Alycia's First Impressions

First Impressions

Hey There Bloggers,

I have survived two whole weeks in Amsterdam,Netherlands!! But then again, what am I talking about saying the term “survived”? It has only been the best decision I’ll ever make!!

Wow, am I pumped. It’s so exciting, knowing that this is a once in a lifetime opportunity and that I am one of the few privileged to be living it. I mean, are there many people that can say they have visited Europe?!! Not many.

Everyone here is a bundle of joy. But you want to know the ironic thing about them? Wait for it.... their last name is Blood!! Talk about freaky!

Oh, and have I mentioned I’ve made a best friend. Her name is Fleur, and the best thing about it is she is the exact same age as me and my main translator in the household. When I arrived, she greeted me with a great big hug and asked to be the best of buds. I was relieved then and there. Good thing, because you know how shy I am.

Fleur’s mother, Adri, makes me feel right at home. She takes care of me, and I have proof. It was pretty chilly in the room Fleur and I bunked in, so Adri lent me a blanket even though she had fewer and I. Always lookin’ for a way to help.

My “father”, Reuben, reminds me of you, Daddy. He is very disciplined and believes that an important factor of life is earning your fair share. So, don’t worry, I’ve been working. Such as cleaning the toilet, helping Noach with his homework, and vacuuming.

But how could I be upset about that? I’m not, am I? Oh no. I’m really having a blast.

So I’m attending school, didn’t you hear? Fleur is in my class! Yay!! It’s been going OK. I mean, what’s the best you can say about school anyhow? I’ve been putting my best effort in and being optimistic which has made this trip even more amazing than ever.

Did I mention that I also have two bros? The older one which is 13, Daaf, is so talented. He’s cool. He plays the harpsichord. I know what your thinking. That he’s a geek right? Well, that was my first impression but once you get to know him he’s really cool like I said before. He is trying to teach me their language, Dutch. It excites me, but still it gets pretty frustrating with his constant nagging at me being a slow learner. Hey- let’s see him try to learn English!!

My other nine years old bro, Noach, reminds me a lot of me. We’re both shy, aren’t we Noach?.I am happy, because it seems that he is starting to enjoy me as a part of the family. Not to mention all of the other host family members.. I call him Cockroach, since his name sorta sounds like it.

Wow, all this talk about my family and none about the house! Wow, I must really like these people!! I’ll get to the point. The home I am staying in reminds me sorta of a ranch house. It is so me! It contains five beds,and three full baths.




There is a huge backyard in which the whole family plays cricket every other night. I have already learned how to play. Oddly, it is actually fun. You should give it a try.

There is a huge backyard. I’m talking huge folks. I love how the grass is a lush neon green and how it leaves grass stain all over my jeans. Kidding.

I think cricket is a nice bonding time for the family. I love it.

Just the other day, Adri took Fleur and I to the Albert Cuyp Market. It is a famous tourist attraction. It is located in De Pijp, Amsterdam. The Albert Cuyp market is arguably the best-known and busiest outdoor market in Europe. It attracts thousands of visitors every day, especially Saturdays. This marketplace consists of fresh produce and clothes.

Now you see my bloggers, this once in a lifetime opportunity trip has been going better then expected, if I can say so myself. Thank you for following my blog! The Netherlands have been impressive. I am looking forward to making Dutch Cuisines and learning some more Dutch. What a thrill.

