Elizabeth Assimes: Last year, I went on exchange for four weeks to Melbourne, Australia, and attended Carey Grammar School. I was very nervous to meet my exchange and had all the typical ‘what if’ thoughts: what if we didn’t get along, what if I didn’t enjoy school or what if I didn’t like the family I was about to live with? Mainly, I was scared to spend a month on the other side of the world and not enjoy it.
Today, I can happily say that my exchange has become one of my best friends. Australian schools are really cool, and I now have a second family on the other side of the globe. The most important thing I learnt on exchange is to have an open mind and to stay positive. Remembering that you’re travelling to another continent to experience and embrace the differences of other places is the key to enjoying an exchange, because it’s really amazing to live in a culture unlike our own.
Exchange was one of the best experiences of my life and I will hopefully will return to Australia this upcoming summer!
Isabelle Whittall: Last year, I went to Buenos Aires, Argentina. I had already met my exchange, since she came here first, so I wasn’t as nervous. Because I chose to go to Argentina, I experienced culture shock. I had to speak Spanish with my exchange’s family and friends, which was hard at first, but I ended up improving my Spanish a lot and the people I spent time with improved their English as well. I went to a music festival, a lot of quinceaneras (a girl’s fifteenth birthday celebration), ate empanadas, and learned how to play field hockey. Essentially, I experienced life as an Argentinian teenager for five weeks. I became best friends with my exchange, and I talk to her all the time. In fact, I spent a week with her and some of her friends in New York this summer, which was amazing. Becoming best friends with an Argentinian girl ended up being one of my favourite parts of the experience.
Elizabeth: Isabelle and I both had great times on our exchanges and loved the experience. But I’m not going to lie: even as someone who has lived in three places and two continents, I was scared. It’s scary to go to another continent and possibly not have a good experience, but you shouldn’t let yourself miss this amazing opportunity LCC offers based on ‘what ifs’. Exchange is all about adapting and embracing the change and it’s something I highly recommend.
-Elizabeth Assimes ’20 & Isabelle Whittall ’20