Hello, my name is Léon, I’m nearly 15 years old and I’m from Germany.

I live with my family and my dog in Heidelberg, that’s in the south west of Germany. I have a sister, who is eighteen years old. Her name is Emily. My dog is a white female Labrador, who is called Maxi. My parents, Birgit and Joern, are self-employed. They own a marketing and communications agency specializing in experimental marketing.

I love to spend time with my family. Specially with my cousins Leni and Finn, who live in London, UK. Unfortunately, it’s too far away, to visit them very often.

In my free time, I like hanging out with my friends and do something with my family.

I also love sports. Since I’m four years old I play soccer. One year ago, I started also with kickboxing unfortunately the kickboxing training takes place at the same time as the soccer training, so I can`t do both. Most of all I like to join my soccer team at league games and at tournaments. In the wintertime me and my family always go skiing in the alpes of Austria. I really love it.  I do ski since I am 3 years old.

Travelling is also a passion of mine. I love to explore different countries and their cultures. I have never been to Canada or the US before. Besides a trip to the Caribbean Sea and New Zealand, I have been mostly around within Europe so far. But last Summer we visited with my cousins, my grandparents and my family Botswana and South Africa. Especially the nature and the animals, I’ve never seen before, were impressive. We made a 7-day long trip through the African savannah and it was one of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen. But I also love my hometown very much. Heidelberg lies at the foot of the hills of the “Odenwald”. About an hour driving south from Frankfurt. It is a very old and beautiful university town, loved by its inhabitants and also by lots of international tourists. It is located at a river, which is called “Neckar”.

My school is located in the same district of Heidelberg we live in. It is called Elisabeth-von-Thadden School (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vB3_fzKX3pk). It has about 900 students. It is really a great school with lots of activities besides the normal school program. The school has a beautiful environment with a large park. I’m lucky, I have a very short way to school, because it is located just across the street of my house. My favorite courses are sports, English and Art. I also like civics and economics.

I would describe myself as friendly, helpful and a happy person. I am very active and love to have people around me. I want to take part of the exchange program, which starts in summer 2024 in the US. I want to go to the US because I want to make new experiences, find new friends, and see other parts of the world. I want to improve my English skills and I want to see how other familys live.

I want to go to Hawaii, California or Florida because I heard that it is very warm there and there are nice beaches where you can learn to surf.

See you Léon

Hello,

My name is Ulysse, I'm 15 years old and I really would like to go to the U.S.A for one year. It's like a dream for me, it's a goal for me. I have travelled a lot during my all life but for me, my best trip was in the USA. I'm a big baskettball fan and Ilove the American culture.

In France, I am very sociable and I a perfect family but I need something new and like we say in Europe, it's the American dream, everything is possible in your country. One of the most important points this year is to improvce my English but also to improve my basketball skills. Indeed, from my beginning until now, I have always wanted to play for a high school team.

Apart from this, I really want to discover the country, because, it isn't the same to be travelling with my family and to be living in the country.

Thanks to the host family who will host me. I will be able to live like an American for one year. During this time there will be the election and it will be very interesting to see one of the biggest world event closer !

Thank you

Hey :)

My name is Sara and I’m from Germany. I’m 15 years old and I want to spend a year in America when I’m 16.

I’m interested in sports and art. In my spare time I’m doing pointfighting kickboxing since I’m 10 years old. I’m drawing nearly every day (mostly realism), often while I’m listening to music (which also is an important part of my life). Actually, I prefer drawing portraits with different materials. Mostly on paper with charcoal pencils, but sometimes also on canvas with acrylic paint. I love being creative, therefore I am also cooking and baking, for example birthday cakes or just preparing dinner when I’m in the mood.

We’re living at the edge of a small town surrounded by nature. My mother is planting apples and cherries, while I’m planting avocado, lemon and pomegranate trees. I like watching movies and series. Especially I adore the Marvel movies (but I like superheroes in general). 

My favorite subjects in school are Chemistry and Spanish and I’m also attending French classes. Since I love languages, I’m looking forward to improve my English during my stay. My best friends and I only attend a few courses together,so we often meet in our spare time. Even though I’m a rather shy person at first, I enjoy spending time with my friends and to get to know new people.

