Isa Berthelsen: Foreign Exchange Student Interview

Every year, a foreign exchange student comes to Homer High School for the school year. The school’s latest foreign exchange student is Isabell, “Isa”, Berthelsen. Isa is from southern Denmark, specifically the small island called Tåsinge. She lives there with her mother, father, and twelve year old brother. Before coming here, she had a job at a radio station, fitness center, and a jewelry company.

I was lucky enough to interview her and I found out a lot of interesting and intriguing information about her life and Denmark. I asked her what her favorite American food was and she replied by saying, “That’s a tough question. You have a lot of REALLY good food, but my favorites must be peanut butter and American pancakes. I heard you can get it together which sounds amazing! I also like donuts which I had never tasted before I came to the US. They’re good!” I then asked her what her favorite and least favorite things were about the United States and how they compare to Denmark. She said that she loved the food, the attitude, and the people. She politely added that she didn’t have a least favorite, but did point out that Denmark has a lot of good food as well. When bringing up her various experiences here in the United States, she said that her best school-related experiences were Spirit Week and her first American football game even though she didn’t quite understand the game itself. I built on this idea by asking her what the most interesting thing she had seen in the United States was. She brought up the Great New York State Fair, specifically the fried food and various activities there, and pointed out how it was unlike anything in Denmark. Lastly, I asked her what she had learned since coming to our country and she mentioned our odd foods and excess of political television.

I then moved on to questions concerning her home country, Denmark. She said that she had travelled to places throughout Europe but never to the United States. She also said that Danish was her first language but she had taken English in school since the age of ten. German also happens to be a language that she can speak. She wanted to point out to Americans that Danes love licorice and their frequent use of the word “hyggelig” which roughly translates to “cozy.” However, that translation doesn’t cover it’s meaning in Danish according to Isa since they call their nation a “hyggelig” one. I then proceeded to ask her how the United States’ educational system compares to Denmark’s. She said that they are drastically different and went on to explain it. Danes start school when they are six years old at grade 0. They continue through to grade 9 which they graduate when they are sixteen. When Isa returns to Denmark, she will take three years of gymnasium which is similar to our high school before heading off to the university. She added that in Danish schools, students remain in the same classrooms all day and the teacher change rooms. She also mentioned that they have different schedules every single day as opposed to the even and odd days that are in place here at Homer. Lastly, she pointed out our shorter breaks between classes (four minutes as opposed to five to fifteen minutes in Denmark), how we refer to our teachers (last names as opposed to first names) and our lockers which are hard to open for her since there are no lockers in Danish schools.

Isa then gave some really interesting facts about Denmark that include: their excessive uses and odd applications of ketchup, their traffic lights with different color sequences, the fact that young Danes wear black nearly all the time, their excessive utilization of bicycles, the fact that eighteen is the age at which you can get your driver’s license, their tendency to swear, their celebration of Christmas on December 24th, the minimum age for purchasing alcohol being sixteen, the fact that sports are completely separate from schools, their lower amount of TV commercials, the fact that the female singer in “Lean On,” MØ, is Danish, their love for American movies, and their own version of several American TV shows.

Lastly, Isa told me that she misses her friends and family but appreciates her host family’s kindness as well as the kindness of everyone. She really wants to learn more about the United States and its culture and she hopes to return to Denmark with many memories, fun experiences, and better English. If you see Isa in the halls at school, be sure to say hello and welcome her to Homer.