Black Friday Experience

They don’t have Black Friday in Germany so Lara, our German Exchange Student, just had to see what all the hype was about! I was able to snap a couple pictures of the girls (below) but first… what exactly is Black Friday???

For our overseas readers, Black Friday is the day After Thanksgiving and considered the start of holiday shopping season. Almost all stores comes out with Door Buster Sales and Early Bird Specials to attract shoppers to their stores. People stand in line hours before store is opened, to be first in line to grab the bargain of the year. Almost every store has something that interests every one. For example, Some stores had Office Chairs for $12. Some had DVD Players for $12.  It’s known as Black Friday because retailers report some of their highest profits this day. The black portion of the name relates to businesses recording their losses in red ink and gains in black. And this day marks a lot of gains for businesses!

Keep in mind… I don’t do the getting-up-at-4am thing to get the best deals of the year! I’ve gone out at 7am or later… but I’ve never saved so much money that I’ve thought it necessary to go out any earlier. This year… stores decided starting sales at midnight would be good for business. Some were even open on Thanksgiving Day offering good deals. And others decided to get a jump on business by starting at 10am… like WalMart.

Lara and Brittany were going to go with one of my friend’s who makes an art of Black Friday shopping by mapping out stores and having a complete strategy on where to go first. But she decided not to go this year. So… I ventured out with the girls at 10:00pm and we went to WalMart… probably one of the craziest places to go!

First of all… I’ve always wondered why WalMart has had such a big parking lot. I mean, really… it’s always empty. Well, I found out that’s there IS one day of the year that it is FULL! Black Friday! We found a spot and walked inside at about 10:10pm. I wish I had a video camera of Lara’s face! Ten steps into the doors and all she could say was, “OH MY GOSH!!!” A couple steps more and all we could hear was, “OH MY GOSH!!!” Brittany and I were laughing at her…. and laughing hard!

The lines at all 30 check-out registers was at least 10-to-15 people long! There were no shopping carts available! Every aisle was packed with shoppers! And the closer we got to the Electronics Department, the crazier it was! You see, bargains in the Electronics Department were not starting until 12:00am. But the store was already open. So hundreds of people were waiting in line in aisles marked with yellow tape. Or they were standing next to 5 foot high piles of boxes covered in black plastic. Those were the Televisions or Game bundles of PS3 or Wii consoles! There were also balloons tied to other products like $5 for a Tupperware-type set or $1.98 for DVD Movies. The item we saw the most in people’s carts… those electric cars for small children like the Pink Barbie Jeep. Normally $250, they were on sale for just $99. Quite a savings! I also saw a lot of children’s board games for $3.88 and picture frames for $5 and $10!

152 million people are expected to shop over the 3-day weekend, up about 10 percent from last year. About 600 shoppers were in line at a Target store in Brooklyn, New York when it opened at midnight. Nearly 2,000 shoppers wrapped around a Best Buy store in St. Petersburg, Florida. At Mall of America in Minnesota, the nation’s largest mall in North America, 15,000 shoppers were in ine for its midnight opening. And more than 9,000 people were outside the famous Macy’s store in New York’s Herald Square at midnight, up from 7,000 a year ago.

In some cases, shoppers actually get violent with each other. In Los Angeles, 20 people were hurt at a local Walmart when a woman used pepper spray on them to get to the front of the line when the store opened. At a Walmart in upstate New York, a man was arrested after two women were injured in a fight that broke out. In Phoenix, a grandfather was roughed up by police after he put a game in his waistband to free up his hands to lift his grandson above the crowd.  He was slammed to the ground by police, who likely assumed that he was shoplifting.

The only aggression we saw was one lady who said, “Keep the carts moving people! Just grab and go! Grab and go!” Lara couldn’t believe her ears… or believe what she saw. Pictures of Lara and Brittany are below! I sure wish I had my video camera!

To get an idea on the types of bargains that were available, go to http://www.theblackfriday.com/what-is-black-friday.shtml.

One post we saw summed it up pretty well…. “Only in America, would people violently trample each other for discounts exactly one day after being thankful for what they already have.”

Coming up in the next post: Lara is like a kid in a candy store as we put up our 15,000 or so Christmas lights!

Brittany and the lines of shoppers waiting to pay!!!

Lara and Black Friday Shoppers!

First Thanksgiving

Since Thanksgiving is an American Holiday, Lara was able to experience it for the first time. For weeks, she was excited because there was a 4-day weekend coming up. But as the day got closer, we explained it’s true meaning.

For those reading this overseas, Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November every year. It’s a time for feeling gratitude and lavish feasts. It started when the original pilgrims celebrated the Autumn harvest with a feast of thanks. It’s known as the “First Thanksgiving Day Feast” and held as a gesture of thanks to God . It was celebrated in the year 1621. After the United States gained independence, Congress recommended one day a year of thanksgiving for the whole nation to celebrate. 

We went to Amber’s home, our older daughter. Our other older daughter, Melody, and her boyfriend, Brian, were also there. Tyler and Sharon were in Tucson at Sharon’s relatives home about 100 miles away. Afterwards, we stopped at my Aunt Jan’s and Uncle Bernie’s where several of my retired Aunts and Uncles were finishing up their feast!

The typical Thanksgiving meal includes a combination of the following foods: Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Sweet Potatoes, Cranberry Sauce, A Vegetable Casserole, Fresh Baked Bread, and Desserts, especially Pumpkin Pie. 

We explained to Lara that it’s a time for us to be thankful for what we have. So, we created a “Thankful Jar” that we could write down what we were thankful for and put it in the jar to read later. Lara made the label for the jar. I decorated it. Some of the notes inside said: Amber wrote, “I’m thankful for my family and friends.” Brittany wrote, “I’m thankful for my beautiful amazing loving family.” Melody wrote, “I’m thankful for Saucy and Brian.” Travis wrote, “I’m thankful for edible substances.” And Lara wrote, “I’m thankful for being here with this great family in America and have so much fun with you guys.”

