Time is moving so fast. I still have trouble believing that it is already July 5. In about two months, probably a little less, I will be leaving my home in order to fly to New York. Not only have I never been to a big city by myself, I have never flown on an airplane by myself. I have, however, flown on so many airplanes over the years that there will be absolutely no problem. I have couple of things that I want to write about. One of them is the entire visa process. The other is about my host family, but I will get to that later.
So, the visa process was kind of a pain. For me, however, it was not nearly as difficult as some other exchangers have it. Where I live, I am under the jurisdiction of San Francisco and AFS was able to do everything for me. All I had to do was gather everything that was needed. Most of it was easy: getting passport photos for my visa, filling out forms, etc... The hard part was getting the bank statement. We had to have a letter from the bank saying that we had $900 available, completely free for every month that I would be in Italy. Over all, that is $9000. That is so much money! Anyway, we figured it out. We had the bank set my parents and I up with a notary in order to get everything notarized that needed to be. Over all, and a few extra trips down to the bank, the entire process took about three or four hours. We didn't have to drive any great distance in order to go to a consulate or anything like that. All we had to do was go to Kinko's and mail all of it (including my passport) to the New York visa office. We don't know that they actually received it, but if there was a problem, I am positive that we would have heard about it already.
As for my family, I have some bittersweet news. Last night, I was up into the wee hours of the morning due to the fact that it was Independence Day. I decided to spontaneously Facebook my host brother at about one in the morning our time. Then, I went to sleep. In the morning, I checked Facebook to see if he had written back and he had. I did not check it though. I went about my day until about three o'clock this afternoon. It seemed like the perfect time then. It was great hearing from him, however, he also gave me news that they could no longer host me. What?! I was in complete and utter shock. Apparently, AFS called them last Friday and informed them that I have to go to a different family because they did not a have a school in the vicinity that was able to take me. As a result, I am now going to be living with a family in Messina, Sicily. I am still somewhat disappointed. For months now, I have been really excited to be living in a small beach side town. I really liked talking to my brother. My sister and I had only talked a minute amount and I had had zero contact with the parents. I can't be too disappointed though. I am still going to Italy, Sicily for that matter. My brother also said that I would still be coming there for a weekend to see them.
So, my new family lives in Messina. I have my host father and my host mother. Their names are Mario and Roberta. I also have a host sister and a host brother, just like before. Except this time, both of them are younger than I am. My sister, Agnese, and I have the exact same birthday. She will turn sixteen the same day that I turn seventeen. How cool is that? Of all the days in the year, my host sister was born on the same day as me. Before, my first host sister was older than me by a year, almost to the day. My new host brother is named Federico. He is thirteen right now and is only about a month and a half younger than my youngest brother here in the United States. That is all I know about the family besides their street address and their telephone number. AFS will, hopefully, send me more information about them soon. I am dying to know more. I am excited about my new family. It is kinda strange though that I have already had to change host families and I have not even step foot into Italy yet. I have an incredibly strong feeling that I will fit in marvelously with my family. :) I can't wait!!! :)
Ciao! :)
Monday, July 6, 2009
Sunday, July 5, 2009
New Blog
As you can tell, I already started a blog using another program. I decided, however, that this program will work much better for me. I like the formatting much better. Anyway, this post is obviously incredibly long. This is the case because I copied all of the entries from my other blog and pasted them onto this one. Hopefully, everything is there. This entire process has been incredibly lengthy and arduous. It was completely worth the effort though. I will be living in Italy for ten entire months. How much better can it get? I hope that you all enjoy reading about my adventures through this time, whether they be spectacular experiences or contain my insights to being a foreign exchange student. I hope that my experiences provide an insight into who I am and the beautiful, amazing world in which we live.
The posts below start with the earliest at the bottom to the most recent at the top. It flows like a blog would. Scroll down to the bottom and read up. :)
Con l'amore,
Rebecca
The Countdown
Jun 18, 2009
Ciao!
Ok, so obviously it is getting closer and closer to my departure for Italy. It is all I can think about now. My family seems amazing. I have talked some with both my brother and my sister. I have not had contact with my parents, but I'm sure that that is normal. My siblings seem amazing. I am thrilled to have a sister, considering I don't have one here in the states. She is only a year older than I am, almost to the day. We have many things in common. I believe that is a promising sign of a wonderful relationship. My brother is great. He is between my brothers ages, so I am very familiar with the likes and dislikes of boys that age. Currently, I am struggling to think of what to get my family for host family gifts. Oregon just is not easy to represent in material items. Oh well, I will have to think of something.
It is getting so close now. It hadn't really, truly hit me until school ended last week. I am leaving in less than three months. Actually, it is more like two and half months. This whole experience is going to be incredible. Sometimes I don't even know how to express how excited I am and how amazing it will be. Words just don't fit the magnitude of my feelings. Along with these feelings of excitement, I also have extreme nervous feelings. Mostly, these feelings revolve around my mom. We are really close. Our relationship is almost exactly like the one in Gilmore Girls. I am going to miss her so terribly, but I know that it is the right time for me to take this step of independence. I am so ready for it. I just love my mom so much and am so attached and close to her...I don't want us to grow apart. Part of me thinks, actually a large part, that we will in a sense grow closer. I don't know how to express my reasoning for that, but it makes sense to me.
Ah, obviously Italy is all that is on my mind right now. How could it not be? I have to start thinking about what I am going to pack, what I am going to leave home, and what I am going to give them as gifts. I also have the think of a way to say goodbye, in person, to all of my friends. Maybe I will have a bon voyage party. I could have one of my friends help me to plan it. That seems like a good idea to me.
Italian is going rather slowly. I wish it was going faster. Personally, I want to know as much Italian as I can by the time I leave. It will make my whole transition so much easier.
Speaking of foreign exchange, my cousin is also going through everything that I have talked about. He is going to Ecuador for his senior year. We are going to be on exchange the same year, the entire year, but we are going to be in completely different parts of the world. He did his application much more spontaneously than I did; therefore, he has had much less time to think and mull things over. I hope he is doing ok, and that he realizes that this is such a wonderful, amazing opportunity. It is an opportunity and an experience that can not be replicated at any other point in one's life. Sure, you can do exchange in college. Exchange in college is, however, not high school. It is not necessarily full immersion.
I am excited out of my mind. It is time for me to get back to life here. I will keep everyone posted. :)
Rebecca
Mia Famiglia!!!!
May 25, 2009
Hello!!! :)
I'm so sorry it has been so long. It is just so busy right now. The school year is almost over so everything is trying to wrap up. It takes a lot of time. I promise that I will be more on top of things after school gets out.
Last Wednesday, I got my host family!!! :) I will be living in Gioiosa Marea on the island of Sicily! :) I am SO EXCITED!!! :) I have a mom and a dad. I have a sister who is almost exactly, to the day, one year older than I am and I have a brother who is about three years younger than me. The other day I sent them an email telling them that I was really excited and that I was working on my Italian. I talked to my brother, Marco, yesterday on Facebook. It was wonderful. Then, I got to say hi to my sister. I can't wait to go. I will be living right next to the beach and the food of Sicily sounds absolutely amazing. I know that this will be incredible and my family and I will get along beautifully.
:) I can't stop smiling :)
Anyway, I gotta go do more homework. I will write more when I have more time.
Ciao!
Rebecca :)
Oops!
Mar 31, 2009
Hey!
