Allyson Block -- Ecuador (Home Club: Ballston Spa)

September 2014

Ecuador is incredible. So much has happened my first month and a half that I do not know where to begin!

I suppose I’ll start with my family; my parents are Patricia and Wilo Guerro, and I have four siblings. The oldest, Crissy, is 25, married, and has a three year old daughter, Dana Sophia. My second sister, Isabella, is seventeen and currently on a rotary exchange to France. Living at home with me is Emilo, 15, and Pablito, 10. One thing that I really love about family here is how large and intimate it is. Crissy, and my grandparents live on the same city block as us, and we often get together for family dinners or outings. They have all been so warm and welcoming, I truly feel that I am a part of the family. I have become especially close with my mother, Pati, who I call Mamá. Taking the advice of our district’s beloved former Brazilian student, Gabi, I say yes to everything- this keeps me very busy always running errands with my ma into the beautiful town center of Otavalo. Whether it’s a trip to the fruit vendors, attending a meeting of the barrios at the city’s municipal buildings, or attending a little kid’s birthday party, I feel as though it is all an enriching part of the experience (and will help me the language).

On that front, my Spanish is coming along very well. I can understand nearly everything, I just struggle producing it on my own, ie. Talking and writing. Nonetheless, I am able to communicate with ease everything that is necessary with my family. All of my exchange student friends tell me that they’re so jealous of and impressed by my language abilities. At first I was very proud… and then I realized that as Europeans the majority of them are learning Spanish as their third language (on top of their native tongue and English). And for many others Spanish is going to be their fourth language!

Yet, of course, there have been some growing pains- mostly related to the high school. I am attending the Bilingual academy of the city’s dioceses, a private Catholic school in the neighboring city of Ibarra. Although my school is very old and beautiful, it presents a logistical headache when one considers daily transportation. My “school bus” comes to my house every morning at 5:40 so I can make the more than an hour commute.

At first I had thought that my school would be very strict, and in some ways it is, but I soon realized that the largest emphasis is on aesthetics. For example, girls cannot have painted finger nails, and boys must keep their hair cut very short. If the teacher does not find their hair length satisfactory they will call them out in class and sometimes make them leave school.

We have three different uniforms: the ‘parade’ for Mondays (when we gather in the school courtyard to sing the national anthem), the ‘daily’ for Tuesday through Thursday, and a gym uniform for Fridays. For the parade uniform alone I spent $100- for we had to buy the cloth separately and then take it to a dress maker. Everything related to school is very expensive. Some of my unexpected costs included purchasing text books, and new sneakers, because I didn’t have the correct colored ones for my uniform. Additionally, I have to pay a monthly tuition fee (on top of the initial cost to matriculate) of $55...

Yet, I realize that the most important thing is that I learn the language. All of my classmates are very kind and outgoing and speaking to them is definitely helping me accomplish this goal- I am constantly being invited to out to different events. The Ecuadorian culture is so warm, the people all love their country and are eager to show it off to me so that I’ll love it too.

I haven’t been all that homesick yet- so far I’ve been trying to look at it all as a huge adventure! I would like to thank you all in my sponsoring district for making this incredible opportunity a reality!

Holley Nicolaysen -- Japan (Host Club: Corinth)

October 8, 2014

I'm doing very well, since I knew a lot about Japan already I haven't been hit with cultural shock.  My health is fine.  I normally get sick a lot in the winter because my immune system is lower than most people but thats normal.  I got a cold once since i've been here, other than that the only health problem is my lack of sleep.  Im working on going to bed earlier and earlier to counteract having to wake up so early.  Thats been helping a lot. 

I love my current host family.  My grandmother is the cutest thing in the world and my mother is really nice.  since my sister and mother shower at our grandmothers house the bathroom is all mine which is so amazingly nice!

My grandmother and I have an amazing relationship. Even tho I can't speak Japanese and she can't speak English she still talks to me in Japanese and pats my arm.  I say i'm back  in japanese everytime I go to her house and she always says welcome home in Japanese and has a smile for me.  My mother always makes me laugh because since she can't speak English a lot of our communication is done through charades.

I go to school everyday unless I miss the bus or am sick.  I walk to school in America so I'm used to waking up a lot later and going in late if I oversleep.  But here in Japan since I live so far away I have to wake up a few hours earlier and take the bus.  If I sleep in even by 10 minutes and miss the bus there is no way for me to get to school.  Theres the public bus system but I dont know how to use it yet and id rather not get lost in japan.

