My dear family, friends, and readers,
I hope everybody is well. I am doing amazing and I have a lot to tell you about!
Because the lacrosse season came to the end in about the middle of this month, I have now more time to do more activities with my friends and family outside of the school and outside of the house. The days also get longer and warmer and much more enjoyable, although we had a lot of rain too.
I became very busy and I now realize that there isn't much time left to do all the things I wanted to do, but that is fine. I am lucky and I will be able to come back a couple of times and experience the things then. I try to enjoy the experience now as much as possible and I don't want to waste the little time I have left on too many things that I can't enjoy.
Here are some of my highlights of this months:
The Thursday before prom I went on a half day to my sister's house to spend the day with her. We picked up Ziad from school and went together to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. It was a beautiful summer night and it was a lot of fun with those two in Boston. It was very spontaneous and during a school day but it was 100% worth it. I loved the museum and Boston at night.
On May 20th was prom! Prom was on a Saturday. Everybody was very excited and planned the whole prom day completely out with hair and makeup appointments, with photo shootings and meetups to take pictures.
I woke up at about 10 am, I called my Swiss family and then did my makeup. After I did my own makeup I went to a hair appointment for the first time in my life. Already letting somebody making my hair was an experience I never had before. I was very happy with my hair, but I was also in a hurry to get back to my house because I soon had to leave to take pictures.
I went to my liaison's house, where I met my prom date. The guys organized a limousine, with which we went to a girl's house, where everybody went to take pictures and then afterwards we went with the limousine to the red carpet, which was in the front of the school. Every couple walked down the red carpet in front of almost the whole town. The prom location was in the Gillette Stadium, which is the football stadium of the New England Patriots. We all went there with school busses. As we arrived there, we saw an amazing view of the whole stadium, there was good food but most importantly everybody was in a very good mood. We ate, danced, took pictures in the photo booths and enjoyed the evening all together. To see everybody that good looking and dressed up was pretty cool I thought because there are no events similar like that at my school at home, which I am a little sad about now that I experienced prom. Tired and with a big smile on my face I fell asleep that evening. It was an incredible night that I was dreaming about since I am little. And YES, I think it was like in High School Musical. I couldn't believe how much of it was similar to the movies that I watched before that were about American high schools.
The day after prom my host family and I went again to the Gillette Stadium, but this time not because of prom, but because we went to watch a soccer game. The soccer game wasn't very special to me since I come from Europe, where soccer is very popular, but I loved the family time we spent. We laughed and cheered together. Also, it was for me again a typical American experience, because the whole spirit in the stadium is simply different than the spirit that I experienced back home. My favorite moments at big events like that is when everybody stands proudly up and sings or listens to the national anthem. It is breathtaking to me. After the game, we met my host Mom and Adam, my host nephew. We met them after because Adam is too still too small to be able to watch a whole soccer game. We met in an "American Asian"-restaurant. Here again, we had wonderful family quality time.
Right after this weekend, it was the last day of school for our seniors. They only had a few exams left and then they never had to come to school again. I didn't make too many Senior friends because I am two grades below them and I didn't share too many classes with seniors, but the few I made are good friends, that I now miss in school.
After this week also flew by I spent the Sunday in Boston. In the morning I spent time with my friend from Germany, Lea and after I met one of my Swiss friends, who came with some other friends to Boston from New Jersey, where they spent the year. I finally was able to do the famous freedom trail in Boston, which is a historical path through the downtown of Boston.
On Monday, May 29th it was Memorial Day, which is an American holiday to remember the soldiers who fought in the wars. I was supposed to march in a Memorial parade with my clarinet, but since it was raining I wasn't able to play, but I watched it from the side instead. It was very American and very patriotic. It was an event, where the town came together to think of the fallen ones and it showed a lot of unity, a feeling or spirit that I never felt in Switzerland before.
On Tuesday I normally went to school, but I left after school was over with some of my exchange student friends for the Cape Cod. There we met 15 other exchange students. It was a two and a half AFS orientation, which was called Pre- Departure Orientation. These days I will never forget. All 20 of us bonded so closely together. We are all from completely different parts and cultures of the world, but we all found soulmates and best friends in each other. We all became even better friends and we had one of the best times during my whole exchange. During the serious parts of the orientation, we got prepared to go home and they gave us adivice how to be able to adjust in the community at home again. I know that sounds a little silly to somebody who didn't do an exchange year, but I am pretty sure they know what they are talking about. The volunteers went with us through many situations that exchange students from the past went through when they got back home. It was the most emotional orientation so far. We started realizing that our dream and very exciting life is soon coming to an end. We realized that we might not be able to soon get back together and we became all a little depressed. Some of us are leaving in exactly on week. I can't believe it is almost over! I honestly can't tell anybody where the time went! I have totally mixed feelings about going home. I am very excited to see everybody at home again, but I am afraid that I will live through the scenarios that the AFS volunteers told us. I also built here almost a whole new life up with completely new friends, with host parents and sibilings. I can't imagine how life is going to be without this here right now anymore. I mean, it will be in my memories forever, but it won't be around me anymore everyday.
There is a quote that I found that describes my feelings somehow very well:
"you build a life for 16 years and you leave it for 11 months. You build a life for 11 months and leave it forever".
Although I was very sad to leave Switzerland, although I was homesick and had little crisises and although I am now sad, I will never regret any moment of this year. I am proud of myself for being able to do this at a young age and I am very greatful fo rmy parents, who gave me the possibility to do this whole year abroad. I can't even express enough how thankful I am.
Take care and lots of love,
Nadia
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| Gilly watching Jazmin and my lacrosse game against each other |
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| The Lacrosse Team |
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| Boston trip with Ayesha |
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| Ayesha's host Mom, Ayesha and I in front of the Harvard Medical Center |
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| The museum of Fine Arts with Ziad |
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| Friday evening beach day with Lea |
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| My host sister, Sarah and I |
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| Sophia and I |
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| Gilly and I |
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| Drew and I |
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| My corsage |
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| My prom date, Jason and I |
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| My host Dad, my host sister and my host brother |
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| Katie, Charlotte and I |
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| Lea and I |
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| Lea and I in Gillette |
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| Luna and I |
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| Family soccer game |
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| Memorial day in Boston |
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| Me on the top of the prudential tower |
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| My Swiss friend, his friends and I at the Boston Harbor |
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| Clarinet Seniors: Meg and Matt |
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| Mavi and I |
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The "Europeans"
Italy, Norway, France, Germany, Chech republic and Switzerland |
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| Kristian from Norway and I |
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| Mavi, Vicente and I |
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| Vicente, me, Kristian, Gilly and Jazmin |
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| Ayesha and I |
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| Gilly and I |
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The South East Massbay district and the Cape Cod district all together <3
Yang - China, Jazmin - Paraguay, Ayesha - Pakistan, Gilly and Mavi - Italy, Ami and Reika - Japan, Eve, Hansa, Peeta, and Mint - Thailand, Methra, Sim and Yannis - Malaysia, Bleuenn- France, Marie - Chech Republic, Kristian - Norway, Vicente - Mexico, Delf - Germany and me - Switzerland |
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| The whole AFS group from the orientation including volunteers |
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Marie, Methra, Ayesha, Mavi, Eve, Jazmin, Vicente, Gilly and I
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