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 Lily
Wohl
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2010-11 Outbound to
Belgium
Hometown:
Ormond Beach, Florida
School:
Seabreeze Senior High School
Sponsor:
Ormond by the Sea Rotary Club, District 6970, Florida
Host:
Hannut-Waremme Rotary Club, District 1630, Belgium
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Bio
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| August 31 "This whole experience
is exhausting, and I sleep like a baby EVERY night, but every wonderful day
and evening is worth the bleary-eyed mornings where I have to get coffee
from the AWESOME coffee maker in our kitchen." |
| November 10 "For
those of you who are selected, hang on, because it’s a wild ride.
Prepare yourself for assignments and work, but prepare yourself for 8
amazing months, and then a year that will change your life and make you
grow, whether you have the best time of your life or not.
" |
| January 15 "It is
difficult to describe the sensation of feeling at home in a place so
different; I leave my house in a modest village, catch the public bus to
school, speak in French for the entire day with friends and adults, and
return home to spend the afternoon at home or participating in some other
activity. " |
| April 25 "I
am ecstatic at the prospect of seeing my family and friends again, but I
just wish that they could come here instead, and that I could stay here
forever! " |
Lily's Bio
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 Bonjour tout le monde! Je m’appelle Lily Wohl, j’ai dix-sept ans,
et l’année prochaine j’irai en Belgium depuis une année!
Hello everyone! My name is Lily Wohl, I’m 17 years old,
and next year I will go to Belgium for a year! I am a senior at Seabreeze
Senior High School in Daytona Beach, Florida, and becoming an exchange
student is a lifelong dream of mine that is finally coming to fruition! I’ll
start by telling you a little about myself, but first and foremost I would
like to thank Rotary from the bottom of my heart for giving me this
incredible opportunity.
My greatest passion in life is music. I have been singing
for as long as I can remember, and I began piano lessons at the age of 5 and
have been playing since. I am the accompanist for my school’s musical
theater program, and recently played in the pit orchestra for their fall
musical, and I participate in the school’s Vocal Ensemble. I recently began
voice lessons to help improve my voice.
Languages are also a great passion in my life. I read
Hebrew (although I do not know as much as I wish I did), I have taken 3
years of French, 1 year of Spanish, and 1 semester (so far!) of Latin. Also
I know some Yiddish and can hold a conversation in American Sign Language. I
cannot wait to become truly bilingual, and my goal is to become
conversationally fluent in as many languages as possible.
I have always loved adventure and travel; my first flight
was an unaccompanied flight across the country at the age of 6, and I have
been to Israel twice. I have traveled through almost every state on the
eastern seaboard, visited California several times, and have been to Las
Vegas, Nevada. I am actually writing this bio on an airplane on the way to
Virginia from Florida! Needless to say, I love to go to new places, and
Belgium will be the most incredible trip of them all.
Thank you to all who made this trip possible, especially
to those who thought that I would make a fine addition to the program and
invited me to become a Rotary Ambassador 2010-11. I cannot wait for this
adventure to take off! |
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17
days, 4 hours, 48 minutes, 10 seconds. Wow.
That’s how long I have been here in Belgium. It feels simultaneously like it
has been a lifetime and a minute. Strange how 8 hours on an airplane can
feel so much like eternity, when 8 hours in my host country feels like an
instant.
I “woke up” on August 13th, 2010 (and by woke up, I mean I got up, as I
hadn’t actually been able to sleep at all) at around 5:30 AM, feeling calm
and peaceful as I gathered the last of my belongings and stuffed them into
my already bulging suitcases. I suppose that the feeling hadn’t hit me yet,
but then again, it still hasn’t hit, so maybe that’s normal. I got my things
together, ate a small breakfast of cereal, and hit the road towards the
Orlando airport with just my dad as a companion. We stopped for gas at the
local favorite gas station, and as I sat in the car waiting for my dad to
finish pumping, all I could think about was that I wouldn’t see this pretty
city and this well known gas station or any of my friends here for a WHOLE
year. This was a tad saddening, but at the same time a smile spread across
my face because I began to think about the amazing adventures I was about to
have.
