30 days from today, I will be on an airplane flying to Finland!
I will officially be an exchange student in 30 days, and I will get the chance to meet over 100 other exchange students who are also flying to Finland on the same exact day as I am! Unfortunately though, I don't have my visa yet for my exchange. (Fingers crossed it will come soon!!!) And I am aware of only one other student who will be in District 1400 in Northern Finland...hopefully I will meet others at language camp. ;)
Ive been thinking about my exchange, and about leaving; and tomorrow I am going to Bend, Oregon with my parents as a last family vacation before I leave on my exchange. A lot of people don't think im afraid to go on my exchange- and Im honestly not anymore, because I know that I made the choice to go to Finland, and that im going to the perfect country for me, and my first host family is amazing and very kind for letting me live with them!
BUT- I would be crazy if I wasn't a LITTLE bit scared to leave my country, school, and family behind. I mean, who wouldn't be nervous to live a year abroad?!
I officially started planning my going away party, although I am a little disappointed because so far not a lot of people can come, and I was really hoping that I would be able to see a lot of people before I left. But at the same time, I don't want to seem selfish!
I understand that Summer is crazy, and that people have their own plans. I am just hoping that my best friends are able to come hang out for one last time with me before I leave on my exchange. But I know that I am not leaving forever, and that it wont be a goodbye; just a, "See you later." :)
My blog is probably a little on the boring side as I am only posting as an Outbound Student, since I haven't left for my exchange yet. But I know that I will want to record the things about my Pre-Exchange as an Outbound, so that later I can read about the silly things that I said or felt! (Maybe you feel the same way reading about the silly things I post.) :)
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Exchange Students!
I thought I would just post a quick update about this past week.
This past weekend, I had the chance to host some exchange students! It was pretty fun, even though they were only with me for two nights. (Which is pretty short for exchange students!) However, They were on their last Rotary Trip with their districts, which was a train ride across the USA.
My mom and I picked them up at the train station in Portland, however their train was a good three hours late...apparently their train ran over a guy wearing headphones and riding a bike- so they had to stop for a good few hours to...well...I think you already know the ending to that story. :P
Anyways- we hosted a girl from Sweden named, Sofia; and a girl from Germany named, Leonie. They were SUCH sweet girls, and it was a lot of fun since I am still an Outbound. We took them to Multnomah Falls, here in Oregon; and it was absolutely GORGEOUS. I never get tired of seeing it. :)
This past weekend, I had the chance to host some exchange students! It was pretty fun, even though they were only with me for two nights. (Which is pretty short for exchange students!) However, They were on their last Rotary Trip with their districts, which was a train ride across the USA.
My mom and I picked them up at the train station in Portland, however their train was a good three hours late...apparently their train ran over a guy wearing headphones and riding a bike- so they had to stop for a good few hours to...well...I think you already know the ending to that story. :P
Anyways- we hosted a girl from Sweden named, Sofia; and a girl from Germany named, Leonie. They were SUCH sweet girls, and it was a lot of fun since I am still an Outbound. We took them to Multnomah Falls, here in Oregon; and it was absolutely GORGEOUS. I never get tired of seeing it. :)
Me, Leonie, and Sofia
A view of the falls.
My mom, me, Leonie, and Sofia
Oregon is so GREEN!
Leonie, Sofia and I
It was great to be able to talk about their exchanges, and they even gave me advice about my exchange- which was great! It really helps a lot to be able to talk to people who have been in your situation. It just made me a whole lot more excited for Finland! :D
Before we took them back to their train station; we had to take them to Voodoo Doughnuts...its a Portland thing. ;) However, it was REALLY fun because even though I have lived in the Portland, Oregon area for almost all of my life; I have never been there. And it was so fun because they were so excited about it!
It was super fun to be able to spend the weekend with exchange students. After all; Ill be one of them in a month! Its hard to explain...you have a lot in common with exchange students once you have really gotten to know the life of an exchange student. It has made me miss my Inbound friends who are two steps ahead of me and already home from their exchanges.
