【明報專訊】Exchange aborad was not just 10 unique months in my life, but a new life built in 10 months. At first, I was like a lost sheep wandering around Austria hopelessly. Because I knew little German, everybody around me seemed talking in an alien language.
learn German with kids
I requested the school to place me in a German class with Grade 1 10-year-old kids who could barely speak English. However, in light of their enthusiasm and helpfulness, my German got better and better. My classmates in Grade 7B helped a lot as well.
School life was more difficult in Austria than in Hong Kong. Take my school as an example, students had to deal with Religion, Psychology, Philosophy and many other subjects that do not exist in my Hong Kong school. Yet students could always leave school on time at 13:25. They could do whatever they want afterwards, study or relax.
It is sometimes too stressful being a student in Hong Kong. Everybody is forced to "equip" themselves with many tutorial classes and interest classes. Therefore, I felt quite sad leaving my school in Austria.
unforgettable travelling memories
I got the chance travelling to Slovenia and Italy.I watched my first opera in Vienna, visited the Prater Amusement Park and the zoo, rowed a boat on a lake...... Those are things I will never forget. I changed a lot during my exchange year in Austria. I used to be shy and quiet, but I have now stepped out of my comfort zone. What makes exchange different from travelling is that you are not a passer-by but a resident immersed in warm new community. The hardest thing about exchange to me is never the language. It is leaving the fruitful life behind which I built.
text: Joyce Ng (exchange at Austria in 2015-2016)
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