America, well there wasn't a whole lot l could have said about the United Sates, or at least about the culture and the society people are living in here before l left for Germany. That's why I decided to leave Germany last year in July. I came to Mesa, a City right next to Phoenix in Arizona.
Now it's already February, and I've been here for 7 months, there is a lot to learn and to experience here, so I am still not able to predict what's going to happen next. There are always surprises and weird things going on here. The place I probably spent most of my time, willing or not, is my high school. School is a lot different here then it is in Germany. The school I am going to has about 2,800 students and you can get lost very easily. lt took me almost one whole week to make it to my classes in time, but now I know where I have to be if I really want to make it. School starts at 8 am and lasts until 3 pm. My first hour is Physics; in that class we do an incredibly huge amount of labs, with precise equipment that I have never seen before. After that l go right to my symphonic orchestra class, that's one of the biggest classes I have; there are about 30 people in there. That class is actually pretty fun because you just play your instrument and get full credit and an A on you progress report no matter what you are doing. My third hour is Pre Calculus, which is one of the harder math classes. We actually have a lot of fun in there too, but that's probably the class I'm getting the most homework in: it takes me almost an hour to finish. The bad thing for all the lazy people though is that your, home work grade' in some classes counts for 20 percent of your final grade. That is why you should always to the homework you get assigned.
To relax from all those classes, I go to lunch at II am where everyone is fighting to be the first in one of the ten food lines, where everyone eats Pizza and Fries with Ranch dressing that they eat everyday. My next two classes are Sociology and American Literature, my teachers in both of those classes just love to talk, and that's pretty dangerous at one or two in the afternoon. I used take a swim class in Summer, but now since it's just 25°C in winter, lt's to cold to swim anymore because that sport is only offered in summer when the temperatures are about 50°C.
The people here are so different. The biggest difference I noticed is that everyone I5 happier here, or at least they seem to be happier, and Americans care so much less about what other people may think about themselves. l think that is so important because you get judged by your inner values and not by the way you look like. That is something I really appreciate! That makes it so easy to make new friends everyone 5 nice and most of the people care about each other, and I haven't spent any free minute here without being with a friend, so I haven't become bored yet.
Like a lot of other exchanged students, I had
to change my host family in the middle of the year because things didn't
work out. Now I am surely living with one of the greatest families in America.
We are all having a lot of fun, like playing on the playground and being
a little embarrassed, but who actually cares? All that counts is the fun
you get out of it for yourself! I really appreciate all the effort they
make to support me and my goals.
I can only suggest to everyone to go to another
country as an exchange student, if you get the chance to. Because there
is no way easier to grow up that fast! I changed a lot and l learned how
to be myself, and being on my own, and this year is probably going to be
one of the most important parts of my life.
And finally I like to thank everyone who supported my coming to America; the teachers who taught me English and of course my parents and my family who supported me greatly.
(Katharina Hahn)