30 days until Finland!
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
First Chapter of Summer
So, a lot has happened in the past few days that I thought I should post about; and I have decided that I put off updating my blog long enough. I always have the intentions to update, but somehow it never really happens. (And part of that is because I didn't want to write about all that has happened...sorry!)
School has been out since June 13th; and it was a little weird having my school friends hug me goodbye, and hearing my teachers wish me luck for my adventures in Finland. But at the same time, I was all smiles as I ran out of those school doors, because to me at that moment it meant I was DONE with all of the hard work I had to do to become an exchange student; and I felt like after all of those hours of studying and classes- I had earned my exchange from all of the school work I had to do to study abroad! I was SO happy, I even took one last picture of my school as I walked away. (As dorky as it sounds...)
School has been out since June 13th; and it was a little weird having my school friends hug me goodbye, and hearing my teachers wish me luck for my adventures in Finland. But at the same time, I was all smiles as I ran out of those school doors, because to me at that moment it meant I was DONE with all of the hard work I had to do to become an exchange student; and I felt like after all of those hours of studying and classes- I had earned my exchange from all of the school work I had to do to study abroad! I was SO happy, I even took one last picture of my school as I walked away. (As dorky as it sounds...)
One last look at Newberg High School! :)
Apart from my last day of school, I also had the last Inbound Party (which was a party for the Inbounds who have been the Exchange Students in Oregon for the 2012-2013 school year in District 5100). Unfortunately, I was only there for a good 20 minutes due to my last dance competition with my dance team; so I came super late and only for a short amount of time. And, unfortunately I have to say it was pretty sad. Ive gotten to know these Exchange Students throughout this year, being an Outbound; and we have become such a big family in District 5100. At all of the events you would always have someone to talk to, and someone to joke around with, and I am happy to call all of them friends. Its literally impossible to feel alone in a room filled with exchange students!
I brought small little gifts for the Finnish Inbounds, as little goodbye presents. They have taught me so much about Finland, and have introduced me to the language that I will be learning and speaking all of next year. They have been a HUGE help to me, and it is because of them that I know that Finland is the right country for me to go to as an exchange student. :)
I also brought little gifts for the Danish Inbounds and one of the Inbounds from Taiwan, who I have also gotten to know so well during this year. It was sad to give it to them and to quickly hug them goodbye, and say some last few words to them as I would move on to some of the other students I wanted to say goodbye to. It was sad that I could only be there for a few minutes.
I hugged some of the other students goodbye; and everyone kept on telling me to put my bag down and to go dance with them- since the DJ was still there. It was really hard for me to tell them that I was just there for a few minutes. I checked my phone, and when I saw that my time was up- I turned around one last time to look at everyone before I left as I started to walk out of the room...But unfortunately that didn't really end well, as I ran back over to hug some of the students for a second time! But, it really was time for me to go, and I ended up walking out of the room backwards because I didn't want to turn away from them. I'm sure I looked ridiculous walking backwards out of a school cafeteria; but hey- if it works, it works; right? :)
Its sad now seeing all of my foreign friends going back home, but at the same time I am SO happy that I had the chance to meet them; and I promised some of my good Rotary friends that I would come visit them, and that this was only a, "See You Later." (Which I hope is true.)
I guess this post turned out more of a mini-novel than I had hoped for...But I guess now you know why I didn't want to take the time to write about it. Ill try to update as interesting things arise. ;)
Monday, June 10, 2013
School and Visas!