Oh my goodness. Wow! It has been ages since I was on here. School just seems to take over my time. Last week was our spring break and tomorrow is the first day of April. I am so excited! There are only two more months in the school year. It continually amazes me how fast this school year has gone by. They seem to go faster and faster as time goes on too. Next Friday, my six months for my driver's license will be up, meaning that I can drive two other people outside of my family. YAY! I am very excited about that. Also, I leave in 5 months! BIGGER YAY! Hopefully, on Thursday I will start volunteering in a local classroom and I am also lining up a volunteer position at an acting camp this summer. I think that both of them will work out. Anyway, that's about all I have time for. Now, I have to go back to homework. I will definitely try to get on here more often.
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
Sky Camp!
Mar 11, 2009
Hey!
This past weekend, I attended Sky Camp. It was great!!!! Exchange students in Oregon, people who are going on exchange next year, and recent returnees all got together and had a great time. I can't talk about it too much right now. I have lovely homework to do. Basically, though, all of the Americans going Abroad (AA) spent the day together attending three different seminars about getting prepared. It was really great and I made friends there. After the seminars, we had free time where we could literally do whatever we wanted. It was great. I had the opportunity to meet and talk to so many people from all over the globe. It was positively incredible. Then, it was time to have dinner. After dinner, there was a "variety show". I like to call it a talent show. That was super fun as well. However, after the show, there was a dance. :) :) The previous night I had gone to our Spring Fling dance, so this was my second night dancing. I had SO MUCH FUN! We danced into the middle of the night. I only danced with one person. He was an exchange student from Spain and it was great dancing with him because he had so much energy. After the dance, which ended at 11, we could either go to sleep or stay up and watch a movie. I went back to my cabin, but I couldn't fall asleep. I tried, but I was too energized. Oh well. :) The next day, everyone was zombies. We really weren't that into what was going on and we all wanted to sleep. I had only had about 8 hours of sleep over three days. I am still trying to recover. We took a group picture before everyone left and said our goodbyes. I bought a T-shirt with all of the exchange students names on it and a USA-Italy pin. This was such a great experience. It only made me feel even better about what I am doing. I know that this is the right thing and I can't wait to go! :)
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
Just an Update
Mar 4, 2009
Hey everyone! :)
I thought that I would just update everything. It is already March. It is incredible how fast this year is already going. Spring break is right around the corner here. It is in two weeks! After spring break, the school year just whizzes by like a train at breakneck speeds. As each day passes, I get more and more excited for Italy. I leave in six months. Only six months! I received the official letter that I have been accepted to AFS Italy. It is really real. We also received the bill. Usually, someone does not become excited to receive a bill for $10,000. Heck, I sure was though. :) I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face. This weekend, I am going to a local camp. I will get to meet other local outbounds and I will also have the opportunity to meet returnees and the many exchange students in our area. I am really excited, including the fact that the curfew is at 1:30 in the morning. I am going to be so tired! I am a little worried about my homework for the weekend. It will all work out though, so I won't worry too much. School is pretty good. I absolutely ADORE Spanish and Psychology. Then, on the other hand, I absolutely HATE Chemistry and math. Oh, well. I can make it through the year. We only have about three months left. :) I will update more later. In the meantime, I have to have a cookie and go to sleep. :)
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
I am ready! :)
Feb 12, 2009
Hey there everyone! :)
I decided that I need to blog. Because I have missed the last two days of school, I am sitting at home trying to catch up on homework that I have not done yet. I just needed a break.
I am ready for Italy. Now that I know that I am officially going to Italy, the fact that I am leaving in roughly seven months has actually hit me. It hadn't before. I will try to explain this. When you are accepted on the AFS USA side, it is official that you are going on an exchange. You logically and consciously know that you are leaving. The country that you are going to, however, is unknown. By not knowing exactly what country you are going to, it is somewhat surreal, like a dream. As soon as you find out what country, you know where your going. Instead of saying "I am going...somewhere", you can now say, in my case, "I am going to Italy." There is a place instead of a somewhere. It is real now. :) As soon as I found out, I was literally in hysterics. My heart beat at the speed of light (obviously not, but I am just letting you get the idea) and I burst out in tears. My dream is coming true. It is the most wonderful and overwhelming feeling that I have felt in a long time. I AM SO EXCITED! I do not even care where I go. All of it is Italy. I can't wait. I know that time is going to go really insanely fast. Before I know it, I will be boarding an airplane headed for New York to go to my Orientation. I know that I am going to miss my family, my friends, my home. But, I am going to have a second family, a second set of friends, a second home. On the plus side, it will be in the country of my dreams. :) :) While I wait for September 7-11 to come around (the potential departure dates), I will continue my attempts at learning Italian. I have Rosetta Stone, and let me tell you, I adore Rosetta Stone. It is really an incredible program. I am learning a lot. :)
Ciao! :)
Rebecca, USA to ITALIA, 2009-2010 :)
YAYYYYYYY!!!!
Feb 9, 2009
OH MY GOODNESS!!! I totally just got off of the online chat thing with AFS. ITALY ACCEPTED ME! I AM GOING TO ITALY FOR A YEAR!!!! I can hardly contain myself. :) I haven't written here for a very long time because I have been to anxious of jinxing something. Superstitious...I know it's ridiculous. But, I am accepted! :)
Big Decisions
Jan 25, 2009
Hey! :)
Sorry it has been absolutely FOREVER since I last wrote. Life has just been too hectic recently. On Friday, I managed to survive the last day of our semester. As a result, I had way too much work to do and am now relaxing on a four day weekend. I am absolutely thrilled that I completed all of my classes with A's, therefore, keeping my GPA very high. This year, I have a lot of pressure to keep my amazing GPA up because I will be gone for my junior year. It is highly important to me to not let any bad, or just worse, grades that I may receive inhibit my future college/career goals. I still completely agree with the realization that I had earlier, but I still don't want it to effect my future. So I am so excited I got all A's. I am finally done with Mrs. Machado. She was my Spanish 2 teacher. To put it completely honestly, she was the worst teacher that I have ever had. She always altered her teaching plans and the way that she taught the material. She also seemed to believe that she had absolute power and that we students were just litttle children that she could boss around. Quite frankly, I don't think that I am prepared for Spanish 3 this coming semester. We will see. While the end of the semester was euphoric for me because I got rid of Machado, it was also bittersweet because my two favorite classes of all time were over - Honors International Literature and Honors International Studies. I loved everything about those two classes! The teachers, the topics covered...everything! I really feel...honored...privileged..I don't quite know the right word...but I feel so lucky to have been able to take these classes. I felt sad that they were over. Also, the teachers are retiring this year. In his closing statement, my lit teacher said many things that really made me feel positive and great. He was saying that we should live our lives; make our own stories. He also said that we should write these stories down. One of his firm beliefs is that life should be lived to its full potential, and not compromised at all. Take calculated risks. Also, he really believes that one should travel as much as one can and that you can't travel too much. He also said to start travelling as soon as possible. I totally agree with all of these tips. I really do. I just....don't really know how to put in words how wonderful it felt to hear these words. I am going to have to keep talking to him throughout the second semester.
