"Don't Be Afraid To Show Who You Are"

Note: Please welcome new Student Blogger Vitoria (Vic) from Brazil! Vitoria is a junior at Waukesha High School and lives in Waukesha, Wisconsin, with her host family on the Academic Year Program. 

By Student Blogger Vitoria from Brazil

The first time meeting your host family might be the moment you realize your exchange year is happening, in case you weren’t believing it before. Getting in contact with the people who are going to be part of your life and your support in one of the most incredible years of your life is a moment that you remember forever, like your first day in a new school, but way better.

At the moment you first meet your host family, don’t be afraid to show who you are.
They are the people who opened their house so you could have this experience. Nacel Open Door and your host family are some of the people you can count on most in your exchange program. Hosting an exchange student means being your support in a new country, a new culture, a new language, and a new life that you probably never experienced before. That makes the first meeting such a big deal for all of us. It’s a beginning of a period that is going to provide so many new memories and learning. And probably the beginning of a lifetime relationship.

I think it’s such a grateful thing to look back at the moment I first met my host family and seeing how much we developed our relationship over the time we spent together. We still remember most of the questions we had that day. I still remember how I felt excited and curious on my way home to see how it would be, see my room, and what we were going to do that day. I still remember how many new things I learned in the very first day with my family.

The first time meeting your host family for sure will be a striking moment in your exchange program.