Dear Host Family, First of all, I wanted to thank you for your hospitality. This experience is very important to me, and it is thanks to you that I can make this dream happen, so thank you! I am very happy to be able to share this experience with you, and I am curious to get to know you and your routine as a family. I can’t wait to get to know each other that we can live many beautiful experiences together and build a special bond. I think I am a reliable and respectful person. My friends say that one of my best qualities is that I am a good listener, and that they can confide in me: I am very proud of this. I would also say that I am determined and ambitious: after high school, I would like to attend university abroad, maybe pursuing my studies in the medical or psychological field. I think that this exchange experience can really help me understand what it means to live in a different country and become more independent. Currently I attend a high school that focuses on human sciences, and I get along with both my teachers and my classmates. In my class, we are all girls, which often happens in schools like mine in Italy. My favorite subject is history, and this year I have also started studying philosophy, which I find very interesting. In general, I prefer human sciences over scientific subjects. In my free time, I go to the gym about three times a week, and I really enjoy. I also really enjoy watching movies and TV series, mainly with my sister, and listening to music. Lately, I’ve been watching TV series and listening to a lot of music in English, and I hope this can help me improve my language skills. I’ve also recently developed a passion for photography that I’d like to explore further. Another passion that I think I took from my mother is cooking, especially desserts, I enjoy making them and I think it’s a nice activity to do together also to get to know different cultures. Besides this, in my free time especially on the weekends, I like spending time with my friends. Sometimes we spend time at someone’s house, or we go out for dinner or to the movie theatre. In my family we are 5: me, my mom Elena, my dad Enrico, and my two sisters, whose names are Alice and Aurora. My sisters are both younger than me; Alice is 14 years old, and Aurora is 12. They are two fundamental people in my life, and I love them very much. Even our four pets are part of the family, we have three dogs and a cat. I love all of our animals, and in general, I love animals. I like taking care of my dogs and go for a walk with them. I have a good relationship with my family: I get along with my sisters and also with my parents. We spend a lot of time together as a family, especially when we get the opportunity to go the mountains, where we go on vacation both in summer and in winter every year. In summer, we do a lot of hikes, and in winter, we ski. The mountains are a beautiful place, with stunning views, and I have so many memories shared with my family there! I am very excited to leave for my experience in America as an exchange student and to meet you and become a part of the family. During this journey, I would like to grow as a person, adapt to a new lifestyle, and get to know a new culture and new people, creating long-lasting relationships. Thank you for reading my letter. I can’t wait to share this experience with you. Love, Chiara