Student Stories

Student Stories

Hello, my name is Karolin Thomessen, I am 15 years old and I am from Germany. I come from a little town near Cologne, in the west of Germany. When I came here at the end of January, I realized that a few things were really different to my life in Germany; the landscape, many sheep, fish and chips for dinner and school uniforms at school, but everyone was really friendly to me.In my school in Germany, there are about 1100 students and I have 13 different subjects.I have to wake up at 6:30 am and school begins at 7:50 am. My school ends at a different time every day, usually between 1pm and 4pm. When I come home I still have a lot of homework to do. In Germany, we don’t wear a school uniform, but I actually like wearing my school uniform. For me, school in New Zealand is more relaxed, which makes school more enjoyable for me. There are many differences, but neither of the schools is better or worse, it is just different. I like that Inglewood High School is a small school, with only about 400 students. I enjoyed being part of this strong community, where everybody knows each other and everyone is friendly.

I really enjoyed staying with my host family, because they are active and do many different things with us. We went to Hamilton, Wellington, Taupo and the South Island. Every day, I walk to school with my Japanese host sister Uta, who became a really good friend for me over the last couple of months. In Term 3, Elysabeth from Canada stayed with us for 6 weeks. I really enjoyed her being around, because it is nice to see the different culture of her country.

I took Maths, Art, History, AgHort in Term 1, Music, Outdoor Education and Food Technology. I really enjoyed all my subjects, because they are different to my German subjects and I learn different things. I played Tennis, Badminton and did Karate with my host parents. I played in the 2nd XI Girls Football Team. I really enjoyed that, although we didn’t win every game. Thanks girls, I had a wonderful time in the team.

I am trying not to think about leaving, but I know that my last day will come soon. I found some really good friends over here. Molly, Renee, Carolyn, Janelle, Kira, Courtney, Uta and Chin, thank you for making my time here unforgettable. Every single one of you is so amazing and made me laugh so many times. I will miss you so much.

My year in New Zealand has been the best one in my life and I will always remember it. Coming to New Zealand was probably the best decision I made. A big thank you to every single one of you.