Everything is going wonderfully, apart from IT'S GOING TO FAST!
I am really enjoying myself here! I'm loving it! My host family are great, I couldn't have landed with a better family! I've met lots of awesome people at school too. Waverley is a very very tiny town. but it's only 10-20 minutes drive to anywhere, and very close to Halifax (city). My school is only 10 minutes away driving which is great! I don't know if I've picked up any funny Canadian habits yet ... I am saying "eh" a little bit though!! it's just catching on haha :-). I’m just living...
It has been a great experience. The first two weeks were a bit difficult but I've found a good family and also good mates at school. After the first month I settled very well in the family, in the town and in the school. Without a doubt this has been one of the best experiences in my life.
We have had quite a lot of snow, which is very exciting and I got to make my first snowman on Sunday. I absolutely love the snow! It's so pretty, especially when it has just fallen and everything shimmers.
It’s freezing here, but I have mastered the art of layering. So outside I wear everything, at school two jumpers and at home only one.
My exchange is going well I am really enjoying school although home life is ok. My host sister is nice, she has been helping me with my Italian and she has been showing me around Milan. I am really struggling with the language barrier but hopefully it will get better because I am beginning to get lessons throughout the week to help me.
Bollate is good it is a cute town and each morning I catch the bus from Bollate to another town where I go to school. Everyone at school is so nice, I...
So far exchange is going really well. I definitely did struggle with home sickness and settling in to a new family but am now happy and loving it. At first I was contacting home way too much but now have cut down which has helped so much.
It's great having two sisters, we all get on really well and my whole host family are great making me feel welcome. It is very different living with a European family and at first a lot of the things they do in their daily lives were a bit weird for...
School is one of the highlights of exchange so far. It's really hard because the days are so long, but I love everyone there. I have incredible friends who are going to be really hard to leave.
My first few weeks have been pretty amazing so far. After the flight we were greeted by some of our coordinators. From the airport we drove through Brussels (along the way I saw quite a few friteries) and Marie-Claire, my coordinator, gave us some Belgian chocolate. After being in the country for less than an hour, we had already had Belgian chocolate! We arrived at a youth hostel and over the next few days we visited Brussels and Ghent. It was amazing! On Saturday we met our families.
...I just want to thank you so much for helping me with going on my exchange program. It has opened up my eyes to sooo many different things, making new friends, being an older sibling (!!!), learning many things, adapting and just enjoying what another culture has to offer. I really don't know what I can do to thank you enough, but if there is anything I can do, then let me know.? God Bless?, Sarah
I just wanted to...express my sincere gratitude for doing what you do. You truly make kids dreams come true. I'm having the time of my life. And so far I haven't gotten homesick at all! It just scares me that at some stage it will have to come to an end.
I had made so many friends at school over the last week and my relationships with my host family have continued to grow everyday!
The food here is delicious. We have pasta an average of 1.5 times a day. We also eat a lot of tiramisu, pizza and have bread and cheese with every meal.
On my third weekend I had the opportunity to go to a French wedding! It was incredible - we left home at 1.45 in the afternoon and got back at 5 in the morning! There were lots of parts to it and lots of food and lots of dancing. It was a really great experience and I'm so glad I could go and meet even more of my host family's family.
My mother is a wonderful cook, though I fear I may start putting on a little weight as she is always wanting me to eat more and have second helpings.
It's been different but they're really nice and Flo always asks me how my day went, what I ate if I made new friends everyday which is good :) She's really interested in how I'm going and if things are going well at school.
It's interesting, Agathe is very opinionated, to the point of being almost argumentative, not that I can understand her extremely fast French when she speaks that way! but we're getting along well, she's been helping me find my classes (over half of which are with...
On my fourth weekend, I went with my host family to their holiday house, which is at the coast in a town called Erquy, and although it was way to cold to go swimming, it was really special to spend the weekend there with them and spend time at the beautiful beach and walk along the cliffs.
I'm loving every minute of my exchange so far! I can't believe I have been here over a month now! It's seriously feels like 2 weeks ago I landed! My host family is amazing. I get along with everyone! Life in Biella is very different to life in Melbourne and I think it's just now that I have finally gotten use to all the changes and differences.
My school is very good. I'm in about 4 different classes because of the subjects I'm following. My Italian is slowly improving but I have...
I have experienced unforgettable moments of highs and lows, but I can't imagine not having done this now. Thinking about all the amazing people I've met, the lessons I have learned and things I have seen, I feel truly lucky to have been here living a different life. I have no regrets as I have grown to be more mature, open to life and aware of the world around me. Despite being hands down the hardest thing I have ever done it has been the best thing I have ever done for myself. I now feel...
My family and I have made plenty of plans for Christmas. On the 24th and 25th of December, I am going to meet all of the family at two big family dinners. Also, on the 27th, I'm going to go to Paris for the day!
Everything is going really well. I am getting on really well with my host family. It is certainly different having a sister, it is much quieter! Haha but it is nice having someone who I can do things with, because back at home, the boys would all be playing footy and would kinda be on my own. Here it's different, it's lovely! I am so grateful to Domenico and Elena, they have been very welcoming. I truly feel at home now. Nice people at school, everyone is friendly. The language is still...
My family is very nice and I get along very well with all of them. It is definitely different but I love it, it’s so pretty and everyone is very friendly at my school. I understand a little bit more everyday so I would say that I am improving!
I can't believe that I leave tomorrow, the time went by incredibly fast. I'm going to miss almost everything about Belgium. Most of all the people, but also the culture, food, surrounding countries, French music and of course the language! I'm not fluent in French, but I can make myself understood and understand almost everything. Everybody from my host family, friends, host family friends, other exchange students, WEP and school teachers showed an amazing amount of compassion and...
I am having an amazing time in the USA! School is so good, I catch the big yellow bus and have five classes a day and each of those go for an hour and a half! Which is a lot longer than my school at home. We get one half hour lunch where everyone goes to the cafeteria and chats. I have also just started playing softball, which is difficult but I am slowly catching on. I have made heaps of friends and get along really well with my host family. I have just come back from Seattle, Washington...
Things are great and you couldn't have chosen a better family for me. It's definitely something I won't regret in the future.
