Dear Host Family Thank you so much for being willing to participate in the exchange program and considering me as a part of your family. Let me tell you a little bit about my family and me. My name is Constantin and I am a teenager from Germany. Currently I am in 10th grade. I am a pretty good student and my favorite subjects are math, geography, politics and sports. I live in a house in a big city together with my mother, my stepdad, my sister, and my dog Timber. He´s 6 years old and a pretty big dog. He is a Golden Retriever. My parents are separated, but my father lives only a short bus ride away so I can visit him every time I want to. I have got a very good relationship with my family. My mother works as a Project assistant and my dad is a lawyer. My sister has got special needs she sometimes sits in a wheelchair so. We get along really well and I try to spend time with her and do things she can do. We are baking cookies, watching YouTube or sometimes were go for a walk where I can push her along the forest in her wheelchair. She is 5 years older than me and has just started to study psychology at the University. The most important thing to my family is spending time together especially when we are travelling. We have been to an incredible number of places, and I think traveling is what makes me truly happy. Meeting new people, seeing beautiful places, or just feeling the vibe every city and country wears is what I love. This desire is one of the reasons why I have chosen to do an exchange year in the United States. I was in the USA two times before. One time in Florida and the second time we visited friends in South Carolina. I remember the last journey there, I was just 9 but seeing this massive shopping malls or those nice neighborhood’s impressed me so much. I think there are so many nice things in the US that I miss here. From the school spirit with those famous yellow busses or the little things like the candy stores. But especially those big Burgers from five guys! The family we visited had a very cute girl named Emery, I remember her. I was so in love haha. But I couldn’t really talk to her because I was just nine and couldn’t even speak the language very well. This was one of the first moments I noticed how important English is. It’s the language you speak all over the world and learning to speak it fluently would help me so much. I am very open minded, enthusiastic, and I am a very talkative person. I try to always be optimistic and be helpful. What is very essential to my family is honesty. We do not lie because we trust each other. I am very sporty; I have been doing Judo for 8 years now and was in a swimming club for almost 4 years. I just love the water and in general the team behind each sport. Sport is a must for me, and I think it´s also a great chance to make friends and to push yourself to your limits. On holidays we are a lot around the ocean. My greatest passion lies in surfing. It´s one of my biggest dreams to learn surfing and get to know this vibe it brings with it. The idea of riding the waves along the American coastline, especially if I'm located near the ocean, is incredibly exciting to me. I love adventures and I am every time open for new things or new experiences. I`ve got a lot of good friends here in Germany. I love going out with them or spending our time watching our favorite soccer club playing in the stadium. I would love to watch a typical football game in those massive stadiums, celebrating Thanksgiving or Halloween and the Fourth of July. But most important to me is learning about your life. Your way of living and I am so excited to learn about your past and your unique stories. At home we often sit a the dinner table and talk about everyone’s day and I hope that is something we can do as well if I become a part of your family for a year. I hope this letter, my little movie and the pictures will give you an idea of who I am and I cannot wait to find out more about you and your family. Best regards Constantin