(Still in New York)
The next morning i woke up around 6.15 a.m. and took a shower. After I took a shower, I brushed my teeth and went to breakfast. There was a bunch of food and I ate an egg with toast and orange juice. We were supposed to have breakfast with our groups, so I looked for my group and sat with them. After breakfast our group went with our leader, Kathrine, into a classroom. In the classroom, we talked about the trip to New York City. She told us that we will have a long day trip with a lot of walking and also showed us a plan of the route. Kathrine also instructed us to stay with at least two people from our group. After the introduction, all the groups (around 200 students) took several buses to New York City. The ride was about one and half hours long but it went by fast. During the ride, I was very fascinated by the very tall buildings and I had the feeling I was in a movie. The buses dropped us off next to the Central Park. We then headed to Central Park where we walked around and looked at the attraction. After that, we kept on walking and it got pretty warm. It was a super hot day. It was around 100 degrees. Then the trip started to get tough and exhausting. The whole group asked for a break, because we all were tired. So we were given a one hour break for lunch. After the break, we headed to Times Square. All in all it was a good day, but it was way too hot for me, and I wish we had a little bit more free time. I would say it was a nice experience, but I wouldn't do it again on such a hot day.
Now I'm going to tell you how you get the best experience as possible out of a exchange year.
1. Always be open and be open for new things.
When you get invited to a dance, don't say no because you are shy. Say yes, and go for it. Even if you end up in really strange situations, you will always have a good story to tell after wards.
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| My Friends back in Germany |
2. Don't spend too much time on your phone and with home.
When I say home, I mean home where you are actually from. It's normal to miss home but if you are too much on your phone and just text your friends back home, you will get homesick pretty fast.
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| That was my group |
3. Make friends from your host country and with other exchange students.
To make some good local friends, it takes a whole lot of effort. The best way to engage with the local culture is to have some friends who are from there and can tell you about it. Maybe you will find friends for life.
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| My host Brothers Garrett and Miles, and me are cruising with the Golf Cart |
4. In case of problems always talk about them
It's always good to talk about problems, because it makes you feel better. In case of a problem, try to talk to your host parents or to your organization, or if it is a very bad issue then talk to your parents. But that's the last option.
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| Oskar from Sweden and I walking through New York City |
5. Never give up
This is a once in a lifetime experience, so make the best of it, and don't give up and just go home.
Try to enjoy the exchange year.
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| A picture of me in the central park of New York City |