You’ll hear from me soon,

Regards,
Alycia W

First Impressions In Hungary

Dear Friends and Family,
Hi Mom and Dad. How are you doing? I’m well. I’m writing from Budapest Hungary. What have you been up to. I am writing this blog to you to tell you how I’m doing and what my family is like. My family in Hungary says hi. They have been real nice to me and I want to tell you about each and everyone of them.
First I will start with the man of the house Jancsi who is 37 years old. He is a miner that works a lot. He is a very hard-worker. He takes pride in what he does. He works late and is never late. He is very responsible man to. He has everything he needs organized. He always has everything done on time never late for anything. He is also a family guy. He does this by being there for the kids. If they need anything at all he will miss work if necessary or just to play catch with. He also has fun or tries to have fun with the whole family or with them each individually.
Next I will talk to you about the mother Kato or, Katalin in America, who is 35 years old. She is a loving doctor. She is always there for the kids. Also she is like the transporter. She gets the kids where ever they need to be almost any time. The only time she won’t is in the middle of the night. She is also very organized. Well you have to be when you are trying to make everyone where they need to be. She also has a certain spot for everything so nothing gets lost. She is also respectable. Never once missing a sports game or anything for the kids. She also has the kids’ respect. They will find a way to be home on time or they get Kato to bring them home.
I will start with the oldest son and go down oldest to youngest. Benedeck or Benedict in America is 16 years old. Benedeck is an athlete. He is outside practicing or has to stay after school or go in later that day to school to play football or to us soccer. He is a laid back kid who stays out of things that aren’t his to get into. He does what he is told but doesn’t really care much about. He is very dedicated to soccer cause he plays it so often. He can be shy at times like first meeting people. He keeps to himself and is quiet at most parts.
The second oldest child is Eniko who is 13 years old. Eniko is a social person. She is always out with friends and comes home later then the other children. She tends o be very clumsy. She trips up a lot and trips over her own feet. She is also very energetic she doesn’t stay in one place for long and definitely has a fast pace. The fast pace is probably why she trips up so much.
Last is Jani or John in America , he is 12 years old. He tends to be lazy like a couch potato always on the couch. He plays video games all day or is online always playing games or looking up stuff to online to look better than us.
He can be pretty funny like playing practical jokes or pranks. He also says the funny things. He can be very smart. He is always looking up information to be smarter. He can differently be a know it all though.
The way to our space is easy to find. It is on the second floor and is very cozy. The kitchen has a tiled floor and a stainless steel sink and a nice double door fridge freezer. It also has a gas powered oven. The bedrooms are very nice. The master bedroom has a huge queen size bed. Also it has the only computer in the apartment. The other bedrooms are similar but with smaller beds. Each kid has decorated there room differently though. The oldest Benedeck has posters of famous Hungary sports stars. Eniko has made her room with posters of famous singers I have never heard of. The last bedroom the one I stay in is Jani’s bedroom. It has plain walls because he doesn’t really care about how his walls look. The bathroom is small with a shower or bath. Last is the living room where the only t.v. is. It plays shows I really don’t understand.
Around the house is a busy street. It is in the middle of the city so it’s hard to sleep at night. Cars always going by. The people living around us are very nice. There is a dinner across the street. The family goes to at least once a week. It’s fancy and we act very well. We eat porkolt which is a food that comes from Hungary and contains meat and a hearty mix of vegetables.
Next to us on either sides are more apartment buildings. It is very cold right now. The snow isn’t to bad not like back in Maine It can be as cold as negative five and is warm as thirty-seven degrees at the moment. Still I think it is nice
That is my family and house I live with everyday. Please write back soon.

From,
Ryan C.

Здравствуйте! from russia.

Dearest Family,
I am having so much fun here in Russia! There so much here to do in Moscow since it’s the capital city. I’m still getting situated, slowly getting more comfortable with the family and environment I'm in. I think this is all so amazing and glad you let me come.

My Family here. Lets start with the mother Lera. She’s 37 years old. She is a wonderful cook, basically everything we eat is home made. she’s loving, giving, energetic, super fun to be around. She loves to do arts & crafts, she paints, she does scrap booking, she knits, she does basically everything . She is very smart. She is a lawyer, for her job.

Dad - Andrei- He’s 45. He likes to joke around with me a lot. He's Brilliant! His job is a Brian Surgeon. He's really laid back. loves to have fun and kick back just relax. We always watch the soccer games on t.v. me, Andrei, and Alecksandr, the boys and me [: hehe

They have three children, two daughters ; Natailia and Dasha, & one son Alecksandr.

Natailia is 13, but she’s not in my class. Natailia is obsessed with gymnastics! thats all she think about. she gets the honor roll every report card its ridiculous.

Dasha is 17, she’s a senior in high school. She plays lady’s rugby.
She bring me to basically everything! i love her. everyday after school Dasha, Alecksandr, Natalia and I, all meet up at “ the shake shack” & all get a smoothie or a milkshake, EVERYDAY after school. & talk about our day.

Alecksandr - He’s 14. he's the one i spend most of my time with. he's like a real brother to me now,. he plays hockey, and he plays amazingly well.

They do have a basketball ball team at the school, and I knew I couldn't go long with out my favorite sport so they enrolled me in it. The family has come to every game ive had so far to cheer me on. Alecksandr comes to all my practices , watches me, just for support and he tells what what i ddi good and what i need to work on, it’s helping me approve a lot more. the sports here people are ALOT more competitive here! so thats building my skill level. Maine better watch out when i come back [:

The apartment i live in is very high class. I mean we each have our own bathroom! Except for Andrei & Lera, they share one. My bathroom is a master bath, my tub is a whirl pool & hot tub, I love it. then I have a stand up shower, a toilet of course- but its kinda separated from the rest of the bathroom, a huge mirror, two sinks, and a humongo closet its so big filled with name brand clothes they bought be especially from america to make me feel welcome! I was so happy and grateful!

My room is also quite big, it has a temperpetic mattress, all kinda of accessories that are pointless but are very entertaining and fun- like ipod touch, touch screen laptop, touch screen cell phone, touch screen TV! basically everything is technically advanced, even my alarm clock! it’s so cool! With neon colored everything!
I don’t know how they new I LOVE neon!? hmm [: I love it.


