Ezgi Gültekin

2008-09 Inbound from Turkey

Hometown: Denizli, Turkey

Sponsor: Denizli-Delikliçinar Rotary Club, District 2440, Turkey

Host: Southpoint Jacksonville Rotary Club, District 6970, Florida, USA

School: Creekside High School, St. Johns, FL

Bio

Ezgi's Bio

Merhaba (hi). I'm Ezgi Gültekin. I'm 16 years old. I'm from Denizli, Turkey. Many people don't know my city. But my city has a lot of beautiful places. We have 14 historical city, place, wonderful Travertines, and a lot of thermal springs in my city. My city's symbol is roosters. Denizli roosters crow harmoniously and for very long time.

I have a very little but lovely family. When I was 4 my mom and my dad divorced. I live with my mom. My mom is a Rotarian in my sponsor club. Also she is assistant governor in her district. She is very busy this year. I don't have any brother or sister. But I have very cute grandparents. They are living very close to my home. They are so excited about my exchange program. They are very happy for me but little sad because they are really missing me .

Now I'm living St. Johns County. It is so green but I like green :) My host brother Drake is living in Budapest. He is an exchange student too. I'm attending Creekside High school (Go Knights!). My school opened this year. It's new like me :)

My name's meaning is melody. My parents thought true. Because I love music and I play violin. In my free times I like listening to music, dancing, hanging out with my friends, watching movies, playing badminton ...

I'm really happy to be here. I'm still very excited. Thanks for everything :)

Hierapolis

Travertines

Thermal springs

Denizli's rooster

December 4 Journal

Hi! I've been here over 3 months and I love it here and being an exchange student.

I came her on August 6th. It was a good flight. I was so excited. I flew with Deniz to Atlanta. After Atlanta I was alone. I did not trust my English but I was not afraid. Then I met my first host family, Lina - Drake - my counselors, Cynde and Barry Covington (I love them so much ) and their host son Grunde. We went to get my suitcase with Drake (my host brother). We waited and waited but my suitcases didn't come. I almost gave up, I thought they lost them, it'll come later. I was disappointed. Then I saw my suitcase. I was so happy.

First weeks was good. But I had my only homesick in the first week. Second week we went to Ichetucknee Springs with some inbound friends, Cynde and Barry and Bill. It was amazing. So much fun and so cold!

I met some outbound students in here. They were so excited. They remind me of myself. It was so sweet... it was like watching myself. Then it was time to go to inbound camp. I was so excited that I will finally I'll meet with all my inbound friends. I had such a good time. It was amazing to meet students from 25 different countries with their cultures. I felt so lucky because I have a lot of friends from around the world.

After the inbound camp, school started. It was different from Turkey because we don't change classes in Turkey and we have more breaks. It was hard to catch the classes the first week. It was hard to learn to open my locker. I practiced 20 times before school with my host mom. In the first day, someone asked me if I knew how to open this locker and I said, "Yes!" And I taught her. It was such a good feeling.

In the third week of my school, they changed my schedule. I was so mad because all of my old classes were changed. They gave me weightlifting for PE. I didn't want to and I went to office and they gave me intern. I was still mad because I made friends in my old classes. A few days later I understood it was better for me, because I made more friends and I had more fun in the classes. I still don't like my first period because it's US History. It's good to learn the history of the country I came to live in, but I still like the history and especially it is more boring in the period because it makes me more sleepy. But I'm so happy that I got math and science because they are so much easier than in Turkey even in English.

In my new classes, I made close friends and started hanging out with them and have full weekends which is so good. I joined the Drama Club in school and I went to the River Festival with the Drama Club. I had to dress up and act like a sailor.

We did not have Homecoming because we are a new school so we had Royal Ball for the Knights. I went with my friends and it was fun. After that weekend we had a full weekend in St. Augustine with my district. It was a great weekend. We had a lot of fun. And I understood again it's the best time with the exchange students.

One weekend after that, we went to the Airshow with Cynde Covington, Grunde, Twang, Ralph and Bill Learn. It was so much fun to watch the Blue Angels. They were amazing.

The next week was Halloween. I went to St. Augustine and we met with a few of my inbound friends. We were at Laura's home and went trick or treating in her neighborhood. I loved the neighborhood because so many houses were decorated and so many people dressed up in costumes. when we was trick or treating I met one girl from Turkey. She moved here with her family. She started to talk Turkish with me but I had a problem. I couldn't talk Turkish. I just froze. I tried and I said something which was Turkish English mixed and so funny. I couldn't believe it was so weird. It took time to start talk Turkish but I kept to make grammar mistakes in Turkish :D It was Funny and Weird but I like it because I means I'm really thinking English :) I love Halloween because of the candy. I was scared I was going to be sick because I ate so much candy. The next day my host mom came to pick me up. We went to our house and my suitcase was ready to and I went to Cynde's house. I was so nervous about when I would get my next host family and who they might be. It was a little scary. I felt bad that I could not find a host family. I felt like it was my fault, but I knew it wasn't. I did not know what to expect.

Then that night I went to Bartram Trail's Homecoming with Twang, Grunde and their friends. I had a lot of fun and my new host brother was there, too. Then next day, I moved in with my new host family. In my new family, I have little (Drake) and big brother (Noah), little sister (Isabel), my dad (Todd), my mom (Stacey). I love all of them. They are so sweet to me all of them :) I love being their daughter. I started to feel the part of the this family in my second day it was so quick but it's good now I'm so happy :) I'm keeping touch with my first host family too. I miss my old dog Coco and her too but I love my new dog Denver and my new family a lot.

I am used to live in here, be exchange student, my school, being with my family. I'm really having so much fun :) I'm hanging out with my friends, I'm spending time with my family (like playing Monopoly, going shopping ). I'm so happy to I don't have free-empty time I have plans always it's really great I really love here now.

i went to Interviews in 22nd. I was good to help. I really love it, talk with parents and new students. Of course hanging out with my friends was best part :D Students were so excited. we were talking our interviews. they were remind me to myself because I was so excited too.

Then Thanksgiving came, it was so funny before Thanksgiving I made a so bad jokes all the time :D like : yee I want to eat my country, yee I love Turkey both of them. I think everybody was bored because of my jokes :D but it was funny for me :D I love Thanksgiving it's my favorite holiday in U.S. Gooooo Turkey!

Before the Thanksgiving I helped my mom. We cooked together. I made pumpkin pie cake and pumpkin pie by myself. it turned good. I was so happy everybody liked it :D I had so much fun I ate sooooo much . I felt like I couldn't move. I think I gained 5 or 10 pounds in that day :D I started to work out and eat salad now :D

Now I really love to be here, love to be exchange student, love my friends, love my family. I'm having time. I'm sorry I wrote late to my journal. I wrote finally. I'll write soon :) Thank You for every thing to everyone who is giving me this amazing chance and give to me happy times here :)