WEEKEND
Yesterday, Georgina and I took the met (a train called Metra) to the downtown of Chicago. We did a bit of touristing and Georgina really is a girl of extensive wide reading - she knows everything about everything!
Here you can see the Great Hall of the Chicago Union Station (which was built in the year of 1925 according to my highly proffessional guide) and a random woman in a blue t-shirt.
It was more than 91 degrees farenheight (which is apporoximately 32 degrees in celsius) so we went down to the beach to cool down a bit. The water was freezing so we just dipped our feet in the water. Felt the water of one of the great lakes (lake Michigan) - check!
Then, we went up to the highest building in America which nowadays is called Willis tower (before it was namned Sears Tower) and took pictures of us sitting at the Skydeck smiling to the camera like real tourists. The skyscrape is 442 meters high and has got one of the fastest lifts in the entire world.
After a bit of shopping and walking around (I managed to catch a cab for the first time in my life) we had the compulsory Starbucks coffie before we went back to Naperville. Thank you Georgina for a wonderful day!
Here you can see the Great Hall of the Chicago Union Station (which was built in the year of 1925 according to my highly proffessional guide) and a random woman in a blue t-shirt.
We went down to the Millenuim Park where we found this shiny, giant bean and took some VERY flattering pictures of us jumping around like crazy. In the picture you can see me and a bit of the Chicago skyline.
It was more than 91 degrees farenheight (which is apporoximately 32 degrees in celsius) so we went down to the beach to cool down a bit. The water was freezing so we just dipped our feet in the water. Felt the water of one of the great lakes (lake Michigan) - check!
Then, we went up to the highest building in America which nowadays is called Willis tower (before it was namned Sears Tower) and took pictures of us sitting at the Skydeck smiling to the camera like real tourists. The skyscrape is 442 meters high and has got one of the fastest lifts in the entire world.
After a bit of shopping and walking around (I managed to catch a cab for the first time in my life) we had the compulsory Starbucks coffie before we went back to Naperville. Thank you Georgina for a wonderful day!
HIGH SCHOOL
Today it was my first official day at school. I can just tell you, everything here is exactly like I've always imagined! Georgina drove me to school in her car which is a VOLVO haha. When you're sixteen you're allowed to drive here in the states (as long as you have a driver license) but unfortunatly I can't because I'm a swedish citizen (which sucks...) so for me, the alternatives is the schoolbus or going with Georgina, Nate or Jenny. Chuck is still too young to drive.
Anyways, when we finally arrived to our school (which is called Naperville North High School) I went to the headmaster's office to get my schedule. I've just got five lessons a day, whose always the same everyday: Art, pilates, foods and nutrition, lunch, chemistry och photojournalism. Exept the fact that the art starts at 7.45 am everyday, I love my schedule. All my lessons went on very well and everyone seemed to be interested and kept asking me to speak swedish haha! At lunch, I ate with some girls from my food and nutrition-class, Blair and Vanessa. For lunch, they served all sorts of food (that inclusive real, american junkfood but also salads, low calorie yoghurts and sandwiches).
As you can see, Blair and Vanessa just had a yohurt and orange juice for lunch - crazy americans! Like we say in Sweden - äta bör man, annars dör man (quick translation: you should eat, or you will die). Blair is the one with the sunglasses and Vanessa is... the other one.
Anyways, when we finally arrived to our school (which is called Naperville North High School) I went to the headmaster's office to get my schedule. I've just got five lessons a day, whose always the same everyday: Art, pilates, foods and nutrition, lunch, chemistry och photojournalism. Exept the fact that the art starts at 7.45 am everyday, I love my schedule. All my lessons went on very well and everyone seemed to be interested and kept asking me to speak swedish haha! At lunch, I ate with some girls from my food and nutrition-class, Blair and Vanessa. For lunch, they served all sorts of food (that inclusive real, american junkfood but also salads, low calorie yoghurts and sandwiches).
As you can see, Blair and Vanessa just had a yohurt and orange juice for lunch - crazy americans! Like we say in Sweden - äta bör man, annars dör man (quick translation: you should eat, or you will die). Blair is the one with the sunglasses and Vanessa is... the other one.
Well, after lunch I had all my other lessons. Three o'clock, it was time for try out for Naperville North's cheerleeding team. I can't say that it turned out very well... The cheerleeding girls behaved EXACTLY like they were playing in one of those high-school movies you're always watching when you don't have nothing else to do. They rejected almost all of the contestants who would destroy their reputation. I managed to slip away before they could say something insulting about my hair, clothes, body or family.
Here's "the queens" of Naperville North... Serena van Der Woodsen and Charlie Rhodes - check out that evil look!
