Dear Host Family, I’m glad to be writing this letter to you. It’s one more step towards my biggest dream! I can’t wait to start this unforgettable journey and to become more independent. I believe this experience will help me making new friends and learning about different lifestyles and traditions. I feel very determined and confident. I don’t know what will happen in the future, but I have an idea of what I want to do now and I will try to make the most out of this journey. I am ready to face new challenges and change habits while adapting to a new culture. I believe there is always something to learn from others and I am sure that after this experience I will become more openminded and enriched thanks to you and all the people I will meet there. My name is Alice and I am a sociable person. I like to help others and people who needs it. I very much dislike injustices. One quality that my friends say I have is empathy. I consider myself to be a very responsible young woman, even though I sometimes might be a bit too spontaneous. I live in a town in northern Italy, near Bologna. I attend the third year of the High School of Social-Economic Sciences. I like to study humanities and especially psychology and I would love to work in this field in the future. I have a younger sister with whom I spend a lot of time together even if we have a big age gap. Despite this, we are very close. My dad is a computer technician, and he often works abroad and it’s very hard for him to be away from his family. My mom has a degree in art history, but she chose to be a kindergarten teacher. We are a very close family and with grandparents, uncles, and cousins we like to meet at lunches or dinners where everyone brings something to eat. My grandmothers are great cooks. I can cook some typical Italian dishes like spaghetti, pasta and I would be very happy to cook some typical Italian dishes for and with you while trying your typical food!! I will try to help you in the house chores whenever there is need. I like to spend quality time with my family, especially during summertime: we like to go together to the seaside, to Lake Garda and to the mountains. I love to travel and discover new places and traditions. I’m excited to see how Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas are celebrated in the US. Besides traveling, I have many hobbies; my favorite is roller skating. . Even if I’ve stopped practicing for three years, it was the only sport that made me feel good and so I decided to start again. I hope that in the city where I will be hosted there is a chance to train again every now and then not to lose my skills. During my three-year break with skating, I’ve practiced aerial dance, but I realized that it wasn’t my passion. For several years I have also learned to ski even if there’s still room for improvements. Music is another great passion of mine; I play the guitar. My favorite musical genre is rock and my favorite artists are Depeche Mode, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Placebo. Every summer I go with my father and my best friend to several concerts. I am a fan of movies and TV series and sometimes I watch them in English. My favorite movies are "La Boum", "Donnie Darko", "The Notebook" and "Fight Club". I usually go out with my group of friends on weekends, because during the week I am very busy with studying and sports practice. When we are together, we have a lot of fun: we eat pizza at home, chat, go out downtown, do shopping,… What do you like to do in your free time? I’m so happy and I can’t believe that I will finally live for 6 months in the United States with you! I’m also a bit worried but I think it’s a normal thing. I am happy to embark on a new experience. I would like to feel part of your family and I hope you will be proud of me, because I want this experience to be great not only for me but also for you. I am ready to face this challenge and everything it has to offer. I thank you for choosing me and for helping me make this dream come true. See you soon, Alice