My schedule for next semester is crazy..but in a good way. :) Here:
1) Spanish 3
2) Spanish 3
3) Chemistry
4) Psychology
5) Algebra 2
6) Algebra 2
7) Study Period, aka, nothing
8) Health 1
I am so very excited for Spanish 3. I have met the teacher before and she is wonderful! I think that I am going to end up learning a lot from her. Chemistry....eh...it's chemistry. I am really, really good at it, but I just really, really don't like it. I am never going to go into a career that has anything to do with science or math. Never! It is just one of those hoops that I have to jump through. Psychology really excites me. I am really thankful that I was able to talk myself into the class. The ideas of psychology are so incredibly interesting to me. Plus, I know the teacher. He was my Honors International Studies teacher. He is really great teacher and I know that I will learn a lot from him. Now, I won't have to worry about getting my senior social studies credit in order to graduate. I am taking care of it right now. :) To make it even better, there is an Honors option. Yay! I hate math, so I decided not to take Honors Algebra 2. It is just another one of those hoops that I have to jump through. I know that I will do fine, because, like chemistry, I am really good at it. It is the same thing with Health. It is a hoop I have to jump through. I will live through it. The teacher is really great. Because we have the block system, every Monday and Wednesday I will be able to leave school at about 1. On top of my work load, I am going to volunteering in an English as a Second Language classroom at one of the local elementary schools. The teacher is one of our family friends, so I don't really have to worry about trying to impress her in order to get the position. I am really excited because teaching is one of the career options that I am thinking about. On top of this...I am going to be learning Italian. My progress has been really slow, because I had to put it down in order to focus on my Spanish 2 final. I just had to get an A and I knew that Italian would probably end up confusing me. I just found out the my Spanish 2 teacher is going to be teaching an independent study Italian class this next semester. I am going to try to weedle my way into it so that I can get her help as well. Hopefully, it will work. :)
As you can tell, I am going to be incredibly busy next semester. Because of this, I have decided not to play tennis for the school. The demand is too great for me to deal with. I need to focus on school and Italian. Don't get me wrong...I adore tennis, but I would just end up stressing myself out even more. This decision feels right to me. By the way, this was the big decision that I was talking about.
AFS. Oh my gosh...I am getting so excited. I should hear within the next couple weeks if I have been accepted into Italy...hopefully. As soon as I know if I am accepted, I will not be worrying anymore. I will be going to Italy! AAHHH!! :)
Sorry about the incredibly long post. There was just so much that I wanted to say. :) I promise that I will update again soon!
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
Realization
Jan 5, 2009
Well, obviously I never managed to come back on the last day of December. Oh, well. That is just how life works sometimes. Anyway, now it is 2009. Wow. I just can't believe it. Time seems to keep moving faster and faster. Right now, I am ok with that because it means that school will go by faster. On the other hand, I wish that it would slow down instead of speeding up. For instance, when I go to Italy. I will never want it to end.
As an update, my application is currently in Italy. Hopefully, they look at it, immediately feel that I am a wonderful option, and inform AFS USA of my acceptance.
The real reason I am writing right now is because today I had a realization. I went to school today for A Block. I could not manage to stay for the whole day because of my wisdom teeth. It is taking a long time for me to feel 100% better. Anyway, back onto the subject. On of the students in my class had her older sister come in and speak to us about her three month trip to Africa. She informed us of the wonderful things that she did to make a difference, and of all of the terrible things that she saw. I do not know how it made a difference on me, but it did. Recently, I have had a lot of trouble motivating myself with school. I realized that it really does not matter where you get a college degree from, at least not for me. It matters what you do with it and how you use it. I realized that I just have to do something international, hopefully something specifically with Italy, but something international. It does not matter to me where exactly I get my future degree from, it matters how I use it. Therefore, I do not have to stress myself out as much. I can relax a little. I just want to do too well for my own wellbeing.
Goodbye 2008
Dec 31, 2008
Hey! :)
Wow. Gosh. I can not believe that is already the last day of December. This year seemed to zoom by so fast, without even pausing for a little down time. Believe me when I say that I am thrilled the it is almost 2009. Really. It is just that at the end of every year I tend to think a lot about the past year. I think of the wonderful things that happened and the things that I wish not to repeat. There are so many things for which I am thankful. I also think of the many wonderful, amazing, and exhilerating things to come with the next year.
Since it has been a while since I last updated, I will give little highlights. :) So...because of all of the snow we had two weeks ago, I have literally had a three week winter break. Of course that is horrible for the school districts, however, I will not deny that I have throroughly enjoyed it. We had so much snow! It could have been about a foot. I was snowed into our house for two whole weeks. That was really hard for me because I have my driver's license now and I am used to having a lot of freedom. For the holidays, all of the relatives that had planned on coming down from Washington (state) were snowed in as well. As a result, my mom's sisters family came down for this past weekend. Technically, I had two Christmases. It was really great to see them all for the holiday's. I am not going to be here next year, so at least we had this small amount of time togther. My only regret about the holiday's this year is that we never got around to celebrating any Hanukkah. We did not even make latkes. Not one! It is my favorite dish to have during Hanukkah, especially with applesauce. YUMM!!! Oh, well. I will have to make some evenually here.
Recently, I think it was about a week and a half ago, I checked the status of my online application for AFS Italy. In the little status box was written the word transferred. Tranferred?! OH MY GOODNESS! That means that it is in Italy. During the duration of that day, I could hardly contain myself. That means that I will hear from Italy fairly soon, maybe even as soon as within the next two weeks. I want to go to Italy so badly. As soon as I hear that I am accepted, I will be euphoric! No more fretting and worrying for me. I have no preference of where I am to be placed. It is all Italy to me. :) It is amazing to think that I will leave in a little more than eight months to embark on my ten month adventure. This exchange is going to change my life. In fact, it already has to some extent. I am a far more outgoing person already, a complete change from the person I was last year, or even during this summer. I feel...complete. That is the only word that I can find to clearly explain the overwhelmingly wonderful sensation accompanying this exchange. When I do eventually decide where I want to head with my life, I know for a fact that I will be doing something with International Affairs, or Relations. My dream job right now would be to have a career in Italy. Not on a military base or anything. I mean a legitimate career in Italy, among native Italians. Of course it would mean living in Italy. That is not a problem though. I know that I will love Italy. Call me crazy, or say something like "how can you know...you have not been there". Ahh, but I do know! Italy is part of me. It has been for as long as I can remember. Of course I may romanticize Italy, but I know that I will adore it. Italy is just...who I am. Everything about Italy draws me to it like a super powerful magnet. The food, the history, the culture, the people, etc...and yes, even the fact that it is dirty and has a difficult government. It makes it that much more real, not some pristine country with no problems. Sorry if none of this makes any sense whatsoever. I tried my best to explain. I can not wait. :)
At the moment, I am lying down in my bed writing this. I had my last two wisdom teeth out yesterday. The medication that they put me on makes my incredibly dizzy. So dizzy, in fact, to the point that I can not walk. I have to have someone support me. I have barely eaten anything for the past two days because I have not been able to open my mouth. I have to literally drink everything. It is hard, because I adore food. The dizzyness should only last for another day or two, but I will have to watch what I eat for about another week. I can not get anything stuck up in the stitches or holes.
Another side effect of the medication is that it makes me really, really tired. So I am going to take a nap now. I plan on coming back later in the day to post another post before the year ends!
Grazie! Ciao! :)
Rebecca, Lover of Italy and everything related :)
School Cancelled!
Dec 16, 2008
Hey!! :)
You know what I never understand? My school district cancels school even when they technically don't need to. Today, school was cancelled and tomorrow it has been cancelled as well. It is not supposed to snow tonight. Sure, everything is icy and the temperatures have been between fifteen and thirty degrees for the past day. It is really great though. Lately, I have been feeling incredibly unmotivated with school. Don't get me wrong...I adore school and learning. It is just that we waste so much time. Over the past few days, I have worked so efficiently. It has been amazing. Tomorrow, I will be able to possibly redo some of my homework to make it fit into my impossibly high standards and do things that I have wanted to do for a long time. I feel like school here is such a waste of my time. Sometimes I question whether I would have learned more if I had remained homeschooled. I don't wish that I had stayed homeschooled, but I just wonder what I would be learning and what my personality would be like if I had. Anyway, at least winter break is next week and because of all of the snow and ice we currently only have a three day week this week. Who knows...maybe it could become less. It is supposed to snow on Wednesday.
