Dear future host family, I hope you are doing well! I‘m really looking forward to meeting you and coming to the USA. My name is Sirine (pronounced without the “e“) and I’m from Germany. My parents are originally from Tunisia, but I was born in Germany so I‘d say I’m more of a mix of both cultures. I would describe myself as a fun person to be around, I often say little jokes during the day and I would say I’m pretty easy to care for. I am a positive person and always try to make the best out of every situation. I don’t find it very difficult to adapt to new situations and I usually finish what I start. My passion is doing Taekwondo- I train about 8 hours per week. I also teach little kids at my club, which I really enjoy, even though I struggle remembering all the names.So you could say I spend most of my time at the Taekwondo Club. Because of all the training after school, I don’t have a lot of time during the week for any other activities. But in my family, we play a little game like UNO or Rummy every evening after dinner. On the weekends, I usually meet friends, study for school, or do something with my family. Even though my week is pretty full, I don’t find it stressful, because at the end of the day I feel like I didn’t waste my time. That’s why I especially enjoy relaxing on weekends. I live with my parents and my older brother. I also have an older sister who currently lives in another city to study, but she often comes to visit us and she is planning to move back home next year. I love traveling, that’s why I did an exchange already in France an England, but both were only two weeks, so it’s not really comparable. I was also without my parents with my brother in Tunisia to visit my relatives for two weeks. What might help for this exchange year is, that I don’t really get homesick. Fun facts about me: I don’t like popcorn, I’m really afraid of the sea and water in general (so I don’t like swimming) and I get seasick on boats. My favorite subjects in school are english and maths (sometimes) and the ones I like the least are physics and art. I like listening to podcasts. My three favorites are a true crime podcast, one about the economy, and a funny one where two people just talk about random things. I‘m not really good at cooking and often make silly mistakes. For example, I once cooked lentil stew and accidentally used peas instead of lentils — but in the end it tasted better than we thought! Although I’m not that into cooking, I really like baking cakes. I‘m excited for the everyday life in the USA and for the special occasions like Christmas, Homecoming, Halloween, or Thanksgiving, since they are celebrated really big in America, or not at all in Germany such as Thanksgiving or homecoming. I would love to help decorating the house for holidays. During my exchange year, I’m hoping to continue doing taekwondo and experiencing the ”American life“ with for example the football games. I would like to join a club at school too to make new friends and just to try it. I don’t know which club I’m going to try yet because I’m a bit scared of balls and not very talented at singing or dancing (even though I like doing it). But I’m sure I will find something fun! I’m looking forward to see all the things I’ve heard about, like these huge milk jugs, or stores like Target, Walmart, Taco Bell and Raising Caine’s. I‘m really grateful that I can spend the next year with you and that you’re opening your home to me. Thank you so much for letting me become a part of the family! Best regards, Sirine