Staying in a host family whose language and culture are different from yours can be challenging. Similarly, your guests also feel apprehensive about having to share their personal space with strangers for a week, not to mention the daunting task of speaking in English all the times; on top of that a host knows they have to be entertaining their partners. This can be emotionally draining unless you have the right attitude and the right expectations. Read what the students from our Erasmus+ project shared during the first exchange in Bulgaria in January, 2016.
We asked the 60 students (from Vic, Catalonia, Spain, Dalby, Sweden, Catania, Sicily, Italy and Stara Zagora, Bulgaria,) on the first day in Bulgaria what their worries were. Below is a summary of what they shared. Of course, there were a couple, who had no fears but they were in the minority and this is only natural. It is good for teachers to bear these concerns in mind and design appropriate activities to alleviate these anxieties.
“I may not be able to make friends.”
“I have to speak English for a whole week.”
“I will have to draw at the cocktail party .”
“Someone might get sick and miss the opportunity to enjoy their time here.”
“The cold weather.”
“We may not achieve what we have planned.”
“Being shy”
“Talking to new people.”
“Being tired”
“Extremely tired at the end of the week/”
“We may not be able to get ready on time in the morning because I am always late.”
“I am not nervous at all.”
“The presentation my team will have to give .”at the beginning
“Not knowing what to say.”
The Swedish cultural evening
Speaking in Bulgarian
Speaking in public
“People may not like me.”
Not coming off well
“I may have misunderstandings with my partner.”
“I may say something wrong in English”
“That our guests will be hungry.”
The food
Sicilian dance
If my partner will have a good time.
No fears
“I will cry when I go back home.”
“I won’t be happy about the experience.”
“If my partner will like the visit to Bulgaria.”
“I will be very sad when my partners leave Bulgaria.”
Trying new food
“No worries, we are great, we’ll do it!”
Awkward silences
“I may forget some words in English and not know how to communicate.”
Speaking loud enough in public
“I’ll get sick – am already!”
We will be revisiting these as the project develops. One thing we encouraged the students to do is keep diaries/journals. By all means, the most effective means to deal with anxiety is being busy; reflecting on your experiences also helps. We will share our activities and own reflections in another blog post.
#TM #BG
My Way Your Way Our Shared Cultural Identities 
My Way Your Way sounds like a very interesting project and an important one in breaking down barriers between European countries – particularly the artificial ones separating Western and Eastern Europe.
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