Thanksgiving signifies a couple of other things. It’s the official start of the Holiday season… including Christmas and New Year’s Eve and Day. And that also means the start of the holiday shopping season!

Coming up in the next few posts… our Black Friday outing … that really started late Thanksgiving night! And putting up 15,000 or so lights on our house!!!

3 Months in America Interview

Lara is one-third into her adventure as a German Exchange Student in America! Time is certainly going fast! So, what better time than now to “interview” her about the experience.  I asked friends and family to give me questions to ask her about her life here. In this Blog, I’ve included the questions with a “Q”, her answer with an “A”, and then my comments as her Host Mother and what I have observed about her. I think you will find some of the subjects interesting! Enjoy!

*****

Q: Has the learning curve for English become much easier?

A: “Yes, because I’m thinking more in English now instead of thinking in German and then remembering “how” to talk in English.”

Me: I’ve seen great progress in Lara’s English. The first couple months she would struggle with finding the right word quite often and she spoke in a very quiet voice, almost as if she was unsure of herself. If she didn’t know how to say something, her first response would be to get her translator or go to Google Translator on the computer or say, “I don’t know how to say that.” She doesn’t use those tools very often now, is speaking more…and I should add she is talking much louder! It’s a sign of confidence plus, I think she realizes, if she’s going to keep up with this family… she better speak up! I’ve started correcting her more often on her grammar. When I told her I was going to start doing that, she made a funny face… as if she didn’t like that. But I told her if I didn’t correct her grammar she would not grow in the language. Even when she sends me a text message from school, if there is a grammar error, I re-send the text back with the correct grammar … and a smiley face, of course! By the time she goes home to Germany, her English will be flawless!

*****

Q: What does she like best about America… what does she wish she could change?

A: “What I like best is that everything is newer. What I wish I could change is to make Americans care more about the environment.”

Me: I knew what Lara was going to say she liked best so far. She always says the buildings and roads and houses are so new compared to Germany.  And I always say that is what Americans love about Europe… the beauty of the old historic buildings. I guess it’s all in relation to what we are accustomed to living with and the beauty of experiencing anything that is different. As for caring more about the environment, I explained to her that some people are more careful, some are not. She follows our recycling program here in Mesa but it is not as thorough as  the program in her hometown. They have separate bins to sort plastic, glass and paper. Ours go into one bin. Then we have a separate trash container for greenery like tree branches and grass clippings. And another trash bin for other waste. She  is very conscious when Terry is watering his flowers in the planters making sure he turns on a timer so the water doesn’t overflow and is wasted. We will probably learn a few things from Lara in this department. 🙂

*****

Q: What was the biggest surprise or difference from what she expected?

A: “I thought I would have more language problems. I thought Americans knew more about the world. And I did not think school would be so different as my school.”

Me: Lara is quickly learning that Americans are not quite sure where all the European countries are located or know a lot about their history. She giggles at some of it. I, however, share with her that there are probably many Europeans who do not know all the states in the USA. In fact, there are some Americans who aren’t sure where all the states are located either, especially those of us living on the West Coast unsure about all those small states on the East Coast!

As for school, it is quite different in America. Lara’s school is grades 5 through 12 and there are about 1,500 students. Her school here is grades 9 through 12 and 3200 students. In her grade at home, there are 6 classes of about 30 students. Most of them stay together throughout the day. And every day is different. In America, each of her classes are at the same time every day, school starts at 7:30a and ends at 2:30pm. In Germany, she could start at 8am one day and 9am another, depending on which classes she has scheduled. And many times, her teachers  change classrooms, not the students. She has mentioned that it’s a little more boring in America because it’s the same thing over and over. I can understand that.

*****

Q:  Are American boys cuter?

A: (Giggling and blushing) “They are not cuter than German boys but they are not uglier. Some are cute and some are not, just like in Germany.”

Me: Oh, the healthy Teenage girl isn’t really different just because they are from a different country! Boys are boys are boys! Thankfully, Lara is not “boy crazy” like some girls her age can be! She’s not chasing after boys or asking to date! Whew! That’s one less worry on my mind!!! 🙂

*****

Q: Besides family and friends, what does she miss most?

A: (laughing) “German Bread Rolls.”

Me: This came to light in the last week or so. When Lara was preparing to come to America, she was told that she will get really tired of soft bread. And about a week ago, she finally said, “I can’t eat soft bread anymore.” Then she explained that their bread in Germany has a hard crust and soft in the middle…but not as soft as ours. So now I buy her a long loaf of fresh bread in the store bakery and we toast it for sandwiches or jelly or Nutella. It’s kind of funny because Americans love soft warm bread out of the oven!!!

*****

Q: What is your favorite food here?

A: “Many of the foods are the same. I really like the soda machine at Wendy’s though.”

Me: This is so funny! We took her to Wendy’s for the first time about 2 weeks ago. The one by our house has a million-dollar soda machine that has 130 flavors. You can mix and match just about anything. I’m not even going to try to explain how it works. Instead, here’s the website. http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/zachary-wilson/and-how/coca-cola-gives-ten-times-choices-freestyle

*****

Q: What is your favorite store?

A: “We have many of the same stores but I like Forever 21 and WalMart.”

Me: I knew she’d like Forever 21. What American teenager doesn’t? I talked about it in my posts from Washington DC and New York City. Inexpensive, cute, trendy, young-people clothes! But I was surprised to hear WalMart! I think it’s because she can go there and get just about anything she needs. It’s convenient. It’s also inexpensive for someone on a tight budget. WalMart sometimes gets a bad rap but for someone from Germany…it’s just what she needs. For those of you overseas, here is a link for WalMart. http://www.walmart.com/

*****

Q: What was the hardest thing to adjust to?

A: ‘Waking up earlier for school.”

Me: Teens are teens are teens! What more can I say about this? She gets up an hour earlier for school. Just an hour. And apparently that’s an hour too much! On weekends, Lara and Brittany both wake up on their own around 9:00 or 9:30am.

