.

I was able to understand and communicate well after three months (although I don’t consider myself fluent yet, after five months). This was the biggest step for me so far here. The acquisition of the basic language really took me to a new level; I was no longer the guest, the foreigner, the person who didn’t understand what was going on, the person excluded from most conversations, the person being talked about in whispers. I no longer felt as reserved with my thoughts and opinions as I did in the beginning. It was easier to speak my mind or to lighten the mood with a joke or two. I was able to go places and do things on my own without feeling helpless as my host sister spoke for me.

Then, came more and more notions of the language. I learned bits of Taiwanese here and there, the slang came easily, I learned to understand what was joking and what was serious, and I heard people using lines from famous movies like Cape No. 7 in their conversations, and even started using some famous quotes as well. People started asking me, “How do you know how to say that?” or, “I never thought I’d hear a foreigner saying that!” Haha~

In February or March last year, I began learning Chinese with a Taiwanese friend/ex-student of my mother’s, Yen Fen Wu, and let me tell you all, I am so-so-so grateful to her for her help with learning Chinese. If I were you, 2010-2011 outbounds, I would definitely start learning the language now, just as everyone else is advising you to do. And for people coming to Taiwan, there are tons of interesting, funny, sad Taiwanese dramas which you can watch for free at www.mysoju.com, which really help with language learning! I really advise one-on-one tutoring, though. It may not be as readily available, but this is the fastest way to learn a language (for me, at least), in combination with self studying. Self studying is great to do in one’s free time. I studied from my own text and phrase books, listened to a bunch of Taiwanese music (trying to understand the lyrics) and of course, watched tons of Taiwanese dramas.

There are other things which I’ve been unconsciously adjusting to here in Taiwan, like the way I wear my clothes, the way I talk, or even the way I walk and carry myself around. And the biggest compliments I receive now are the ones from people saying, “You’re not Taiwanese? Oh, but you grew up here, right?” or when I went to another family reunion, “So you’re the Chen’s first daughter! You’re so grown up now!” or “Wow, I almost mistook you for a foreigner, you look a little like one.” They seem a little over the top, and I know not everyone thinks I’m Taiwanese, but these compliments really make me feel so happy 🙂

But still, the language is one of the most important elements of blending in. Even at the monthly Rotary meetings, and the occasional Rotary events I go to, I’ve been able to speak without preparing too much beforehand. HINT to outbounds: you should prepare at least a little something to say for every Rotary event, meeting, party or whatever it may be. I’ve learned the hard way that I always need to know what to say when I’m suddenly called on to give a “short” two minute speech in Chinese…haha~

Besides that, like I mentioned before, I’ve moved to my second host family. It was hard to move from the wonderful first family I had here, especially since I moved from that little town of Daliao to the middle of Kaohsiung city, very close to my school, and this is the first time in my life that I’ve lived in a city this big. When I look out the window of our apartment on the seventh floor and see city scape as far as the eye can see, I feel a rush of excitement~ It’s so different from every place I’ve ever lived in!

And I love my new host family, too 🙂 My host mother is so kind, caring, and understanding, and her son, Yahng-Yahng, is a little shy, but also has a warm personality, and reminds me of my own little brother. We have agreed on a special schedule: Tuesday and Saturday are English days, where we must all speak English, Thursday is Taiwanese day, and the rest of the week is for speaking Chinese.

This past week I was also chosen, along with one rebound student who went to Germany two years ago, to be interviewed on a Taiwanese radio station! What a surprise!! …and I was so nervous…but in the end, it was fine, and our interview will be aired on Taiwanese radio in the morning of February 9th.

One of the last things that has been going on this month is that every Saturday and Sunday morning, all the other exchange students and I am learning two things: 1) Kung Fu, and 2) Ba Jia Jiang dance.

Ba Jia Jiang is a very interesting part of Taiwanese and Chinese culture. From what I’ve heard from most of my Taiwanese friends, no one really knows what Ba Jia Jiang originally was and where it came from. However, most people know that the Ba Jia Jiang (which roughly translated means Eight Warriors) were evil warders who took part in a very old, traditional Chinese performance, where they wore beautifully elaborate clothing and had their faces painted in bright colors forming frightening patterns. For example, sometimes they use red paint to make the illusion that they are frowning, or use black to make their eyebrows stand out and just make their faces look very threatening. They surrounded a spirit medium, who would be mutilating himself. The Ba Jia Jiang carried fans with Chinese characters that would protect them from evil spirits, and they were not allowed to smile or joke. They would be there to ward off any evil spirits and they had a special walk/dance that was very distinctive, which the exchange students and I are learning now.

Unfortunately though, the performance is now sometimes tied with violence and gangs. Many of the performers nowadays are adolescent boys who self mutilate and inflict violence on other performers, sometimes throwing knives and other sharp objects in the air just so they will land on their own heads, or on the heads of others. They become this way during the performance in a religious fervor, thinking they’re in a state between human and god, between reality and magic.

There are so many interesting things I’m learning here in Taiwan!

So that’s about it for this month, and if anyone has any questions about coming to Taiwan (or even about exchange in general), feel free to e-mail me and I’d be happy to try to answer all of your questions as best as possible J

Until next month!

陳安娜

March 21 Journal

It really feels like I just finished writing my last journal yesterday…and I didn’t even write a journal last month, the reason being that I wanted to wait for my father to come before writing again. My father came on February 28th and stayed here in Taiwan with me until March 10th!! I was so happy to have him here and to show him around to many places around beautiful Taiwan. We were really lucky and were able to see many cultural aspects that are especially Taiwanese.

Last month had Chinese New Year! My new host mother took me to her father’s house in Pingtung City. There we met with all of her sisters and her younger brother, and all of their children. The first night, we ate a traditional Chinese New Year dinner (tons and tons of delicious Taiwanese foods), and I ate “long life vegetable,” which is a long, leafy green vegetable that one is supposed to eat without biting it into pieces, in hopes that his or her life will be long. On the second and third day of the New Year, we spent much time with the family and even went to pray for the deceased family members (my family is Buddhist). I accompanied my host mother, her three sisters, her younger brother, and some of their children to pray at a temple and cemetery. We used incense and at the end of the ceremony burned paper money (no, not real money) so that the deceased could use it. It was a very interesting experience.

Two weeks ago, all the exchange students from District 3510 (Kaohsiung, Pingtung) had a performance at the 12th annual District 3510 Rotary conference. I mentioned in my last blog that all of the exchange students were practicing a dance every Saturday and Sunday from 10-12 at Central Park here in Kaohsiung city, and all of our practice since January was for this very performance. We learned BaJiaJiang, a very traditional Taiwanese dance, as well as a few other dances that were more contemporary (Lady Gaga, etc). The practices every weekend were really fun, and actually helped me get closer to the exchange students. My first family lived in Daliao, which is very far from the actual city of Kaohsiung, where the rest of the students live, so for the first five months of my exchange I had very little contact with the rest of the students. But now that I live in the city, and also due in large part to the weekly dance practices, I got to know the exchange students a lot more. I have also been using a lot of language recently; the exchange students selected me to be the dance leader, and so I’ve had to translate everything our teacher says, into English and into Spanish for the South American exchange students. The students all understand most of what the teacher says, so little by little, I’ve noticed that I don’t need to translate as much as I had to in the beginning.

Another exciting thing is that my father came to visit me!! He arrived on Sunday, February 28th at around 10:30 p.m. The following day I took him to Xizihwan, which is near the port/coast area of Kaohsiung, and then took him by ferry to the small island in the port area. We invited a friend of mine and the three of us ate grilled squid, giant shrimp, fried scallops and drank cold, sweet tea (since the weather was similar to Florida summer weather).

My father and I were even lucky enough to stumble upon a procession of worshipers, which I realized was a performance of the real BaJiaJiang. The men in the front took large swords, metal-spiked clubs and mace-like weapons to their backs and foreheads. Their blood was wiped on “paper hell money” and then burned in piles on the ground, which the men then walked upon. The fourth man in the procession had a black piece of cloth covering his eyes, and when I asked why, I was told it was because he was supposed to have had the spirit of a god inside of him, so he was able to walk the distance to the final temple without looking at the path he was supposed to walk. The performance was very interesting and I was so happy we were able to see such a traditional Taiwanese cultural aspect. These types of performances are becoming rarer and rarer and I have some Taiwanese friends who have never seen something like this.

My father and I also went to visit my school, went to Cheng Ching Lake, Lotus Lake, Kenting, the largest Buddhist temple in Taiwan, and even the largest Taoist temple in all of south Asia. I had been to most of the places before, so it was fun to play the role of the tour guide and show my father the beauties of this place I now call home.

The time when my father was here was flawed, however, by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake that occurred in south Taiwan, near where I live. I have experienced only one other earthquake during my time in Taiwan, and that time it occurred very far away, on the east coast of Taiwan, while this one was much more serious. My father and I were visiting my first host family and we were eating breakfast when I began to hear the windows shaking. All of a sudden, my first host father shouted “Earthquake!” and as we ran downstairs and out of the house, I heard things falling behind us and glass breaking. Even when we were standing outside, and the whole situation felt a bit safer, my legs were quivering because the ground didn’t stop shaking for about another 10 seconds. The feeling was definitely unsettling; my head felt uncontrollably dizzy and I felt like I needed to sit down quickly or my legs would buckle.

The same day of the earthquake, we went to visit the giant Taoist temple, which was situated in the town next to the area where the earthquake’s epicenter was. What we saw was a bit disquieting. The first impression of the temple was a splendor like one I’ve never seen before. The size of the temple and the surrounding temples was very startling, and the vivid green grasses of the surrounding grounds gave the whole place an extremely free, peaceful, tranquil feeling. It was also very quiet and beautiful, as there were no people to be seen. However, when we walked in through the gates, I began to notice little details that proved the gravity of the earthquake. The paths on the grounds were lined by hand-carved, stone statues of Taoist gods and goddesses, but little by little I became aware that a few here and there were chipped, some broken, and some even fallen and completely crumbled on the ground. As we approached the massive main temple, I noted the central gate had huge architectural flaws resulting from the earthquake. As I observed it more closely, it looked like it could topple with any type of stress applied to it. The main temple had pieces of concrete, whole wooden busts, and brick fragments sprinkled all over the area around it.

Near the end of the time my father was here, my current host mother drove us two hours south to Kenting. This was the second time for me to go to Kenting, and it was just as fun and fresh as the first time! The ocean was beautiful and the drive there was also very scenic. My father said that many of the areas in South Taiwan remind him of Costa Rica, where he is originally from. We were able to go to two different national parks and even to the night market, where we happened upon a Peruvian man selling handmade leather jewelry. He, my father, and I all spoke in Spanish~ haha. The national parks were stunning and for the first time in a while, I saw wild monkeys!! They were so cute 🙂

Apart from the earthquake, my father’s visit was one of the highlights of this month and I felt so happy, and even proud to show my father around south Taiwan!

Also, I just learned last week that on April 9th-11th (two days before my birthday, April 13th haha) we exchange students will all be going to Penghu Islands!! These islands (previously called “Pescadores”–meaning fishermen in Spanish) are situated off the west coast of Taiwan, between Taiwan and China, and are absolutely beautiful! I’m really so happy that we have so many opportunities to travel to so many places in Taiwan 🙂

I’m looking forward to the last FOUR months of my stay here…I can’t believe there are only four months left. I’ll make sure to treasure these last four months with all I have and make the most out of it. I was at the exchange student’s weekly gathering yesterday, where we practice for another performance in May (all of Taiwan’s Rotary is going), and when we found out our friend from Ecuador is leaving next month, our Korean friend began crying. As we were trying to comfort her, the air around us seemed to change as a feeling of sorrow swept through every one of us. Time has really flown by, and even though we were warned about this from the beginning, it’s really an unsettling feeling thinking about how we will pretty soon be leaving all of these unforgettable memories behind us, though we will still always have them in our hearts and minds. We exchange students, no matter where we’re from or where we go all make similar great friendships and have so many memories and emotions that we will carry with us for the rest of our lives.

Really, so, so much has happened here. And because of this year, my life, my future has changed…I have changed as a person…for the better, of course 🙂

Thankfully, I will definitely be coming back next year to Taiwan, whether it be to come back for college or just to visit, so I’ll keep my spirits up for now and enjoy my time here at home, in my beautiful Taiwan.

安娜

April 21 Journal

It’s time for my eighth journal! This time it feels like forever since I wrote my last journal … speaking of time (for the millionth time? haha), minutes, hours, days, weeks are now blurring together. I always seem to catch myself thinking, “did that happen this weekend or last?” Or maybe it’s that now that I only have three months before I go home, I’m trying not to think too much about time … I’m at a point in my exchange where I can listen to music I heard throughout my year here and cry 🙁 It’s just hitting me now just how much this year means to me, my future, and just my life in general, and how much it has changed me as a person.

I’m sorry but I have to start my journal with a complaint … I’ve noticed recently that there is something about Taiwanese schools that really bothers me. There are some teachers at the school that are called “drillmasters.” They are ex-soldiers/militants who, in addition to teaching, are at school to catch any students wearing the uniform wrong, smoking, holding hands, and/or doing other inappropriate things at school, and then to punish them. However, many of them are nothing but adult bullies in my opinion. Take our class’s drillmaster, for example. One time, at the beginning of class, a few students went to the back of the classroom to get their textbooks and the drillmaster yelled out, “I didn’t say you could go get your textbooks! Stand in the back of the room, all of you, for the rest of class.” One of the boys in the back had his hands behind his back while standing and she interrupted the class just to say to him, “What are you doing with your hands behind you? Get out!! I don’t even want to see your face!” Another time, she was calling on random people in the class to answer questions; the first few questions were about the earthquakes that have been happening recently. She asked the first student where the two most recent earthquakes happened (has nothing to do with the class, national security), and when the students didn’t know, the drillmaster said, “How can you not know? Geez! Do kids nowadays never watch the news or what?!” She often wastes class time embarrassing students and just bullying the students in general. In any case, this drillmaster is too over the top most of the time, and Taiwanese schools can definitely do without the adult bullies in school. We’re not in the army, WE’RE IN HIGH SCHOOL.

So now on to the important stuff…

The beginning of April had a holiday called Qingming Festival (a.k.a. Tomb Sweeping Festival); it’s the first day of the fourth lunar calendar month. The days before the actual festival are called cold food days and are special for making and eating spring rolls. Therefore, that day my host mother took me to the traditional market to go buy ingredients for the spring rolls with her. It was amazing to see the spring roll “skins” being made with very sticky dough; the hand of the woman making the skins was super fast and skilled, spinning the dough on the hot metal pan into a flat, pancake looking thing, and then another woman took them off the skillet only after a few seconds. We also bought sausage, lima beans, cabbage, dried tofu, pork, egg, other vegetables, and ground peanut. Then we got home and waited for two of my friends to come over and then the five of us all made spring rolls together, putting all the ingredients together in the freshly made skins, and then ate them! They were delicious 🙂

During this month, my host mother and I have made sort of a habit of going hiking in the mountains near the outskirts of Kaohsiung, Cai Mountain and Shou Mountain. We usually go very early on a Saturday or Sunday morning and then hike for at least 2 hours. The first time we went, we took my little host brother (11 y/o) and we sort of got lost … well, we went off the well beaten path and walked on a smaller, less walked on path, and then when going back down the mountain, we ran into two soldiers. When we asked them how to get back to the parking, they said we could take the path all the way down, but that at the end, there was only an entrance and not an exit, plus it is only allowed to be used for military personnel, so we may not be able to get out through that way. When I heard that, I almost started laughing … so how were we going to get out? But thankfully, in the end, we ran into an old woman who knew the paths of the mountain very well, and she led us through a short cut that went straight to the parking area. Aside from that little mishap, our hikes are very enjoyable and we can see many types of birds, plants, small animals and even monkeys! I think the monkeys are very cute but the Taiwanese usually don’t like them because they say these monkeys can take food from hikers and even though the monkeys are pretty small, I heard they sometimes start attacking hikers if they don’t give up the food…(scary)

My 18th birthday was also this month! On the morning of my birthday, the 13th, nothing out of the ordinary happened; I walked to school and class started as usual. At lunch, I started to eat the beef cup-noodles my Finnish friend gave me as a present, and two of my classmates told me to go downstairs to the first floor to eat lunch. When we went down, my whole class was standing there with smiles on all of their faces; they sang “Happy Birthday” to me in English, Chinese, and Taiwanese :’) I was touched! Then some of them handed me hand-made birthday cards, which is how the Taiwanese do cards ~haha. I’d really like to thank my class for doing that for me. It really made my week. Also, the weekend after my birthday, I had another small celebration with the exchange students and a friend at Central Park. We took tons of pictures, just had fun in the park, and played around in the MRT station 🙂 They are really all great friends to me that I couldn’t ever forget.

I realized that I have been leaving my thanks out of my past journals, so I’d like to once again say my thanks to the Rotary Clubs of Clearwater East and Kaohsiung North for supporting me, financially, and in spirit 🙂

A list of a few more things I love about Taiwan:

Watermelon milk, dong gua pearl tea and soup dumplings (xiaolongbao) with lots of ginger and spicy soy sauce

How much people love food here and how walking two seconds in any direction can get you cheap, good food

Actually, walking two seconds in any directions can get you to pretty much anything: the doctor’s, night markets, shopping areas, theaters, movie renting stores, etc.

I don’t have to worry about shaving my legs (sorry if that’s too much information)

Pretty much everything is cheap, cheap, cheap

Taiwanese people are just plain out wonderful people

Taiwanese nicknames: Rock, Banana, Little Fatty, China woman, Duck, etc.

Night markets

Transportation is amazing! Subway, busses, taxis…all cheap and super convenient

Hair cutters give free massages

And I recently realized Taiwanese people love love love to eat fried chicken and drink watermelon juice with it haha

Until next month, 安娜

May 25 Journal

I walk down San-duo street, from the subway station to my host family’s home like I have been doing most days since January and think back on my year here in Taiwan. I can’t believe nine months have already passed; it was nine months ago that I was saying goodbye to my parents, brother, and grandmother at the Tampa International Airport and having a short, two minute breakdown on the plane to Chicago. Nine months have passed since I stepped off the plane from Taipei to Kaohsiung and in a rushed, confused couple of hours met my first host family, counselor, Rotary chairperson, and then went to eat what I thought was jellyfish (which I learned was actually just pork in a rice-made, gooey, transparent dumpling). Nine months have passed since I’ve met some of the most amazing people I have EVER met: Taiwanese, and exchange students.

Leaving this place is really going to be hard. Like everyone before and after me have said and will say, leaving our family and friends behind at home is ok because we’ll see them soon again, but leaving our family and friends behind in our new home is completely different; who knows when we’ll be seeing them all again.

However, I’ve been working really hard to get all my transcripts, past syllabi, course materials and other things together, and studying Chinese extra hard lately because my new short term goal is to come back for college next August. I have already visited my preferred college (National Sun-Yat Sen University – 中山大學) a few times and have gotten to know the counselor of the school’s foreign language major/studies, as I hope to come back next year and get a Bachelor’s Degree from this university in Foreign Languages.

The things I’ve been doing lately to better my Chinese: I bought a new empty book that is especially made with little squares to practice writing Chinese characters; I’ve been reading the newspaper almost every day at school; I started watching Taiwanese dramas again haha… but they’re really very good since all Taiwanese TV has Chinese subtitles so it’s good for listening and reading comprehension skills; I’ve also been taking practice tests online in preparation for the a big Chinese test I will be taking: the Chinese T.O.P., aka, Chinese Test of Proficiency.

I was hoping to take this test the minute I learned I must take this test in order to apply to universities and/or scholarships here, but I found out I was too late to take it in Taiwan (it was May 1st), so now I have to take it in NEW YORK next January/February. It’s very troublesome, but I’m really set on coming back to continue my Chinese studies, so I’m going for it!

Aside from busying myself with college stuff, I’ve also been preparing for a big speech coming up this Friday. I will be one of the two inbound students giving a speech at this year’s Taiwan Rotary Youth Exchange Program Annual Event. I’m a bit nervous, of course, but I know opportunities like these are helping me now and will help me for the future. I can’t wait!

On a bike trip this past weekend, all the exchange students from Districts 3510 and 3470 got together to go on a bike ride in Kaohsiung (my city) and I was given what I consider to be the biggest compliment exchange students could give me. They took one look at me and said, “You’re so Taiwanese!” …it was almost 100 degrees and I was wearing a hat and a black sweater over my clothes to cover from the sun. I was planning on wearing long pants and a mouth cover for extra blockage, but I figured I may pass out from heat stroke and so just ended up using a ton of sun block ~haha. I’m just as worried about getting skin damage/premature wrinkling as the next Taiwanese is.

So to conclude, this past month has been quite the busy one, but I’m actually really liking the busyness as it helps me keep my mind off leaving Taiwan…however, I’m often torn between two emotions: yearning to go back home to Palm Harbor, and yet very reluctant to leave my home, Kaohsiung. It’s almost a scary feeling. I’ll be leaving most of this year behind me on a 20 some hour plane ride.

Why is the expanse between Kaohsiung and Palm Harbor so long?

Until next time, 安娜

July 20 Journal

I leave tomorrow. I can’t seem to get the thought through my head. This whole year has pretty much come to an end.

I realized that my past journals have all been about my leaving Taiwan, so now, I think I’ll focus on different things…and as a warning, this journal may seem rushed and a bit messy, but that’s just because it’s my last day in Taiwan, and I’m really busy~

The conference at the end of May went well! My speech went by pretty smoothly (only a few small slips and short blankouts haha), and it was fun to be able to see all the exchange students in the Multidistrict Taiwan–I even saw Steven! The first time I’ve seen him since the plane ride from San Diego to Taipei. I was also told by a guy I met from Michigan that my accent sounds really south Taiwanese (a.k.a. not very standard Chinese, with a bit of Taiwanese mixed in :D). And this past month I also switched to my third host family! I live a bit farther from the downtown area of Kaohsiung, in the northern, a bit upscale region of “Aozihdi.” I have three younger host sisters and a really nice mother and father 🙂

Another cool thing is that since my mother (my biological mother in the US) is an ESL teacher, she has students from all around the world. One student, Ku- En Chang a.k.a. Alvin from Taiwan, came back to Taiwan to see his family, and he came to Kaohsiung with some friends to see me! It was nice to see a friend from the US 😀 We all went out to eat dinner and the following day went to sing at KTV (karaoke).

After living in Taiwan for a year, calling it home for a year and now reflecting on this year, I’ve realized there are a lot of things in Taiwan that you really have to live here for a while to notice; things that I’m sure surprises foreigners here in Taiwan at first, but things that we eventually get used to; things that the tourist will probably not notice; things I noticed the first week I was in Taiwan and the week my father came to Taiwan: The bright red, paper banners with calligraphy hung on the doors for Chinese New Year’s but kept there the whole year; the outside markets with bare-handed, elderly, strong women butchering all kinds of bloody meats; 台客- those guys riding on scooters super fast, weaving in-and-out of cars, hair usually an attempted-blonde, white and blue rubber house slippers on their tanned feet, shirtless or wearing a wife-beater, and no helmets or non-buckled helmets; no, those red splashes on the ground aren’t blood; knowing when a person really means it, or is just saying it out of “courtesy;” the vicious circle of obsessive studying, cram-schooling, and staying up late imposed on Taiwanese children; when you answer “neither” to the question “do you want to eat rice or noodles,” people think you’re on a dangerous diet (“you can’t get full on a meal without rice or noodles!”); eating so much you feel like you’re going to burst, and then having mothers telling you “多吃ㄧ點! 你太瘦了” “eat more! you’re too skinny;” squatting toilets are the best! clean and you don’t have to touch it with any part of your body; you have to order your food the second you sit down or the waiter will just stand there staring at you until you order; those are stray dogs, even though they have collars–look, it’s missing a leg; the difference between the Taiwanese, Chinese, Hakka and many aboriginal languages is very easy to tell; you know the weatherman must be lying when he says it’s only 95 degrees outside; you know not to ever really listen to the weatherman because he’s only talking about Taipei; those are Thai people, those are Filipinos, those are Vietnamese, those are Indonesians, those are Aborigines, those are Hakka, those are northern Taiwanese, those are southern Taiwanese, those are Japanese, and yes, I can tell the difference; no, there really isn’t air conditioning in the homes, schools, some public buildings, some government buildings, etc, and no, they’re not going to turn the air conditioning on; walking on the street with scary Taiwanese traffic is the norm; you will get used to the staring; those really loud noises are just firecrackers at 5 in the morning in the middle of the city. (For more of these true blue Taiwanese facts of daily life, take a look at the “You know you’ve lived in Taiwan too long when…” list on facebook! –http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2220957263&v=info&ref=ts)  

….The list goes on and on and on. Taiwan has so many little quirks here and there, but that’s what makes it so beautiful 🙂

And, although I’ll be missing my Taiwan more than anything, to be fair to home-sweet-home, here’s a list of things I’m mostly missing these days:

1. My family and friends
2. Hearing and speaking English and Spanish
3. DIVERSITY! I miss being in a class of 15 people and 10 are from different ethnic roots, backgrounds, cultures, traditions, etc.
4. My grandmother’s Costa Rican food, peanut butter, and REAL orange juice
5. Air conditioning and less humidity
6. Going to college (I go to a community college back in Florida)
7. Going to school around 8 and getting out around 1~2
8. Wearing my own clothes all the time (uniforms are great when I’m too lazy to get ready in the morning, though XD)
9. Not having to walk/ride bike so much in infernal weather
10. Sleep 🙂

As a last note, I must say, my year has been less than perfect (as every exchange student’s has been, I’m sure), but there has been a big mishap that has altered the last feelings of my trip all-together. My airplane ticket was bought from the Taipei Airport, not Kaohsiung. So, unlike all my exchange student friends, I will not be getting a farewell from all my classmates, host families, and friends at the airport, and instead may actually have to take the high-speed rail to Taipei. The fact that I’m not going to be leaving from Kaohsiung really hurts me, because I’ve called this place home for practically an entire year, there are so many memories here, I’ve said goodbye to all the exchange students here, and all my friends and families would be able to say goodbye to me here.

I know I’ve written all my journals this past year to make it seem like this year in Taiwan has been perfect, but as everyone knows it can’t possibly be absolutely, 100% perfect, but this year was not about being perfect, it was about experiencing new things, learning new lessons, re-learning old lessons, and seeing life through a different cultural perspective, through other people’s eyes.

This will be the last time I write a journal in Taiwan T_T However, I just want to thank the Rotary Clubs of Clearwater East and Kaohsiung North, my three host families, and last but definitely not least, my friends here in Taiwan, and my family back at home for supporting me throughout this whole 11 month stay in the beautiful, tropical, warm island of Taiwan. This year was definitely one I’ll remember forever; one that has changed me as a person, and has changed my future 🙂 Thank you everyone.

I LOVE TAIWAN!!

Good luck to the new outbounds and inbounds, and I hope that you all have a prosperous, pleasurable, and memorable year (which I’m sure you all will :D).

With love,

陳安娜

Adriana Ojeda

Andrea’s Bio

Well to start off, I want to thank everyone in the Rotary Youth Exchange program for giving me this wonderful opportunity that will allow me to learn a new language, meet new people, and grow as a person. Also I feel very fortunate to have the chance to represent my country and since I have lived in so many cities, these experiences have helped me to learn about the large diversity of cultures throughout our country. Currently I am a senior at Cypress Bay High School in Weston, Florida and I love it! I love to participate in after school activities such as Honors French Club, National Honor Society, PRIDE, and my new found passion, Lacrosse (even though I am not that good).

Right now I live with my mom, my dad, my sister Natalia, and my dog Simon. I have a great relationship with both my parents but I am especially close to my mom (everyone says we’re like twins!). What I love about our relationship is that we are both very open with each other and we tell it like it is. We are both very much alike in the sense that we always try to make the best out of any situation and try to make people around us feel comfortable. As for my sister (which is my dad but with a wig), we have always had an interesting relationship. As I am one who easily attaches to people as she is the opposite, we have always had a hard time to be affectionate with each other. But regardless of our polar personalities, she is my sister above anything else and I will always love herJ. As for my Dad, who is the authority figure of the house, I have always felt a great sense of admiration and respect for him. Always when I have two pathways in front of me, I ask myself what would Dad do? And based on that, I make my decision. And even though I feel like I do have a close knit family, I know that this experience will give me the chance to have my own autonomy, and since I will be far away from my security blanket, I will have to prove to myself and everyone else that I can do it and am ready to be on my own.

 Andrea’s Journals

October 15 Journal

Bonjour!! I know that my journal is a tad bit late but I have been so busy with school and French classes that I hardly have the time to get on the computer! Well. my departing day was August 14th and saying good-bye to my parents was more emotional than I would have ever thought. It was then and there that it finally hit me that I wasn’t going to be able to see their familiar faces for a whole year!! I grabbed unto my mom and dad and tried to grab every scent, tear, and emotion that I could and take it with me. I arrived to the beautiful city of Brussels on August 15th at 8:00 AM.

There I was one of the last people who received their baggage so embarrassingly enough, my family that I had never even met before had to wait for me for about an hour! As soon as I was out the door I tried to remember what my new parents’ faces looked like from the pictures they had sent before. But not one face in that endless crowd of people matched the pictures. I quickly thought great. They probably got tired of waiting and went to the Rotary Club to ask for a new exchange student that wouldn’t make them wait.

As I was about to surrender all my hopes on ever finding them, I noticed four ecstatic looking faces staring directly at me. Confused, I looked behind me expecting to see another exchange student waving back at them. When I finally realized that it was for me, they were already surrounding me and filling me with excitement and terror at the same time. When I had the time to reflect I began analyzing their faces and realizing that they were starting to look more and more like the faces in the pictures I had received a couple of months back. It was at that moment that I knew that my new life had just begun.

They happily started introducing themselves while each of them gave me a kiss on the cheek. I found out that my new mom’s name was Florence, my dad’s Joel, my sister (who is 17 and is right now in Texas with Rotary) was Celine and my younger brother’s name was Boris. I only met my new sister for a couple of hours in the airport since she had to catch her flight to leave to Texas.

As soon as we got to my new home, which is located in Herve, Belgium, I was astonished at how many cows would be my new neighbors! They were all around us in immense pasture fields that go on for miles. As soon as we arrived, my parents started showing me around the house which is a very comfortable and spacey 2 story-house. I was very pleased and excited when I finally got to see my new room that I would be staying in for 5 months, for it is extremely colorful and full of artisanal and exotic looking objects. I quickly realized that my host sister was definitely an artist, for all of her room was full of her paintings and they are very, well… I would say interesting haha. I also met my new dog ( not to mention my new favorite sleeping buddy!) Juliette who is a beautiful brown and black schnauzer (I think that’s how you write it =S) aged 10.

As I was beginning to settle in to unpack my luggage I heard two knocks at the door and curiously peeped through the staircase to see who it might be. When the door opened I noticed two very tall and European looking girls standing with bright gleaming faces skimming the surface to see the new American girl that would be replacing their best friend (or in other words me!). As soon as they saw me, their expressions automatically changed from skepticism to curiosity to excitement. They eagerly waved back and forth and I, sharing their enthusiasm ran down the stairs to meet them. I soon found out that they were sisters who live right next door to us! The older one is named Flore age 19 and the younger one who is 16 (even though she looks like she is 20!) is named Maoud. They have quickly become two of my best friends in Belgium and almost all of my progress in French is due to them!

My school which is called the IPH is about a walking distance of 10 minutes from my house and I am loving it! Everybody is so nice and so curious and amazed when I tell them that I’m from Miami! The weather here is getting colder by day and I am dreading the day it will start to snow! I get cold very easy … jaja but I guess that’s a part of the learning experience ;)…

I have sent some pictures of my new family and friends and some places that I have visited! I hope you enjoy and I will keep you posted! I hope everyone is having an amazing experience and enjoying every second of it! Au revoir!

December 1 Journal

Bonjour tout le mondee! I have been here over 3 months and I am loving it!(I know since the last time we talked I definitely had a problem with the time issue of sending my report and I know this time isn’t any better but I had to find a Cafè with internet because my family’s computer has some major virus issues:s…) But I don’t want you to think that I didn’t learn my lesson because I definitely did! And next time I’ll get it right and be one of the first ones to send it in!

The ironic thing is that out of all the countries in the world that I could have chosen I think I chose the one where time is the biggest issue! No one here is ever late and the saying ‘I am fashionably late’ is non-existent. I have definitely been learning the hard way of respecting schedules and understanding the way Belgians think. As my counselor, Françis explained to me, if you make a rendez-vous (date/meeting) with a Belgian and you start by arriving late you are insulting what they value the most which is their time. So as far as that I can definitely say that it has been a huge culture shock to know how much they respect that morale but on the other hand I know that if I start having more of a Belgian mentality in that sense I could definitely use it to my advantage and avoid any problems due to my ‘lack of sense of urgency’ as my dad likes to call it.

So other than that small bump on the road (that thankfully I am learning to smooth out!) everything has been amazing! All of my dreams since about a month ago have been all in French (even though for some reason in my dreams I speak it really bad =S) but I definitely take that as a leap forwards because it means that I am now officially thinking in my host language:) My family is absolutely amazing and I have no desire to change in January! If it were up to me I would stay with them the whole year! I have my neighbor Flore which has become my best friend and my host brother Boris (whom I call Bo Bo!) who has become like the little brother that I’ve always wanted! He has an amazing sense of humor and always finds ways to make me laugh. Even though he’s only 15 he totally understands my situation and I can tell him absolutely everything. I don’t even want to think about when I’m going to move!:( I know I’m gonna cry!

In school everything has been going smoothly and in comparison to the beginning I have been doing much better. I understand everything and I’ve even passed a couple of tests! I feel extremely proud of myself that even though my grammar is not, let’s say, ‘accurate,’ I make my point and it is understandable:). I am learning the colorful vocabulary of my region which is called Wallonia and have even learned a couple of words in the ancient French, Wallon. Most of the words are, let’s say, ‘politically incorrect’ so unfortunately I cannot share them with you through mail. And because Belgium is divided into three regions, one being Flanders, my host dad, Joel has actually had the patience to teach me a couple of words in Flamant, for example Ich ben Andrea! (which means I am Andrea, as you probably all guessed), so I guess I’ll come back learning two languages:)… Not! First I think I should get French down and then I’ll think about learning one of the hardest languages possible!

But speaking about the main reason why I came here(the reason being learning how to speak French!) I’m not going to lie and say it’s perfect because it definitely has its ups and its downs. There are days that I feel as if I were born French and speak with an extreme ease, but there are other days (like today!):( which I feel as if I were in another planet! But that is occurring less and less every day and for that I am extremely grateful:).

I haven’t traveled much this month but tomorrow I am going to Germany to la marche de Noel! which is a Christmas parade, with Rotary. I can’t believe that Christmas is almost here and that I have already done a third of my exchange! That is extremely depressing to think about and I hope the year goes much much slower! I just know that I am enjoying each and every second of my year here and a huge part of it is thanks to Rotary! Donc merci beaucoup pour cette opportunité extaordinaire que vous m’avez donné. (Thank you so much for this extraordinary opportunity that you have all given me.) I have attached some pictures of my Rotary friends and school friends while we are celebrating the day of St. Nicholas! Which is the day of the children in Belgium and a couple of other pictures of my house and so forth. So Good Night from Belgium and until next month! Aurevoir tout le monde et bonne nuit!

Austin’s Bio

My name’s Austin, yes and I am a girl. I currently attend St. Edwards School and am in grade 9. I’m a 14 year old girl living in the Alcatraz of the Treasure Coast just waiting to be set free to Italy. I can’t thank Rotary enough for this experience. I don’t remember a time when I hadn’t wanted to be a foreign exchange student and now thanks to Rotary I’ve got my wish. Italy is going to be amazing no matter where I end up.

