MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR EXCHANGE PROGRAM IN NZ

Maria Julia Maistro

Hey Guys, what’s up?

My name is Maria, I’m 16 years old and I come from Brazil. I’ve spent the whole year here in New Plymouth.

When I first arrived here, on the 27th of January, I was very excited to see how my new life would be. Unfortunately, all the excitement lasted just a few minutes. When I looked around and I saw I was in somewhere unknown and different, I noticed my “family” wasn’t actually my mum and dad, my house wasn’t my house and the language spoken wasn’t Portuguese, I got really scared and upset. My host family understood and gave me the time I needed. My host sister (poor Merit) was sooo patient and repeated a hundred times the sentences, because I could hardly understand English.

Everything was pretty awkward in my first month here, especially in my first week. I think the beginning of it all was the biggest struggle I’ve faced in 2010. I cried a lot, I missed my family, my friends, my dog and even my school. I felt homesick for quite a long while, but my host family always made me feel welcome and part of their family, what helped me to feel happy.

It took me about 3 months to understand properly what people were saying and it was at that stage when I actually started to enjoy NZ. The beginning was hard as, so I can’t really say that I enjoyed it. I mean, it was amazing and I loved it, but it did hurt inside. Anyways, after 3 months, as I just said, I started to talk to people, to make new friends, to mix with the others and then I finally started to make the most of it.
Kiwi friends are awesome to make you feel comfortable and kind of at home. However, make sure you have some internationals who you can really trust by your side. They are the ones who know how you feel and can mostly help you, because they feel exactly the same way.
Moreover, through this year I got the opportunity to travel around the entire country. I did a South and North Island tour and I also got the opportunity to visit one of the Pacific Islands, Fiji (what a dream!!!!). In the winter holidays, I spent one week in Wellington, with Viona, my super German friend and soul sister. Honestly, some of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen I saw here in NZ. All this wonderful nature and landscape just gives me another reason to love this place.

I actually thought of my exchange as a time to learn English and now I just see my English improvement as a consequence of this indescribable experience. Living with another family, going to another school, learning how to get along by yourself, making new friends and facing new challenges is definitely the best way to grow up.
Well, there’s not much left to say, because each person has an experience. I just hope you got the message. It’s not going to be easy for some of you at the beginning but try as hard as you can to make the most of it since then, because your time here will go faster than you ever thought it would go. At the end, you will be just like me. Sitting at school, thinking about all year long to write down on a piece of paper what NZ was for you. It is going to hurt you so much, and you might even cry, just like I’m doing right now, because after all of that, after your time here you will have new friends, new family, new school and definitely a new life and then you just can’t think of your life back in your home country. Its going to be completely unacceptable that it’s time to leave your dream, it’s time to leave new Zealand! L You will wish you could do something to avoid it. It’s terrifying but you would probably be capable of doing anything to stay longer.  Unfortunately, it will be just a wish. Because your experience will be over!
Enjoy yourselves and don’t waste your time, because you are simply having the best time of your life!
“No one said it would be easy, they just said it would be worth it.”

Ps.: True friendship continues to grow, even over long distances. =D

Heaps of love,
Maria.