We finally arrived at the airport, and when I tried to get my tickets, my
passport wouldn’t read in the scanner. Oh darn. Eventually, however, it was
worked out, and I received my two boarding passes for my flights to
beautiful Belgium. We walked to the security area, and from there I had to
go it alone. I didn’t cry, surprisingly, and neither did my dad, but I did
give him a big long hug before trooping off to be thoroughly searched. In
the security line I realized that I had forgotten the 3 oz. rule for bottles
and liquids, and had to forfeit my hair products…. Needless to say, that was
not my favorite part of the morning, but I quickly got over it and made my
way to my gate, where I sat for another couple of hours with Abby (Belgium
outbound). My first flight was relatively uneventful, and in the Washington
Dulles airport Abby and I had about 4 hours to meet and hang out with most
of the other Belgium outbounds from the USA. The long flight was peaceful
and calm, but I was so full of nervous energy for the entire flight that I
slept for only about 20 minutes.
For some reason I thought it was a GREAT idea to exchange my euros in the
airport, and by doing so I lost nearly $100 dollars of value as a result of
the TERRIBLE exchange rate in the airport. I guess we always have to learn,
huh?
Belgian countryside- a village
near mine. |
When I walked out of the secured area in the Brussels airport, there
was a HUGE crowd of people waiting for the exchange students; it was so
big that there were metal restraining fences to keep them away from the
door as we came out! However, I couldn’t see my family anywhere. I was
starting to worry, and I felt very lost and confused among this sea of
people all hugging the people I had met 8 hours previously, looking for
my own family to greet. All of a sudden a blonde girl stopped me and
asked, “Are you Lily?” Of course, my answer was “Yes,” and she then
informed me she was my host cousin, and that my host mom had been
feeling sick that morning and had gone to get blood drawn, and that she,
my host dad, and my host brother would be arriving within about 10
minutes. I greeted my Rotary counselor, who also happens to be my host
uncle (the dad of the host cousin who had greeted me), and we chatted
for a few minutes in a strange mixture of French and English, which was
a direct result of extreme fatigue. I also met a few oldies, and finally
my family arrived, and there was a very warm atmosphere all around.
My host mom and host brother in
front of my first home here in Belgium |
We arrived home, and I was given the tour of my quaint and charming
home, and then I was told that I had about 15 minutes until it was time
to leave for my host grandparents’ 50th anniversary party. Let me tell
you, the Belgians know how to eat. The food at this party was
incredible. It was a lovely afternoon, despite the fact that I felt so
terribly exhausted that I completely abandoned all efforts of speaking
in French with my family and spoke in English with my host brother and
cousin, until I drank some Coke, which gave me just enough of a caffeine
burst as to allow me to continue speaking in French with my new family.
After the party we arrived home at around 9 PM, and shortly afterwards I
passed out in my very comfortable new bed, feeling very happy and
content with this new place.
Since then I have had some interesting adventures, including attending
the City Parade in Brussels to listen to techno music for hours (WHICH
WAS AWESOME), and for now I spend the majority of my mornings at home,
watching movies in French, as my host mom works during the day and I am,
for all intents and purposes, a
My brand new kitten! |
lone in the house. I am so terrifically excited to start school, as I
NEED to make new friends and figure out how to get around here, and I
feel that the French practice I will get at school will be so incredibly
useful to me. I went last week to sign up for my courses, and I’ve got
some interesting ones, including Islamic religion, but I have a rather
heavy course-load, which is a tad bit worrisome…
I joined a choir that is participating in a musical theatre show this
week and next week, and though its incredibly difficult to memorize and
learn the songs in French, let alone understand the stage directions
that I am being given, it is a truly awesome experience that is helping
me to learn more French and culture quickly.
There are a lot of these around here! |
My host family is wonderful J They are such kind people and they do
all they can to help me feel welcome. Its probably helpful that my host
mom really reminds me of my real mom. Everyone has been so friendly here
so far, and I hope that continues, and I’m doing my best to take one day
at a time and make the best of each day. I only felt a little homesick
after about a week, but that has since subsided and I am loving it here.
Belgium is an incredibly lovely country. There are cows and farm animals
EVERYWHERE (although that can be contributed to the fact that I live in
a small country village with about 800 inhabitants), and there are
beautiful rolling hills and quaint towns and villages. Just looking out
my window is a joy! It is, however, much colder here than in Florida,
and I already am wishing for a warmer coat. It also rains quite
frequently here, but that doesn’t bother me (yet).
This past weekend was the inbound orientation for my district and I made
some great friends and strengthened ties with some old friends, and all
around had a great time.
Coolest coffee maker ever. |
I already feel adapted to this strange but real adventure. French no
longer sounds different to me, whether I understand it or not, and I can
communicate well with everyone I have come across, for the most part.
