Caitlyn's Experience

I was so happy to get the chance to host Jade! I knew nothing about South Africa and couldn't imagine what it would be like to host her. I anxiously waited for the day she would arrive but as soon as we met at the airport we immediately became friends. I knew then that this week would be amazing. She was so fun to be around and I learned so much about her and where she is from. Jade helped me open my eyes to other cultures and explained some of the differences we have such as words and proportion sizes! I loved hosting her and miss her already along with all the others I got to meet. I hope we stay in touch and I get to visit her soon in South Africa.


Although their trip was short we got to do lots of things. We went to the cardinals game, Ted Drewes, Forest park, the zoo, Lumiere park, the Snow Factory, Fitz's, Crushed Red and the mall. However, my favorite times were when we would sit in our room and just talk about our lives together and laugh at each other's accents. We would compare our schools, boys, and friends and we were able to become very close. She was no longer just a host student that I only knew from snapchat and Instagram, but became my sister for a week. I will forever remember this week and cherish our memories. I hope to do this again soon because my family and I loved having Jade stay with us!

Katie's Experience

Wow…they say time flies when you’re having fun. From the moment we picked up our new friends from the airport, to the morning we dropped them back off, our days were filled completely. We were able to see so many fun things around St. Louis...and for me and Dimpho Kansas City too!!

To describe our trip in one word… FOOD. Apparently Americans eat SO much food?? And our portions are huge?! Who knew??? At the many food places we visited, such as Imo’s, Zias, Andy's, Ted Drewes, Mom’s Deli, Gate’s BBQ, and so many more….they were beyond surprised by our portions. I also realized that they are so good at trying new things...at every restaurant they were not afraid to order something new and try so many new foods.

This was such an amazing week, and I am so grateful that I was able to experience something like this. We bonded so much in the short time that we had together and did so many fun things while she was here. It’s amazing that we could become such good friends in just 7 short days.

Grace E.'s Experience

I had an amazing experience being a host for Kiara. We had so much in common and I am so happy I got this opportunity. We did many things that I have not done in a while and it was so much fun! I loved seeing all of the things she had never seen before. We had so much fun doing all of these activities with her and I was sad to see her go. Some of the things we did were we went to the Cardinals game, Ted Drewes, the Snow Factory, the Science Center, Fitz's, and the Zoo. All of these activities were so much fun and I hope she had fun as well! I miss her so much already, but hopefully, I can go visit her soon and see what her country is like.

Natalie's Experience

I am so thankful to have been a part of the Global Ed program this year. Hosting a South African student was really interesting. Avril and I did a lot of fun things, like the Zoo, Forest Park, we went to a baseball game etc., but my favorite memory of her trip was when we went to Ted Drewes. She got an Oreo concrete and when they turned it upside down she was in shock. She couldn't figure out how her ice cream stayed in its cup! She didn't believe me when I told her about it on the way there and when she saw it happen, she was at a loss for words. It's kinda funny how something so normal for me is so strange for her and the rest of the students!