Anna's exchange year in Australia

I've always loved to travel, see new places and meet new people – but most of all I've always enjoyed testing limits, my own limits. Going away for a whole year and not seeing your family or friends isn't easy, but it felt like a good way for me to grow and get to know myself.

For me, Rotary was always an obvious choice. My dad was in the USA on a Rotary exchange in his day, and so was my aunt. Rotary is a fantastic network that exists all over the world, and choosing Rotary Youth Exchange really is a bit like being welcomed into an international family. As a student you get your host club and your sponsor club, who make sure everything works during the year and arrange gatherings with other exchange students from all over the world. Instead of just one host family you have a whole club behind you, all of whom want to show you their country and their traditions.

For one year I lived in the little “town” of Orbost in south-eastern Australia, right between the big cities of Sydney and Melbourne, about 5–6 hours in each direction.

The journey there

When it was time to leave, I actually wasn’t particularly scared or nervous. After a tough first year of upper-secondary school, it was a relief to leave my stressful life in Sweden for a new life somewhere else, where I could start over and just be myself. I was really only nervous once during the whole year, and that was when, after almost a full day in the air, I was about to meet my first host family at Melbourne airport.

The families

During my year in Australia I lived with four host families – four very different families. One of them had three children, one was an older couple, and the last was a single lady. Changing families was one of the best things during the year. Don’t get me wrong – I loved my families, but the change of scenery was good! Learning to adapt to different families’ ways of living was good for a girl who had lived with one and the same family her whole life. Everyone has their own routines and habits. Differences that aren’t huge but apply to almost everything you do. And I have to say that all my families were wonderful in their own ways. They treated me as one of the family – you weren’t a guest but one of them. I miss them every day.

The studies

Since I was 17 and would turn 18 during the year, I started the second half of the second year of high school (Australia’s school follows the calendar year, Christmas to Christmas) and after Christmas continued with the final year.

Back home in Sweden I studied the natural sciences program, so I wanted to do something completely different during my year. I chose as many subjects as possible where I could be creative or get out into nature – Art Appreciation, Studio Arts, Music and Outdoor Education were some of the courses, perfect for me, who wanted to get to know new people and see the world-famous Australian wilderness (which I really did!). I had my flute with me from home and was admitted to the school orchestra in the very first week; it rehearsed twice a week. One of the most fun experiences of the whole year – and it was in the orchestra that I found my closest friends!

It was a dream to put on my blue-checked school uniform in the morning and step onto the school bus together with everyone else. Two years on, I still long to go back.

Memories

Which was the best memory is a really hard question! The time three friends and I paddled around in a little canoe on a river with vines swinging from the trees, or the big trip around Australia with all the wonderful exchange students, or the time my host family took me on a plane ride over Melbourne … There are so many lovely memories, so many moments I’ll remember forever. I can’t say which was best – all of it together made my year what it was: the best year of my life.

Going with Rotary

Going on an exchange year was the best decision I’ve ever made. If you have the chance, you should absolutely take it! I’ve gained friends for life, friends I still call several times a week. The exchange students have given me a network all over the world, on every continent, and I’ll always have a piece of my heart with my families in Australia. The year has changed me forever – without Australia I wouldn’t be the person I am today.