Kyra Twohy, American Host:

Do you put chili sauce on your pancakes?  Like any American I was shocked when, instead of syrup, my exchange students put chili sauce on their pancakes.  This and many other cultural differences greatly impacted my perception of what “normal” actually is.  It is pretty simple; China is different.  “Normal” there is, well, is not “normal” here.  Clothing, food, language, etiquette, and school are all different.  Easy things, like using a fork to eat, aren’t that easy for them.  These situations that could have quickly turned awkward were the highlight in my hosting experience.  They provided us all with a good laugh and a learning experience.  There is still common ground no matter how different we are.  Cooking was one activity that brought us together.  Gloria and Teresa, my exchange students, taught me how to make noodles and I taught them how to make cookies.  Together we laughed when our cookies looked like a mess.  We had a great experience together and made many great memories together.  There are still more memories are to come when I travel to China to visit them.  I walked proudly into the Oregon Ridge pancake breakfast carrying that chili sauce and now it will forever remain in my refrigerator because they got me hooked.  China is halfway around the world, but to me it feels right around the corner.

 Gloria, Chinese Exchange Student:

Although Dulaney is a very normal high school in America, when I was here the first day, I was really surprised to see many different kinds of clothes and haircuts since in my Chinese school, students must wear black-and-white uniforms every day, and most can’t have long hair. Although Dulaney is crazy, Dulaney is a really wonderful high school. Dulaney has many interesting classes, such as photography, cooking, and business. In my Chinese school and most Chinese high schools, students in the same grade all take the same classes. In America, you can’t imagine it but it’s true. Every day, we go to school at 7: 30 a.m. and leave school at 6: 00 p.m. and we have two hours to rest in the afternoon. When we go to school again in the afternoon, American students have already finished school. In American schools, students can eat or drink, but we aren’t allowed in Chinese school, because in Chinese culture, it is impolite.  In America, students can answer questions actively. In China almost nobody raises their hand to answer the teacher’s questions, even though they know the answer.

 That’s because although we have good grades, we don’t have enough intention to study. Why not? Because we don’t have enough interests since we almost never experiment. We have much less frequent art and music classes, and in them, we only learn about different kinds of music and art, instead of making our own. Oh, how boring it is! Is it really high school? Yes, and many Chinese schools are like this. The schools’ style in America and China is really totally different. I enjoy life here. I can study my favorite classes, like photography. Mr. Shearman, the teacher, was a very nice and kind person. In class, I took photos outside, worked in the darkroom, and developed films. I even designed my own CD cover using Photoshop. I’d never done anything like that before. That was really interesting and unforgettable. My classmates were also very nice. We chatted, studied and laughed together. I can’t forget any of you.  Thanks American friends. Thanks Dulaney. Thanks hosts. Thanks teachers. Thanks classmates. Thank you very much.