*****

Q: What do you like about Arizona so far?

A: “The heat.”

Me: My first reaction was, “WHAT? The heat? As in 115 degrees of heat?” She said, “No, not really that… the warm weather is what I like.” She came here when it was 110-115 degrees every day… and the hottest August on record! Now, she’s cold when it drops below 70 degrees… which is considered summer weather back in Germany. When it dips down to 60 degrees at night, while we are sitting outside at one of Brittany’s softball games, Lara is bundled up in a coat and blanket and goes into the bathroom to use the hand dryers because they are so warm! How quickly her body has adapted to our weather here! I told her when she first came here that when it’s in the 60’s here, we are bundled up in coats. She didn’t believe it at first!!!

*****

Q: What is your advice for other students who may want to come to America?

A: “You must not be shy, you must be outgoing. And know English well. Some students can speak the language in class but it is different when you are here.”

Me: Lara seemed a little shy at first…but that’s expected for a 15-year-old coming to another country and staying with complete strangers! But she quickly opened up and is adjusting so well! I’m not shy at all but I could imagine being shy in the same situation that she is in. As for her English, I mentioned the challenges above. She has no problem holding a complete conversation in English!

*****

Q: What is your favorite class in school?

A: “Clay and Dance.”

Me: Lara is only required to take English and American History. All her other classes are electives. Pretty nice, huh? I think it’s good because she still has homework in her other classes. Taking Math and Science would have been too demanding and hard to understand. As you’ve probably read in an earlier post, I have to help her understand the American History book. There are words and grammar that she just doesn’t understand. That’s the only language barrier we’ve faced. In Clay and Dance, students are able to explore their creative side. I think that takes the stress off of Lara. By the way, her first Dance Concert is in January. Brittany isin Intermediate Dance so she just had a concert last week. We can often find Lara practicing her dance in the house… or in the aisles of WalMart!!!

*****

Q: Has it been easy or hard to make friends? Why?

A: “Easier because I have been able to meet Brittany’s friends but it is harder to make friends on my own. Americans have their “group” of friends already and don’t open up to others, especially Exchange Students.”

Me: All I can say is THANK GOODNESS BRITTANY AND LARA ARE THE SAME AGE!!! I can’t imagine being an Exchange Student in a home with other kids who are younger or older! It could take months to make friends! I am so proud of Brittany for sharing her friends with Lara, having Lara sit with her and her friends at lunch and attend YoungLife events together! Brittany and Lara don’t do everything together but it has allowed Lara to become close friends with some of Brittany’s friends, like Morgan.

*****

Q: What do you like most about your host family?

A:  “They are crazy… but in a fun way!”

Me: Lara was laughing the whole time she answered this question… and quite honestly… I could have answered this for her! Yes, we like to have fun, we like to smile, we like to help people and we believe in making the best out of every situation! Our faith has brought us to this point and we believe everything happens for a reason… so make the best out of it! We truly feel Lara was brought into our lives for a reason and we couldn’t be more thankful!

NEXT: POST: Celebrating the American’s Thanksgiving Holiday and learning what it means. Plus, Lara wants to try “Black Friday”. We’ll see if she makes it!!!

Taking Driver’s Education in America

Learning to Drive

Turning 16 and getting a Driver’s License is like a rite of passage for the American Teenager. In other countries, like Germany, it’s more like a privilege to be able to drive…and it’s expensive! So, Lara, our German Exchange Student, is taking advantage of being in America and saving some big bucks!

Depending on the Exchange Student Company a student is working with, some Foreign Exchange Students can get their driver’s license while they are in America. And some states do not even allow exchange students to get a license because they don’t have a social security number. You may be asking the same thing I asked when I first heard this: “Why do they want to get their license here?” The answer was shocking! It costs as much as $2,000-to-$4,000 to get a driver’s license in other countries… and more work! In Germany, Lara said it is about $2,000.

In Germany… when someone turns 16-1/2, they can start the process.
First, they must take 12 theoretical classes… like lectures on different topics about driving.
Second, they must take 12 driving lessons.
Third, they take the theoretical test.
Fourth, they must pass the theoretical test AND the 12 driving lessons BEFORE they can take the driving test.
But… they must be 17 to take the driving test.
If they don’t pass, they can take more theoretical and driving classes.

When they pass and get their license…and if they are under 18 years old…. they get a “Special License”. It states they must must drive with a parent and that parent is listed on the driver’s license. On their 18th birthday, they can get their license.

For those of you reading this in other countries, it is much easier in America. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or bad thing or if that means American drivers are not good drivers…but it’s definitely worth noting! In America, you must be 15-1/2 years old to get a permit. All you do is study a book about driving signs and laws… and take a test. For 6 months, you can drive with an adult over the age of 21 who is sitting in the passenger seat. At 16, you must pass an actual driving test behind the wheel of a car and you get your license. That’s it!

If you do not attend a driving school, it costs $7 to get a learners permit. It costs just $25 to get a license. A total of $32. That’s a HUGE difference from other countries! And that’s exactly why Exchange Students get their license here.

Keep in mind, Aspect Foundation, the Exchange Company Lara is with, does not allow students to drive while in America. So you may ask, “Then how do they practice?” The answer: Driving School! Yep… those Student Driver cars you see on the road driving very carefully could have an Exchange Student behind the wheel!

In Lara’s case, we took her to Stop ‘N Go driving school, where our son learned how to drive. I wouldn’t get in the car with him but my husband did. And we still thought it best for him to learn from someone else. Plus, if you attend Driver’s Education in Arizona, you can get a discount on insurance…which we all know can be very expensive for teenagers!

So, this past Sunday morning at 7:40am, Lara was in driving school! For $319 she takes an 8 hour class and gets two 3-hour sessions behind the wheel with an instructor. In class, she learned the same things that are in the book but someone was explaining it in more detail. By 3:15pm, she had passed the test with 100% correct! They gave her a paper showing she passed which she will bring to the Department of Motor Vehicles and be given the actual plastic card with her picture on it!

