One of the first things you will hear/learn about as an exchange student is that you should never compare your home country and your host country. This can create homesickness and eventually, later on during your exchange semester or year, a hint of bitterness as a symptom of culture shock. Good comparison is, well, good. This type of comparison is when you see and experience the differences between your homeland and your host land and accept the differences (or at least respect them). While the differences may not be what you are accustomed to, you understand that you are in a new place and are not criticizing what you see or experience. However, you must be careful to not let your good comparison turn bad. You should never get to the point that you are outright criticizing or judging a new culture because it is not what you are accustomed to. National pride is cool, but do not impose on your host culture. It is rude and very disrespectful.

Luckily, I never really experienced the bad comparison while away in Germany. While I did notice a few differences between the United States and Germany, I quickly learned to adapt and appreciate my host culture. I enjoy learning about and experiencing different cultures; it allows me to open my eyes and become more of a global citizen.

Today, I am going to share with y'all a few comparisons that I made between the two aforementioned countries. What do I like better about one than the other? What do I miss from Germany that the US does not do/have? What did I miss from the US while in Germany?

Food

Transportation

People

I was really happy when my mom and I were walking through Heritage Park and we ran across three deer eating. It was my second time being so close to deer, and asdfghjlki. I was completely out of it form excitement. I know - lame. Hahah.


I enlisted my mama as a photographer for me that day (of me), and I like how some of these came out. It was difficult working with the exposure (because we were under a bunch of trees, and the outside was super bright. Alas, it's fine.

I. Over the past few weeks, I have been thinking more about turning my photography into a business. {Here is my website.} But figuring out how and why and what is really difficult. I know why, but I need to know a little bit more than that. Going from a hobby to a true business can be a piece of work; this article written over at Elizabeth Kelsey Bradley really helped me focus and get inspiration.

II. This post over on Photography Life is a good read for amateur and professional photographers alike. What is and is not important in a photograph? 

III. I have been reading the Finding Femme blog for awhile, and I absolutely love Liana's blog. Her writing, her photography, her location - I swear, I want to visit Ballarat one day! {Before her blog, I did not even know that was a place.} Her post 'The Long Room' really caught my eye, specifically because of the photography.

I. Yesterday, I was jamming out to some old school rock 'n roll music. I'm talking Kansas, AC/DC, Survivor, Journey, and The Romantics. My oh my, I hadn't listened to them in forever. {Here I go, speaking as if I was born then. Ahaha. But I mean in a year or so.}



I. Me Before You | I cannot wait until this movie comes out! My friend, Elsa, let me read the book while I was in Germany, and I seriously almost cried. This book is now one of my favorites - hands down. I am pretty anxious about how this film is going to be; when I read a book first, I am pretty picky about how the movie is. Yes, I am the type of person who says, "They missed out on the whole *bleep* part which was so *bleep* important to the *bleep* plot." Minus the *bleep*. That was simply for emphasis. ;)

II. After You | I feel as if I cannot talk about the former without mentioning the latter. This book was GREAT. Not as heartbreaking as the former, but it was a heart-wrencher. I highly recommend both books. Back to back. Do it. Do itttttt.


I. I only have two more weeks of high school. TWO. I never imagined this time coming so soon. Ninth grade year is still in my head - me saying that I already had senioritis to saying that high school would never end.

II. There was a big thunderstorm last night and I loved it. I do not know what it is about thunder and rain and (sometimes) lightning, but whatever it is, I love it.

Musician, song-writer, and producer, Babyface has been playing nonstop on my playlist. Babyface has made an abundance of hit records, and not only for himself. He has written for Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, TLC, Bobby Brown, Michael Jackson, Mary J. Blige, and more. One album of his that I have not been able to stop playing is his most recent one: "Return of the Tender Love." It has soul; it has class; it has everything that one could imagine from Babyface.

To give it a listen, click play below!

Back at it again with the mid-week update!

Eating:

My family barbecued on Sunday for Mother's Day {psssst...Happy belated Mother's Day to all the mamas out there!}, so that meant leftovers for the beginning of the week. I took barbecue and a salad for lunch on both Monday and Tuesday, but I my dinner ranged from subway to nothing at all {note the sleep below}.

Exercise: 

While not much, I did walk with my sister and mom one day. We walked from where we live down a mile and back. My sister wanted to get a Slushie from 7/11, so I figured why not just walk?

My mom and I also went out to Heritage Park one day and hiked quite a bit. I really enjoyed walking; it's always so peaceful. I love the sounds and smells of nature.

