United States > Netherlands 17/18

Vandaag was mijn laatste dag in Nederland. Ik ging naar school om mijn normaal rooster te volgenen.  Het was de hele dag een mixte gevoel tussen blij en verdretig. Natuurlijk ben ik blij wanneer ik met mijn vrienden bent, maar ik moest ook doei tegen mijn vrienden zeggen. Na school ging ik met een paar close vrienden om ijsjes te halen. En daarna naar en film met mijn hele gastgezin. Het was echt een perfecte dag. De paradox: de beter de dag wordt, de verdrietiger word ik. Het voelde niet waar dat het mijn laatste dag was. Ik vind het heel raar dat morgen ik zal terug in de Verenigde Staten zijn. Het is het einde van een fantastische jaar. Ik heb ook gezien dat ik heb niet zo veel in mijn blog over taal gezegd. Het ging best wel goed met de  taal, en ik zal het heel erg missen. Ik vind het het zo leuk of tweetalig te zijn. Ik weet het wel dat ik zal in een paar jaar de taal kwijt zijn. Ik vind dat wel jammer, maar ik vind ook dat er is niet zo veel te doen over het (bijna...

Today was a wonderful day, but also a really difficult day for me. I went to school in the morning to see my friends, return my books, and hand in my locker key. My last school day is Wednesday but I had to return everything today. Then I went home where a group of friends (exchange and dutch) came over to hang out, relax, gossip, etc. At the end of the day I had to say goodbye early to one of my closest friends here. I tear up just thinking about it. She’s going on a trip tomorrow and won’t be able to go with me to the airport to say goodbye. We hugged for a really long time without letting go. She is also an exchange student, so we promised each other we’d meet in the middle of our countries. Or maybe I’d go to her. She’s been with me in Lelystad the whole year. We were even volunteers at the same grade school. She became such a good, genuine friend of mine and I can’t believe I’ve already said goodbye to her. I know we will see each other again but it is still so hard. I know the f...

From June 3rd-17th I was traveling (by bus) around Europe. The trip was organized by Rotary, and all 40 Rotary Netherlands exchange students participated. As a group we visited Berlin, Krakow, Vienna, Lido di Jesolo, Venice, Charmonix, Disney Land Paris, and Paris proper. In some cities we stayed only one night, in others two or three. It was an amazing experience, not only seeing amazing things, but also bonding with the other exchange students. Day 0: Graduation The day before we left all of the exchange students met in Lelystad for a Rotary graduation ceremony/ShelterBox fundraiser. The students performed a cultural talent show with songs and dances from their home countries. It was a very nice night, much nicer than I anticipated. Afterwards I went to a party with just my Dutch friends, saying goodbye before I left on my two week trip. Day 1: Departure It was only an 8 hour bus ride to Berlin. We only had one bus driver which meant we had to stop for half an hour e...

I will still skiing in the French Alps when May began. When I got home I was greeted by three lovely new editions to our family: three baby chicks. Though still un-named they've been a delightful additional presence in the house.  As you all should know this month was also Mother's Day, which they also celebrate here. I was blessed with a double-mother's day! I helped my eldest host brother make my host mom a special breakfast. Then the two of us went off on a girls day to an orchid garden. The orchid garden had far more than just orchids however, and also had monkeys, flamingos, lemurs, giant catfish, a butterfly garden, and a parrot sanctuary. It was a wonderful little day. And, of course, I got to make a long phone will the momma #1, the amazed and blessed woman I could never replace. The orchid garden wasn't the only little trip I made this month. My host mom enjoys traveling and is always enthusiastic about taking me to new places. Early in the month...