We are currently hosting an exchange student from Japan. We were quite surprised when she arrived and we found out she was only 12. She’s been really sweet for the most part but there have been a few challenges that go along with having a non-family member live with you.
Here’s what we have learned from this experience
#1 – We would never send our 12 year old to another country to live with a family we didn’t know. (We kind of already knew this but hadn’t verbalized it before she came)
#2 – We don’t like sushi.
#3 – There are definite advantages to having very straight hair.
#4 – Her English is better than our Japanese.
#5 – She hadn’t been to a yard sale before coming to our house.
#6 – A cat can be a very comforting creature.
#7 – You should make sure you know how to call Japan before your foreign exchange student arrives.
#8 – When in doubt, cook rice.
#9 – Don’t put her clothes in the dryer because you might shrink them. They don’t have dryers in Japan.
#10 – Japanese sleep very well in the car.