I am going to do cheerleading but it doesn't start for a few months.  I am currently in the cooking club every wednesday.  I also have calligraphy on wednesdays, traditional tea ceremony on fridays and traditional japanese dance on mondays. But those are all elective classes and not after school activities.  I also have a kanji class, and 2 japanese classes.  My classmates all love me and whenever i'm in the hall everyone says hello and smiles.  Im sad to say I only know a few peoples names but that doesn't mean i dont have a lot of friends.

I have lunch with the rotarians every other tuesday.  They pick me up from school at lunch time and bring me back a little after lunch.  The first tuesday of the month I am expected to give a speech in Japanese.  I just finished translating my second speech.  I have also attended an overnight Rotary orientation as well as an all day event where I had to give a small speech.  My last meeting was 3 days ago at a hotel where we have lunch. I receive 100$ a month and they also pay my 65$ phone bill.  When I get my allowance is when I give my speech, kind of like a thank you as well as to show my improvement in Japanese,

I like my counselors very much.  They have been very helpful in settling me down in Japan.  They go above and beyond.  They managed to find a weekly japanese class for me to take every tuesday and one of the rotarians has volunteered to drive me home after, saving me a lot on bus fare.  They have also introduced me to Greg, an american who's lived in Japan for 6 years.  He is very fun to talk to because he has a lot of experience being a foreigner.

Shilo Christiansen -- Japan (Home Club: Cobleskill)

June 4, 2014


Wow, I can’t believe it’s my last full month in Japan. It has been really amazing these past few months. I’ve had all the luck in the world with host families! I’ve had three great host families that talk to me all the time and even bring me places once in a while. I just moved a couple days ago to my last one, and we get along fabulously!

I’ve been to a bunch of places in the past few months. It has been busy! I went to a city called Obama, in a prefecture nearby. There, they sold Obama cakes, and Obama chopsticks, it was really funny. Also this month I will be going on a few trips, including Disney World and Okinawa. I will be sure to include some photos. Today I have a speech in front of my Rotary Club, and I’m nervous, but not too nervous. Here, Rotary Japan is filled with lots of older men who often sleep during the speech portion, which really makes me feel less pressured. 

With school lately, we’ve been doing a bunch of things outside of school. A few weeks ago we did a BBQ, which was great because I love meat. I’ll attach some photos of my classmates! 

It’s been about ten months here in Japan, and I will be returning home on July 22nd, which makes it just over eleven months. I’ve had a great time here, but there’s just so much to do that’s awaiting me at home. I will definitely enjoy my last month here! 

Lucy Holecek -- Belgium (Home Club: Albany)

Sorry this is so late I have been very busy!

 

The last time I wrote I said I was going on many trips.  I went to Barcelona, Spain with my school in Belgium and it was so fun!  We stayed an hour outside of Barcelona and actually got to visit more than just Barcelona.  The teachers made the trips very educational and I actually really enjoyed that part.  There were about five groups and after each day we had to do a reflection.  For example; pictures, scenes, songs, science experiments, etc.  I loved the fact I was with all Belgians because then I was obligated to speak in French the whole time.  Speaking of French... mine has gotten so much better and I love it so much even when I'm with other exchangers I try to hang out with the people who don't speak English so I speak French or learn another language like Spanish.  Which I learned a bit of during spring break.  During spring break there were two trip options with Rotary.  Spain or Italy and I went on the Italy trip On the Italy trip there were about 80 people including the Rotarians.  We took a bus there which means we were pretty much on the bus for a wholre day.  We slept om it for two nights, the first and last.  We also had stayed in three different hotels because we did a tour of Italy.  Rome, Naples, Pompeii, Pisa, Murano, Burano, Florence, Venice, Capri and Almalfi.  It was so amazing that I got to travel to such a beautiful place with people from all over the world.  And it's crazy because almost everyone gets along with one another.  We don't judge, we just learn about others life's and how they are so different from ours.  Anyways back to the trip.  My favorite place in Italy was Capri.  It was so beautiful.  The water was an amazing shade of blue and I could have just looked at it for days.  One night all the exchangers and Rotarians went outside and someone played the guitar and sang and of course all of the exchangers joined in.  It was such an unforgettable moment.  Everyone really came together and realized how lucky we are to have each other and be a family. And to have a chance to experience a year like this one.  People cried, laughed, sang, danced you name it. 

