What inspired you to travel abroad?
I wanted to experience a culture that contrasted with our own and have the opportunity to learn firsthand about that culture and language.
The opportunity to be an exchange student—alone and immersed in another culture—was different than a group tour to another country and appealed to me in that way. I did not want to be a tourist, even as a student member of a semester abroad-type program.
Why did you choose Youth For Understanding (YFU)?
I chose YFU from among the three or four organizations with applications available in our high school because it didn’t require my family to have existing connections to it, like the Rotary Club did.
Also, YFU offered a summer program. Once I learned about it, I wanted to try the summer program rather than miss a year of school.
Oberbayern am Vorabend.
What was your favorite part about Germany?
Being both a foreign student and accepted as a part of life in our small village.
I can imagine that if I were obviously racially different from the host country, there may have been some more uncomfortable encounters. But as a white-passing student of color (half white), it was easy to blend in and not be taken as a tourist—which is what I wanted to avoid.
What made your experience abroad memorable?
The obvious love of my host family and the care and contact from YFU while I was abroad.
I almost never got lonely and don’t remember being homesick. I was engaged in activities the entire time I was there and didn’t even realize how helpful the care and understanding from my host family—and the official check-ins—were to me.
How did the local program staff support you throughout your program?
With a couple of telephone calls, a planned and well-publicized regional meeting of exchange students in the state capital city, and face-to-face contact with a former exchange student who lived nearby.
That person offered me a one-on-one opportunity to socialize and ask questions. We just did normal teenager stuff in a semi-structured environment that made it easy to learn.
What's one thing you wish you would have done differently during your time abroad?
I would tell my younger self to push harder on my social awkwardness and make more friends outside my family and neighbors.
I was so happy to be around my family and take instruction from them in helping out around the house. I didn’t take the opportunity to make more friends from the school or neighborhood, but I think a little push to go another layer outside my comfort zone would have been that much more rewarding.
Wildsteig Church, Maypole, and War Memorial.
What was your typical day like there?
I would do my morning chores, join the family and staff of their store and bakery at breakfast, then help out in the bakery or store until lunch.
After lunch, I would take a walk or help out on errands or deliveries. Then, I would listen to the radio or read until dinner. After family dinner, we would watch soccer or a movie.
For part of my stay, I was in the same bedroom as their teenage daughter; for another part, I was in a spare bedroom in the attic.
What did you enjoy doing in your free time in Germany?
I enjoyed speaking the language and asking questions. They made it so easy to be curious and not be ridiculed for bad grammar or misunderstandings.
My host family was very generous with their time and took me on several day trips around the region to see famous castles, festivals, churches, etc. I took a walk by myself in the countryside at least once a week and got to know the area well.
Since it was summer, we also went swimming and hiking. Mostly, these trips took place on Sundays or Saturdays after the half-day the family worked in their business, a small grocery store.
What type of accommodation did you have? What did you like best about it?
I was living in the family house, a typical country farmhouse over 250 years old, with the family of four. We also had bakery apprentices who sometimes stayed overnight.
I shared the daughter’s bedroom for part of my stay and had a spare room of my own for part of the time. I had my own bed. Upstairs, there was one bathroom with a shower shared by the family, and downstairs was a small bathroom with a toilet and sink.
We either ate at the table in the kitchen or at the table in the front room.
Hops growing in the country.
What is one thing every future participant should know about your program before their program begins?
Every future participant should know and be prepared for the amount of travel required to get to their host family.
You are not traveling directly to one destination; the group needs to take time to make sure everyone is assembled as you travel cross-country leaving the U.S., and that everyone disembarks in order of destination in the group country or region.
This includes all mass transit needed and waiting for drivers to arrive at the final train terminal. I traveled at least 24 hours each way, and then I was told I slept for almost 20 hours.
Would you recommend Youth For Understanding (YFU) to others? Why?
I would absolutely recommend YFU to any prospective high school student interested in traveling abroad and interested in cultural immersion.
Their support was hands-off and not intrusive. I never felt like they expected problems or that they were snooping, but I also knew they would be able to provide any support I needed.
This was in the days when long-distance phone calls were expensive, so we didn’t communicate every week. Their information before my trip was as comprehensive as my prospective host family was able to provide.
The program was very well-run. After my trip, I was inspired to become a volunteer at our local international airport to meet foreign students coming to the U.S.
What do you feel is the biggest benefit of traveling abroad?
I think the biggest benefit is firsthand experience.
Travel shows, books, magazines, and other media expose you to ideas, but having your own experience is irreplaceable. It helps you build self-confidence, self-awareness, and memories that keep bringing you benefits and understanding long after you get off the plane.
Oberbayern am Vorabend.
Now that you're home, how has your time abroad impacted your life?
As mentioned above, the immersive contact with another culture and community brings so many gifts that you don’t even know about at the time.
I’ve used what I learned in 15 short weeks to develop those skills further and to interpret social interactions and world events differently than many of my peers.
My trip helped me develop an interest in social sciences and a curiosity about people around the world that I didn’t have before—not that broadly and deeply. At the same time, I also understood many things about the United States differently after I got back home.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Meaningful travel combines the goals of traveling without harming others, without prejudgment, and with the intent of expanding personal experience.
Within a safe environment, it means having the confidence to move out of your comfort zone and learn directly about other people and places—even to understand history and geography in a different way.
Meaningful travel is open to whatever you want it to be—and sometimes to what you don’t expect it to be. You’ll come away with unexpected gifts and memories.