This whole experience is exhausting, and I sleep like a baby EVERY
night, but every wonderful day and evening is worth the bleary-eyed
mornings where I have to get coffee from the AWESOME coffee maker in our
kitchen.
If you are considering exchange, I don’t say “DO IT,” I say CONSIDER IT!
It is not for everyone, and you have to be very strong to leave home and
jump into the unknown, but if you feel that you can handle that, it is
so worth it. |
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Coucou!
In 4 days I will have been in
Belgium for 3 months. 3 entire months of my life have
passed here. What have I been doing for these last 3
months that have caused them to pass so quickly?
Having the time of my life, of
course.
My life here is sometimes
extraordinary, sometimes a bit boring, and most of the time regular and
happy, but the truly extraordinary thing about this life is that it is my
real life. No longer is a year in another country, on
another continent, in another place that is entirely different, just a
dream. I am here, in Belgium, and it couldn’t feel more
natural.
Speaking of dreams, though, I
already had my “dream”. In fact, I dreamt in French
throughout my entire first week, but I don’t consider those to be the real
first fluency dreams, because they were only as a result of the “French
shock”, and I didn’t understand them completely.
However, now I dream rather frequently in French, and I understand
everything that happens.
I have had no real problems
with my language so far. Having had studied French for
more than 3 years before leaving, I already had a firm grasp on the basics
of the language upon arrival, and, luckily, languages tend to come easily
for me. I would consider myself conversationally fluent;
I have few problems in daily conversations, and I am passing all of
my classes at school, save French, in which I read (in French, of course),
because the coursework of the senior class is at a level much too hard for
me. I am also in the process of reading the Harry Potter
series in French, which is really a fun task for me, because I love
discovering the little differences (who would have thought that Voldemort’s
name is “Tom Elvis Jedusor” in French?!?!?!). I’ve
finished the first and second, and am in the middle of the third at the
moment.
I honestly love my host
parents. They are two of the sweetest, most genuine and
simple-hearted people I have ever met. Even though they
lead stressful lives, they are always willing to chat with me and spend time
with me, whether that means having a cup of coffee in the morning before
school, watching TV together after dinner, or having a
big family dinner every Sunday. They help me so much
with my French, and thankfully neither of them speaks more than a few key
words in English, so I always have to discover new words to fully express
what I need/want to say.
My host brother is a bit more
difficult. He is 15 and is a bit of a juvenile
delinquent. Thankfully there has never been any tension
between us, but that is mostly due to the fact that there has never been any
type of relationship between us at all. Even though our
rooms are right next to each other, it is as if we live in different places
entirely. We do not greet each other, we do not say
hello, and we do not speak at all. However, I honestly
have no problem with that, because I would rather have no contact with him
than unpleasant contact. The only real problem that I
have with him is that he plays very loud and unpleasant music all day long,
but there is nothing that I or my host parents can do- they have tried
everything, and I would rather just deal with it than make a scene about it.
Without a doubt, however, I
absolutely love this family, and while I know that my second family is very
nice also, I am dreading having to change and leave behind this family of
mine, and I am also dreading the 2 months that it will take to get used to
the next family, only to have to leave again after another month and a half.
I know that right now it’s
recruitment and interview season. For those of you
waiting for your responses, my only advice is to trust Rotary.
They know what they are doing. If they don’t
select you, it’s because they sensed in you something that would make you
not ready to handle the year abroad (yet). If it is truly
your dream, and you aren’t chosen, you can try again next year, after a year
of contemplation. For those of you who are selected, hang
on, because it’s a wild ride. Prepare yourself for
assignments and work, but prepare yourself for 8 amazing months, and then a
year that will change your life and make you grow, whether you have the best
time of your life or not.
If Rotary doesn’t give you
your “dream” country, accept it with grace. Rotary only
exchanges with quality programs, and whether you think you want to go
somewhere or not, remember that people live happily in every country on the
list, and you can too, if you throw yourself into becoming part of the new
culture.
There are few things that I truly miss here, but I
suppose I should list them anyway.
1) Hugs. Belgians are affectionate people, but hugs
are normally reserved for sad occasions (and drunken occasions). Being a
rather hug-oriented person, I find the lack of personal contact truly
difficult.
2) Driving. My host parents are very gracious about
giving me rides all around, but they are often not available, and living in
a small village with only a school bus during the week (and nothing at all
on the weekends) leaves me a bit stranded when there is no one to drive me
to the train station or a friend’s house.
