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3.07.2008
Coming to Canada
A little piece of advice what to do and what not to do when you are about to go on high school exchange.Dedicated to my lovely German cousin Laura
Last time I was trying to convince you that high school exchange is a wonderful experience that is definitely worth trying. Today we gonna have a look at the more practical stuff.
Before you go
In my opinion the main issue here is packing. My advice is the less the better. You gonna buy/get lots of stuff like T-shirts so there is no need to bring lots of them. Pack just what's neccessary. Do bring specialized stuff like sports equipment, but take it easy with clothes. If you bring lots, you gonna have troubles bringing it back. Think about what place you are going and what you might be doing there. In case of Winnipeg you definitely wanna bring scarfs, hats, gloves (+ the thin gloves you can put inside another pair) and a face mask. We often joke that if you survive a year in Winnipeg you're ready to live anywhere. I don't think it's useful to bring a suit, because the only occasion I'd wear it would be graduation. I made a mistake with taking stuff for wall climbing with me – it's heavy and I used it only once (and outside Winnipeg). However, I did regret not bringing stuff for skiing – the winter is long and there is lots of snow, so I ended up with my parents sending a big box filled with ski waxes, gloves, ...
To have a better idea what can be easily bought in Canada and what you should bring along, let's have a look at the Canadian prices. Basically, food and "little stuff" is more expensive whereas electronics and gas is cheaper. Clothes is either the same or in most of the cases cheaper than in the Czech Republic. If you wanna buy a laptop or MP3 player overseas go for it :)
Another question connected with packing is what to bring for your homestay. I gave them "photo book" about Prague, T-shirts and for Christmas I brought them some fancy glass that you can put on Christmas tree. Bring whatever you think is interesting, but if you wanna bring alcohol (something like "slivovice" or beer) then check whether your homestay are abstinents or not
I also have one advice for parents. It's great if you send your child a present for birthday, but please send something that is either adible (chocolate is an awesome idea) or easily carriable back home. Books and CD's are nice, but they are heavy and occupy too much space.
Finally, you should check stuff like whether your cell phone is going to work in the country you're going to, what is the voltage and shape of electric socket there, how does it work with a credit card and so on. However, your agency should be able to answer those questions for you.
On the way
Don't panic! In my opinion the flight is kind of the first test of your skills. It's good to know the number of the people who are going to meet you at the airport and to have a little cash in the currecncy of the airports you'll be going through. There is going to be a huuuuge line at the immigration, so don't panic if you miss your flight from there. It happened to almost every international student I know.
While there
After you succesfully arrived with all the stuff you gonna need and were picked up by your homestay family, start enjoying your life in Winnipeg. The transition can be hard (staying with people you don't really know, having no friends at the beginning, going through ups and downs with your English, ...), but I can tell you – it's gonna get better and you won't want to come back after your stay is over. I think it's useful to read the booklets that are provided by your agency and school about "Culture Shock". At least you will be aware what's going on and why you might be feeling depressed. However, the adaptation process is highly individual.
When you are there do speak in English. There might be other internationals that speak the same language as you, but you didn't come to talk in your mother language. Therefore, do use English as much as possible. I think it's useful to write down the new vocabulary you encounter and learn it.
At school you are going to select the subjects you want to study. Not only you can pick up almost anything, but you can sometimes also select the grade. In my opinion, you should go for the subjects that interests you and that are as hard as possible. The teachers sometimes might try to put you to "easy classes that are not even the same grade as the classes in your country back home" so ask about that – especially if you want to graduate. If you really like any subject you might want to ask about the IB or AP program (higher level classes, you can get university credits for them and you'll meet lots of nice people there)
At first you become friends with the other internationals. They also don't know anybody else, so they're keen on meeting new people. The Canadians already have their own friends, so they might not be the ones who start talking to you at first. Instead, start to chat with them yourself! Most of them will turn out to be interesting people, but it's up to you to initiate the conversation. My advice is don't be shy, talk, talk and talk. Don't be afraid about misunderstandings. It happens to everybody and it's something you gonna laugh with your friends after. In the beginning it's sometimes hard to properly understand what people say. Therefore, ask them to speak slowly and don't be afraid to ask tons of questions to make everything clear. There is nothing wrong with asking questions!
My final advice is to be open to new experience, try new things and meet lots of people. Enjoy your time!
Coming home
I'm sure that by this point you have already met lots of people and have many friends. You definititely wanna exchange a contact info like email, facebook, msn or whatever else with them. There is nothing worse than losing contact with somebody who you might not see again. Your contacts are your future, so keep in touch with them. Someone might be coming for a visit to your country or you might be coming back and it would be really nice if you can meet your friends again.
You can trust me that it's not easy to say goodbye when you're leaving. However, there is one phenomenon I've seen many times – soooo many couples start dating about a week before they leave. They liked each other the whole year, but now they finally realized that if they don't do anything they might not see each other anymore. So if there is anybody who you like, ask them out immediately. A year or a semester is shorter than you think. The time is highly valuable, so don't waste it and do whatever you wanna do .... NOW .. tomorrow is too late.
If you decided to go on an exchange I can honestly tell you that you're doing one of the best decisions of your life. Enjoy your stay and have fun!
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