Finals are starting, and I thought that before things got a little crazy I should update my blog by writing a few points of what has happened in the past few days:
05/31:
This week my Rotary club's meeting was held at Memorial Park. Both of my town's rotary clubs were there (Noon time and Early Birds) as well as the Kiwanis club of my town. We were all held together there for a meeting for the dedication of the park that the clubs had created together. The clubs have worked to build a new playground and provide brand new play structure equipment for children to play on. The mayor of Newberg was there, and it was cool to be able to be a part of my community and be there with the other Outbound Student from my club (going to India) and the Inbound (From Japan). We had fun playing on the playground together while everyone took different club pictures. (Even though it was rainy and freezing outside!!!).
06/07
So far this week has been super crazy! On Tuesday I flew down to LA for an appointment with the Finnish consult to get my visa! Unfortunately, I didnt have all of the documents I needed, because we were unaware that we were missing documents for our student visas.
BUT: It was SUPER fun to hang out with two other outbounds from Oregon going to Finland! I woke up at 3am to get ready for the 6-something flight to LA, and we all road together on the same flight to LA. (However, we pretty much just slept on each other during the flight because it was SO EARLY.) Afterward we took a taxi after we landed with our travel agent (who met us at the airport), and then we went to the Finnish Consulate.
The appointment was super awkward; but really cool at the same time! I went for my appointment first, and I walked into this little room, and things were kind of quiet as a girl from the Finnish consulate went through all of my documents for my visa. The appointment was pretty quiet, except for an occasional question or two. But it was cool when she would occasionally turn around and speak in Finnish. (Although it was super confusing, it was really cool! :) ) I tried to pick out a few words...but It didnt really work.
After all three of our appointments were done, we took another taxi with the agent to the Santa Monica pier. (Since we were wearing our Rotary Blazers and skirts/dresses, it was super hot!). We walked around and got lunch, and then spent the next 3 hours sitting on the beach. It was actually a REALLY nice break. We eventually got bored of just sitting in the sand, so we got up and ran into the water! (Yes, I got my skirt wet...but it dried, and it was totally worth it!)
Then we all took a taxi back to the airport, and one of the girls from another district had to catch her flight to Southern Oregon as another girl from my district and I ended up waiting a few more hours for our flight back to Portland. It was over-all an EXHAUSTING day; and unfortunately I didnt get my visa. (I still have to turn in the last few documents before I get it.)
But at least some very exciting things happened this week! :D
05/31:
This week my Rotary club's meeting was held at Memorial Park. Both of my town's rotary clubs were there (Noon time and Early Birds) as well as the Kiwanis club of my town. We were all held together there for a meeting for the dedication of the park that the clubs had created together. The clubs have worked to build a new playground and provide brand new play structure equipment for children to play on. The mayor of Newberg was there, and it was cool to be able to be a part of my community and be there with the other Outbound Student from my club (going to India) and the Inbound (From Japan). We had fun playing on the playground together while everyone took different club pictures. (Even though it was rainy and freezing outside!!!).
The cutting of the ribbon
My amazing Sponsoring Rotary club! :)
06/07
So far this week has been super crazy! On Tuesday I flew down to LA for an appointment with the Finnish consult to get my visa! Unfortunately, I didnt have all of the documents I needed, because we were unaware that we were missing documents for our student visas.
BUT: It was SUPER fun to hang out with two other outbounds from Oregon going to Finland! I woke up at 3am to get ready for the 6-something flight to LA, and we all road together on the same flight to LA. (However, we pretty much just slept on each other during the flight because it was SO EARLY.) Afterward we took a taxi after we landed with our travel agent (who met us at the airport), and then we went to the Finnish Consulate.
The appointment was super awkward; but really cool at the same time! I went for my appointment first, and I walked into this little room, and things were kind of quiet as a girl from the Finnish consulate went through all of my documents for my visa. The appointment was pretty quiet, except for an occasional question or two. But it was cool when she would occasionally turn around and speak in Finnish. (Although it was super confusing, it was really cool! :) ) I tried to pick out a few words...but It didnt really work.
