Hello all,
Here is my May report.
What hasn't been going well since the last report?
It was getting a little tough mentally since I couldn't see friends in the 3rd month especially when the restrictions were lifting more but rotary wasn't letting us out of our cities to meet. But I eventually got a 2 night sleepover with my closest friend which really relieved that and lifted both our spirits. It's a little harder to connect to my new host family as we are ONLY talking in German, harder to communicate how I feel, but when I do add to a joke in German or finally get across what I mean, the connection is much stronger/ deeper than if I gave up and tried in English. I was speaking and understanding German in my last family but we had a lot of deeper conversations about topics which would be too difficult to have in German in my first 3 months of learning. But these conversations are what really solidified my relationship with my first family.
What have you been doing since your last report?
I changed host families around 3 weeks ago. I am enjoying a new city (Haan), and a new house, even though its currently under renovations. I have been getting out more as the quarantine restrictions in Germany are not as harsh. One of my sisters is doing exams currently, so we go out as a family the day before each test to get her mind off it. The last time was really fun as we went to a giant parkour course suspended in the forest.
I got to finally see my closest friend after over 3 months of quarantine. It was unreal to see her again. We had a lot of fun together even if we couldn't do everything we wanted to.
There are more people in city areas now which is really strange to see after so long. Perception of what is normal can certainly change really fast. Its not back to how it used to be, but just the amount of people out is both reassuring and worrying. Corona is not gone yet but people who are out, have face masks, use the disinfectant, restrict numbers in stores etc, which is a positive sight.
I got to visit my family in Bonn who I haven't seen in 6 years. It was really nice to see them again and to eat traditional Filipino food, as my host families so far don't eat a lot of meat or rice. I am planning to go to a gym for the remainder of my year for several positive reasons and to also get rid of the slight quarantine weight gain/ muscle loss from not moving around and eating hahah.
I got to finally see my closest friend after over 3 months of quarantine. It was unreal to see her again. We had a lot of fun together even if we couldn't do everything we wanted to.
There are more people in city areas now which is really strange to see after so long. Perception of what is normal can certainly change really fast. Its not back to how it used to be, but just the amount of people out is both reassuring and worrying. Corona is not gone yet but people who are out, have face masks, use the disinfectant, restrict numbers in stores etc, which is a positive sight.
I got to visit my family in Bonn who I haven't seen in 6 years. It was really nice to see them again and to eat traditional Filipino food, as my host families so far don't eat a lot of meat or rice. I am planning to go to a gym for the remainder of my year for several positive reasons and to also get rid of the slight quarantine weight gain/ muscle loss from not moving around and eating hahah.
Hope everyone is safe in Australia after the corona and dust storm.
Thanks,
Ciedele