Getting Started

A small introduction is in order. My name is David. I'm a 17 year old American living in St. Mary's County, Maryland, and I've started this blog because I'm leaving for Germany in a few months, and I want a way to record and share my adventure with others. Around a year ago someone suggested, based on my interest in seeing new places, and all things German, that I take a year and go on an exchange trip to Germany. The idea had never even occurred to me before, but I immediately knew a year abroad was something I wanted to do. The feasibility of the thing seemed a bit imperiled at the time, however, by my complete ignorance of how, where, or when I would go. That's where AFS came in. AFS (American Field Service) originated as a sort of field hospital system in France started by American expatriates during the First World War. It later served in the Second World War in rather the same function, but between the wars, it began to sponsor early student exchanges between France and the United States. With the establishment of an unsteady peace in Europe, and the lack of open wars on the continent, AFS morphed into an organization solely concerned with sending students abroad, with the stated goals of furthering intercultural understanding, and world peace. Today, AFS is a mostly volunteer run organization that provides a support structure for students, as well as information and orientations to make the transition to another culture easier.
AFS advises students to write a bit about what motivates them to go, and I’d have to say learning German is at the top of the list for me. Total immersion is the best language program in existence, and I’ll get to learn German from the Germans. I’ll also get to experience the customs, holidays, food, beer, and other aspects of German culture, meet a whole new world of people, form new friendships, and become part of a German family.
The adventure begins around the first week of September, when I'll travel up to New York, and fly out to Germany. I'll be in Germany until around the second week of July 2013, where I'll live with a host family and attend a local secondary school. I won't find out where in Germany I'm going until about mid-June, but AFS has all my paperwork, and is in the process of setting me up with a host family. That's the information that I have so far. My only AFS event before I leave for New York is a pre-departure orientation on June 2nd, so I'll post again sometime in early June. Until then, I'll continue to tinker with the layout of this blog, and hopefully add a donation button.