“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all” ~ Hellen Keller.
We’ve all heard that traveling to a new place is an adventure, and they say that in your lifetime you should at least travel to one different country. This is because of the precious new experiences, knowledge, and friendships that result from your travels. This year we have five new exchange students from across the globe who are living their own new adventures here at Liberty.
Junior Anne Fukushima is originally from Yokohama, Japan. Fukushima loves singing and is a part of the Select Treble Choir group here at Liberty. Fukushima also loves art and acting and is a part of the tech crew for this year’s play “Our Town”. Fukushima talked about how her family was very encouraging and supportive of her decision to be an exchange student. “They were very supportive of my own decision and they also thought that it would be a very precious experience for me to experience things outside my country of Japan,” Fukushima explained. Fukushima recalled her emotional introduction with her new host parents. “When I met them for the first time at the airport, I was so thirsty because of the plane ride, but I was also really excited. When I first saw my host parents, my host mother hugged me and it was a very emotional moment for me,” Fukushima said. For Fukushima, the biggest cultural shock was the people. “Overall, people’s personalities here are more friendly,” Fukushima said. Fukushima is liking Liberty so far. “It’s been so great so many people here are so nice and friendly.”
Junior Charlize Rossow is originally from Berlin, Germany and is one of the two new exchange students from Germany. Rossow likes to travel and she currently plays tennis at Liberty. Back in Germany she lived with her family and two cats. For Rossow moving to an entirely new country hasn’t affected her as much. “I mean at first I didn’t even realize that I am now away from my home for a long time, but I’m really happy with my new family I have here. I think my parents back home are also happy that I’m happy so it’s not that big of a deal for me right now,” Rossow explained. For Rossow the biggest cultural shock was the abundance of fast food restaurants. Rossow talked about how it will take time getting used to being at Liberty High School. “I still have to get comfortable with everything because it is new. Like at my school back home we only have around 600 students and so here there are a lot more students that I’m used to. However, I really like that you can choose between so many different subjects, classes, and activities.”
Sophomore Caroline Sinner is also originally from Germany and lived closer to the southern side of the country.
Sinner enjoys acting and has joined the Drama Club here at Liberty. Sinner also did track and field back in Germany. For Sinner, the thought of coming to a new country was more daunting. “It was scary especially when I boarded the plane I was like what did I do coming to this new country on my own, but it has been great so far,” Back in Germany, Sinner lived with her dad and grandma. Here, Sinner has an amazing host family and two little host siblings. For Sinner, the biggest cultural shock was the sheer size of everything, asking “why is everything so big?” Sinner talked about her experience here so far and the things she is excited for. “It is a good school. On the first day, I didn’t know where to go so many people and so many rooms. The people are really nice, the classes are fun, and the teachers are great. I really like it here. I am excited for homecoming and those things because we don’t have those kinds of things in Germany,” Sinner exclaimed.
Junior Melania Palmiero is originally from Italy. Palmiero has many interests and her hobbies tend to change pretty often, nonetheless some of them remain the same like swimming and dancing which she used to do in Italy and is looking to do something similar here at Liberty. Palmiero also enjoys drawing, listening to music, playing the violin, and learning about new topics. Palmerio talked about her experience with her new family. “My family back home is amazing. They supported me from the very beginning and still do. My host family is no less: they’re nice, friendly and ready to help in every situation. We’re still getting to know each other, however we already get along and I’m positive things will stay that way,” Palmiero exclaimed. Palmiero said that she is adjusting to her new environment pretty rapidly so there haven’t been any significant cultural shocks for her. Palmiero is enjoying her time at Liberty. “It has been great, everything is new and exciting. Personally, I’m getting used to the different environment quite fast,” Palmiero said.
Sophomore Jaime Lacort-Gandas is originally from Madrid, Spain. Lacort-Granded likes sports and played both tennis and American football back in Spain. He was very excited about moving to a new place and experiencing studying in a new country. Lacort-Grandes has a nice host family who are similar to his family back in Spain. For Lacort-Grandes, a big difference other than the language was the food. He talked about having a great experience at Liberty so far, “Very good experience and I have new friends who are nice,” Lacort-Grandes explained. When he was asked if he would recommend being an exchange student and why he said, “Yeah, I would recommend it and people should do it because you mature a lot because you have to do a lot of things by yourself. You learn a lot about other cultures and languages as well,” Lacort-Grandes advised.
