Great first day!

Jess and I had been texting back and forth for about a month and a half before we finally met face to face. She had gushed online about how excited she and her friends were and it allowed me the space to feel welcome in her busy, busy life!! As we arrived, I recognized her immediately by her striking ginger hair and I ran over and hugged her. I already felt like I knew her as she warmly greeted me with a thick Yorkshire accent. I blundered to get my luggage and we made our way to the car where her mother was waiting. Her father had taken her little brother, Matthew, to hockey so he wasn't there at first. We drove to the house which is a traditional English house (I called it cottage-y) and I had my own room (not something that twins usually have)!! We immediately sat on Jess's rug and debriefed American politics until we fell into a discussion about Americas involvement in the two World Wars. Between the two of us, we could've taught a killer history lesson. Her dad, an adorable but also brilliant economics man (who looks a bit like Martin Freeman) invited us to the local junior rugby tournament. It was a beautiful day and the Brits had been given strict orders to keep us all up until at least 8 pm so we decided to go. We arrived and I had two sausages and watched the rabid parents and fans, witnessing firsthand how crazily supported this sport was, even at a junior level. We got ice cream with a "flake" which is basically folded cheap chocolate and is apparently commonplace. Jess had to explain to the ice cream man that I was American and he would have to be patient; I had never known there could be language barriers between two English speaking countries. We walked from there to Sandhal Castle, a beautiful public space. When we got home, her mom had prepared an entire "Sunday Roast" which was roast beef and gravy, parsnips, peas and corn and carrots. We all sat down for "tea" and Jess's mom and dad lovingly joked that they made dinner an occasion every night because it was how they got their kids to talk to them about their day. I went to sleep in my own room, completely content and happy.

-Sarah Netland '17

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Everyone seems to be having a great first day with their host families! We've heard reports of rugby games, tea and coffee shops, time at the mall, and great walks through the Yorkshire Sculpture Park (where Arlynn and I went with our amazing hosts). I'm sure everyone will sleep VERY well tonight. Looking forward to a day at school tonmorow!

Here are some pictures from Yorkshire Sculpture Park...