Caledonia Argus

Students adjust to U.S.A.

Posted: 2/3/04

By Shannon McKinney
Argus News Reporter

Four foreign exchange students are attending Caledonia High School this year. They include Leonardo Vilaca of Brazil; Cesar Collantes Santana, of Lima, Peru; Lucas Borbas of Brasilia, Brazil; and Anja Desiree Staudt of Germany.

All are seniors except for Vilaca who is a junior.

Each filled out a questionnaire talking about their experience in the United States thus far.

Cesar Collantes Santana

Santana is staying for six weeks and will leave February 25. He is staying with Harold and Marlys Thompson and Lee and Gayle Grippen.

The Peru native has a brother, 11, and a sister, 6, and lives in the west part of Peru.

He became a foreign exchange student because he wanted to know how people lived in America and also to be in a colder climate.

He hasnít noticed much difference in the culture. ìThe only thing is the cold. The food is not so different and people wear the same clothes,î he said.

Santana observed that Caledonia is ìquiteî small but a very nice place.

He enjoys computers and video games and would like to be a computer systems engineer when he finishes school.

Anja Staudt

Staudt, who is staying with the Beth and Steve Zieke family, arrived in August and will be here until about June.

She has one older sister, 19, and misses her family, the dentist, gummibarchen (candy), her club called ìRocksideî and her band, ìTen-Sing.î

Becoming a foreign exchange student increases her chances of getting into a school for grades 11-13 in Germany and also for eventually getting a good paying job.

Some differences that Staudt has noticed between the U.S. and Germany is that everything is cheaper in the U.S. and that school is all-day compared to 7:45 a.m. to 10 a.m. or noon in Germany. In Germany, the driving age is 18 and the drinking age is 16.

Staudt is enjoying many things about the U.S. ìLiving in the country is different for me. I like the food, Valley View Mall, the car washes. I love Wal-Mart, rummage sales, trucks and my host family,î she said.

Staudt enjoys playing drums, going out with friends, buying purses and shoes, eating candy and using the internet.

When she finishes school, she would like to be a lawyer, rock star, brain surgeon, or expensive popular designer.

Lucas Borbas

Borbas who is staying with the Mike and Bernie McCormick family will stay until June and arrived in August.

He lives in the capital of Brazil and has two older brothers. He says he misses his friends, food, parties and the freedom he had in Brazil.

In Brazil it was acceptable to arrive home at 5:00 a.m. after being up all night. The drinking age and driving age are both 18 years old. It is acceptable to drink at a younger age, he said.

He became a foreign exchange student to learn English and the culture of America.

Heís noticed that people tend to be more outgoing and friendly in Brazil than in the U.S. ìThey say hi to you everyday in Brazil,î he explained.

The cold weather has been a challenge for Borbas.

Some of his hobbies include music and the arts.

He plans to be a veterinarian when he finishes school.

Leonardo Vilaca

Vilaca, who is with Bill and Carol Abrahamzon arrived in January and will stay until December.

Vilaca lives in an apartment that has 17 floors in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil, which has 15 million people. ìMy city isnít calm and peaceful like Caledonia. It is crazy,î he said.

He has an older sister, 19. His father is an engineer and his mother an economist. He said, ìSometimes I miss the warm climate of Brazil. I miss my friends, family and the big parties.î

Like Lucas Borbas, he also doesnít like the U.S. restrictions on drinking.

Vilaca became an exchange student to improve his English and because heís always dreamed of traveling abroad.

He enjoys the cold weather and and being able to speak English. ìIím liking the people who are giving me more attention in school. Iím not disliking anything yet.î he said.

Vilacaís hobbies include playing soccer, the computer, guitar, listening to music, parties and going out with friends.

He isnít sure what he wants to be when he finishes school, some kind of an engineer perhaps.

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