alexa-abroad

[alexa-abroad]

so so so so much has happened but i couldn't be happier in life right now! i have now been in australia for 4 months and have had some amazing experiences. i've had the chance to see kangaroos, snorkel in the great barrier reef, visit Cairns and meet heaps of other exchange students, climb the sydney harbour bridge with my pen pal, visit Australia's capital territory Canberra, attend a music festival, and made some amazing friends and a second family!!!

[alexa-abroad]

Exchange Student Situations #2

Probably only exchange students understand how one year can be the most amazing and at the same time the hardest experience you’ve ever had.

[alexa-abroad]

Being an exchange student means:

Awkwardly following people around everywhere

[alexa-abroad]

The hardest part about being an exchange student is not being able to pet your dog for a year

[alexa-abroad]

The Secrets of Exchange

Exchange is strange because you live two lives. Not just in the sense of where you came from and where you are now, but something more than that. You have the life you show on Facebook and the wicked pictures you post on Instagram and the fun, PG outings you write about in your blog, but what nobody knows until they get there is what’s beneath that surface. No one back home hears about when you sat in the bathroom and cried on the first day of school because your classmates just blankly stared at you when you walked into the classroom. Nobody knows about the times when your host mom washes your laundry and it takes a week to dry. No one hears about the times when you cry when you wake up and count the days until you’re back home. Nobody hears about the silent dinners with your host family when they aren’t up for talking. No one hears about the times you’re yelled at for things that you can’t even control. No one knows about the nights when your host dad texts you at 11:30, telling you it’s time to come home. See, people don’t hear about each and every strand of hair you have to remove from the drain every time you finish taking a shower, in an attempt to not annoy your host family. Nobody hears about the hours spent studying the language. Nobody hears about the shitty feeling you get when you realize that you were probably only invited to this party because you’re foreign and the boys want to get you drunk. Exchange is hard, and this is what nobody realizes. Exchange is dry skin, terrible breakouts, brittle nails and hair that falls out. Exchange is not always fitting in. Exchange is inevitably feeling pathetic sometimes.

But that’s where the magic lies. This is the reason why we grow. If we weren’t pushed to our emotional limits, we wouldn’t become completely different people. Exchange makes you sympathetic, tolerant, adaptable, more chilled out. The bad things make the good things that much sweeter. Exchange life is life to the utmost extreme, and once you’ve lived it, you’ll never be the same again.

Exchange is learning to deal.

Exchange is gaining grace.

[alexa-abroad]

exchange update!! it is currently March 3, 2017 (a Friday night) Wednesday was my one month mark since being in Australia! Here are some pics of a great day in Sydney. I was finally able to meet my pen pal for the first time. We have been talking for around 7 years now so this was such an amazing experience. Sydney is an incredible city and I can’t wait to visit again!!

[alexa-abroad]

Dear baby exchange students,

Yeah you, the ones who are so excited to fly away in just a few months or weeks. Take a deep breath, this is really exciting - I know! Here’s a few tips from a girl who is not ready to leave her host country, hopefully they are a bit different from the “don’t hide in your room” tips you always hear:

1. Take photos. Of everything. A good meal, your friends, a dog you see on the street. Do not be embarrassed to take selfies in front of random things. The locals won’t get it, but they don’t have to.

2. Eat the scary thing. It might be nasty, it might be amazing - either way you have a story.

3. Don’t take a single moment de granted. Because one day you won’t see that view of the town on your long, rainy walk home. You will miss it.

4. Exchange weight is whatever. Eat all the things. Eat Japanese sweets and Italian pasta with your friends until your stomach hurts from good food and laughing.

5. A good way to make friends is just tagging along. My best friends here, I made by pretty much following them around for weeks until I became a part of the friend-clique. It works!

6. Take a deep breath. Some days, everything will suck. Remember how lucky you are to explore the world.

7. Go to school. But also skip class. Be lagom, as the Swedes say. It doesn’t translate to English properly, but it means not too much, not too little - just right.

8. Remember that you go through 5 years worth of growth in exchange. That comes with five years of emotions in one year. Feel these intense feelings, and roll with them. Let them come. It will make you better.

Good luck, my little exchangers! You’ve got the world ahead of you - go take it all in!

[alexa-abroad]

almost time...

i was approved for my australian visa on december 8th, 2016!! can't believe the time is almost here

[alexa-abroad]

host fam!!

Update!!! I finally received my host family on October 5th, 2016! I am so excited to have an Australian home🇦🇺🇦🇺 Just a few more months until I arrive! (early February 2017)

[alexa-abroad]

Final application packet

The area rep came and picked up my application packet April 21st 2016. Now just waiting to hear back if everything was filled out okay and the next step is finding out a host family!!

[alexa-abroad]

What being an exchange student means --

Being a high school exchange student means:

That you made the best and worst decision to leave home for the year.

Giving people a reason to love your home country.

That your current life floats in a different bubble, and you become worried that it will pop.

Becoming a part of a family despite differences of culture.

That you cant walk to the bathroom without any pants on because there’s a risk that a member of your host family will see you.

You arrive in a place filled with people that have no prior judgements of you.

Learning a new culture is your job.

Schooling becomes something different.

You’re a teenager in a foreign country.

You learn new swear words that you can get away with saying back in your home country.

Acting crazy in public because you know that the general population will not ever see you again.

Making your own decisions.

Eating “weird” foods.

Making friends from every corner on the planet.

Developing a different sense of pride for your home and host country.

Deciding how to live your life.  

kyrawestman

[alexa-abroad]

It’s a funny thing coming home. Nothing changes. Everything looks the same, feels the same, even smells the same. You realize what’s changed, is you.

Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button screenplay (via travel-quotes)

[alexa-abroad]

Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.

Anthony Bourdain (via durianquotes)

[alexa-abroad]

I just loved this.

[alexa-abroad]

Reblog if you ARE an exchange student, WERE and exchange student, or WILL BE an exchange student

And put in the tags when, how long, where to, and with which organization!

[alexa-abroad]

Jan 17, 2016

Jan 2 was when I sent in my first application and yesterday I had an interview with the area representative. The next step is sending in my application packet

[alexa-abroad]

hello friends

I'm starting this blog to keep up with my experiences as an exchange student. Although there is quite some time before I leave, I'm very excited and figured that I could get a head start on this!! Also, I can keep up with everything that happens pre exchange :))