Exploring days: Coming home

Hey my dearest people!

School this week was normal, sometimes boring, sometimes funny, sometimes interesting and sometimes exhausting. But we had an assembly on Thursday. An assembly is a event where the whole school comes togetheter and the students who are in leadership 'lead' the assembly. They explain the school rules. They introduce the different clubs and sports, and announce upcoming events. The accapella choir sang a song, and the class presidents had to play a game against each other. It was really fun! The assemblies in my school in Germany were so boring and nobody really paid attention.

At the end of the assembly all the exchange students had to introduce themselves. We are five students this year, one from Thailand and from Brazil and three girls from Germany.

On Friday we just had a half- day, that meant all of our classes were only thirty minutes, so we got home at 12:50pm.

I was in my room all day and changed it a little bit. I hung up lights and moved my bed and I like it so much better now. It feels cozy and comfortable.

On Friday night I went over to Lily's and spent the night there. It was really fun. The next day we got up early, because we wanted to drive up to Portland to pick up a friend of her from the airport, who is coming home from a five month U.S Navy boot camp.

Luckily we didn't get stuck in traffic, so we got there two hours early, but it didn't matter. We went to 'Voodoo Doughnuts' , a famous doughnut- shop in Portland, and it was so good! They had lots and lots of different doughnuts and all of them looked so delicious.

Then we drove to the airport. I've never met Keila, but Lily told me a lot about her, so I was very excited to meet her. Lily was also excited and nervous to see one of her best friends again.

The moment when Kaila finally came out was very sweet.

After we picked up her baggage and got in the car, we drove back to where Keila´s parents live. She didn't told them that she was coming home. She changed into her Navy uniform, and we got into her house to wait for her Dad.

When he and her little sister came in, they both were so surprise and overhelmed.

After spending some time with them, we drove her to the place where her mother works. It was a restaurant and the reactions from everybody were just great. A lot of people said 'oh my god, that's so cute!' or 'Wow, this is so perfect.' Her Mum was so happy to see her daughter again.

She took Keila home and Lily and I stopped at Lily's grandparents house to say 'hi' and then we met her cousin.

At the end of the day I was tired but very happy. It was a day with a lot of driving and sitting, but it was totally worth it.

Thank you Lily for taking me with you!

I named this post 'coming home' because it was a week full of homecomings.

I´m really start to feel at home here. The language is getting easier and easier and I don't have to think about it that much anymore. I think I made some really good friends here and I feel accepted. I feel super comfortable with my host family and I am so happy with my room. It's not perfect though, but definitely a beginning!

I have some things i want to hang up on the walls, like pictures and stuff, but first I need to print them out and take some more!

Then all the moments with Keila and her parents were really exciting. I bet all of you have watched videos of soldiers coming home to their families. Now, I've had that experience. I mean Keila wasn't gone for years, but five months is a long time. It was just great to see how happy her family was to have her back for the next two weeks. After that she will be stationed in Hawaii.

I hope all of you are doing well and you feel comfortbale with the people around you, and if not, it's not too late to change something, like my german sweetheart Dominique :)

Lots of love, Malin