Srushti Sanghavi

2006-07 Inbound from India

Hometown: Umbergaon, India

Sponsor: Umbergaon Rotary Club, District 3060, India

Host: North Jacksonville Rotary Club, District 6970, USA

School: Paxon School for Advanced Studies

Bio

Srushti's Bio

About a year ago, I didn't know what an exchange program was all about and I didn't even imagine that a year later I would be an exchange student. I really loved the idea and the motive behind the program. Going to another part of the world, living a completely different lifestyle, staying with a completely different people and in all entering an absolutely new world. I realized that however different ways people live or do things, at the end of the day people are the same everywhere in this world.

I live with my host mother and father. They have two children (they are no more children) - their daughter Stephanie has three kids and their son Nathan has two kids. My host father is the president of the Rotary Club of North Jacksonville. They have two dogs and though I was dead scared of them before, now I love them!

United States of America is very different from India. Americans buy ice from the grocery and buy toys for their pets and all houses have 2 dogs, the streets are wider and smooth, the drinks get refilled for no extra charge, the trees are everywhere and it's just beautiful out here. The creek, river and the ocean are all marvelous and I really love this place and the main reason behind this are the people here.

October 15 Journal & Pictures

It’s been 2 and a half months in United States of America as a Rotary International Youth Exchange student and it’s been the most memorable months. When I left India on the 21st of July 2006 at 5 in the morning with hugs, kisses, best wishes and luck, I didn’t know what my life was going to be for the next one year. I had a long and tedious 28 hours journey from Mumbai to Jacksonville and when I stepped out of the airplane in Jacksonville, I was so nervous. My heart was beating at its highest pace. I come out and I see three men and a woman with two photographs, a frame and all the three men with their cameras. One of them asks me 'Srushti?' and as soon as I nod, I have the big hug from one of them and he is my dad. Then my host mom and then the host club counselor and then my host district counselor. It was all so sudden and suddenly all of my nervousness disappears. I could have just not expected a better welcome. We get into the car to go to the house and my parents ask me if I liked pets. I have been bitten by two dogs and have had rabies shot twice so, I say yes and tell them that I am not very comfortable with dogs and then, they tell me that they have two pet dogs and my body deflates. We reach the house and the dogs come barking at me. They smell me and lick me and bark and I scream the loudest that I can. My host parents take the dogs and put them up and I am so scared that I decide that I want to go back at once.

The next day I met my host sister Stephanie and her husband Toby who have three little boys and my host brother Nathan and his wife Amber who have little two boys who are together called 'bubbas' by my host mom and host dad. All of them also have two dogs. I also met the neighbors, some family friends and their kids.

That evening, we were to an American Christian wedding. I am a Hindu by religion and thus, going to a Christian wedding was an excellent experience. It’s so different. The bride looks soo beautiful and the groom so handsome. The traditions and the rituals, the vows and the promises, the wishes and the blessing. All of it was so different and so similar.

I met the whole of the family that evening. I met so many people that I could just not remember their names!!!!

Some of the weirdest things that I experienced were so normal for the people around me!!! I always thought that starfishes were like mermaids only existent in cartoons and when I saw it for the first time, I took it to my host sister Stephanie and asked her what was it. She said it was a star fish and I was astonished. I couldn’t believe that starfishes ever existed and that I had one in my hand. Americans buy ice from the grocery. It was so difficult for me to believe that ice could be brought from the grocery. I couldn’t believe that you have special shops for the pets where you can buy toys, clothes, blankets etc for them!!!! I then made up a list of all what was really strange over here and though that I would take the things that I liked back when I would go and the list grew sooo big that I gave up the idea.

I have had so many different experiences which I am pretty sure I wouldn’t have had if I wouldn’t have come here. I had been to my school Paxon's first football game. I had never been to a stadium and seen a match and I didn’t know what football was. For us Indians, football is soccer. My dad tried to explain the game to me before I went to the football game and I somewhat understood it or rather I thought that I understood it. When I go to the game with another Rotarian whose son plays the game? I see a few boys fighting in the centre of the field. The ball is just not visible and yet they are fighting for the ball. One boy pushes the other boy and then the third boy emerges from somewhere and joins the fight. I couldn’t understand the game but for sure it was a good experience.

