Its really wierd stepping into a completely new environment. Well i suppose that goes without saying, but it seems to happen so quickly. One minute i am going out and spending my last couple of nights with my friends and stuff, and then all of a sudden im in a completely different country on the other side of the world. I think the way i felt about it was that my body didnt have time to get used to the shock of it all. This was catalysed by the fact that my family in no way changed their routine or lifestyle to accomodate me. I think this is mainly becuase they have had exchange students in the past, and when i came in, they did not change their way of life in the slightest. If you like i went from one normal family to the next. I dont think ive had the chance to feel homesick because the family has slotted me in with them. Rather than make me feel like i am a guest in the house and that im only staying there for a little while, they ask my opinion and expect me to do chores and all these things. I also think that i havent felt homesick because this family is so like my own. They have two children, 17 and 21, exactly the same as ours, and my host mum works during the day around the house and studying and doing various things, similar to mum, and my host dad works and gets home late. Both families try to have dinner together as often as possible, and enjoy the time they have together, and to make me feel really at home, my host mum even gets angry at me when i stay up too late reading or on the puter, or playing xbox. Haha, nothings changed. But i really like it. It just works, but i have no doubt, like Will Magnus, the homesickness will hit soon (sorry Mags!).
We finished school early today as they had a fire drill and the teachers decided that going outside halfway through the day was a good enough reason to go home, so we did, haha! Id love to see them try that one at View! But it was great because we got to go downtown and meet some friends for a drink, bought a jacket for skiing and got a new sim card for over here. Then we went for the best chinese, and it was absolutely incredibly cheap, i had hot and sour soup, chicken chop suey and rice, then fruit and a gl�wein for �6! I seriously think ill be heading back there in a hurry! But i think i have to find some Austrialians to eat with, the Austrians eat so fast!!! And i forgot to bring my Quick-Eze!!! haha! But on the way back a really funny thing happened. There were about eight of us and one of the guys walked to the other side of the footpath and purposefully spat on a parked police car. At first i didnt think that he had done it but i looked back and sure enough..... it was really weird though, like this guy was abviously some ghetto gangsta pimp from looking at him, but this was not really as much rebellious as amusing. Ill keep you posted to let you know if its a tradition....
But going skiing soon, should be awesome, we are staying literally on the slopes, which makes it stupidly expensive, but not worried, ah, the beauty of mastercard! (Thanks Dad!), but apparantly you can ski literally out of the door. And my family has put me with Max, in between these two pubs which are the most popular and famous in the Arlberg, one is an Austrian one, and the other.....The Crazy Kangaroo, the meeting point for Australians!!!! Should be good fun!
Paz