Experience of a lifetime

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ROTARY STUDENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM: Welland teen reveals the personal challenges and rewards of her learning adventure in Mexico -- straight from the field

Change. It is unstoppable, inevitable. It happens to everyone eventually.

How often does a person purposely change every aspect about their life -- friends, school, culture, or even language?

This is what every 16-to 18-year-old Rotary exchange student does during his or her year-long experience.

We are warned about some of the extremely tough situations we will face and the challenges we will have to overcome. The vulnerability of culture shock, homesickness, emotional stress and limited communications are always in the back of our minds when applying as an exchange student. Consequently, there is a great deal of preparation, mentally and physically.

My Rotary district provided exceptional preparation, with different weekend excursions and workshops practicing life skills and reviewing all the rules and expectations. We also had the opportunity to spend time with current exchange students, sharing their experiences and stories.

Some students start to learn the basics of their new language, (although it might be hard to find a Finnish or Danish class at first), while others go shopping for new clothes (after all, it will be hot in Mexico).

But nothing can prepare us for the incredibly different lives we are about to live after we hug our parents, our siblings and our friends goodbye, take our first step on the plane and fly off by ourselves.

In the end, you can never be fully prepared for what you will experience. It's all about leaving your comfort zone and challenging yourself on a daily basis -- seeing what you are made of.

The roller-coaster of emotions is never ending. You may be incredibly homesick one day -- not being able to fully adjust to the culture and customs of your new country -- and then you could be perfectly happy the next.

Ultimately, you discover that your happiness depends on what you make of the situation.

The people you meet, the ways of living, the different views -- they all vary from country to country, city to city, and family to family. I've had the opportunity to live in the midst of it all. Let me tell you a little bit of my life here, in Puebla, Mexico -- the life that I have been living for the past six months.

I live in a city with a population of four million people and, for many Canadians, it sounds like a lot.

I love being in a big city, it just means more of everything -- more quaint little coffee shops, more malls, and more restaurants.

My metropolitan city has an absolutely gorgeous downtown with colourful, colonial-style buildings, and is very European looking.

I am currently living with a great family. My host parents and my 19-year-old host sister are great to me. They are my third host family.

Exchange students normally live with three to four families during the year (on average, spending three to four months with each). Living with various families, you learn about different personalities and different ways of living.

Every family has different expectations of you and every family is unique. The family with whom you are placed plays a huge role in your experience.

They are the people that you live with on a daily basis, that you share meals with, and to whom you entrust your safety and well-being.

My first host family was very different and I had to change myself completely to try to fit in. It got to the point where I was very unhappy.

After I talked to the Rotarians, I was moved to another family.

As an exchange student, you have to be prepared for the challenges of living new families, such as the one that I had to overcome.

It's not always easy but an ability to stay optimistic determines your happiness.

I was really lucky with the school that was chosen for me. I attend Tecnologico de Monterry campus Pueblo. It is an expensive private school and my host families cover the cost of schooling.

I feel extremely fortunate to attend this school that offers every course imaginable by highly educated teachers.

They have some of the best trainers and coaches in Mexico; for example, past coaches of the national soccer team and professional ballerinas.

I am learning so much, especially about Mesoamerican culture. This is especially helpful when we are visiting some of the famous archaeological sites in the world, such as the mastabas of Teotihuacan or Tulum.

I am studying Spanish and at this point I am proud to say that I can understand 90% of conversations and can converse well with my contacts.

Also, I am on the school's university jazz team, which has taken me to the southernmost state to compete.

Our team went to Chiapas, where the climate is hot, humid and jungle-like, and where there is a great deal of culture.

I even visited the very famous Canon del Sumidero.

I took a trip to a very beautiful city called Guanajuato, where I attended a Rotary national exchange student conference.

Its buildings and houses are very colourful and situated in the mountains or in valleys between mountains.

Almost all of the exchange students who were living in Mexico for that year -- like me -- attended.

It was truly amazing to see and meet more than 500 students from all over the world. I was very excited about meeting other Canadians who were living in different parts of Mexico.

We compared the similarities and differences of our country to Mexico, shared stories and just had a great time.

One of my best moments of being on exchange so far was in Guanajuato.

All 500 students put on our different coloured Rotary blazers, completely decorated ourselves in the colours and symbols of our countries, and assembled in groups according to our nationalities.

Then we paraded down the streets, singing traditional songs in different languages and chanting, with our country's flag leading the group.

That that was the moment when I felt more patriotic than I had ever been in my life.

Walking alongside my 20 fellow Canadians in Mexico, with red maple leaf tattoos all over our bodies, singing Avril Lavigne, Shania Twain and Hockey Night in Canada-type songs, I truly got a sense that I was representing my country. And, I began to understand the importance and the magnitude of that fact.

We, Rotary exchange students, are ambassadors of our country.

Years after our exchanges are over, people may not remember our names, but they might remember "that Canadian" and the impact we made during our stay.

What's more, is that I have been travelling quite a lot, I rang in the new year in Veracruz, the oldest city in all of America.

The city has a beautiful colonial- style downtown, most of the buildings painted in white or pale colours, creating a stunning effect. It also has beaches and palm trees.

You can imagine our delight in spending a week in that city.

I am looking forward to a two-week trip to the south -- to Chiapas and in the peninsula of Yucatan -- that I will be making soon.

We will be spending the last four days in gorgeous Cancun, alongside the bright blue waters and the white sand. Future trips will include Acapulco and other beaches.

My future plans also include volunteering in less fortunate areas of my city for the remaining five months. Poverty and social class division are very real problems here and I plan to help out in whatever way I can.

I simply could not go home without learning salsa.

The people here love music and to dance, which is one of the parts that I like best about living in Mexico -- other than the cloudless, sunny days and the easygoing lifestyle.

I love my life in Mexico and it's going to be very difficult adapting once again to the Canadian culture and climate.

I am so proud of myself -- I just cannot stress that enough -- for arriving in Mexico not knowing a soul, for being in situations that are beyond my comfort level, for having left every single person that I have ever loved and who have ever loved me.

Being an exchange student has not always been easy. I could never properly address all the feelings, life lessons, and lifelong friends that I have experienced.

I have gained so much from this opportunity.

I have learned to love and be loved by people that do not speak the same language as myself. I feel very confident that I can deal with whatever situation or people that come my way.

I feel that moving away for university next year will be a breeze. It is only a six-hour drive from my home with regular visits. Not a year apart and thousands of miles away.

I feel stronger than I have ever felt before. I know what I want in life.

This year has been the greatest year of my life and I have never been happier.

So go out there and challenge yourself. Do not be afraid of change -- embrace it. It could be the best thing that has ever happened in your life.

For me, it was.

Welland resident Taylor Chiocchio, who attends Jean Vanier secondary school, is a Rotary exchange student in Mexico.