I had been to another Rotarian Mrs. Freda Parker's lake place in Keystone and I had a great time there. I learnt to water ski and even stood up on the skis for some time. Also I had been to a dirt track car race game and it was wild, noisy and soo many wrecks!!!! But in all, it was fun.

I have had the opportunity to spend about 10 days with my second host family when my first host family had been on a vacation. Within that time, I had been to a birthday party, funeral, wedding shower, club, and had even spent a night at my host Sister Charlie’s friend’s house. It was a good experience!!!!

I had been to the city of St. Augustine. My host family had taken me there. It was just fabulous. The streets were made up of brick and the houses were like really old and the architecture was just so ancient and cool. We had been to the wax museum and the fort as we had initially planned to go to Nassau and see the space shuttle leave but as it got postponed so we had started late and thus, we couldn’t make it to all the places. But it was undoubtedly great. It was just like a Portuguese city!

I had my exams and I had a real good progress report seven “B” and 1 “C”. I had started understanding my teachers!!!!

I had also met a few Indians at my school and our school has a Multi Cultural Festival that means that all the countries would perform something from their country and so, I am going to perform a dance with them in February

I had been to my Rotary club’s project. It was a spaghetti dinner at a school. We had cooked some spaghetti - sorry, not some, a good amount of spaghetti for the children and their families. It was a good time. Also, I had been to my host Rotary club on the 29th of September. The District Governor had come to the club. I had given my first speech on that day. I was really very nervous but at the end, it was all good and fine. The District Governor had many great ideas for the betterment of the society. I personally liked the water plan.

I had also been to an Indian festival in America with one Indian family. It was really different to celebrate an Indian festival In America. It was pretty much having the same rituals and the songs. It was absolutely worth an experience!!!

It was my homecoming week at my school. It was a wonderful week. We had pajama day and pirate’s day and all kinds of days!!! The homecoming dance was very different from the dance that we do in India. I expected it to be a ballroom dance but it was very much different than that. None of my friends were gong to the dance because they said they did not have a date so my host sister in law who is 27 and has 2 kids, came with me. It was really sweet of her to come with me. The homecoming football game was also fun. Our homecoming game was against Yulee and we won. Some boys had dressed up like girl cheerleaders and even as eagles because our school icon is eagles.

I have also been on the water. It is so beautiful. I saw dolphins for the first time and I was jumping up and down like a monkey! It was just so beautiful to see the birds chirping and the dolphin feeding on the small fishes and the sun setting down. It was the most beautiful scene I had ever seen.

I have lived a completely different life in these 3 months. I have done the craziest things. I have learnt so many things, met so many new people. It was just been fabulous. Before I came to my exchange, the exchange students of the previous year had quoted this exchange program as: “a fairy tale” and I have lived this “fairy tale”. It’s just the most amazing thing I have ever done! I thank my sponsor club, my host club, host district and of course my parents who insisted that I get out of the shell and see the world.			My arrival
My family in America	Florida!	St. Augustine	Fort George Island
Ready for Homecoming		Homecoming - Pirate Day	Homecoming Week

December 26 Journal

Hello Friends!

It’s been pretty long and it’s my fault. I am sorry.

Anyways, to start with, after the homecoming week at school, I’ve been doing many new things, learning new things and experiencing the best.

After the homecoming week, I had to change my host family. But, before that, I had some really good time with my first host family.

My first host family and I sometimes went bike riding, sometimes just sat on the dock seeing the stars, my host dad played the guitar, my host mom and I did some arty work, we decorated the house for Halloween. We did many many small, tiny things that I’ll always remember. I’ll always miss those small things that we did together.

I carved the pumpkins and on Halloween, I was dressed up like a witch. We do not have Halloween in India and so, I have really missed all that candy collection but, I made it all up. I went door to door with kids half of my height and opened the bag and said, “trick or treat” and then, I’d get candies, lots and lots of candies. It was really fun. The houses were decorated with pumpkins and were also very spooky and creepy. I had also been to the Jacksonville zoo’s spooktacular. It was mainly for the kids but, it was really cute and fun!

