【明報專訊】It is the best decision I』ve ever made in my life to go on exchange. I ended up leaving a big piece of my heart in Switzerland, one of the most beautiful and mesmerizing countries in the world.

Impeccable host family

I was warmly accommodated by my host family - the Fricks. The younger daughter was once on exchange in Hong Kong. It was comforting to have someone who knew your home when you were in a totally different culture. She is fluent in Cantonese, which is very impressive.

My host family were impeccable. They looked after me as if I were their daughter. The only thing I had a hard time adapting to was the food, though my host family were not to blame. A member of my host family is a vegetarian and another, a vegan. I had no problem getting used to vegetarian diets, but getting used to cold food was another matter. In Chinese culture, warm food is something essential. It just didn't feel right not to have a warm meal a day. It was certainly a struggle for me to have cold bread with spreads and sometimes with cold vegetables or cold cuts for dinner on most of the weekdays. I felt depressed in the winter months. Thankfully that was no longer a problem in the latter half of my exchange year.

Ups and downs

It is certainly life changing to experience a new culture. You are forced to grow up, know yourself better and open your mind to the world. I had my ups and downs in my exchange year. The downs made me stronger, and the ups were good moments that would forever stay in my mind. The wonders of exchange cannot possibly be described in words. They have to be experienced.

text: Kristy Ho