I am unique in more ways than my name. For as in the words of Romeo and Juliet, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” I love to play around with video editing software and with my video camera capturing the world’s beauty and at times lack thereof. Usually I’m in two plays each time someone asks me, “What play are you doing now?” Also I love writing stories, poems, and songs. I live and breathe anything remotely creative. This includes videography, photography, singing, writing, dancing, acting, reading, scrapbooking, anything.

I’m not afraid to express my opinions openly; I can’t just stand idly by while an injustice is happening, it’s not who I am. I pride myself in knowing who I am. Once when I was younger I took the first page in my journal and wrote “who I am” sentences. I was only half way done when I ran out of room.

Often I tend to express myself through lyrics of songs or quotes from famous writers, this is just a warning for all you people reading this blog. I love music. My iPod goes everywhere with me, it’s filled with songs; Broadway musicals, Prince, the Jonas Brothers, and others. The music I listen to defines who I am; a mix of a little bit of everything waiting to be filled up with new experiences.

I’ve probably forgotten half of the things I need to tell you about but that can wait for later.

“They say people come into our lives for a reason bringing something we must learn and we are led to those who help us most to grow, if we let them. And we help them in return. Who can say if I have been changed for the better? But because I knew you I have been changed for good.” –“For Good” Wicked

“A presto!” Which in Italian means “See You Later!”

 Austin’s Journals

September 14 Journal

7 days I’ve been here. In this country. And let me tell you this; it doesn’t feel like it. Not one bit.

It feels like I’ve been here at least a month. At first I couldn’t understand what anyone was saying. Just call it the American Way; we just want to hear our own language and not anyone else’s. But don’t worry I got over that real quickly. I kinda had too. My Host Parents don’t speak English at all. And If I really needed to ask for something ,and they couldn’t understand when I said it in broken Italian. They would bring up my Host Dad’s Secretary. At least that’s what we did the first day.

Now it’s a week in, and I can understand about three-fourths of what everyone’s saying. Unfortunately I’m still not that confident in my Italian to actually form compete sentences , but I’m working on it. At least one lesson in my Italian workbook everyday and struggling though the Italian version of Twilight. Which I don’t remember as well as I thought I did when I forked over 18 euros for it.

I have actually made a couple friends my first week here. All of them thirteen year old boys. You may be asking yourself why I’m hanging out with all thirteen year old boys and that’s a good question. Michael, a fellow foreign exchange student from Florida who has been in Cagliari three times as long as I have (don’t worry, we do speak in Italian unless he’s explaining an Italian word), and his host brother Luca have taken it upon themselves to show me the city. Which according to a thirteen-year-old is taking the bus to the arcade, inviting all his fellow thirteen-year-old friends, and playing there for hours. But don’t worry I have seen other parts of my city.

The police station I live at is right next to a bunch of winding streets compete with old buildings and tons of shops. Yes, that’s right, I did just say I live at a police station. And no, it’s not because my visa was denied and I’m waiting for an armed escort to take me back to the United States. I do actually live in a flat on the fourth floor of the police station . My Host Dad is the head of the entire police force in Sardinia (which is a huge island), so he has a lot of power and we get to stay in the police station. If you’re thinking the police station is huge, with its own two-story high wall, spikes on the balconies, a huge armored gate where you have to be on camera and buzzed up to get in, and retractable shutters on all the windows … you’d be absolutely right. It’s pretty awesome.

Anyway so in-between learning every single Italian curse word (and some in other languages), basically a given when hanging out with thirteen-year-old boys in any country, I actually got to see the beach. The beach here is really different from Florida. To start with there is a ton of people there, not so much in Vero Beach, and there is a rock side and a sand side. Of course the boys head to the rock side (where no one is) so they can go catch octopuses. They literally had scuba masks and spent over an hour searching for octopuses so they could catch and eat them. Not Michael though, I don’t think he shares in their passion for octopuses.

I also have been to the mall quite a few times. I know what you’re thinking: Is their mall any different from the American malls? A bit…but only a bit. First of all, it’s less formal and clean. Like in American malls you would never find a cart in the middle of the walkway selling kind of explicit t-shirts, and they have giant superstores (think Best Buy only more Walmarty) attached to their malls. There’s also something very strange in the stores that I feel the need to point out: in almost every store there is at least one naked mannequin, even in clothing stores. And no, I don’t get it. Maybe I’m just a stupid native American but until now I was pretty sure the point of a mannequin was to show off the clothes. I guess I was wrong?

I have also experienced the Italian cinema. Which again is pretty much the same as ours only they are only open at night and have assigned seats in the theatre. So yes the Italian movie theaters sell greasy popcorn and cokes just like in the US.

Over this last weekend, I went with my Host Family to see their friends in North Sardinia. I was looking forward to seeing their version of “country” (I live in a big city) and, let’s be honest, get away from all the thirteen-year-old boys. Well during this weekend I learned two things. The first thing was, that the Sardinian version of “country” is a Northern-California-like Italian villa on a mountain overlooking the sea and their own personal vineyard and swimming pool. And the second thing I learned was that somehow I can’t get away from these barely teen Italian boys – my host parents’ friends have a thirteen-year-old son.

In the small town about 4 kilometers away, they were having a small festival for the feast day of Santa Maria. The cool part about the town was it has small streets curving around a mountain with a castle on top! A CASTLE! I’ve always wanted to see a castle in real life and now I have! It seriously was an amazing experience. The festival took place in all these tiny streets with people everywhere; there were some flea market type stands set up, and then there were families with huge tables eating dinner right in the cobblestone streets. After pretty much getting lost in the huge maze of streets we went to a pizzeria called Paradise, where I had my first real foreign exchange mess up. Was anyone else aware that in low-light the plural version of man and woman in Italian look very similar so that the I at the end of man could be mistaken for a E? So as you might have guessed I walked into the men’s bathroom instead of the women’s, which was a whole lot nicer than the women’s was. I’m just saying. I don’t think anyone saw except of course…the thirteen-year-old boy. Who then pointed it out to everyone at the table. Can’t wait till school starts…I need friends my age and gender.

Yes, school has not started yet. Italian school apparently starts the latest of any school in the world. I start school on Thursday and from what I can tell the Italian school system works like this: school goes six days a week from 8:15 to 1:30. Around 1:30 everything in the city closes down (even most restaurants and the police station) and everyone goes home and has lunch. Quite different from the USA where I would either have lunch at school or just grab a bite to eat at Subway. Then in the afternoon (if you don’t have a job to get back to) you either nap, study, or do an after-school activity with the city. I think I’m going to be enrolled in volleyball but I’m not positive. I’m going to be in level two of the Italian high school located across the street from the police station I’m staying at. It’s a social school, which means I’ll be studying psychology and what not. Due to the subject of the school it does not attract many guys, which means it is an almost all girls-school. Even so I am really looking forward to starting school; weird as it maybe I did really enjoy school in the states and I’m really looking for a challenge. School in another language should be just that.

I’ll update again later. Thank you again Rotary.

Ciao,

Austin

September 25 Journal

This last week and a half I have got in trouble with the law, started a trend and watched it die, been stared at, watched about six movies in Italian, seen sights that were built by the Romans, and eaten snails. Basically a normal week for a foreign exchange student. But first things first:

“Then the smoke engulfed my throat sending me on fast-paced race though time and space. The porthole in front of me closing every second I couldn’t breathe. The coughs getting louder and more fanatic until I could no longer speak.”

Okay…so that’s a bit dramatic. Okay…so it could be right out of a J. R. R. Tolkien novel. But that’s what has been happening to me the last couple of weeks. Along with a lot of other less important and less ironic events that I will get to in just a moment.

Now you may think the dramatic paragraph is a metaphor for something like say…not knowing the language. Although I will probably do something like that in a blog entry in the near future, no that’s not it. It’s completely really exaggerated truth. For the past one and a half weeks (I’ve been here about 2 and a half) I have been suffering from a very sore throat, that at times won’t allow me to speak in even the modest Italian I know. Also if you have never explained to someone who doesn’t understand you why you can’t speak, let me tell you it’s very difficult and not something I’d like to repeat.

I’ve been doing much research concerning my sore throat and I have come to a slightly concerning conclusion. I seem to have a semi-violent reaction to second-hand smoke … who knew? Now if you have been to Italy you probably wouldn’t know this (unless of course you watched those slightly popular Mafia movies) but everybody in Italy smokes (except my Host Parents). All the time. We literally have vending machines that dispense cigarettes to any civilian willing to pay up to 4 euros. And I’m here to tell all the people that say the percentage of teenage smokers is going down, to come to Sardinia. Because the only percentage I’m seeing is the 2% of teenagers that don’t smoke in my school. If I wasn’t dying from second-hand smoke I would totally take this time to appreciate this extraordinary slice of Italian culture. But since I am dying, let’s move on to more beautiful aspects of the Italian/ Sardinia world.

Even with the sore throat, it has been an eventful week and a half since I last updated. I have not only watched both Snow White and Harry Potter (1) in Italian, I have watched Shrek (Donkey + Italian accent = Funniest Movie Ever)! I should probably start from a couple days after I last updated though, I’ll get back to Shrek.

Michael, Luca, and I went to the mall last Wednesday to celebrate their last day of Summer (mine was Friday since I didn’t start school till Saturday.) So there I was; a confused foreign exchange student that barley speaks the language, trying to tackle the Cagliari bus system. So I had just got on the bus twenty seconds before, I hadn’t even dug my ticket out of my wallet yet when all of a sudden the bus stopped and the Transportation Enforcers got on. Luca gabs my ticket out of my hand and high-tails it to the back of the bus and forces it in the slot. Then he ran back and gave it to me, sweet innocent me. Remember that…sweet innocent me. Of course the transportation guy who was checking everyone’s ticket sees this, and then like an evil vulture swooping in on his prey, he was at my side in an instant. Then he checks my ticket, his watch, and then pulls out a pink pad. I’ve never seen pink look more intimidating. Then he launches into a hugely elaborate rapid Italian speech that I understood only two words of: Passport or Identification. Hesitantly I hand him my Florida Permit, then without missing a beat he launches into another rapid Italian speech. I just look at him like he’s crazy. Michael then decides to pop in explaining that I’m American and I don’t speak Italian. Thanks Michael for that. Glad you have so much faith in me. So to put a long story short the bus ride was the most expensive bus ride I have ever taken … 21 euros. And the worst part? I used a whole bus ticket also. Does anyone else find it very ironic that I got in trouble with the law when my host Dad is the head of the Sardinia police department?

I have also met another Rotary Youth Exchange student in Cagliari. Her name is Katie and she’s from Hawaii. It’s great to talk to someone from a far-away place that I’ve never been, it’s almost like she’s from a different country that happens to speak the same language. Michael, Katie, our Host Moms, and I met up at the park last Thursday for some bonding. The park was kind of a cross between a broken down carnival, a central-park want to be, a bird sanctuary, a national-park, and a playground. Yes … I am still wondering how they managed to accomplish all that also.

Friday night my host parents and I went to what I assume was supposed to be a Dinner Party. But it was at nine o’clock at night (normal dinner time for Italians) and all we had was Italian sandwiches. The party was thrown by a family who I believe works and is friends with my host Dad. Of course all the guests included: their cousins, sisters-in-law, nieces, nephews, grandparents, brothers-in-law of their cousins. Basically their whole extended family which again, did include a fourteen year old boy. Seriously ironic? There was also a girl that was my sister in Florida’s age who I enjoyed talking to. She wanted to ask me about all the Disney Channel stars and what was Disney World like. When the fruit was served, watermelon and grapes, I made an off-sided comment that in America we have seed-less fruit. Then my half of the room went quiet. Apparently I had just blown everyone’s minds. So, Americans, if you’re reading this, don’t take your seedless fruit for granted, in other countries they can’t just pop a grape in their mouths like you can.

Then Saturday was the First Day of School. I think I was the last person in Rotary Youth Exchange Florida to start school. I showed up the first day in a bright pink shirt, green converses, blond hair, and a purple backpack. To say I stood out in the all brunette, belt-wearing, designer-handbag-carrying, dark-colored-clothing school would be a compete understatement. The first day of school was crazy, I seriously had no idea what was happening. In honor of the first day of school, we sat in a random classroom (that apparently wasn’t ours) for about 3 hours with some random teachers that would come in and ask us about our summer and about the American who could only understand what they were saying when they were talking about her, Harry Potter, or French. Then school was let out. I at least got to meet my classmates though. We have one guy in our entire class – all the rest is girls aged 13 to 17. I still have yet to figure out how that works out.

Second day of school was even more confusing since we changed our classroom and apparently half my class changed some of their style. I walked in thinking I would blend in with my black shirt, white belt, and skinny jeans. It took about three seconds for me to count the number of pink shirts in my class … six. Safe to say, I didn’t fit in to my own style. Typical. Everything was back to normal by Tuesday of the last week but I’m still confused. Did I start a trend or was everyone just trying to confuse me? These are the questions foreign exchange students must ask themselves.

On either Monday or Tuesday I’m going to start playing Volleyball (or Volly as the Italians call it) after school, which I’m really excited about. I had a very confusing time trying to buy volleyball shoes the other day. Apparently the sizes are really different. Not only does six become thirty-eight but the American sizes on the tag are always wrong. I’m not usually a six in the US but that’s what the shoe that fit is marked as. Strange.

I have tried some interesting dishes lately including pig’s skin, pig head, and snails. Luckily I took a deep breath and tried them. Since I’ve never been that fond of pork (that isn’t bacon or hot dogs) I didn’t particularly enjoy the pig’s skin or pig head, but the snails actually tasted a bit like shrimp. Maybe I would actually eat more than four of them if they weren’t served in a big pot with blood-red sauce and their shells still attached, so at first glance I wouldn’t think “Omg my Host Parents are murderers and they eat their victim’s eyeballs.” Okay so I’ll admit to watching a bit too much horror movies in my spare time.

Last Sunday I visited some of the most famous historical sites of Cagliari. We started with the Roman Amphitheater and then worked our way up the mountain. In Ancient Cagliari almost everything was built on a mountain (or I guess you could say large hill) in the middle of the city, this includes the Castello (fancy Italian word for Castle) which is located at the top. The Castello is really a big open area surrounded by large ancient walls and about four towers, then inside it is a mess of cobblestone streets and buildings jutting out of the walls. Just like every single other Italian street, even down to the parking problem. As we were making our way up to the Castello, we passed the Jail, which not only was located on prime real estate looking over a very nice park and a small church on a hill. It had an sea-front view and a beautiful view of all of Cagliari’s monuments and beauty. If that wasn’t enough, your loved ones could drive right up to the church on the hill, honk the horn of their car, and talk to you in your cell (which we saw three people doing) . So it’s safe to say if that fine thing doesn’t get settled I hope they put me there.

Well that is basically what happened the last few weeks in Italy. As a send-off I have included a special quote said by someone who I admire very much: “Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and the feel of the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.” -Ashley Smith

Hey that isn’t the Shrek quote! Oh well. Thank you so much Rotary for allowing me to live my life to the fullest potential and fight for my dreams.

October 25 Journal

So I haven’t updated in a while, that’s probably apparent. A lot has happened… more than I can fit in my humorous pages-long blogs.

On the weekends my Host Family usually travel to North Sardinia and stay with their parents or friends, I’ve had a lot of interesting experiences on these trips so I have decided to dedicate this blog to telling you all about them.

This past weekend we made our way to a small town in the middle of the mountains of central Sardinia. And it’s safe to say that I, the petite innocent Florida girl whose sister wears sweaters in movie theaters, was not prepared for the large drop in temperature between the coast and the mountains. I should be truthful…my host mom had warned me, but did I believe her? That would be a no…just like when the boy cried wolf to many times that they didn’t believe him when it was true. My Host Mom had been making me wear sweaters for about two weeks prior to this in Cagliari, when it wasn’t cold. The good news is I still brought a coat anyway so at least I didn’t freeze to death.

We stayed with my Host Mom’s dad, and brother, and nephew, and sister in law, and a whole bunch of people that I don’t think really stayed in the flat with us but were just around a lot. I seriously couldn’t tell you who exactly who lived in the flat, there were that many people all the time. I heard that Italians had big families but I didn’t know the half of it until we went to my Host Cousin’s Confirmation. If you’re not Catholic you might not know what Confirmation is – Confirmation is one of the seven sacraments Catholic’s pass though during their religious upbringing. Usually it takes place when you are 11-15 and it is thought that in this sacrament you receive the Holy Spirit. Also in Italy, it is a very very very big deal.

The day started out at 10 am when mass started. The entire church was packed with people since all the closest family members came to the ceremony (grandparents, parents, sisters and brothers, aunts and uncles.) I have never been to a mass that long before in my life, it lasted two hours. That’s longer than Midnight Mass on Christmas (which isn’t really that long but feels like forever…since it’s at midnight). The bishop (who looked like he could easily be a stand-in for the Pope) insisted on having a nice conversation with every single fifty-something kids, which might explain why it took so long. For the rest of the mass he just sat on the biggest chair in the back with two alter servers that were unlucky enough to be the ones to stand up and hold his hat and gold staff for two hours.

So after his Confirmation I heard we were going to lunch. Lunch on Sunday in Italy usually lasts for hours so I was prepared for a extremely long lunch probably with my host cousin and a couple more family members. But boy….I was wrong.

The family rented out half of this huge restaurant, and then the guests just kept arriving. Family members, friends, cousins, second cousins twice removed; They were all there. I couldn’t believe it. I can’t even imagine feeding that many people much less being related to all of them. There were at least 70 people there, probably more. What was even harder to comprehend was the amount and quality of the gifts he was getting. Designer watches, brand-new digital cameras, high-tech photo frames, more watches. All I got for my Confirmation was two cross necklaces and a couple Christian bookmarks.

Here let’s take a few moments to compare our Confirmations. He had all his close family members at his Confirmation. I had: my dad, my sister, and my dad’s best friend. Not exactly killing the seat count. My mom didn’t even come…she was at the first youth exchange orientation, which conveniently was the same weekend. Ironic how it has all come full-circle isn’t it?

So now lets move on to the North-East Sardinia visit that was about two weeks before this:

Before I go on with this blog post I would like to say I knew IT was going to happen. I didn’t know when and I didn’t know in which bathroom, but I knew it was going to happen. If you haven’t guessed it yet I had another bathroom incident.

So it started off as a completely innocent day on a trip to North Sardinia about 2 weeks ago. I mean we got up, ate Nutella on bread for breakfast, and then met about twenty of my host parents’ close friends who then hiked up a mountain to a dark scary cave that was at one time filled with Dead People. So all in all a pretty unsuspicious day. Never did I once expect the terror the day would have in store for me.

Before lunch and after we successfully concluded our mountain trek to the great cavemen’s and water-cult worshiper’s dwellings, I decided I needed to go to the bathroom. Italian lunches on Sunday usually last anywhere from two to four hours depending on the amount of talking, so you can see why I would want to go the bathroom before a meal (if you leave right before a course you miss out on all the good stuff since Italian food is served around the table not individually).

So innocently I made my way to the Bathroom following all the other ladies. There were three stalls and I walked into the last one. Italians use keys to lock their doors, so like I have done a million times before at numerous other bathrooms, I turned the key to lock the door. I really should have just held it.

After I’ve done my business I reach for the key and try to turn it, and if you haven’t guessed it already, who’s the stupid American that got locked in a bathroom? That’s right, Me. Scared I reached for the door handle, which of course didn’t budge. In America this would be no problem, someone would just alert the owner of the house who would have an extra key (or at least tell you what to do with the key jammed). But you see we’re in Italy, where I had never felt the need to learn phrases like “Turn the Key to your right.” Or “Please try to Ninja kick the door with all your strength.” I mean seriously, Rosetta Stone, what gives?

So anyway I was standing behind the bathroom door trying to at least pull the key out of the socket while about 15 Italian ladies are all shouting different things at me from the other side of the door in Italian. All I could think was ‘Why do things like this always happen to me?’ I mean all the other foreign exchange students write about how homesick they are and what amazing things they’ve done, and then I write about being stuck in a bathroom. I think we all know who is really exploring the culture.

To make a really simple story, that I could drag into an entire blog, shorter: I finally got out. Because if I didn’t I would be writing this blog from a small bathroom in North Sardinia, nah I’m just kidding. I would have been lifted out though the tiny window eventually. Finally someone realized I couldn’t understand anything they were saying, and came around to get the key from the small window. Then after repetitively trying to jam the key into the outside key hole, I finally got out. So I didn’t end up like the dead cavemen in the cave after all. Which speaking of, I should probably get back to

The cave we went into used to be an archaeologist site, and way before that it sheltered cavemen type people and served as a hide-out for the water cult tribe (whose village we also visited just a short 15 min walk away). About the whole dead people thing, they’ve found ancient bones in the cave. It’s not a murder scene, even though that cave was so dark it could have been used in a horror movie. It’s also up a very steep mountain climb, which I am proud to say I completed holding a glass and can of coke in two hands.

Why did I have a glass and a can of coke in my hands? It can best be explained in the words of Tim Parks in the book ‘An Englishman in Verona’: “While Italians usually seem to like foreigners, the foreigners they like most are the ones who know the score, the ones who have caved in and agreed that the Italian way of doing things is best…There is an order to follow in all things; follow it, even when it borders on the superstitious and ritualistic.” Which means when ever you have a can or a bottle of coke you need to pour it into a glass to drink it. Also whenever you have shrimp pasta, you always put the shrimp in the pasta sauce with the shells still on them. When I asked why you did this the only explanation they could give me was, ‘you don’t want anyone else touching your food.’ So they prefer to get their hands dripping in pasta sauce while trying to peel their own shrimp?

Other than those fun weekend trips, life is slowly starting to turn into…well life. Routine. Boredom. I’m even getting used to drinking coke in a glass and peeling my own shrimp.

But I am having a great time in Italy! Ciao till next time.

 December 13 Journal

To start off this way over due blog, I would like to offer a tip of advice to all future foreign exchange students, current foreign exchange students, world travelers, and the like.

You may want to be all adventurous when it’s Halloween night, and just decide to order something random off the menu. You know, even though you don’t understand what it is because you’ve never seen the word before. All you understand is that it’s drenched in lemon, and that it’s slightly cheap. I mean, seriously, it’s Italy, how bad can it be?

If you do, I would also suggest not starting by eating 1/3 of it, thinking it’s okay, and then turning to the girl next to you (who speaks some English) and asking what it is. Because I guarantee that most of the time, you won’t like the answer.

Turns out the yellowish meat drenched in lemon sauce, was actually baby cow meat. I used to have a baby cow, up until my great grand parents sold their farm. Thinking bout eating anything that used to be your pet, much less baby anything, can apparently make you lose your appetite pretty fast, in addition to the optional gagging.

Speaking of appetite, let’s cover “Our Merry Foreign Exchange Thanksgiving.” We started planning this Thanksgiving about a week before it was going to happen. Wait, starch that, we had the idea to do it the week before … we never even started buying things till the day before. We somehow managed to get our grubby hands on a HUGE turkey. Let’s just say one of our host parents knew someone, who knew someone, who knew someone that knew where to get a gigantic turkey, since it only took us about five seconds of goggling to realize, they don’t sell turkeys in Sardinia.

Lets see, how can I describe the madness that went on that day?

The Italians weren’t too fond of the WAY we were cooking. Although they did think the food was good. As soon as Catie and Michael heard my comment about how I liked the movie ‘Julie and Julia’ because I often end up on the floor and with stuff everywhere whenever I cook, they stuck me on all the easy stuff. Like cutting up bread for the stuffing and measurements. And by measurements, I mean converting measurements the American way:

“5 grams of salt?” Catie reads off the online recipe. “How do you convert grams?”

Thank gawd for Google. “Um apparently it’s 23.42352 for salt,” I say before Catie comes over and grabs the salt out of my hands. She pours a handful into her hand, says “This should be about right,” and then precedes to just dump it in the bowl. What? It saves me from using the computer’s calculator. It’s safe to say the Italians just stood in the doorway, their faces in shock. Especially when we used our (clean) hands to spread the oil around the turkey. We foreign exchange students can cook a turkey with no fancy paintbrushes, turkey timers, or other things they market as a must-need for Thanksgiving. AT LOW LOW PRICES.

Actually, it turns out the only thing remotely cheap here is the food. Whenever us foreign exchange kids get together it basically consists of us walking up and down the hills of the shopping streets and then buying a sandwich and a coke. Or you know, we plan to communicate with sprits.

Yep. I just said communicate with sprits.

Apparently the police station where I live is haunted, at least that’s what my Host Dad told me during lunch yesterday. I was just sitting there at the table eating my pasta, and my host dad decides to tell me why the doors randomly slam shut and why things randomly disappear from where I put them. I could have gone my whole stay without hearing that someone was shot up here, thanks Host Dad. Like with the dish of baby cow meat, there are some things I just don’t want to know.

School has been going okay, well it was going smoothly until my Social teacher decides to show THE movie. Now most of us have seen THE movie, we’ve watched it in PE class or Health class. I’ve even seen it at least four times. I used to think it was a good movie. I mean it’s interesting that if you eat the most fatty foods at one of the most fatty restaurants you would get fat. I mean who knew? I also thought it was very creative how they interviewed a thousand people and then cut all the people that never eat at McDonalds and who actually know our national anthem. I never even thought that after foreigners watch it, they think all Americans are, well how do I put this, SuperSized.

Insert huge ‘Not all Americans are fat’ fight here.

It really was insane. The whole class spent the entire English period (the class right after social), arguing with me. Me, the American, who lives in AMERICA, and only knows maybe three obese people. Even calling them obese is really pushing it.

Then they go on to say, like most Italians do with everything, that their McDonalds was different because the sizes were smaller. I’ve been to Italians McDonalds while I’ve been here, once in the last 3 months. There sizes are the same, except I don’t think they offer a SuperSize menu. Now I’m no expert in McDonalds. I can’t even remember the last time I went in there in the States. Thought I’m pretty sure that the BigMacs I see Italians lined up out the door for in every mall have the exact same amount of fat as the ones in America.

Being here has really been my first encounter with racism. I’ve always have had friends of pretty much every race: African American friends, Italian friends, Indian friends, Mexican friends, German friends, Romanian friends, and Chinese friends. I’ve never really known anyone that was my age, or even my parents age, who didn’t like people just because of their race or their skin color. I’ve never known anyone who wouldn’t go into a restaurant because it was Chinese and therefore dirty. Or really do anything like that. It’s been a real eye opener for me. It really really has.

My Italian is getting better and better every day, as I fight the ever looming battle of trying to lose my French. I even managed to have my first dream in Italian, although it wasn’t the best first dream. The other person was speaking to me in perfect Italian and I was speaking Italian like a two year old. Who I did actually get to spend four days with this past weekend. That was fun.

So in a break from the constant 13 year old boys, I got to spend a weekend with my host mother’s sister’s two year old boy. Having never had any brothers, and never experienced living with a two year old (even for just four days), I was completely unprepared.

Of course this was in North Sardinia, where I tend to spend my weekends. This time it was for a wedding. I wish I could compare it to an American wedding, but I’ve never been to one before. The only wedding I can possibly compare it to is the weddings in ‘Wedding Planner’ and ‘Bride Wars’. Let’s see, apart from fact there were no brides having a fight in the aisle and the groom didn’t fall for the wedding planner, it was a typical church wedding. Well, a typical gathering for Italians anyway. The reception lasted about 10-12 hours, it took place in a huge restaurant hall, and it was all very loud due to all the second cousins and great uncles that tended to start screaming and clinking their glasses randomly.

It was pretty entertaining. Also during the reception, I figured out that Emily Cadet’s (the RYE student from Florida that is in North Sardinia) friend is actually a cousin to my host mom. Small world isn’t it? Or, I guess, small island.

Oh and I must report I’m doing better on the whole getting stuck in bathroom thing. I’ve only got stuck in 2 since I last updated!

Well I must go since it is Sunday, and therefore my only day of semi relaxation and lots of food.

February 3 Journal

Since I’ve last updated this; trouble-making, edge-of-your-mind-24-7, blog. Stuff. Has. Happened.

End of Blog.

Just Kidding.

It’s unavoidable really; stuff happening, me trying to be funny with only slightly hopeless jokes, some poor misunderstood new outbound student with a broken alarm clock getting yelled at by Al because they were mere minutes late.

Which for the record, only happened to me once. Thank you.

Since I’ve last updated I’ve done things you can probably not even imagine. Though that may sound like something right out of the screenplay of the newest James Bond movie (aren’t we up to like the 30th?), but in my case it’s actually true. That’s right. No Hollywood magic. No special effects. No blue people on an Imax screen. And no English screenwriter telling me what to say.

In the last month and a half, I’ve changed: I’ve changed families, I’ve changed my hair, and somewhere along that way…I’ve changed myself.

I’ve stood in front of an angry ocean, only to have it lash back and try to pull me in. I’ve listened as kids lit fireworks all night long, and I’ve squealed with enjoyment over the Christmas gifts I receive. I’ve made pancakes, rode on the back of a moped, won 40 euros just by eating some cake, and held ancient roman bricks in my hands. Then I’ve watched a friend go home, and willingly throw everything away.

Being here has been the hardest, most difficult, best, most boring, most incredible thing I’ve ever done (how’s that for a foreign exchange cliché). And even though I may not love every minute, I’m so thankful for all the minutes I spend not even knowing minutes are going by.

Even if the sea tries to capture me again (although you can bet me and the rest of the foreign exchange students are staying far away from rocks next to the ocean right after a storm), and even if at the next big holiday some Italian tries to light me on fire with a firework; nothing will make me give up this experience.

Okay so the truth is, maybe my Italian’s not perfect. And maybe I’m not very popular among my class, but that’s okay. Because for every second I try, it gets a little bit better. The world gets a little bit brighter. The lock on the bathroom door gets a little bit easier to unlock.

Last year in early 2009, as soon as I found out I was going to Italy: I rushed to this website and read a blog from one of the current outbound students. His name was Tim, and he was also aboard in Sardinia. At the time it inspired me, excited me, made me count down the months till I’d be exactly where he was. Then on December 26th 2009, five days till a year later, I was standing in the exact same spot where he spent the New Years in Sassari. Talk about the world coming full circle.

His journal from last year (January 11 Journal):

https://www.ryese.org/Students/OB/2008-09/tim.htm#jan11 

So I left a gap didn’t I?

“What did you do on Christmas? Why are kids shooting fireworks at you? How did you get paid 40 euros to eat cake (and how can I)?”

And yes…I am getting to all that. I should probably start where I left off, in the middle of December 2009.

So the weeks leading up to Christmas were basically uneventful. They were spent deciding what we should get our host parents, getting together to talk about what we should get our host parents, actually getting our lazy butts away from the computer to buy our host parents presents, and then seeing Beauty and the Beast performing in the middle of street. So, all in all, pretty uneventful.

SO let’s go back to the possible James Bond quote “I’ve done things you can probably not even imagine.” I mean unless you can imagine walking down the biggest shopping street in a pretty big Italian city ,the Saturday before Christmas, and see the musical Beauty and the Beast being performed in the middle of the street in full costume. Yes, that does means people were dressed up as teacups and clocks in the middle of the street singing in Italian. So if you can imagine that, my Yankee’s cap goes off to you.

The craziest thing is: they weren’t the only ones participating in this huge plow to distract us from our Christmas shopping, THERE WERE OTHERS. Including an orchestra, clowns, face-painters, and mimes. In the middle of the busiest shopping street, on the busiest day for shopping.

The week of Christmas, which in Italy stretches all the way from Christmas Eve to Epiphany, is basically spent doing two things: eating and then waiting to eat again. Did you really expect anything else? We’re in ITALY for goodness sakes!

After spending the holidays in North Sardinia (and visiting Sassari to hang out with my host cousin), I headed down to South South Sardinia to spend the New Years with Catie and her family. Although I didn’t know the firework battle I was getting into.

There were at least 15 kids younger than us, which basically translates into about 15 pyromaniacs whose parents gave them huge sacks full of fireworks. I don’t think I or anyone else slept for days, although it was still amazing. A couple more foreign exchange students were staying in the same neighborhood as us: Max from Germany, Sarah from Germany, and Caro from Bolivia. Along the course of six days we managed to get soaked by a wave, visit Nora (an archeological site in Southern Sardinia), and set off fireworks in water.

Then I had to face my worst nightmare, changing host families. I got about a week’s notice before I moved to their house, so I was a little upset. I had never met any of them before, had been told I wasn’t changing families, and was moving more than thirty minutes outside my beloved city.

Now I’m used to it; all the waking up early, taking the bus, having to organize plans before hand. It helps that my new host family is very sweet and understanding. I now live in a big house in the mountains with a beautiful view outside my window. A stark contrast to having barbed railings and living in a police station. My two host families are exact opposites of each other, but that’s what I love about them. It’s the whole point of changing families, seeing things from a completely different perceptive.

So you’ve read this far and are probably wondering how you too can get paid forty euros to eat a cake. I know it’s such a sacrifice to eat cake (why do you think Marie Antoinette wanted people to eat it?), but listen to me closely – here’s what the brave of heart need to do.

Step 1. Come to Sardinia (I’m not sure if it’s played in other Italian states, although it may be).

Step 2: Be here on the Epiphany (January 6th).

Step 3: Get yourself invited to a typical family gathering (preferably not your own, it’s awkward enough taking everyone’s money).

Step 4: Then pay 15 euros to the person collecting your money.

Step 5: Do a lucky clap (or whatever luck ritual suits you).

Step 6: Eat Cake.

Step 7: If you find a bean in your cake (similar to the tradition of the Mardi Gras cake where if you find baby Jesus you get luck), you can win a portion of the money people paid to eat the cake. And with 22 people playing, you can win a good amount of money. I won 35 euros by just eating the cake.

Step 8: Gratefully accept the money, then go on to win more at Italian Bingo!

Step 9: Carefully avoid everyone’s eyes as you slink to the front door.

Step 10: Then tell everyone you know, that you just got paid to eat cake.

And that, my friends, is how you can earn money by eating cake.

April 13 Journal

I’d like to start this blog off with a little scientific observation.

People that are NOT Rotary Youth Exchange students CAN wear blazers with a number of pins on them. While it is rare, it is not an unheard of notion; and thus should not be treated as such.

This observation should be observed next time you get it in your mind to run though Venice’s streets after a poor-overweight British guy who just happens to have a collection of pins on his blazer.

What? Maybe I should start at the beginning, or summarize everything with a cleverly worded run-on-sentence. Yeah, the second one sounds more “me.”

Since my last blog; I’ve seen Italy, spent -what seems like hours- gazing at the artwork of the Sistine Chapel (which only made me want to go back to Epcot in Florida and ride Spaceship Earth; where Michelangelo is working on the ceiling), I’ve stood on the ancient ground of Pompeii, and looked upon the beautiful Verona where Shakespeare set his scene. I’ve had two gladiators attack my dad and sister, and then ask us to pay them for it. I’ve ate Pizza at the Leaning Tower of Pisa, before racing my sister to the top. Oh and don’t even get me started on gondolas of Venice, coin-throwing in Rome, the tour guide/girlfriend of David in Florence, or the lemons as big as my head in Sorrento. Even that doesn’t even cover the half of it.

I know what you’re thinking. How did you do all of that in the 8 weeks it took you to blog again?

The true answer is, I didn’t. That only took less than two weeks. As for the other six; that’s another story entirely.

12 Cities, 2 countries, in 12 days. That was our goal, seeing everything in Italy that my family and I had ever heard about or seen highlighted in the travel section of the newspaper. We started in my city, Cagliari- holler! Then we went on to the Amalfi Coast (including the beautiful cities of Sorrento, Positano, Pompeii, and Napoli), to the Eternal city of Roma and the close by Vatican City. Up to Florence where we got another dose of Michelangelo fever, and passed by a medieval city right out of the story books- called Orvieto. Then we continued our journey with tired feet to fair Verona where we “set the scene” by buying up postcards and gazing up at “Juliet’s balcony.” Then in our final attempt to “see everything” we jumped on a gondola in Venice, which then brings us to where I started this blog; chasing after the over-weight British guy who collects pins.

