Exchange Students Return

We have heard from both of our rebound Rotary Youth Exchange Students since returning for 2018.  

Both Jed (Poland) and Sheridan (Brazil) have both regaled us with tales of their year long adventures and personal journeys. 

We have enjoyed hearing of their RYE stories, for those who missed their presentations, please continue reading for a brief overview of their challenges, highlights and favourite parts of exchange.  

Both Jed and Sheridan have headed to Perth to embrace the next stage of their lives.  

Sheridan returns from Brazil 

Jed returns from Polska 

We had a great run down from Sheridan on her year on Exchange.  Her hometown was Assis in the state of São Paulo, with a population of 100,000+ people.  

She told us of her 5 host families and some of the challenges she faced, and how they have helped her grow as a person and prepared her for her next adventure, University!  

She had two groups of other RYE Students, due to the Australian's having a calendar year on exchange, and found that her Portuguese became more proficient with her second cohort of students in the second half of the exchange. 

She made note of the public schooling system in Brazil, with no technology available to the students.  

She enjoyed spending her time volunteering at Rotary events throughout the year too, and was inspired by a Rotex trip - which is a group of ex-exchange students, Sheridan is keen to look into starting something similar here.  (Check it out from my quick google)
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Her highlights for the year were the Amazon Trip, Carnivale and New Year in Copacabana. 

​Bydgoszcz was Jed's hometown for the year.  He told how it was scary at first being a town of 500,000 people and the thought of negotiating public transport. 

He noted how the school was huge with some 8,000 students in a 500-year-old building reminiscent of Hogwarts.

He told how he had spent the year exploring Poland with new friends, and two lots of exchange students due to Australian students going for a calendar year.  

His most challenging activity was an accidental 25km walk in the forest - he thought it was supposed to be 7km. 

Highlights were the Euro tour to France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Monaco and through Germany, with the 14 hour train ride to start.  

He noted the differenced between our club and the Polish clubs he attended, meetings were less formal & not necessarily needing input from the students.

He noted that the agriculture was primarily potato and chicken farms. 

Christmas impressed him, with 12 dishes of fish that had been kept in the bathtub, which he had to 'fish sit'  for 10 days, then he had to slaughter it for eating. He was emotionally attached to the fish after the ten days. 

He also noted highlights of watching a FIFA qualifier at the National Stadium. Poland vs Romania, which 'we' won, and meeting Polish solidarity fighter Lech Wałęsa.  
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He showed a video - which will eventually be uploaded to the Rotary Facebook page.