Each year, high schools all around the United States receive incoming students from countries all across the world. Bringing along a limited amount of their belongings, they temporarily leave their regular lives at home and take up residence inside the homes of willing host-families throughout the States.

What’s it like, one must wonder, to leave everything you know behind and travel to an unfamiliar place, a place with an unfamiliar culture, and on top of that, to stay with unfamiliar people?

Marie Van Den Neste is from Villers-la-Ville, Brabant, Belgium. With a passion for learning and a desire to work in international social services, she decided to come to the United States to be immersed in American culture. Doing so meant that she would be able to master English, an international language, which she believes could prove useful when she returns home and goes to college.

Becoming a foreign exchange student is not as simple as packing up one’s things and moving to another country for ten months, however. Before she could even begin planning anything, Marie had to enroll in the foreign exchange program. To make sure she would be physically and mentally capable of handling the stresses and pressures of the excursion, she had to see both a …show more content…
“I think we’re too much alike sometimes,” Tricia claims. “Marie is a great fit. She’s like a daughter I never had.” Nonetheless, having an extra female in the house can take some getting used to. Tricia has always been outnumbered by the boys, and she’s always had her own kitchen space. Now, not only does she share her kitchen space, but also she and Marie can team up against the guys. The males of the household have their fair share to get used to as well. Things like not being the majority anymore and not walking around in their underwear are some examples. “I’ve gotten used to the little things,” Bob