Plans
Thinking about where to go for my language stay, I quickly decided to choose the same language school as my sister, Kaplan International. Then I made some research to find out where Kaplan has domiciles. Unfortunately, Kaplan isn't based in Wales, where I wanted to go first. Luckily Kaplan is based in Edinburgh, my second choice. Going through the courses, Kaplan offers, I registered in an intensive course. So I am going to have 20 English lessons and 8 Specific skills lessons per week.
Apart school there will be enough leisure time to explore Edinburgh city and surroundings. I plan to visit Palace Holyroodhouse and the Edinburgh castle to learn more about Scotland's history. While walking through Old town and New town the Elephant house is on top of the places I want to visit. On weekends the school offers trips to the highlands. I want to seize the chance to go and see some of the beautiful locations in the highlands. Another beautiful location is said to be the Arthur's seat, especially at sunrise. The problem is that sunrise is 4:30 a.m. However, I want to see the sunrise from the Arthur's seat. That's why I am going to stand up early and see this natural beauty, if possible.
Expectations
Not all of my time is leisure time. Therefore, I have some expectations to me and my language skills. At the end of my language stay I want to have the language level of C1. I want to be able to pass the Cambridge advanced examination when I am back home. I am not planning to do the examination during my stay because it requires a lot of organisation. I wish for a slight Scottish accent.
Two weeks ago I got the contact data of my host family. I already had frist contacts with them and they seem to be very nice and helpful. I hope that I can settle in with my host family quickly and that we can sympathise well. I am very happy that my host mother is childminder due to the fact that I love children and so I will have many possibilities to get in contact with people from Edinburgh.
Being independent and being on my own will be an important experience for me. I expect to learn to step out of my comfort zone and be open to unfamiliar people. With all my heart I hope to find a new home, to feel comfortable and to get along in a foreign country.