Elmira High School welcomes seven foreign exchange students this year. All have told Falcon News that they have experienced a very welcoming community so far.
Julie Tran
Binh Tran, who adopted the American name Julie, is 16 years old and a junior. She is from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.
Tran said the curriculum and schedule for schools in Vietnam is much different than American schools.
“You start school at 7 a.m., take a nap and eat lunch from 11 a.m. to 1-1:30, then you finish school at 5 p.m.,” she told Falcon News. “Then, you are expected to take extra classes in math, literature and English to 8-9 p.m.”
She said she likes her host family and is excited to see what this year will bring.
Maximillian Friedrich
Maximillian Friedrich, or Max, is a 16 year old junior from Munich, Germany.
Friedrich joined the EHS football team and is considering participating in track season. Back at home, he rode horses and raced go-karts.
His favorite foods in the United States are his host family’s meatloaf and sloppy joes.
He said it was easy to settle into his new home and he expressed that he has enjoyed working on the farm.
“The family is great. There is always something to do,” Friedrich said.
Janna Miguel-Parés
Janna Miguel-Parés is from Reus, Spain, near Barcelona. Janna is a 16 year old junior.
Miguel-Parés told Falcon News about settling in.
“It’s hard now, I’m homesick,” she said. “I miss my family, friends and my boyfriend. English is hard to express.”
Overall, she is enjoying Oregon so far.
Miguel-Parés likes her host family’s chicken soup. She does not like the rain, but loves the green trees and enjoys the Fern Ridge Lake.
Back in Spain, she played in a tennis club. Here in the U.S., Miguel-Parés played on the EHS soccer team.
Lennart Kad
Lennart Kad is a 16 year old junior from Saxony, Germany.
Lennart joined the EHS football team this year. Back in Germany, he plays soccer, lifts weight, did partner dancing for three years, and also plays the guitar.
His favorite food in the United States so far has been breakfast burritos.
The thing that has been hardest to adjust to for Kad is the vocabulary in “bio and literature.”
Kad described the classes in Germany.
“There are four to five subjects switched through the week,” he told Falcon News. “Each class is 90 minutes.”
He feels the community is closely knit and finds it interesting that the U.S. has community service because there isn’t any offered in Germany.
Marie Lemmich
Marie Lemmich is from Bayern, or Bavaria in English, Germany. She is 16 years old and a junior.
Marie enjoys OBOB, football. rowing, ice hockey, and combat. She has been in combat since she was four, taking classes once or twice a week.
She has also taken classes learning to fight fires and classes with the red cross ambulance.
Marie’s favorite places in Oregon are the school library and the big reader theater in Veneta.
Her favorite foods in the United States are burritos and Uncrustables. She was surprised that there are mostly only soft drinks, as opposed to sparkling water.
Kelana Dachri
Kelana Dachri is a 17 year old junior. He is from Bandung, Indonesia.
He loves the community and said everyone is kind, awesome, and tight knit.
Dachri said Indonesia is very traditional. People do things the way they have always been done. America is the opposite of that. He expresses that he likes people can be themselves more here.
His favorite place in Oregon is the Autzen Stadium.
He likes the education system in the U.S., saying it is “flexible and free.”
The most different thing about the United States, Dachri said, was “the weather is bipolar.”
The culture in Indonesia is also very different.
“In Indonesia people say sir and ma’am, even if they are one grade older,” Dachri told Falcon News.
Dachri’s school in Indonesia had uniforms, which he says he does not miss.
“Mondays and Tuesdays are normal uniforms. On Wednesday you wear a scout uniform. Thursday is a traditional Pangsi uniform and on Friday you wear Batik,” he said.
He says he would love to be in a band. Dachri plays guitar, and is looking for band partners.
He would love to answer questions and have discussions with people who will supply them. You can contact Kelana Dachri by his email: kimidachri@gmail.com.
Mariana Stoqui
Mariana Stoqui is from São Paulo, Brazil. Mariana is a 17 year old junior.
She likes Oregon and finds everyone is nice.
Stoqui is starting to be homesick and misses her family.
Mariana participated in cross country and is planning on playing basketball and track.
She had to leave cooking behind, but picked up running and is enjoying it.
Stoqui said she had an easy time settling in because her host sister Alyna Wolgamott made it easy.
She compared the difference in people from Oregon and Brazil.
“Everyone is more active,” Stoqui said. “People of my age can drive and you can’t drive in Brazil until 18.”
