Susana Alarcon
When I first decided to go on a Rotary Youth Exchange, I didn’t realize how much this experience would help shape my
life. My exchange started in the summer of 2012, in the Regina airport crying. For me, at the time, I didn’t realize that I wasn’t only saying goodbye to my family and friends, but I was also saying goodbye to myself, because the person who left is not the person who came back. While I was sitting on the plane, I was anxiously creating scenarios in my head about meeting the people I would soon call my family while in Belgium. I had been in contact with my first host mother for awhile, and we had discussed some minor details of our lives, but nothing can prepare you for your first in-person interaction with the person who would become your family.
When I met her and her son, I knew I was going to fit right in. Before your exchange, you always hear these sort of horror stories of how certain host parents treat their host students, but upon meeting them, all those worries, that I put to the back of my mind, had gone away. While still living with my first host family, I met my second and third family, all of whom I came to cherish very deeply. I moved in with my second family in January, and my third family in April. I am incredibly lucky because I not only have a set of amazing biological parents, I also have three amazing Belgian moms and one amazing Belgian dad. My sibling count has also gone up because I also have two Belgian sisters and two Belgian brothers. We have stayed in touch and do catch up from time to time, but although we are a part they are always in my heart.
While in Belgium, I also had the opportunity to travel to other countries, with my host parents and with Rotary. I traveled to Spain, Holland, France, England, Luxembourg and Germany. It’s true what they say, once you start travelling you never want to stop. I came to discover my host country in ways that the locals never have. When travelling, I often traveled with exchange students, but sometimes alone, to other cities in Belgium. I also, immersed myself in the Belgian cuisine. Fries, with various types of sauces, but more specifically andalouse, and mussels became my bread and butter. When thinking of my dear sweet Belgium, I realize that I had left a little of my heart in every conversation I had, with everyone one I met, in everyplace I saw, without even realizing it.
I had already a strong foundation in terms of the French language. Every now and then, I found myself saying a French-Canadian expression where my friends and my family would chuckle and tell me the Belgian way of saying those things. In school, I had classes with those in grade 12, but I also had French classes with those in grade 7. The welcome I received from the students was comforting. The teachers tried their best to make us exchange students comfortable in their classes. As the year progressed, my western French-Canadian accent became an amalgamation of different accents because of the introduction of Belgian French. I remember my host sister laughing at the fact that my way of speaking had change so much. She wasn’t the only one who noticed.
The Rotarians in my host Rotary Club had also noticed. I was their little « Canadien », who was becoming Belgian before their eyes. I participated in carnival marches, dressed in traditional attire and played traditional music on my saxophone. From the moment I got off the plane, I told myself that I would do everything in my power to truly live in the moment and try to live as the Belgians do. I think in the 11 months that I was away, I truly did live like a Belgian, and I truly did « walk a mile in someone else’s shoes ».
There is not a doubt in my mind that the Rotary Youth Exchange is one of the best programs available for students. It prepared me in ways, that I hadn’t realized was possible, for my University life and for my normal day to day life. I have been blessed to have had this opportunity, and I truly believe that if everyone could go on exchange the world would definetly a better place. I am coming up on five years since I left a little of my heart in Belgium, but I always remember that I didn’t say goodbye, I said see you soon.
