Gracia (Grace) Sanchez Sanchis

2009-10 Inbound from Spain

Hometown: Els Poblets, Alicante, Spain

Sponsor: Denia Rotary Club, District 2203, Spain

Host: Tallahassee Sunrise Rotary Club, District 6940, Florida, USA

School: Leon High School, Tallahassee, Florida

Bio

Grace's Bio

Hey! My name is Gracia Sanchez Sanchis, but here everyone calls me Grace. I am 16 years old and I was born in Spain. I live in Els Poblets, a little town not far from Valencia, which is south east of Spain, by the Mediterranean Sea. My area is very touristic, so in the summer there are plenty of opportunities to practice my English.

My town is very small, and there is a sense of community. The population is about 3000 people, which is almost the amount of students in my new high school!! It's near the sea, and also surrounded by little mountains. My favorite summer activity would be ...swimming in the beach, and hanging out with friends. During the winter I do acting and I play the saxophone. I’ve been acting for many years now, and I just started learning how to play the saxophone.

Right now I am living in Tallahassee, Florida. I am really enjoying my time here. It was a big cultural change, but I am slowly learning to fit in, and learning how this culture works. I love all the views around here, everything is green and there are lakes everywhere! The weather can sometimes be a bit overwhelming, but I love the sun and the summer storms.

In my host family I have a 17-year-old brother, and a 19-year-old sister. My host parents David and Kathy are amazing, and I have a great relationship with my host siblings. They take me everywhere so that I can experience the “American life”! It’s awesome.

Thank you so much for this opportunity, I know it will be a great year, and that I will remember it always.

Besos!

September 27 Journal

Hello! I have been in the US for over a month now, but it has passed so quickly!! I have been doing some amazing things that I would never have done in Spain. The most impressive: the football game!! Go Noles! It was so interesting, of course I didn’t understand much of the game, but the crowd, the band, the cheering, everything was awesome! I had so much fun! I also went to my first Pep Rally in my school, Leon High. I had never seen anything like it, students painted their faces, they all wore the school’s colors and they were all very enthusiastic about it! What they call school pride!! I really enjoyed it!

In this month I have been to Wakulla Springs twice, it’s a really beautiful park, where there is a lake with the most amazing animals. I saw many alligators, and birds, and fish…it was so pretty ! The first time I went with my host parents, and the second time I went with the exchange students from district 6940!! Mind, Rodrigo, and Malte!

One of my best experiences here so far has been going to Sonquest. I went with the youth group of my church here in Tallahassee. We went to Orlando for 3 days, and I will always remember the people I met, and the great time I had there! We also went to Wet & Wild, a water park. I loved it!!!! But there so many Spanish people that all the time I was tempted to speak Spanish to everyone.

My school here, as I mentioned, is Leon High. It’s a very big school, specially compared to my school in Spain. I am really happy that this school has a lot of things you can do with drama and music, which is what I like. I have met a lot of people, but I have to admit that I always forget people’s names! There is a very big sense of pride in this school, and it’s great to see how many things they do to help good causes. Right now we are collecting money to help treat people with cancer.

This is it so far! I will write soon!

Hugs to everyone!

February 9 Journal

Only about a week ago all the inbounds went down to the Keys, it was nothing less of amazing. Not only did we get to experience snorkeling, learnt about various marine related subjects, met people from other school, and visit Key West but also finally got to see all our friends again. It’s incredible to think about how close we have become with the other exchange students, some are like family to me. Saying good bye was sad, but I am determined to see them sometime along the course of my life. We have time ahead of us to plan a “Florida Inbounds 09/10 trip around Europe”, or a “Florida Inbounds visit Brazil”, something will be done!

I am hoping to be able to go to the West Coast trip, it’s still in process, but I am working hard on it. This few months which we have left I am sure will be the best, the ones to enjoy. Spring is going to be amazing, at least for me, there are so many things lined up for this upcoming months, time will fly by. Competitions, mini-trips, birthday …(how exciting, huh?)

I just recently changed homes, yesterday actually. I can’t say too much yet, but it looks promising. I now have two sisters, a great host mum and host dad, and a doggie! Daisy! They are great, very different from what I am used to, but just as much fun.

The list of things learnt in the past months is quite long, here are some of them:

• Introducing yourself to a total stranger can be interpreted as weird, or needy. Don’t do it.
• Facebook is a requirement in order to have a social life.
• “You all” is transformed by the South into “y’all”, and that’s that.
• No kiss on the cheek to greet somebody! Might be misinterpreted…
• Lunch at 11 and dinner at 7, of course by the time I go to bed I am hungry again!!
• Prom is the biggest event of the year, and people are looking for a date 3 months in advance.
• People will ask all sorts of question, and there is nothing you can do about it.
• Americans are curious, too curious!
• Understanding two black women talking fast requires all of my attention, also the southern accent!

Things I’ve come to use often:

• “This is how we do it in my country” , whenever I do something absolutely wrong.
• “Oh, I’m sorry, I’m an exchange student you know…” This is the perfect excuse for everything

I truly am having a fulfilling experience, packed with new people, memories, trips, pictures, letters, cards… no one day goes by without somebody asking me “you are the exchange student, right?” and then a new friendship begins.

I am so thankful, to all my families, on both sides of the Atlantic, to Rotary, to my teachers…and so thankful for the people met, and the experiences lived!!!

I love you guys. I’ll see you sometime, I know that for sure.

Grace, the foreign girl, the Spaniard.