Melissa writes

In 2018 I had the possibility to do a students’ exchange in Estonia.  During the journey I was very excited to visit this small country and to get to know to new people and especially to my host family.

As we all arrived in Kanepi we were really impressed by the nature because I have never expected that in Estonia would be so many woods and just a few houses. Then it was the first time I saw my host family. They greeted me very heartwarmed and showed me their house. I was very tired so I decided to go to sleep earlier than normally. 

The first day in Estonia was not that good as I hoped it would be because we played the games in the woods and it was too cold to my mind. At this point it is important to mention that the school system of the Kanepi Gümnaasium is so different to the German school system. In the classes there are less students than in a German class. The lessons are also much easier in comparison to our school stuff but because of this the atmosphere in the grades are much more relaxed.

The weekend was one of the best things of the exchange because on Saturday we visited Tartu and went to the Science Museum and in my opinion this was really interesting.  After that we drove to the Upside Down House which was a little bit confusing but also something new. On Sunday we were in a restaurant with all German and Estonian people and then we ordered the famous 5 kilo burger. At lunchtime we were in Tartu again in the shopping mall. I was very surprised about the ice skating hall inside of the mall because this is not really popular in Germany.  I have to say that Tartu is a very beautiful city with many attractions. 

On Monday was the event in the meeting house and in the beginning I did not expect that it would be so good. I really liked the dances because it was much fun and the German got to know more about the Estonian culture. 

The fifth day was not really interesting to my mind because we did the hike with the heavy shoes and that was a little bit uncomfortable but the guide told us something about the age of the trees and about the wood peckers who left holes in the trees. 

The Wednesday was also a very spectacular day. We visited Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. The best thing was the concert in the end of the day because it was so impressive and intensive. In my opinion it was a pity that we only had the possibility to go shopping in the old town because there were not so many good shops. 

To conclude I have to say that this exchange was an important experience for my life because I got to know a different culture and living conditions but I am also very happy to go back home and see my family and friends again.