I have also been thinking about my exchange. This is going to be the experience of my lifetime. By doing this, I am going to redefine who I am and I will discover myself. This thought completely excites me. Everyday, I wish and hope that I get Italy (sorry that I keep going on about Italy, but it is so important to me). The thought that they could reject me sends my mood way down. Anywhere I end up though, I know that I will live every moment and enjoy it thoroughly. One of my goals in life is to travel to the numerous countries I want to visit. Italy is just number one.....by a lot. A lot a lot. I do not have that much longer to wait in the scheme of things. Time moves so quickly. It is almost 2009. Wow. I will be leaving to go on an exchange for an entire school year in about nine months. Neat!!! :) I know that I am going somewhere. AFS USA accepted me. I am going away from my home, my family, my friends, my country. I will, however, gain another home, another family, other friends, and another country. I am so excited. It has not officially hit me yet. Like, oh, I am leaving. Right now, it is a fact and only a fact. I don't know where. As soon as I know where, then it will really hit me. Then, I can also stop all of my worthless worrying. My mom keeps trying to explain that there is no reason for me to be rejected. I need to listen to her. Italy is my calling. I can picture myself totally living there someday. I like that idea.
I just made 103 cookies. I don't know why I decided to make them into the middle of the night, but I did. They smell delicious, however, I can't eat them because it is so late. I really neeed to go to sleep. My tiredness, if that is a word, just hit me. I will keep updating and hopefully time will speed up some and I will hear from Italy! :)
Ciao! :)
Snow
Dec 13, 2008
Hey!
Right now, as I write, it is snowing for the first time of the season! We haven't had snow this early in a long time...a long time. I remember one time when I was really little, my soccer game was cancelled because of snow in November. That was the last time that I remember snow coming early. It is really exciting. Maybe we will even have a stereotypical white Christmas here. That would be fun! :)
As for my exchange...I found out that I will not hear if I am accepted to Italy until February or March. ARGH. I can do it. It is just that I am waiting and waiting and I want this so badly. It is my DREAM and it is so close. I can't wait until I find out. I love Italy!
Ciao! :)
Thank Goodness!
Dec 2, 2008
There are many things to be thankful for. Right now, I have way too many of them. One of them is that I decided to ask about my application on Sunday. AFS has this special tool where you can chat with one of the advisors over instant messaging. It saved my entire foreign exchange possibilities...at least in my opinion. So, I was talking to the woman and I asked her if any applications had been sent to Italy yet. She asked for my name so that she could look me up. She then told me that no, mine had definitely not been sent and that my advisor had placed a note upon my application. This note said that I possibly needed a homeschool addendum. WHAT?! I mean, we had discussed that I had been homeschooled for eighth grade, but she said that Italy may ask for some additional information. Only then would we worry about an addendum. Anyway, as it turned out, I just filled out the addendum, sent it to her, and now my application is 100% complete. It is in the initial bunch that will be sent to Italy when they start accepting applications. I am so relieved! Of course, I am still a bit worried. What if they reject me because I was homeschooled, even though I clearly explained and showed how I am not in the least unprepared? What if they just do not like the look of me? Italy is my dream and I only have about a month left of waiting until I find out if it will become a reality for ten months of my life. I am so EXCITED!!!
Another thing that I am very greatful for right now is my counselor at school. Today I got my schedule for the second semester. Last week, I met with him to negotiate changes. As it turns out, I got every change that I wanted. Because of this, I will be taking psychology. This will get my twelfth grade social studies requirement out of the way. I had to try to do it this year because I have to take the junior social studies requirement -- U.S. History-- as a senior. Plus, I absolutely love the teacher, so I should not have problem.
I really need to start hitting the Italian language really hard. I have not completed any more sections recently. Quite frankly, I have just not had the time. Maybe I will do some tonight. I have a little bit of time. I love Italian though. I still think that it is a wonderful and gorgeous language. :)
Ciao! :)
Life!
Nov 13, 2008
Hey!! While I am patiently (yet impatiently) waiting to hear if I have been accepted by Italy, life goes on. At my school, sophomores are required to participate in a career shadow. This is where the student shadows someone while they are going about their day to day business at work. I thought and thought about what kind of job I may want to have. I finally landed on teaching. Teaching is such an incredible way to make a difference in someone's life. So, I decided to shadow my aunt. She teaches fourth grade up in Washington. I really loved spending time with her in her classroom and at her house. I also really enjoyed seeing my cousin. We never get the opportunity to truly talk. My brothers are usually around, however, this time they were not. It was really great. Now, I feel like I might have some idea of what I would like to do for a career.
Right now, I am currently taking my two favorite classes of all time. Honors International Literature and Honors International Studies. Part of it has to do with the teachers. The two teachers are absolutely wonderful and they are both retiring after this year. I am very lucky to have them. The other part is that I just love literature and social studies. Both of the teachers are really encouraging me to do this foreign exchange, which in turn, makes me even more excited. Today, for example, both of them randomly started to talk to me and ask me questions about my exchange.
Lately, I have been trying to figure out what my schedule is going to be like next semster. I talked to my social studies teacher, who also teaches psychology, and he said that he would be happy if I was in his psychology class. Normally, it is only available for seniors to take, however, given my circumstances, I felt that I needed to try to get some of my senior classes in this year. I am incredibly excited about psychology. It just seems like such an interesting subject. I have not had too much exposure to psychology, but from what I have been exposed to, it seems great. Because of my exchange, I have to take AP US History as a senior. If I had to take psychology on top of that, I would be on social studies overload. I know that they are completely different, however, it would just be too much. All I need to do is talk to my counselor to see if it is full.
I am trying my hardest to begin learning Italian. My parents bought me Rosetta Stone. The program is great, however, I keep finding it hard to actually sit down and do it. I want to have as great of an understanding of the language before I go. I guess I just need to do it. Italian is such a gorgeous language, so I am excited to be learning it. So far, I know a little and some of it is really similar to Spanish. Because they are similar, it makes it a tiny bit easier. It is still hard though because pronunciation between the two languages varies significantly.
As you can tell, Italy constantly invades my thoughts. I am just too excited! Going to Italy is something that I have wanted to do for as long as I can remember. Now, it is so close. I can touch it, smell it, hear it, taste it...everything. But, all of it hangs on Italy saying yes or no. I am hoping so hard that they say yes. If I do end up going to Spain or the Netherlands, it will still be incredible, however, I am in love with everything Italian. I only have about another month and a half of waiting! It is getting so close! YAY! :)
Introduction and Waiting
Nov 8, 2008
Hey!! Obviously, this is my first post here. I am writing the blog to share my experiences before/during my exchange. I am hoping to travel with AFS to Italy. Why Italy you may ask? All I can say is...Italy. No... :) Actually, I have been practically obsessed with Italy for as long as I can remember. In Kindergarten, I adored the Colosseum. It was later that I learned that the Colosseum was used for gladiator battles where people killed each other. This, however, did not change my love for Italy. As I grew, so did my infatuation with Italy. Now, it is full blown. I love everything Italian!
Another question that you may ask is why now. Well, this past summer I went on tour with the choir of which I am a member. We participated in an international choir festival in England and then traveled to France where we performed in many historic places. The last thing in the world that I wanted to do was leave. I was so upset! Previously, I thought about doing an exchange when I was in college. A high school exchange never occurred to me. In fact, I did not even know that it was a possibility. My mom and I discussed exchanges while I was in Europe. This got me thinking. The day after I got back home, I immediately began researching different organizations that offered Italy. I already knew that I wanted to go to Italy....as you read above. AFS immediately caught my attention. With its long, well-thought of history, it was perfect. I spent the next two weeks talking with my dad about it. My mother was like "Go for it!" She is really excited that I am doing this. My dad took a little convincing. He eventually realized that I wanted this so badly and that it really was the ideal experience for someone like me to have. I sent in my preliminary application as soon as I could. All of this took place in August.
