Hi, my name is Elsa Fastrup and I was a Rotary exchange student in eastern Pennsylvania, USA. Between my second and third year I took the chance to go on an exchange year, because I so badly wanted to get out into the world, try new things and learn more about other cultures.
I didn’t know much about being an exchange student. Mum had talked about it, but I only listened with one ear. It wasn’t until I started reading blogs and emailing former exchange students that I became more and more interested. In the end it no longer mattered where I ended up, so I got in touch with Gunilla Marklund, who was in charge of Rotary’s exchange students in my district, and with her help I started my application.
I looked more closely at Rotary because it was one of the more reasonably priced options. Now I know that Rotary is an international non-profit organisation run by volunteers who use their free time to do good in the community – besides the exchange program, they have reduced the number of polio cases by 99% through donations and volunteers who vaccinate. It felt good to know that the people responsible for me were doing it voluntarily, with a desire to make the world better. Another thing that’s really good about Rotary is that you do things together with other exchange students. In my district there were 15 of us from all over the world who met up at planned times once a month to visit big cities or do activities like skiing and climbing. We also started meeting up outside Rotary’s planned meetings – with sleepovers, birthday parties and more.
I ended up in a small town called Nazareth, 1.5 hours from New York City, and lived with three really lovely host families. They all had children my age, and I got to live in the countryside, in the city and in a residential area. I was happy with all the families, and I didn’t think people could be so generous and loving towards a stranger who was going to live with them for free. I really appreciated getting to live with several families, because then you experience what really lies in the culture and not just in a single family.
An exchange year is about studying in another country, and I was a senior (final year) at Nazareth Area High School with around 1,500 students. It may sound tough to do an extra year of school, but the best way to understand what it’s like to live in another country is to do what they do. I got to choose all my courses myself, and American school is a lot of fun because the extracurricular activities are part of school. I spent the autumn and winter on both football and basketball. What I learned is that sport is taken very seriously. You meet up as a team even outside practice, have potlucks and sleepovers, and on game days you dress in the same colours to build up the team spirit. If I hadn’t gone to school I would never have experienced homecoming, prom, graduation, wonderful teachers and friends, the bus rides home after a win when we sang along loudly to the music, or when the whole team jumped for joy every time I scored. All these small and large differences are part of the culture.
Every exchange year is unique, because we get different opportunities, meet different people and are different ourselves. Thanks to my exchange year, this autumn I’m already going to Slovakia to visit my best friend Miska, whom I got to know in my district! Now I have a second home with family and friends in Pennsylvania – but also all around the world. It’s an experience and an adventure I’m really glad I embarked on. An exchange year isn’t just a year of your life, it’s a life in one year.
Do you want to get out into the world too? It's free to register your interest. Read more about the one-year exchange.