So now, I'm looking through the list of clubs and activities NNHS has got. It's crazy how many clubs they really have - like the Harry Potter club! I mean, what is THAT all about? You can have a look for yourselves, HERE. Now I'll go and try Dippin Dots, Georginas favourite sort of ice cream. SEE YOU LATER ALLIGATOR
So now, I'm looking through the list of clubs and activities NNHS has got. It's crazy how many clubs they really have - like the Harry Potter club! I mean, what is THAT all about? You can have a look for yourselves, HERE. Now I'll go and try Dippin Dots, Georginas favourite sort of ice cream. SEE YOU LATER ALLIGATOR
I'M HERE
So finally I've reached my destination - Chicago! The flight was okay, but the passenger next to me didn't seem to enjoy the trip at all. The old and fragile woman was constantly shaking all the time, from the second she first sat down to the moment she stepped out of the plan on her shaky legs. The only thing I can complain about is that it was a hard to fall asleep - every second I closed my eyes and relaxed, I could hear the old woman desperatly gasp for air (so it wasn't really the airlines fault). Well, I managed to sleep a couple of hours and was able to watch my favorite movie which made the trip more pleasant.
When I arrived to the Chicago O'Hare airport, my host family were there to pick me up. They introduced themselves as Nate, Jenny, Georgina and Chuck. Georgina is exactly the same age as me and we're both going to the same school as Chuck, her younger brother. If I've understood it right when we spoke in the car on the way to our house (feels so weird to say that!) Georgina and I is going to be seniors this year while Chuck is going to be a freshman at Naperville North High School. Georgina and Chucks parents Nate and Jenny, seems really cool and Nate is working as a reporter at CNN - an american world-famous new channel. Jenny on the other hand, is actually a housewife (a real housewife) but as the children has grown bigger she's actually started to design clothes and last year she launched her first clothing line. AIN'T THAT AWESOME?! My host family (they're already feeling like my own family) showed me around town a bit. I'm going to live in Naperville, a city wich has been voted as the second best place to live in the United States according to Money Magazine in 2006. Sounds good, right? Naperville is approximately twenty minutes away from Chicago downtown by train so soon Georgina will take me to see all those tourists-attractions you just HAVE to experience.
When I arrived to the Chicago O'Hare airport, my host family were there to pick me up. They introduced themselves as Nate, Jenny, Georgina and Chuck. Georgina is exactly the same age as me and we're both going to the same school as Chuck, her younger brother. If I've understood it right when we spoke in the car on the way to our house (feels so weird to say that!) Georgina and I is going to be seniors this year while Chuck is going to be a freshman at Naperville North High School. Georgina and Chucks parents Nate and Jenny, seems really cool and Nate is working as a reporter at CNN - an american world-famous new channel. Jenny on the other hand, is actually a housewife (a real housewife) but as the children has grown bigger she's actually started to design clothes and last year she launched her first clothing line. AIN'T THAT AWESOME?! My host family (they're already feeling like my own family) showed me around town a bit. I'm going to live in Naperville, a city wich has been voted as the second best place to live in the United States according to Money Magazine in 2006. Sounds good, right? Naperville is approximately twenty minutes away from Chicago downtown by train so soon Georgina will take me to see all those tourists-attractions you just HAVE to experience.
Here you can see Naperville Downtown and a lots of cars...
The big cupper-colored metal statue in the middle of the picture is as a matter of fact a piece originally from the twin towers in New York (you now the World Trade Center which collapsed in the big tradgedy the 11th september!). AWESOME but at the same time not so awesome.. :(
This is my host sister Georgina. Qte_grl_95!!
This is me unpacking my stuff. I'm going to share room with Georgina but it's cool because she's cool! Hihi
Now - time to sleep. TTYL (Talk To You Later, hihi) guys xoxo
This is me unpacking my stuff. I'm going to share room with Georgina but it's cool because she's cool! Hihi
Now - time to sleep. TTYL (Talk To You Later, hihi) guys xoxo
ON MY WAY!
FINAL 24 HOURS IN SWEDEN...
... and I still got a lot of packing to do...
In only just a couple of hours, I'll finally be on the way to one of the probably greatest adventures of my life! I'm going to live in the United States of America (for almost ten months) and there's no words that can explain my feelings right now. I'm just so happy and I'm feeling like I'll explode any minute by now! Woop woop! This will be great!
I haven't heard so much from my host family yet, but I know I'm going to live nearby the town of Chicago, Illinos. According to my aunt, Chicago can be very hot in the summers and very cold in the winters, so I've got to pack smart, since I yesterday found out that I only can bring twenty kilos luggage to the check in. So now, it's finally time for the sort out (that's me in a nutshell, always doing stuff the last minute!). My big, warm and (unfortunately) heavy quilted down jacket or my black leather boots with laces? My special hairspray I can't live without size extra large or all of my makeup? I got a feeling this won't be easy... Talk to you later guys, xoxo!
In only just a couple of hours, I'll finally be on the way to one of the probably greatest adventures of my life! I'm going to live in the United States of America (for almost ten months) and there's no words that can explain my feelings right now. I'm just so happy and I'm feeling like I'll explode any minute by now! Woop woop! This will be great!
I haven't heard so much from my host family yet, but I know I'm going to live nearby the town of Chicago, Illinos. According to my aunt, Chicago can be very hot in the summers and very cold in the winters, so I've got to pack smart, since I yesterday found out that I only can bring twenty kilos luggage to the check in. So now, it's finally time for the sort out (that's me in a nutshell, always doing stuff the last minute!). My big, warm and (unfortunately) heavy quilted down jacket or my black leather boots with laces? My special hairspray I can't live without size extra large or all of my makeup? I got a feeling this won't be easy... Talk to you later guys, xoxo!