I had also been to the Gator football game. It was so looud! It was a very nice game but I did not understand it well but I enjoyed it! I don't understand the football so much but I do like to tailgate! Its fun. My host dad is a Seminole and he played for the Seminoles but I went for the football game and came back with a gator hat. He was so funnily furious!

Then, I was to change my host family. I did not think it would be so difficult, but it was. It was like leaving my family in India. I had built up my own little world with them and now, they were my own family. But, it was a part of this program and I think it’s really a very nice idea because each family is different. Each family does the same things so differently. My first host family did not have any kids at home but my second host family has a daughter of my very age at home. The change of families taught me how to change with the environment around you and adapt to that surrounding. It is very important in your life!

I celebrated Thanksgiving with my second host family. It was so ‘foodie’. There was food, food and food everywhere. My host family had been to their family’s house and obviously, I went with them. But, we were cooking for the feast also. My host mom was cooking squash casseroles and corn casseroles and green beans casseroles and my host dad was cooking fried turkey. I helped them. We left the house with 5 big vessels of food and I thought that that was just too much of food but when I reached there, I realized that there was much more food. Everyone there had brought in about 5 pans and there were about 15 people and so, there was lots of foood. Well, I being a vegetarian could not eat all, but I did find a lot of food to eat. My host grandma even made me a special vegetarian Yankee stuffing and my host dad a vegetarian greens. It was really nice of them! After all that food, we had the desserts! There were yummy yummy desserts but I was so filled up that I could hardly move so I didn’t have any desserts. We then sat around the campfire and it was a nice time. When, we were returning back home, we had much more food to take home than what we had brought!!!! We ate left over’s for a long time after Thanksgiving!

I joined my school bowling team and it’s really fun to be a part of that! I am not a very sporty spirit but I like to be a part of a team. I am not very good at bowling and make a lot of gutters but I’ve improved a lot! We have a good time bowling!

We have started decorating for Christmas. I have never celebrated Christmas because I am a Hindu by religion and so this Christmas is going to be very special for me. We started decorating the Christmas tree by putting ornaments and lights on it and we went to bed, when we woke up the next day, the tree was ripped apart! The cat had thrown all the ornaments all over the house and the lights were dragged down till the kitchen and that tree was looking awful!

The next weekend, we went to Disney World. I had heard a lot about it but never thought it could be so wonderful! It’s absolutely beyond imagination! And being there with all the exchange students and the exchange committee was the best part of it! I had a great time. I am thankful to the youth exchange committee for providing us this great trip and the host club for sponsoring the trip.

The weekend after that, I had been to the Rotary Jaguar game. It was a nice game. I had been tailgating at the rail house before the game. Basically, I do not understand the football game much but something that enjoy the most is the party! I like to shout with the crowd! Though I did not meet many Rotary people at the game, I met a few and it was fun!

That’s all what I’ve been doing since a long time. Learning something new each day, having a great time in here. The weather is getting so cold these days. They say, “Its sunny Florida” and it's so true, it would be 40 degrees outside and still be bright and sunny!!! I can’t handle this cold weather. It’s too cold for me but people around me are like oh! Its just 40 outside.

I guess this is the party season. My host Rotary club had a Christmas party and that was nice. I met many people that I never saw at the club meetings and also a few new members. It was a nice party. Then, I had been to my host sister’s friends sweet 16 party in a cruise boat at the St. John’s river. It was just beautiful! Jacksonville is beautiful when seen from the boat especially when everything is lit up. The Jacksonville landing was all lit up and the fireworks were just the icing on cake. It was a wonderful sight!

We were all in full force decorating for Christmas. We put up the lights and the blow ups. The various Santa Clauses and the pine tree wreaths, and the whole atmosphere was just too good to be real! We would decorate and the cat would tear most of it apart so we thought of locking up the cat. We would go Christmas shopping and wrap the gifts and cook and clean and again go shopping, again wrap the gifts and decorate the house and again clean and cook! It was sooo much fun! The whole atmosphere was just unbelievable!! I had a great time!

