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Bonjour!
Molly M., an exchange student sponsored by the East Jefferson Rotary Club in Chimacum, Washington USA, can’t believe that her year in Belgium is already half way over! Sending her District 5020 Country Officer, Julia, her halfway report she is actually counting her days abroad…. “Today is day 170 of my exchange here in Belgium”.
Currently Molly is living with her second host family. She stayed with her first host family for more than a third of her exchange, 4.5 months actually. “It was hard at first because I felt homesick all the time… but I still had a great experience there”! Molly feels very supported by her host families and. “It was a refreshing feeling to start again with a new family”. Changing families can be like hitting the restart button.
Molly says, “School here is very different and hard. At first I had a very hard time understanding science and math. It's not that I didn't understand what the teachers were saying, it's that the criteria is (very) hard for me to learn in a different language. In the United States I only had 7 classes but here I have around 15. But my exams went well and now I understand so much more in school”.
“The rotary club that I am in is Liège-SUD. We are supposed to go to Rotary meetings every 3rd Wednesday of the month but we have only been to two of them because of other rotary activities that happen the same week. There are 4 other exchange students in my club. Two Brazilians, one other American and a girl from Taiwan. I got really lucky with this club; the other exchange students are so nice. Two of my best friends here are in my club as well”!
Molly’s district Rotex group in Belgium does activities every month. So far they have gone to Brussels, went to a mine, kayaking, rafting, a nighttime candle light activity in her city, a war fort, and a Christmas market in Germany.
Christmas was another surprise to Molly, “very interesting” was the way she put it in her report. “I assumed it would be similar to how it is at home” but it was much simpler and Molly found it interesting to see the Belgian way of celebrating Christmas.
Just after New years Molly went to Zagreb, Croatia to visit another exchange student from 5020. “It was such a great experience, and also so different to be with people I knew from before my exchange. I stayed with two American friends of my mom who have lived abroad for about 10 years. It was a cool thing to do but it was weird to be able to speak (English)! I actually missed French after being gone for 5 days”.
“There are SO many exchange students in Belgium, and I am so fortunate to have so many friends here. My best friends are (other exchange students) from Canada, India, USA and Brazil, My Canadian friend actually lives in British Columbia. We are so close back home”!
“Belgium is overall the best country I can imagine for exchange. I am so so so grateful that I was placed in this wonderful country. I can't believe my exchange is more than halfway over! I can't imagine being in another country”.
“There are SO many exchange students in Belgium, and I am so fortunate to have so many friends here. My best friends are (other exchange students) from Canada, India, USA and Brazil, My Canadian friend actually lives in British Columbia. We are so close back home”!
“Belgium is overall the best country I can imagine for exchange. I am so so so grateful that I was placed in this wonderful country. I can't believe my exchange is more than halfway over! I can't imagine being in another country”.
“My French is coming along so well! Many people have told me that my French is so good already! I also hear that I have almost no accent. I'm so happy that I'm learning French and that I am here”.
Molly M., BELGIUM.
“This is my class on a school retreat. It was two nights and a lot of fun! I have some amazing Belgian friends in my class”.