3) My piano. I really miss the ability to print out
a few pages of music and go straightaway to my piano to learn them. In my
third family there is a piano, but I don’t arrive there until April.
4) Music classes. I have a truly wonderful choir
here, but I really miss having an entire class of kids my own age all
together learning music.
5) My family and friends. I am managing quite fine
without my family and friends, but on rough days, sometimes it seems like
the only thing that can help is a hug or a sleepover.
I recently traveled to both Paris and London with
Rotary, and both trips were fantastic. Paris is truly more than I could
ever have dreamed of, and I spent an amazing weekend there with amazing
people, amazing sights, and amazing experiences. London was also
incredible, and I will most definitely keep memories of the two trips with
me for the rest of my life.
My journal is getting a bit long; I probably ought to
end it here. To the new exchangers- do not deceive yourselves. You will
forget to journal, and you will dread it. When I was still at the
orientations I thought that it would be absolutely no problem at all, but
let me tell you, it becomes very easy to put it off for later.
À la prochaine!!
Bisous! :D |
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It
has certainly been a while since my last journal, so with this one I’ll
attempt to keep you all updated, without boring you to tears.
Firstly, CONGRATULATIONS to the Rotary class of 2011-2012! You guys must be
special if they have picked you, and you can do this! When the workload
seems staggering, look at it with a smile and say, “This is ALL I have to do
to live in another country for a year? Wow, how lucky am I!!” Don’t be late,
and don’t get any tattoos before leaving, do be attentive, do STUDY your
language, do prepare yourself mentally, and do get ready to have one of the
most influential (and hopefully wonderful) years of your life! Rotary is
counting on you, and I believe in you all!
So, to begin with my current life here in Belgium. This country has not only
fulfilled and exceeded my expectations, but has become my home. It is
difficult to describe the sensation of feeling at home in a place so
different; I leave my house in a modest village, catch the public bus to
school, speak in French for the entire day with friends and adults, and
return home to spend the afternoon at home or participating in some other
activity. All of this has become so normal to me, and I don’t even notice
anymore when I had a long conversation in French without struggles.
As for my language, I am VERY proud to say that today, Wednesday January
12th 2011, I am fluent in French. Of course, that doesn’t mean that I speak
as well as a native, and I doubt that I ever will, but that does mean that I
speak throughout the day, understanding everything and being able to express
any sentiment or idea that I would like to, and having an accent that is
subtle enough to fool the Belgians into thinking that I have been here for
years; also, they no longer think I have an American accent, but instead a
general English-speaker’s accent, impossible to tell whether I come from
Britain or from America.
I am also very proud and surprised to say that I have not yet been homesick.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that I don’t miss family and friends, but I
don’t feel any need to return to my life in Florida, except to give my loved
ones a hug, spend a few days seeing them, and to return to Belgium
immediately.
I believe that there are several major reasons for not being homesick, among
them being that 1)I adored my first host family, 2) I spoke the language
well and quickly, and 3) I am Jewish, and therefore do not celebrate the
traditional Christian holidays that tend to make people oh-so-homesick.
I very recently changed host families, and am comfortable here in my second
home, even though I really do need some time to adapt. They are very nice
people, and I will fit in well here, I believe, but it was very difficult
and stressful to leave my first host family, with whom I was very happy.
It’s not always easy to change, but we can do our best and hold our heads up
throughout!
School is going well; for the winter examinations I took 2 exams and passed
both of them, and I am receiving good marks on my reports.
I really adore my friends here! I have a couple of close Belgian friends,
but most of my best friends here are exchange students coming from all over
the world! (Australia, India, all over the United States, etc.) I will admit
that sometimes it is difficult to make friends, but overall people are very
friendly here.
I spent a lovely Christmas with my host family and my choir, performing a
midnight mass on Christmas Eve and spending a fun evening with my host
family the next night. Belgians know how to party! For New Year’s Eve I went
to Brussels with several friends, exchange students and Belgians, to watch
the fireworks and roam the busy streets, which was one of the best
experiences!
Recently I spent a day participating in an English immersion program for
Belgians, while watching films, performing skits, singing karaoke, and all
around having a good time!
Being an exchange student has changed my life, and I would like to thank
Rotary for giving me this opportunity!
Je vous remercie pour tous que vous avez fait pour moi! Merci Rotary!
À bientôt!!