When AFS sent me the complete online application, I was beyond excited. Now, I could officially apply for the experience of a lifetime. Because I was so excited, I needed to take a day or two just to soak up the fact that I could finally do it. Then I filled out all of the simple online part where you fill in your name, family, country preference, etc.... Just in case you do not get accepted to your first choice country or if it is full, you have to come up with two other alternatives. My second choice country is Spain, while my third choice country is The Netherlands. Thankfully, my mother had just made an appointment for me to have a physical with my physican. That took care of the forms that needed to be filled out by a doctor. Then, my parents read, signed, and wrote everything that they needed to. When we took the forms to my high school to be filled out, my counselor said that it would only take him a couple of weeks to get them back to me. He was wrong. It took him almost a month. During this time, I wrote my very long (probably a little too long) letter to my future host family and put together my picture page. As soon as I got everything done and my counselor had given everything to me, I sent my application in around September 19th.
Now, my advisor at AFS told me that my application was accepted for further review and country review. She told me this a few weeks ago. This means that I am definitely going abroad for a year. It is just not official as to which country at the moment. Italy does not start accepting applications until the very end of December to the beginning of January. I still have a long wait ahead of me and it has been hard. I have gotten better at the waiting process though...what with school and everything. I am so excited! I have so much trouble containing my excitment. For my birthday, which was about a month ago, all I had planned was a huge Italian feast. It was AMAZING!!! AHHHHH.......I want to do this so badly! I can not wait to find out. Apparently, according to my mom and to my AFS advisor, there is nothing on my application that would keep Italy from accepting me. So, I have that tidbit of information to keep me from worrying too too much about not getting accepted. :)
The posts below start with the earliest at the bottom to the most recent at the top. It flows like a blog would. Scroll down to the bottom and read up. :)
Con l'amore,
Rebecca
The Countdown
Jun 18, 2009
Ciao!
Ok, so obviously it is getting closer and closer to my departure for Italy. It is all I can think about now. My family seems amazing. I have talked some with both my brother and my sister. I have not had contact with my parents, but I'm sure that that is normal. My siblings seem amazing. I am thrilled to have a sister, considering I don't have one here in the states. She is only a year older than I am, almost to the day. We have many things in common. I believe that is a promising sign of a wonderful relationship. My brother is great. He is between my brothers ages, so I am very familiar with the likes and dislikes of boys that age. Currently, I am struggling to think of what to get my family for host family gifts. Oregon just is not easy to represent in material items. Oh well, I will have to think of something.
It is getting so close now. It hadn't really, truly hit me until school ended last week. I am leaving in less than three months. Actually, it is more like two and half months. This whole experience is going to be incredible. Sometimes I don't even know how to express how excited I am and how amazing it will be. Words just don't fit the magnitude of my feelings. Along with these feelings of excitement, I also have extreme nervous feelings. Mostly, these feelings revolve around my mom. We are really close. Our relationship is almost exactly like the one in Gilmore Girls. I am going to miss her so terribly, but I know that it is the right time for me to take this step of independence. I am so ready for it. I just love my mom so much and am so attached and close to her...I don't want us to grow apart. Part of me thinks, actually a large part, that we will in a sense grow closer. I don't know how to express my reasoning for that, but it makes sense to me.
Ah, obviously Italy is all that is on my mind right now. How could it not be? I have to start thinking about what I am going to pack, what I am going to leave home, and what I am going to give them as gifts. I also have the think of a way to say goodbye, in person, to all of my friends. Maybe I will have a bon voyage party. I could have one of my friends help me to plan it. That seems like a good idea to me.
Italian is going rather slowly. I wish it was going faster. Personally, I want to know as much Italian as I can by the time I leave. It will make my whole transition so much easier.
Speaking of foreign exchange, my cousin is also going through everything that I have talked about. He is going to Ecuador for his senior year. We are going to be on exchange the same year, the entire year, but we are going to be in completely different parts of the world. He did his application much more spontaneously than I did; therefore, he has had much less time to think and mull things over. I hope he is doing ok, and that he realizes that this is such a wonderful, amazing opportunity. It is an opportunity and an experience that can not be replicated at any other point in one's life. Sure, you can do exchange in college. Exchange in college is, however, not high school. It is not necessarily full immersion.
I am excited out of my mind. It is time for me to get back to life here. I will keep everyone posted. :)
Rebecca
Mia Famiglia!!!!
May 25, 2009
Hello!!! :)
I'm so sorry it has been so long. It is just so busy right now. The school year is almost over so everything is trying to wrap up. It takes a lot of time. I promise that I will be more on top of things after school gets out.
Last Wednesday, I got my host family!!! :) I will be living in Gioiosa Marea on the island of Sicily! :) I am SO EXCITED!!! :) I have a mom and a dad. I have a sister who is almost exactly, to the day, one year older than I am and I have a brother who is about three years younger than me. The other day I sent them an email telling them that I was really excited and that I was working on my Italian. I talked to my brother, Marco, yesterday on Facebook. It was wonderful. Then, I got to say hi to my sister. I can't wait to go. I will be living right next to the beach and the food of Sicily sounds absolutely amazing. I know that this will be incredible and my family and I will get along beautifully.
:) I can't stop smiling :)
Anyway, I gotta go do more homework. I will write more when I have more time.
Ciao!
Rebecca :)
Oops!
Mar 31, 2009
Hey!
Oh my goodness. Wow! It has been ages since I was on here. School just seems to take over my time. Last week was our spring break and tomorrow is the first day of April. I am so excited! There are only two more months in the school year. It continually amazes me how fast this school year has gone by. They seem to go faster and faster as time goes on too. Next Friday, my six months for my driver's license will be up, meaning that I can drive two other people outside of my family. YAY! I am very excited about that. Also, I leave in 5 months! BIGGER YAY! Hopefully, on Thursday I will start volunteering in a local classroom and I am also lining up a volunteer position at an acting camp this summer. I think that both of them will work out. Anyway, that's about all I have time for. Now, I have to go back to homework. I will definitely try to get on here more often.
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
Sky Camp!
Mar 11, 2009
Hey!
This past weekend, I attended Sky Camp. It was great!!!! Exchange students in Oregon, people who are going on exchange next year, and recent returnees all got together and had a great time. I can't talk about it too much right now. I have lovely homework to do. Basically, though, all of the Americans going Abroad (AA) spent the day together attending three different seminars about getting prepared. It was really great and I made friends there. After the seminars, we had free time where we could literally do whatever we wanted. It was great. I had the opportunity to meet and talk to so many people from all over the globe. It was positively incredible. Then, it was time to have dinner. After dinner, there was a "variety show". I like to call it a talent show. That was super fun as well. However, after the show, there was a dance. :) :) The previous night I had gone to our Spring Fling dance, so this was my second night dancing. I had SO MUCH FUN! We danced into the middle of the night. I only danced with one person. He was an exchange student from Spain and it was great dancing with him because he had so much energy. After the dance, which ended at 11, we could either go to sleep or stay up and watch a movie. I went back to my cabin, but I couldn't fall asleep. I tried, but I was too energized. Oh well. :) The next day, everyone was zombies. We really weren't that into what was going on and we all wanted to sleep. I had only had about 8 hours of sleep over three days. I am still trying to recover. We took a group picture before everyone left and said our goodbyes. I bought a T-shirt with all of the exchange students names on it and a USA-Italy pin. This was such a great experience. It only made me feel even better about what I am doing. I know that this is the right thing and I can't wait to go! :)
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
Just an Update
Mar 4, 2009
Hey everyone! :)
I thought that I would just update everything. It is already March. It is incredible how fast this year is already going. Spring break is right around the corner here. It is in two weeks! After spring break, the school year just whizzes by like a train at breakneck speeds. As each day passes, I get more and more excited for Italy. I leave in six months. Only six months! I received the official letter that I have been accepted to AFS Italy. It is really real. We also received the bill. Usually, someone does not become excited to receive a bill for $10,000. Heck, I sure was though. :) I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face. This weekend, I am going to a local camp. I will get to meet other local outbounds and I will also have the opportunity to meet returnees and the many exchange students in our area. I am really excited, including the fact that the curfew is at 1:30 in the morning. I am going to be so tired! I am a little worried about my homework for the weekend. It will all work out though, so I won't worry too much. School is pretty good. I absolutely ADORE Spanish and Psychology. Then, on the other hand, I absolutely HATE Chemistry and math. Oh, well. I can make it through the year. We only have about three months left. :) I will update more later. In the meantime, I have to have a cookie and go to sleep. :)
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
I am ready! :)
Feb 12, 2009
Hey there everyone! :)
I decided that I need to blog. Because I have missed the last two days of school, I am sitting at home trying to catch up on homework that I have not done yet. I just needed a break.