As for the rest of the six weeks, things have retained a certain degree of normal I thought only possible in America. I have a couple Italian friends, a couple American friends, a couple friends from everywhere else. I go to school, and stare at the teachers with blank faces – not because I don’t understand what they’re saying, just because I don’t get it. All this normalcy is broken only by the event of another traditional Sardinian festival where I get wheat thrown at my face for good luck, almost trampled by out of control horses, roped by a costumed “header”, and/or chased after by a “beast/invader.”

So it may not be that normal after all. A lot of people ask me if I love Italy (Sardinia) or America (Florida) more, and the answer one expects usually differs based on which country they’re from. The thing is though, I don’t know. They’re so different, and each special in their own way. Good for some things and terrible in others. I love both of them though, but comparing them is like comparing pasta to beef brisket. You like them both, but sometimes you’re more in the mood for Italian or vice versa.

Life is strange that way, and I’m trying as hard as I can to take full advantage of that.

Austin

June 12 Journal

This constant loop of saying Hello and Goodbye is about to begin again. As the world turns and time grows shorter and shorter until you can’t manage to hold on to it any longer. Then it flies away, like a little kid’s balloon, until it disappears behind the blinding light of the sun.

This year has changed me in so many ways that I probably don’t even understand all of them or even know what they are. I could chalk it up to age, but I haven’t even aged two years since I wrote my bio. So instead I’ll chalk it up to experience.

From the wind in my hair as I rushed though ancient streets on a moped, to the bathroom locks that stopped working just for me. To eating fresh pizza in front of the Tower of Pisa, to the shining sun and a mountain view greeting me every morning. To sharing cokes with Italian friends who have to yet again explain that I had mispronounced another word, to watching an Italian soccer game and screaming along with tons of other fans for a team we never cared about before. From the beautiful waves of Sardinia, to the Colosseums in Rome, to the art museums of Florence, the gondolas and sea breeze of Venice, and back to the port of Cagliari the City of Sun; I firmly believe I’ve done everything I wanted to do… all of which I didn’t expect to ever happen.

As I look back at my old journals each depicting my life at that moment (snide remarks aside), I wanta laugh and cry and jump for joy at the same time. And I can’t help but feeling like a kid in Kindergarten who is getting his favorite toy taken away because someone else wants to play with it and he has to share.

Back in January 09, Al asked us to write a bio. In it I said my name was Austin. That I was a girl who attended St. Edward’s School, was in grade 9. Was 14 years old and living in the Alcatraz of the Treasure Coast. Then at the end I said “A Presto!” which I said meant “See You Later!”

Now…not even 2 years later. Only two of those things are true. My name is Austin and I’m a girl. 16 years old, grade unknown, school unknown, home…unknown. We don’t even say “A Presto!” we say “A Dopo!” But even with the unknowns, I now truly believe I know who I am. Not just a mix of music, or a page in a journal, or a video editor, or someone who forgets half the things they have to tell you; like I wrote on that bio so long ago.

So let’s look back at that Wicked quote I used in that bio. “They say people come into our lives for a reason bringing something we must learn and we are led to those who help us most to grow, if we let them. And we help them in return. Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better? But because I knew you I have been changed for Good.”

And because I’ve done this exchange, and met these amazing people, and shared these amazing laughs and experiences, and really lived. I have been changed for good. And yes, I don’t know if it’s for the better. But because I’ve done this, I’ve changed for good.

I hope you enjoyed my blogs this year as much as I enjoyed writing them and sharing my experiences however insignificant and bathroom related they might be- with you.

So for the last time (and everyone should be crying at this point), Arrivederci.

Austin Carroll

September 2010 – back in the US

So I’m walking down the hall or buying a sandwich or searching for my keys, and suddenly a person I haven’t seen in over a year is standing in front of me. Like a mind reader I already know the question they’re about to ask. I can already see it forming on their lips as their expression stays vacant, like they were about to ask me how my day was or what I had for breakfast. If I hadn’t heard it a million times already, I would have never guessed that they were about to ask me to summarize my whole other life into one easily transferrable word; but as always, that’s exactly what they did.

“How was Italy?”

In that one, four syllable long question; they manage to unknowingly question an entire county, an entire lifestyle, and an entirely different person than the one standing right in front of them. How am I supposed to answer that off-handed but loaded question? How am I supposed to summarize something so life-changing and difficult and beautiful into one elusive magical word?

After all, I know what they want- what they expect. They want a ‘good’, a ‘fantastic’, an ‘amazing’; but you see the fact is, Italy wasn’t good. It wasn’t bad. It wasn’t fantastic or amazing or terrible or scary or any other horribly vague descriptive word I could fill in the blank with. Italy was real. Saying Italy was ‘good’ is just like saying you’re fine when you grandfather dies, it just isn’t true.

‘Good’ doesn’t even begin to cover it, and I’ve yet to find any words that can. I could spend hours trying to explain to you what riding though a medieval town on a moped is like. I could try to make you picture the crystal clear waters of the Mediterranean Sea, or speak to you in Italian and just hope you understand how beautiful it is. I could stand here and dictate to you thousands of stories about my Italian friends and my many adventures of getting locked in European bathrooms, but I know it will never be enough. Unless you were there, unless you saw what I saw and felt what I felt; you’ll never truly understand why my year in Italy doesn’t fit neatly under your prejudged categories of good or bad.

If I caved in and answered ‘yes, Italy was good’; you would never know about the many times I cried myself to sleep or the times when I wanted nothing more than to go home. As much as people always tell me they can imagine how amazing it was, they can’t. Being there for a week on a cross country tour or reading about it in a travel guide isn’t the same as experiencing the culture. It isn’t the same as meeting and living with people whose names and faces you’ll never forget. It isn’t the same as falling in love with everything around you and then having everything you’ve built up ripped from you, as you look on powerless to stop it.

When you ask “how was Italy” a life time of memories comes to mind. I can remember my first word, my first friend, my first Italian coca-cola. I can remember the first time I swam in the sea, my first Sardinian festival, and the first time my classmates called me “una Italiana vera” which in English means a true Italian.

So to answer your question; Italy wasn’t good, but it was the greatest and most life-changing thing I’ve ever had the privileged to experience. And I know that wherever I am or wherever life takes me, I’ll always have a home on the beautiful island of Sardinia- a place that almost seems to be lost in time and will forever be in my heart.

 Austin Carroll

2009-10 Rotary Youth Exchange student from Vero Beach, Florida, USA to Calgiari, Sardinia, Italy

Bridget’s Bio

Bonjour! Hello! My name is Bridget, and I live in Tallahassee, Florida (north Florida). I am 16 years old, and will be 17 shortly before I leave for France. I live with my mom, two brothers, two cats, and new kitten. I currently attend Leon High School as a junior, although I hope to graduate this spring with the senior class.

My school is only a twenty minute walk from my home, so I walk to and from school nearly everyday. I couldn’t be happier with the school teachers and students, and I know they are excited for my upcoming exchange trip to France .

I’ve lived in Tallahassee my entire life, but I have been very fortunate to travel all over America and the entire Mexican border. I am very interested in the French culture, and started studying the language in 6th grade. I have had the same French teacher, Madame Clarke, for six years now and this has allowed me to excel in my understanding of the country. The day I found out Rotary was sponsoring me to go to France for 10 months was one of the happiest days of my life. J

In the little free time I do have, I enjoy spending time with my friends, playing the harp and traveling with my family. I rarely find something I don’t enjoy, so I like most everyone I meet, worldwide cuisine, and all types of music. I am very glad that my open-mindedness had allowed me to enjoy my studies of the world.

I’ve never been more excited for anything in my life! Living, breathing, sleeping, and learning in France will truly be one the best experiences of my life. I cannot thank Rotary enough for sponsoring me! I hope to make more lifelong friends than I can imagine, and learn more than I ever thought possible.

Until next time,

Bridget

 Bridget’s Journals

August 6 Pre-departure Journal

I have 20 days until my exchange. For the past 8 months, I KNEW I was leaving. I knew that when August 25th came around, I’d be leaving the life I just now finally understand. I have known this fact for quite some time now. So from 200 days, down to 20 days, my outlook is still the same: complete and utter denial.

I’ve prepared every day since Mr. DiPietro told me that my exchange to France was almost 100% going to happen. Everything seemed to be falling into place. I packed back in March, and my language skills are acceptable. The last part of my preparation, which I am now realizing is the hardest of all of it, is the mental preparation. I can stay in this wonderful pool of denial until I step off the plane, or probably even later, but I know that this will only hinder me from starting my exchange with a wonderful beginning. I know that if I wait until August 25th to realize I won’t see my mother, house, bed, or best friend for an entire year, it will keep me from absorbing this wonderful experience to the fullest.

I read the Exchange Student Survival Guide, spent nights reading up on exchange information and tips from culture websites, and read anything and everything Rotary Youth Exchange Florida was willing to give me…twice. But what I found to be the best help, of course, was the people who actually went through a year abroad in a foreign country. Rotexes- previous Rotary exchange students- are gold mines of information. I cannot thank Anna Breedlove and Mark Schmertmann enough for everything they told me. Although they spent their years in Belgium and Germany, the experience is generally always the same.

Six months ago, I thought all I needed to do was pack and perfect my French, and voila, I’d have a wonderful exchange year. But, after speaking with Anna, and reading the journals of current outbounds, I slowly discovered how unprepared I was. I thought the suitcases and currency transfer would be the hurdle to getting to France. Now, I know that these things were nothing compared to what’s going on in my head. I feel, for the most part, like a zombie. I’m stuck between two worlds- Half of me wants to stay in bed all day and think of what I am about to do, and my other half wants to soak up every last second I have in my hometown and see everyone one more time.

If there was a way, I would just appear in France. I wouldn’t face saying goodbye to everyone. Unfortunately, this is far from a possibility. So, every day, I make myself think about it. It’s like a daily exercise: envisioning getting on the plane in my little Tallahassee, and waiving to my mother. One day, this daydream won’t make me cry. But for now, I know I’m still not ready. I have 20 days to think of this and realize that a year is not a lifetime. That a year doesn’t mean I’m gone forever; that Rouen, France isn’t keeping me from the home I know and love, but giving me another.

At the beginning of the year, I thought that everyone should be required to have a year abroad before they graduate high school. I thought that if there was an economical way of accomplishing it, that an exchange year should be a replacement for the fourth year in high school. Everyone would be bilingual and have a better understanding of the world around them. Now, I see why this dream will never come to pass. I have never been tested this much. I knew that at times during this experience, most people would have quit. It was never an option for me, but it was a relaxing thought. Now, the most peaceful daydream I have is imagining myself setting my bags down in my new bedroom in Le Petit-Couronne, finally done with the preparation, and actually being there.

I would recommend that along with the guide books, Rotary blazer, and informative orientations, that each exchange student be assigned a psychologist. The emotions are unbelievable. Truly. Unless you’re living this, don’t pretend you get it. But I don’t think a psychologist would even help- I couldn’t fathom putting my feelings into words. Being a Rotary exchange student is better than most drugs I can imagine. I am more awake than ever, but I’m on cloud nine. No, not even that, I’m way above cloud nine. I’m looking down at cloud nine wondering why those people aren’t as happy as I am.

They say it takes a village to raise a child, well it also takes a village to make someone an exchange student. I’ve never been tested this much, and I don’t think I have ever tested my mother so much. Nor my friends, family, teachers, administrators…generally just everyone in my life. I have never asked so many questions, or asked for so many favors. Due to this, I know I will have a successful exchange year. I wouldn’t be letting myself down, or just wasting a year of my time, I would be throwing away everyone’s hard work. Now, I am indebted to nearly half of Tallahassee for some reason or another. Thank you Rotary for everything. From the bottom of my heart I cannot thank Mr. DiPietro, Al Kalter, and the rest of RYE Florida enough.

Merci, et a la prochaine fois, a bientot.

Bisou.

Bridget

September 9 Journal

It has been two weeks. Just two weeks. This seems impossible. It can’t have been just two weeks. Not because time moves slowly here, it actually seems to just slip away, but because so much has happened. I arrived in Paris, France at 7 am their time, sans sleep, and met my host parents. We drove for one hour from Charles de Gaulle airport, to my little suburb Le Petit Couronne just outside of Rouen. This place is truly what its photos show. I’ve never seen such a beautiful country. Looking out the car window, I was waiting for the beauty to end, and the REAL France, the one they don’t show in the pictures, to arise. It still hasn’t. Everything about this country continues to amaze me.

What I’ve learned:

How to flush the toilet.

Crazy’s crazy no matter what country.

Arabs are the lucky race chosen for discrimination.

High school never changes.

Children’s books are sometimes too complicated for me.

France is going through a baby-boom. And it’s literally raining babies here.

The cars here are pocket sized.

Missing your bus happens only when it’s raining…and windy.

A letter from home makes me unconditionally happy.

I live in Miami.

Being an exchange student excuses anything.

Speaking English is the most liberating feeling in the world.

The French don’t believe in salt unless in mounds.

A beautiful day at the beach means 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

The French people shut themselves off from people they don’t know.

Small talk with someone next to you-unless you’ve been formally introduced- doesn’t exist.

Smiling at a stranger on the street doesn’t exist.

My Pride is a thing of the past.

A bar-be-cue here isn’t our bar-be-cues back home, y’all. That’s for sure.

School lunches here are considered fine dining in America.

I’m the American. I look it, I smell like it, I act like it, I smile like it, I hold my cutlery like it, I speak like it, I dress like it, and everyone knows it.

American football is a complicated curiosity to the French.

American tourists in Rouen make me giggle.

Street bums are hard to tell apart from the general public.

A tour of the local Prostitutes comes with trying your first French pastry.

Catholics here aren’t the same Catholics back home, in a less crazy kind of way.

My hair straightened will never be the same. Thank you, European wattage.

I am a toy here, something to be shown off, something for them to poke and prod, something for them to study – just as they are to me.

The French love an American accent.

Becoming friends with a café owner is a powerful thing. Free coffee truly does taste better.

Becoming enemies with a café owner is a scary thing. I can no longer enter one of the cafés in Rouen…whoops.

The men considered beaus here are a joke.

A dream in French isn’t much different.

A job considered minimal in the United States will get an entire family by here.

Students, bums, models, and doctors all use the city bus.

Everyone in France can quote Arnold Schwarzenegger perfectly, but can’t pronounce my name.

Parisians are a different species of human.

France is its own world – and most Frenchmen haven’t wandered outside its boundaries, nor have a desire to.

Ignorance thrives here.

The French don’t talk about politics. They don’t talk about money. They talk about sex.

What I Need to Learn:

French.

Being the exchange student here makes me popular, different, a loser, the coolest kid in school, a freak, an outsider, powerful, useful, pathetic, interesting, fascinating, unique, uncomfortable, unusual, bizarre, a victim, a trophy, a burden, appreciated, forgotten, exhilarating, problematic, taxing, but never boring.

A journal of what I’ve learned would be quite long. A journal of what I’ve done here would be even longer. But a journal of how I’ve changed would be never ending. Just as my aptitude with the French language evolves every day, so do my opinions. What I consider a problem now isn’t the same. Being late, that’s fine. Missing my bus, that’s just dandy. Being called out in class for sitting incorrectly, I couldn’t be happier. It’s not apathy that allows such acceptance, it’s a transformation in pride. “My pride,” that’s gone. It disappeared the second I stepped off the plane in Paris and realized I was equivalent to an enfant in one of the biggest cities in the world. Now, I have a new pride. It is not the same as it was 14 days ago, one hour ago, and it won’t be the same pride 6 months from now. It’s growing and changing with me. I now find pride in who a person is; without the ability to communicate, WHO someone is conveys more than ever before.

Everything here is a test. A test of my ability to understand the language, to read a foreign map, of my host family’s patience, and of my appliances with the local electricity. I have never used a dictionary so much. I have never been so tired. And I have never been so happy.

Thank you, Mother, Rotary, and the wonderful United Airlines for giving me this opportunity and getting my bags here intact.

Gros bisou,

À bientôt,

Bridget

October 22 Journal

It wasn’t as simple as just choosing between the red and blue pill. But that’s basically what I did. I started this adventure one year ago, and I’m not gonna lie…I think I am just now realizing what I got myself into.

What had happened was…

It was early September 2008 and I was sitting in my Economics class diligently working as usual. Next thing I know I wake up in France wearing more clothes than I have ever thought possible, a head full of mixed English and French, a wallet with 4 different currencies all together totaling no more than 5 dollars, wondering how on Earth a visit to Leesburg, Florida and a stack of paperwork could have added up to this.

Well, two months into the year, I’m one inch taller and a case fit for Freud himself. The buzzing in my head from the continual French seems to be subsiding, and a quick glance at the Gros Horloge of Rouen is to check the time after school, not to stare in awe, camera in hand. Everything seems to be falling into a routine, just as they said it would. I no longer go to the wrong class and wait two hours to be told I’m in the room next door, and the smell of the Nutella factory just seems like something that should be there. The humming of the metro train sooths me now, for it means either the beginning of a daily adventure in a cheerleader-free school, or it proves I survived another day in the biggest city I’ve ever lived in.

My life, in one quick glance:

I wake up to a pitch black, generally wet, in my opinion, freezing village to the sound of an alarm on a phone I still don’t understand how to use. I brush my teeth- always remembering to be conservative with the tooth paste, because that just seems easier than finally having to translate the whole phrase “I need a new tube of toothpaste” to my host parents- with water that has two settings: searing and glacial. I make my way across the hallway, making sure to avoid the last step because it creeks. And when it creeks, a certain little 4 year old French boy wakes up. And there’s nothing quite like starting your day with a crying infant screaming in a foreign language.

I stand at the door, bracing myself for weather I thought only existed in Russia. I yell “Salut!” to my host family, who are most likely still giggling about the 7 layers I feel necessary for such temperatures, and start the quick ½ mile walk to the bus stop. The quick walk turns into a run, me cursing the whole way under my breath- that I can oh so clearly see, and me zooming past natives in shorts and tee shirts. I hop on the bus and it takes me to my metro station. Thirty minutes later, and 3 flights of stairs I come out into one of the most photographed cities in the world.

My school back home truly does seem like a scene from High School Musical compared to here. There’s no pom-poms, painted faces, school chants, decorated hallways, lockers, flags, mirrors, posters, bleachers, football field or cliques. School here has the same upbeat feeling, but in a study-hall kind of setting. Every girl is dressed to impress. Every boy is coiffed to the tee. The hallways are filled with LongChamp bags (for both men and women), high heels, dark wash jeans, and beautifully straightened hair. As of right now, the “flannel and cowboy boots” look is in. That’s one aspect of France I love- they currently hold to the highest fashion what my city finds fit for the local trailer-park.

Class begins with a lovely jingle, not the moaning bell I’m used to. I sit there with my English-French dictionary ready to translate any word I may be lucky to understand, and the native students begin writing meticulous cursive with their re-loadable fountain pens on ruler straight lines.

Although these kids may be in a spirit-less school, dressed in 500 dollar outfits, it’s not too different. In the end, high school is high school- with or without Zac Efron dancing up and down the bleachers. There’s the favored teachers, the toady teacher, the weird kid, the fat bitch, the girl everyone has a crush on, the hot guy every girl pretends to ignore, and the designated “smoking area” (but here it encompasses the entire outside of the school, and smoking breaks are between every class, side by side the professor).

Just as I seem to be adapting to the school and students, they seem to be getting used to me as well. The first few weeks, I was poked and prodded more than my Rotary blazer. Every day was like a conference, answering questions and explaining that yes, there is in fact lots of sun in Florida.

My courses at school include: French, a little bit more French, and then some more French but for the 5 foreigners, History and Geography, Social Sciences, English, and then a sports class- as of right now, we’re playing Rugby, and then it’s ice skating. After school, I visit the city, losing myself in the local library and free museums. I have yet to literally lose myself, but I can’t wait! That should be exciting in so many ways.

Once again, I take the wonderful public transportation home, and drink coffee at exactly 4:30 with my host parents. I play games with Valentin, my 4 year old brother, who I recently realized understands and speaks French at nearly the exact same level as me. We eat dinner- which is trust me, oh so French- and the daily routine starts over again. Finally having a routine is a blessing. Knowing what’s coming up, what’s most likely going to happen, and being able to mentally imagine a schedule for yourself makes this alternate world a little bit more like home.

So in two months, I think I’ve accomplished quite a bit. Not in the traditional since, but in the fact I’ve come from being a zombie-like baby too a communicating toddler. Maybe by Christmas, I’ll be on the mental playing field of a middle schooler.

This experience is more than I could have ever asked for. Thank you Mother, Rotary and the children’s section of the Rouen public library for giving me this opportunity and books I can understand.

Bisous,

Bridget

January 6 Journal

You’re given a situation here, and you’re told to run with it.

I know an exchange student in the middle of France who goes to a private Catholic school in a small town from 8 am to 6 pm Monday through Saturday. I on the other hand have on average 2 and a half hours of French school a day. I’d say that’s a win.

I know a girl in Lille who spent 6 days in the Alps skiing with her host family for the Christmas holidays. I spent my vacation on the German border opening presents. I’d say we both won.

Rotarians back home always talked about the “Rotary” smile, and they taught us when it was appropriate to plaster that sucker on. I can’t get that smile off, it just seems to be getting bigger ever day. That, I’d say is a win.

I have a host family that treats me like a daughter, I have a host family that I know in the future I will want to visit, and I have a host family that is 100% honest with me. That is the biggest win of my exchange so far. Having someone always at the house when I return from Rouen keeps me busy. They always have something for me to do. They talk to me like a 17 year old girl, not a foreigner who can’t get the past tense correct.

The Ferets have given me more than a “warm” welcome. They have given me a real family on the other side of the world. This is one of the best and biggest surprises of my exchange.

On the other hand, I live with a host family where my Rotary club president is also my host mother, I have a host family that tells me their problems, even when I have no desire or heart to know. I do not want to know that you are in debt, I do not want to know your marital issues and I do not want to see you fighting. But honestly, there’s not a lot I can do.

They always say your first host family is the one you’re the closest with. And I now see why. They are the one that welcomed you to the new culture and like a baby duckling that imprints on the first thing it sees, I have a feeling we exchange students do the same thing when it comes to seeing our host parents for the first time after stepping off the plane. Not only did I open up too quickly and willingly to my host parents, but they seemed to cling to me as well. The day before I arrived, their 17 year old blonde daughter left for exchange in Argentina.

When my 4 year old host brother kicks and shouts because he misses his big sister and turns to me yelling that it’s my fault – they always sit him down and tell him I’m not replacing her, I’m just here when she happens to be gone.

All of this combined has torn down any wall between me and the family. Any barrier of politeness and secrecy is long gone. This is definitely not a win.

This situation has taught me to keep my distance. I now know how important it is too keep the walls up. Rotary gave a seminar on everything, from how to give a speech in a foreign language, to ways of preventing weight gain during the exchange year. If I successfully become a Rotex, this is a lesson I am strongly going to emphasize. Not having a host “family” and having solely “hosts”, where it seems you use their bed and bathroom and interaction seems vacant, is just as bad as being too close.

I can’t help but write this journal with a smile. One of the main reasons I did this year was to see where I messed up, and where I succeeded. I really should have known better. But it’s like a good day at the beach: you always forget the sunscreen. You should have known better, it’s quite painful looking at your burned arms, but you can’t help but smile looking back on your lovely day spent in the sun.

I change host families in two weeks.

Thank you Mother, for 17 years of morals that keep me upright in more than one culture, Rotary for this oh so lovely adventure, and plug in heaters that show -10 degrees Celsius who’s boss.

Happy Holidays,

Bridget

February 17 Journal

I vow to never again judge a foreigner. Be it their accent, their stories of the “home-land” or their bizarre ways of acting, eating or sleeping, I will never again judge. I’ve been the foreigner for 6 months now, and that’s only half way. I didn’t realize until now just how much that meant.

Let’s go back a little ways…when my French wasn’t so good…

August-October:

At this point, I can look back and surely say that I was a noobie. But in the moment, it was awesome. It’s like being 4 years old with your pimped out motorcycle, and then when you look through the photo albums when you’re older and you realize you’re pooping yourself on a broken tri-cycle with a two different colored socks on. I still do, but back then only 4 little months ago, I loved it when people would ask me about Florida. “It’s always sunny there right??” I always smiled and gave the same answer. “In fact, no, sometimes there’s huge storms that last days and it rains profusely.” (All in French of course..) I just absolutely loved teaching people about Florida, it really made my day. Yeah America’s great, but educating the world on my home-state? What could be better?? It was seeing the unbelievably surprised look on people’s faces that made this specific question and answer session oh-so-satisfying.

…

I learned in the middle of October that I’d been saying the word “trumpets” instead of “thunderstorm.” Maybe in France it rains, but in Florida, the sunshine capital, it pours musical instruments.

August-January:

I can safely say, I’m cold. I left Charles de Gaulle airport at 7 am a late August morning, and it was a little bit nippy. That was 6 months ago. And it seems to get colder every succeeding day. Needless to say, I look like a marshmallow. I wear more clothes than I actually thought possible. You know you’re from Florida, when in the “mild Normandy climate” (according to Wikipedia online…) you wear more layers than you have fingers. It adds up quickly- tank tops, sweaters, cardigans, hoody, jacket, heavy winter jacket…wadded up newspaper- learned that trick from the local hobos. During these months, thanks to my four year old host brother, and winter wardrobe needs, my French vocabulary developed rapidly in the areas of clothes and toddler toys. I don’t think there went a day where I didn’t say “jacket.” Be it “I need to put my jacket on”, “oh it’s cold, where’s my jacket?”, or “It’s cold, good thing I have my jacket!” Cleary this was a very important vocabulary word for me in my new life in France. I was beaming- I was speaking French, I had my awesome jacket, and people would always tell me how utterly adorable I was.

…

I learned in January that I pronounced “jacket” the same as “sheep.”

Your faithful foreigner,

Bridget

Chelsea’s Bio

Konnichiwa! I’m Chelsea A. Neal, but my friends call me Hat. I am totally excited about going to Japan; it has been my dream to go there since the Pokemon era, about… ten to eleven years ago. I am a junior at Naples High School, home of the Golden Eagles.

I live with my mom, sister, and 6 cats. All my cats have been rescued from somewhere and they are more like us than anyone would think. My sister is a senior at Naples High and is aspiring to go to England. My mom works for D. Garret Construction Co. and for Maxwell’s Restaurant. Even between these jobs she has time to have fun with us.

I love music a ton, mainly listening to it, but I play a variety of instruments. I play the piano, harmonica, and a little bit of trumpet. I mainly love to try and play songs just by listening to them but if that doesn’t work I print out sheet music. I usually like to play anime theme music, like from Inuyasha, Naruto, Kingdom Hearts, Bleach, and a lot more.

What I love to do the most is to play Yugioh cards. Most of my closest friends play too, and together, we have a ball. We go to tournaments in Cape Coral, most of the time to play, trade, and mess around. In the future we all hope to open our own gaming store, but the details I won’t reveal. My friends are the greatest; they are always fun to be around even if we’re just lying around in the grass.

My life is really laid back; through the week it’s just school, friends on the weekend, then more school. School usually has me bogged down with work and with nary a break for rest. That’s why my weekends I devote to hanging out with my friends.

That about sums up my life; house, hobbies, and friends. I thank everyone that helped to get me to where I am. My parents for being so supportive, my friends for always having my back, and my city for being the most rocking place I know of. And to the Rotary for helping me to realize my dream.

 Chelsea’s Journals

August 24 Journal

Starting off, Japan is a wonderful country full of adventure around every corner big and small. I never experienced so much in a year back in America as I have in one month here.

The people I’ve met have all been so generous to me. From my host family consisting of Rotary Youth Exchange Officer, and also my host father, Shuji Kato, his wife Midori Kato and three daughters Natsuki, Tamaki, and Mizuki.

So many other people have truly helped me a lot and from different areas. To Rotary members Mr. Matsuda and Mr. Brian is my Principal and Co-homeroom teacher respectively. Plus my new international friends, Rotary exchanges Rhys from Kansas, Victor from France, and Karin from Mexico. All the Rotexes are very helpful as well, especially my good friend Chihiro who had just returned from her exchange in Florida and also Ryota who just came back from Minnesota. We are all good friends. At school the day I posted this, I met my class – there are only nine students including myself so this should be a fun and close group.

With every good adventure come some amazing places. First day as a group the Inbounds and Rotexes followed some Rotary members around through an open market. Every kind of fish you could imagine could be found there, including octopus, and squid, crabs of all different variety, plus slippery eels.

While Japan is great, in the city there is nothing like visiting a Shinto shrine or a Buddhist temple. Lucky for me I have visited two different Shrines and Temples for many different reasons each time. The first shrine however was probably the most memorable. We inbounds were taken inside the shrine, and that is a very rare thing to be able to do, and were all blessed by the Shinto priests and their gods. My temple experiences were quite enjoyable as well. My first summer festival I went to a Buddhist temple and was honored by a group of dancers with an excellent present of pride.

The city of Sendai itself is a large adventure. I have gotten lost almost every time I enter the city, but finding two distinct locations make travel much easier.

One of these places is Ichiban Chou, the biggest mall I’ve ever seen. This mall is an outdoor mall but it stretches out across many of the major streets of Sendai, it would take about a half hour just to cross all of it. Especially during Tanabata festival. This festival is to celebrate the union of two stars who are parted by the Milky Way. As celebration all of Sendai is decorated with large paper decorations hanging from large bamboo poles in the middle of the walkways of Ichiban Chou while millions of people are walking through admiring the colorful and unique designs.

Another important place my school, Tokiwagi Gakuen. When typing this journal I had just come back from my first day of school. Such a wonderful campus with clean floors and warm smiles. I’m lucky enough to be right on time to see their school festival this weekend, which should be exciting.

Another great adventure within the adventure is the exploration of food. Food is so vast and colorful in Japan, not like the colorful ads of fast food restaurants. So interesting is their food, from octopus rolled up into deep battered dough, green rice with a hint of sugary flavor, and most importantly the many varieties of ramen. Not the ramen from a cup but genuine ramen straight from the cook.

That is it for my review of this past month’s adventure in Japan. I hope that everyone around the world reading this have a wonderful loads of happiness, luck, health, and adventure every day.

Until next time we meet

October 24 Journal

Hello everyone, welcome to this month’s update! How is everyone? I hope you’re all having some great adventures. I’ve had quite a few.

First thing was the three weeks of barbeques in a row. There was a barbeque for three Sundays straight. Quite fun, the first and second barbeques were at Kato-san’s house. At the first barbeque, I met my little sister Mizuki’s Assistant Language Teacher Topaz, who is from Jamaica, and her colleague, who is also an Assistant Language Teacher at Mizuki’s school, Renata from Barbados. The second barbeque I met some of Kato-san’s friends. One of them says hi to my dad! He is a fellow Rat of the Chinese zodiac.

Third barbeque was way north of the city of Sendai. We were surrounded by chestnut trees, which is an autumn favorite here. We all picked chestnuts and the women and children, plus the Rotary club Chairman, went to pick apples. People at the picnic were of course Kato-san and Tamaki, Mito-sensei an English teacher from school who helps me out a lot. My principal Mr. Matsura, I also met his wife, and most surprisingly I met someone from Italy, I forget exactly where in Italy but she is from the northern part of Italy.

I ate quite a lot at each barbeque and all were different styles and dishes. Most memorable food would be a special traditional autumn soup, scallops, oysters, octopus, and most regrettably pig intestines. Everything on this list was beyond awesome except the pig intestines. I’m not even going to describe why because just the name itself should sound too weird to be good.

Next interesting thing that happened, I have moved. Yes I have moved from the Kato’s house. I do miss the Kato’s but my new family is beyond nice. The new family are called Gushi and they consist of Tomokatsu (Papa), Minako (Mama), older sister Honoka (Hono), younger sister Wakana who goes to the same school as me, and 2 year old baby Kuryu (Ku-chan). They are tons of mega fun, although I moved in with them about 2 weeks ago it still feels new to me since I went on my school trip like right after moving.

And now here is the most exciting part of the update: Chelsea Neal’s Japanese School Trip to Kansai!!!!

Kansai is an area of Japan west of Tokyo. The cities I went to are Hiroshima, Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, and Nara for 6 days and 5 nights. There were a total of 130 girls on the trip. We were all split into four major groups depending on our teacher and again split into smaller groups. My group consisted of five girls, Shiori and Yuka, who are the leaders of our bigger group, Hikaru, and Arisa. There was also Miho who would hang out with us whenever we had free time.

First was getting to Osaka airport. We all flew to the Osaka Itami airport from Sendai and when we took off and landed all the 130 girls on the trip started freaking out and screaming. I guess they’ve never been on a plane before haha.

When we got to the airport we took a bus to the train station where we were to ride a Shidensha! Or Bullet Train! When it came into the station I was able to take a picture of it so I’m happy. In the shidensha it is super comfortable, even though I had my backpack with me (instead of doing the smart thing and putting it in the truck with all the other girl’s wheelie bags) I had plenty of leg room.

So the the Shidensha went all the way to Hiroshima, from there we drove and took a boat to the Miyajima Shrine. Some of you may know it as the shrine with a giant gate out in the ocean. Although it was low tide that day so I saw it on land. We traveled around the island that the shrine was on and the whole entire island had tons of deer on it. The deer were just walking around sometimes following people. The tour guide said that if we want we were allowed to feed the deer paper.

The shrine itself is extremely massive; it took about a half hour to 45 minutes just to tour the whole thing. Although I didn’t get to get up close to the gate. Another part of the shrine is a large Pagoda; I took many pictures of it.

On the island there are numerous shops and funnily a lot of foreign tourists. Apparently the island’s special product are wooden rice paddles, they even have a giant rice paddle. So I bought a rice paddle… I may never use it since in America I don’t own a rice cooker.

After the island we took a yacht, yes, 130 girls all on a yacht, to our hotel the Grand Prince Hotel Hiroshima. Such a strange hotel, in the lobby there is a flat marble like surface that during the day water flows over it with a church like walkway (for weddings I suppose) and what I believe to be Jesus riding a Dolphin behind a podium.

The rooms were huge and had the most comfortable beds in all of foreverdom. And at dinner… I felt like I was at Hogwarts in the great hall. Don’t laugh – I mean it! We were all seated at four tables separated by our groups (I hope I was in Gryffindor) and food kept magically appearing on the tables when we were eating. Well, magically is an exaggeration, more like the butlers kept bringing out different dishes. There were these awesome potatoes that tasted like Alfredo pasta, I wish there would have been some shrimp with it.

Next day we went to the Hiroshima memorial peace park, so much sad stories and pictures I dare not put them up. Although the experience was a great one.

After that we went to eat a special Kansai specialty called Okinomiyaki. It is basically noodles plus pretty much anything with over easy eggs as the covering with a very special sauce, it was very delicious.

Then we went to Kobe where there is an area that is designed like the olden days of Japan. In it we went to an art gallery that had a bunch of paintings by famous artists such as Monet, and Renoir. After the gallery we all walked around the street, fed the koi fish and my group went to a tea house and ate green tea ice cream.

Next we went to the famous Kobe Bay where we went on a dinner cruise around Kobe Bay. So much good food it was awesome. After everyone ate we went on top of the deck and everyone was making references to Titanic.

