I got my interview set up the same way as I did my first two. I contacted my neighbor who is in charge or high school foreign exchange students of the metro area. I was lucky enough that when I called she had a student at her house named Laura, form Germany. Laura was very excited to meet with me to talk. She said she has not met a college student in America yet, and was excited to hear about. This was very fun for me, because we both got a chance to learn about each other’s culture, schooling, and lifestyles. She asked me If I would come to her house to conduct the interview. I really liked doing this because I knew she would feel comfortable and would be more open about her thoughts. Being at her host families house was very nice because I got a chance to see pictures she brought with her from Germany, this have me a new look on what she was saying.
On October 30th, 2009, I met Laura to conduct my interview. I went to her host family’s home and we have a great time getting to know each other. She said she had met a lot of people in America, but I could tell she liked being able to talk to someone. I never taught her some English she was confused about. This setting and her personality made the interview very easy and interesting for the both of us. It was great getting to learn so much about her and her culture.
Laura is a 17 year old foreign exchange student from Germany. She is currently a senior attending West Tonka High school, in Minnesota. Laura has been in Minnesota for two months, and will be here for another ten months. At home Laura lives with her mom, dad, and two sisters, Ten miles from Germanys capital. Laura was in her second year or high school when she left Germany. She is very active in Handball, a sport she has been playing for ten years. She loves spending time with her family and friends.
During the interview I almost felt as if she was interviewing me. She would answer my questions I had for her, but based off of the question I ask her she would ask me a question. During our interview she had trouble understanding some of the things I was asking or saying, so this made things a little difficult, but we figured each other out. She and I spend quite some time together, almost three hours. It was nice to talk to her person to person and also ask interview questions. Even though I was not asking her questions a lot of the time, when we were just talking about life I learned a lot about her and her culture. For example: She could not believe her and her host mom do not eat dinner together every night. This showed me that people from Germany spend most of their meals together, and that they culture is much closer when it comes to the people. I was very impressed with her outlook on her time in America. I know if I were to travel to another country at her age, or even now, I could not be as open as she is and ready to “explore”. I loved that she was taking her time here and living it up to the fullest. One part of our interview that I found the most interesting was the part about college. Most people do not attend college because you do not need a college degree to get a job. It was also interesting to see that she still wanted to come to America even though she knew she would not get credit for her time spent in school. This shows that schooling in Europe is not as big of a part as it is in America, in my eyes. I feel as though in America life revolves slightly around school and work. Where I felt she was expressing they live and enjoy their lives a little more.
Europe's strongest economic and industrial power, Germany is also the most populous European country outside Russia (1). Germany is very urbanized, over 90 percent of the population lives in the cities. Depending on the region food varies in Germany. The main meal is traditionally served at noon and a lighter meal eaten in the evening, usually open faced sandwiches (2). Meals are usually eaten at home as a family. German is the spoken language of Germany. English is widely understood by Germans. Like America Germans have freedom to religion. Protestant and Catholic are the post common religions in Germany. German schooling is based on nine years or schooling for all children. This helps socially disadvantaged students get a better chance. Once children are aged six, they as a rule attend primary school for four years, before going on to a variety of secondary schools: Hauptschule, Realschule, Gymnasium (3). Germany is very different from America when it comes to drinking age. In Germany legally you can start drinking at the age of 16. Even though they do have a drinking age, I have found through interviews that the German government does not abide by this law; they look the other way to underage drinking.
1. "Germany facts, Germany travel videos, flags, photos - National Geographic." Travel & Cultures - Facts, Travel Videos, Flags, Photos - National Geographic. Web. 08 Nov. 2009.
3. "German Missions in the United States - Schooling in Germany." German Missions in the United States - Home. Web. 08 Nov. 2009.
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