There are various reasons for students to spend some time abroad and attend school in a foreign country – they may improve their language skills, or gain knowledge about different cultures. Most students, however, tend to chose countries for an exchange they already know about, and where a language is spoken they are currently learning at school. For instance, for German students, the USA, France, or Great Britain are the preferred choices. It is rather exceptional if a student participates in an exchange without having previously learned the native language.

One of these rare exceptions is 16 year-old Marie Bartels, currently attending tenth form of Paderborn school Gymnasium Theodorianum. She is actually planning to move to Thailand coming summer, to live with a guest family and also attend school there. We were curious to learn about her reasons to go to Thailand, her experiences so far, and about her expectations of her stay abroad.

Marie admits to have been surprised when first she learned she is scheduled to go to Thailand. She has applied to Youth For Understanding (YFU), an organization that provides for student exchange programmes and grants. In her application, she was asked by YFU to provide for a list of different countries she might consider for her stay abroad, where her preferences lay clearly with countries in Africa. But since she is also interested in Asian culture, and also has made a separate application for a stay in Japan, she is not all too unhappy that she is now going to live in the 'Land of Smiles'. As she has never been there before, she has no distinct expectations of her stay in the Thailand, but is merely curious to learn about the different culture and meet people there.

Marie is going to live with a guest family in the Bangkok area. She is going to stay with them for a whole year, without taking a break in between to visit her own family, not even for Christmas holidays. This rule of the exchange program may seem harsh to young students, but is meant to strengthen the bonds between the student and the guest family. Marie has recently learned more about the Thai family by exchanging emails with her new 'sister', the family's daughter. Since she is only slightly older than Marie, she is well suited to get along well with her and help her get a good start in Thailand.

Being separated from Marie for such a long time is one of the reasons why her parents have mixed feelings about their daughter participating in the student exchange. Also, apart from the brief email exchange mentioned above, they do not know much about the guest family Marie is going to stay with. In addition, the new outbreak of protests and riots in Bangkok, currently covered in the media leaves them with an uneasy feeling. However, Marie's parents consider the exchange a good opportunity for her, since it is an experience helping a young person to build character and grow independent.

While Marie is attending school in Paderborn, she is already preparing for her stay in Thailand. YFU is supporting the students by organizing meetings and providing for information about the foreign countries. Nevertheless, the main concern for Marie clearly is the language barrier, since she has no prior knowledge about the Thai language. This is why she is attending classes at VHS Paderborn, while concomitantly learning the Thai the letters. This is clearly a formidable task, since starting from summer, she is not only going to live with another family in a foreign country, but also wants to attend school there. Marie expects school in Thailand to be quite different from Germany, with the students wearing school uniforms and singing the national anthem each morning; also, Thai students are spending more time at school, both with classes and learning groups. Summing up, by going to school in Thailand, Marie hopes to gather more than language skills. She also wants to learn about and immerse in a foreign culture, and is anxious to gather new experiences, and make friends in Thailand.