Hello!

Today I just want to share a video with you. I watched it yesterday in the evening and I think it is made upon a great idea and important to watch. But it is also hard to describe, so lets watch it for yourself!

I’m 5 weeks back in Germany but I want to travel. In German we have a word for that: fernweh. It means the feeling when you really, really want to travel.

I know this feeling very well. Sometimes it is hard to live with but normally it is really great. You want to explore the world, experience other countries and learn more about other cultures. Traveling is for me freedom. Yes, there are very often problems during traveling. But there are much more good adventures which you’ll never forget! When you travel you’ll meet new interesting people and sometimes kind of friends for the rest of your life. You learn more about other cultures and their traditions but also about yourself. For me, travelling is the most exciting thing in the world.

I’ve only been to other countries in Europe but I hope that I’ll get the chance to travel a lot in my live!

I’m more than one week back in Germany.
More than one week in a German High School. More than one week of speaking german. More than one week of new things. More than one week missing my French family and friends.
It’s still strange for me to be here. I’m in a new school with new people. I knew only few before.
It is like the live in my French home stopped. But I keep in contact with friends and my second family. So I know it isn’t like that. They are still alive, go to school and work and live their normal lives.
I miss them very much.
But it is also good to be back in a German School. I understand everything and can follow the lessons completely.
In French yesterday I was good and it was pretty easy for me. In maths I understood a bit. But I have to do a lot for maths because I didn’t had every theme they discussed in the last 5 months. So I think I’ll learn a lot of things in the next weeks.
I don’t feel strong or intelligent or something like that when I think about my problems in the lessons at school. But I’ll be better. And I’m strong enough to do everything I want.
I was 5 months in a quite foreign country and spoke a language which I didn’t knew well before. But I stayed the whole time.
So I can do it!

Yesterday I went back home.
My last week was pretty cool but also very sad. I had to say goodbye to my badminton team on Saturday. On the same evening I went eating and bowling with my friends. We had much fun and it was very nice.
The school week went by so fast and I had to say goodbye to all of my friends. They gave me a present: pictures and they wrote something for me. And my class gave me our class photo and everyone wrote something on the backside. So it was pretty hard to say goodbye on the last day.
On Friday I had to stand up very early, say goodbye to my hostmum and my hostsister and then we went to the station. But we were too early because we thought the train goes an half hour earlier. My hostfather and me drank a coffee and then it was time to say goodbye.
The train to the airport was long, I had much time but I also met new interesting people.
At the airport I met a friend and we enjoyed together our last time in France.
Our flight took one hour and then we had to say goodbye. I met my parents and went home with them where I met my brother.
It is very strange to be at home. My parents changed a lot in our house in the last few months.
I think the next week will be exciting because I’ll go to another school on Monday where I know only one girl in my class.
But so I have something special and interesting to experience the next week before the everyday life in Germany begins again for me.

First: I wish you all a happy new year!
I went to a friend’s house in the evening. There were her family and a friend’s family.
We ate and played games. It was very funny. One game was with questions and we had really fun to answer them. And then it was midnight, the time flight so fast. The boys made a little firework and afterwards we danced “Just dance”.
My friend and me went to bed but we discussed for a long time and we began to sleep at 5 am!
This morning I woke up and it was 11:30am. I had to be fast because I was invited to eat lunch at my host uncle’s house.
We ate so much for lunch and I was happy when I went back home and could do what I want.
It was a really nice new year and I’m happy to had the chance to enjoy it in France!

Together with my host family I went to Lisbon. We stayed the whole weekend.
But first we went to Marseille because our plane started there. We had time and so we visited the old port of Marseille before we went to the airport.
In Lisbon we visited first the old township but we went also to a newer part of Lisbon.
We travelled with the famous line 28, went to the science museum and enjoyed a Fado (music with the Portuguese guitar) in a restaurant.
I enjoyed the stay in Lisbon, the sun and the way of living over there. But it is hard to describe (you must see it!) and so I’ll show you some pictures they can describe more than words ever will.

First I thought Christmas could be hard for me. I thought I will miss my family and the German traditions.
But I didn’t.
In Germany the time before Christmas is filled with decorations in the house and in the shops. In France there are decorations too. In the shops and on the Street lamps. But we decorated our house very late, the week before Christmas. And our tree is very colourful, not like the one of my German family.
The day before Christmas eve we went shopping to Montpellier to buy gifts. I had the most gifts before and so I had time to buy other gifts, things for me and watching the decorations. The French seem to love colourful lights. In the dark they look really amazing! (but it is quite hard to take a photo of them)
On Christmas eve my aunt and her two children went to our hose and we had diner together. We went also to the church, it dured more than 1 1/2 hours! That was extremely long.
Afterwards we went home to eat the traditional 13 desserts and the “bûche de Noël” which was very delicious.
This morning we had our presents. That was a bit weird for me because in Germany we have our gifts on Christmas eve. But I felt very happy to have the possibility to be here!
And I got so fantastic presents!
My hostdad offered us a trip to Lisbon, we’ll fly tomorrow for 3 nights! That’s a big surprise for me and I’m very excited!
For lunch my hostdads mother, his brother and his aunt went to join us. We had very delicious things and I ate for the first time in my life oysters (it was a bit crazy because my host family watched me during eating).
And we had a very delicious bûche made by my host mother (I’ll be fat when I have to go back to Germany)
So that was Christmas for me in France. It was a very good experience and I enjoyed it soooo much.

I wish you all merry Christmas and good days with your family, friends…all the persons you love!
And to those who don’t celebrate Christmas: wonderful relaxing days!

Mostly it isn’t a problem to be a vegetarian in France.
At school I get something else and my host family keeps action that there is always something to eat for me on the table.
But in the time before Christmas and when we eat somewhere else it isn’t easy. The French love food and meat. Often I can only eat the vegetables, cheese and the dessert. But they’re good!! (Yeah, I’m absolutely in love with cheese and desserts!)
There were many people in Germany who said that I would have problems as a vegetarian in France. Yeah, there are problems, but only sometimes.
And I’m in a region where they eat much meat.
So, it’s good to be here and I’m definitely not hungry!

Today, the 6 December I’m 100 days in France!
Last weekend it has rained a lot and the city has been inundated.
So the December didn’t start very good for the people here.
The time before Christmas isn’t like in Germany. In the stores are decorations but nowhere else. The second trimester has started at school and it is like always.
But the last day before the holidays we won’t have normal lessons and last Wednesday I bought Christmas gifts for my host family so I’m a bit in a Christmas mood.
With the December it has gotten colder and I hope that there will be snow soon!
I get better and better in French and I’m excited to learn more about the traditions at Christmas in France.