After all three of our appointments were done, we took another taxi with the agent to the Santa Monica pier. (Since we were wearing our Rotary Blazers and skirts/dresses, it was super hot!). We walked around and got lunch, and then spent the next 3 hours sitting on the beach. It was actually a REALLY nice break. We eventually got bored of just sitting in the sand, so we got up and ran into the water! (Yes, I got my skirt wet...but it dried, and it was totally worth it!)
Then we all took a taxi back to the airport, and one of the girls from another district had to catch her flight to Southern Oregon as another girl from my district and I ended up waiting a few more hours for our flight back to Portland. It was over-all an EXHAUSTING day; and unfortunately I didnt get my visa. (I still have to turn in the last few documents before I get it.)
But at least some very exciting things happened this week! :D
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Being Busy
Since its been awhile, I thought I should eventually update this blog. (Even though nothing interesting has happened.)
My life so far has been filled with school work. Literally. Ill take you through a day in my shoes:
1.) The alarm goes off at 5:26am.
2.) I eventually get up; and get ready and leave the house at around 6:10am.(I always run a little late!)
3.) Go to early morning seminary at 6:30
4.) Walk to school and then school starts at 7:40am
5.) Go to class until lunch.
6.) Study Finnish during lunch
7.) Go to my last few classes; school ends at 2:32
8.) Stay after school and work in a classroom until 3:00
9.) Drive to another town for ACT prep from 4-7
10.) Drive home and start homework at 7:45
So, there you have it. A boring day in my shoes. My life consists of school work. But, I guess its worth it. Its a lot of school, but im actually really happy to get the opportunity to have so much school work and opportunities to be successful. (YES- I just said that I was happy to have 9 hours of school!!!) I know that I complain sometimes to my friends...but to tell you the truth, im happy to be able to study so much.
However, being busy with school all the time honestly has its up's and down's. Its been a long time since ive had fun with...well...anyone. (BUT- I guess thats a bit of a lie because I went shopping this last Saturday.)
At least I only have 3 weeks of school left! But in that time I have a rafting trip, the (ACTUAL) ACT test, my dance showcase, 7 final tests/presentations in school and a dance competition...
I am so excited to be able to gain free time! :)
My life so far has been filled with school work. Literally. Ill take you through a day in my shoes:
1.) The alarm goes off at 5:26am.
2.) I eventually get up; and get ready and leave the house at around 6:10am.(I always run a little late!)
3.) Go to early morning seminary at 6:30
4.) Walk to school and then school starts at 7:40am
5.) Go to class until lunch.
6.) Study Finnish during lunch
7.) Go to my last few classes; school ends at 2:32
8.) Stay after school and work in a classroom until 3:00
9.) Drive to another town for ACT prep from 4-7
10.) Drive home and start homework at 7:45
So, there you have it. A boring day in my shoes. My life consists of school work. But, I guess its worth it. Its a lot of school, but im actually really happy to get the opportunity to have so much school work and opportunities to be successful. (YES- I just said that I was happy to have 9 hours of school!!!) I know that I complain sometimes to my friends...but to tell you the truth, im happy to be able to study so much.
However, being busy with school all the time honestly has its up's and down's. Its been a long time since ive had fun with...well...anyone. (BUT- I guess thats a bit of a lie because I went shopping this last Saturday.)
At least I only have 3 weeks of school left! But in that time I have a rafting trip, the (ACTUAL) ACT test, my dance showcase, 7 final tests/presentations in school and a dance competition...
I am so excited to be able to gain free time! :)
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
District 5100 Conference 2013
This past weekend we had the Rotary District 5100 Conference. All of us Outbounds and Inbounds arrived at the University of Portland campus, and we were all assigned to dorm rooms. My roommate was an Outbound student to Mexico, and I seriously love her to death! We had so much fun together :)
After we were assigned to rooms, we had a bit of free time; and since I brought my guitar for the talent show, my friend and I decided to practice the song we were playing together. We were both playing the guitar together for the talent show, and so we decided to practice playing it together.
