Each year Ukiah High welcomes new students from around the world through our exchange program. This year Wild welcomed Erine Van Bemten (18) from Arlon, Belgium, Antonella Tanca from Sassari, Sardinia, Italy, and Romane Marchal from Charleroi, Belgium.
Van Bemten told us a friend of hers back in Belgium traveled abroad during her sophomore year and highly recommended it inspiring her to sign up.
Living in another country for 10 months can be difficult without your family. For Van Bemten, the distance was hard but also brought her family closer together on a day-to-day basis. She explained how the hardest part is walking away from your family as she entered the plane to fly to her new home.
Before she left, Van Bemten and her family were close but not nearly as close as they are now, “I try to call them as often as possible. I give them so many updates and pictures, and my mom really likes that. I love sending them pictures because they are living through this experience too.” She is “forever grateful” to her parents for allowing her this opportunity. The experience has helped Van Bemten grow so much and she is “grateful for their support, their love, and their trust in me. It means so much.”
For Marchal, being away from her family was “certainly one of the hardest things” and she expressed how “there’s always a void that we try to fill, but we can’t” especially during holidays and events. But, thanks to the friends she has made, this void is a little more bearable.
Throughout the year Tanca struggled with being so far away from home, “I’ve had a great experience but I miss my country.” It is the bittersweetness of living your dream she says, “I have many memories and different cultures in my spirit now.”
When asked about the culture shock when first arriving Marchal described it as a “big shift”, the biggest changes were found in the little things. Marchal marveled at “the size of things like big cars, trucks– a small drink that looks like a big one for me, big store aisles.” Another factor was that in her city there are so many things to do and easy access to public transportation. Since students cannot receive their license until 18, transports such as buses, metros, trains, etc. are popular.
In Van Bemten’s experience the United States. focuses much more on the “high school experience”, in Belgium they do not have clubs, sports, etc. “It’s strictly academic.” So during her time here, Van Bemten took advantage of the moment. She became a part of the Varsity Cheer Team, “that was the beginning of everything for me.” Since she joined the team only two weeks after arriving it became a way for her to meet new people. She says “It really made me like being around people here and then I had fun.”
During their time here the students had to take certain courses like any other student- although, they also enjoyed their electives. In Marchal’s case her most appreciated class would have to be Fashion, she “learned how to sew and make garments” and was able to enjoy her time with her classmates. It allowed her to adventure into a realm she wouldn’t have back home.
And for Van Bemten, our BFS (Bigger Faster Stronger) course for athletics was her favored time. “It’s really something that we do not have at home.” During the class, she not only built up her physical strength but also built friendships. In the class, she met Jaidyn Atherton who turned out to be one of her closest friends at UHS. On their bench a common phrase they would use was the TikTok sound “my pronouns are U.S.A.” as Van Bemten was turning into a true American.
Friendships are difficult to build as exchange students, all three of the girls agreed. Van Bemten explained how during the first few weeks “all eyes are on you” and people are just excited to meet “the exchange kid” but then they just slowly stop caring. After the initial shock, however, the girls were able to find their people. With those people, memories are made.
When headed home some memories that may play through Marchal’s mind are of her 18th birthday which took place only three days after her arrival. Her host family invited teens from around the community, and she was able to meet so many “kind people.” Like most seniors, Homecoming week was a treasured moment in her mind, “it was my first spirit week here…and also my first casual dance.” She was surprised at the extent students and families are involved in the week’s activities. “I didn’t expect it to be that big at all.” During Thanksgiving break, Marchal was able to visit Oregon, “I was lucky enough to visit another beautiful state with my host family.” She was in awe at the beaches, landscapes, and views, “It was very calm and peaceful.”
For Tanca, “activities like prom and homecoming were great.” She explained how “homecoming is something we do not have in Italy. We just go to the nightclub and dance. Seeing how happy people are and watching them have fun is great.”
Van Bemten traveled to many places: Las Vegas, San Francisco, New York, etc. Her favorite memories are her time at prom, Las Vegas, and the Spring Dance Show. After the spring show her host family “was so supportive” and brought her flowers as they were showered in pride. “They made me cry. They were so proud. That was special.”
Van Bemten believes that “everyone should live in a different country at least once. It’s such an experience, you learn to be on your own to do things by yourself and you are the only one to count on.” And that “going away makes you understand how much you have at home and how important it is to have that. If you have the opportunity to go away for a time, do it, because it is worth it.”
Agreeing with her, Marchal “would absolutely recommend” becoming a student abroad. She highlighted how you not only get to learn new things, cultures, and languages but “you also meet incredible people you’ll never forget.” Of course, it may be scary for many but in the experience “you get to know yourself, grow up, gain new mentalities… It’s the experience of a lifetime, so if you get the chance, take it!”
In their final goodbye the girls reflected on the people they have met, their host families, and the memories they have made. Tanca thanked her host family, “They are great, they have related to me, supported me, and made me feel at home.” To her friends she thanked them as well, “the memories will stay with me, and I will take them home forever.”
In near tears Van Bemten thanks her hosts, speaking of how “sweet” they have been. And that “they have done so much for me and I can’t even think about saying goodbye. They are so welcoming and open to do things with me and just support me in everything. The move to my current home was so sudden but they have really saved my American adventure. I am just so…I am so thankful for them.”
To all her new friends, she pauses and simply states, “Thank you.” She said her friends allowed her “to live the dream that I was dreaming of. As a European living the “‘American Dream’ is something. And being at this school has helped me live that dream.”
As a final message to her host family and the many friends she made during her time at UHS, Marchal told us that she is “so grateful to have met you all and gotten to know you. Thank you for making my experience here in the U.S. so incredible. I hope I’ll see you again someday, maybe in Belgium, so I can show you lots of things like you did for me.”
Au revoir and arrivederci girls, Ukiah High was happy to have you. Good luck in your next adventure and don’t forget: once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat.
Katie Williams is an Editor in Chief for the Ukiah High School Newspaper and a Senior at UHS. Katie enjoys writing about emotion based and community oriented pieces, and is the head producer for the @ukiahilite instagram page. Outside of school Katie enjoys baking, reading and assisting her family in reaching out to our community. After high school Katie would like attend Christian Life College to someday work with children that “deserve better, they need someone to listen”.