Next day, we went to see a play. The theater is called Takarazuka and this theater is very famous for its very melodramatic performances, lavish costumes, and most importantly, all the actors are women. Yes no male actors and all the women doing male roles did extraordinary jobs at their roles, so well sometimes I got confused and thought they were guys. This play was the most special one, for one of their top leading actresses was retiring (by now is retried) so she took the starring role. There were actually two separate performances separated by a lunch break. The first performance was a drama about a pianist name Alister who almost died playing piano and so gave it up, ended up joining a new friend named Christopher as an Antique dealer, with squabbles with gang members along the way. The second was a stage show called Heat on Beat where many different music types were explored in a very flashy manner. At the end all of the girl actresses and the two lead boy actresses came out in very feathery attire. The lead who was retiring was in the most feathery; with a large white peacock like tail and many feathery accessories (Peta would have a fit).

After that we went to a section of Kobe where long ago western foreigners built magnificent houses. The area is called the Old Foreigners Market. And close to the major section where there are many old buildings to visit, my group went to a nearby Teddy Bear Museum. Yes, a Teddy Bear Museum. The museum owner is a very intelligent woman who is an English teacher. Here is how good she is, all the English teachers in Osaka city once a year all go to her to learn English, and she helps with contracts in between countries. Remarkable.

Then we went all the way to the Universal Studios Japan Port Hotel. Right next to the park. We went to eat at the Chinese food buffet. Again, lots of food.

Then the next day we went to Universal Studios Japan! To tell you the truth it wasn’t as much fun for me, well I don’t ride roller coasters so I waited while my group (which was on that day moment Hikaru, Arisa, and Miho). Although I rode on both the Jaws ride and the Spiderman ride. The Jaws ride was hilarious; the boat driver was an amazingly funny actor. But the Spiderman ride kind of freaked me out. It was a 3D ride where you drive around a bit, no rollercoaster like drops but there was a ton of spinning and getting freaked out by the villains. After that we went shopping, I only got one thing though (saving money) but I can’t tell you what it is, it’s a present for a friend who reads this update.

After the park we traveled straight to our hotel in Kyoto.

Then FREE DAY IN KYOTO!

Kyoto was fun; we went to this gold temple (although the gold part was being repaired) where there was this love stone, it is said that whoever walks safely with their eyes closed from one stone to the other something super special awesome will happen with their love life. If you fail it will be a long time till you experience love. I did the test just so I could test how well I could do it and I passed. I don’t think anything will happen though.

After the temple my group on that day (Shiori, Yuka, and two friends from a different group) wanted to hang out just them, so I got to hang out with the sensei’s rest of the day. We went to a restaurant where most of the dishes are tofu of some sort, although there was this mountain potato gruel type stuff that tasted wonderful on rice. Then we went to a special park. This park is actually a studio lot used by one of the biggest TV show companies, Toei Studios, where they shoot dramas. What kind of dramas? Awesome samurai and ninja old school fighting dramas! The park was amazing, all the buildings were in the old style of ancient Kyoto and I met a samurai and a ninja! I also took part in a shuriken (ninja throwing stars) throwing game and won a Harisen, a stage prop that looks like a fan frequently used for hitting people (my friends better run hehe). I also bought my own shuriken which I’ll be making into a necklace… I really hope when I get home that I won’t be questioned as a terrorist or something.

Well that’s really all of Kyoto. So on to the last day in Nara.

It was actually pretty boring, great places but boring. Nara Park like at the Miyajima shrine had a ton of deer, including lots of baby deer. We saw the giant Buddha statue in the largest Buddhist temple. After that we went to another temple which (sadly) completely bored me because I couldn’t take any pictures of the statues and almost none of the buildings.

Overall though my trip was a massive amount of fun and a great experience, now I’m at home finally resting. Wondering what my next great adventure will be.

I must make a big shout out. HI ELAINE WELCOME HOME!

Today my sister Elaine has come back from her three months in Marines Boot Camp and I’m happy to hear she’s in one piece, I hope to talk with her on skype, make sure if you have at least my mother’s email give her a hello. I’d give you Elaine’s email myself, but truthfully she never has given it to me.

Until next month Sayonara! And have a Happy Halloween!

November 24th Journal

When I got back from my trip, all of my classmates of international 2nd year went to America on their exchange and wouldn’t be back for two weeks. So instead of just me by myself in the 2nd year class, the teachers placed me in my little sister’s class, the 1st year international class!

I forgot to mention this about my school, but there are actually two separate buildings, an old building and a new building. The old building has almost all of the 1st years and 2nd years, and the new building has all the third years, 1st and 2nd year music class, and 2nd year classes 6, 7, 8, and international. So when I transferred to my sister’s class I had to go to the other building. Not much of a difference though, all chalkboards in all the classes.

The homeroom teachers for the first years are Alex the Canadian, and another English teacher Mrs. Miyuki. Mrs. Miyuki is a superbly nice person and fun too. The students were all fun to hang out with too. But, my past theory about international students getting to have no math is now proven wrong.

New class, new schedule, not much difference, except only one type of Japanese class, Japanese history switched to World History (very fun since I understand world history), and every day I had a math class. Unlike other classes where you stay in the same class and the teachers come to your class, we went to a different class. The teachers still had to come to us though. Either way I still was very confused in math class. Thought I’d understand it since, hey it’s the language of math, but no I never understood math language either.

The first exciting event to happen though was of course HALLOWEEN! On the Wednesday before Halloween we had just come back from math for our long homeroom to see the class covered with Halloween decorations. Alex’s favorite holiday is Halloween so he asked his family back at home to send him decorations, and for long homeroom we all helped to decorate the room.

But then Friday, day before Halloween, we had to move the decorations to the 2nd year international classroom because not only was it Halloween, it was also the open house for the school to try and get middle schoolers to come to our school next year.

On Halloween I had to go to the school to help everyone out, we played some Halloween games with the middle school students that came and gave reports on the awesomeness that is Tokiwagi exchange program. Not much else happened that day so now onto the month of November!

Throughout this month I’ve been introduced to many members of the Gushi family, and they are all tons of fun. There is Grandma (Obaasan), Ki-chan (Mama’s sister), Ryusei (Ki-chan’s 7 year old son), Yasai Obasan (Mama’s aunt who grows vegetables=yasai), and Chi-chan (Mama’s cousin).

That next Tuesday the 3rd was a Japanese culture day! And so Monday night Papa, Mama, Waka, Hono, Ku-chan, Ryusei, and I went to a hot spring. If you don’t know what a hot spring is I’ll explain. A hot spring, or in Japanese, onsen, is an open air bathhouse that is commonly near a volcano or other area of warm activity that naturally heats up the water for a refreshing experience. It was a separated bath, so girls to one side, boys to the other, except Ku-chan, he doesn’t like to be away from Mama.

Next day on culture day Obaasan, Ki-chan, and Ryusei all came over and we had a big dinner, it was very fun.

On that next Friday I returned to my regular 2nd year international class. It was great to have them back but I will miss the fun of the younger class. But in one class or the other it didn’t make much of a difference, because everyone in the school was preparing for the midterm exam, which when I’m typing this the first day of exams have been completed. I’m actually not taking exams because 1. I wasn’t here for the first semester of classes so I would not know of that material, and 2. I will be taking a test to test my current level of Japanese, mainly with Kanji.

The next exciting thing that happened was about two weeks later. Alex and Miyuki-sensei asked me to go with them to a middle school a little ways off to the north to talk to some middle school students and get them to come to our school. The middle schoolers were really fun, we played some games with them and taught them a little English. We only taught two classes but kids would stop Alex and I to try and practice their English. Their English was really good too. In one game they had to write words on the board that began with the last words last letter and they used words I wouldn’t see being taught and remembered using, like mode. And many of them spelled orange right which is hard because here orange is pronounced o-ren-ji.

Also, Christmas is just around the corner, and even though not even 1% of the Japanese people are Christian, Christmas is still very much celebrated. But, as Brian-sensei from Ireland told me, unlike in America the sales don’t happen till after New Years. There is this tradition here in Sendai that during these sales a lot of the shops sell bags of goods that, for example, cost $50 but what is inside the bag is a bundle of goods worth about $150. I might try to find a video game shop or any other shop and try to get one. It is all a part of embracing the culture right?

There was also this holiday back on the 7th called Shichi-go-san which means 7-5-3. It is the day where boys and girls, girls of 7 and 3 and boys of 5, go to Japanese shrines to get blessed. Mama, Ku-chan, and I went to see the festivities at the biggest shrine in the area and Mama told me about the gods that lived there. Afterwards I started studying more about these gods and other gods in the area.

The shrine is called Shiogama Shrine in Shiogama city. The god who rules there is named Shiogama, of course, which means Salt Kiln in Japanese. Shiogama is a very large god who rules over the ocean nearby to Shiogama city. He is also the god of successful childbirth, matchmaking, and of luck in financial business. He also happens to have a small shrine in Sendai that I pass by on my way to school so I always stop to say good morning.

Next two gods are Shiogama’s subordinates, Shiwahiko (Will Wave), and Okama (Kiln). Shiwahiko is also a god of the ocean, but just the ocean, he lives at the same big shrine as Shiogama. Okama is the god of salt; he is very small and lives nearby Shiogama but not in the main shrine.

There’s also this god that I refer to as Sanko, because I do not know his name. He lives at the Shiogama’s small shrine in Sendai. I just noticed him today so tomorrow I’ll read about him and see what he does and tell you about him.

Last god is my current awesome favorite. His name is Gongoro Kagemasa. He is the closest god to my house living at Kamakura Shrine right next to the station I go to. It is a very small shrine, looking very much like a tool shed. At the shrine there are these three stray cats, a mother and two kittens, they are so cute! But I’m not sure if I should report them to someone or what, but I think they are happy where they are. Anyway, Gongoro really isn’t a god but a samurai who is forever famous for his brave accomplishments in battle. So brave, that when he died the people of the city he lived in, which is much farther south than where I am, built a shrine for him. The shrine here is again, just a small shrine, but with the same importance as his larger shrine.

That’s about all the exciting things that happened. Well until next time …

To the Americans, Happy Thanksgiving!

To all the other countries, Happy Holidays.

And to everyone, I miss you and wish you all the luck, health, and happiness in the world.

Love always,

Chelsea Neal

a.k.a. Keeping Many People Happy

December 24th Journal

The first thing to happen in October was the Rotary Club Annual Picnic. We drove a long ways up north to what I believe to be on top of some large hill or small mountain.

We were in a small clearing surrounded by chestnut trees (yes from the Christmas song). The women and children including me were able to pick apples and afterwards everyone enjoyed a big feast of barbeque meat and veggies. After eating, we all went and picked some chestnuts, very difficult, for your hands keep getting prickled with thorns.

A few days after the picnic I had to move to my 2nd host family called the Gushi family. Although it didn’t feel like that’s when I moved since two days after that I went on my school trip to Kansai.

My school trip was a 6 day 5 night trip to the cities of Hiroshima, Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, and Nara. The first day we went to Miyajima Island which is right off the coast of Hiroshima. The island is not only famous for the gate on the water but also for its great number of deer, and rice paddles.

Second day we went to the Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park, there were many sad places in the park. The thing that impacted me the most though was in the memorial museum was on one of the first walls was a message saying,

“A dragonfly flitted in front of me

And stopped on a fence.

I stood up, took my cap in my hands,

And was about to catch the dragon fly

When…”

It shows that before the bomb this was a regular day just like any other.

After that and some okonomyaki, we all went to the small city of Kurashiki to visit an art museum and explore the old fashioned street. Then a long drive to Kobe to sail on the bay in a dinner buffet cruise.

Next day we went to see a special showing of a Takarazuka play, which is a theater troop made entirely of women. We ate lunch there, then departed for the old foreigners’ market, where one could find many buildings from when European settlers built themselves homes. Some buildings were turned into museums, including a teddy bear museum. After that we went to Universal Studios Japan to settle into our hotel and eat at a Chinese buffet.

The next day was the all day adventure through Universal Studios Japan. I explored pretty much everywhere and rode on the Jaws and Spiderman rides. Both were a very fun experience to ride on.

The free day in Kyoto the next day was my favorite; my group went to the golden temple although the golden part was being reconstructed. Then I went to a studio lot park where Toei studios films Japanese war dramas among other things.

Last day we went to Nara to visit Nara Park, which had many deer, and two Buddhist temples. One had the large Nara Buddha inside it, and the other wouldn’t allow pictures.

When I got back from my trip my classmates of 2nd year international were in America on a short school trip. So until they returned I stayed in the 1st International class with my new host sister Wakana. In that class I had to undergo math, world history, and home economics.

But we all got to celebrate Halloween since Alex-sensei is the homeroom teacher. So Alex brought in some decorations and during the middle school open house played some fun Halloween games with the middle school student that was interested in joining Tokiwagi.

My 2nd host family was very kind to me for the two months I lived there. With my host mother, sisters, little brother Ku-chan, cousin Ryu, and many other relatives I explored much of the culture of Japan. I believe 3 times I was able to go to a hot spring with my family.

And my host mother took Ku-chan and I to a large shrine in Shiogama city, one of the three great sites in Japan, and also took Aunt Ki-chan and Ryu along to another shrine.

The seasons in Japan are really beautiful, from the autumn leaves to the cheerful feelings of Christmas. I love how you can celebrate Christmas without actually being Christian.

Near the start of December and the end of my stay with my 2nd host family I went on a trip with fellow Rotary inbounds, Rhys, Karen, and Victor, to pretty much share our culture with some college students. In the middle of the first day Sato-san took us to a large famous temple that had a golden hall used to protect ancestors.

We had an amazing time; the hotel had an onsen, an ice skating rink, a small playground, and most awesomely, a golf course. Most of the above we all did with the college students, but Rhys, Karen, and I all found the golf game and found it to be quite fun, then later on we got Victor to play too.

After that fun filled three days I returned home and almost immediately was switched to my 3rd host family. So far in this new house I’ve had experienced great fun although I’ve only been with this family for almost 2 weeks.

I went to a soccer game with my younger host sister, who happens to be going to Oklahoma for a short term Rotary youth exchange. My family also took me out to the Hikari no Pageant, Pageant of Light. An annual celebration here in Sendai. All the trees were lit, one of the most beautiful sights I’ve ever seen.

And just yesterday I learned how to make mochi, mashed rice, it is supremely easy and really fun. It’s healthy for you too.

Lastly I am happy to say that it started snowing here in Japan. I haven’t seen snow for over five years so I’m really happy to be able to experience the warm feeling you get when you see snow.

And the immense amount of fun. Before our school went to winter break we all in my class messed around outside on the balcony and in the classroom throwing snowballs at each other.

And that is the end of my update. One wise word and a bit of exciting news you all may have not realized yet.

I’m at the half way point of my journey here; I’ve spent exactly five months here in Japan and according to what the Florida Youth Exchange heads have told me I have five more to go.

My advice is, have an adventure everyday no matter how small. You’ll be glad you did.

I’m going to end this now.

Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year of the Tiger

Loving everyone always and forever,

Chelsea Neal

a.k.a Hat

Keeping Many People Happy

P.S. instead of uploading the pictures like usual, I made a slide show of pictures from my trip, starting from where I left off in the October update. Here is the link to the video: http://video.yahoo.com/watch/6657017/17291620 

March 24 Journal

Hello everyone! And welcome to the March Monthly Update. I’m sorry that there was no update last month, I had quite a lot on my plate and afterwards had to rest for quite a bit, thank goodness we had some holiday time here in Japan.

So I’ll start off with all the excitement of February. First in school there was a chorus contest where we had to sing 2 songs, a pre-chosen song and a song of our class’s choice. This contest was actually supposed to be in December but so many students caught the influenza that the contest had to be postponed. So after months of practice and lunch time nap deprivation the chorus contest was a great success. There were many great vocals including one of a well known Japanese song called Yell by Ikimonogakari or if you can read this on your computer いきものがかり. My class didn’t place but we got an honorable mention because our class was the only that both songs were played on the piano by the same person (since we only have 11 people in the class).

And right after that a sports contest was announced, this involved all the 2nd years competing in dodge ball, volleyball, and basketball. We didn’t train for this as much for we were on a crunch for time with studying for exams so when the game competition day came we did kind of bad. But we had tons of fun anyway. It was interesting watching the teachers vs. students in volleyball and basketball. My principal Matsura-sensei even played basketball, before game he was showing off by getting constant 3 pointers.

All of the school contests now are over and done with and all the students were busy studying for exams… except me. I had a Rotary club Japanese speech contest. Prior to these other contests and a little afterwards I studied and memorized my speech to my best ability, mid way having to completely change my speech. Day of I was really nervous as I get extremely uncomfortable with going on stages. Yes, I know that I’m known for my acting skills by some of you but behind the scenes I tremble in my boots. The worst part was though I was the first person to make my speech. So I said my speech, I bet poorly and when on a crunch for time superbly improvised, a ways into the contest after my friend Karen’s speech I had to leave early. There was a tsunami coming and my host grandma, who happened to come and watch, had to go evacuate her house. So you know, everyone and everything is ok, there was no damage done to relatives houses. Afterwards I asked Karen about what went on with the contest and someone from South Korea had won the contest.

During all this the 3rd years at school had all taken their exams and after the speech contest was their graduation ceremony. There was a going away performance some time before that and all the teachers put on a couple of hilarious performances, I wish I could have taken pictures but I don’t think I was allowed to. They even did a Michael Jackson “Guess that ghost teacher” kind of performance. There were two teachers starring as Michael Jackson and everyone was like ‘who’s that second Michael Jackson’ but… it was so obviously Matsura-sensei. I’m surprised that everyone else was surprised. So at the actual ceremony many tears were shed as the 2nd and 1st years had to say goodbye to their mentors. I even cried, because there was this one moment when all the third years all together thank they’re mothers and fathers and home room teachers and it was just so sweet how they all seriously were going to miss their school and I know that will never EVER happen in an American school… ever.

And so the tiresome month of February came to an end. Next was the very interesting month of March.

The 2nd and 1st years took their exams as I kind of chilled and worked on Florida Virtual School stuff. After all that we got school off although it wasn’t technically spring break yet. It was mostly just relaxing getting work done but two very important events happened within this time.

First on the 14th was the anniversary of the death of my host mother’s father, so some relatives got together to mourn and properly place him in the Buddhist temple’s graveyard. Day before though I went with my host sisters, little brother, aunt Ki-chan and her son Ryu, Grandma, and two uncles, Yoshi and Hide, went to a bowling alley. It was great amounts of fun, especially seeing the two brothers battle it out. Uncle Yoshi is from Okinawa and had just gotten here, a very fun person (all the beer in your fridge will be gone by the time he leaves) he’s the type of uncle that likes to spoil people so Ryu somehow coaxed him into buying him a DSi since he liked playing with mine so much. After bowling we went to Mama’s job to eat (for free I think) until Mama got off work. Papa joined us there too, he had just come all the way from Gunma-ken (way down south of Miyagi-ken) to come and visit.

Anyways with the funeral we all wore black (no not kimonos sorry) and went into the temple to pray and offer incenses. After that we all went to Grandma’s house, which happened to be a bar, and we all ate snacks, watched TV, and talked about various things. Later that night we went to a special restaurant where you cook the food you order in front of you. For the first time I was able to try Sendai’s most well known food… cow tongue! It was actually really delicious to my surprise though quite hard to chew. There were all sorts of other tasty cow parts too which I don’t know from where they were from. But I’ll probably not eat any of these again, especially once I get back to the states where we lack such exotic tastes.

And thus ended the interesting funeral day. But the next week was another similar and interesting adventure.

I went with my host mother and host grandmother, plus little brother Ku-chan of course, we went to the temple where the ceremony from last time was to put up fresh flowers and offer incenses again. But the most interesting was that we went to visit a, to me, new relative. From my perspective I was thinking, huh this is an interesting house I wonder why we’re here. Living there was a woman in a wheel chair named Kozue who is my host mother’s cousin, she takes care of the true owner of the house. Her name is Tomeno, she is my host grandmother’s grandmother at the age of 97 or 98. I was just simply amazed by not only the fact that I was meeting probably the oldest member of the family but that, though she was bed stricken, was still very much alive and well. Shows how much a family can care for each other. Right after we left that house some more relatives had just gotten there as well.

And lastly today was the last official day of school, we went to school just to have our closing ceremony and say goodbye to each other for students will switch classes and I may actually have to be in the 2nd year international course one more time instead of advancing to the 3rd year. This day was interesting, first I was actually able to understand my principal’s speech, which I think was the first time I could understand a whole speech spoken in normal speed. I also was able to sing almost my entire school anthem with everyone. In homeroom, our last homeroom, we had fun just hanging out taking pictures, we said our goodbyes to our homeroom teachers and that was that.

So now I just await my next adventure, which would be Spring Camp. I will be going with fellow foreign exchange students Rhys, Karen, and Victor to Yamagata-ken to help new future outbounds to get ready for their exchange trip. My host sister Wakana will be getting ready to go to Brazil, very exciting.

In other news I will be moving again for the 5th time to my 4th host family although I only have 2 months left in Japan. I start my return home on the 27th of May, approved by all Rotarians that needed to approve it.

It’s really coming down to the wire now; the next update will probably be the last one. So till then, I wish ever one all the best luck and happiness in the world.

From World Traveler,

Chelsea Neal

Keeping Many People Happy

April 24 Journal

Hello everyone around the world. Welcome to the April Edition of the monthly update! This month started the ever so famous spring of Japan. Only just a few days ago the Sakura cherry blossom trees began to bloom all over Sendai. Though this spring is by far the coldest I’ve ever experienced at 44 degrees everyday and occasional rain showers.

There was lots of goings on with the Rotary Club this month. First up was the Spring Camp that I had mentioned last update. This was a meeting and training camp very much similar to the camps that I had went to before leaving for Japan. It was in Yamagata prefecture which is directly west of my prefecture Miyagi. Not just my District but another Rotary District was there.

There were many Rotarians but also some new exchange student friends plus some local assistant language teachers. The other inbounds were all very fun to hang out with, there is Travis from Canada an interesting guy, and considering this meeting was right after the Winter Olympics we had plenty to talk about, Michelle another American this time from Oregon, she loves to listen to music and sing karaoke, and Manon from France a well cultured girl for sure very polite and loves the hot springs. The new students going abroad included my host sister Wakana who is going to Brazil, a boy from my district named Shinji who is going to Minnesota, another girl named Wakana going to Ohio, and 3 more girls one going to Mexico, one to France, and another to Oregon. And lastly the ALT’s all were very fun and I wish I could have talked with them more. There were two English guys, 2 girls from New Zealand and 1 girl from California. And there were many new Rotexs that went all over, most all were girls but a significant few were guys. Including Stitch! Yes his name is Stitch he went to America.

So at the camp we pretty much just helped the future outbounds with their English/French/Spanish/ Portuguese and had fun with doing it through different “What do you do?” scenarios like a cafeteria and an airport. It was all around fun, though I was extremely tired the whole weekend for some reason I still managed to stay active. Although we did all stay up till way late one night, Victor and I were the only ones I think that got any sleep and that was at like 3 in the morning.

Now onto the next event, the District 2520 Gala Event Special! First thing after lunch me and my host sister Wakana plus a couple more Tokiwagi students went to help hold up some signboards showing all the Rotary members from all of the clubs in the entire district in two whole prefectures where a meeting was being held. Then afterwards we exchange students and some Rotex went onto a huge stage (on the 6th floor of a hotel) and Kato-san, my first host father and chairman of the Rotary Youth Exchange over here, and Rhys, exchange student from Kansas, made a small speech about the program. Then all of us Rotex and exchange students plus Wakana and Shinji went to Pirikura (Japanese arcade’s special photo booth) and a café to hang out. Then some time later we returned to a different hotel. This hotel was filled with tons of elaborate paintings and statues from all over the world; I could barely keep myself from jumping around from all the culture around me. But the “piece de resistance” on the 5th floor we enter a large room. Do you know of when you watch a movie and you see all the rich people gathered in a large hall and they’re all eating from a tremendously large buffet and drinking expensive wine and beer? That’s where I was – most amazing spread of people and food in my life. In all honesty I think I almost passed out there were just so many people. But I got through it, had some educational conversations with a few of the Rotarians including one Rotarian from Iwate who loves to go to movies, we had tons to talk about and a Chinese man who I know from my own club. Probably never again will I be able to be in such an awesome gala event like that but the memory is with me forever (but no pictures, my camera died).

The last Rotary event of the month, I went to an Ohanami or Sakura viewing party, this event was all districts as well but only a few representatives from each district. Among the people from my district were Kato-san, Shiromatsu-san president of my club and a famous photographer. This event was held at Shiromatsu-san’s Shiromatsu snacks factory, I can’t believe I didn’t realize the free snacks I won at Christmas bingo came from the president. even though there technically was no Sakura, the party was really an excuse just to drink and have fun (don’t worry I didn’t drink, scout’s honor). The party was great I was given a small tour of the two Shrines that were there, one’s name is Shrio-Kitsune and the other was (something)-Matsu. Also Shiromatsu-san’s older brother Ichiro Shiromatsu decided to plan a big birthday party for me May 2nd, I tried to deny politely but they insisted, especially Kato-san. Though this will be awesome, because my sister will be coming to visit then from Okinawa.

This month I also went to the local zoo. There were many sorts of animals including Red Pandas, Polar Bears and my favorite a Tanuki, or falsely known as a Korean dog. I went with my host mom, host brother, mom’s sister, and nephew Ryu. It was my little brother’s first visit to the zoo and he had quite a lot of fun at the goat area where some zoo keepers gave kids leaves so they could feed the goats.

This month also started my days as a 3rd year in high school. So now I’m a senior in both America and Japan. My classmates are the same except one of them Ayaka was switched to a different room. But luckily she still comes to eat with us and is in all our P.E. classes. Also we have new homeroom teachers, Kuroda-sensei also our English reading teacher and Kishi-sensei our Global Understanding teacher. Though I only have a month left here I will make the most of it.

If you don’t already know I’m scheduled to return to America on May 27th, I still have a few more great adventures ahead of me during this trip.

This month has taught me a great deal. That no matter who we are or where we come from, differences never matter when we all come together to party and socialize. And even if you may never see someone again every person you meet is important and for whatever reason you should welcome the reason with open arms and a perceptive mind.

One last thing, I have a new name now and it is very fitting with this new spring season. Here in Japan my name Chelsea is pronounced Cherushi. Most people call me Cheru-chan but some call me Cheri-chan (-chan is a suffix used with young girls and small children). Cheri sounds like Cherry and Cherry Blossom is Sakura. Plus Sea is Umi. So my newest name is Sakura-Umi, Sea of Cherry Blossoms. I like this name – it gives me many bounds of happiness.

I leave you now with this. The Sakura though beautiful pink and bright will only stay for a fleeting moment, and so does the beautiful season of spring that breaks the coldness of winter. But never let the end of this season and the falling petals make you lose your smile, keep the warm spring of happiness within your heart and soul, and like the proud Sakura tree bloom and brighten for all the world to see. And perhaps through the warm sun of your spring smile you may let another heart’s spring bloom bright.

Hope everyone has a wonderful spring and all the luck this season has to bring.

From,

Chelsea Neal

Sakura-Umi

Keeping Many People Happy

Conor’s Bio

Hello,

My name is Conor Doherty and as you may have heard, I am going to Sweden! A couple of years ago, my family hosted two exchange students. One was from Finland so I had had heard about Scandinavia and I figured that would be a cool place to go. My sister and brother were also exchange students, Makena went to Brazil and Liam went to Switzerland. If it wasn’t for them, I would not be in this situation right now. I have heard millions of stories about their exchange years and how they had such a good time and that their years abroad had changed their lives, so I decided to uphold the new “family tradition” and go abroad myself. The topic of exchange always came up when my siblings were abroad so I had a lot of time to think about it, but finally decided that it would be best for me to go. The application process was difficult and the interviews were even harder (a lot harder!), but it was all worth it. The orientations are coming up soon as well, so I am excited about officially being a Rotary Youth Exchange Student.

I am currently a sophomore at Buchholz High School and although I am only 15 years old, I feel like I am ready to venture pretty far from the nest and become more independent, more responsible, and more intelligent. I am hoping that my year abroad shapes me into a better person the way my family has for the last 15 years. I think that having three siblings has made me the person I am and I think that being abroad will also change me, hopefully for the good. I am really looking forward to learning another language and to my year away from home, but I am most excited to see myself develop and change as the experiences and the culture are integrated into my life.

Thanks Rotary, for making this possible for me!

Conor’s Journals

August 29 Journal

I am not much for introductions, so I will just jump right in. On August 6th (my brother’s birthday), we set off to Jacksonville Airport from Gainesville. The whole way to the airport, I was just trying to keep my mind off of the point of the trip. Maybe I was scared, maybe just nervous, most likely both. When we arrived at the airport, I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be, so that was a good start. It was at the security checkpoint, at which I had to see my family for the last time for a year, that I started to feel the adrenaline. I hugged my family goodbye, said happy birthday to my brother, and walked away without looking back.

The airports were not too bad. I had never flown before, so this was my first airplane/airport experience. I found my gate fine and I didn’t have any problems. The last thing I did in America was in the Detroit airport, I bought a small fry from McDonalds (a sentimental moment). I almost had a bad experience in the Amsterdam airport. I could not find my flight on the sign so I went to the gate for a flight headed to Göteborg, but after a while I heard a voice on the intercom saying: “Herr Dorothy…fgdasifblewifbe” (something in Dutch – it was hilarious how they pronounced my name). “Mr. Doherty, please begin boarding at gate C4 immediately.” I was a long way from the right gate and I was the last to board my plane, but I made it.

I cleaned up a little and changed to a nicer shirt on the plane, and upon arrival, I saw my three host families and my counselor Lena. We all spoke briefly and introduced ourselves, I exchanged the cash I had for SEK and we headed home.

Later, we all met together again at a BBQ in my honor. We all ate some delicious food, a good first impression of Swedish cuisine, played fotboll, went swimming, and all chatted in English. A quick note: Everyone here has good English. They don’t admit it, but they do. David, my host brother, was about to leave for the US and he was trying to practice his English with me. (He is gone now to Seattle.)

In the first few days I did quite a bit, even with jet lag. I went swimming, paintballing, biking, etc. I tried to get over the jet lag as fast as possible and it worked pretty well, seeing as it only lasted a couple days, although some effects lasted a week or so. For example, I would wake up at noon everyday, still feeling tired (coffee helps). Since then, I have gone on an army ship with my host brother Simon, who is in the Swedish navy, I have stayed in Fristad for the week long language course, I have given a presentation at 7:00 in the morning, på Svenska, to a bunch of Rotarians in the Borås Rotary Club, I’ve wakeboarded; gone sailing; had fotboll practice; observed a floorball practice (which was insane by the way); picked wild raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries; unexpectedly seen the band Europe live; seen other live music like EMD which I don’t really like, but it was fun anyways; gone to Liseberg, an amusement park in Göteborg; biked to school everyday; visited multiple museums, and I don’t even know what else. I try to say yes to almost every offer that involves activity. I have pretty much only spent money on food and candy. Everything here is much more expensive than in the USA, so I try to conserve my money.

I started school last week and I have realized that the school here is so much more relaxed. There is an open campus and no tardies or anything like that (I still really try not to be late). The first days of school (8 days), we haven’t done much of anything because we are slowly easing into having school and we are getting to know all of our classmates. There is a two day trip planned for all of the students in the first year ekonomi class so that we can get to know each other better. My classes consist of: Swedish, English, Math, Social Studies, Geography, History, Sport, and Music. My schedule varies a lot and a lot of the time, the schedule is not followed for some reason.

I think I have summed up the first few weeks pretty well so I will leave you at that. Until next time, greetings från Sverige!

November 4 Journal

Well, it is time for journal number two. To summarize the time I have spent since the last journal in a few words would be impossible. I will at least try to do it some justice.

My Swedish is getting better and better. My overall understanding of speech is okay, much better at reading, not too great at speaking, but I try. I have Swedish lessons once a week and they are helping a little, but I think at home and in school are where most of the learning takes place.

The weather is not too bad yet. It only gets colder and colder. Every night it gets to be around freezing or a little lower so frost in the morning is common. During the day it does not get much warmer and the wind does not help. No snow yet, surprisingly, but I think it will come in a short time. There is more rain than I would like so it is gray quite a bit. I could go on about the weather because it seems to be a prominent subject in conversations, as Swedes care a lot about good weather because it is rare.

I have visited the Rotary club a few times and attend the meetings every other week. They seem to enjoy me and Joe’s (an exchange student from California also living in Lerum) company. Although, the meetings are Tuesday dinner meetings and I have soccer training on Tuesdays a little later in the day.

I am still playing soccer with the local team. It is a good way to make friends and stay fit. I can also work on my Swedish with them as well. The soccer trainings are fun, but now the weather is getting very cold and we practice at 8:00 at night, so all of the practices are very cold. Good thing there is a turf field to play on or the grass would all be dead…

School is going relatively well. The school is in only Swedish except for the English class, so it is tough to manage. But, I try hard, study, and do well on tests and homeworks. Not only are the tests hard because I can’t read the questions, but even if I do know the question, then all of the lectures are in Swedish and all of the papers that the teacher gives out and all of the books, so studying is very difficult. I like school, though. Many friends and it gives me something to do all day instead of just sitting around and doing nothing all day.

I have been hanging out with friends a lot recently. I can now travel freely because I bought a travel card for my free time, (called a fritidskort, literally free time card). Now travel is easy, even long trips where I have to take trains and busses and the like. That makes me wish we had a system so good in the US… But bowling and going to movies, even shooting golf balls on a golfing range.

Last week, my host family planned a surprise party for my host mom and all went well. Everything went according to plan: She had no idea and we set up this big party for her. I was in a suit and it was very fun. My whole family helped with the decorations and the service at the party and it was all really great.

Overall, the best thing for me is that I can see myself maturing. I can see in my thoughts and in my interpretations of events and ethics that I am definitely maturing. I don’t know if I want to mature so fast quite yet. Sometimes I just want to be a kid while I am a kid, but on the other hand I think it is great that my social skills and confidence are higher and I am developing into an adult. Either way, the experiences I am having here are shaping me slowly and I am sure you will be able to see this when I get home. Imagine: It has only been a few months so what will I be like in 9 more months?

So, I am having a good time in Sverige! Best regards to Rotary and the other exchange students. I hope you are having as much fun as I am.

March 6 Journal

It is hard to describe these last few months… I moved to my next family and am having a great time living at their house. I am set up to go to my next host family in just a couple of weeks. My Swedish is getting better every day. Sweden, for me, used to be a place where I was staying for a year. I feel like now it is much more like my home. I feel as though I have lived here for years. I can only imagine the day I get back to my own home and realize that it feels less like home than my Swedish home. It is such a strange feeling to be gone for so long; so long that the new place is now your home.

The day after writing my last journal entry, it snowed for the first time of the year. After that, it continued snowing and snowing and snowing. There is still snow on the ground and it is -5 C mid day now. The snow has been on the ground for months and hasn’t gone away at all. It has gotten down to -20 C in my town, Lerum. I just hope that spring is right around the corner so I can finally do something outdoors! It feels so restricting with snow on the ground everywhere. The upside to the snow is that I went skiing with my host family one day and that was fun. My next family is also taking me on a ski trip over the Easter break for four or five days. I am definitely looking forward to that!

I have experienced many things since my last entry, so I will tell you about some of them. Christmas (Swedish style)! I didn’t think that Christmas would be much different and for the most part I was right. There is not much of a difference between our way and the Swedish way of celebrating. The biggest difference is that they celebrate and open the presents on Christmas Eve instead of the way we do it, on Christmas day. Also, there are different foods and different little things like writing a rhyme on your gift to someone else. I thought this was fun because the person receiving the gift would try to guess what it was by the rhyming clue. However, through all of the good things that happened, this was my first Christmas away from my family. As bad as it sounds, I wasn’t as disturbed by it as I thought I would be. (Sorry mom!).

New Years Eve was also very fun. We had fireworks and were shooting them off all over the place. We also saw a fireworks show that people in the community organize and that was really cool. We then celebrated the countdown and stayed up late having fun.

