District News

Meet foreign exchange student Kathi Diem

 

November, 2010

 

High School life in America always called to Kathi Diem. She saw it portrayed in countless films and thought about how fun and “cool” it seemed. After her brother went to Argentina as an exchange student, she made-up her mind: she was going to see if high school really lived up to its acclaim in films.

So far, she says it has.

Kathi, 16, a native of Styria, Austria, is spending her senior year at Canajoharie High School as an AFS foreign exchange student. She’s staying with the Wheeler family and after just a few months, she’s jumped right into the high school culture. She’s a member of the drama club, choir, band, and volleyball team and looks forward to doing even more.

One of the biggest differences for her so far is adjusting to the way Americans eat.

“In America, they have a big dinner in the night,” she said. “In Austria, we have our warm (large) meal at 2 p.m. when I get home from school and then usually a soup or salad for dinner.”

In Austria, Kathi’s mother works as a secretary and her father is a freelance consultant in business controlling and project management. Her older brother works for the Red Cross and her sister is still in school. Kathi started learning to speak English in the first grade – just like everyone else in Austria.

Other differences she’s getting used to are how students get around. She said in Austria, most folks take the train or ride their bicycles. And although Austria has its share of American fast food chains, Kathi says “wiener schnitzel,” or deep-fried cutlets, and “spaetzle,” top the list as the country’s most popular dishes.

We caught-up with her and asked about her experiences in Canajoharie and what she likes to do for fun.

Q. How long are you here?
A. I am here for 10 months.

Q. What do you like about Canajoharie?
A. I like that it’s a small school and you mostly know everyone. I like the music program because I’m in band and choir. We’re going to Carnegie Hall with the choir and that’s exciting. I’ve been playing the flute for eight years.

Q. Have you been anywhere else in the U.S.?
A. I was on the west coast last year with my family for a summer holiday. We went to California, Nevada, Utah and Arizona.

Q. How long did it take you to learn English?
A. I started in first grade. Everyone has to learn it in school.

Q. What do you do for fun?
A. In Austria, I meet my friends everyday. We go to the movies or go shopping. Here, I play volleyball and I’m in Drama club.

Quick Questions.
Favorite food: wiener schnitzel
Favorite band: Pendulum, Foo Fighters
Favorite show: Desperate Housewives
Favorite subject: Art and music. I like cooking too
Place you most want to travel to: South Africa, South America and Florida