Lucia Zillner

Where are you from?

I’m from Germany, and the name of my city is Passau.

What has been your favorite thing to do while you’ve been in Minnesota?

I really enjoyed going to a Vikings and Twins game, but in general doing things together with my host family is always fun. 

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota?

I don’t think that there is anything disappointing to me. But one thing that always comes to my mind is that people here are just so kind and helpful.

What are you most excited for during the rest of your exchange year? 

During Spring Break I will go to Arizona with my host mom and at the end of my year I will be doing an east coast trip. 

What is the difference between here and home?

What really stands out to me here is the differences in schools. I have never experienced such an amazing school spirit ever before. I loved the football games with dressing up and now the basketball games.

I also participated in a school sport for the first time which gave me the ability to try a new sport, make great friends and just have an amazing time

What do you miss most about home? 

I miss my family and friends the most. They are the people I feel 100% comfortable with and it’s difficult to give this up for a year. But here I got to know so many amazing people who also make me feel happy every day.

Fun fact about yourself?

I love playing and watching basketball and also just in general trying out new sports.

Emma Metzmeier

Where are you from? 

I‘m from Munich, Germany.

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

My favorite thing to do in Minnesota is hanging out with friends.

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

Most interesting/disappointing thing that the school uses plastic cutlery and paper trays.

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

Most excited for the choir tour and wrestling state championships.

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

I can‘t get anywhere without a car like there is no public transport or bike lanes or even just bigger/nicer sidewalks.

What do you miss most about home?

My family and friends and the food.

Fun fact about yourself? 

I joined wrestling but then injured my knee on the last day of captains practice.

Ilya Shepiashvili (not pictured)

Where are you from? 

I’m from Georgia.

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

My favorite thing in Minnesota is probably discovering new places where I haven’t been before.

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

The most interesting thing is the nature of Minnesota, generally speaking it’s amazing.

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

I’m excited to meet new people and participate in some sporting events.

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

Well, the biggest difference is the whole school and it’s system of education. In my opinion, the US school system is very soft and school may feel like an option rather than a mandatory requirement, but that’s just my experience.

What do you miss most about home?

I miss my relatives a lot, that’s probably the biggest worry.

Fun fact about yourself? 

I spend a whole bunch of time in the gym.

Wiktoria Bijak

Where are you from? 

I’m from Poland.

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

I love tubing on a lake and being part of sports in school (soccer and Nordic ski so far).

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

The most disappointing thing was the lack of snow and food, especially bread. I’m not a big fan of food here, but the new dishes which I tried here like baked sweet potatoes with marshmallows were interesting experience 

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

I’m excited for any new experience. I don’t have any specific plans for the rest of the year. I’m trying to be open to everything and see what else can surprise me.

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

I would say that everything is different. But if I would have to specify I would say that school is the biggest difference. The system is not even similar. 

What do you miss most about home?

I miss my friends and family the most.

Fun fact about yourself? 

When I ask people about it, they usually say that an interesting thing about me is having a strong opinion about things. I can love or hate, nothing in between.

Eleni Janisch

Where are you from? 

I live near Hannover, Germany.

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

My favorite thing to do so far was probably just like driving to new places and getting to know new people.

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

It’s really interesting how seriously people here take their sports and I like the school spirit at games. 

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

I’m most excited for spring break—I’m going to the Caymans, for my first prom and witnessing graduation for the first time

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

The biggest difference is probably the school system and just people in general, they’re nicer and more open here, also the transport system and the weather, it barely rains here.

What do you miss most about home?

I miss my dogs and obviously my family and friends, and I miss the public transport and not depending on a ride.

Fun fact about yourself? 

I did vaulting (gymnastics on a horse) for almost 11 years back in Germany and I played the piano for like 8 years.

Alex Sanchez

Where are you from?

Spain

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

My favorite thing to do is go skiing.

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

Public transportation is the most disappointing thing here.  

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

I’m excited to go to Florida during spring break. 

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

I think the biggest difference is the food. 

What do you miss most about home?

My family and friends

Fun fact about yourself? 

I play soccer year-round.

Aleksandra Milenkovic 

Where are you from? 

Serbia, Belgrade

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

My favorite thing in Minnesota is sports, going to many different sports games.

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

Most disappointing thing is probably the food and the lack of snow that everyone was preparing me for.

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

I’m really excited about experiencing graduation, prom, going to more concerts, and hockey games. 

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

Biggest difference is probably how friendly people are here, even if it’s just minnesota nice, it’s really weird to talk to strangers or be nice to them in serbia. 

What do you miss most about home?

I definitely miss my friends and family, but I also miss the food, independence, and even school sometimes. 

Fun fact about yourself? 

I like to read, play basketball, binge-watch series, travel, and try new stuff. 

Jakob Grundmeier

Where are you from? 

Germany

What has been your favorite thing to do while you have been in Minnesota?

Spending time with my host family and friends. 

What is the most disappointing or interesting thing in Minnesota for you?

The most disappointing thing is the cold weather.

What are you most looking forward to during the rest of your exchange year? 

Meeting new people.

What is the biggest difference between here and home? 

School is much easier here. 

What do you miss most about home?

Family and friends.

Fun fact about yourself? 

I do kickboxing, and I started wrestling for the school.