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May:

eClub: Tell us about yourself.

Brendan: Hi, I am Brendan Kottenstette.  I was asked to be the Rotary Foreign Exchange outbound student that you would follow for the year, and I eagerly accepted.  Hopefully, this will give you a taste of what my experience is like over the next year.  I have been looking forward to this for a long time, and it is finally coming.  I’m glad that you all get to tag along for the ride, but hold on.

To tell you a little about myself, my destination is Italy.  Rome, to be exact.  My situation is slightly different than most students because I was a senior in high school this year, so next year is my fifth year.  I went to Regis Jesuit High School, and I was a very active person there.  I played soccer and rugby, was involved in student government, went on service trips, and several other activities.  In my free time, I am just getting into archery as a hobby. 

On the weekends, I love camping or skiing, depending on the season, but I don’t get to do enough of either.  I am hoping to get involved in as many of these activities as possible over in Italy.  I am also eager to try anything that I have not done before.  As you will get to know, I am a very open-minded and adventurous person.

eClub: This is a big year for you.  How are you feeling about it?

Brendan: I am not really sure that the whole notion of this year abroad has really set in on me yet.  I don’t really think that it will until I have walked down the runway, onto the plane, pulled away from the gate, and the pilot has announced, “This plane is now departing for Rome.”  Unfortunately, then it will be too late. 

I understand that I will be leaving everything that I know for an entire year, but right now I am too excited to see what that actually means.  I am trying to make this an unforgettable summer with my friends and family because it will be a while before I see them again.

I have many things to look forward to.  This is an opportunity for me to get to know an entirely different world, culture, language, and people.  I will love this because I thrive on adventure and new experiences.  I feel like this is the opportunity of a lifetime and it will leave a lasting impression.  Mostly I am excited. 

I also have some worries because there is so much that I do not yet know about the trip.  I don’t know Italian very well, but I am taking classes right now.  I don’t know much at all about Rome, where I will be staying.  I know even less about my host family.  I am not really feeling worry about theses things.  It is more like anticipation.  Honestly, I feel ready for this.  If I had the opportunity to leave tomorrow, I would do it.

eClub: Have you traveled abroad before?

Brendan: I chose Italy for several reasons, but the most prominent is that I was there two years ago, and I fell in love with everything about it.  I took part in the Rotary Summer Exchange and lived in Cremona, in the north of Italy, for one month during the summer after my sophomore year.  This was a life changing experience for me.  It gave me a glimpse into the worldview of an entirely different culture.  I learned to see things from a different perspective, and I re-evaluated some of my values.  Not to mention the food.  I never knew that food could taste so good.

One lesson that I learned that I was not expecting to is that almost every single one of my stereotypes about Italians and Europeans in general was proved false (However they do still use their hands more than their mouths).  I got to know the people of  Italy and Cremona as individuals, not as “Italians” or as “Europeans.”  Without a doubt, what I learned on this exchange will help throughout all of next year and the rest of my life.

eClub: How do you imagine the year?

Brendan: There are a lot of blank spaces and questions that I have about next year.  There is still so much that is unknown and will stay that way until I get to Italy, but.  The one thing that I am trying not to do while envisioning what next year will be like, is simply assume that it will be like the last time I was there.  I can’t really imagine what the year will be like because so much of it is still a mystery.  Also, I am trying to go into it with a very open mind, and not assume anything.  This way, I will be more able to accept anything that happens.  I know that what ever happens, it will be a great experience.

eClub: What was it like to be at the orientation with the other outbound students?

Brendan: I think that the orientation weekend was extremely helpful in one major way.  Besides showing us everything that needs to be done in preparation and cluing us in on what to expect, it gave all of the students a chance to bond and become friends.  This is helping us to form a group that can rely on each other and share experiences together.  Both of these will be needed next year.  When we are all thousands of miles away from everything that we know, we will be able to talk to each other via e-mail.  We will all get homesick at times, and if we have good friends form back home to talk to who are feeling the same way, then we will feel less lonely.  We will all be sharing many of the same experiences and feelings, and it will be nice to he able to communicate them to someone who will understand.

eClub: How are your parents feeling?

Brendan: I think that my parents are going to miss me a lot.  They knew that I would be leaving this year anyway because I would have been going to college, but the fact that I am going all the way to Europe is somewhat difficult for them.  At college, at least I would be able to come home for the holidays and most of the summer.  It would also be a more familiar environment.  They are worried about me because they will have no way of keeping track of me, but they also know that it is time to let me go.  They feel the same way that all parents do when their children leave home.

eClub: What do you know about where you are going and who you will live with?

Brendan: During the orientation weekend, I learned that I would be going to Rome, and that I would be staying with Gianluca Acunzo, in a suburb south of the city.  However, I just contacted my family in Italy last week.  Right now, he is having some problems with his e-mail system, but he has written to me twice. 

I have also heard from my English teacher in the Italian School, my Rotary counselor, and the Italian student who will be coming here next year.  I think that I will be staying with the same family, the Acunzos, for the entire year, but I am not positive yet.  Gianluca sent me a list of common slang that he uses with his friends so that I could practice before I get there.  I am really looking forward to meeting him and my new family.

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