So the reason that this is so late (for me) is because I was at a Rotary orientation all weekend. All of the inbounds (students from other countries who come to Germany) from my district had a sleepover in Oldenburg. It was less of an informational meeting and more of a get to know you kind of thing. There were around 50 inbound (I think), many of whom were from Brazil or Mexico. There were 8 of us U.S. Americans (hehehe) that were at the orientation, and I even met another Coloradan! She only lives an hour south of me now, so we plan on meeting up one weekend soon. Thankfully for us, we're going on our Germany trip the same week, so we'll see each other sooner than some of the others.
Everyone kind of stayed with people from their country because even though we can all speak English, it's easiest to be with people who talk like you. Some people, myself included, did branch out. I talked to people from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and Sweden. For me and the other kids from the US, it was so weird to hear an American English accent because for so long we had only heard people speak English with some sort of other accent. So it was kind of weird. We also agreed that our English was actually getting worse because of how little we speak and because it's everyone else's second language. While many Germans speak perfectly fine, there are still little things that have been affecting my own speech. Then again, I've always had trouble vocalizing my thoughts, so it could just be that I'm still that way and just noticing it more now.
On Saturday, one of the activities was talking to the outbounds (students who are leaving Germany next year for exchange). We got into groups and presented our countries to all the students and their parents. My group would have done a dance but there was this one boy who refused to dance. So we didn't do that. Instead we presented our flag (unfolding it and refolding it) while we took turns saying good/fun things about living in our country. I talked about how high schools are different and there's so much to do at each one; like clubs, sports, going to football games, and spirit week. We also talked about the diversity of people and food. After everyone had presented, we all got to find the outbounds who were thinking about going to our country. So I found some boys who wanted to go to either the US or Canada and answered whatever questions they had.
That night, we all walked to a big gymnasium where we ate pizza, had a party, and then slept. The pizza was from Dominoes and the music was from everywhere. Some songs were in German, some in Spanish, and some in English. The party made me think that if I could be any nationality, I'd want to be Brazilian. They are all so fun, happy, nice, and know how to dance and party. The night was so fun but it peaked when they played "Party in the USA" by Miley Cyrus and everyone knew it. And then the next song: "Breaking Free" from High School Musical, which most people knew as well. At that moment, I was so happy. One of the happiest I've been during this exchange. Before they played those songs, me and the other Colorado girl requested the Cupid Shuffle. Everyone began dancing to it and it was a lot of fun.
Today, after we woke up, stood around for a while, and had breakfast, we got to go bowling. I'm okay at bowling; not good, but not terrible. I'm like a 4 out of 10 if we're comparing to the average person.But anyways, we played, ate, and then said our goodbyes as everyone began to leave. It was sad to leave my new friends, but I'll see them again soon.
Stay tuned for another update tomorrow. I should be asleep right now, but I needed you all to hear about some of my adventure on a Sunday. I hope you enjoyed! And as always, I'm sending my love back to all of you <3