By Lea Ghandour (YES 2019-2020, Lebanon, placed by AFS in Raytown, MO)

As exchange students meeting others from around the world, we all make promises to visit each other’s countries. Curiosity about the world and the desire to experience new cultures grows immensely during your exchange year. I knew I was naturally curious, but coming from a small city, the world felt hard to grasp. Then as I started my exchange year, the miles that felt so far away were within my reach.

One day, I was having a call with Adam, a Tunisian YES 2019-2020 alumnus who I met in 2019 at the National 4-H Conference Center in Washington D.C. We were discussing political events in our home countries and around the world. The conversation led to us discussing Nabeul, a Tunisian city I had never heard of before. Adam invited me to Tunisia so he could show me his beautiful country, but all I could do was promise that someday I would, not knowing if that day would ever come.

That is when things got crazy – just one week later I got an invite to an Erasmus Plus project happening in Tunisia. I had to tell Adam the amazing news, and he asked where the project was taking place. It was in Adam’s city! After two months of waiting, I finally arrived in Tunisia surrounded by people from different countries. I listened to all these people speaking different dialects and managing to share cultures and ideas with each other. Tunisia was so different from what I thought it would be. Its natural beauty was incredible, but the diversity was unexpected and wonderful. The different cuisines made the world feel smaller.

The first day I reunited with Adam, he gave me a tour of his beautiful city, Nabeul. The city sits on the northeastern coastal side of Tunis. Wandering through its markets and streets felt nostalgic and authentic. I ate local foods and had homemade couscous for the first time, saw mesmerizing local places and the old souks of Tunis, wondered at its natural greenness and old roads, and enjoyed the lovely warm-hearted people. Adam was an incredible host and tour guide, showing me the real Tunisia – the lifestyle, people, coffee shops, and local hang outs. It exceeded all my expectations.

Had it not been for the YES program I probably would not have had this wonderful experience. My time on the YES program taught me that where there is a will, there is a way. There is nothing that we cannot reach or achieve, and the world is open to you. It taught me to aim high and dream BIG. I am grateful for what the YES program was able to give me.

Adam Ajroudi (YES 2019-2020, Tunisia, placed by AFS in Redwood City, CA)