I have also been sledding (which is really fun and surprisingly dangerous), skiing, Pain-balling, (like paintball without paint in the balls so that they are just rubber), going to school, freezing my butt off outside, and taking in Sweden! I also gave a presentation at my Rotary club and have given multiple presentations at my school about United States history, about Gainesville, and about being an exchange student. I have been having a lot of fun and I hope to continue that when spring comes!

Until next time,

Conor Doherty

Courtenay’s Bio

Hi everybody! My name is Courtenay Johnson!

I was born in Jacksonville, Florida. I am fifteen years old and I am the fifth of sixth children in my family. My second oldest brother, Adrian, is one my best friends. We do everything together from going to Orlando to simply going out to dinner. The youngest in my family is Jamison. He is eighteen months younger than I am. My grandparents unfortunately died before I was born, but I have two uncles on my mother’s side that I have never met.

My father is a dentist in Flagler Beach and my mother is a house wife. I love them both very much. My parents are very supportive of my decisions, but they always put in their own insight on the situation. What kind of parents would they be if they didn’t?

My school life is most excellent. I make good grades and I have a lot of friends that I cherish and love. I have always been very determined to be the best and to get the results I want and need. In fact, in May, 2007 I weighed over 300 pounds. With hard work and a boat-load of support from my friends and family I lost 110 pounds in a little over a year. My parents say I’m hardly recognizable.

I have recently been chosen to study abroad for one year in Finland and I’m soooo excited! I chose to be an exchange student because I want to experience a new culture, learn a new language and learn the ways of the people I do not know.

I cant wait to meet everyone in Finland and build new friendships!!!

Dominic’s Bio

Salutations! My name is Dominic Hoak and I am a member of the graduating class of 2009!!! After graduation I have decided to take a route a little different than all of my friends; instead of going straight to a University, I am going to be spending a year in Ecuador as an exchange student. I AM SO EXCITED!!!!

Now where should I start to tell you more about me… hmmmm?

I’ll start with my familia (that’s Spanish for family; see I’m “basically” fluent). I live with my father. Our house is about a five minute bike ride from the heart of St. Augustine. St. Augustine is a beautiful little town, which seems to always have more tourists than residents. Furthermore, the beach is only three miles away anywhere you are. I’ve grown up here my whole life. My mom lives in Palm Coast about thirty minutes away. I don’t spend a lot of time there, but my mom always comes and visits me and we spend time together. My sister (Natalie) is two years older than me and a student at Florida State University in Tallahassee, which is about two hours away (it depends on how fast you drive). Despite our differences I love her. I only spend holidays with her really, but we stay in contact online (the spacebook as my mom likes to call it [for those that don’t know, “spacebook” is an abbreviation for the social networking websites of myspace and facebook]). I love my family so much. They are so wacky.

So, some more about me. In my spare time I stay pretty busy. I’m involved in the Interact Club, Mu Alpha Theta, and Beta. I’m also in St. Johns County Center for the Arts (SJCCA) in drama. I’ve done plays since I was a kid and have been a part of SJCCA since I was a freshman. I’m also on the tennis team and swim team. I’m also in 4-H, which I LOVE! When I was 8 years old I went to my first 4-H event and it got me hooked. I’m also a working man. I’ve worked in the restaurant business for the past three years for the same family. It is a wonderful experience. One thing that I think I am most proud of, is being a St. Johns County Beach Lifeguard. It was an intense training process but the skills I have learned could not be attained anywhere else.

Now when I am not running around doing any of the above mentioned, I am with my friends. My friends are how you would say in today’s lingo “off the chain”. I love them so much. There is no other way to say it.

Well, that is the brief summary of the adventures of Dominic Davis Hoak. But before I go, I would like to say THANK YOU SO MUCH! I can not wait until August. I am so excited to start my life in Ecuador. As I’m typing this it is hard to hold in a scream of joy because I really can’t wait. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Until we meet again,

Dominic.

Dominic’s Journals

August 14 Pre-departure Journal

I really need to stop telling people that I am going to Ecuador next year, because I’m not; I’m going in 7 days! 7 days! Wow.

Rewind 10 months, and I am sitting in a room with both my parents watching a power point put on by the-one-and-only Daphne Cameron telling me everything I need to know to become an exchange student. Soon after that I started my Rotary Youth Exchange Application. And after all the nervousness, all the signatures needed, and all of the calls to Louise Anderson asking any minute detailed question you could possibly think of about my paperwork, I turned it in. This is when the waiting started. Soon after that I heard of my interview time and place. I went to my interview and continued doing what I became accustomed to, waiting. Waiting… Waiting. Then one day it happened. The last bell of school rang, I looked at my phone and saw a text from my dad saying “a Rotary envelope is at the house addressed to you”. I have to admit, I yelled something to my friend, who just looked at me bewildered, jumped in my car and went a little over the speed limit to my house to rip open an envelope and to have my eyes fall onto one word, “CONGRATULATIONS” and I haven’t looked back since.

One week after my letter, I learned I was going to Ecuador. A week after that I began checking the RYE Florida Website every hour to see if any more outbounds bios had been put on. A month after that it was time. Ryan Cullum, Louise Anderson, and I packed in her car for two hours to go on the way to Eustis, Florida for my first Rotary Orientation to meet all of the people I had read about (and wondered whether to add on Facebook or not.) The weekend was amazing. It might have been the first time I realized I was about to go somewhere completely foreign to me and do something not all could do. But the weekend came to a close and after the goodbyes, and realizations we wouldn’t see some people for five months we did what we begrudgingly did everyday. Wait. But time is what really helped D 6970 become so close.

The kids from my district are just awesome. There is no other way to say it. I have made some amazing friends through Rotary. I am very glad to have spent the past 8 months with these people. It has actually been really tough saying goodbye. Right now, it is an overwhelming experience I am going through. Conor, Maddie, and Zach have all left me. But I can take comfort in the fact Sarah, Simone, and Marea are all after me. Not to mention Nikki, “oh, I remember when I was at 22 days.” But Rotary has introduced me to all of these wonderful people that I know will have a wonderful year.

Not only are the people in RYE Florida great. But the preparation program for all of us students is amazing. Since I first got accepted I began learning more and more about the beautiful, amazing country Ecuador is (and if you too would like to know, I have written a wonderful 12 page paper which I will be glad to share with you). I’ve been through Cultural Boot Camp where I not only was able to learn so much about culture throughout the world, but also learned why to always respond to deadlines the first time they are given (case in point, one 5 minute speech about Rotary’s Polio Plus Campaign.) These might be a couple jokes but in all seriousness, Rotary has prepared us as much as they possibly can. Al Kalter, Daphne, and Jody are all amazing people, along with every other Rotarian involved in Rotary Youth Exchange. The work all Rotarians do for us is amazing.

But thanks to Rotary, my family, and friends, I have almost done it. My pre-departure checklist is almost complete.

Visa : Check

Passport : Check

Blazer : Check

Camera to document life : Check Possibly the most valuable of my tools…

A Rotary Smile : Check

And 2 suitcases filled with my life : well, I still have 7 days …

August 25 Journal

OK, just so everyone knows, I wrote a long journal filled with details explaining every little thing about my trip so far, and then my 1 year old cousin came up the stairs while I was talking with my aunt and deleted the whole thing. I was very sad but it was alright in the end. So here I go for a second time and hope I don’t leave anything out.

On Friday the 21st I woke up and headed to the airport with my parents, my sister and my two best friends. Once we arrived I began to check in. Afterwards my family and I went to sit in some chairs because I had some time to kill. I was filled with so many emotions it is impossible to describe my last minutes with my family. But soon I started to make my way through security with all of them watching me take off my shoes and get my bag searched. But then I was off. I went to my gate and about 15 minutes later Josh joined me and we waited to board our first flight to Miami. We made it there safe and sound, except for the fact we were sitting in the aisle with the propeller and I was not looking out the window most of the time in fear of it flying into the aircraft.

But once we landed and made our way around the Miami airport we ran into the first of about 15 exchange students we would meet. We all sat and talked for the whole layover. It was awesome getting to meet some friends right before we made our trip. We sat at Josh’s gate for the majority of the time and then once their flight was told they would be delayed, all of us students traveling for Quito made our way to our gate. We sat at the gate for 10 minutes, and then it was time. We started to make our way onto the plane. We then negotiated with a couple Germans and a flight attendant and managed to have some of us sit next to each other. The flight was uneventful (so was the food) but after four hours in the air we made it. Quito is gorgeous at night. Flying into the city was one of the most beautiful things I have seen. Soon after, my new friends and I made our way off the plane together and stood in the customs line. It went very fast, including the wait, maybe 10 minutes. Right after we got our bags as a group and as soon as we had everything we made it around the corner to the machine we placed our bags in. A couple of us had to go to a far one and as we walked over there were two doors that opened and a giant mob of people holding signs looking in the doors. I have to admit, and that point I looked at the two other exchange students with me, and we all freaked out a little. But it was alright, as soon as I made it out the doors I couldn’t find my family at first but then I saw their sign with my name spelled wrong and I knew I was at home. I gave my host mom a big hug and then my adventure started.

The first two nights I stayed with my counselor and his family (Esteban and Lily). They are so nice and they spoke good English which helped me learn my way around. During my time with them they showed me all around their city of Cumbaya and even took me to Quito to do some sight-seeing. They are two of the nicest people in the world and I am really glad to have them as my counselors. Well, it was soon time to move in with Teresea. I have to admit I was scared at first. She speaks no English, and my Spanish is far from fluent, but once I made it in the house and put my bags in my room, I felt at home. Teresa and I went on the roof of the house and I did a little looking. Our house is surrounded by mountains. It is amazing. After a few minutes of butchered communications, I showed her some pictures of my house, family, and friends (even some halfway across the world). As she was showing me some pictures of her family, I encountered exchange student hell. My host nephew (who calls me Tio now), came running in the room showing me cards and telling me the words in Spanish wanting me to repeat, a strange man entered the room for a minute and left, Teresa walked out and told me to follow, as we stood in the hallway I was looking at 3 women I had never seen before, a man climbing up the stairs, and 2 nuns staring at me blankly. I had no clue what to say or do except use the one phrase I told myself never to forget: Nice to meet you. As we made our way downstairs there were at least 8 others all talking to each other. Yet again I used my phrase of the day and it went very well. As I walked in the kitchen there were 3 women all bustling about preparing dinner for the small army in the house. About 20 minutes later we all sat down (in three different rooms), and began to eat. It was wonderful eating surrounded by family and that is one thing I like about many of the meals here. After dinner we all moved to the living room and talked for about 30 minutes … well, I listened.

The next day Teresa and I went to Quito (about 15 minutes away by car) and got my pictures for school. I ran into one of my comrades from the airport there and as our host moms talked the next thing we knew they were exchanging numbers and we both just stood there and smiled because we had no clue what was going on. Soon, we left the city and went to one of my aunts’ houses for lunch. We had another awesome meal and afterwards I spent time with two of my cousins and they taught me some Spanish out of a workbook and we went for a walk. The air here is so fresh (despite the overwhelming smell of exhaust). Afterwards we went back to my aunt’s house and we enjoyed conversations which I was able to participate in. My family now realizes that I can speak Spanish decently, just when whoever I am talking to is talking slowly. Even though we can understand each other in Spanish sometimes, we had an epic laugh over a miscommunication about alligators and how my aunt thought I could speak Italian. And most recently, I have gone to school to get my uniform. I actually really like it, because as I stand one foot above most people with my blonde hair, it is one thing to not make me stick out.

Information I have learned since arriving in Ecuador:

1 – Ecuador is the best, has always been the best, and will always be the best at everything.

2 – Crossing the street is fun.

3 – Driving in Ecuador is more intense than NASCAR. No one stays in their lanes and honking your horn at anything and everything is almost encouraged.

4 – Animals are not royalty, they are treated like animals.

5 – Dogs live in the street.

6 – Women do most of the housework. I ask to help and I am told to sit down.

Well, my nephew is trying to talk to me right now so I have to go figure out what he is saying.

¡Hasta Luego!

September 12 Journal

Well, I have been living this wonderful new life for 3 weeks now. It is everything I had imagined, and not foreseen. It is exactly what I wanted and dreaded at the same time. It is my own personal oasis at times, only to be followed by that one nightmare where I am giving a speech in my underwear. But one thing is certain, I love this city, this world, this new life that I am living in.

There are too many stories, too many memories, too many experiences to put into words. I feel like I have been here for so much longer than 3 weeks, and at the same time I feel like I just walked out of my front door in St. Augustine into this strange land. My city is beautiful. 10 minutes away from my house is this little thing called the Equator (you might have heard of it), I have traveled there with my cousins and of course taken a picture of being in the northern and southern hemisphere at the same time. I have also traveled to see some of the lakes and mountains in Ecuador. By the way, there is snow on top of some of the mountains here! WHAT! Snow, I know, right. But, I have gotten used to seeing it now (almost).

I have also gone to the language camp put on by the Rotary clubs of Ecuador. During the 5 days at this camp my Spanish improved even more, I made 26 amazing friends that are living in the Quito area, and I learned that no matter how much my friends and I practiced saying ingredients in Spanish, Pizza Hut will put whatever they want on your pizza. Also, I have gone and visited for the first time the Rotary Club Quito Sur (my host club). It is quite different from my Rotary Club back home (shout out to the Rotary Club of St. Augustine). For starters, at the meeting there were only 7 Rotarians. The Rotarians also smoked inside. I can’t even remember the last time I was indoors and people smoked, that was very very strange for me. But one thing that I could relate about both clubs was that the food was sooooo good. I don’t know what I ate, but I would be fine with eating it again. But that goes for all of the food that I have had in Ecuador so far. I hope everyone has a host aunt that can cook like my Tía Oneyda. All of the food I have eaten so far has been amazing (except for one incident with an empanada from a street vendor that my stomach didn’t necessarily agree with, and let me tell you, boy did it not agree). I really have to say that the food here is wonderful. The bread store at the end of my street makes some of the best bread in Quito, I swear.

However, despite all of the good news I now must tell you that my honeymoon is over. How do I know, you ask? Well it happens every year around this time in the United States as well… the beginning of a new school year. I walked into school the first day completely lost in my track suit uniform. My host mom was with me though so it was all okay. We sat on a bench for a little while and then one of the two people I knew showed up. The first was Juan Fernando who is in the same grade as me but in a different course. And then my friend Hilary from Rotary Language Camp showed up. The three of us made our way down to the little basketball/fútbol court and we all got into our course lines and listened to the Inspector (Principal) talk for a little while. Then we sang the National Anthem of Ecuador (Hilary and I mouthed the words) and then it was time to begin school. Luckily one of my professors is one of my host mom’s best friends, so that works out very nicely for me (especially since she was my first professor). And due to Juan Fernando I have plenty of friends in the school.

I am in the Sixth Course Social Science, and my classes are rather interesting (when I understand what the professor is actually saying). My classes consist of History, English, Philosophy, Geography, Literature, the equivalent of P.E. (but we call it CuFi), Economics, Computers class, French, Math, one class about social something, one class about Ecuador, and then one class about the world and nature. The way I classified school to one of my friends is the uniform of Gossip Girl (people give it whatever accessories they want, or don’t follow it at all), the attitude of The O.C. (parents pay a lot of money on school, and some of the kids don’t even bother to try), and the schedule of the Harry Potter books (the Professors teach every grade multiple times throughout the week including some double blocks, it takes some serious planning to make that schedule just right).

Everyone at my school is really nice. School was one of the first times I was able to see how Ecuadorian teenagers act not around their parents. People do not hesitate at all with their public displays of affection. I won’t go into extreme detail, but that is one difference that’ll some getting used to. Also, I feel that the girls are harassed a lot more here than in the United States, not a Chris Brown-Rihanna way; just accompanying the PDAs people are more physical here than in Florida. But as for actual school being concerned, I do like it. The campus is outside. So when I have to walk to my classes it is nice to get some fresh air. I have had two tests so far, one on the National Anthem of Ecuador, and one on the provinces and capitals of Ecuador. I did well on both of them, and scored higher than most of the other students on the provinces and capitals test. The only bad thing that has happened so far was that one kid tried to send me in the girls bathroom, luckily my friends stopped me in time and I haven’t had much more interaction with the other kid.

Peace and love to everyone back home, and all my friends around the world,

Dominic (or Dominique as they say here)

October 23 Journal

I am so sorry I have been a slacker on this. I think my contest with Jamie Lynn Patterson on who will have the most journals is done, especially since Max and Brandon are killing us both. But I have been here for two months now! How exciting. School has finally become a regular routine, I can get from Point A to Point B on a bus (well, there are only like 3 places I know how to get to, and I know how to get home from one of them, so I’m still working on that), and of course my Spanish is improving everyday.

Well my daily routine starts at 5:45 every morning. I shower, eat breakfast, and am waiting outside for the bus at 6:45. I get in the bus, climb to the third row and say hello to the four girls sitting behind me who greet me with a chorus of “Hola Domi.” I go to school, come home, eat lunch, start my homework (well, not always), partake in siesta (nap time), and then eat dinner only to sleep some more.

Also this past month I have experience Visa catastrophe 2009. Now I am now talking about my debit card, I am referring to the paper that allows me to stay in Ecuador for more than 90 days. During my flight I was sitting next to the window and I assume while I was filling out my immigration forms on the plane I set the folder containing all my Rotary paperwork, Visa paperwork, and anything else I received in order for exchange in between my seat and the window. Well luckily, my dad in the US tracked down all of these documents and I was able to turn them in the last day possible without having to pay $200. Basically, if you become an exchange student, don’t lost your Visa, and if you manage to do something like that tell your host family, counselor and everyone so you can find it before the day it is due.

Oh, and at school a couple weeks ago, I was asked to bring in 50 cents for the Principal’s birthday. I thought it was a little weird and all but I come to find out that it is a tradition. Well, one Wednesday we are sitting in French class when all of a sudden the school bell rings twice. People suddenly burst into action. Some people run out of the room with bags, others start fixing their hair, and one student (me) is sitting in his seat wondering what is going on. After I finally put it all together I went with what remained of my class to the gym/stadium. Since I am in sexto course (equivalent to a senior) I got to go down on the stadium floor to be with the principal. Well, a mariachi band randomly appeared and started playing a few songs. Everyone in my course starting dancing so I joined in. After the band left and everyone else had to go to their classes, the sexto course went to a private room that was all decorated and set up for the occasion. There was also a champagne toast between the principal and the students. I thought celebrating the principal’s birthday was weird, but I have gotten used to that now, even though the day after we celebrated a teacher’s birthday.

But more recently this past week I went to the coast of Ecuador in the city of Manabí with all of the exchange students in the country. The 50 something exchange students from the Quito area gathered around 0700 to begin our adventure. We soon left for the beach and after our 9 hour bus ride managed to get to our hotel around 1700. After we checked in the hotel (being the last group of exchange students to arrive) we jumped in the pool, greeted everyone, and started making friendships that now seem so much older than 5 days. It was basically a weekend of getting to know everyone, sightseeing a couple of the coast towns, participating in a parade (I held the American flag for most of the parade route), and of course frolicking on the beach. This was my second time at the beach here and I took full advantage of it; being able to run with the sand beneath my feet, diving into the waves, and playing in a little tournament of beach futbol made me feel at home. Also Ecuador Rotary put together a little banquet for us at the end of the trip where each country had a boy and girl representative. I was the guy from the USA, and next thing I knew I was participating in a dance contest (if you know me this is my type of thing). Well, I made it to the final round only to be beat by my friend Uli from Germany. We soon ate dinner (at 2330, blaaaahhhh), and afterwards had two full hours of dancing. I was rather satisfied when I learned that the DJ had Cotton Eye Joe because no matter how much I might have complained about that song in the states I was thrilled and proud to be able to dance to it (despite the fact I was a fountain of sweat at the end of it). The next day was the bus ride home where my conversations ranged with many people about their views of Americans, world politics, and what we plan to do with our lives.

But now it is back to everyday life. No more running around at the beach, instead when I walk up the stairs I am out of breath. I have been home about three days and haven’t been to school because I am sick and sound like a 90 year old smoker. I haven’t been able to talk since last Friday so none of the other exchange students know what my real voice sounds like which is kinda strange. Not to mention my skin is peeling like crazy because naturally I didn’t put sun screen on for 3 hours in direct sunlight on the equator, I’m stupid. But now I am going to go make myself another glass of tea and get better.

February 12 Journal

Por fin! So I am still down here in Ecuador even if I have been away from the Journal scene a little bit. But what can I say? I have been a little busy. I have changed host families. I have changed schools. I have been to bull fights. I have even been in the arena with a bull (scariest moment of my life). I have celebrated a tiny Thanksgiving in different customs. I have gone through the holiday season, and handled it pretty well all things considered. I have even turned a year older. There are so many stories that are mine, and mine alone. And no matter how hard I try, I will not be able to do them justice (also, I don’t want you to be reading for 4 hours, neither do you, I think). But this country, the cities I have been too, the people I have met, are overwhelming.

So where to try to begin… I spent the holidays with my first host family. We went to my Aunt’s house and had a huge dinner there and later we stayed up until midnight to open presents. The next day (25th of December) was just a day to relax, which was also the day that I tried mountain biking. If you were wondering, it was also the last day I tried mountain biking. The 26th we made our way to the beach, which we stayed there till the 3rd of January. Now I must say that that emotion curve knows what it is talking about. January 1st 0030 (AM), by far the worst part of my exchange. We spent the next couple days at the beach and returned home.

In between January 5th and 16th I did not go to school because I was about to change host families and since I was moving an hour and some odd minutes away, I was able to change schools as well. So far it has been great. I have already made a lot more friends and have even been a little busier after school. Oh yeah, my new school has 8 people in the entire graduating class. Umm, what else can I put in here???

Spanish is still coming along. I think my language skills are the same as a lot of other peoples, not where we want it. But there is nothing we can do about that, except study more, which brings me to the point that EVERY Rotary Youth Exchange Future Outbound has heard, will hear, and will repeat one day… Study your target language now. Not a week before you leave. Not with flashcards on the airplane (guilty of that). And most importantly, not HOPING that one day you will wake up 5 months into your exchange year and understand everything. Because you won’t. Oh, congratulations ’10-’11 Outbounds, to you all as well. I forgot that part earlier on.

I hope you are following around, because I am just skipping all over the place.

Carnaval is starting this weekend. Well, it is safe to say that everyone is already in the mood of spraying people with silly string, and throwing water balloons at each other. The water balloons is only a Quito thing, I think. In the south they throw eggs, water, flour, dirt, and anything else that flies onto people and gets them messy. But like I said, everyone is already ready. Just in fact yesterday as I was walking down the street with a couple friends, a school bus drove by and we were attacked by green silly string and water. It was funny for the most part, except the bus stopped and I had lost my full water bottle, which if I had would have been all over them in retaliation. But alas, you can’t win every battle. Oh, to celebrate the festivities of Carnaval my host family and I are going to the beach with one of my exchange friends Nikita.

Alright, well that is all I can think of without making this too long. Except a huge thank you to Rotary. We all say it. And we all mean it. Thank you thank you thank you. There is no other way to say it. Thank you, especially to the program back in Florida; Ms. Daphne, Al, Jody, and everyone else behind the scenes. Also to you, Louise, of course!

Next journal will be better with more details and pictures. And sooner.

Paz y amor!

Elizabeth’s Bio

Sawat dii kha. Hello. My name is Elizabeth Earnhart and I am a senior at Bartram Trail High School. I am 18 years old and I am about to embark on the most fantastic opportunity of my life. I am ecstatic and oh so grateful at having been selected to be a Rotary exchange student this year. My destination? Thailand. The fact of the matter is that it’s all very surreal to me.

I am the oldest child in my family, my younger brother is 15, and I have always had what my mom calls, “wanderlust.” Throughout the years I would jump at any opportunity to travel across the US, but I especially liked traveling abroad. I think that my parents had to realize early-on that I was an explorer and would not be sticking around long after high school. But don’t get me wrong. I love my friends, my home, and my family.

I want to be part of the Rotary youth exchange because I want to break down cultural barriers, not only for myself, but for others as well. I want to give Thais a taste of real America, not the Hollywood version, and I want to tell Americans what Thailand is really like without any preconceptions getting in the way of the truth. This experience is going to be a challenging one. But the reward is going to be so much greater.

I am the kind of person who takes joy from being a friend to others. I love to encourage people, and to help them when they are in need. I tend to over-plan, yes, but I do not regret any minute of my usually hectic schedule. I love music, but I also love the outdoors, as well as camping, hiking, biking and SCUBA diving. Nature is endless, and you can always find something new. Sewing is another one of my favorite past-times. I make some of my own clothing, and it’s a very rewarding feeling wearing something that you’ve made. My faith is also something that is very important to me. I love to sing, read, and act every now and then. I even wrote my own monologue for the talent portion in the Miss Bartram Pageant last year.

And so, there you have it. I thank Rotary for this opportunity, and my family for their support. I cannot wait to embark on this adventure, to go to Thailand and learn a whole new way of life compared to how I now live. I am looking forward to meeting my future host families and friends. I cannot express the excitement that is growing inside of me. Thank you. Khap khun kha.

Elizabeth’s Journals

August 7 Journal

I arrived in my city, Khon Kaen about a week ago and Thailand is SOOOOO beautiful! I can’t stop smiling and everyone is so friendly and they all go out of their way to help even though most of them don’t speak English. The only two people I have met who speak English well enough to communicate effectively with are MaaMeow (another exchange student from South Africa) and PuuRee (a Thai boy who just got back from exchange to Canada). MaaMeow has been here already for 6 months so she is helping to teach me Thai. My oldest host brother is already at university in India, so I am using his room while he is gone. My 16 year old brother, Top, speaks some English but he is leaving for exchange to Canada on the 9th of August. My 14 year old brother, Tee, is just like Matthew in the sense that he plays W.O.W. all day, haha.

When I got to Bangkok, my mom, MayPen, Top, PuuRee, MaaMeow, and two other ladies from my Rotary Club, MayJeet (PuuRee’s mom) and MayOor had big posters with my picture on them and greeted me like I was their long lost daughter. It was so nice and the banners said “Welcome Home”. I learned that my Rotary Club is an all woman club and that is so cool and absolutely unheard of in the U.S. So we stayed the night in Bangkok and then went to JJ Market the next morning and then drove 7 hours to get to Khon Kaen.

Everything is extremely cheap, especially food. I have not purchased anything yet thought because as a part of their “family” I am paid for at meals. There are elephant pictures on literally EVERYTHING here, buildings, purses, walls, etc. And I got to pet and feed a baby elephant today! It was so cute and they are just led around Khon Kaen and you pay to feed it bamboo. It was such a cool experience, maybe next time I can ride a grown-up one!

Oh, and I thought that I was going to be really uncomfortable getting used to Thai toilets, but they are really cool actually. In my house there is a western style toilet and shower, so that is cool. But in public bathrooms the “toilet” is a squat-potty, so it is porcelain and you do your business, throw the paper in a waste basket next to the toilet (if there is paper) and then to “flush” you take a bucket that is in a barrel of water in the stall and you pour one or two bucket-fulls in until gravity does its job. It’s really neat actually.

But the whole experience overall has been more than awesome. I have tried SOOOO many different types of food already, it’s so diverse and a complete 180 from anything you would see in the States. My city is so full of life at night though. It’s almost ridiculous how late things stay open, like malls and night markets and salons open at this hour! Some of them do not even open their doors for business until it gets dark.

I am not going to school until a week from tomorrow because I have to get the uniform and also go back to Bangkok one or two more times this week to pick-up more inbounds and also to take some Thais who are leaving on exchange.

It is so awesome here, so real and unique and just overall amazing; full of life and color and new sights, smells and tastes. The weather is very similar to Florida, less humid during some parts of the day and more humid during others. It is the rainy season here now just like in Florida also. I feel like I am writing SOOO much, and yet there is so much that has already happened. Oh, I also was given a new name as soon as I was greeted at the airport. My Thai nick-name is Aarie (pronounced like the long “a” in apple, a rolling “r” and the “e” sound from the word bee). It is difficult to learn all of the politeness of the culture but I am working on it.

Sawat dii Kha.

-Aarie

September 7 Journal

So, I have been here for over a month and wow, what all am I supposed to say? I will start with school. I am at a demonstration school (high school) that is on the campus of Khon Kaen University and I am in the 11th grade. There are six classes (groups of students) in each grade level and there are a little under 40 people in my class but it doesn’t feel that large because not all of us are ever in the same room at the same time. I have 28 different subjects every week and school is from 8AM – 4PM Monday through Friday. I use my time during school to practice my Thai and I am also starting to learn how to read and write the language.

There are 44 consonant symbols in the Thai language and another 32 vowels, so memorizing those and how to write them is going slow, but it is also a lot of fun to have my class-mates walk up to me and help me pronounce them and ask me if I remember them etc. Finding a close group of friends is going slow as well, but it’s not a problem because I understand that right now there is still quite a large language barrier and also everyone is more than happy to be friendly to you and show you where to go and take you to class etc.

My Thai is still improving and I am still having daily Thai lessons with my mom at home. I am so thankful for this too because I can understand a lot more than I can speak and even the amount that I can speak seems to impress a lot of people. I really love my host mom and my host family, they are more than I could have asked for, really.

Two weeks ago in school there was a sports week and a parade. My class dressed me up in the traditional Thai dance costume and put me at the front of the parade! At first I was a little scared because I didn’t know where to go but then the marching band walked in front so everything was okay. Also for sports week they had football (soccer) games and basketball games and volleyball and swimming. I swam for my team and ended up receiving a gold medal in the medley and a silver medal in the freestyle race. It was so much fun.

I think also that half of the fun of things here so far is figuring them out. Confusion sometimes turns into frustration but most of the time it is like a puzzle, and if you can’t work it out at first, ask, try again, or just smile and laugh with the people you are with because you are enjoying just being in their company and appreciative of the fact that they are trying to help you to learn their language and their culture.

In the past month, my host brother Top has left to go to Canada on his exchange. And exchanges from Brazil (Anun), Canada (Dao), and Germany (Chai Lai) have come to Khon Kaen. It is quite a sight to see all of us walking down the street together or even when we see each other every now and then at school because people are always staring at us. There is so much more to say that I really can’t think of it all.

Our families took all of the exchange students to an ancient temple near the city of Korat a few weeks ago and it was so awesome and so large. I really love life here, it is so different from the states, the food as well and the culture, I just can’t soak it all in fast enough. Some food is pretty out-there though, I think the two things that have topped the list so far are coagulated chicken blood (served as cubes in soups) and chicken feet. But I am still going to try everything that is put in front of me because otherwise, I will be missing a part of something that I am supposed to be experiencing.

There is a night market in my city that is completely amazing as well. During the day the street is a normal one, used my traffic and located down town. But as soon as the sun starts to go down, vendors from everywhere emerge from who knows where and set up shop. The whole street is blocked off and endless food stalls and clothes shops and music stores etc are set up. One of my favorite things here is the fruit and also the coffee, it is really like nothing I have ever tasted in the states. Also at the night market it isn’t uncommon to see fried bugs for sale. My mom told me that she will take me to try them soon! Grasshoppers I heard were pretty good. =D I am really very excited.

Every time I experience something new and taste something new and see something new, I cannot wait to get more. I can only hope that new things will continue to be revealed, but I know that they will. I wish that I could recount more to write but there is too much to sort through. So until next time, chok dee, sawat dee kha.

Oh – I’ve posted some pictures at www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected].

October 11 Journal

There has been so much interesting stuff that has happened over the course of the break from school so far and there is still three weeks left! I have found some really good Thai bands that I like and that has put things in a new perspective, at least with the pop culture. Because most of the videos that you see on TV are the sappy love songs and they make you feel so sad when you watch them or even listen to them, but I found some good rock bands like “Big Ass” “Bodyslam” and “Clash” and a good rap artist “Titanium” as well as the ever-popular “Tatto Colour” “Potato” and “Clash” among others. “Tatto Colour” is from my city originally and went to a high school not even five minutes away from my house, they reminded me of “Yellow Card” in Jacksonville because they all went to Stanton High School, downtown too. Also, music is a really good way to learn the language as well and since karaoke is really popular here as well, that will help me learn the pronunciation.

One of the first things that we did after school got out was to go and see a Beijing Acrobatics show and that was really fun. Our leash has gotten a little bit longer because we have been here and their trust in us is growing, so that is exciting. Usually we can just ask to go out during the day and get on a song-tow (a taxi-truck thing) and go pretty much where-ever in our city as long as we are back by dinner time.

Another thing that we got to do which was really awesome was a photo tour of famous places right outside of Khon Kaen. We went to see the Snake Village where people fought with King Cobras and put their heads in their mouths… ugghh (I actually felt bad for the snakes because you could tell they weren’t interested in being a part of the show). But all of the other places were really pretty, like we went to a dam and also to the top of a mountain and to see a very large statue of Buddha on a different mountain. It was so fun and I really enjoyed stretching my legs and hiking and the nature and the views too.

And as far as Rotary functions go, we are always front and center. We attended a “Car Free Day” in Khon Kaen where hundreds of people rode their bikes through the streets just to promote not using as many cars because of the pollution and the smog that it creates. We started at 7am and ended around 10am but it was fun while it lasted! I had been missing going to the gym and getting exercise on a regular basis and then about two weeks ago I found a gym right near my house. My mom and I joined together and it only costs 2,000 baht a year for membership! That’s about $60 which is sooo awesome! But now I go to the gym when I have free time so hopefully I can start to get back into shape. =D

My brother who goes to college in India came home for a couple of weeks and that was so awesome to get to know him and hang out with him for the short time that he was here. We clicked from the start and I really feel that he is the big brother that I have never had. He was always looking out for me and it was so awesome because it made me feel even MORE a part of the family (which I didn’t know was possible because I am already soo close with my family and I wish I didn’t have to change).

The exchange students from my club are in the middle of doing a fundraiser right now to raise money to donate to a temple. The money will go to buy lunch for a school of boy monks at the temple for a week. This school is where the poorer families send their sons to get an education because it is free. We have been going to different locations around the city and singing songs and giving out bracelets that we made while asking for donations, I don’t know how much we have yet but the box it getting pretty heavy. =D And when we were doing this at the lake a few of the days they had this huge festival going on. There was a fair and a huge stage where there were performances and everything. It was to celebrate the end of a Buddhist fast that started in the summer. We got to send off a paper lantern into the sky at night with the full moon and it was so exciting.

While all of this was going on as well, I found out that I got accepted to the University of Central Florida for the fall semester next year and it was a complete relief and weight off my shoulders. I am stoked about that and when I told my mom she was so excited for me, she even got me a present in congratulations and gave me a big hug (hugs are pretty rare here by the way, so that was really cool). I really feel like I am her daughter, its such a neat feeling to experience that and know that you have two moms.

As for what I have eaten that is different this month… I would have to say that it was Shark Ear Soup… I really think that it was shark gills or shark fins or something, but they said that it was shark ear. It was a Chinese dish, and believe you me, if you think you know what Chinese food is, you have no idea! “Real” Chinese food is filled with things that A) you have no clue what they are and B) you don’t really want to know what they are. I think out of 10 different dishes that we tried that night, one of them would be considered edible by the average American, haha.

I also found another market right near my house and this one is a real Thai market. You walk through one section that is just fruit and the next thing you know you are standing next to the severed head of a pig (“Lord of the Flies” style) or you end up next to bins of live eels/frogs/fish/bugs/you-name-it ready to be bought and cooked up for dinner. It is really an interesting experience; every time I go, I see something new. Finding new markets is always exciting too because exploring the markets is really one of the most fun things to do when you want to go on an adventure! It’s one thing that I wish we had in the States because you go to one place and you can get anything you want and it’s not preserved or pre-packaged and it doesn’t come from a factory either.