Oh wait… it can’t be THAT easy, can it??? Of course not! Today we went to the DMV and got turned down! Even with her Passport and all the other legal forms we have for her… her parents must sign the application and have a Notary sign and stamp it. And it must be ORIGINAL signatures! We emailed it to her parents tonight but they have to MAIL it back. And trust me… mail from Germany is NOT a 3-day process! It’s more like 10-14 days!

Why is that an issue??? Because Lara must have her permit for 6 months from the time it is issued…. and we’re racing against the clock! Her 16th birthday is May 10. She goes back to Germany June 6th and must take the test before then. So, if she doesn’t get her Permit until December 1, she can’t take the test until June 1. And with little practice behind the wheel… she may not pass the first time. Aspect Foundation does not allow students to drive the Host Family car, even in the final driving lesson, so she will definitely have little practice! Most American Teens get hours and hours behind the wheel with their parents!

And what happens when she gets home? She can trade her American license for a German one. She’s not sure of that means she has to still wait till she’s 17 or 18 to actually drive so we will keep you posted on that… and on her progress! For now, we will just hold our breath till that paper comes in the mail!

UPDATE………………………………………………..

NOVEMBER 29 AND THE PAPER CAME IN THE MAIL! It’s now the 30th and Lara got her Permit! She can get her license May 31 or June 1. She leaves for Germany June 2. Whew! That’s cutting it close!!!

Culture Shock of an Exchange Student

After being in America for almost 3 months, Foreign Exchange Students can begin experiencing Culture Shock, without even know it. And even the Host Family can experience a form of Shock, called “Retro Shock”.

This is something that is addressed in our Handbook by the Aspect Foundation, the Exchange Student Company that brought Lara to America. It’s also the subject in the Aspect Foundation Monthly Calendar for November.

 

 

So, what is Culture Shock? The Handbook says these are several signs students should look for:

• You can’t seem to have a normal conversation with anyone.
• You are sleeping too little or too much.
• Everything makes you nervous and they have to go to the bathroom more than normal.
• You worry about cleanliness of food and drinking water.
• You get angry often and at things that aren’t very important.
• You are critical of your new surroundings.
• You feel negative toward your host family.
• You cry more than usual.
• You feel helpless and think that you can get help only from people from your own country.
• You wish you were home and you want to talk to your natural family all the time.
• You are afraid of anything new.
• You have stomach aches and headaches, that you usually don’t have.
• You don’t want to speak english.
• You are not excited about being in the u.s.
• You don’t look forward to things you’ve been dreaming about for months.
• You feel a lack of confidence.
• You don’t feel like You.

It also states the causes of culture shock, which are pretty obvious: changes in food, housing, climate and transportation. Well, sure! Everything in their life is different! I’m not sure I could handle it as well as Lara and other kids. Other causes… rules and structures where you are not used to them and no rules and structures where you are used to them. Also, not knowing what will happen next or how to act in some situations, and loss of familiar ways and things.

Lara and Morgan

What does an Exchange Student do when faced with these challenges? The Handbook says they should talk to their Host Family, friends and teachers about their feelings. I think Lara is pretty open with me. I think she also feels she can confide in her first close friend, Morgan. In fact, Lara had her first “girls night sleepover” with Morgan last night!!! I’m glad she has a friend she can confide in outside of the home. And Morgan’s a great kid! The Exchange Students are also told to slow down and let their emotions catch up with them if they are feeling overwhelmed. Also, to develop a routine and stay with it so they have a sense of something that is familiar. And, to get physical exercise, sleep, eat well and allow yourself “time out” periods for rest. As for Lara… she has no loss of appetite. In fact, I keep asking her where all the food goes that she eats! As for exercise, this girl bounces off walls sometimes! She has more energy than all of us put together! And trust me… it’s a great thing because sometimes she gets us to do things we put off! In fact, this weekend, she wants to help us paint our kitchen cabinets… something I’ve been putting off for 5 months!

We’ve seen very little hints of culture shock in Lara so it’s been smooth sailing. But if problems arise, the handbook offers several suggestions on how a Host Family can help a student deal with culture shock. They include:
• Realize this is an actual state that your student is in, caused by changes over which you have very little control.
• Realize you are not responsible for this change in culture and you can not make it go away.
• Be understanding.
• Be available to discuss everything and minimize other stress factors.
• Read about your student’s country so you know what s/he is experiencing that is different.
• Expect disagreements and work them out.
• Encourage rest, exercise and a good diet.
• Be prepared for judgmental remarks.
• Give your student time for themselves but not too much time.
• Don’t pressure your student about grades.
• Expect a quick recovery.
• Be there for your student.

The Handbook also states that the family can experience a form of shock due to change… called “Retro Shock”. I found this important to talk about with my husband, son and daughter because, after all, how they feel about this change in our family is extremely important too. Some of the signs include:

• Disturbances in your family routine may cause upset and a loss of objectivity.
• You may find yourself judgmental about some of the ideas and actions of your student.
• You may learn some startling things about your own family’s habits and reactions.
• You may not be able to answer some of the questions about America easily.
• You may find yourself trying to force some of your beliefs and practices on your student.

I must admit, Terry, Travis and Brittany have adjusted well. Terry has realized that he now has three Females in the house who like to shop, giggle, shop, cook, shop, watch dramatic TV shows… and did I say SHOP some more? He got a taste of that today when he took Brittany and Lara to get Brittany softball equipment. Four hours later when he got home… he was exhausted! Travis is about as laid back as anyone. He already has 3 sisters so, to him, having one more girl in the house means just more make-up, hair and clothing issues he has to hear about! As for Brittany… she has had the most adjustments to make. She’s always been the only girl in the house and the “baby” of the family. Some attention has been taken away from her but I think it’s been for the best. She has learned to share her Mother, which she had 100% of the time. Now she has 50% of the time. She’s learned to share her bathroom with someone who spends almost as much time in their with hair and make-up as herself. And THAT in itself could be a miraculous thing! Of course, I’m saying that with a sense of humor that any mother of a Teenager has!

