Orientation, Part I

My first orientation was this past Saturday, and it was extremely insightful! We started out the morning (early early morning) with blazer fitting. For some reason this really made it clear to me that this is actually happening. I know, it's just a blazer, right? So, afterwards we were welcomed with a quick background of Rotary, the introduction of the country officers and Rotex, and a few speeches. This speeches were about Culture shock, The 6 B's, Money abroad, language learning, and homework. Yes, you read right. Homework. The culture shock speech was vague, but I assume we will learn more about it later. The six b's are Be first, be curious, be on purpose, be grateful, be of service, and be here now. I think these are very helpful when preparing for the change of exchange. As for the language learning, this is what I actually LEAST expected. I thought that they would tell us to do our best when learning the language ahead of time, as they told me when I signed up that knowing the language ahead of time wasn't essential, but they stressed language learning OVER AND OVER. They expect us to be fairly proficient in our language ahead of time. And lastly-- homework. We are required to fill out a country report and turn it into our country officers. It's mostly basic information that you would just find on Wikipedia, but then we have to do something more in-depth, like cook a common meal from your country. I will definitely enjoy that!
     After that, we all went into separate rooms for country breakout sessions. I met my country officer, John, who will be my US rotary contact while I am abroad. He also is in charge of all my paperwork beforehand. He is quite eccentric, but very good at what he does. He has hosted over 40 exchange students at his house! I also met Camille, who will be going to Germany with me! She is a sweetheart and I hope that she goes somewhere near me as well. The kids going to Austria and Switzerland were also in our room. We talked about paperwork, and responsibilities. But the best part was when we talked to the Rotex (the kids that went to Germany in previous years). It was really cool! We talked about school, activities, and.. EUROTRIP. I am extremely excited. Germany is going to be amazing.
     A side note: yesterday I started eating meat. D: It was very difficult, having been vegetarian for so long, but it will be worth it. Because I only have a problem with the American meat "production" industry, it will be fine when I am over in Germany. But, for now, I am only eating meats from whole foods such as grass fed beef, and free-range chickens. First meal, you ask? Barbecued chicken sandwiches. First beef meal-- my mom's beef stew. Yes. I admit it. Meat is better than I remember. Well, that is all for now.
Mit besten Grüßen,
Beth