danish exchange students experience american culture
When sophomore Kate Gaddy walked signed up to host a Danish exchange student, she had no idea what was in store for her. Filled with a mixture of nerves and excitement, she eagerly awaited the day that she would finally meet her Dane, Sofie Munch.
“I was really nervous at first that we wouldn’t get along or that [Sofie] would want to hang out with other people more than me. But when she showed up, she was really sweet and we got along really, really well,” Gaddy said.
Gaddy was one of 12 host families that participated in the eighth annual Danish Exchange program with Ronde Gymnasium, a high school in Denmark. Thier advanced-level English classes travel to the United States to visit Washington, D.C. for a week before coming to Asheville to stay with a Roberson student and his/her families for a week to see how a typical American lives.
Math teacher Stephanie Lindsey and Assistant Principal Lindsay Rice organize the Danish itinerary, match host families and students, and facilitate the logistics of the trip. According to Lindsey, the recent trip has generated positive feedback.
“As far as finding host families, it was fabulous this year. We had all of them homed with two weeks to go, and we had good, sound homes without having to place extras on anybody. Every year there are always little issues, but we try to accommodate every issue that we can,” Lindsey said.
While in Asheville, the Danish students took field trips to Chimney Rock State Park and the Biltmore Estate, as well as attended classes with their Roberson host for a day. Outside of school, the Danes and their hosts were free to explore Asheville, with many going on hikes, dining downtown, shopping, and spending time with friends.
Danish student Sandra Woller had not heard much about Asheville prior to the trip, but was pleasantly surprised by many of her experiences.
“I was so surprised that you all are busy all the time. It’s not like there is any down time when you get home--you have to go do homework, or go do training, or go somewhere. Your lives seem crazy,” Woller said. “Also, I think the pledge thing you do every morning is really weird. We definitely don’t have that at home.”
Exchange student Kathrine Wolf Jensen agrees that life in America is very different from her life at home in Denmark, ranging from the foods eaten in the U.S. to the different types of people she met. However, the political differences between the two countries stood out the most, as the Danes were in North Carolina during the presidential primaries.
“You need more socialism here. There are a lot of poor people in America, and they need to be carried by the more rich. That’s what works in Denmark. The system is built on everyone helping everyone else. Here, it seems like you pay some taxes but you don’t get much back. But for us, we pay a lot of taxes but we get a lot more paid back to us,” Wolf Jensen said.
Although the exchange students were only in Asheville for a week, Woller believes that she has created lasting memories with her host family and has become much closer to the other students in her class.
“I have seen some very different sides of people, especially the boys--I have seen something grown in them. It’s very cool to see,” Woller said.