After everyone arrived, we all were lined up and counted off into seven different groups for the speech contest. (We had to prepare a 5 minute speech with the theme, "Peace Through Service".) We all were assigned to different classrooms with our groups, where we were given grading sheets for our speeches, and we had to give them to the judges to evaluate our speeches. I went second; and I was so nervous that I forgot my memorized speech and had to read the whole thing...I was pretty disappointed with myself that I was too nervous to give a speech after all of the practicing I did.
The next day, all of the inbound and outbound students who were in the talent show were to report to an auditorium to audition for the talent show. My friend, Audrey (an outbound student to Peru) and I were playing "93 Million Miles" on guitar while a few other girls sang the song and a Thai exchange student played the violin. And at the last minute, Audrey and I decided to sing the Cup Song with a few other girls to audition. Which was surprising because Ive NEVER played guitar in front of anyone before, and the only time I ever sing is in the shower! BUT- I realized that if I didnt do it now, then I never would.
We practiced all day (literally), and that night Audrey and I played guitar in the dorm elevator while the girls we were playing with sang.
That night was super fun, because everyone began to trade pins. Inbounds had their bags of pins, and we would just walk up to people and trade. It was like Halloween but with memories! :)
The next day, we all had to dress nice (Ties, Dresses, and blazers) for the Official talent show and Rotary Conference. It was a looonnnggg day. We ran through the talent show over and over and over again. BUT, it was great because it was our way to give back to Rotary!
It was a really long day; and the official show didnt start until 7pm. We practiced for a final time in the hotel's ballroom where the event was being held, and afterward we had dinner with the 300 or 400 Rotarians who came. We were all scattered all over the room, and it was kind of awkward at first, but then a Rebound sat next to me, and it was amazing how quickly the ice was broken between everyone. I hope that when Im a rebound that ill be that outgoing...
We then had our flag ceremony (Where we said where we were going and which Rotary club was either Hosting or Sponsoring us); and then after we went straight into the show. Everyone who was in the talent show sat off to the side of the room in three rows of chairs, and after every act; we all stood and cheered and clapped; it was great! It was awesome to see everyone preform! :D
The final act was the song I played on guitar, "93 Million Miles". At the end; all of the inbound and outbound exchange students joined us and we all sang it together. It was pretty embarrassing though, because Audrey and I accidentally ended a verse early and randomly starting belting out the chorus! ...At least it will be a good memory when we watch the videos of it.
It really meant a lot to me to stop playing my guitar and to look behind me at all of the kids who have become part of my International Family. Its hard for me to explain to everyone how much the Inbounds and Outbounds mean to me. And to look behind me at all of these kids, even for a short moment; it was amazing to all be together.
After the talent show, the Finnish and Russian inbounds and outbounds took a picture with our Country Officer.
After we were assigned to rooms, we had a bit of free time; and since I brought my guitar for the talent show, my friend and I decided to practice the song we were playing together. We were both playing the guitar together for the talent show, and so we decided to practice playing it together.
After everyone arrived, we all were lined up and counted off into seven different groups for the speech contest. (We had to prepare a 5 minute speech with the theme, "Peace Through Service".) We all were assigned to different classrooms with our groups, where we were given grading sheets for our speeches, and we had to give them to the judges to evaluate our speeches. I went second; and I was so nervous that I forgot my memorized speech and had to read the whole thing...I was pretty disappointed with myself that I was too nervous to give a speech after all of the practicing I did.
The next day, all of the inbound and outbound students who were in the talent show were to report to an auditorium to audition for the talent show. My friend, Audrey (an outbound student to Peru) and I were playing "93 Million Miles" on guitar while a few other girls sang the song and a Thai exchange student played the violin. And at the last minute, Audrey and I decided to sing the Cup Song with a few other girls to audition. Which was surprising because Ive NEVER played guitar in front of anyone before, and the only time I ever sing is in the shower! BUT- I realized that if I didnt do it now, then I never would.
