Claudia Drechsel of Murray is about to enter her senior year of high school at Holley Central, and her experiences as a Rotary Youth Exchange student this past year have helped her to see the world in a whole new light.
“It opened up my eyes,” Claudia says of her year in Austria. “I didn’t know there was so much out there. I thought, this is so different. People have different opinions and a different lifestyle.”
Claudia traveled to Austria in early August 2015 and returned at the end of June this year. She traveled as part of the Rotary Youth Exchange program representing District 7090. The program provides an opportunity for high schoolers to experience new cultures and facilitate greater understanding between cultures around the globe.
Claudia stayed with two families in Retz, Austria, located in Lower Austria near the Czech Republic border and about one hour north of Vienna. She had an opportunity to learn and speak German and Spanish during her stay as one of her host moms is a native of Ecuador.
“It was kind of nice to be around it,” she says of the Spanish language. “I came back this year to learn Spanish at school.”
Claudia attended a specialized high school in Austria with a curriculum focused on preparing students to work in the tourism industry. She learned all about food service – setting tables, wine, coffee, cooking, baking – all from scratch – and even tasks such as polishing silverware and folding napkins.
“We were graded on our performance,” Claudia says. She notes that all she learned can be used here in the States. “I really enjoyed it. I’m really glad I got the opportunity to go to this school. I was very engaged in the school and excited about going everyday,” she explains.
The school week included four days and the length of each day varied. Some days classes ended by noon, other days students were at school until 6 p.m. In addition to tourism related coursework, Claudia says students studied subjects such as English and Social Studies.
“I was so impressed with their English skills,” she says.
Her experiences also included traveling around and outside Austria. Much of the traveling was with Rotary, but other travels were on her own.
Her trip began with a Rotary language camp held in the mountains of Upper Austria. “It was a great opportunity,” Claudia says. The camp included hiking in the mountains.
Additionally, Claudia visited Salzburg, Berlin, Budapest, Croatia, Italy, Monaco, the Vatican, and skied the Alps in Tyrol. “Italy is so gorgeous,” she notes.
One of Claudia’s favorite excursions was to the Christmas markets in Austria, which run throughout the month of December.
“I went almost everyday,” Claudia says. “They serve warm punch and fried dough, painted gingerbread and mulled wine.” There are campfires and people gather to socialize and shop the stands, which are set up in market squares.
Another favorite place was the city of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Claudia also traveled to the Czech Republic to attend hockey games.
She experienced first-hand the plight of Syrian and other Middle Eastern refugees seeking asylum in Austria. Claudia says she saw families carrying their only belongings and teenagers who had lost their parents alone with younger siblings. Many Austrian citizens stepped up to assist the refugees and one of Claudia’s host parents worked in an apartment complex that was used to house them.
“They are just like you and me,” she says of the refugees. “They came to find a life, not just a better life. Many are well-educated.”
One 16-year old refugee and Claudia were able to become friends. Claudia and her host family taught the young woman, “what hot chocolate was,” and Claudia was later a guest of the young woman’s family.
She says the threat of terrorism was “terrifying … on New Year’s Eve we didn’t go out,” because of the threat of terrorism in Vienna. Claudia, notes, however, that she would then hear about school shootings back in the States.
“It’s really no more scary than in America,” she observes. “Usually it’s guns here rather than bombs.”
Claudia says she would love to return to Austria for college, but she realizes that may not be financially feasible. She is hoping to attend SUNY Cobleskill after high school to major in Ag Business. Claudia would like to take that degree and work as an advocate, a job that might involve travel and allow her to use her German language skills.
“I want to help people and farmers,” she says.