And, with all that fun, we also had the school and the mid term exams. Those were so into fun! I studied. The last few days of school were really fun! We had exams but the whole Christmas atmosphere at school was just so cool! The exchange of gifts, sweets, chocolates and all about it was just awesome! The teachers, the staff, the kids, all wrapped in the holiday atmosphere!

The Christmas Eve was out of the world! It was just too good. We had a party at the neighbor’s house and had been to the midnight mass, left cookies and milk for the Santa Claus and the carrots for the reindeers, sent the list to Santa Claus who lives at the North Pole, hung the stocking which was decorated especially by my host sister Carlie for me, above the fireplace, and heard the story of Jesus Christ being born, the manger, the town of Bethlehem. All about it was so much fun! It was all like a dream.

The next day, my host mom woke us up in the morning and we all opened our presents and the stocking. There were so many gifts left to us by “Santa Claus”. I was like just loaded with gifts. The gifts that I received that day were heavier than me myself!!!! There were gifts from the family, friends, relatives, even from people that I was meeting for the first time on Christmas. It was just so dream like! We ate in the morning, opened presents, ate lunch and opened presents, ate dinner opened presents, ate desserts and opened presents! It was just the best festival I’ve celebrated!

I am sure I am going to celebrate Christmas when I go back to India. That’s what we are here for, learning new things and new ways to do the same things and applying them to our own life!

I really like Christmas!

I am really thankful to my parents and family who wanted me to or to some extent even pushed me into this youth exchange program. I am thankful to them because now I can see the difference in me. I’ve become much more independent, strong, courageous, outgoing, and confident about myself and the list just goes on… I am really thankful to my sponsor club and my sponsor club counselor Harshad Raveshia and my sponsor district. Not to leave my host club, my host club counselor Matthew Garman, my host families the Oreair’s and the Andrews’s and the host district and obviously the 6970 youth exchange committee and many more people who have helped me reach this step where I am today. Thank you very much!

May 5 Journal

It's been really really long because time is going so fast ......I mean really very fast. I feel like wasn't it just yesterday when I left India??? And now, it's already been 8 months! I can just see myself in the middle of nowhere shouting if anyone had a Time Machine! Because I just want to come back in time and relive all the moments I've had during this past 8 months, some were of the astonishment of something new, some of excitement, some anxious moments, some terrified moments, and all just the kind of ones which I'd like to capture in a small box and preserve forever!

School has been getting better with each passing day! Now that I can even understand the teachers and the kids around me and can write, read and communicate in English pretty well, I just feel as to how was I not able to understand people a few months ago? And by now, not only can I understand those big humongous words that we can find only in dictionaries but also understand them and occasionally even use them to "improve my diction!"

From where I had dropped last time, Rotary had organized this very nice weekend for us (Exchange Students) at the Florida Keys at the end of January. It's a very beautiful place. The water is so clear and the place is just fascinating! The camp site was lovely and being with all the exchange students made it even more enjoyable. Snorkeling was just so pleasant with all those beautiful creatures and plants ... just the life beneath the ocean is so gorgeous!!! The dance party was the bomb and the Round Table Discussion night very influential to respect and conserve the planet which we share with so many other creatures!

Valentine's Day was a very special day for me mainly because in India, Valentine's Day is not that big of a holiday celebration and it was just a special day giving me another opportunity to tell people whom I love, about my love for them! I got a lot of chocolates on that day!

My second host dad likes to farm and really loves his potato garden so it's his Golden Rule to always plant the potatoes on the 14th of February and so, I also was farming with him on Valentine's Day. This was really different for me because I come from a big metropolitan city where farming is out of question. So my hands in the gray mud on that bright sunny day for about 30 minutes made me realize how hard peasants work to live their life! I am so appreciative to be having the privilege of living in an air-conditioned, nice and clean house.