Some people may think these are too many emotions for a Student, or a Host Family, to deal with. The Handbook says there are many benefits the Student will take back with them. I feel it goes both ways. They include:
• You will learn and grow in this new situation.
• You will learn how to deal with problems.
• You will become more independent.
• You will learn new ways.
• You will have a fresh outlook on your own country and culture.
• You will gain a new understanding of yourself.
• You will have a sense of pride in the courage that you had to become an exchange student in another country.

Below are comments in our Handbook from Students and Host Families. It’s a good example of what everyone can learn in this learning process.

A FRENCH EXCHANGE STUDENT ~ “Do not expect come here and get a perfect family that is just like your own. Your family will be very nice, but you will still have days where you think they are the most strange people on the entire earth and you just want to go to another place for the rest of the year. But don’t worry, the next day it will all be just fine again.”  (This is really funny because, when I read this to Lara, I asked her, “Do you sometimes think we are the strangest people on Earth?” She smiled and giggled. I said, “That’s OK. Sometimes we think you are the strangest child on earth too.” We both busted up laughing out loud. THAT’S the kind of relationship we all have with her… able to laugh at ourselves.)

AN IRAQI STUDENT~ “Don’t decide to leave before you live for a month,because that’s what I wanted to do but I stayed and it’s so fun now.”

A COLOMBIAN STUDENT ~ “I’m just feeling as part of the family. It has been awesome how people that I didn’t know before are now my family, my friends, and the people that I love.”

A GERMAN EXCHANGE STUDENT ~ “I am more easy-going responsible and mature. Plus, I learned that there is still a lot to do between the different countries to understand each other’s culture.”

A SWEDISH EXCHANGE STUDENT ~ “My biggest challenge was facing myself, contrasted to another culture.”

A DANISH EXCHANGE STUDENT ~ “I make better decisions, use my time better and spend my money wiser. I feel that facing the cultural differences and the problems have made me grow mentally quite a bit as I now can handle tough situations better.”

BELOW ARE COMMENTS FROM HOST FAMILIES IN THE HANDBOOK:
“Don’t expect too much too fast. This child has had different upbringing and different values. Be flexible, be open, and be open-minded. We don’t have all the answers and neither does Sindre, but together we work them out.”

“One of the most rewarding aspects of having an exchange student this year is how much my family’s table manners have improved.”

“Our cultural differences with our Brazilian student were mostly around a ‘sense of time.’ Also more hugs than we were used to but now we love that!”

“Sit down daily and ask your student what they found pleasing, enjoyable, confusing or fearful today. It really helps their adjustment.”

“Just seeing the change in our student from closed-minded and judgmental to becoming more open-minded and accepting (even he acknowledges this) was wonderful and rewarding.”

THE SCHREINER’S: We feel comfortable enough with Lara to talk to her. We also feel it is our responsibility as her American ‘Parents”. After all, her family has entrusted us to care for her and keep her safe. I wouldn’t have it any other way. In fact, I took the handbook out on November 1st and read each item with Lara to see how I might be able to help. Looks like I will do the same thing on December 1st and every 1st of the month!

First American Halloween

It’s almost a week late… but I’m finally getting caught up on Posts… so here’s one on Lara’s first American Halloween!

To start with… YES… they celebrate Halloween in Germany! Everyone has asked the same question… including me! It’s mostly for little kids to go trick-or-treating…just as it is here. But they also have Halloween Parties and dress up in costume at all ages. Halloween actually started in Europe.http://www.history.com/topics/halloween#a1

Lara’s first Halloween in America turned out to be a week-long affair. It started with a Halloween Party at her friend’s house on October 22nd. Katie is in Lara’s English class, and also a friend and softball teammate to our daughter, Brittany. Both girls were invited but Brittany was out-of-town so this was also Lara’s first party to attend by herself. Our older daughter, Amber, helped Lara put a Witch’s costume together with a combination of some things Lara had and things amber had. Amber brought Lara to the party. I picked her up. Lara had fun! Lara also has a special bond with Katie’s family so that helps! Katie’s mother has relatives in Germany and talk at our daughters’ softball games about life there! It’s been quite an education for all of us.

Lara and the Schreiner girls!

On the following Friday night, the 28th, we all went to an annual Halloween Party at our oldest son’s house. Tyler and his wife, Sharon, spare no expense in decorations! Last year was their first party, before they were married.

Strawberry Ghosts

Brittany, Lara and I went there to help decorate and make food items the night before. We made Ghosts out of Chocolate-covered strawberries and a 7-layer dip that looked like a spider web.

The night before Halloween, Lara and Brittany carved Pumpkins and made some great Pumpkin Seeds. They googled a recipe and put them in the oven while they carved their pumplins. And yes… they carve pumpkins in Germany too!

On Halloween night, Lara and Brittany attended a YoungLife Costume-Dance Party. Previous Blogs have explained YoungLife, http://www.younglife.org/us. Both girls decided they wanted to dress up as something different…and they looked so cute! Lara was Minnie Mouse. Brittany was a Little Girl. Their friend Katie was “Dora the Explorer”. I told them it was like looking at a Little Girl with her two favorite things… a Minnie Mouse and Dora! They are still little kids at heart, I guess!

Our entire family attended the party and we were all in costume! You can see all the pictures below!!!

LARA AND SIENA

THE "OLD" KIDS

SHARON AND TYLER AND THEIR DOGS

DEAD BODY IN COUCH

SHARON,BRITTANY,AMBER,LARA

SHADD AND NADINE

EDYE

AMBER AND BRITTANY

SHADD AND TYLER

DEAD ALICE IN WONDERLAND

LARA PLAYS DEAD

SHARON

AMBER AND ROCKY

ME AND TERRY

ME AND BRITTANY

ME AND LARA

MELODY

TYLER AND TRAVIS

TRAVIS THE GANGSTER

7-LAYER DIP

Travel creates a Family Bond

Turn around and SMILE!!!