I am ready for Italy. Now that I know that I am officially going to Italy, the fact that I am leaving in roughly seven months has actually hit me. It hadn't before. I will try to explain this. When you are accepted on the AFS USA side, it is official that you are going on an exchange. You logically and consciously know that you are leaving. The country that you are going to, however, is unknown. By not knowing exactly what country you are going to, it is somewhat surreal, like a dream. As soon as you find out what country, you know where your going. Instead of saying "I am going...somewhere", you can now say, in my case, "I am going to Italy." There is a place instead of a somewhere. It is real now. :) As soon as I found out, I was literally in hysterics. My heart beat at the speed of light (obviously not, but I am just letting you get the idea) and I burst out in tears. My dream is coming true. It is the most wonderful and overwhelming feeling that I have felt in a long time. I AM SO EXCITED! I do not even care where I go. All of it is Italy. I can't wait. I know that time is going to go really insanely fast. Before I know it, I will be boarding an airplane headed for New York to go to my Orientation. I know that I am going to miss my family, my friends, my home. But, I am going to have a second family, a second set of friends, a second home. On the plus side, it will be in the country of my dreams. :) :) While I wait for September 7-11 to come around (the potential departure dates), I will continue my attempts at learning Italian. I have Rosetta Stone, and let me tell you, I adore Rosetta Stone. It is really an incredible program. I am learning a lot. :)
Ciao! :)
Rebecca, USA to ITALIA, 2009-2010 :)
YAYYYYYYY!!!!
Feb 9, 2009
OH MY GOODNESS!!! I totally just got off of the online chat thing with AFS. ITALY ACCEPTED ME! I AM GOING TO ITALY FOR A YEAR!!!! I can hardly contain myself. :) I haven't written here for a very long time because I have been to anxious of jinxing something. Superstitious...I know it's ridiculous. But, I am accepted! :)
Big Decisions
Jan 25, 2009
Hey! :)
Sorry it has been absolutely FOREVER since I last wrote. Life has just been too hectic recently. On Friday, I managed to survive the last day of our semester. As a result, I had way too much work to do and am now relaxing on a four day weekend. I am absolutely thrilled that I completed all of my classes with A's, therefore, keeping my GPA very high. This year, I have a lot of pressure to keep my amazing GPA up because I will be gone for my junior year. It is highly important to me to not let any bad, or just worse, grades that I may receive inhibit my future college/career goals. I still completely agree with the realization that I had earlier, but I still don't want it to effect my future. So I am so excited I got all A's. I am finally done with Mrs. Machado. She was my Spanish 2 teacher. To put it completely honestly, she was the worst teacher that I have ever had. She always altered her teaching plans and the way that she taught the material. She also seemed to believe that she had absolute power and that we students were just litttle children that she could boss around. Quite frankly, I don't think that I am prepared for Spanish 3 this coming semester. We will see. While the end of the semester was euphoric for me because I got rid of Machado, it was also bittersweet because my two favorite classes of all time were over - Honors International Literature and Honors International Studies. I loved everything about those two classes! The teachers, the topics covered...everything! I really feel...honored...privileged..I don't quite know the right word...but I feel so lucky to have been able to take these classes. I felt sad that they were over. Also, the teachers are retiring this year. In his closing statement, my lit teacher said many things that really made me feel positive and great. He was saying that we should live our lives; make our own stories. He also said that we should write these stories down. One of his firm beliefs is that life should be lived to its full potential, and not compromised at all. Take calculated risks. Also, he really believes that one should travel as much as one can and that you can't travel too much. He also said to start travelling as soon as possible. I totally agree with all of these tips. I really do. I just....don't really know how to put in words how wonderful it felt to hear these words. I am going to have to keep talking to him throughout the second semester.
My schedule for next semester is crazy..but in a good way. :) Here:
1) Spanish 3
2) Spanish 3
3) Chemistry
4) Psychology
5) Algebra 2
6) Algebra 2
7) Study Period, aka, nothing
8) Health 1
I am so very excited for Spanish 3. I have met the teacher before and she is wonderful! I think that I am going to end up learning a lot from her. Chemistry....eh...it's chemistry. I am really, really good at it, but I just really, really don't like it. I am never going to go into a career that has anything to do with science or math. Never! It is just one of those hoops that I have to jump through. Psychology really excites me. I am really thankful that I was able to talk myself into the class. The ideas of psychology are so incredibly interesting to me. Plus, I know the teacher. He was my Honors International Studies teacher. He is really great teacher and I know that I will learn a lot from him. Now, I won't have to worry about getting my senior social studies credit in order to graduate. I am taking care of it right now. :) To make it even better, there is an Honors option. Yay! I hate math, so I decided not to take Honors Algebra 2. It is just another one of those hoops that I have to jump through. I know that I will do fine, because, like chemistry, I am really good at it. It is the same thing with Health. It is a hoop I have to jump through. I will live through it. The teacher is really great. Because we have the block system, every Monday and Wednesday I will be able to leave school at about 1. On top of my work load, I am going to volunteering in an English as a Second Language classroom at one of the local elementary schools. The teacher is one of our family friends, so I don't really have to worry about trying to impress her in order to get the position. I am really excited because teaching is one of the career options that I am thinking about. On top of this...I am going to be learning Italian. My progress has been really slow, because I had to put it down in order to focus on my Spanish 2 final. I just had to get an A and I knew that Italian would probably end up confusing me. I just found out the my Spanish 2 teacher is going to be teaching an independent study Italian class this next semester. I am going to try to weedle my way into it so that I can get her help as well. Hopefully, it will work. :)
As you can tell, I am going to be incredibly busy next semester. Because of this, I have decided not to play tennis for the school. The demand is too great for me to deal with. I need to focus on school and Italian. Don't get me wrong...I adore tennis, but I would just end up stressing myself out even more. This decision feels right to me. By the way, this was the big decision that I was talking about.
AFS. Oh my gosh...I am getting so excited. I should hear within the next couple weeks if I have been accepted into Italy...hopefully. As soon as I know if I am accepted, I will not be worrying anymore. I will be going to Italy! AAHHH!! :)
Sorry about the incredibly long post. There was just so much that I wanted to say. :) I promise that I will update again soon!
