A brave new world-Cultural Homestay International

When I found this program on the internet, I was scared to inquire about the details of it. I have teaching experience, but never with a foreign language, therefore I felt defeated before I had even started. I emailed Heidi Smith who is in charge of the World Explorers Program at CHI and she set up an in-person meeting right away. I asked so many questions about the program and Heidi answered them and eased any fears I had about staying with a host family and teaching them English. After the application process I was paired up with an amazing family in Torino Italy consisting of 3 daughters, a mother and father, and a beautiful golden retriever named buddy. I was able to Skype with the family a few times before traveling to stay with them. The family was so welcoming and made me feel at home. We worked on English and they taught me some Italian. They were wonderful guides, showing me the beautiful city of Torino. Heidi checked in on me throughout my stay and always made me feel comfortable to ask questions or inform her about my experience. I loved working with this family so much! They came to California in July 2015 to come and see me and it was great to be able to show them around San Francisco. If it were not for this program I would have never developed a love for living abroad, teaching English, and new Italian family members .