9 days of traveling together, visiting new places and dealing with what life throws at you… it’s what makes a family bond with each other….especially when a German Exchange Student is with you!

Pictures are worth a thousand words… so I thought I’d let photos explain how much we bonded with each other while traveling to Washington DC and New York City! We had so many moments of silliness…and closeness! Enjoy… and be sure to Laugh Out Loud with us!

FIRST STOP… SILLY PICTURES AT THE AMERICAN HISTORY MUSEUM!

Lara and the National Anthem!

Lara for President!

Brittany for President!

This is an “inside joke” to us!!

Pet a Buffalo!

Kiss a Buffalo!

LARA AND I GOT SEPARATED FROM TERRY AND BRITTANY IN THE MUSEUM SO LARA DECIDED TO POSE FOR SOME OF THE DISPLAYS!!!

Cool Dude!

At the Market!

Subway ride

Don’t get hit by the train!

Bus ride?

Waiting for the bus

GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN!!!

Taking Brittany’s picture!

Planning the next day!

Cheesy smiles in Central Park!

NYC store named after Lara!!!

Britt trying to stay dry!

Mother-Daughter/Central Park

Soaking up sun at Ellis Island

Tired girls at Ellis Island

Subway fun

Kicking it up!

Take THAT!

Are they in pain or making a funny face?

Kiss me!

YIKES!!!!!!!

Taking Lara’s picture!

Crazy Host Mom!

Stop it, MOM!!!

Aren’t we cute!

TAKING TIME TO BE SILLY!!! We did this at Great Falls National Park and laughed the hardest here than we did anywhere! The captions under each picture explain what kind of face Brittany was calling out for us to make! HYSTERICAL!!!

WINK, WINK, WINK!

EEEEEWWWWW!

THINK HARD!

MAKE A GUN!

SCRUNCHED UP FACE

STICK YOUR TONGUE OUT!

WHAT'S UP THERE?

CRYING

OH NO!!!

SCARED FACE

NICE PICTURE

LARA,LOOK HERE!

SILLY!

SILLY!

AAAAWWWW….HOW CUTE!

PEEK-A-BOO!

SOMETHING WAS REALLY FUNNY, I GUESS!

SHE’S SO GOOD AT THAT CAMERA PHONE THING!

FERRY RIDE-COOL SUNGLASSES!

ENOUGH OF THE SILLY GIRLS! TERRY WAS IN A FEW PICTURES TOO… INCLUDING THE FAMILY SHOTS OF ALL 4 OF US!

DADDY-DAUGHTER

WWII MEMORIAL

PROUD DADDY

HAPPY LIFE, SASSY WIFE

ARE WE DONE YET?

HAPPY BOY

JEFFERSON MEMORIAL

DADDY EXPLAINS

THE FARMER IN HIM

TIMES SQUARE

REST STOP

CHILLIN'

ALWAYS WORKING

LOOSENING UP

CENTRAL PARK

NBC STUDIOS

Hello Mr. President!

Lincoln Memorial

Brittany's Birthday Dinner

The Capital

Great Falls National Park

Times Square

Times Square

Liberty Island

State of Liberty

Planes, Trains and Automobiles… and more!

Sounds like the title of an old American movie? Yes. But it’s also what we lived through on our recent East Coast trip with our German Exchange Student and our Daughter. Just getting to where we were going was an adventure in itself. In fact, I kept telling Lara and Brittany, “It’s all about the Adventure!”

PLANES…AND FLYING STANDBY

Arriving in DC

Our plane tickets were passes from our friend, Troy, who’s a pilot. We also stayed with Troy and Anna in Virginia. When you use someone’s passes, you pay the taxes and fees. On past flights, it’s been about half of what tickets actually cost. For four of us, that’s quite a savings to fly to Washington DC and then home from New York. But… it’s also a challenge. Getting a seat on a flight depends on how many other stand-bys are registered, their seniority according to the employee they’re getting tickets from, how many people are on the flight, is the flight overbooked, etc, etc. For our Saturday morning flight to DC, Troy said it was a little risky. There were about 12 seats empty but just as many stand-bys. Troy said if we didn’t get on Saturday, odds of getting on Sunday were really good with about 20 open seats. The girls were prepared. We packed our bags knowing we could get to the airport and come right back home again. Luckily, we got on. Two seats were together so I put the girls there. Terry and I sat separately. Our trip back to Phoenix is a whole different story! Keep reading!!!

AUTOMOBILES….AND HORRIBLE HIGHWAYS IN DC!

Thanks for the car, Troy!

Troy insisted we borrow his car while in DC. Not sure if that was a blessing or a curse! It was a 4-speed so I left the driving to Terry. Not sure if THAT was a blessing or a curse either! Ha! We had a GPS but it didn’t help! I think we got lost at least once every day! It became funny after awhile! And only one time did it turn into an argument where Terry and I didn’t talk for a few hours afterwards! Oh boy…. the joys of traveling!!!

The biggest problem… the highways in the DC area. Troy warned us. He said, “You’ll be driving along and all of a sudden the exit you want is immediately there and the exit sign is hidden.” Yep…that’s EXACTLY the way it was. And then, when we missed the exit, that little voice in the GPS would tell us to get off at the next exit, just to take us on side streets all the way into DC! We certainly saw our share of neighborhoods! The girls enjoyed seeing all the different houses! Again…they never complained!

EVERYONE warned us to stay off the 495, also known as the Capital Beltway. The 64-mile (103 km) Interstate surrounds Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in Maryland and Virginia. To give you an idea of the reputation it has, two intersections on the Beltway are ranked in the top 20 on a study of the “worst bottlenecks in the nation.” Luckily, they’re in Maryland and we didn’t drive them… but we definitely saw a mess! Most of the time we took the Dulles Toll Road 267 but at almost $7.00 each way, it added up fast!

