LINDSEY FOOTIT'S MARCH REPORT

 

I attended a Rotary meeting that was actually really interesting. They brought in a couple who are the presidents of a parents club for childrens education. They talked about the worries of parents and how parents should participate in the education of their child. I thought it was interesting since the education system here is so different. Public school is horrible here, therefore, the majority of kids have to pay to go to private schools for their entire school career. School here is so important because without a university degree, its impossible to make any sort of income here. Grade 12 here is extremely difficult. Classes in the morning, afternoon, tests on Saturdays and the rest of the time is usually spent studying the various materials. All of this to write the vestibular to see if they have a chance of entering the Federal University (which is free) and if they dont pass, they have to write the vestibular for a private university where they have to pay. Students here work hard. I finally moved. After living 8 months with my first host family, I switched families with an American exchange student. At first I thought it was ridiculous, to move after living 8 months with a family. There are only 2 and half months left, but now, I am liking the change in routine. I now have a host mom and a host sister,14, as well as a host brother,18, who is doing his exchange in Hungary. Before we switched families, my first host mom took us on a weekend trip a small beach town about an hour away. We went with relatives and friends and all stayed in the hotel owned by a couple (the wife is the sister of my host moms ex-husband). The first day we floated down the river until it met up with the ocean. The second day we drove to an indian resort (that was fairly empty, not many indians...) which had a lake that everyone swam in and afterwards, some of the women and girls dressed up as indians and took pictures. I had a nice relaxing time. It was nice to spend a weekend at the beach. There are not many more opportunities to do this, only 2 months left!. Before the trip, we moved all our baggage so that when we got back, we could switch without hassle. The first night I was so nervous, but I quickly got used to the routine. Its funny to think that when I first arrived here, I was so excited to live with three different families and try to adapt to three different routines. Yet, my rotary experience turned out a lot different than I expected. I got to know one family extremely well, almost as if they were another family for me. When we got back, we switched families. The first week I missed my first host family soo much! Then after that, I quickly began to enjoy my time with this new family. My host mom is a psycologist and she has been teaching me a few things about it. She is extremely funny and extremely out-going. I love spending time with her and her daughter. Its definitely a house full of girls! I was pretty good for not gaining weight for the first 6 months. I even lost some weight when I was praticing boxing in november/december. Unfortunately, I have lost that battle pretty quickly. Its funny, one of the other exchange students said that she only gained weight at the end because she realized that she wouldnt be able to eat all the good food afterwards. I guess that has happened with me... I think the worst is when you are with the older people. My first host grandmother was famous for shoving food down anyones throat. It definitely was a battle with her. Therefore, I started up with boxing again with my first host brother. I was completely dead after three days straight. I wish I could bring this boxing club back with me, it works you into shape so fast. My goal is to return home fit, not another fat exchange student! For Easter weekend, we all went windsurfing. My host mom and sister are fanatics. My first mom went with us as well, she was the one who took the lessons. I attempted, but at first was a bit timid because I had never ever done anything similar before. The first day was perfect! Beautiful sky, baby blue sea, and the smoothest breeze for learning. Then, it went downhill. The next day there was barely any wind. It was painful to stand up and try to attempt to move. My host mom said, If only we brought our fans with us. The next day, there was too much wind and it started to rain. Nature doesnt always give you what you want, haha. So thats about it for this month. Only two more reports left. Lindsey