One of my favorite foods that I have found here is called Sardra-pow. It looks like a cloud and it is a tasteless white fluffy steamed bun-type thing that has stuff inside of it. It can be filled with minced pork or a sweet custard or taro (which is also like a sweet bean-paste, sounds gross but it isn’t haha) or my favorite which is pork and bamboo with a sweet-spicy sauce. It is a great snack but it is really hard to find street vendors of them but I don’t know why, because everyone likes Sardra-pow.

I think that my favorite thing to do at home is to cook. My mom and my house-keeper have both been teaching me how to cook Thai food and usually I help them make lunch and sometimes dinner as well. It is really exciting when I get to make a dish by myself or with little supervision and it is so much fun to cook with them and joke around in the kitchen! I will have to start writing down recipes soon because there are so many different things that we cook. And my mom’s cooking is really better than most of the restaurants that we go to, so, maybe some of her skill will rub off on me. =D

Sorry this journal was so long, I just feel like there is so much to say to tell everyone. And even after I say it I feel like it isn’t enough description because while things are so much different here, they are so real and I just wish that everyone can experience at least a little bit of it through what they read. Thank you Rotary again, I cannot say thank you enough for this opportunity! PS: My conversations in Thai are still improving pretty well and I am almost to the point where I can read all of the symbols!

November 22 Journal

I knew that there was a reason for me putting off writing the journal for this month. At first I just thought it was so many things going on, my birthday, and just plain laziness, but now I realize that there was a completely different reason for it. It gave me the time to have a realization that there is more than can be seen, it’s under the surface and the exchange students in my city have just discovered it. I would love for this journal to serve the purpose of sharing all the amazing experiences that I have had in the past month. However, this journal needs to serve a much larger purpose.

In the past month, I have had my eyes opened. I look around me now and see a completely different Thailand than the one I entered almost four months ago. I don’t think that I expected this, and if I did I never expected it to come this early in my exchange. It is almost as if I turned 19 and everything changed overnight. Don’t get me wrong, I really love it here. But, as my friend put it to me; I entered Thailand as an enfant, with big eyes full of wonder. Like I had seen a silver spoon for the first time and was riveted when I saw what a spoon was, shiny and bright and exciting. But as I spent time here I grew up, usually it takes longer, but I grew up in four months and when I grew up I could see that the spoon was not as I originally thought. It was instead, tarnished and bent out of shape. I lost my innocence as that enfant, but as it turns out this is a very good thing especially because it happened so fast. I would rather be shocked by the truth now than be fooled and have the truth hurt more later. Ok, to get to the point, I apologize for the vague metaphors.

Lately my Rotary club has gone crazy with the amount of projects that we are doing. We have been to at least ten different functions outside of regular meetings this month so far. And while this sounds well and good, it leaves me with a feeling of frustration and disgust. The reason for this is because these functions are all for show. I didn’t realize until now how different my Rotary club at home is from my Rotary club here. At home when my club decided to do something, they would do it in the name of Rotary but for the good of the community around them. To help others. Here, when my Rotary club decides to do something, they do it in the name of Rotary, but they do it for themselves. To give the impression that they are helping others. The best way to explain this would be to compare two experiences that have left an impression on me here. The first would be when the other exchange students and I went to a village outside of our city to help improve their school during the school break. We went with a group called “Rotaract”. These are college age students who are aspiring Rotarians. We stayed in the village for four days and at night we slept in the school rooms. We cooked our own food and painted, played with the children, cleaned the campus, put up new posters, built bookshelves and an assortment of other things. We rode to the village on an open-air transport, woke up at six AM, went to sleep past one or two in the morning and had open-air showers. In essence it was a REAL experience. It was fun and at the end we knew we had left an impression. We had bonded with the kids, taught them “Duck, Duck, Goose“, learned their games and just had fun with them. It is something that I want to go back to, the children were more than adorable and so curious and fun-loving. I can’t even really put it into words, but that is something that I was proud to do with the name of Rotary attached to it.

However, just the other day our Rotary club told us that we were going to donate books to libraries at rural schools. At first it sounded like it might be a similar experience to the one we had before. We woke up early and went to the first location. When we got there we gave the school a few sports balls for the children, which isn’t a bad thing. But that is really the only beneficial thing we did there. We sat in a meeting for a couple for hours while the kids were nowhere to be seen, except peeking in through a window every now and then. At the meeting, our moms all stood up and introduced themselves and their businesses. Then they had us introduce ourselves. By this time we knew already that the reason we (the exchange students) had come was so that our moms could show us, the foreign kids, off. After introductions and a lot of talk about how Rotary wants to help in this way or that comes the pictures. This is part of what aggravates me because we then walked through their library and proceeded to leave. The exchange students were able to buy a little bit of time and we taught the kids how to play “Duck, Duck, Goose” but as soon as Rotary had taken enough pictures of this as well, they told us that we had to leave. It left me feeling empty and confused; why would we go to a school to “give the children books” for their benefit, and then not? We came, talked, took pictures and left, giving them only a few sports balls. That does not leave an impression (or improve a library). And yet when we were back in the car, we overheard Rotary talking about how we should make the pictures into postcards so that everyone would be able to see how much good we did for the school. We went to two other schools that day and did the exact same thing.

The point is that Rotary here will go somewhere and make promises of helping there and take a ton of pictures. But when they return home, they rarely do anything about the promises they made and yet they print the pictures in order to show others the good that they are doing for the community. There is another reason why this is so unsettling to me though. It goes against culture here. I would say that generally in the U.S. the average stranger would not stop what they are doing to help someone or go out of their way to be concerned about a complete stranger. But here, everyone is not only always smiling, but they help people they don’t know on the street to carry a package or they seem that something might be wrong and they ask if they can help etc, etc, etc. There are countless things that I see every-day that you would rarely see in the states, that go along these lines. The irony comes in where the Rotary clubs at home go to help others and here they just go through the motions to get their names out there for social recognition.

Please do not get me wrong though, this is not me complaining about my situation or asking for something different. I am fully enjoying my experiences here and I really love Thailand, all of the people and culture that surrounds me. This is just an observation, an epiphany that I have had that I felt should be shared for the sake of dispelling ignorance. On a brighter note however, I have been having such a great time at school since it has opened again. Before, to be completely honest, I hated school. It was boring and I couldn’t communicate with anyone and I felt like a burden. When school closed I could not say that I had made any friends. Acquaintances maybe, but no friends. Now however, my Thai has improved greatly and I can talk to my class. People ask me to come to class with them or to eat lunch with them now because they want to, not because they feel like they have to. I have had discussions about American vs. Thai culture and one of the girls wants me to have a sleepover with her soon. Another girl and I hung out the past weekend outside of school (first time that has happened!), we sang karaoke and it was so much fun! This sounds so insignificant, but to me the significance is more than I can put into words. I will never take friendships for granted EVER again, now that I know just how hard it is to obtain those friendships.

Another exciting thing is that the conversations with my mom have gotten more intense. Also, my dad and my house keeper join in the conversations. They are so cute really, my dad is so much fun to joke around with! We talk about American history, copyrights, famous people and books, culture, religion, family, college, everything. And I am getting more brave to talk to random people, the workers in my shop, people at school and my little brother (who doesn’t really talk much in general). The weather is getting cooler and while I am missing people at home things are still improving almost daily.

I would like to thank Rotary at home again, thank you for sending me to Thailand, thank you for this experience. Especially the chance to learn so many lessons and to grow so much; to find out who I really am amongst an environment that I am also discovering at the same time. For the chance to know what it is to really live as your own.

December 17 Journal

Wow, has it really been a month since my last journal? This has been the fastest passing month yet. It seems as if everything is catching up with everything else. In less than a month, one of my closest friends, MaaMeow, will be leaving to go back home to South Africa. Her exchange started in January of last year, so she will be leaving this coming January. And while I will miss her fiercely, I am happy for her that she gets to go back and be with her family. The other exchange students and I will also be changing host families soon, but we are not exactly sure when. It is such a strange feeling for it to be December and not see any signs of Christmas, like lights, trees, music, holiday food, or TV commercials. I mean, I don’t miss the same songs playing endlessly everywhere you go, or the food that makes you need a New Year’s Resolution to lose weight. But I do miss having the cold nights and chilly days, decorating the tree with family, shopping with friends and baking until you just can’t bake anymore. =D It is a fun kind of missing though, if that makes any sense. They are nostalgic and fond memories that make me smile and realize that I will appreciate it so much more next year.

But aside from that, everything is going really well here in Thailand. In the past few weeks there has been so much going on. There was a silk festival (the biggest annual festival in all of North East Thailand) about a block from my house! It lasted for 10 days and covered probably 4 city blocks that surrounded a big park, the streets to that area were closed and shops were set up, food vendors and two big stages for concerts to be held. I was able to go to two of the concerts on two different nights and they were so much fun. I saw SEK LOSO and CLASH, of which CLASH was more fun but there were so so many people there, it was hard to walk.

After the festival, all the exchange students plus my older brother and one of our mutual friends went to Chaing Mai and Chaing Rai together for 3 days. It is the second time that I have been to Chaing Mai, but this time we were there for longer and it was so much fun to get to see more! We went to see the Panda bears at the Chaing Mai zoo. They are on loan from China until the new baby is five years old, and they are SOOOO popular in Thailand. There is even a TV channel just for them and it is 24 hour footage of the baby and them eating bamboo and sleeping etc, lol. =D We were also able to go to the infamous Chaing Mai walking street. But we didn’t have near as much time as we needed or wanted to do all of the shopping there that we wanted to do. We also was a beautiful temple in Chaing Rai that is completely white, wow it was so amazing! The tour was supposed to go to the Golden Triangle as well but we were running late and we didn’t have time. It’s okay though because we got to visit a lot of other cool places, like the highest spot in Thailand (only 60 degrees F in December though)! But because we were 12 hours north of Khon Kaen the weather was a lot cooler and it felt soooo good! =D

My older brother is actually back from India for good. He didn’t enjoy school there so he is living at home and going to attend university here in the spring I think. It is cool to have him at home. Oh, and we have a new puppy at my house! =D It is 5 days old and I got to hold him the other day. Gosh he is SOOOOOOO cute and small. He can fit in the palm of my hand and his eyes aren‘t open yet and he can‘t hear yet either! But he makes such cute little noises and squirms around lol.

I feel like such a permanent part of my family now too. I am comfortable doing anything at my house and around my family, just like I have been living here as a real sibling or daughter for my whole life. Also, the language is going really well still. I am starting to read little words and I can write little things like my name etc. And I can understand so much. But at the same time I know that I need to learn so much more and I need to go so much further with trying to get better at the language and vocab and everything. I feel like I know a lot and it surprises me sometimes but I also know that I am behind, that I could have been so much better at this point than I am. It gives me the motivation to try harder, some days I don‘t want to try but it is necessary. It is frustrating though when people are SO surprised that you understand them and especially when they try to convince you that you don’t know what they are talking about or that you aren’t trying to say what you ARE trying to say. But I guess that I should just try to channel that into more motivation. I don’t want to feel comfortable with the level I am at, I want to be pushed beyond elementary.

I have though started to learn how to play the Kluei, which is a Thai instrument. It is similar to the recorder in the states. But I am learning one Thai song on it right now and I hope to learn another one soon. It is very fun and it is helping me to get to know more people at my school which is always a good thing. Today I watched a Korean soap opera with a friend from my class and got to talk to two people that I have never met before for over an hour. It was really awesome. =D And next week, the Princess of Thailand is coming to our school for the opening of the new building that we have. In a week our school have gone from dirt, concrete and white paint to grass, flowers everywhere, banners, ribbons, new paint on everything and decorations EVERYWHERE. It really is almost unrecognizable, lol. But I am excited to see what is actually happening next week when the Princess comes. =D It is such a big deal here and each of the members of the royal family has a special color assigned to them. The King is yellow, the the Queen is dark blue and this Princess is purple. But because she is purple, there is purple everywhere you look. I will take pictures and post them up on the flickr site.

I hope that everyone in the States and other Christmas-celebrating countries has a wonderful Christmas! And to everyone, a Happy New Year! =D Here, Christmas will just be the exchange students doing a small gift exchange and I am happy that it won’t be a big deal actually. I am sending my love and smiles to everyone in Florida! And as always, thank you Rotary for this awesome opportunity that is enabling me to become the best me that I can be, for giving me a chance to see everything through new eyes. =D

January 27 Journal

I keep experiencing deeper levels of comfortableness here. And I think naively every time that it can’t get more comfortable, that I have reached the zenith, but I have not.

As January comes to a swift close I don’t know where my month went. I changed to my second host family lest week and to be perfectly honest, I was worried. But as soon as I got here I realized that I love this family too, I mean I still have a special connection to my first host family because, well, they were my first and I stayed there for almost 6 months. However, I am doing very well at this house, I love my room and my mom is so sweet, this family is very different from my first, where they live, how they operate, their schedules etc., but I like it.

Things seem like they are getting smooth, my understanding of Thai is getting smoother (listening to fast conversations or instructions – I still have a hard time when people mumble or talk very softly but hey, I have the same problem in English sometimes) I can read lips sometimes even. I feel like while life is getting a little bit more lazy, that it is making things smoother, haha, that doesn’t make much sense. It might be the rain that is making things temporarily this way though. We have recently had a week of unexpected rain, the weather has been so crazy here lately. It is supposed to be the cold season from November to the end of February, however, we have not seen a drop in temperatures until about two weeks ago where it only dropped to about 60 or 65 degrees F. And then it started raining for almost a week straight when we aren’t supposed to see rain again until June, when the rainy season starts. I was excited to see the rain at first because I honestly missed it, but now I am aching for a little sunshine (but as soon as the sun comes back I know I will be cursing it haha.)

Christmas and New Year’s here was great. On Christmas I received a package from my sponsor club in the States (THANK YOU BARTRAM TRAIL ROTARY CLUB!) and it was awesome to receive little pieces of home. =D I also received a package from my friends and family that had a few needed items as well as a few Christmas tree branches. This was one of the best things I received, it smelled (and still smells a month later) so, so awesome! I passed out little pieces of it at school, to teachers, students, my family and let them smell what a real Christmas tree smells like, because they do not have evergreens in Thailand. So that was awesome, and then my exchange student friends and I took turns just smelling the branches all day haha. This is also the first time that I have been to school on Christmas day, and that was pretty interesting. For Christmas dinner we went and found a real Italian restraint and ate real pizza, which was almost a Christmas miracle itself. =D And after that we went dancing, the first time I have gone dancing on Christmas as well, but it was so much fun.

For New Years Eve we all went to the new big mall, Central Plaza, and watched the count-down from there. Our New Year started 12 hours before the New Year in Florida though. =D After the count-down we all went to a hip-hop party that a friend was having and we danced and watched rap battles and dance-offs until the sun came up. We then went home and crashed, later I went with my family to visit older relatives for New Year’s Day and receive their blessing for a healthy and prosperous new year.

One thing that I do miss is public affection, even just hugs to family members. If it was socially acceptable to, I would just lay my head on my mom’s shoulder at a restaurant or give my little brother a hug because he is just so cute sometimes. I feel a part of the family enough to do these things, like I would in the states. But showing affection here is something that is reserved for behind closed doors. I mean it’s ok, that is culture, but sometimes I just have these thoughts and then I have to remind myself. =D

Also, I reached a new level of family-membership the other day. My first host mom told me that her web-cam was broken so that she could use it but the person on the other end couldn’t see her clearly. And I immediately thought, “Mental note, pick up a web-cam next time you are on that side of town.” Then I stopped myself and thought, “Holy cow, this is something I would do for my family in Florida and here I am in Thailand being a real daughter, cool!” I didn’t want to buy the web-cam because I thought it would make them like me more, or because I thought I needed to pay them back for hosting me, I just saw a need and wanted to meet it because I am their daughter (don’t worry mom, I am still your daughter too, just the English speaking version). =D I love having moments like this though and as my 6 months left quickly turned into 5 months left I have realized that it is unfortunate that it takes almost the whole exchange to have frequent moments like these with host families and new friends. However, I have already made a plan to come back soon so the relationships formed will only have the chance to strengthen while I am in the States rather than weaken and fall away.

What else was it that I wanted to say? It might sound a little cliché but I have felt so much older and wiser lately. (I am of course still a little kid who loves to play and be silly sometimes…) but at the same time I feel like I am over-due to enter the world of adults (or at least the world of college). This year has already made me so much more prepared to live on my own, to manage my own money, to know how to schedule time and yet still have fun while doing all of these things. I came to the realization a couple of months back that if I can do all of these things in a language that is not my mother language, or a language that I have not entirely mastered yet, I can certainly do these things in English. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying I am perfect at these things, but I am a lot more competent in them than I was before I came to Thailand. =D

On this note I would like to thank Rotary for this experience. And know that I do not just say this routinely, but as a real gesture of thanks because without you, none of this year, these relationships, or this maturity would have been possible. So thank you. Thank you mom and dad in Florida for financing this year and for your permission to go so far away for such a long period of time, I know that was not easy for you, but thank you! =D I have put new pictures up on my flickr site of our most recent adventures. Yours truly, อารีย์

March 8 Journal

During the month of February, every time that I looked at a calendar I got depressed. “God, when is it going to be over?” I kept thinking, I mean it is only 28 days. But I can’t exactly put my finger on why I kept thinking this. I’m not miserable, and I don’t want to leave by any means, I just found myself being very frustrated and always feeling not quite myself, whether that be pains or aches or just that weird feeling of hovering through existence. But now that it is early March already I want February back. I think that this is honestly the biggest Catch-22 I will ever experience. School ended last week for us and now we have a three month summer vacation (school will re-start the last week in May). And while this may sound awesome, it leaves such a big hole haha. I mean 8am-4pm everyday is free now… WOW! But the good thing about this is that I can come and chill with my first host family whenever I want and just talk with them about everything under the big-bright-hot-as-you-know-what sun. =D I really love them and while sometimes I do feel frustrated or just drained because of the heat, I really love Thailand, more than I can put into English at this point haha.

This month was pretty busy. It started out with a weekend of Regional Debates at KKU (the university in my city). It was fun, the debates were in English so we had a very unfair advantage but the people we were debating against and with were excited to be competing with us. And it made me really happy actually that we were far from winning at the end when the results came out. We were given topics that were about the area of Thailand that I am staying in, Issan. And this allowed the exchange students to learn a lot more about Thailand, Issan, politics and environmental issues here etc. But after two full days of debating, my head honestly hurt because of remembering English grammar and big words. =D It did however make me realize that I need to keep trying very hard to improve my Thai, because if I tried to do that in Thai, I would not have been able to get past the first issue. I mean, my Thai is okay… but it has just been okay for a while, it has been some time since it has grown much. I can explain my feelings and some other things more accurately in Thai than I can in English but I think that is just because Thai has more accurate descriptions for those things in general. Reading is also improving a little but it is so-so as well.

This year the Chinese New Year was in the same weekend as Valentine’s Day. That doesn’t usually happen but it was an interesting weekend because of it. For Chinese New Year, my family is half Chinese so we went to both of the Chinese Buddhist temples in the city. The first one we went to was SO crowded. What you did was you take a cooked chicken, duck and a piece of pork and put it on a table with a glass of whiskey, oranges and different Chinese sweets. You leave these here while you light incense and walk around the temple to all of the different shrines, kneeling or sitting on your haunches at each one and raise your incense between both hands to wai while making a wish, saying a prayer or hoping for good things. Some people even have chants, other times there are monks there in the temple already chanting. A VERY cool experience. After you place one stick of incense at each shrine until you have gone around the temple. Then you go back to the items you left and wai with each of those, three times each (three is a very significant number) and leave taking the items with you, throwing a paper type thing into a fire that is continuously going. We then went to the second temple and did the same thing, afterwards getting a picture taken with the dancing Chinese dragon. We then went home and I found out the next day that the food is then usually eaten, like a feast the next day by the family. And for the next few days you could hear fireworks going off every now and then, like you do when the 4th of July is getting near. Also that weekend, on Valentine’s Day, we went to a family reunion. It was my second host mom’s extended family all at my aunt’s house. There were 40 people there and all of them were wearing matching pink T-shirts that said “<3 r-ma” basically meaning “we love grandma”. The elderly, like in many (especially Asian) cultures are still very, very respected here. There was 4 generations there and it was kind of neat to see how everyone interacted together and to try to figure out who was whose kid and whose brother or sister etc. =)

We were invited to go to a Thai wedding this month as well. And as it turns out it was not the real wedding, it was only the engagement ceremony, but it took 3 or 4 hours. We had to dress in the traditional Thai style for this kind of engagement and wow, you need to see pictures of this. I felt like a fairy-godmother-pirate with a silk skirt, it was close to impossible to move in the thing haha. But hey it was fun to play dress up for a while and take a ton of pictures. We even got money for being there because it is Chinese tradition to give money to family (like the kids) at New Year and also to guests at weddings, and it was both! The groom-to-be was from Shanghai, China and the bride-to-be was Thai but they met in England while they were both studying there… whoa. He couldn’t speak any Thai and they will be living in Shanghai but it was cute.

In the past two weeks, another exchange student came to visit our group in Khon Kaen; she is from Spain and is staying in Bangkok and her name is Catuxa. By the second or third day that I hung out with her I really felt that I had found another long-lost twin. It is really eerie but we totally clicked and we are SO the same! So I have yet another place to visit: Brazil, Germany, Canada, South Africa, Thailand (again of course) and now Spain! She left to go back to Bangkok the other day but I will definitely make some time to go visit her and she is coming back to Khon Kaen once again too. We both got our hair braided, a few corn-rows on one side and left the rest down and it’s awesome. We also both have a LOVE for cooking and learning new things to cook, we both love to be ridiculous and joke about everything. And she just has one of those personalities that you can’t be upset around. As soon as you get around her you can’t help but just feel so happy and excited for life. She is truly an amazing person and friend and I am so glad that I met her.

This past weekend we had a District Conference for district 3340. I have to admit I wasn’t really looking forward to it because I didn’t know what to expect really. (I just thought of endless meetings that I only half understood…) But it ended up being one of the best weekends I have had in a very long time. I got to see Twang, my Thai friend who was an exchange student at Bartram last year, and hang out with her, which was really really great. I also got to meet and actually get to know the other exchange students in my district and I am so excited to be going on the trip with the ones that I met later this month. One of the most exciting things that happened this weekend though is that one of the outbounds for next year from my club here, is going to FLORIDA!!! I cannot wait to see which district she is in and it will be sooo exciting to visit her while she is there and speak Thai with her and everything! =D

The conference really taught me to not judge people before really getting to know them and also to be tolerant of the people that you figure out you don’t like after getting to know them. Thailand has made me very verbal in the way that I feel and just speaking my mind, because a lot of the time people around don’t understand the English that you use. But being around other English speakers made me realize again that I can’t just say whatever I want whenever I want because it can very easily create sticky situations. (I am glad that I came to this realization before going back to the States.) The inbounds and outbounds from my club in Khon Kaen did a traditional Thai-Isaan style dance. We have been practicing everyday for two weeks and it was a lot of fun despite the moments that we didn’t really want to go to practice. I will hopefully be able to put up the video online soon. We dressed in the traditional Thai style and had about 3 pounds of make-up put on our faces, along with a lot of glitter. And the best part is that you dance with no shoes on, so there is no fear of falling or tripping or anything in complicated shoes.

At school, before it ended we were doing a lot of extra cooking classes with our teacher because she knew that our friends would be studying for exams and everything. It is so exciting for me though because I have learned and written down how to cook a lot of different Thai dishes like green curry, a traditional Thai soup, Thai desserts and a lot of other things that don’t really have English names. =D This weekend I ate a fried cricket and a red ant egg-filled omelet. The cricket tasted not bad, but not good enough to eat another one, somewhat similar to an old moldy potato chip I would say. And the omelet was good until you found out what was in it and then it was good as long as you tried not to think about what you were eating haha. The actual red ant eggs were white and oval in shape, about as big as half a pinky-finger nail.

The other day was a special Buddhist holiday here called We-sha Ka-buu Cha (rien tien). It was really cool actually because what we did was go to the biggest temple in our city and take incense, a lotus flower that hadn’t yet opened, a special candle and light the candle and the incense, walking around the temple three times. And while you walk, you think good thoughts, wishes for well-being for yourself, others etc. And the whole time you are walking you are surrounded by so-many other people, the monks in the temple are chanting and the environment it creates is really quite surreal. What you want to do is close your eyes, wai and let your mind wander without you controlling where it goes, letting it explore things that it hasn’t yet known exist. I don’t know, I probably sound crazy or “too-western minded” but it is as awesome as it is hard to explain. You leave the temple feeling peaceful though. I do enjoy going to temple here and I only wish that I could know about it at a deeper level that I don’t think is reachable with my current vocabulary.

The heat makes you feel alive in ways that I can’t describe. I mean yeah sure, sometimes you feel like you are going to faint because it is so hot, but it’s got something almost magical to it. As North Americans we would read a book about someone who lived in the Tropics and constantly and predictably think every time that the people in the book were “less” than we were because they didn’t use air-conditioning, because they just sat in the heat that was so overwhelming all they could do was sweat, talk, sleep and sweat some more. But this kind of heat and this kind of environment really makes you think, gives you the time to think and I think that it inspires you. It drains your physical energy but it at least makes you contemplate?

April 16 Journal

Well, I officially have just about two months left here. It is such a weird thought, don’t get me wrong I do love it here but at the same time I am so ready to be home too. I just got back to my city the other day from traveling in the south of Thailand with my family from the States. It was awesome in too many ways to count! I went and picked up my parents and my little brother in Bangkok, it was so surreal to see them again, especially here in Thailand. My brother is no longer “little”, he is still three years younger than I am but he is taller than my dad and has a bit of a beard going, haha. And mom and dad, well they were still mom and dad. =D We spent a day in BKK and then we all took a bus to a town in the south called Krabi. And the whole time I had to keep reminding myself that they couldn’t really understand what was going on around them like I could. It felt weird to have them depend on me, but at the same time I was so glad that I could be that person instead of them getting a tour guide or something. It is kind of a difficult concept to explain I guess. And my brother and I grew so much closer over the 10 days that they were here, we just sat and talked and talked and talked about so many things; me really feeling like the big sister finally taking up her role and being able to relate with school and life and friends. Cool really.

So we went to the south and stayed about 300 yards from the beach. I know that isn’t exactly a change of scenery for my family because we are from Florida but I haven’t seen the beach in over eight months, plus the beach in Thailand is so, unexplainably beautiful! We went SCUBA diving near Phe-Phe Island and we saw turtles, anemones with their clown-fish inhabitants, lion fish, and so many other things that I never even knew existed! It was really a great experience, and our dive guide was Thai so that made it cool that he could speak Thai to me about diving and English to my family, or I could translate if he didn’t feel like repeating information. We hung around the beach and went shopping in all the cute little shops, I took my family to eat Thai food until they were asking me if we could “please eat Italian or something else tonight?” haha. =D I had brought my computer too so that I could show them all of my pictures from this year so far and that was fun, just showing them everything and answering all of their questions. It was also pretty unique to warn them of the differences in social culture here; tell them about monks, all of the formalities but at the same time explain to them how relaxed and “sabai” everything is here and how genuinely nice and helpful Thai people are.

Earlier this month, my school had its prom. I didn’t know that Thai high schools had a prom, but it is much, much different from the prom that high-school students in the States know. First of all, the prom here is only for graduating seniors and their guests (dates), and second it is more of a sit and socialize and take pictures event. There is music but there is no dancing, well they did have a couple of groups do cover-dances of some Korean hip-hop songs but that was an organized competition. They do have a theme though, like in the States, but here people actually try really hard to match the theme. This year it was the color pink, and one of my friends borrowed a pair of hot-pink skinny jeans from his mom, found a hot-pink button up shirt and pulled it all together with a pair of hot-pink sneakers. It was the best outfit there and all I could do was congratulate him on his creativeness (and on his ability to wear his mom’s pants haha). =D And while I was so glad to have the opportunity to go to prom in Thailand, at one point I was sitting at a table just watching all of my classmates and friends up and around chatting and having the time of their lives. It made me really think, not that I don’t belong, but that I was glad that at that moment I was just sitting back and watching. Because this was THEIR moment. They have just graduated high-school, they are getting ready to move off in all different directions and they deserve this, they need this, unadulterated just to congratulate each other on a job well done and bask in their moment. I know how that feels, I graduated last May and I was reminded of that joy of accomplishment and freedom. I can honestly say that those moments were some of the happiest moments I have had in Thailand, just watching their excitement and their happiness bounce around the room in various shades of the color pink.

The weather right now is in the height of the hot season, above 100 Fahrenheit everyday, around 42 Celsius the other day even, whoa! I am just grateful for cold showers, rooms that do have A/C, water-water-water, and baby powder. =D

One thing that we did this month also was go fishing, but this was not your average get a pole and some worms and go to the river, fishing. We went mud-fishing, with our hands! It was one of my top ten experiences in Thailand so far. And I have never, ever been that dirty in my entire life. All of the inbounds this year and the outbounds for next year went (about eight or nine kids) and at first all of us were a little hesitant because we had not been told that this was the method we were going to use to catch fish. We pull up to this huge mud hole, almost as big as a football field that was about as deep as your upper-torso at the deepest point, mostly the mud just came up to your hips or waist. But we all get out of the car, take off our shoes and walk hesitantly down to the mud, and no one really wants to get in except for me haha. =D So I decide to go for it and I start to walk in, by my third step I was stuck in thick muck up to my waist, the only way to get out and get to the middle of the mud pond was to crawl on my hands and my knees, like they do in those army movies. Just thinking back on it I am chuckling, everyone was watching and I was laughing so hard that I was just getting more stuck. We ended up catching a few fish too small to cook, but some guys who were also out there (who do this for a living) helped us out and we cooked up some pretty large ones and it made a tasty lunch! We went swimming in the river afterward to get at least some of the mud off of us, but I know I took more than one long-long shower when I got home that day. =D

The other day, there was a funeral. The grandmother of one of the members of our Rotary club had passed away and our club, including the exchange students, went to be there for her. I did not know the woman who had passed away so I felt a little out of place there, but Thai funerals are very different from North American funerals. To start with, there is more than one ceremony or event to attend. Since Thailand is a Buddhist country most bodies are cremated, but before they can be cremated, the family and friends of the deceased have to pray over the body and insure that they will have a favorable re-incarnation. So the exchange students and I just sat and observed, there was the usual chants and incense and I wish that I was able to understand it but not even the Thai people do. When they chant, they chant in an older language called Pali, which to be honest a lot of scholars do not even understand. This is the first day, everyone gathers afterward to eat together and visit with each other. And the second part is a few days later. The second part is much like the first except that the people who came to the funeral go and give offerings and pay respect to the family while the monks are doing the chants. There are large wreaths of flowers everywhere, donated by different people and businesses and again, after the ceremonial part everyone gathers together to eat. Thai funerals are a very unemotional event. Death in Thailand is not mourned publicly like it is in other places, death is more of a matter-of-fact thing in which everyone understands that when you get to a certain stage in life, you die. When Thais mourn their loved ones, they do so in private so as not to affect others in a negative way.

Recently in Bangkok, I am sure that some of you have heard about the “Red Shirt” Party and their political protests. I would like to explain what is going on for those of you who don’t know and also those of you who already have heard about it because there is no room for hyped-up information. Everything right now is going fine, there is no reason to worry about anything because as of now the situation is still very peaceful. What has been going on is that the red party has been protesting and peacefully demonstrating in Bangkok since early March against the current political “yellow” party. The red party is a party originated from my area of NorthEast Thailand (also known as Issan) and they are backed my a man named Thaksin who was banned from the country by a military coup (led by the yellow party) in 2006. So Thaksin runs the red party from outside of the country and is currently the Minister of Finance for the Cambodian government. The red party is calling for a re-election, they “stand for” democracy and want their fair shot at a chance for political power. However, the demonstrations that the red party have been placing have been getting slightly more serious as of late, for example; the red party got a lot of their people to donate blood (some of the donators were even bribed to make their contributions) and the party then obtained fire trucks and sprayed the blood all over the Parliament building and the Prime Minister‘s house. Even this was considered peaceful (although quite disgusting) up until the other day when the red party forcefully broke through the gates and into the Parliament building. After this happened the Thai Government officially declared a State of Emergency in the Bangkok and surrounding areas. Things have semi-settled down within the past week but for a while there was fighting. A few days after the State of Emergency was declared there was fighting between the troops and the red party in which 21 people died and over 840 were injured. Currently there has not been any other “big-news” though.

From April 13th-15th was the national holiday of Songkran Festival. This is the most anticipated and celebrated holiday in Thailand all year long. It is the celebration of the Thai New Year and the reason for its un-paralleled popularity is because for three days straight people stop working, close shop, head to their home cities and go into the street to throw water all over each other! It is honestly the most fun holiday that I have EVER experienced, better than Christmas, your birthday, the 4th of July, New Year’s Eve, Thanksgiving, Halloween, Easter and St. Patrick’s Day combined. No Joke. Three days before Songkran even began you would be walking down the street or riding open-air public transportation and you would all of a sudden be soaking wet with water, only to realize that people had started throwing buckets of water into the streets early. =D But once Songkran began, wow, I don’t even know how to describe it really. All I can say is that it was literally a party in the streets for three days and three nights with no breaks. People set up huge metal drums of water in front of their houses or in the back of pick-up trucks to hold water in so that one could easily dip a bucket in and throw endless amounts of water on perfect strangers. It sounds kind of crazy to the western world I think but it is sooo much fun and after your first encounter with a splash of water, it is impossible to wipe that toothy grin off of your face.

So what we did was get in the back of our family’s pick-up truck with all of my little brother’s friends and ride around town, through the streets with all of the other pick-up trucks throwing buckets of water at the other trucks or at the people out in front of their houses, especially on people who were still dry or had already dried off. =D At one point we bought huge blocks of ice to put into our drums of water so that when we splashed people, or squirted them with water guns it would feel similar to taking a shower in an igloo.

Another key part of Songkran is baby-powder. It is a tradition that started with baking flour back when there was no such thing as baby-powder, and what you do is you smear it on your face and the faces of everyone around you. And it’s not uncommon for you to be walking down the street and someone you have never seen before in your life walks up to you and smears a handful of baby-powder on both sides of your face while wishing you a Happy New Year. It is shocking at first, especially when you have been in a country where public displays of affection (ie: hand holding, kissing, hugging, etc) even between friends and family is semi-frowned upon, but after the first day of Songkran one gets used to it. We got home at night and were completely exhausted but still so excited and energized, covered from head to toe in white baby-powder and soaked to the bone with water. You shower, eat, go to sleep, wake up the next day and do it again!

This description does not even do the holiday justice, I had it described to me so many times by former exchange students and Thais but I never expected it to be what it was. I know that I want to come back for next year and I have already planned that if I cannot, I will be celebrating Songkran in Florida some way or another. 😉

I would like to thank Rotary International, Rotary Youth Exchange Florida, and Rotary Thailand for the absolutely amazing year and opportunities that I have had and am having during my exchange to this wonderful country. Thank you for making this exchange possible and for continuing to give other students the same opportunities. I am about to go on a trip sponsored by my host district here in Thailand for two weeks and I cannot wait to see what is in store for me and the other exchanges that will be attending. After that I will be moving back to my first host family (YAYYY!!!) and shortly there-after school will be starting up again. Time really does fly, it only seems like a couple of weeks ago that I was marveling that I had already made it 10 weeks in my new country and I couldn’t fathom having nine more months to go… but here I am, nine months down and around 10 weeks to go and I cannot grasp where all that time went! To my family and friends at home, just two more months. =D To everyone else here in Thailand, I am trying not to think about the tiny amount of time I have left here, but I plan to make the most of it. So watch out Thailand, here I come, you can call me อารีย์ because that is my name.