To give you an idea of what locals REALLY think about the 495 Beltway, I found these quotes on Yelp.com, which are pretty funny:

“It goes in a circle. If you don’t get off at your exit you could wind up circling for days. Or at least you run out of gas.”

“I can’t stand it but I need it. I hate it but I like it. I try to avoid it but I can’t. It’s the Beltway people we all know love it hate it. I must commute everyday on this to get to my office and everyday there is always some crap that occurs on it.”

“In theory, the beltway is a good idea. In practice it fails miserably. I remember in driver’s ed we learned that interstate highways are the fastest and most efficient way to get to and from the place. Obviously they forgot to mention that I-495, the Capital Beltway, is an exemption to that rule.”

A BUS FROM DC TO NEW YORK CITY???

Union Station, DC

New York City is about 4 hours from DC. So … how would we get there? Fly? Nope. Drive? Maybe… but everyone said it would take longer than 4 hours fighting traffic. Amtrak? We thought about it at $60 per person. Bus? Never considered it until Troy and Anna suggested http://www.BoltBus.com. What a deal! Highly recommend it! At $19 per person, only one rest stop for 15-minutes, WI-FI and plug-ins to keep our phones charged…. we were SOLD! It leaves from Union Station in DC and goes to three different stops in Manhattan in 4-1/2 hours. The biggest challenge was getting to Union Station by 8:30am in DC rush hour traffic. Yes, we ended up on that horrific 495 and crawled all the way. And YES, we missed the first bus! Luckily, there’s another one every two hours. The only difference is you’re dropped you off in a different location. We figured…”What the heck! Manhattan is Manhattan!” We Googled the end location on our phones and with no hesitation, we hopped on and would figure it out when we got there! Brave souls, aren’t we?! The route took us through a couple more states…so Lara gets to mark a few more off her list…although she and Brittany slept through most of it!

FIRST NEW YORK CITY TAXI EXPERIENCE

Port Authority

We arrived in the Port Authority….the main hub for transportation in New York and New Jersey. It was crazy! The Port Authority conceives, builds, operates and maintains the infrastructure critical to the New York/New Jersey region’s trade and transportation network. This includes America’s busiest airport system, marine terminals and ports, the PATH rail transit system, six tunnels and bridges between New York and New Jersey, the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan, and the World Trade Center. It serves more than 17 million people who live and work in New York and New Jersey! And THAT was our welcome to NYC??? I guess we jumped in with both feet!!! http://www.panynj.gov/

We followed signs to the street level and flagged down a cab… or two…or three… or maybe it was four or five! What did we know!? We’re Desert Dwellers in a city of traffic!!! One cabbie said he’d take us to our Hotel in New Jersey for $60. One we couldn’t understand. One said $70. Another one we couldn’t understand. One said $50 plus toll. Finally, a “nice” cabbie looked in his “rate book” and said it should be about $40 plus our toll. JACKPOT! LUCKY HIM!!! He won a ride with the Schreiner’s and the German kid!!!

FIRST SUBWAY EXPERIENCE

I already mentioned in previous Blog Posts that we stayed next to the PATH Subway that travels from New Jersey to Manhattan. We walked into the station and had that “deer in the headlights” look…. staring at what was going on…not knowing where to start. A Port Authority worker approached us and said, “First time here?”  Wow! Was it THAT obvious? We were quick to answer, “YES”. She asked us how long we would be in town, where we wanted to go, what we wanted to see. She said the best deal was to buy a multiple trip card across the street. Then she said, “Oh heck, I’ll just walk over there with you.” We must have REALLY looked out-of-place, huh? We ended up with a 20-trip pass for $30… $1.50 a trip. So $3.00 roundtrip per person to get to NYC! Deal!

Directions were easy enough for simple Dessert Rats like us to figure out. Hop on the train at Newport, New Jersey, take it to the end and walk a few blocks to Times Square, Rockefellar Center, etc. When we come back…just reverse it. You’ll be happy to know… we never missed a stop and never got lost! Yay for the first-timers!!!!

By the way… despite the horror stories about how dirty and scary the subway was for some people…we had no complaints. It was pretty clean…at least our stops were. There were no shady characters lingering around. Just commuters going to and from NYC to work. If anything… I’m glad the girls experienced all the different people and cultures observing everyone on the subway! I think they were scared once when a man started preaching from his Bible — very loudly — and eye-balling different people on the train! The funniest part about it… no one stopped talking to their friend, listening to their music, texting on their phone or reading their book. It’s like the man wasn’t talking loudly… or even there! We all laughed about it afterwards!

LIGHT RAIL IN NEW JERSEY

Ok, this was a little trickier than the Subway, believe it or not! The Light Rail was across the street from our hotel, next to the Shopping Mall. Figuring out tickets took a little longer until someone kindly helped us. We took it only once to catch the Ferry to the Statue of Liberty. It had several stops before we got to our stop…more stops than the subway… and then we walked about a mile to the Ferry along a beautiful grassy park.

UNEXPECTED AUTOMOBILE RIDE — 12 HOURS WORTH!!!

Arriving in Denver!

This is probably the funniest part of our trip… or adventure! The one problem we knew we would have by flying stand-by was going to be getting into Phoenix. Troy told us flights from Newark, NJ to Chicago or to Denver were open. But the ride could end there. Every flight to Phoenix was overbooked by 5-to-10 people AND they all had Stand-By passengers. Odds were slim of us getting on a flight! So, we chose to go to Denver… the closer to home the better! When we got to the gate for the Denver to Phoenix flight, we already knew it was the ONLY flight we were able to take because of the kind of passes we had…and we clearly saw we were NOT getting on the flight.

Denver Airport behind us!

So, I started to search our options… buying a last-minute one-way ticket, taking Amtrak, a Bus or renting a car. The cheapest option was a 12-hour drive home! With no complaints… and a lot of laughs… we rented a car for $122 for 24 hours, one way! The girls kept saying, “Remember… It’s all part of the Adventure”!

We decided to take advantage of the situation and stop at Terry’s sister’s house in a suburb of Denver, visit for an hour and begin our road trip!

