Tuesday, September 7, 2010
foreign exchange student from Belgium Flanders?
foreign exchange student from Belgium Flanders?
okay- so my family and I are getting a foreign exchange student from Belgium Flanders. She's a girl and she's 17. We have gone through the process of getting checked and accepted into the program and we now have her email address. They told us to feel free to email her and introduce ourselves and such. What should I say? and what should we do to make her feel welcome as soon as she gets here (in August)? and what should we not do (I don't know the customs and everything)? Thanks in advance! :)
Studying Abroad - 2 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Well, Belgium is a modern Western European country, so most customs are similar to the ones in the U.S. If she is still in Belgium it could be fun to send her pictures of your house and the room where she will be sleeping. Also everyone in your house could send her a little bio of themselves with what you love to do and stuff like that. When she arrives, the coolest thing you can do is to take her to a local favorite spot. This varies city to city, but everyplace has one. Also, if you are in a Southern state that has a coastal area you should take her to the beach. The beaches in Belgium are quite cold most of the year and I can bet she will appreciate it. Avoid jokes about Belgian waffles XD.
2 :
Things you must not talk about: 1) Belgian Politics: It might ruin the whole exchange, if she's a Flemish nationalist and separatist you can expect a boring rant about how the Walloons (in reality French speaking Flemish) oppressed the Flemish, how still today they live of Flemish money and give nothing in return (while the Walloons pay for Flemish pensions and the Belgian infrastructure and harbors are enlarged with Walloon money). If she's a modal Belgian you'll get something like: 'they're all idiots' and if she is a Belgicist you can expect a rant about the stupid Flemish nationalists. And there are mixed forms of all of the above, but the majority are just Belgian and Flemish. 2) Belgian Stereotypes: the waffle and chocolate kind of thing. Yes, many Belgians like these things, but they are just a small part of Belgian gastronomy and thus are only a small part of Belgian day to day culture. 3) Don't say that Belgium is a fictional country, it has about 700 years of history.
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