Sleep:

Yesterday, I slept from the time I got home until the time that I am writing this. I was extremely tired after school; however, I have never slept that long. It was really weird, but I am feeling slightly better now. Now if I can just get a normal sleep pattern going {go to bed early, wake up early}, I will be A-OK.

While this may look weird/easy, it was extremely hard to keep my balance! There was water on the opposite side, and I did not want to go toppling off. Haha.

In only a a few more months, a lot of teenagers and young adults will be packing and eventually boarding a plane to their destination. They will be going to study abroad. {Does that include you?! If so, where are you going?} The experience will be one of a lifetime. Emotions will be skyrocketing in every, which way: happiness, sadness, fear, nervousness. But the ultimate emotion is different for everybody, but it is almost always worth it.

But before all of those emotions start skyrocketing and going in a million different places at once, it is crucial to figure out what to pack, and better yet, how many suitcases you should take. That is the number one question exchange students ask each other, past exchange students, and their organizations. Depending on who is asked, you will get different answers, but these answers generally will not exceed 2 bags (not including carry-ons). If you ask same-year exchange students, they will be confused (just like you probably will be!) and bring up what they have heard, read, and been told. They aren't the most reliable when trying to figure out what to do because the normal response is, "I don't know...maybe\possibly." The second type of person, ex-exchange students (like me!), will tell you what we did and our regrets. And lastly, the organization will tell you that you should only take as much as you can carry because when you travel, you have to handle all of your luggage yourself. (That's them telling you to take one, subliminally, unless you're super strong.)

My experience was that I took two suitcases, a 25" and 29", a large purse, and a book-bag. It was pretty practical with how many clothes and shoes I took, but then again, it was not practical because I over-packed. {I only had 1 lb to go before I hand to pay a overweight fee.}When I first touched down in Germany, I did not have to handle my bags because I had a connecting flight to Munich. Once in Munich, my YFU Representative helped me with my bags, so I only had to carry my purse, book-bag, and one suitcase. After I left my temporary host-family, I shipped one bag to my permanent host-family. If you notice a trend, I never really had to handle my bags until the very end. Which was a freaking headache. I had anxiety the whole week before and day-of because I had to travel on the train with two huge suitcases, a book-bag, and a freaking purse. The train ride was a nightmare {a story for another time}, so by the time it was time for us to check-in our bags for the flight, I was overjoyed. But that was just me.

If you are like me, let me tell you what I wish I would have done. I would have halved everything that I packed. No, seriously. Pack normally, and then take half of it all out. Do not pack things that you think you "might" wear; pack things that you know you will wear. It is important to pack for situations that will most likely occur, but for other things such as a formal event or wedding, that's not important. You can buy new clothes or shoes wherever you are then. Save room. Once you half your suitcase(s), hopefully you will be able to fit everything into one suitcase. Still take a book-bag and a purse, if you want; those were easy to tote around. Just be very careful how you pack your suitcase.

If you are not like me, are the complete opposite, and know how to not over-pack, stick with the one bag rule + carry-ons. It'll be easier for you to do because you're so organized and have everything together.

Summed Up:

1. Future/Current Exchange Students will not know how to answer you when you ask how many suitcases should you take. They don't know either.
2. Past Exchange Students will tell you their stories and regrets (like I did) and let you base your decision off of that. 
3. Exchange Organizations will tell you to take only the bags that you will be able to handle alone.
4. Do not over-pack. Cut everything you pack in half. {No, do not literally half the items, just take them out of your suitcase.}
5. Regardless to if you are an over-packer or a perfect-packer, ONLY TAKE ONE BAG + carry-on's. You will thank me.

Photographing people and animals are two different ballgames. Not similar at all. Well, let me not completely cross out similarities. It's just that animals can be extremely difficult to take pictures of. Even children are easier to photograph (unless, of course, they get distracted easily; then they are just as difficult as animals). Nevertheless, I love the challenge of getting that photo. If you are willing to be patient and practice, photographing animals (pets, in particular) is extremely rewarding. In this article, I want to share with you all some tips for photographing your feline friends. I'll touch on photographing canines and wildlife in a separate post.

Cats are unique creatures. They seem to defy the laws of gravity; they are extremely stubborn and seemingly enjoy ignoring their humans (and making sure the humans know that they are being ignored); they also sleep a heck of a lot. But they are also unique in terms of looks and personality. Because of these of this, you need to prepare to photograph them. Here are some tips below that I've found works well for me:

1. Do not pose, pose, pose.

2. Have toys or something for them to crawl/hide in/behind.

3. Have places/things that the cat can peek behind.

4. Have something noisy or with a unique sound to catch their attention.

6. Be prepared to move.

7. Get down.

8. Do not use flash, if you can help it.