What’s funny is… just before our trip… Lara said she wanted to see other parts of Arizona! Well.. be careful what you wish for! First, a cruise through New Mexico… yes… another state to mark off Lara’s list of places she’s been! Since we had been up since 3:00am Denver time, we spent the night in Albuquerque, the halfway point of our road trip. Then we drove through Northern Arizona and into Phoenix…so Lara got to see the Forest, Mountains and the Desert all in one day! We got to home with one to spare to return the rental car!

A trip of a lifetime? Indeed! A trip including every mode of transportation? Definitely!

Brit learns what an ice scraper is when we get Rental car in Denver!

Statue of Liberty Ferry

Subway by World Trade Center

Chilling on the subway

Having fun on the subway!

NYC Day 3-Rockefeller Center, Central Park, Broadway

On our last day in New York City we had to squeeze in the MUST-DO sites on our list… Rockefeller Plaza, Central Park, Broadway and…weather permitting…the Empire State Building.

ROCKEFELLAR CENTER

Our first stop was Rockefeller Center. We were surprised at how busy it was! It has 19 commercial buildings covering 22 acres. Built by the Rockefeller family, it is located in the center of Midtown Manhattan. Construction of the first 14 buildings in Art Deco style began in 1930 and were completed in 1939. Rockefeller Center is among the last major building projects in the United States to incorporate a program of public art. just one of the pieces is Paul Manship’s highly recognizable bronze gilded statue of the Greek legend Titan Prometheus. It rests in the sunken plaza at the front of 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

When we were there, they were preparing the ice rink on the same area… a popular public attraction in the winter months. The girls liked seeing how they fill the rink. The Center was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1987. http://www.rockefellercenter.com/

The plaza has about 200 flagpoles. At varying times, the flags of United Nations member countries, the flags of United States states and territories, or various decorative and seasonal flags are flown. During U.S. holidays, every flagpole carries the Flag of the United States. As windy as it was…the flags were pretty but, as you can see from pictures below, it didn’t make for the best “hair day”!

As a former Producer of an NBC-Affiliate TV Station, KPNX-TV12 in Phoenix… I’ve always wanted to visit Rockefellar Center to see where The Today Show is broadcast. http://today.msnbc.msn.com/ I’m a huge fan of the morning show and other NBC programs so the NBC Studio Store there was fun. We even got to take our picture with the show’s host, Matt Lauer. He was such a good sport posing with all of us!

The LEGO Store was a fun stop in the Plaza. It has the tallest Pick-A-Brick wall featuring LEGO elements in a variety of colors & shapes in bulk. Everyone could play with the small pieces and build something. The large dragon and miniature city were highlights!

RADIO CITY MUSIC HALL

Radio City Music Hall, just around the corner, was completed in December, 1932. At the time it was promoted as the largest and most opulent theater in the world. Its original intended name was the “International Music Hall” but was changed to reflect the name of its neighbor, “Radio City,” as the new NBC Studios in the RCA Building became known. RCA was one of the complex’s first and most important tenants and the entire Center itself was sometimes referred to as “Radio City.” http://www.radiocity.com/

CENTRAL PARK

 Just a few blocks away was Central Park. What an amazing site of 250 acres of lawns, 24,000 trees, 150 acres of lakes and streams and 130 acres of woodlands…along with 9,000 benches, 36 bridges, 26 ballfields, 21 playgrounds, 55 sculptures and monuments! It is massive! We walked through the south portion of the park for a couple hours… realizing afterwards that we could have spent an entire day here biking and walking and exploring. The girls LOVED the horse drawn carriages riding through the park and the many bridges and wide open grass areas! We all agreed…. Central Park looked exactly as it does in the movies! As we left, we took time to snap some pictures at one of the main entrances to the park, at the north tip of Broadway.

BROADWAY 

Broadway refers to the famous street in Manhattan that has become the worldwide leader in stage entertainment. It was fun to see all the billboards advertising the many shows available to see. At $100 a show, and a tight budget, we had to pass on seeing a show.  But it’s interesting to learn that the history of Broadway dates all the way back to the 1700’s. Then, in the late-1800’s and early 1900’s, the rise in train transportation  a drop in poverty created a demand for evening entertainment in New York. Soon, the bright lights of Broadway became known as “The Great White Way,” giving birth to a new New York City landmark. http://www.broadway.com/

TIMES SQUARE-DAYTIME

From there, we ventured into Times Square during the day for the first time. To be honest…it wasn’t much different than at night…and we kind of laughed about it. The lights are almost as bright at night as if it were daytime…just without all the sparkle! And it was just as busy on a Saturday afternoon as it was on a Thursday night, when we went the first time. Part of the crowd was due to the “Occupy Wall Street” Protestors who had planned a march that day from Wall Street to Times Square. Police presence was heavy but they marched peacefully right by a restaurant we had stopped at for dinner.

EMPIRE STATE BUILDING

When we woke up hearing there were going to be 20-to-40-mile-per-hour wind gusts, we weren’t real excited about going to the top of the Empire State Building. After all…the thought of the being on the top of a building that sways with the wind is a little intimidating. Terry and I were definitely chicken but Brittany and Lara were questioning the wind as well! For teenagers, that’s pretty funny! So we decided to wait and see if the weather changed by nightfall. It did. Winds died down. But apparently, everyone had the same thought we did. Wait till nightfall. So, there was a 2-hour wait to go up… and it was 7:30pm …and we had to get up at 5am to catch a plane… and still had a 30-minute trip back to the hotel. Needless to say…the girls decided against going up.

 

Instead we back to the hotel and walked around back to get pictures of the New York City skyline at night!

WRAP UP 

Overall… this was one of the best vacations I’ve ever had! The girls never complained once about being tired or missing out on something or all the ups and downs we faced on the trip! Some of those are in another Blog Post to come that will be titled “Planes, Trains and Automobiles”. I told the girls at the very star that it was “all about the adventure.” And it really was!!!

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