We practiced all day (literally), and that night Audrey and I played guitar in the dorm elevator while the girls we were playing with sang.
Playing in the elevator!
It was so funny to see people's faces as they got on the elevator! :D
The next day, we all had to dress nice (Ties, Dresses, and blazers) for the Official talent show and Rotary Conference. It was a looonnnggg day. We ran through the talent show over and over and over again. BUT, it was great because it was our way to give back to Rotary!
Sitting around waiting to practice our acts for the talent show.
My outbound friends: Finland, and Peru.
We then had our flag ceremony (Where we said where we were going and which Rotary club was either Hosting or Sponsoring us); and then after we went straight into the show. Everyone who was in the talent show sat off to the side of the room in three rows of chairs, and after every act; we all stood and cheered and clapped; it was great! It was awesome to see everyone preform! :D
The final act was the song I played on guitar, "93 Million Miles". At the end; all of the inbound and outbound exchange students joined us and we all sang it together. It was pretty embarrassing though, because Audrey and I accidentally ended a verse early and randomly starting belting out the chorus! ...At least it will be a good memory when we watch the videos of it.
It really meant a lot to me to stop playing my guitar and to look behind me at all of the kids who have become part of my International Family. Its hard for me to explain to everyone how much the Inbounds and Outbounds mean to me. And to look behind me at all of these kids, even for a short moment; it was amazing to all be together.
After the talent show, the Finnish and Russian inbounds and outbounds took a picture with our Country Officer.
One of the Austrian Exchange Students Photobombed us...
The day after the talent show, we went to a zip-lining place. (However I forgot a jacket, and it was rainy and freezing, and so I decided not to do it...) Which honestly, I regret not doing it; but it was SO COLD and WET! I took pictures though at least!
That day was pretty long, and there isnt much to tell...However, on Sunday we packed up all of our stuff and brought it down to the commons of the dorms while we waited for our parents. It was a long morning, and it was awkward because we were talking to everyone we could, wondering if it was the last time we were going to see each other. (Which im hoping it wont be, because I didnt say goodbye because I didnt want it to be the last time I saw everyone.)
The Outbounds parents all arived for our last orientation, and it was fun to talk to the parents of a current exchange student in Finland. It made me so much more excited for Finland! The Outbounds also got their business cards, (I got into the box before they were supposed to be handed out because I was so excited!). The next few hours of the orientation were boring, because they had a travel agent come to talk about the travel agency we have to use for our tickets and visas.
The conference was a total blast, and it was defiantly the funnest Rotary trip of my year as an Outbound! We were a total family: we all knew each other, and teased each other and it was just so much fun! Its going to be hard to say goodbye to the inbounds and the outbounds for all of our exchanges, but it makes me so happy that I have gotten to know each of them so well throughout this year and throughout their exchanges.
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”
- Winnie The Pooh
Scandinavian Weekend!
Geez! I REALLY need to work on updating this...
Around two weeks ago I was able to drive up to White Salmon, Washington to spend the night at a Country officer's house in my district. The current inbound students from Finland, Denmark and Russia as well as the outbounds and a rebound (who went to Finland last year for exchange) were all able to stay the night together for a Country Dinner.
We stayed at the Country Officer for Denmark's house; and it was a BLAST! Unfortunately not all of the exchange students were able to come; but it was so much fun! We all arrived after a long two hour drive, and once we were there the Danish Exchange students made Danish Open-Faced Sandwiches; which were SO good! I wasn't too excited to try the rye bread, and the first bite was kind of weird...but after I ate a few sandwiches, it was really good! So, it is good to try new things. :)
We made a menu with the rest of the Inbounds and Outbounds to make dishes from our countries, and then we all carpooled to Hood River to go to the grocery store to pick up the ingredients. For the Finnish dishes we made Makaroonilaatikko and for dessert I made Kiisseli (which is like a thick fruit soup.). The Danish dishes were Danish meatballs and Christmas red cabbage, and then we also had a Russian salad with pineapple and corn in it. (Which was actually good!)
