Hi all.
I was an excahnge student with Rotary in 1993/94 to Liege, Belgium. Anyone else been on exchange there?
Actually… anyone who was an exchange student somewhere, please post… I would love to know how many of us there are.
I’m a triple threat: Madrid '88, Leningrad '89, and Novosibirsk '95. (The first was through my university, and the last 2 were through Council on International Educational Exchange.)
Everyone should spend at least a semester abroad if at all possible, even if it’s somewhere English-speaking. The broadened perspective can’t be beat.
Were you just curious how many Dopers were exchange students, or was there some larger question lurking in the back of your mind?
Australian : went to Japan as an exchange student in '94.
It’s not for everyone. I loved it and learnt a hell of a lot.
Well I was curious as to numbers… and more specifically to the people who went to Liege and area of Belgium if the Pot Au Lait is still the bar to meet at on Wednesdays. That and I was hoping other people whould share stories…
I’m leaving for Salamanca, Spain on the 19th of this month.
Denmark, 89-90. YFU type here.
I was in Liege, Belgium 1993-1994! I was at the Pot au Lait everyday after school, maybe even during school!
Our daily routine was to meet and play cards and drink coke/coffee, and then beer before heading home!
I went from London on two exchanges: Erasmus to Berlin and some other programme whose name I can never remember to Nitra, Slovakia. Both were great experiences and changed me as a person. I would heartily recommend an exchange to anyone able to do one.
Does short-term count? If so, I’m in. I spent 5 weeks in Biarritz, France in summer 1988. One of my happiest memories from my teen years and did wonders to improve my French, too.
how are you defining “exchange student”? literally that you exchanged your place with a student from another place, or that you studied outside your own country / culture?
Not exactly an exchange student, but I was part of a program of students from the US to a university in Tokyo, Japan. It was in college, and I was definitely an odd man out because I had been going to night classes and I was 30 years old. But I did home-stay with a Japanese family who spoke no English. This covered a regular 10-month academic year (August to June).
It wasn’t total immersion, though, because the University had a special International Division where the classes were taught in English. If you were good at the language, there was an option to stay for another year to take their intensive Japanese-language courses. I couldn’t afford it, though.
Nevertheless, I learned a tremendous amount about the realities of day-to-day life in a foreign country. It is still the most interesting thing I have done in my life, although with retirement looming I aim to give it a run for its money with other new experiences.
Went to Brazil a long, long time ago. Good times. Mostly.
'84 Metz, France