My host sister Carlie played at school softball team and I used to help out with it. It was so much fun! Behind the stands, supporting a team, claps and shouts with each good play and a disappointed slam on whatever beneath my hands on every bad or unfair play, selling the Hot-Dogs and the chips with half of the Nachos in my tummy, behind the scene keeping the score, oh! That was so much fun!!!!

And, by the end of the season, I also learnt much more about softball other than just being a sport something like cricket!

I also had a softball fundraiser, for that, we had been cooking for the homeless and now I know it's just that feeling of satisfaction that makes all the great social workers like Mother Teresa work for the society so devotedly and so charitably.

I also joined the lacrosse team at school and with my lacrosse playing skills, I am very sure, I had lost a good chunk of my weight, because all that running across the field with a lacrosse stick was for sure a workout! But the games and the jersey with my name on it, and all the Lacrosse Jokes with the loud "PaxLax" is certainly something I'll never forget!

I also made a trip to the North-Eastern coast of America.

It was one of the best trips I've made. We went to Niagara Falls which was really really cold and the strong freeze winds were penetrating in my body but it was all worth!!! The scenery was astounding! I was in complete awe of it!

We also went to Boston and that was a very contemporary and historical city!

New York is a city for which I have absolutely no word... I was so dumbfounded just by seeing Times Square! I was absolutely stunned by New York City!!!! I loved New York and I am completely running out of words to describe my feeling I felt when I was at the base of the Statue of Liberty shouting "I LOVE NEW YORK!" It was just 'the feeling'!!!

I also went to Philadelphia and even though I couldn't eat the cheese steaks (as I am a vegetarian), I did climb the rocky steps and got this big smile on my face that my cheeks hurt for the next two days after that!!!!

I was absolutely astonished to see the elegant Capitol of United Sates of America in Washington DC. The Washington monument was just amazing and the World War II monument made me feel so elevated! My favorite was the Lincoln monument and all what came to my mind at the base of the Lincoln monument were Martin Luther King Jr.'s words, "I have a dream...."

It was indeed one of the best trips I've ever made!!!

I had been to all these places with other exchange students from many other countries and also Akemi, Emeline, Fern and Roman from our district, it was an exceptional trip!!!!! And I made many new friends from different countries, learnt so much about different countries and their cultures!

I also learnt a lot of American History by going to this trip. I was amazed to see how the United States has grown from absolutely nothing to such a great country just within 500 years!

There was also a multi-cultural celebration at my school and that was indeed very impressive to see how all the people from all over the World live together in peace and harmony to achieve the same goal, their tolerance, their benevolence, its just very impressive, I'd say it was so ...American!!!!!!

I also did an Indian dance and it was indeed my pleasure to be a part of this multi-ethnic celebration which made me feel so proud of being with so many different people with the same basic lifestyle and goals in life!

Then came the end of the quarter exams and that one week was not so much fun, assignments, papers, textbooks, pens, due dates and all that last minute studying for exams always making me wish, I should have studied from the very beginning and again making a promise to myself ... a fake one about studying regularly from the next quarter and then procrastinating the "boring stuff" and then breaking it ... all over again!

But after that was the Spring Break and this wasn't the only change, I also changed my host family and this family was very different from my previous 2 ones. This family has 2 girls, 13 and 11, and it's nice to have 2 younger sisters! I spent most of my spring break with my new host family!

And how much ever I didn't want a tan; it's the bright sun of the sunshine state Florida that didn't give an option!

Another one of the very exciting things that happened to me in America was the prom!!!!!! It was on the 14th of April but the kids at schools had already started preparing for it since January! I got a pretty dress and got my nails done, went to dinner and had lots of fun... all of it the American ways!!!!!! It was a beautiful evening full of celebration and excitement!!!!

I just think my life is perfect here... I mean school is fun, but lunches are better, living for the weekends with a family to come back to! It's like I had a perfect world in India and another perfect world over here, and I am just... I just don't know how will people who I love in my previous perfect world will react to the changes occurred to me.

I just want a time machine basically ... But I guess, I'll just live my life in today and live every moment of it and not regret any of it afterwards!!!