Near by the house is one of the best malls ever, the META mall! that are at a walkable distance.. you can see some of them from my window! It’s impossible to get bored here, with all the outlet malls, extra curricular activities with all of us, parents that let us have SAFE freedom. I'm truly blessed to be left with this family [“:

I’m looking forward to the next months i have left with this fun loving family, it’s not gonna go well when its time to leave, ill miss them so much, i think i’ll cry :[ i love it here, i miss you all too,

- Marina

Poland House

My family and house!

Hello from Warsaw Poland!!!

Hey mom and Dad and Michael!
Its amazing in Poland. Did you know that the national bird is an eagle just like in America? Or that the literacy rate is 99.8?
Well, I miss you guys allot and I want to tell you about my family here. The parents are Natalina and Casimir. Casimir works as a Lawyer and Natalina is an Architect. Natalina has the same job as my dad! But she specializes in museum and other big buildings. Their three kids are Alina, Tolly and Teos. Tolly and Teos are twins and they are 16 years old. Both of them are polite and quiet when there parents are around but when the parents leave, the are very loud and rowdy. Alina is 12 just like me and she does most of the housework and she makes REALLY yummy crapes. Crapes are like thin pancakes with choclate, jam or pretty much anything in it! All three of the kids speak english. Its nice being able to talk to people. They have a puppy named aniołku, which means little angel.
There aren’t many wild animals in Warsaw because its a pretty big city. The most popular mall in Warsaw is Arkadia shopping mall.
The life expectancy is only 75 years old. The land area in Warsaw is pretty low lying and the average income in Poland is 20,000€ a year.
The school I will to is The American School Of Warsaw, Poland.
Our house is really nice it has...

- all media, central heating (gas)
- underground garage,
- 12 bedrooms (double)
- of underground-technical rooms.
- holiday entrance hall
- 3 big bathrooms with the bathtub, the shower and the toilet
- separate toilet
- big entrance hall behind the main entry
- kitchen with the dining room
- two holiday fairs
-big balcony
-pool

Yes, Its pretty cool. Daddyyyyy can you build a house with a pool? Ha Ha. Wait... Seriously.


Love, Emine<3

FIRST IMPRESSION

DEAR PEOPLE BACK IN THE USA,

THE FOOD HERE IS AWESOME, I WILL TRY TO BRING BACK SOME BELGIUM WAFFLES FOR YOU. MY HOUSE IS HUGE IT HAS 6 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, 3 garages villa at top location 10km north of Brussels.
MY FAIMLY IS COOL THERE NAMES ARE: (DAD)Peter Bruegel, (MOM)Audrey Bruegel, (BRO 1)Leopold Bruegel,(BRO 2)François-Joseph Bruegel,(BRO 3) Philippe Bruegel. My dad & mom is a brain doctors. Leopold is 18 years old, François-Joseph is 12 years old, Philippe is 15 years old. Audrey cooks Belgian fries but they are just like potato chips.

FIRST IMPRESSION

DEAR PEOPLE BACK IN THE USA,

THE FOOD HERE IS AWESOME, I WILL TRY TO BRING BACK SOME BELGIUM WAFFLES FOR YOU. MY HOUSE IS HUGE IT HAS 6 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, 3 garages villa at top location 10km north of Brussels.
MY FAIMLY IS COOL THERE NAMES ARE: (DAD)Peter Bruegel, (MOM)Audrey Bruegel, (BRO 1)Leopold Bruegel,(BRO 2)François-Joseph Bruegel,(BRO 3) Philippe Bruegel. My dad & mom is a brain doctors. Leopold is 18 years old, François-Joseph is 12 years old, Philippe is 15 years old. Audrey cooks Belgian fries but they are just like potato chips.

Juliana's First Impressions

Juliana Burch
January 4,2010
2 Draft
Dear Mom, Dad, and everyone else,

Hi everyone! I miss you so much! It’s a little hard settling in with this family, with only one girl and four guys! It’s weird and sort of scary! My overall feeling about my family is they’re very nice, polite, care for me, and have my best interest at heart!
The Rosewell family is a typical one with a mother, father, and three sons. The mother’s name is Aurel (45). Alin is the father’s name (46)Their sons names are Benjamin (12), Anton (8), and the youngest son Cezar (5)The two youngest sons are wild and full of energy! The oldest son spoke some English and showed me around the house and school. Benjamin taught me some Romanian and I taught him more English. The mother is always making sure I’m warm, have enough clean cloths, enough warm blankets, and making sure the younger boys leave me alone.
Their home is on the outskirts of Bucharest. It’s around many trees, and has a small stream next to it. Their home is so cozy and warm I love it! It is on a little hill with a pale fence surrounding it. It’s so cute! There are four bedrooms, one is the parents, the second is the two younger boys room, the third is the older sons room and the fourth is the guest room/my room. With two small bathrooms, one has a sink and a toilet the other has a shower/bathtub and a sink and mirror. I’m looking forward to is coming home and seeing my real family and friends! I will miss my host family though.


Your friend/daughter,
Juliana