Ciao! :)
Rebecca
Realization
Jan 5, 2009
Well, obviously I never managed to come back on the last day of December. Oh, well. That is just how life works sometimes. Anyway, now it is 2009. Wow. I just can't believe it. Time seems to keep moving faster and faster. Right now, I am ok with that because it means that school will go by faster. On the other hand, I wish that it would slow down instead of speeding up. For instance, when I go to Italy. I will never want it to end.
As an update, my application is currently in Italy. Hopefully, they look at it, immediately feel that I am a wonderful option, and inform AFS USA of my acceptance.
The real reason I am writing right now is because today I had a realization. I went to school today for A Block. I could not manage to stay for the whole day because of my wisdom teeth. It is taking a long time for me to feel 100% better. Anyway, back onto the subject. On of the students in my class had her older sister come in and speak to us about her three month trip to Africa. She informed us of the wonderful things that she did to make a difference, and of all of the terrible things that she saw. I do not know how it made a difference on me, but it did. Recently, I have had a lot of trouble motivating myself with school. I realized that it really does not matter where you get a college degree from, at least not for me. It matters what you do with it and how you use it. I realized that I just have to do something international, hopefully something specifically with Italy, but something international. It does not matter to me where exactly I get my future degree from, it matters how I use it. Therefore, I do not have to stress myself out as much. I can relax a little. I just want to do too well for my own wellbeing.
Goodbye 2008
Dec 31, 2008
Hey! :)
Wow. Gosh. I can not believe that is already the last day of December. This year seemed to zoom by so fast, without even pausing for a little down time. Believe me when I say that I am thrilled the it is almost 2009. Really. It is just that at the end of every year I tend to think a lot about the past year. I think of the wonderful things that happened and the things that I wish not to repeat. There are so many things for which I am thankful. I also think of the many wonderful, amazing, and exhilerating things to come with the next year.
Since it has been a while since I last updated, I will give little highlights. :) So...because of all of the snow we had two weeks ago, I have literally had a three week winter break. Of course that is horrible for the school districts, however, I will not deny that I have throroughly enjoyed it. We had so much snow! It could have been about a foot. I was snowed into our house for two whole weeks. That was really hard for me because I have my driver's license now and I am used to having a lot of freedom. For the holidays, all of the relatives that had planned on coming down from Washington (state) were snowed in as well. As a result, my mom's sisters family came down for this past weekend. Technically, I had two Christmases. It was really great to see them all for the holiday's. I am not going to be here next year, so at least we had this small amount of time togther. My only regret about the holiday's this year is that we never got around to celebrating any Hanukkah. We did not even make latkes. Not one! It is my favorite dish to have during Hanukkah, especially with applesauce. YUMM!!! Oh, well. I will have to make some evenually here.
Recently, I think it was about a week and a half ago, I checked the status of my online application for AFS Italy. In the little status box was written the word transferred. Tranferred?! OH MY GOODNESS! That means that it is in Italy. During the duration of that day, I could hardly contain myself. That means that I will hear from Italy fairly soon, maybe even as soon as within the next two weeks. I want to go to Italy so badly. As soon as I hear that I am accepted, I will be euphoric! No more fretting and worrying for me. I have no preference of where I am to be placed. It is all Italy to me. :) It is amazing to think that I will leave in a little more than eight months to embark on my ten month adventure. This exchange is going to change my life. In fact, it already has to some extent. I am a far more outgoing person already, a complete change from the person I was last year, or even during this summer. I feel...complete. That is the only word that I can find to clearly explain the overwhelmingly wonderful sensation accompanying this exchange. When I do eventually decide where I want to head with my life, I know for a fact that I will be doing something with International Affairs, or Relations. My dream job right now would be to have a career in Italy. Not on a military base or anything. I mean a legitimate career in Italy, among native Italians. Of course it would mean living in Italy. That is not a problem though. I know that I will love Italy. Call me crazy, or say something like "how can you know...you have not been there". Ahh, but I do know! Italy is part of me. It has been for as long as I can remember. Of course I may romanticize Italy, but I know that I will adore it. Italy is just...who I am. Everything about Italy draws me to it like a super powerful magnet. The food, the history, the culture, the people, etc...and yes, even the fact that it is dirty and has a difficult government. It makes it that much more real, not some pristine country with no problems. Sorry if none of this makes any sense whatsoever. I tried my best to explain. I can not wait. :)
At the moment, I am lying down in my bed writing this. I had my last two wisdom teeth out yesterday. The medication that they put me on makes my incredibly dizzy. So dizzy, in fact, to the point that I can not walk. I have to have someone support me. I have barely eaten anything for the past two days because I have not been able to open my mouth. I have to literally drink everything. It is hard, because I adore food. The dizzyness should only last for another day or two, but I will have to watch what I eat for about another week. I can not get anything stuck up in the stitches or holes.
Another side effect of the medication is that it makes me really, really tired. So I am going to take a nap now. I plan on coming back later in the day to post another post before the year ends!
Grazie! Ciao! :)
Rebecca, Lover of Italy and everything related :)
School Cancelled!
Dec 16, 2008
Hey!! :)
You know what I never understand? My school district cancels school even when they technically don't need to. Today, school was cancelled and tomorrow it has been cancelled as well. It is not supposed to snow tonight. Sure, everything is icy and the temperatures have been between fifteen and thirty degrees for the past day. It is really great though. Lately, I have been feeling incredibly unmotivated with school. Don't get me wrong...I adore school and learning. It is just that we waste so much time. Over the past few days, I have worked so efficiently. It has been amazing. Tomorrow, I will be able to possibly redo some of my homework to make it fit into my impossibly high standards and do things that I have wanted to do for a long time. I feel like school here is such a waste of my time. Sometimes I question whether I would have learned more if I had remained homeschooled. I don't wish that I had stayed homeschooled, but I just wonder what I would be learning and what my personality would be like if I had. Anyway, at least winter break is next week and because of all of the snow and ice we currently only have a three day week this week. Who knows...maybe it could become less. It is supposed to snow on Wednesday.
I have also been thinking about my exchange. This is going to be the experience of my lifetime. By doing this, I am going to redefine who I am and I will discover myself. This thought completely excites me. Everyday, I wish and hope that I get Italy (sorry that I keep going on about Italy, but it is so important to me). The thought that they could reject me sends my mood way down. Anywhere I end up though, I know that I will live every moment and enjoy it thoroughly. One of my goals in life is to travel to the numerous countries I want to visit. Italy is just number one.....by a lot. A lot a lot. I do not have that much longer to wait in the scheme of things. Time moves so quickly. It is almost 2009. Wow. I will be leaving to go on an exchange for an entire school year in about nine months. Neat!!! :) I know that I am going somewhere. AFS USA accepted me. I am going away from my home, my family, my friends, my country. I will, however, gain another home, another family, other friends, and another country. I am so excited. It has not officially hit me yet. Like, oh, I am leaving. Right now, it is a fact and only a fact. I don't know where. As soon as I know where, then it will really hit me. Then, I can also stop all of my worthless worrying. My mom keeps trying to explain that there is no reason for me to be rejected. I need to listen to her. Italy is my calling. I can picture myself totally living there someday. I like that idea.
I just made 103 cookies. I don't know why I decided to make them into the middle of the night, but I did. They smell delicious, however, I can't eat them because it is so late. I really neeed to go to sleep. My tiredness, if that is a word, just hit me. I will keep updating and hopefully time will speed up some and I will hear from Italy! :)
Ciao! :)
Snow
Dec 13, 2008
Hey!
Right now, as I write, it is snowing for the first time of the season! We haven't had snow this early in a long time...a long time. I remember one time when I was really little, my soccer game was cancelled because of snow in November. That was the last time that I remember snow coming early. It is really exciting. Maybe we will even have a stereotypical white Christmas here. That would be fun! :)
As for my exchange...I found out that I will not hear if I am accepted to Italy until February or March. ARGH. I can do it. It is just that I am waiting and waiting and I want this so badly. It is my DREAM and it is so close. I can't wait until I find out. I love Italy!
