To the exchange students who went on the South of Brazil trip, March 2016: This morning I cried and cried and cried. Last night it was tears of happiness when we were dancing and singing together and this morning it was tears of sadness when we were hugging goodbye. These past twelve days have been…
All posts tagged youth exchange
On The Outside Looking In
My second host mom’s son Luis is in Newton, Iowa for his exchange. He’s in the middle of his senior year, and as such, is eligible to go to Prom. He recently asked a girl to go with him, and she said yes. How did he ask? A sign and flowers. Nelly showed me…
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions from the people of Brazil Do you miss your family? Duh. And now that I’m thinking about it I miss them more. Do you like the United States or Brazil more? How do you want me to answer that without being insulting? What do you like more: American food or Brazilian…
The Carnaval Post
Carnaval is absolutely insane. Words cannot do it justice, but I am going to do my best to try. I asked my host mom if Carnaval was to celebrate anything specific. She thought about it for a few seconds, and then told me that Carnaval was just Carnaval and they celebrate to celebrate. I did…
Carnaval: A Prequel
Pretty short post, but I figured I would give you some idea about what is to come. Carnaval doesn’t officially start until Saturday, and yet the whole city is all already gearing up. I had no idea how big Carnaval is until now. I still can’t fully grasp the concept. But the entire country is…
Lunch, Politics, and Carnaval
It’s funny how things can turn around so quickly. When things seem to be at their lowest point, the only other direction to go is up. I’ve spent the last week at my first host mom’s house, and I think that has been very therapeutic. After a lot of conversations, I’ve stopped feeling like…
Slump
Things that make me happy: Harry Potter The West Wing Watching figure skating videos. My parents are looking at each other right now and wondering if I’ve been abducted by aliens or something. I’ve never told anyone this before, but two years ago I saw a clip of that 2014 Nationals on YouTube and I’ve…
Sunshine and Mangos
(Mangos being substituted for rainbows.) The thing about exchange is that not everything is perfect. Not everything is sunshine and mangos the entire time. If you just read the blog posts and look at the pictures, everything seems amazing. The dream life is that perfect picture of you and a gorgeous view with…