May 18 Journal

Every host family needs to take their exchange student on a short trip in the beginning, middle and end of their exchange without any other exchange students. I am grateful that I am getting this opportunity but at the same time, I wish one like it had come sooner and made me realize sooner (help me to compare those parts of my exchange and the stages of my relationships) that I am not an exchange student but I am their daughter, their sister, and that it is real. I feel like I have been in this family, not from birth, but from adoption as such a small child that I cannot remember a time before this. I really love my family and this is almost more home to me than Florida. I do not want to leave this nest, I am not ready to fly on my own again but I realize the necessity of it so I must just walk to the edge, close my eyes and go for it.

That being said, yes, I am back at my first host family. Times now since I have been back have been my most happy moments of this whole exchange year. While everything is getting so busy with realizing all that I have yet to accomplish in the remaining month, I can come home and sit with my mom and just be at peace. I can smile and we can go to the temple and I can momentarily forget that I have to leave here so soon. I am still so torn when I remember the time left, I miss Florida, my friends, family, but I do not want to leave Thailand. I want to smush the best of both worlds together. Like a little kid who takes two Oreos, pulls them apart and then sticks the two halves that still have the cream attached together, creating a super-stuffed Oreo! Unfortunately though, Florida and Thailand are not Oreos and thus, that is not possible… =(

I would love to tell you all about my adventures on the Rotary trip that I took last month after Songkran, but right now I feel like it would be too much to put into this journal. I have to save some of my stories to tell when I get home, right? =) In a nutshell though, it was fantastic! It was great to meet all of the other exchange students again and really get to know them this time, to spend two weeks with them and get close to some and stay acquaintances with others. I really love that group and we had an awesome time making memories as we went through Koh Chang, Chantaburi, Koh Samet, Pattaya, Amphur Wha, Ahyuttaya, and Bangkok. And we did everything from snorkeling to temples to a lady-boy show haha. =) I have A LOT of pictures up on the flickr site that you can look through and the beach was sooo gorgeous, I cannot wait to go back.

I was actually invited to go with my host family next week and I am more than excited about that. I just got back from a trip to Bangkok with just my mom, dad and little brother. It was great, we only spent three days there and we picked up the new car but we also went to see Wat Pak Gaeo (The Grand Palace) and The Temple of the Golden Mount. We went shopping until we were all hot, exhausted and ready to go home, lol. And I love my exchange student friends here in Khon Kaen but it was awesome beyond explanation to be with my family without them around. This is the first time I have done something like that besides the everyday routine at home. And it give time for reflection, to learn more Thai (because there are not people speaking English to you all the time). So I am very excited to go with my mom and my grandma to the south again and just spend time with them. =) I had such a ridiculous smile on my face this whole weekend because of the time that I was able to spend with my family just as their daughter and there were so many moments that my eyes were open to that just confirmed to me that that is what I am. Also, when we drove into Khon Kaen last night I just kept thinking, “I’m home! We’re home! Ahh, home, home home!” =) As a family we were home.

Something that I have learned in the past month though is that it is good to be a careful and worried person sometimes. You give a soft impression and don’t step on too many peoples toes at the same time. And when you are just being serene and cautious (not a push-over) it actually gets you far because it lets people open themselves towards you and that in turn enables them to start forming the bonds of love and real relationship, bonds that lasts. Thailand has taught me, just go with the flow, things will work themselves out… but at the same time do not let yourself be taken advantage of.

I do apologize for the choppiness and the non-relatedness of this journal but this is how my brain has been working lately. I hope that it makes at least some sense and isn’t too “all over the place”. I did have a thought the other day though that it is quite unfortunate and angering that I am just getting to the point of reading more efficiently and now I have to leave. I know that it will slowly dissipate, just like my speech abilities, but perhaps there is a way I can practice that as well until I come back (which will hopefully be soon!) I want to thank everyone again who was, is, and will be involved in RYE. You are helping to change lives and also to sincerely change the world through it. You may not see these changes but your students and the people that they meet will know, there is something different about that girl/boy. Perhaps like some conversations I have had, people have changed their perceptions of America drastically, realizing it is not how Hollywood and reality TV make it out to be. That people who live there are made out of the same flesh and bone as they are, the only difference being that the idiots of our society are usually the ones who are the unofficial international representatives, watch out the world is watching.

I have a Thai heart. There is a pride that runs through the blood in my bones, a pride different from the average teenage pride, a pride much different than “American” pride. This is the pride of being not only Thai but essentially of being Issan too. Of finally becoming one of my people! As I write this I feel sad because as much as I feel this in my heart, people here and in the States as well see me and think the exact opposite. Yes, I am a “foreigner” who can eat spicy food, but it is more than that. They will never be able to see that I see things and feel with the same limbs that they do. That I yearn for the chance to help in the rice fields at least once because I know now what a special, honored task that really is. And again, writing this, knowing that you who speak English will read it, I know that I am already judged. Even the Western part of my brain is screaming at me, “What are you typing, are you crazy?” Because (no offense) most western-born people cannot understand this and these yearnings of my heart. Like why I want to live in a little apartment in Bangkok, continue my travels around the world, spend at least a year in India, and be fiercely independent while at the same time being hopelessly dependent, with my blue eyes wide open to the world and its people. I may sound absurd but I do not apologize, I was going to but then I realized that not only did this need to be spoken but it needed to be read as well.

Gabrielle’s Bio

Hey there! My name is Gabrielle Ceballos, but you can call me Gabby for short. I am a 15 year old sophomore from Matanzas High School. Recently, I just found out I was accepted to the Rotary Exchange program and couldn’t be even more excited! A year ago, I thought to myself I would be sitting in the same high school just with different teachers the very next year. Never in a million years would I have thought I would actually be leaving to go to Denmark for a year! This is by far the biggest experience I can gain in my lifetime and I am ready to just absorb everything like a ginormous sponge :D.

I moved to Palm Coast, Florida about 10 years ago via Santiago, Chile and my birthplace of Connecticut and it definitely has been an experience. Meeting new people and residing in a new place can be rather interesting when you first start out, but things can only get better and they certainly have. Just as my new experiences with moving to Palm Coast, I can’t even begin to expect what new adventures and exciting experiences await in Denmark! Thank you so much Rotary for this life changing opportunity!

Two wonderful and amazing parents have raised me along with my older brother, Ryan. We are the Ceballos family and always will be. We are all spunky and fun and I wouldn’t change us for the world! If you ask a couple of my friends, they can probably agree with the fact that I am the one girl that will just randomly break out into song or random dance moves. Even a funny face or two you can sometimes get at the most random moments. Lacrosse is the sport I love and is one of the of the things that brings me a lot of joy. Some of my other hobbies I can add is my avid bookreading, rookie quilter, drawing, music listener (even my sad attempts to belt a song), movie lover and quoter, and some other things that can bring a great big smile to my face.

Laughter and smiles is one thing that I need in my life. The love of adventure and new experiences makes life even that more amazing. The next year in Denmark is the next chapter in my life that awaits me. I am so excited to start this super epic adventure! Yay!

Gabrielle’s Journals

September 12 Journal

When I close my eyes at night to sleep, I start to think that when I wake up everything is going to be a dream and I will still be in Florida, still in Palm Coast, and not experiencing the year of a lifetime. But then I open my eyes…..and I am in Denmark. One of the most amazing places I have ever been in my life. From the first day I got here on August 2nd, I had a feeling that the minute I walked off the plane everything was going to change and never be the same for me. So far this has proven true with my first MONTH of my exchange already over (which makes me sad thinking how I have to leave this beautiful place sooner and sooner everyday!!!) and what an A-MA-ZA-ZING time it has proven to be!!!!!!!

My first day in Denmark proved to be very adventurous since I met with a counselor from Rønne (John Anderson, who was super nice!) who then took me to meet the other exchange student going to Bornholm (Bridgitte from Nevada) then off to Bornholm we went. We ended up having to take a drive over the bridge to Sweden, then onto a ferry, and then eventually I met my counselor (Henrik) and off to my new home for the next 6 months. I love my host family and can’t imagine being with another family (Gert, Vivi, and my 17 year old brother, Tobias)! After finally being able to sleep after more than 24 hours without it, I continued to explore Nexø for the rest of the week until I had to leave again for København for language school and then Jylland for intro-camp.

Meeting EVERY SINGLE exchange student in Denmark proved to be amazing and I am so excited to see them again in October. When I finally returned to Bornholm, I got to start school which has proven to be one of the best times even though it is school. It’s rather nice having everything being so chill and relaxed and of course being with such great people as classmates. It certainly was a situation to adapt to at first, just like day-to-day routines. But being an exchange student, I have learned to adapt and do it all. I now have a daily routine that has become surprisingly easy to adapt to but I love it! But anyhoo, you start to realize some things just like Morgan said while you are here in wonderful Denmark:

Almost everybody smokes

There is no air conditioning, not even in most stores; you just open the windows and doors

You see bikes EVERYWHERE (but it is amazing – biking everywhere is fun!)

Some of the houses are older than the United States

Bread is eaten every day with almost every meal

The bread is absolutely amazing

The road signs are very different (not many stop signs since people do it themselves)

Fish is loved very much by the Danes (including herring, one of the most interesting fish I’ve ever tasted)

Overall, Denmark is simply amazing

This whole experience is already underway but yet it still feels so surreal and just like a dream that it’s hard to think I am actually here experiencing everything. You literally have to rid yourself of all fear/anxiety and take a giant leap and hope that you can land on your feet. Even with that sounding difficult, it is the one thing that is completely and utterly worth it. There is never a dull moment and always something new to experience. You get to experience life and actually start to see what you are made of. Even for just being here over a month, I can already tell that this year is literally going to be the most amazing year.

And I can’t wait to see what the next couple of months have in store.

November 29 Journal

So it has been a mighty long time since my last journal and A LOT has been happening in the past couple months! I have now been here in Denmark for about 4 months and so far everyday has been a new adventure. Without Rotary, I would never have gotten to gain these new experiences and have the opportunity for it all and I thank them very much for it. As we say in Denmark, Mange Tak (Thank you very much)!!!

Since the last time I wrote, a lot of things have been happening here. Even for being on the small but incredible island of Bornholm, many things always seem to be happening and taking place every day. School so far has been an interesting but good experience. Almost everyday I get up to get on the bus and start school at about 8:30. It’s nice though to not have school start until around 10:15 on days when I have a free first period which always feels good when I get to sleep just a little bit longer in the morning. But so far, my class is amazing and they are some pretty cool kids and have made things a lot of fun! They always help me and teach me things in Danish to try and say (which is progressing). They love when I try so I’m attempting to speak more and more even though I sometimes think I’m saying things completely wrong! But I can understand more and more everyday which is a huge plus.

The rest of September honestly seems like a blur since the month went by so quickly. It was filled of just school and hanging out around the island and exploring the area as much as possible. One thing that can be noted for September to even continuing now is how COOOOOOOLLLLD it is getting!!!!! It has truly been a while since I’ve been in cold weather and it just continues to get colder but even while shivering, it’s ironic to think how it is still warm in Florida probably and then here it’s freezing. But it’s also a breath of fresh air feeling the cool weather day to day.

October was actually a very busy month with fall break and also the AMAZING Holbæk Halloween Get-Together that Rotary threw for us. It was so much fun getting to see all the other exchange students again and getting to have so much fun. Definitely some of the costumes just made me smile whenever I saw them. That weekend for sure has given me some memories that won’t be forgotten. It’s always sad saying goodbye to all the others but it also makes seeing them again that much better J My class also had a visiting class from Spain come stay with us for a week which was a lot of fun! It was interesting to see how they were also getting to experience what I was experiencing and they were some pretty cool kids. Can’t wait to see them again in April when we go and see them!

November = Cold, fun, and Thanksgiving in Denmark! For the first time in years I actually got to see snow!!!! It was amazing seeing the little snow flurries and getting to stand outside and see the snow falling. It’s been the only day that it has snowed but it was for sure a memorable experience. My mind was blown when I also looked at the thermometer and saw it was only 1 degree Celsius that entire day (about 32 degrees Fahrenheit)!!! We expect to see these types of temperatures throughout December which shall be interesting. Believe me when I say that it was a sad day when I had to retire the flip flops….so sad. I actually had to start wearing shoes which actually proved to be interesting. But I’ve expanded to boots which keep my feet comfy and warm on the coldest of days J (being from Florida, I do miss my flip flops and can’t wait for warm weather to wear them again!!!)

I even got to celebrate Thanksgiving with one of the other exchange students’ family. Kyle’s (North Carolina) host family had never experienced Thanksgiving and wanted to taste ALL the food. I was lucky enough to be invited and I got to help Kyle cook a Thanksgiving dinner for us and his family and their friends. It was such a great time and even gave me a little piece of home when helping making the dinner since that’s what I do with my mom every year. But it was a fun time and helping his family experience an American Holiday J We also had another get together, but only for my district (Copenhagen, Bornholm, etc) and Rotary threw us a Thanksgiving along with having many Rotarians and families to join all of us. The exchange students also had to provide entertainment for the night for everybody and of course there was singing and dancing of all sorts for the night.

But so far that’s been my exciting couple of months and unforgettable experiences. I’ve been given the opportunity of a lifetime and am so grateful for even being given the chance. My life here in Denmark is so different in so many ways. I’m given the chance to actually make decisions, do things myself, and also just to live life to the fullest. I’m changing even if I can’t quite see how but I know in some ways I am and also just having my mind just being expanded even more everyday with being here. I have been here almost 4 months and they simply have been the most amazing months of my life thus far. The rest of my year here in Denmark is just going to keep being amazing and I wish it would never end. Time sure is flying and I only wish it would slow down!!!!

Can’t wait for the upcoming months and more memories to come but I guess for now until next journal … Hej Hej!!!! (Bye!)

February 15 Journal

Wow. So finally past the half way mark…..and just wow. I can’t even believe that the time has passed so quickly and my time is growing shorter and shorter here in Denmark. And thinking about that just breaks my heart. I have learned to completely immerse myself into a new place, with new faces and places, and adapt and actually feel at home. Everything has just been so amazing that it doesn’t seem real. But then you wake up and realize that it is and that just puts the biggest smile on my face realizing that I’m experiencing this. Even getting the chance to experience this. Sooooo mange mange mange tak Rotary 🙂

But anyhoo, so far we have leaped into 2010 (whoa), I’ve moved host families, and have been experiencing non stop snow. Honestly, at first you love the snow…..but then slowly begin to loathe it especially after falling so many times :P. It’s been sooooo cold, definitely not Florida weather I’m used to. Even with the cold I must admit that the snowball fights have been well worth it as well as just messing around with the snow!! It’s just even fun to say snoooooow…or as the Danes say SNE!!! Even some of the days there have been snowstorms that have shut down the entire island of Bornholm!!! So I have watched many movies and drank much cocoa during those days. Spring time hopefully will be here soon and the sun will come back again! (after what seems a million year hiatus)

I also moved host families and my new one is amazing! its actually funny how they have the same humor as my own family so it will be fun watching how they are with my family when they come to visit. But other than that, it has been chill.

School is school and seems to be getting better with the language barrier everyday as I understand more and more everyday which is great so I’m not sitting there confused every second. Still love my class and have for sure made some good friends to come back and visit in the next couple of years. It is interesting how the Danish Gymnasium system works and I think I actually like it. Other than taking the bus at 7:30 (yikes) it’s all pretty great and an experience. But other than that, I have an upcoming trip to Spain in April with my class which will be amazing!!!! So I’m uber excited for that and getting the chance to celebrate my birthday with my class while there.

As time progresses, we live and we learn through experiences. And this exchange year has certainly been that so far. Advice to the new upcoming outbounds, be ready for your life to ultimately change and for yourself to grow in ways that you never would dream of. To grow in ways that will help you day to day and to experience every little thing while on exchange and to take it in stride. I can say so far, I will never forget this year and everything I’ve experienced since it has been some of the best times I have ever had.

All I can do is continuing to do is document my exchange and just say til next time Florida 🙂

😀

May 16 Journal

So 9 months later and only 59 days left to go!!! Time has really flown by and I haven’t even noticed it. I’ve experienced so much and seen so much in the past couple of months that I know I would have never even experienced if not for being here in Denmark. It’s hard to swallow actually having to leave Bornholm and everything that is now becoming normal to my daily life. I know I’m not the same and that in reality, I’ve grown and changed in so many ways. Everyday is an adventure and a fun one at that and I love life day to day more than I have in years.

Who can say honestly that their family’s travel plans were changed because of a VOLCANO in Iceland erupting? Not too many people…..other than Rotary exchange students 🙂 But other than a volcano prolonging my family’s visit to Denmark, they eventually arrived and I got to see them for the first time in 9 months!!! It was weird at first seeing them since the only time I would see them was via webcam on skype (thank you internet) but actually getting to hug them made me soooooo happy.

But I got to show my family around the small but amazing island of Bornholm for about 2 weeks and they seemed to really like it. I even got my mom to try Herring which is a specialty of Bornholm and I was mighty impressed she actually ate it since not many people like it. But they got to experience A LOT of Danish food thanks to my wonderful host families and also 2 weeks of the nicest weather that we’ve had since last summer!! It’s funny because as soon as they left the weather just turned right back to cold and gross bringing back the use of the winter jacket. I even got to show them around Copenhagen and around other parts of Denmark and it was great getting to just talk to them face to face, especially my brother. When I had to drop them off at the airport it was really sad but I surprisingly didn’t cry. I think because I know I’ll be seeing them so soon it didn’t really impact that I was saying goodbye again. But at least next time will be hello 🙂

OH!!! another a-ma-za-zing adventure was going to Spain with my class!!!!! Probably hands down one of the best trips I have ever taken. It even was during my birthday so that was pretty sweet. Kind of weird being in a totally different country for my birthday but my class made it really special so I was soooo happy that I have such great friends to make it a great birthday. I can definitely say I will go back to Spain sometime. It was such a beautiful country and experiencing it all with my class made it even that much more great .

But other than those recent adventures, we have Euro-Tour coming up in about a week annnnnnnnnd its going to be epic. Can’t wait for it.

The only down side to having all these things happen, if there is any, is that it shows me just how much little time I have left in Denmark which is a very sad thing to think about. Even with the time winding down so quickly, all I can do is enjoy it day to day and live it all to the fullest which is of course a very possible thing 🙂 So much to experience in such little time, oh jeg elsker dig Danmark. Rotary of course is to thank for every single experience I have had since being in Denmark. Without them none of it would of never been possible nor would I of even been able to dream to it being possible.

Tusind Tusind Tusind Tusind Tak Rotary 🙂

Helen’s Bio

Hello. My name is Helen Parker. I am 14, turning 15 on August 11, 2009. I spent my freshman year at Episcopal High School of Jacksonville. I am very excited about the trip that I am going to take this year to Brazil. It is going to be an amazing experience and I know I’m going to enjoy it. I am mostly an only child, I have two older brothers, but they’re half-brothers so they have never lived with us. Their names are Jacob and Jeremy. My parents, Fred and Suzanne, are also excited for me to leave. They will miss me as I will miss them but we’ll all get over it.

I am a very active person. I really love to play sports. I play softball for school. I am a shortstop and look forward to softball season all school year. I’ll be skipping this year’s softball obviously because I’ll be in a foreign country. I also play volleyball. But the volleyball I play is more for fun than competition. Many of my friends are on the volleyball team at school and I play with them. My family also likes it because it’s a game for all ages. I love to wakeboard and skateboard. I’ve been skateboarding for a long time and just started wakeboarding a couple years ago. Even though I live near the beach, I have never surfed. I would like to learn though and many of my friends have offered to teach me. I love being with my friends and it will be very hard for me to leave them but, I’ll deal with it. We have sleepovers, go waterskiing, go mudding, and a ton of stuff. I really enjoy trying new stuff.

I’m very outgoing and enjoy talking to people. I’m working on learning Portuguese and I think I’m doing pretty good. It will be hard but I’m ready for the challenge. Thank you for this amazing opportunity.

Helen’s Journals

August 31 Journal

August in Brazil. Very different from an American August. First off, here in Brazil we have opposite seasons from the US. Like, summer in Brazil is winter in the US. So I got on a plane July 31st sweating from the Florida heat, and arrived in Brazil wearing multiple jackets. Most of Brazil is not cold. Brazil is actually known for its heat. But I was placed in an area of Brazil that has cold winters. The mornings here are on average 9 degrees Celsius. I don’t know what that is in Fahrenheit but it feels chilly.

When I first got here I did not have school because there was a swine flu outbreak. I luckily had been emailing my second half-host sister before I left so I spent this time with her and her friends. I call her my half sister because August 21 she left for Germany. Her year exchange with Rotary. I got to meet many of her friends though, so it’s not like she left me all alone.

I started school August 15th. Another awesome thing about Brazil is that their school year is reversed from the American one. So in November I get off school for summer vacation. YES. 2 summers. That’s right. School is nice for me. I really like it. I don’t understand what the teachers say because they go too fast but the other students I can continue with a conversation… most of the time.

I feel like I’m learning Portuguese really fast. Like I can already communicate with my host family and the parents don’t speak any English. In school I’ve made some friends and been to some barbecues. The barbecues are very fun. Every single meal has 50X more meat then the meals in the US. It’s crazy. We eat 2 different meats, usually beans and rice, and some vegetable. The food here is SO good. They fry anything they feel like and I eat whatever I feel like. This is a problem. Actually September 7th I start swim practice. I’m going to start swimming competitively (not well) for the club my family is part of. I look forward to being healthy.

I’m doing my homework in school and have taken a test already and got one of the highest scores in the class. Ya that’s right. Highest scores. J I’ll write next month and tell you how everything is going!

December 18 Journal

Hello RYE FL. I know it’s been a really long time since I’ve written but I’ve just been really lazy. Sorry. So Brazil has been amazing for the last 3 months. I switched families in November and I prefer my second family. They’re great. They always take me places and try to show me more of Brazil that I haven’t already seen.

I speak mainly Portuguese these days. My host mom and brother don’t speak English that well so even If I wanted to speak English I couldn’t. I only speak Portuguese to my friends and other exchange students, except for the Americans. I just need someone to understand my slang. I miss it. My Portuguese has gotten really good. I’m almost fluent, and I am really close to thinking in Portuguese. I only speak English with my host dad. I’ve asked him a thousand times to not speak English with me but here in Brazil, only the rich people speak English, so when someone speaks English they really want to show it off.

I got out of school December 8th. School doesn’t start back up until February. It’s summer break. In Brazil the seasons and the school year are opposite from the states because it’s the bottom half of the world. So on the 20th of December I’m going to this really nice beach called Florianopolis. I’m going with my family. It’s going to be so much fun. I’m going to surf like every day and finally get a tan. I’ll get back January 3rd. then 10 days later I will go on the Belo Brazil northeast dream trip for 30 days. This trip is going to be so much fun. All the exchange students from my district are going on it. We’ve only lost one exchange student so far this year. He was a German and he didn’t break and rules but he just didn’t like Brazil. We were all really sad to see him go, but if it made him happy, I suppose it was the right thing.

I’ve basically become accustomed to Brazil by now. It’s not all new for me anymore. But I seriously think that back in the states we should have more Brazilian restaurants. In Jacksonville, we have one but it’s a churrascaria, steakhouse, and it’s super expensive. We need like a chain restaurant or something. That sells traditional Brazilian food. Like coxinhas, a teardrop shaped fried thing. It’s usually about 3.5 inches tall and it generally contains either beef, chicken and cheese, or ham and cheese. It’s amazing. They should also sell pastels. Pastels are like, you take bread mix, flatten it out. Make a pocket out of it and put some kind of filling in it. Basically whatever. You fill it up about halfway, close it, fry it, then eat it. It’s so unhealthy but hey, that’s what makes it good! Brazilian sweets too. They have this thing called brigadeiro. It’s condensed milk mixed with something similar to Nesquik. Then they heat it up and let it cool. It get’s hardish then you roll it into little balls and cover it in cake confetti type things. I can’t explain it. It’s all soo godly.

Brazilian pizza is SO different. It’s like 50 times healthier then American pizza. And they don’t have ‘cheese pizza’ and ‘pepperoni’. They’ll put like chicken on pizza bread without sauce. I went to Pizza Hut here. It’s NOTHING like Pizza Hut back home. People actually dress up to go the Pizza Hut restaurant.

Clothes are really expensive here. But food is very cheap. Nike Shocks have to be the coolest shoe you can wear here. People LOVE them. You’ll find them for sale for what is equivalent to 250 American dollars. Sorry to basically give you a description of Brazil’s market but I find it SO different. I’ll write next month. Promise. Sorry about the delay.

Tchau from Brazil.

Helen

Jennefer’s Bio

Sawatdee kha! My name is Jennefer Neolan and luckily I’ve been selected to represent Rotary in Thailand! I’m VERY excited and especially grateful to have this opportunity so before I continue I must say thank you Rotary!

I am currently a fifteen year old straight A sophomore at Pompano Beach High School and will be a junior on my year-abroad. I’ve lived in the same house in Pompano Beach my whole life and ever since I can remember I’ve been interested in the world and its citizens around me; I’ve wondered how their lives differ from my own and how it would feel to be in their shoes. I knew from early on that the only way to discover the answer to my dilemma was to experience those people’s lives directly; this is when I decided to become an exchange student. As soon as high school came around, I immediately inquired about becoming an exchange student and Rotary appeared before my very eyes!

This adventure shall be the biggest of my life so far. The only place I’ve been to outside of the U.S. is Canada and it was only for four days with my family. I can’t thank the members of Rotary enough for not only accepting me into the program but also for giving me one of my top choices! Thailand, here I come!

Jennefer’s Journals

August 29 Journal

Ah! Where to begin?? I guess at the airport! 😛 I left the 18th of August surrounded by my family. I waved goodbye for the last time, not truly realizing I wouldn’t see them for a WHOLE year! I still can’t! From Miami to Washington, from Washington to Narita, Japan (SOOOOOOOOOOOO long!), and finally from Japan to Bangkok, the capital of Thailand.

When I arrived at the “Meeting Point” at 11 pm on the 19th, I saw the welcoming committee! Bob and Sami, my new parents, members from the Rotary Club of Ban Phaeo, and a soon to be Outbound from Thailand headed to Germany. I felt so loved!!

We went out for dinner (really late dinner!) at a supposedly Thai version of “Denny’s”. Rice with duck, fried fish (the best for me!), and even chicken feet! I’m still too American to try it! We then continued to my new home. It’s so beautiful and peaceful! There’s a khlong (canal) in the back and it runs through the whole farmland. It’s a nice change from Pompano Beach!

Some time after my arrival we went to the market. So many smells (both good and bad) and goods can be found there. It was something I could never imagine. On the 24th I went to school. It was crazy!! I had to make a speech in Thai in front of the whole student body wearing a rather spiffy uniformJ. I was nervous but the students all applauded and giggled when I repeated it in English. When I walk in the halls I always hear “Jennefer! Jennefer! Hello!” I still don’t understand their “fascination”. My friend doesn’t either! She said she’s been going to that school for four years and no one ever calls her name. I come for four days and everyone’s calling mine! I don’t speak even 1% of the Thai language yet but I have made many friends already. I hope that soon I can understand what everyone around me is saying but even now I’m not too sure I can speak this tonal language. It sounds impossible to truly master. I guess we’ll have to see!

I guess that’s it for now! Time for lunch! Watdee! Bye Bye!

September 29 Journal

The heat has subsided, the sounds are like a flowing river, and I finally can say “I am Thai”.

YEAH RIGHT! It’s still hot, I still can’t speak Thai besides the basic “sawatdee” and “mai kao jai”, and I still don’t act like a Thai! Of course, it’s only been a little over a monthJ. Still, it feels like I haven’t made enough progress on this journey, both in reaching a peak in my maturity and in embedding myself into this wonderful and unique culture. Patience is truly a virtue…

ANYWAYS! Besides the whole language thing I’ve been making a LOT of good memories here. Along with the multiple trips to various markets in the area and visits with friends and family, I’ve been a witness to indescribable beauty. There is a park here which seems to have an ancient yet vibrant soul to it. It was made for the pleasure of the Buddhist monks here in Thailand. As if the mere size of the park and arrangement of the trees and flowers weren’t enough to wow you, there are several monuments reflecting the age and concept of Buddhism. My personal favorite is the Standing Buddha Image. As soon as it revealed itself from behind the trees, I was stunned. Besides its sheer size as it stands at over 50 feet tall, the knowledge of life and its marvels illuminates from the seemingly flowing robes of Buddha. Eyes cast down, palm outstretched, and foot extended, Buddha is truly at peace.

Another favorite of mine was the Hall of the Marble Pali Canon. The Buddhist “Bible” is engraved in marble tablets and spread out around the statue of the first abbot to ever reside in the park. Painted on the ceiling above the tablets is the story of Buddhism and its existence in Thailand. At the very end of the marble building, behind the last “page” of the path to Nirvana, is a scene even beyond those of National Geographic. It is the peace reached at the end of death, it is heaven.

After that breathtaking journey, I made my appearance at none other than the infamous Bangkok! It certainly holds a different kind of beauty, one exuding an aura more adept to that of a mindful child rather than an inspiring elder. It is new, playful, and crowded with thoughts of adventure and mischief. Yet it knows its place and acts accordingly, not mistaking its privileges for the freedom to forget traditions. The shopping there is fun! It’s more like sightseeing for me, seeing supposed fashion statements and seaweed flavored ice cream.^^ Ah! Thailand! I also went to the Prommit Film Studio in Ratchaburi with my fourth host family. Of course it was touristy but it was fun to be with my soon-to-be family. Later we went to a Rotary dinner on a sea side restaurant where I had something I never thought I would try in over a million years, fried frog legs! I hate to say it, but it tasted just like chicken! Aroi mak mak!

This afternoon, I learned a bit about meditation and even tried it with my host mother’s sister who is a fully ordained monk. She said that meditation is used to control the monkey, our mind, which usually jumps from one thought to the next, and allows it to concentrate on one point. She even said a well trained mind can read and control other minds! I’m gonna have to see that one for myself!

Now I am out of school until the 26th of October since here the semester has ended. Maybe I can learn enough Thai to understand at least 30% of my friends’ conversations by the time I come back. I doubt it though! This week I’m going to Chiangrai and Chiangmai with my school for five days, visiting Wats and monuments in the north of Thailand. I’ll write all about it when I come back! As for now, my bed awaits me! TTFN! Tata for now!

November 4 Journal

Thailand is the best country in the world. Whether in the jungle or the seas or even the mountains, there is always something extraordinary waiting to change your life.

I began this month with an amazing trip to two cities in the Northern part of Thailand, Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai. The breeze alone could have made my trip remarkable but the temples were stunning. My favorite had to be the one that we unfortunately spent the least amount of time in (15 minutes to be precise). It was constructed twenty years ago by an art teacher and the result was so remarkable the king of Thailand came to its official opening. It was constructed with cement to provide a pure backdrop for its shards of glass. In the daytime, the buildings sparkle in the sun and at night they glow with the stars. So beautiful!

After the quick visits to several temples and a whole lot of shopping, I returned home only to leave again several days later to drive in the other direction, to the South. This trip was the infamous Rotary trip to the Vegetarian Festival in Phuket. All the YE, a total of 18 students, in district 3330, which includes the central and southern parts of Thailand, went. The students who reside in the central part, including myself, traveled by bus. Great fun! Once we arrived some twelve hours later we met up with our hosts that would house us for our stay. That night we met up with the other YE students and were told about the origins of the festival, its rules, and a quick overview of Chinese history since the festival is Chinese. We then saw a performance dedicated to the purpose of the festival at the shrine. The young lion and old dragon puppets were so cute!

We traveled around Phuket and visited several islands such as P.P. Island and James Bond Island. We went snorkeling, where I had a mini panic attack since I can’t swim, kayaking in caves, walking along the beaches, where I then learned how to doggy paddle^^, and best of all shopping! The best part for me was definitely the Phuket FantaSea Theme Park and Show. The show incorporated pyrotechnics and several animals such as elephants and doves to tell the Thai version of the creation of the earth and human civilization. A must see! The theme park was also enjoyable. The characters were colorful and the merchandise was especially cute. Not to mention the fact that there were elephants and a baby tiger!

All in all what made the trip was not only the excursions but the interactions between the RYE students. It was entertaining to see the similarities and differences with our adaptation to and views of the Thai culture. It was an experience I’ll never forget.

After returning from Phuket I had a pre-wedding and wedding party to attend. Lots of food and lots of singing! The best!

The 2nd of November was a holiday for the Thai people called Loi Kratong. Loi is “to float” and Kratong is a leaf cup. At night, usually after midnight, people float their usually handmade Kratongs on the rivers or sea to give thanks to the river for being calm and helping to water crops and provide water to drink and such. The Kratongs are usually made of banana leafs which the fish can later eat and topped with candles to light its way on its journey. They look beautiful when they are all in the water. There are also several parties and festivals to explore. I went on a boat with my family up and down the rivers. We also stop at a party near our home. So much fun! So much food!^^ I now officially love Loi Kratong!

Now, I’m back in school as the month long school break has ended and still having fun. Not learning much math and science, at all, but having fun! My language skills still aren’t the best but they are definitely improving. Now if the internet could just giddy up I think everything would be perfect! Till next time, สวัสดีค่ะ!

January 19 Journal

This journal marks the beginning of my favorite season, winter, here in Thailand! Although considerably warmer than your average snowy Santa scene, the weather here is akin to that of Florida’s, save the fact that it is a bit shorter in length and sporadic in the frequency of temperature drops. Nevertheless, it is a major improvement from the average day of inevitable heatstroke.

The month of November began with the infamous Thai holiday Loi Kratong. In the Thai language, “loi” translates as “to float” while a kratong is a circular object usually created with banana leafs and decorated with candles and flowers in various designs. During this festival, people place these usually handmade kratongs in the numerous klongs, or rivers, that flow throughout this country in order to appease what they believe to be the goddess of the seas that both created and maintain this wonderful nation. Accompanying this ceremony are usually festivities such as dancing, singing, rides, and the most frequent actions of the Thai people, eating! These all take place in the night close to midnight. I luckily was able to witness all of these events (and more) riding on the wings of the river goddess or, in simplified terms, my uncle’s boat. We, meaning my host father, mother, uncle, and two aunts, traveled the length of the major artery of our small town, stopping at the gala held in the marketplace every year. After stuffing ourselves with grilled skewered pork and vanilla ice cream and watching the featured beauty contest (which my friend won!), we continued on our heavenly passage, passing through the darkness and trials of life, catching glimpses of a pure existence illuminated by candle light, before returning to our starting point in the sinful yet awe-inspiring world of humanity. We then sent our own slivers of appreciation to the deity of the river before concluding our night.

The following week, I had the experience of a lifetime. I was able to speak with a head monk of Buddhism. His very manner, although expected, was still amazing to witness in practice. The calm that overwhelmed his being and reason for existence and knowledge on the broad subjects of humanity and religious matters was apparent from first glance. And when he spoke, all stopped to listen in hopes of catching a glimpse into the world of wisdom. It was an unforgettable event.

On the 29th of November I changed households, moving to a family with four immediate members and one extended member living in the house. I had one younger sister, aged 15 years, and one younger brother, aged 11 years, along with a mother and father. Unfortunately, I was unable to continue my intended three month length of stay for various reasons and have since moved on to my third host family, whom I absolutely adore! I have two older siblings, one of both genders both aged nineteen years, and three younger siblings, two boys aged twelve and ten years and one girl aged fifteen years. The general attitude of this large family is one of high spirits and vivacious energy.

Thus after traveling to Chiangmai once more, Bangkok multiple times, and parties dozens of times, one of which allowed me to wear a beautiful gold and crème traditional Thai dress, the year of 2009 has left me without an ounce of energy. So I bid farewell to that year filled with mystery and curiosity, amazement and wonder, love and satisfaction, and I welcome the New Year with open arms, ready and waiting.