I’ve always loved amusement parks, all kinds of rollercoasters or thrills in general, like motorcycling. My whole family is motorbiking and I’m starting with my driver’s license now too. 

I’m living with my mother, my stepfather and my brother who’s 17 years old. Living in a small town has its advantages, but one day I want to live in a big city. My brother and I get along pretty well and I love spending time with him. Sometimes he takes me on a tour with his motorcycle or we watch a movie together. 

Since my mother has spent a year abroad when she was young, there has always been the idea of me going too one day. But now in the past few months this thought became one of my biggest wishes. And I’m so happy that now this dream will come true, thanks to you. You, as my future host family, made this opportunity possible. I’m definitely looking forward to finally meet you, to get to know your everyday life and to experience how it’s different from mine - and to make new friends as well as getting to know another culture. I hope to discover new hobbies and interests. I’d really love to travel the world and this year abroad is a fantastic possibility to start this. The thought of spending a year away from everything I know is exciting, but also a bit scary. But I bet with you this year is going to be great! 

I am so happy to meet you soon. Thank you so much for choosing me and for making my dream come true. 

I hope you’re fine and to see you soon!  

Sara

To my future host family, 

I hope everything is going great. 

I want to tell you how excited I am for the experience ahead of us and share a little bit about my expectations, interests, and how I plan to add a touch of Spain during my year in the United States.

First of all, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for opening the doors of your home to me and giving me the opportunity to be a part of your family. I am excited to get to know you and learn about your culture while showing you a little bit of mine!

My expectations for this year in the USA are simple: to learn, to grow and to have fun. I want to immerse myself in American life, perfect my English and share experiences. I hope we can explore new places and enjoy unforgettable moments as a family.

Although I have been in the United States because of a trip to New York that I took with my whole family in 2011, and I have heard about your country from the stories that my sisters have told me about their experiences in the United States, I want to experience all these customs and traditions in the first person. My sister Ana (the oldest) was in Hockinson, Washington and Nieves (my third sister) was in Memphis, Tennessee. 

As for my interests, I am looking forward to the local and popular sports as I am really into sports. I would also like to get to know typical food, culture, festivals, and visiting places I have wanted to see since I was little. I know there are a lot of exciting opportunities and I am ready to take advantage of them.

Also, I am looking forward to sharing my Spanish culture with you and your friends. I can cook some traditional recipes like tortilla de patata (potato omelette) and tell you about Spanish festivities.

I am excited for this experience and I am committed to make this year a time full of laughter and mutual learning. Thank you for giving me this opportunity and I am eager to begin this exciting adventure together.

Sincerely, 

Rafa

Dear family:

My name is Nicolás, I´m from Spain, Madrid, and I´m 14 years old.

My home is a flat with a garden in the outside of the village, I live in a quiet neighbourhood with my family and near of my friends. I love it.

In my daily life I go to the school with my friends, I go outside school to eat and in the evening I play some games and I make my homework.

In the weekend I make funny activities with my parents (go cinema, play scrabble, geocaching, play tennis...), I go to the house of my uncles to see my little cousin that is 3 years old and I enjoy my free time with my friends. I also study for exams, but I´m a little disaster, that is not a problem because I always have good marks.

In summer I travel to the beach with my parents in July and in August I go to my grandmother´s village where there are mountains, a river and a lot of friends too.

I am really excited of having this opportunity because I really want to go with a host family and live this experience.

I love animals so I want to have dog or cat , but I can be a little scared at the first time, because it will be the first time for me for having a pet like those. I´ve only had a hamster called Kinetic and a turtle called Verde.

My favorite food is italian food: pizza and pasta. I also like other types of food (kebab, burger, fruits, mexican food, vegetables...)

My favorite music is reggaeton and trap, I like series and movies, for example one of my favorite is "Cobra Kai".

Thanks for reading this letter, I´m very excited for going with a host family. I can´t meet wait to meet you in person and be part of your family.

best regards!