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It
has been a while since my last journal, and lots of things have happened
since then, so I figured I would update you guys! My life here is in full
swing, as always, and I think that I have really found my “groove” here just
recently (which will make it even harder to leave come July 5th, 2011). I
changed families for the second time about a week ago, and what an awesome
week with my third and final host family! I feel very comfortable here
already, as opposed to my second family, where I was really quite unhappy
all the time. Thankfully, though, my third family is just about as ideal as
it can get!
I’m having such a great time in Belgium, but it gets harder and harder to
think about my return with every day that passes. I haven’t gotten to the
point of crying about it yet, but I think its just because I’m in denial. I
don’t want to think about it, but unfortunately people ask me ALL the time
when I’m supposed to be leaving! It’s terribly sad.
On a happier note, right now is a traveling period for me! A couple of
weeks ago I went to Amsterdam, where I spent 3 AMAZING days with my Rotary
friends, and a few days ago I got back from a trip to Greece for 11 whole
days! My countries visited list just keeps growing! Right now I have USA,
Israel, Belgium, France, England, Holland, Greece, Switzerland, Italy,
Luxembourg, and Germany on there, and later on this year I’ll be adding on
the Czech Republic and potentially even Spain or Sweden! I love the fact
that I’m getting to see so much of the world that I didn’t know before. It
is really a bizarre thing for me to see how small, and, at the same time,
how large Europe really is. To get to Italy (in order to then take the boat
to Greece) we passed through 3 separate countries! Suffice it to say that I
am not ready to leave this place.
Speaking of leaving this place, however, I only have a couple of months
until my plane touches down in Florida. I am ecstatic at the prospect of
seeing my family and friends again, but I just wish that they could come
here instead, and that I could stay here forever! However, I knew when I
signed up for this program that I would eventually have to leave, and that
doing so would be incredibly painful. I comfort myself with the fact that
when I get home, I get to head off the beautiful and amazing New College of
Florida!
I’m very happy with my friends here. Unfortunately I haven’t made very many
friends at school, but at least everyone is friendly with me, and I have a
few good friends to pass the day with. Outside of school, however, I have
plenty of great friends! I joined a choir my second week here, and I made
many friends there, especially my friend Rianne, who is one of my best
friends here, and who lives in the same village as me. We even sang a duet
together for my village’s cabaret! Also, I am quite close with many of the
other exchange students. It is true what they say, that only an exchange
student can really understand what you’re going through! I love to just hop
on the train with a few of my exchanger friends, go to some random Belgian
cities, and spend the entire day wandering around and having fun. People in
Europe are very open and helpful, and if ever you ask for a recommendation
for something to do in a city they are more than willing to help (especially
when you speak their language!). I have had some absolutely amazing days
doing things that were completely unexpected and suggested by strangers.
I have some great things coming up in the next couple of months as well. In
a couple of weeks I’ll be going to Belgium’s best known amusement park,
Walibi, with the Belgian Rotex, and I am planning on screaming my head off
on all of the roller coasters! Also, I would like to see if I could soon
plan a trip to Spain during the month of May or June to visit some distant
cousins. In early May I have my final Rotary club presentation (2 months
before my departure!), and all of my host families are invited to see it.
In June I have a couple of exams at school, and then I have a 7-day trip to
Prague! I’m certainly doing my best to fill up each day with as many
wonderful experiences as possible, because when will I ever get to do this
again?
I promise to any of the new outbounds that are reading this that I will try
to write another journal soon, because I realize that I have been slacking.
It’s just that life here in Belgium is so fantastic that I forget that I
need to keep you all updated as well!
Thank you again to Rotary for this fantastic opportunity, and I can’t wait
to see you all in 70 days, 16 hours, 56 minutes, and 30 seconds! (Alright,
those last two might be a bit precise. But in that general time frame!)
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This iconic clog is in Delft, Holland. |
Me in front of Anne Frank's house in Amsterdam. |
Rotary students on the ferry from Italy to Greece |
All 73 Rotary students on the Greece trip |
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The island of Hydra in Greece |
Me singing in the Epidaurus theatre in Greece, which has some of the
world's best acoustics |
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Our
Districts
Aaron
Alayna
Alison
Alison
Alyssa
Amber
Andrea
Anna
Ashley
Austin
Autumn
Britney
Carlos
Carter
Casey
Celia
Chantal
Chelsea
Crystal
Devante
Ellen
Emily
Jennings
Joe
Kate
Katie
Mackenzie
Miranda
Quinn
Vanessa
Guido
Maria
Steven