It felt like Thanksgiving, cooking in the kitchen together! We had MORE than enough food for everyone, and it was fun to cook everything together. After we ate dinner, we started to make desserts; which were Finnish Kiisseli and a Finnish inbound made Munkki, which were really good sugary doughnuts. (I couldn't stop eating the raw dough! They were SO good!) And the Danish inbounds made Danish pancakes (which were a lot like crepes.)
It was really fun to socialize while we were all making the desserts, because we decided to put on Danish and Finnish rap and pop songs. So, it was fun to listen to music from our host countries and hear all of the inbounds sing along.
It was really funny though, because I recognized one of the songs! The Finnish inbound, rebound and I started to randomly start singing, "Frontside Ollie" which is a Finnish song by, Robin (Who is pretty much a Finnish version of Justin Beiber.).
The Outbounds got our blazers; which is cool because we were the first to get them. We also got our first night questions in our host language for our host families. (Which is basically questions like, "What should I call you?" and all of the basic questions to break the ice on the first night in your new home.). I also got some language lessons in Finnish like how to conjugate things; which was SUPER helpful!
Later that night, we watched the previous Rotary Youth Exchange talent show from last year, and then later the boys played karaoke. (Which was hilarious).
Over all, the Scandinavian Weekend was great! I just wish that I took pictures. :(
Around two weeks ago I was able to drive up to White Salmon, Washington to spend the night at a Country officer's house in my district. The current inbound students from Finland, Denmark and Russia as well as the outbounds and a rebound (who went to Finland last year for exchange) were all able to stay the night together for a Country Dinner.
We stayed at the Country Officer for Denmark's house; and it was a BLAST! Unfortunately not all of the exchange students were able to come; but it was so much fun! We all arrived after a long two hour drive, and once we were there the Danish Exchange students made Danish Open-Faced Sandwiches; which were SO good! I wasn't too excited to try the rye bread, and the first bite was kind of weird...but after I ate a few sandwiches, it was really good! So, it is good to try new things. :)
We made a menu with the rest of the Inbounds and Outbounds to make dishes from our countries, and then we all carpooled to Hood River to go to the grocery store to pick up the ingredients. For the Finnish dishes we made Makaroonilaatikko and for dessert I made Kiisseli (which is like a thick fruit soup.). The Danish dishes were Danish meatballs and Christmas red cabbage, and then we also had a Russian salad with pineapple and corn in it. (Which was actually good!)
It felt like Thanksgiving, cooking in the kitchen together! We had MORE than enough food for everyone, and it was fun to cook everything together. After we ate dinner, we started to make desserts; which were Finnish Kiisseli and a Finnish inbound made Munkki, which were really good sugary doughnuts. (I couldn't stop eating the raw dough! They were SO good!) And the Danish inbounds made Danish pancakes (which were a lot like crepes.)
It was really fun to socialize while we were all making the desserts, because we decided to put on Danish and Finnish rap and pop songs. So, it was fun to listen to music from our host countries and hear all of the inbounds sing along.
It was really funny though, because I recognized one of the songs! The Finnish inbound, rebound and I started to randomly start singing, "Frontside Ollie" which is a Finnish song by, Robin (Who is pretty much a Finnish version of Justin Beiber.).
The Outbounds got our blazers; which is cool because we were the first to get them. We also got our first night questions in our host language for our host families. (Which is basically questions like, "What should I call you?" and all of the basic questions to break the ice on the first night in your new home.). I also got some language lessons in Finnish like how to conjugate things; which was SUPER helpful!
Later that night, we watched the previous Rotary Youth Exchange talent show from last year, and then later the boys played karaoke. (Which was hilarious).
Over all, the Scandinavian Weekend was great! I just wish that I took pictures. :(
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