Ciao! :)
Thank Goodness!
Dec 2, 2008
There are many things to be thankful for. Right now, I have way too many of them. One of them is that I decided to ask about my application on Sunday. AFS has this special tool where you can chat with one of the advisors over instant messaging. It saved my entire foreign exchange possibilities...at least in my opinion. So, I was talking to the woman and I asked her if any applications had been sent to Italy yet. She asked for my name so that she could look me up. She then told me that no, mine had definitely not been sent and that my advisor had placed a note upon my application. This note said that I possibly needed a homeschool addendum. WHAT?! I mean, we had discussed that I had been homeschooled for eighth grade, but she said that Italy may ask for some additional information. Only then would we worry about an addendum. Anyway, as it turned out, I just filled out the addendum, sent it to her, and now my application is 100% complete. It is in the initial bunch that will be sent to Italy when they start accepting applications. I am so relieved! Of course, I am still a bit worried. What if they reject me because I was homeschooled, even though I clearly explained and showed how I am not in the least unprepared? What if they just do not like the look of me? Italy is my dream and I only have about a month left of waiting until I find out if it will become a reality for ten months of my life. I am so EXCITED!!!
Another thing that I am very greatful for right now is my counselor at school. Today I got my schedule for the second semester. Last week, I met with him to negotiate changes. As it turns out, I got every change that I wanted. Because of this, I will be taking psychology. This will get my twelfth grade social studies requirement out of the way. I had to try to do it this year because I have to take the junior social studies requirement -- U.S. History-- as a senior. Plus, I absolutely love the teacher, so I should not have problem.
I really need to start hitting the Italian language really hard. I have not completed any more sections recently. Quite frankly, I have just not had the time. Maybe I will do some tonight. I have a little bit of time. I love Italian though. I still think that it is a wonderful and gorgeous language. :)
Ciao! :)
Life!
Nov 13, 2008
Hey!! While I am patiently (yet impatiently) waiting to hear if I have been accepted by Italy, life goes on. At my school, sophomores are required to participate in a career shadow. This is where the student shadows someone while they are going about their day to day business at work. I thought and thought about what kind of job I may want to have. I finally landed on teaching. Teaching is such an incredible way to make a difference in someone's life. So, I decided to shadow my aunt. She teaches fourth grade up in Washington. I really loved spending time with her in her classroom and at her house. I also really enjoyed seeing my cousin. We never get the opportunity to truly talk. My brothers are usually around, however, this time they were not. It was really great. Now, I feel like I might have some idea of what I would like to do for a career.
Right now, I am currently taking my two favorite classes of all time. Honors International Literature and Honors International Studies. Part of it has to do with the teachers. The two teachers are absolutely wonderful and they are both retiring after this year. I am very lucky to have them. The other part is that I just love literature and social studies. Both of the teachers are really encouraging me to do this foreign exchange, which in turn, makes me even more excited. Today, for example, both of them randomly started to talk to me and ask me questions about my exchange.
Lately, I have been trying to figure out what my schedule is going to be like next semster. I talked to my social studies teacher, who also teaches psychology, and he said that he would be happy if I was in his psychology class. Normally, it is only available for seniors to take, however, given my circumstances, I felt that I needed to try to get some of my senior classes in this year. I am incredibly excited about psychology. It just seems like such an interesting subject. I have not had too much exposure to psychology, but from what I have been exposed to, it seems great. Because of my exchange, I have to take AP US History as a senior. If I had to take psychology on top of that, I would be on social studies overload. I know that they are completely different, however, it would just be too much. All I need to do is talk to my counselor to see if it is full.
I am trying my hardest to begin learning Italian. My parents bought me Rosetta Stone. The program is great, however, I keep finding it hard to actually sit down and do it. I want to have as great of an understanding of the language before I go. I guess I just need to do it. Italian is such a gorgeous language, so I am excited to be learning it. So far, I know a little and some of it is really similar to Spanish. Because they are similar, it makes it a tiny bit easier. It is still hard though because pronunciation between the two languages varies significantly.
As you can tell, Italy constantly invades my thoughts. I am just too excited! Going to Italy is something that I have wanted to do for as long as I can remember. Now, it is so close. I can touch it, smell it, hear it, taste it...everything. But, all of it hangs on Italy saying yes or no. I am hoping so hard that they say yes. If I do end up going to Spain or the Netherlands, it will still be incredible, however, I am in love with everything Italian. I only have about another month and a half of waiting! It is getting so close! YAY! :)
Introduction and Waiting
Nov 8, 2008
Hey!! Obviously, this is my first post here. I am writing the blog to share my experiences before/during my exchange. I am hoping to travel with AFS to Italy. Why Italy you may ask? All I can say is...Italy. No... :) Actually, I have been practically obsessed with Italy for as long as I can remember. In Kindergarten, I adored the Colosseum. It was later that I learned that the Colosseum was used for gladiator battles where people killed each other. This, however, did not change my love for Italy. As I grew, so did my infatuation with Italy. Now, it is full blown. I love everything Italian!
Another question that you may ask is why now. Well, this past summer I went on tour with the choir of which I am a member. We participated in an international choir festival in England and then traveled to France where we performed in many historic places. The last thing in the world that I wanted to do was leave. I was so upset! Previously, I thought about doing an exchange when I was in college. A high school exchange never occurred to me. In fact, I did not even know that it was a possibility. My mom and I discussed exchanges while I was in Europe. This got me thinking. The day after I got back home, I immediately began researching different organizations that offered Italy. I already knew that I wanted to go to Italy....as you read above. AFS immediately caught my attention. With its long, well-thought of history, it was perfect. I spent the next two weeks talking with my dad about it. My mother was like "Go for it!" She is really excited that I am doing this. My dad took a little convincing. He eventually realized that I wanted this so badly and that it really was the ideal experience for someone like me to have. I sent in my preliminary application as soon as I could. All of this took place in August.
When AFS sent me the complete online application, I was beyond excited. Now, I could officially apply for the experience of a lifetime. Because I was so excited, I needed to take a day or two just to soak up the fact that I could finally do it. Then I filled out all of the simple online part where you fill in your name, family, country preference, etc.... Just in case you do not get accepted to your first choice country or if it is full, you have to come up with two other alternatives. My second choice country is Spain, while my third choice country is The Netherlands. Thankfully, my mother had just made an appointment for me to have a physical with my physican. That took care of the forms that needed to be filled out by a doctor. Then, my parents read, signed, and wrote everything that they needed to. When we took the forms to my high school to be filled out, my counselor said that it would only take him a couple of weeks to get them back to me. He was wrong. It took him almost a month. During this time, I wrote my very long (probably a little too long) letter to my future host family and put together my picture page. As soon as I got everything done and my counselor had given everything to me, I sent my application in around September 19th.
Now, my advisor at AFS told me that my application was accepted for further review and country review. She told me this a few weeks ago. This means that I am definitely going abroad for a year. It is just not official as to which country at the moment. Italy does not start accepting applications until the very end of December to the beginning of January. I still have a long wait ahead of me and it has been hard. I have gotten better at the waiting process though...what with school and everything. I am so excited! I have so much trouble containing my excitment. For my birthday, which was about a month ago, all I had planned was a huge Italian feast. It was AMAZING!!! AHHHHH.......I want to do this so badly! I can not wait to find out. Apparently, according to my mom and to my AFS advisor, there is nothing on my application that would keep Italy from accepting me. So, I have that tidbit of information to keep me from worrying too too much about not getting accepted. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
