Dear host family, I’m Ilaria, I’m almost 17 years old, I live in a little city close to a big metropolis, in a big house with my family: my mom, my dad and my sister. My mom works for a big company but she works from home twice a week. In these two days she helps me and my sister by taking us to school and other activities. My dad is a seller in the small dealership of his family, so he works with his brother and his father, he doesn’t have a lot of free time. I also have a little sister, her name is Sara, she is three years younger than me, we love spending time together. My grandparents live nearby and I spend the majority of my time with them. In fact, my grandmother is at our house every day, she stays with me and my sister and if we have any problems we can ask her for help. My grandfather takes me to the gym, to school and to other places by car and during the day he is always at my home to use the treadmill, he doesn’t have it, so he comes here to do it. If I need something, I can ask the other grandparents as well but I don’t see them every day.

At first impression I can seem shy and reserved but when I start feeling comfortable with other people, I become more extroverted and chatty. I’m not a person who complains a lot in the moment but I tend to burst when I’m home. This is a part of me that I want to improve because sometimes it is better to talk and maybe I shouldn’t be so nervous at home. I usually don’t argue if someone tells me to do something but I might sometimes if I think it’s unfair. That does not happen often but sometimes when I feel attacked it could happen. I adapt well in every situation: I don’t mind being alone but I also enjoy the company of other people.

I don’t have a lot of hobbies but the few ones I have are very important to me. My favorite hobby is volleyball, it takes me a lot of my time. I have four trainings and two matches every week. I passed on this passion to all my family: my sister also plays, my mom is a score keeper for the society where we play. We live near a sports hall, I can see it from my bedroom, where a professional team plays, so when they have a home game, we go and see it. Thanks to this hobby I met some friends with whom I’m very close. I also love cooking, sometimes I help my grandmother cook lunch for the family. I’m good at cooking different dishes like chocolate cake, pizza and salmon pasta but my favorite food is pasta with pesto. We always eat Italian food at home but I don’t mind trying new cuisines. I don’t have other hobbies but I really like trying new things.

From this experience I hope to find some good new friends that have a different life from mine and from the ones of my friends. I’m not a “conventional” teenager, I don’t follow fashion and I don’t like to go to the parties, for example, but everywhere I go I can usually find someone similar to me or someone who can understand me. I’m curious to discover a new culture by living with an American family. From this experience I hope to find some new interesting activities because here I don’t have a lot of time to try new things but I would love that. I want to improve my English because I still struggle a bit. I hope to visit different places because I have never been to the USA. I’m very excited to start this new adventure and discover the USA with you.

Best regards,

Ilaria