Hollie’s Bio

“The first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: Decide what you want.” Ben Stein

And I want this. I want to be an exchange student more than anything I’ve ever wanted, and luckily, I am graced with the chance to study abroad in beautiful Brazil!

Ola! I am Hollie Harrison. I am a senior at Buchholz High and have been in their Academy of Entrepreneurship throughout high school.

I live with my parents and am the youngest of three. My two siblings have moved out, gone to college and now have jobs. My dad and I are very much alike in that we are both stubborn yet very hard working. I am often called “Little David” because of our similarities. I have a dog and a kitten, both of which I love very much.

I have been in constant motion ever since I was little. From 5 to 10 years, I took many different dance classes and even tried out gymnastics and soccer for a year. At 10 years old, I realized my passion for swimming through swim lessons and have been a competitive swimmer ever since. We have 8 practices a week with a total of 20 hours or more.

I also compete in tennis and act in drama. For three years, I have been on the Buchholz tennis team. Also, I have taken theatre classes and acted in school plays, such as “Taming of the Shrew”, for my last two years.

Besides being a busy body, I love hanging out with my friends. We always manage to find creative ways to be together and enjoy ourselves. I love to be happy- so you’ll often find me laughing or smiling. I also enjoy writing little songs and/or poems, singing, playing with my pets, sports, etc.

“Life is a foreign language; all men mispronounce it.” Christopher Morley

And I’m excited to see how aspects of life are different in Brazil!

Hollie’s Journals

November 4 Journal

There’s always gonna be another mountain

I’m always gonna wanna make it move

Always gonna be a uphill battle

Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose

Ain’t about how fast I get there

Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side

It’s the climb

The struggles I’m facing

The chances I’m taking

Sometimes might knock me down

But no, I’m not breaking

I may not know it

But these are the moments that I’m gonna remember most, yeah

Just gotta keep going

As lame as it sounds, Miley Cyrus has it all right in her song “The Climb”. I have had a rough start here, but from what I hear from Rotarians here, “The rougher, the better it is for me because the more I will grow”. I have to agree. Future exchangers, be ready for some of the hardest times of your life, but also some of the most fun and memorable moments of your life. In the beginning, there may be more downs than ups. But it will all work out in the end as long as you give it your all. This I promise you.

But wow!!! Three months in already….

The first day I arrived, I was in complete shock. We got off the plane and went through Brazilian customs, which was a breeze besides filling out paperwork in Portuguese. I was picked up and driven home. This is when I realized: “Hollie, you aren’t in the United States anymore.” The drivers here are like madmen! If only someone could have taken a photo of my horrified face and me grasping the car for my life as we drove past cars almost hitting them. The lanes here are so tiny. The cars here are tiny too, but sometimes, the lanes are too small for the cars! Most of the time, there is a motorcyclist driving between two cars! During all of this, all I saw were small houses with gates around them. This isn’t what I had imagined Brazil to be.

My second week here I went to Rio de Janeiro. It was a lot of fun and I got to experience all of the usual tourist things! I went to Corcovado and all of the beaches. It was so beautiful, and I had so much fun with my family.

I am happy to say that I have made some of the best friends that I could possibly make. God was definitely watching over me when he showed me to these people. They have been so nice to me and have helped me with their language and have taken me out as often as they can to show me their culture! One of my best friends here is Sarah. Her grandpa started Betim Rotary, the Rotary in my city. But this Rotary doesn’t sponsor me. I am sponsored by the Rotary of Belo Horizonte, and since they are far away, Betim Rotary has been so helpful and welcoming to me. Sarah invited me to her Sweet 15, which was amazing. She held her party in a rented place called “Versailles” and it was decorated with special lights, flowers and modeling pictures that she did specifically for the party. To get into her party, you had to have this mini invitation and then next to the door were people taking gifts. There was a candy bar! I had too much fun there! I will probably return to the United States fat! There were tables with food and more candies! She had hired a personal photographer and videographer for the party. Each person at the party had to leave Sarah a “memoir” on film. I learned that it is customary for the birthday girl to give out havaianas (sandals) to each of her girl guests. I got my havaianas which are of a special design created by Sarah. Sarah did the valsa with 15 boys, which is very common at sweet 15’s. Sarah also took me and another exchange student (Logan from Belgium) the other day to her Grandpa’s farm (the one who started Betim Rotary). We rode horses, swam and had a churrasco. It was so much fun and I learned that many people here in Brazil have relatives that have farms and do what we did often.

I didn’t like my school, Colegio Tiradentes, so Rotary moved me to a new school, PUC (a university here). I am studying “direito” (law). I have learned that college here is very different from back home. Students only take courses directly related to their major. That is all that is required of them. Also, people here aren’t nearly as serious about school as we are back home. Students get up and leave the classroom all the time and teachers don’t do anything! A majority of students cheat on the tests and make it obvious, and normally the teacher doesn’t do anything about it. Despite this, I love my school. The people in it are so nice and helpful, and the teachers are hilarious.

I wish all of you future exchangers the best of luck in interviews. Those of you that get accepted, know that you are blessed. This is truly one of the best experiences anyone can ever have. It really is life changing. I hope it rocks your world like it has mine. I hope you have many struggles so you can grow and learn like I have. Good luck and love from Brazil!

Beijos e abracos,

Hollie G. Harrison

January 10 Journal

It is Christmas Eve in Frutal, Minas Gerais, and it is as hot and humid as Florida’s summer. There is no Christmas music or decorations whatsoever- meaning yes, there really is NO Christmas tree. And the thought that keeps crawling through my mind: “Is Christmas really tomorrow?”

But yes, it is. Brasil may not have the Christmas decorations or music, but Christmas spirit still is here. People who don’t know each other scream “Feliz Natal!”. The homeless roam the streets begging for money, and they receive in the giving, Christmas spirit. Families are gathering, and churches are ready with a Christmas sermon. It may appear differently, but it still is Christmas. And the people here do this every year! Every year it is this hot for Christmas! This truly is a Brasilian Christmas, or at least, Frutal Christmas. I do not live in Frutal. I live in Betim, but my family and I travelled here to see my grandma and the rest of our family- something that hasn’t change for me, travelling to see family for the holidays.

For New Years, I experienced even more new traditions. For New Year’s here, people wear the color with the symbolism that they want to happen next year. Most wear white for peace, but because of the economic difficulties back home that is hurting my family incredibly, I wore both white (for peace) and green (for money).

As Rotary will tell you, homesickness DOES kick in around this time. You will want to be home with your family decorating your tree and doing your usual traditions. But, you have to keep in mind, that you do that EVERY year! You have done these traditions every year and will continue to do them when you get home. You have to think like this or your homesickness will really get to you. Not to mention, you will be here! Learning and creating new traditions! You can bring some of these traditions to your family in the USA when you return! How cool will that be!?

When I last wrote, I was in the middle of changing host families. My second host family is incredible! I adore them! We are a family of only girls because my mom and dad divorced. They talk nonstop, which has made my Portuguese DRASTICALLY improve. I have only been with them for a month and half, and many people have seen a strong improvement in my Portuguese. I understand almost everything now, and if I don’t understand, I am always able to understand when they explain it in Portuguese. I still have trouble communicating back because of trouble with verbs, but my family is patiently helping me with that.

Now, I am about to leave for 25 days to Nordeste (the Northeast of Brazil). I will travel all of their amazing beaches, many state’s capitals and their national capital- Brasilia. I am very anxious for this trip, especially since I will be turning 19 during this trip. At first, I was sad to be spending my birthday on a bus full of exchangers instead of my family here in Brazil and my friends here. But then I remembered how hard Christmas and New Year’s was for me without my family and friends back home in the US and I realized that the best people to see on my birthday were my exchange friends. Because they can help me the most on this day with homesickness. Plus, my family is throwing me a party the day after I arrive home from Nordeste. Never forget your youth exchange friends. They understand you the most, with everything. Though, do not cling to them. Be very weary of this. Many of the exchangers in my state cling to each other instead of making Brazilian friends. DO NOT BE ONE OF THEM. You came here to experience the culture, and the best way to do that is to be with the people from that culture! Not to mention, learning the language too! Because the other exchange students tend to grasp on to English for life…..

I know that the new exchange students have been chosen, know their countries and have their first orientation very soon! I want to say to you all: *do not let time pass you by*. Take advantage of every opportunity! Study as hard as possible! Because the less you know, the more jokes and other things you miss out on! You want to be able to live life as normally here as soon as possible! And you certainly don’t want to look back and say, “Man, I can’t believe I spent that time goofing off when I could have been doing something meaningful.”

Also, I read Grant Simon’s journal, and as humorous as it was, take heed in everything he said. It is all TRUE.

Especially listen to not being alone. Many exchange students have done that here and it has not had good results.

I wish you all the best of luck!!!

With love from Brazil,

Hollie G

July 12 Journal

My last few months in Brazil were still full of much adventure and curiosity. I travelled on the Nordeste trip, which took me all around the North-East of Brazil. I went to Tiradentes, a historical city not just for my state but also for my country. Tiradentes was named after a Brazilian military leader in the “Inconfidência Mineira” revolution. They wanted full independence from Portugal and to create a Brazilian Republic. However, when the plan was discovered, he was arrested, tried, and hanged. He has been considered a national hero of Brazil and patron of the Military Police in the state of Minas Gerais (my state). The city I visited was named in his honor.

I sadly had to leave Brazil a month early for college and family matters. Leaving all the relationships that I had built there was incredibly hard, but I know that I will see them again someday. Coming home, I was filled with many of the same emotions I felt upon leaving for Brazil: sadness of leaving loved ones, excitement to see my family and friends in the USA again and to have American food, and confusion and disbelief that I was leaving.

Upon my arrival home, all family and friends were shocked about how much I have changed. Even my appearance was changed. Although they were shocked, they have loved the changes.

I too have loved the changes. I feel more independent and more aware of my surroundings and others. I like being able to relate the USA and Brazil. It has certainly given me more perspective on matters.

I still can’t believe my exchange is over. However, the cycle continues for the new outbounds to go and experience as much as they can and grow like I did. I wish you all courage. Make sure to listen more than you speak. That will make you understand, learn, and grow even more. Most of us are used to interrupting and talking whenever we please. You must remember NOT to interrupt and to listen more than you speak. Calculate your responses wisely. You will be judged on every encounter and NEVER forget that Rotary smile!

Good luck and enjoy!

Rotary, thank you again for giving me this opportunity. It has been and meant the world to me! I cannot describe how thankful I am. I hope to one day repay you for your generosity. Until then, I’ll be spreading that Rotary smile and telling anyone who listens about you.

Beijos e abracos! (xo)

Hollie

Jay’s Bio

Hello everyone, my name is Jay McWilliams, and I attend St. Augustine High School, and I will be crossing the ocean to the opposite side of the world: Thailand. I’ve lived in St. Augustine for the 15 years of my life, and having never left the US, I welcome this opportunity with ecstasy and anticipation. I live with my parents, and I have one older brother who attends the University of Pennsylvania.

Throughout my life, things have always come in two categories: The tangible and the seemingly intangible. This opportunity being the latter for 14 years of my life, I still find it difficult to comprehend the vast chance which has presented itself. During my year abroad, I will do my best to not feel completely comfortable, as if at home. Following this principle would, I believe, help me to see how different this new world is, instead of searching for all that is similar.

Again, I would like to thank Rotary for all their support, and for giving me the opportunity to see beyond the horizon. This will, without doubt, be a pivotal year in my life, and I anticipate every moment of it.

Jay’s Journals

September 13 Journal

Sawatdee krap! I arrived in Lopburi, Thailand on August 1st. The day before had been a very long one, spent mostly a few miles in the air; thankfully, everything on the flight went smoothly. The jetlag that I experienced wasn’t too severe; the only real symptom I had of it was not being hungry. I hardly ate anything for two days after I got here, and I feel that concerned my host family a bit. But after the third day, I was recovered, and my appetite restored.

My family is one of the wealthier families in Lopburi. They own, and live on, a working saw mill. There are workers that come and go every day, and the front of the house is a store front. There is a guarded gate to enter the house, and guard dogs that they let out every night. There are multiple buildings on the property for the workers to live in, as well as a building that the family’s maid does laundry in. There’s a garden in the back which houses the dogs, as well as the biggest cat fish I have ever seen. I have two sisters who go to college in Bangkok, and one host brother that left two weeks after I got here to go to the U.S. as a RYE student. I was given a Thai name when I got here; it is Jindtanakan, which means Imagine. Most of my friends at school call me Jay, but some call my Lang (short for Falang, which means foreigner), while others call me Yong, which means curly.

Lopburi is one of the oldest cities in Thailand. In the downtown area, you’ll find ruins of temples, and palaces on almost every street corner. There is also a very high monkey population in Lopburi. Wherever you turn, there’s a monkey sitting on the side on the sidewalk, or trying to take whatever things you’re carrying. Elephants are also not a strange sight around town. Sometimes, you’ll see one playing the harmonica for money, while other times, it will just be walking along the road.

Transportation is Lopburi is easy as well. There are things called Sorng Taew, which literally means: two rows. They are pickup trucks with two rows of seats under a roof in the bed. Each one has a different color that goes on a different route, and you pay ฿8 (8 baht), or about 25 cents, to go wherever you need to go.

I started school a week after I got here. My school is massive, and has about 3,600 students. The only real similarity between Thai high school and American high school is that they have classes, and they learn things. My first day of school, I was told to introduce myself in front of everyone. I did it in both English and Thai, and they went crazy when I was finished. Every day at school, everywhere I go, I hear someone calling my name and waving, or someone wants me to kick their soccer ball, or to come sit with them and their friends. One of the stranger things I’ve seen at school was when I was sitting at a table outside talking with my Thai friends. A man who apparently worked at the school came over to a group of boys playing soccer with a stick, made them line up, and began hitting all of them with the stick.

I’ve seen some beautiful places, and temples. The town that I live in used to be the capital of Thailand, and there are a few giant sets of ruins scattered around the town, as well as tiny foundations, and old temples to be found nestled among the buildings in the street. One of the ruins is King Narai’s palace, a past king of Thailand. The ruins are sprawling and vast as they are beautiful. One weekend, I went to Ayuthaya, which is an ancient Thai city with some very unique things, such as the only smiling Buddha, as well as one the biggest Buddhas I have ever seen. It was about three stories tall, golden, and surrounding by thousands of tiny Buddhas on the walls. It was possibly one of the most interesting things I’ve ever seen.

My Thai knowledge and speaking skills are still very basic, but I have already learned a lot. I am capable of having very basic conversations, and I know the entire Thai alphabet, and can read almost anything…it just takes me a little while. The way I learn Thai at school is very laid back. Whenever I don’t have a class, I just go to the teacher’s lounge in the language department, and whichever teacher isn’t doing anything at the time, teaches me Thai.

Everything is ridiculously cheap here. I can buy a shirt that would cost 40 dollars in the U.S. for 4 dollars. One night, I was out with my friends, and we went to a night time noodle stand. Between the three of us, the bill was ฿50, which is a little more than $1. It’s almost shocking how cheap everything is.

All is well, and I look forward with incredible excitement to the months before me. Thailand has exceeded my expectations 100%. I have a great group of friends, a friendly, loving and understanding family, and an open door to the world. I don’t think I could ask for more. Until next time…

-Jindtanakan

จินตนาการ

December 2 Journal

สวัสดี America! I know that it’s been a while since my last journal was written, and I’ve been fervently reminded of this. There’s a lot to recount, so I best start around where I left off.

My last journal was in September, not long before my 16th birthday. On my birthday, my host family took me, one of my best YE friends, and other extended family of my family to a restaurant to eat dinner. When we arrived, the restaurant was covered in police, and Thai army personnel. Our initial thought was that something had occurred which would not allow us to eat there. But upon further investigation, we discovered that the princess was coming to eat at the same restaurant! This was very exciting, and every once in a while we were able to sight her just walking to and from the car.

At the end of September, the school semester ended. It would start at the beginning of November again, but this left us exchange students with little to do. Most of my Thai friends went to Bangkok to study for the university, so I couldn’t go places with them. Many days over that break were spent at home, reading books or studying Thai. One day, my host mom took me and one of the other inbounds in Lopburi (Leo, from Brazil) to go to one of the many army bases in Lopburi. My host mother was part of a juvenile justice committee, and they were sponsoring some sort of corrections program for kids at the base. That day, friends and members of the committee were given the chance to zipline on their training equipment. When my turn came around, I ended up doing it wrong and just bouncing up and down in the middle of the line. This was a great source of amusement to a large crowd of spectators and Thai juvenile delinquents, but it was a good time.

Two weeks after that, all the exchange students had an event in Angthong province. It was more or less a handicraft camp for us at one of the local arts schools in Angthong, but proved to be one of my most legitimate Thai experiences thus far. What made it this way was the family that I stayed with. All of the exchange students stayed with different families (I’m still not sure where they found the families, or how they’re connected to Rotary), and every day from Monday to Thursday, our families would take us the school so we could spend the day making crafts, and enjoying the company of the other exchange students. We arrived on a Sunday, and were given our families.

Now, my family in Lopburi is fairly wealthy, and lives in an established, well known part of town, and has a fairly new and very nice house. Relative to my idea of a nice house at the time, the house that I was staying in was the opposite. It was a very, very old, traditional Thai house that stood on stilts. The upstairs was one giant room (save the bathroom) with a TV, two beds and a couple of mats on the floor. The floor was ancient, creaking wood with inch wide gaps between each board. The roof was made of tin, and there was about 6 inches of space between the roof and the wall, so there was no shortage of mosquitoes. Luckily, everyone had mosquito nets, so nobody suffered too much. The downstairs area was the “kitchen” so to speak. It had a large table that the family sat on to eat, a refrigerator, a couple fans to ward away mosquitoes and a TV. Noted, all of these things were outside, the house acting as more of a pavilion with a roof, but no walls.

There were two older women who very much enjoyed feeding me, as well as asking about America. The house was situated in small village that was situated among seemingly endless rice fields. The family consisted of two parents, the two women who enjoyed feeding me (their significance to the family, I may never know), and four girls who I’m not sure how they were related to the family either. Every day, when I would get home from the school activities, they would take me on bike rides to look at temples, or they would go help the host mom work in the market. When the host father found out that I was interested in Buddhism (apparent by the Buddha hanging around my neck), he enjoyed telling me about it, showing me his large collection of Buddhas, and giving me more Buddha necklaces. “To protect from ghosts” they would say. As I got to know this family better, I began to realize that they don’t live in poor conditions, and that all of this is normal life for them. And it became normal life for me, and within two days, it was like I’d been there forever. It’s amazing how these things that would have seemed to disgusting and incredibly foreign to me are now so normal.

At the end of October, we had the Loy Kratong festival, which is a Buddhist celebration of starting new, and bringing good luck. Loy, in Thai means to float, and a kratong is a small vessel made of banana leaves and flowers that are floated down the rivers. This is to symbolize starting new, and getting rid of old grudges and such, as well as bringing good luck. All of the exchange students went to a place called Supanburi for Loy Kratong, and Rotary threw a big party for everyone. We were given kratongs, and floated them all down the river. When everyone let their kratong go, we shot off fireworks, and enjoyed the band and food that Rotary provided for us.

Loy Kratong in Lopburi was luckily two days long, so we could enjoy it in two different provinces. The city closed down the round-a-bout in the middle of town, and provided many shows, and markets for everyone to enjoy. My favorite was the Muay Thai fights, which was some of the best live fighting I’d ever seen. Unfortunately, it is proving incredibly difficult to find a Muay Thai place to practice in Lopburi.

The day after Loy Kratong, school started back up again. The month of November was very uneventful, with school, and pretty much nothing else. But, my Thai has started to improve again (my lack of interacting with my Thai friends in October slowed down its progress slightly). In a conversation with my friend, I described my Thai as “advanced basic”. My ability to read Thai has improved dramatically, and so has my vocabulary. Most of the time, I know the context of the conversation, but half of the time, I’m unable to come up with a response, despite the fact that I understand what is being asked. I still find it incredibly hard to understand students when they talk to each other, because of the speed, and amount of slang they use. TV is also very difficult to understand, but I can participate in a dinner time conversation with my family. I’ve already had a dream and a half in Thai, and sometimes, for no apparent reason, my thoughts will switch over to Thai. Besides that, I’m still learning more and more each day, and it could all only get better.

I’ve already switched to my second family, and I like them very much. They own a Michelin tire store right in the middle of town, so it’s very easy for me to get around. They enjoy traveling, also, so I’ll be able to see lots of Thailand with them.

Until next time….

– จินตนาการ

February 10 Journal

The month of December was relatively mild. I’d switched families, and there was a festival at my school for about two weeks, so there wasn’t very much school either. I went to Bangkok to stay with a boy from Mexico so we could go see concerts, and hang out with Bangkok. Life in Bangkok is much different from small town Thailand life, and I prefer the smaller, quiet atmosphere. And for some reason, I find it very difficult to speak Thai in Bangkok, because most people speak English, and when I attempt to speak Thai with them they give me a “What is wrong with you?” look, and continue to speak in English. Though Bangkok is vast, I am very happy that I don’t live there, because of these reasons, and because it’s incredibly expensive to do anything there.

Christmas and Christmas eve were a lonely couple of days. I had nothing to do, and I wanted to do something to commemorate, so I went to church with my Catholic first host family on Christmas eve, who is also hosting my best friend here, Leo from Brazil. Though I don’t usually go to church, it was something on Christmas (despite the fact that it was boring). The next day, I went to a party with my family that was unfortunately a karaoke party (the worst, and most incredibly boring sort, I have decided). Then, I went home and skyped with my family in America for the first time, which was a nice Christmas present. That weekend, I went to Bangkok for four days to see a concert with my friend, and go to a theme park with a couple other YEs. Then, two Mexican boys came to my city, and stayed here for a few days. All of these events were enjoyable, and I was happy to have so much company when school was not in session, and I missed home.

On December 31st, I left with my family for Chiang Rai in the North of Thailand to celebrate New Years. It was a long ten hour drive up, but it was full of scenery, and I was fortunate enough to have the backseat of the rented van to myself. We didn’t arrive until late afternoon, but the first place we went was the very famous White Temple. It is a very prime example of Buddhist contemporary art, with depictions of hell, large guardian spirits, and a few other morbid images on the outside of temple that houses the main Buddha image. On the inside, there were classical depictions of Buddhist culture, as well as more modern (and at time random) images, including a picture of Spiderman painted on the inside of the temple wall. It turns out that the artist of this place is a very eccentric man who is a pioneer of Buddhist contemporary art. This temple has been over 30 years in the making, and is still far from finished. It is quite a sight, and the amount of time put into it is very apparent.

That night, we just went back to the hotel, and everybody went to sleep. There was no festivities, or real celebration among my family for the New Year. This greatly saddened me, and I yearned to speak to someone at home. So, after the year turned, I stepped outside into the very cold, very clear night to make a call. The stars were very bright, and the sky was also dotted with Chinese lanterns, set off by people for good luck, or something of the sort. I called one of my best friends in Florida (who was also still in 2009), and I got my friendship fix. I fled the cold mountain air and crawled into bed for the first time in 2010.

On the first day of 2010, it was very cold in the mountains of Thailand. For the first time in a very long time, I had to wear more than one layer of clothing to stay warm. I was informed that the first stop on today’s journey would be the golden triangle, which is the river that divides Burma, Thailand and Laos. I fell asleep in the van on the way, but when I woke up, I was greeted by a magnificent sight. From Thailand’s last shore, there was a giant golden Buddha sitting on a Chinese style boat. Beside the Buddha, there was a dockyard, and a little market where foreign visitors could come and buy little souvenirs. On Laos’s not-so-distant shore, there was a huge red building with a golden dome. I was later informed that this building is the Laotian immigration building. On Burma’s shore, there was a huge casino (I found this to be a humorous contrast between countries).

And so, my family and I boarded a little boat which would take us to Laos. We got off the boat onto a very old wooden dock, and made our way up to the mainland via an ancient bamboo bridge that seemed to be unfit for so many people coming to and fro upon it all day. But, we reached Laos without incident, and now there I was, in Laos. The market was more like a collection of little huts in this small area with its wares on old wooden tables. The ground was red dirt (Northern Thailand and the surrounding area reminded me of Georgia in some respects), and there were chickens and dogs roaming about the stalls and trees. There wasn’t a whole lot of things here, mainly cheap knock-off clothes, and strange old Laotian traditional items, like knives, and oddly shaped pipes for smoking. Also, snakes in bottles that you could buy “to eat” as my host brother informed me.

From where I stood on the bank of the river, I could see four different countries. With Laos behind me, China to the North, and Thailand and Burma to my right, I realized how much there can be in such a little area to see, and maybe just how big the world is.

We left Laos the same way we arrived, across the rickety bamboo bridge, and down the Mekong river. When we arrived back in Thailand, we spent a couple of hours eating ice cream, and sitting in the area of the large Buddha. At last, it was time to go, so we made our journey through the mountains with Laos and China at our backs, we were now heading to Burma. We drove right up to the border and got out of our van. Thai people only need a “temporary border pass”, but I had to get my visa changed so that I could get into Burma. We walked trough the border station, and beneath a sign saying “The Union of Myanmar” in English, and in Burmese. All the people entering were being funneled into another small gate area, the Thai people entering the through the middle, and foreigners entering through a small a smaller passage separated by a small fence. My host sister came with me though, to ensure all went well.

As we walked towards the exit to this entry area, we came across a Burmese soldier. Without saying anything to me, or my host sister, he grabbed my arm a pushed me through a door way into a small room with four other Burmese soldiers stood carrying automatic rifles. They weren’t saying anything, just looking at me as if they expected me to do something. All I could muster up was a tentative, and stammered “Yes?”. One man sitting at a desk started speaking Burmese, this only increased my confusion. I could hear my host sister speaking in English to the guard outside, and then he opened the door, and handed me 500 baht. Apparently, that’s what these people wanted, because when I gave it to the man at the desk, they opened the door and told me to leave.

After this, we entered Burma with no further problems. All the merchants could speak Thai, so there was no communication problem. My family informed me that the gate was to close at around 5:30, so I had to meet them at the gate at 5:00, but now, I was free to wander the streets of Burma as I wished. I walked around, and bought a few movies, but I wasn’t very fascinated by this market. Everyone spoke Thai, and most signs were in Thai, so it really was no different from Thailand. I had the urge to see Burma, not Thailand within Burma. So, as I was looking for a way to see other parts of the town that weren’t within the market, I saw one of the exchange students in my district (Julia, from Germany) with her family in the market. I found this to be an interesting coincidence, so we hung out in Burma together. Unfortunately, she didn’t share my same urge to explore the real Burma, so what I saw of this town was limited, but what I did see was all very different from Thailand. The biggest appeal to coming to this market was how cheap movies are. I bought four, brand new DVDs for 100 baht (about $3). But I think I annoyed the sellers when I only bought 4 DVDs, because all the other Thai people in the store were buying about 30 DVDs at a time (most likely to resell in Thailand).

Finally, it was time to leave Burma and head back to Thailand. Naturally, it was much easier to get out than it was to get in. When we crossed the border again, my family stopped in the large square and decided to do a little bit more shopping. So they told me I could look around for about an hour. At this, I began to find my way through one of the markets. Everything in this one alley I found myself in was so Asian, I felt like I was in a movie. I walked through the alley, and to the foot of a mountain with a large stone staircase going up to the top, with two dragons on either side of the stairs, their open mouths gaping towards the market alley. So, I began up the mountain. The stairs were wide, sometimes requiring two steps just to get over one of the steps. When I arrived at the top, I found a temple, and a few other structures. I took a quick look at the buildings, then found my way to the side of the mountain.

All there was to see from here was Burma, and the town that we had just left. It was a cloudy day, and the sun was just starting to go down over the mountains. The clouds that hugged the mountains cast bright colors over the two countries, and they provided me with quite a sight. I looked down at the country, seeing many small houses built into the side of the mountain, as well as a Spirit Village made up of small white houses and shrines said to harbor the resident spirits. Behind me on the mountain was a giant statue of a scorpion facing Burma, the significance of which I am not sure, but it added to the mystery of the atmosphere. Burma was a mystery to me, and Thailand is as well, and all I wanted to do now was to know the two places like I know myself. I knew then that I was happy, and where I will be happy, with unknown things on either side of me.

The next day, we headed home to Lopburi. I rested for a day, then returned to school. The weekend after, we were informed that we had a Rotary conference in Bangkok, and that we would be required to give a speech in Thai. This greatly stressed out many of the other exchange students, because it was rumored that those who did poorly would be sent home. I knew that this was untrue, but it motivated many to write a very lengthy speech into Thai. When we had the competition, there were a few who had quite obviously put a lot of effort into the speech, and a few who at a glance, hadn’t. I didn’t prepare a speech, but instead I went to the podium and briefly told of a few of my experiences in Thai, all of which was pulled from the top of my head. There were ten winners, all of which won a Rotary 3350 backpack, and three grand prize winners. I find myself in the backpack winners, but I was not a grand prize winner. This did not bother me so much, because the two winners had not written the speech themselves, but instead used their teachers, and online translators to write their speech, but these two things were not exempt from the conditions of delivery. But, I was untroubled, in fact I was very content with what I had achieved with very little preparation, as well as a few other YE students.

One day, my friend from school took me to a mountain, and told me that there was a temple at the top. I couldn’t see it, so I decided to take his word for it. At the foot of the mountain was a very large temple, and he said that there were stairs that would take us to the top. There were stairs indeed, stairs up a very steep slope. It took us about two hours to get to the top, and at times we were climbing the stairs vertically. But when we got to the top, the view was awesome. But the best part was yet to come. On the stairs, there was a handrail going all the way to the top. On the way up, we had bought two plastic sacks that once contained rice or something like that. From the top, we slide on the bags all the way down the mountain. At times it was impossible to slide down (namely, the vertical times), but it was still a very good time.

Over the next couple months, we’re going to go on the trips, and I will get to see a lot more of Thailand. School is out now until May, so things will begin to slow down and become more relaxed. I’m the happiest I could be here, and all is going very well.

Until next time

สวัสดีครับ

-จินตนาการ

June 14 Journal

สวัสดี Florida!

The months following my last journal have been eventful for me, as well as the country that I’m in. As you’re bound to have heard something about, last month, Thailand experienced some of the worst civil violence in the country’s recent history. It had been on and off for a few years, but this year was intended to be one of great importance. While all of this was going on, I received a large amount of concerned messages from concerned people back home who wanted to make sure that I was okay, and far from the violence. I was, at the time, relatively close to it, but never experienced any of it. The closest I ever got to it was driving through Bangkok with my friend’s host family on one of the most eventful days, and seeing the plumes of smoke from the bombs and burning buildings that had been set off. Other than this, any violence was very far removed.

The two parties are known as the Red Shirts, and Yellow Shirts. The Red shirts are the poor and uneducated “peasants” of Thailand that make up the working class, and most of them hail from the North-East Isaan area of Thailand (most Thais in my area speak the Isaan language, but are ashamed of it because speaking it puts them in the same rung as the Isaan people). What the Red Shirts want is to be given equal voting rights, and equal class under a more democratic system. The Yellow Shirts, however, disagree. Yellow shirts are the upper class, rich, educated, metropolitan Thais. Most of them actually come from Chinese heritage, and employ the Red Shirts. The Yellow Shirts believe that the Red Shirts should not be given these liberties because they are less educated, therefore, unable to make the proper decision. A large part of the debate is also the two leaders of the parties, Thaksin for the Red Shirts and Abhisit for the Yellow Shirts, but I chose to leave that out of this explanation, because some people try to make the argument all about the two men, when I believe that the real issue is what I just shed light upon.

It is truly a tragic situation which is tearing the country apart, forcing the Thai soldiers (many of the same rung as the Red Shirts) to kill their own people in a confusing and complicated issue. For the first, and most violent parts of the struggle, all of it was centered in Bangkok. As the conflict drug on, small Red Shirt parties started to pop up in the surrounding provinces of Bangkok. In Lopburi, they would begin to gather at around 9 PM every night in one of the central junctions in town. They would sit there all night, drinking whiskey and watching orators on a projector screen. One night, another exchange student and I walked down to their camp with the intention of trying to buy one of their flags as a souvenir. When I asked a man if I could buy it, he told us that we could have them, and handed us two bamboo sticks with flags waving on them. As we made our way back, a man on a motorcycle followed us, and made us return to the junction. The man who gave them to us had forgotten to warn us about Yellow Shirts (I didn’t know that there were any around), so he had us take down the flags and told us to stuff them in our pants. This was my only real face to face interaction with any Red Shirts, and they were all very kind. Mostly all of the host families here (Rotary, in general really) are Yellow Shirts, and it’s interesting to get their point of view of the conflict.

Besides the Red Shirt crisis, the months follow my last journal have been rather quiet. The two Rotary Trips took place in March and April, and I switched families in between. My family now is very relaxed, and are very good to me. The Rotary trips were good also. They took place in the North and South of Thailand. The South trip was filled with tropical beaches, snorkeling and boat rides, while the North trip’s biggest highlight was Songkran. Songkran is the celebration of the Thai New Year, and is basically a massive water fight. I, and all of the other exchange students woke up early, strapped on our water guns, and took to the Chiang Mai streets. We were splashed, squirted and doused by people riding in truck beds, kids with small buckets and crazy tourist guys. This went on just about all day until we finally were exhausted and collapsed back at the hotel. The rest of the trip consisted of looking at temples, riding elephants, and learning about Northern Thailand’s culture, and in the evening we were given the freedom to roam around the area of the hotel as we pleased.

One of my main goals this year was to learn to read and speak Thai. Now, I can proudly say that I am one of the most proficient Thai speakers/readers in my district. Many people refuse to believe that I am not half Thai, and that I spoke very little Thai before coming, and I am frequently complemented on my accent (or lack thereof), and have a Thai phone conversation is incredibly easy, as I do it daily with my friends. This being said, I know that there is still very much to learn. Thai is a vast language, with multiple forms of speaking, and a ridiculous amount of synonyms (the hardest part of the Thai language, I have decided). In my years at home I intend to keep studying Thai, even just a little bit, to learn more and keep up what I already know, so when I return, it will be even better.

Now, 11 months after leaving the US for the first time, I can say that I am a changed person. I’m bilingual, and more confident. I feel I’ve become more relaxed with things that don’t matter as much, and become more serious about things that do. One of the main reasons I think that our parents send us on exchange, as well as one of the main goals of Rotary besides the learning of cultures and having a more worldly understanding, is to learn to be responsible, and perhaps more grown up in a sense. We learn this to use it now, in our adolescence, as well as transferring easier into adult-hood.

But what I’ve observed is that as I, and the other exchange students that have learned this lesson well also learned another thing: what it means to be young, and how fleeting youth is. Through experiencing what it’s like to be an adult and make your own decisions, I feel we learned even more valuable lessons about how young we are, and how to rejoice in the fact that we are still young, with long futures ahead of us. Long futures that will soon become the present, but this is not near as intimidating because we have known what youth is, and that we’ll do our best not to waste it on ourselves. This comes hand in hand with the ever present looming mountain of adult-hood that we have also learned a tremendous amount about. And though, now knowing youth, it will be more dearly missed, the realization of how great a thing you have is also realizing that it will one day be gone, and therefore, adult-hood isn’t as much as an end, but just another beginning, as is life. Of all the conclusions that one could come to in a year far, far away from home, I believe this is the most important that I have stumbled upon, and it will forever be with me.

Now, as my final weeks in Thailand close in upon me, I can say with no doubt in my mind that I have fallen in love with this country, and its people. And, like so many other exchange students have pledged to do, I will do everything thing in my power to make it back here as soon as I can. Because Thailand is my home now, and I will miss it will all of my heart.

โชคดีนะ

-เจ