Hello to my future host family. First, I want to thank you so much for taking the time to read my letter and considering me as your exchange student. I’m grateful for this opportunity, and I’m excited to start getting to know you. One of the reasons why I want to take part of this Journey as an exchange student is the desire to grow personally and step out of my comfort zone. I think that living abroad immersed in a new culture and surrounded by new people is the best way to do it. Living abroad will help me in many different areas: improving my English, becoming more independent, mature, confident and open minded. I’m a very curios person, I’ve always loved discovering new cultures, creating new relationships, experiencing new traditions and understanding different types of everyday life. At the same I want to share my own culture and what Italian life is like. I hope to build sincere connection with you and create memories that will stay in our hearts forever. My name is Giovanni, and I’m from the norther part of Italy, near the seaside. I live close to a medium size city. My family is quite big, because my parents are divorced, so I live in two different houses. On my mom’s side of the family we are four: me, my brother Alessandro, my mom Marta, and my stepdad Simon. On my dad’s one we are five: me, my brother Alessandro too, my dad luca, my stepmom Maddalena, and my little brother Sebastiano. I have a very special relationship with my brother Alessandro, who is just one year younger than me. I spend a lot of time with him because my parents work all day. He is the most important person in my life; we are mentally connected. Another very special person in my family is my grandma: she is the kindest person in the world, and every moment spent with her is unique. Sebastiano is the person who has truly changed my life for the better. He is still a toddler, he was born just a year and a half ago. When I found out that he was coming, I was a bit unsure about how my life would change, but the moment I saw him for the first time, my eyes sparkled and I immediately understood how amazing it is to have a newborn in the family. My parents are both dentists and I have a great relationship with them, even though I don’t spend a lot of time with them because they work often. I would describe myself as a kind, responsible, and emphatic person, and I think others see me this way too. Throughout my life, I’ve always helped others from simple tasks like helping with house chores to supporting someone through psychological difficulties, I like to put myself in other people’s shoes to understand their problems. I’m very friendly, so I have many friends, but I feel completely comfortable only with a few of them. I’m very open to dialogue, I like to talk and solve problems together. I’m also very polite and I adapt very easily. One thing I want to improve about myself is that I tend to stay in my comfort zone, and this is also one of the reasons why I decided to become an exchange student. I have done many sports in my life, and I’m always open to trying new ones. Now, I do track and field and it is an important part of my life. My specialty is the 400 meters, but I also run the 100 meters and relays. In my opinion, the best thing about sports is the relationship you create with your teammates. My biggest passion is Formula 1: it is very important to me. I watch every practice, every qualify session and every race. I have been to Monza grand prix too; it was an amazing experience. I also love skiing, and I go every winter with family and friends. My typical day starts with an alarm at 6:50 AM, I get ready and I go to school. After school I go back home and make lunch, then I study, and at 6PM I go to training. After training, I come back home, have dinner, relax for about an hour, and then go to sleep. I usually help with house chores, such as vacuuming, loading and unloading the dishwasher, setting and cleaning the table, taking out the trash. I could be a useful addition to your daily routine by helping with different chores, and sometimes I can even cook some Italian dishes for you! I’m really looking forward to meeting you and becoming a part of your family. I can’t wait to share moments together. I hope to create many happy memories and make this experience special for all of us. See you soon! Giovanni.