Meet Foreign Exchange Students - Germany: Peter

Hello. My name is Peter and I am a German exchange student in the United States since August 2004. My current home is in the heart of America: Kansas. I am staying with a host family, who took the responsibility to take care of me for a year. My mom and my dad are possibly the best host parents any exchange student can think of, and I am really enjoying my stay. I am so grateful that they give me this awesome opportunity. Besides that, I have got my host sister and my host brother.

During the week I go to high school where I have a lot of interesting classes. I currently play basketball, a sport that I like very much, since I am 6'5". Once the season is over I want to try out baseball, because I can�t play that game over in Germany. Baseball and football aren�t big sports over there; instead we play a lot of soccer, basketball, tennis, volleyball and so fourth.

My English is getting better and better each day because I have to learn it of course. German is my, like every German�s, mother tongue; but I also learned to speak a little French and Italian, since France and Italy are neighbor countries. Nearly every German can speak a little English, but I try getting to the point where you guys can�t hear my accent anymore�even though everybody really likes it.

Besides the language, I have already learned many other things since I got here. To get to know a whole country�s culture from the inside is about the best thing that ever could have happen to me! I learned about customs, morals, beliefs, the little different food, vegetation and animals. I learned local and untranslatable jokes, understand radio and TV shows now in the other language, use the other currency and best of all, talk to people who have been raised with different ideas, make friends and to contribute to tighten our cultural bonds. And suddenly it was there: the culture shock. I discovered all the little differences, like in street-signs, my views and everything I took for granted is suddenly just upside down. In the end my horizon broadened seemingly endlessly and I really got open-minded. Right now I just feel like I could discover the world!

Some interesting facts about Germany are that there are no speed limits on the highways. In Germany, many people (83 million) live in a small space about the size of Montana.

There are also many possibilities for you guys to do such an exchange year to another country like Germany. It would most certainly be the greatest adventure you will ever have! So why not just go for it?! So, I hope you guys have a great time and see ya perhaps sometime in Germany, huh?