Reports: Visiting a German Family

Patricia Lawrenz, US exchange student in 1 ab

1ab English med Wivian

Visiting a German Family

Living with a new family can be very thrilling, but it can also have its downside, the prime one being homesickness. No matter where you go, when you leave your family or culture for a period of time, you have a longing to go back again. For me this predicament has not been as prevalent as it has been for others, but just when I am having the best time of my life, that longing creeps back making me crave to go home. This feeling was more frequent at the beginning of my stay in Denmark, and while in Germany, the craving for rye bread and frikadeller struck me after only 2 days away. There are also other tribulations that can occur while on an exchange.

There may be problems if you cannot communicate with the host family. I couldn’t speak any German and my host parents couldn’t speak any English. In these situations patience is key. If we took the time to draw pictures of what we meant or acted out what we wanted to do then the point would eventually come across.

When I came to Denmark I was lucky because almost everyone can speak English, and therefore could translate and explain situations to me. I think that if I had to live with a family, like many of the German families that can’t speak English, it would have been a much harder transition.

The switch from your daily routine is already difficult, but adding in new food, activities, and family traditions makes it seem nearly impossible at times. Some differences from my Danish and American families to the German family would be the food and activities. At home for breakfast and in Denmark, I normally eat a bowl of cereal, and on weekends we eat scrambled eggs, bacon, and pancakes.

In Germany we ate pancakes, but we spread Nutella on them and rolled them up until they looked like cigars. For dinner we had salad, which is very common in Danish and American meals, but then they served a type of stuffed pasta that originates from Russia because my partner has roots there. I think that it is wonderful that her family still holds on to their background because I know very little about my heritage. I believe that it is very important to keep hold of your history because it is what makes you who you are.

That is one of the great things about Denmark, and I will grow to miss all of the history this country has.

Patricia

STAYING WITH A FAMILY IN GERMANY 2

When we arrived at the school in Ahlen, we were all very excited and a little bit nervous because almost none of us had tried staying in a foreign family before. I do not have German in school, and I was worried that the family and I would end up having nothing to say to each other, due to the language barrier. But I was happily surprised.
My German friend, Stephanie, and her parents were very sweet and welcomed me in the family with open arms. Stephanie’s father did not speak English at all, which of course was a shame, but she and her mother were good at translating, so it was not impossible for her father and me to communicate.
That I had to stay with them and sleep alone with Stephanie was not something I had feared, and I am sure my year at a boarding school has made it easier for me to cope with new people that I do not know. Staying there was easy because I got everything served. When I got out of the bathroom in the morning breakfast was ready, and I received everything I could ask for: boiled eggs, fresh orange juice, tea, coffee and freshly baked bread because they lived above a bakery which Stephanie’s grandfather once had owned. They took very much care of me, and they even insisted on paying my lunch in Münster, and all my sodas at the bowling centre for me. Of course there were some awkward silences sometimes, but it was a very positive experience, and I think we students learned a lot about people and about using foreign languages in practice.

Sofie 1ab 2010