Now today is the 28th of April which means I only have exactly two months left in Belgium.  It's so hard to think I will be going home.  I have made a family here.  My exchange family and all my Belgian families.  I am so lucky two have five amazing families and I never want to let them go.  I have made such amazing friends and have built relationships with my families here.  My exchange here is like no other and I honestly can't even begin to explain it.  It's not just one year, but it really is a whole life in one year.

 

Shilo Christiansen -- Japan (Home Club: Cobleskill)

March 10, 2014

Host Rotary Club: 7190

Sponsor Rotary Club: 2560

Current Host Family: Nishiyama

Counselor Name: Nishiyama-san

A lot of things have changed since I moved into my new host family on the first of March... I absolutely love my new host family, they are my favorite I’ve ever had. I make dinner with my host father and we joke around a lot, which is something I’ve never done with any of my host families before. I also talk to my host mom for a couple hours after dinner finishes because she is just so interesting! They’ve had exchange students before so they understand me so much better than the others and are patient with me when there are misunderstandings. 

A month long spring break just began a couple days ago. School has been going well, except that it’s really boring. My teachers have been giving me some Japanese work to do, which I am thankful for because my Japanese lessons are too easy and I haven’t felt challenged since I came here. So I’m busily working on my spring break homework!

It’s my seventh month hear, which is really strange. I leave Japan in mid-July—I only have four more months left! The reality is so odd, and it hasn’t even sunk in yet. I can’t imagine saying goodbye to my Japanese friends, my counselor, and my other rotary exchange friends. I don’t like to think about it, so right now I’m living in the moment. 

My birthday past and it was easily one of the best birthdays I have ever had! My class surprised me by pretending that they forgot my birthday, then at the very end of the day they brought out cake. Then my old class, the ones who graduated, took me out to a meat restaurant. Which is really ironic since I was a vegetarian for five years, but here in Japan, my reputation is all about how much meat I eat haha. At the meat restaurant, we had a special table and ate until I had a food baby. Then with my exchange student friends I had another party. It was a really great week and I felt so loved by everyone. 

 I’m really excited because the end of March/ early April is the time of cherry blossoms. I will be sure to include lots and lots of photos! This has been a really great month and I’m looking forward to the next report because I’m going to be doing a lot of really cool things this month, and I will be sure to send photos!

Anthony Vandyke -- Ecuador (Home Club: Salem)

February 27, 2014

  Well I just made the six month mark and I’ve been having a great time here.  In a way it seems like I’ve only been here a couple months but also like I could have been living here my whole life.  The new family I’m staying with is just as nice and welcoming as the last and I consider myself lucky for that.  Last week my father came to visit on short notice and we both went to spend a short week with my biological family living a few hours from where I go to school.  Now that I know quite a bit of Spanish and have adjusted to the culture here it was very nice to see them and especially nice to communicate and get to know them better and more personally.  I was able to translate for my father so he could ask them questions and know his family better too. I would have to say that going to visit them was one of the highlights of my year.

The Rotary here also has another trip planned for us, this time to the Galapagos Islands which should be a wonderful time from what I’ve heard from past exchange students and others who have been there.  Also this weekend is a huge festival called Carnival in my city which should also be a lot of fun.  I’ve made great friends here like I’ve know them my whole life, they take me around and show me what there is to do in this relatively small city.  Although I can communicate fairly well I still struggle with the language as a whole with the numerous conjugations and difficult pronunciation, but I’ll get there I still have four months till I have to go home.  I’m sure the next four months will be even better than the first six.

Lucy Holecek -- Belgium (Home club: Albany)

February 27, 2014

And yet another month has passed.  The time is going by so fast and I know now it's just going to go faster.  Tomorrow will be the day I have only exactly fourth months to go, but I will live it to the fullest.  I love it here in Belgium, it may have been hard, but in the end it was all worth it.  It doesn't stop being hard till it's over, but it does get easier as time goes on.  Since the last time I wrote a report my French was good, but it keeps improving and it makes me so happy.  I can understand jokes and even make them with my school friends.  Sometimes I even catch myself thinking in French.  I have become to adore learning a new language to the point I may even go to school to learn more.  My school friends are lovely I rarely feel alone when I am with them and they always include me in the conversation.  In the next few months I am going on many trips, but the one I am most excited for is the one with my school.  I am so excited to get to be with my school friends for a week and be with no one who can speak english.  I mean yeah English is my first language, but I want to be able to take in as much French as possible. 

 I hope everyone is having a great experience in their host countries as well. 

 

Best of wishes to every one!