By Linda Sintniklaas (CISL San Diego Student)
After a rollercoaster of emotions and events and 15 hours of travelling you finally arrive in America, at San Diego Airport. Wow, was what I thought, I’m in America. After all the preparations that have been made I’m finally here and it feels good immediately. In the central hall of the airport my driver is already waiting for me, he is carrying a sign with him with my name on it: Linda Sintniklaas. It was something I had always dreamed about, you can see those signs with names in movies and it made me laugh. The driver was very friendly and he immediately took my suitcase and put them in the beautiful taxi. Within 15 minutes I arrived at the Vantaggio 1736 State Street which I hope to make my home for the next 5 weeks.
“Welcome girl, how are you?!” asked the lady at the reception desk. Again, a warm welcome. After a mountain of paperwork to be signed in which I declared not to damage my room and that I would not harm my fellow students, I can go to my room: no 132. The room is beautiful, is looks neat and clean and the shower is warm. I also have at my disposal to a refrigerator, a microwave, a television, a table and chair, a sink, a closet and a balcony. But now I have to sleep, tomorrow I will go to Converse International School of Language (CISL) and I will explore Broadway. 
After a good night’s sleep and a hot shower I walk from the student residence to Broadway (only ten minutes). In between I make a stop at Pappalecco, a nice Italian café where I drink a lovely macchiato and eat a tasty croissant. The student residence is located in Little Italy, that’s a little Italian village within the city with a lot of restaurants, cafes and shops. It looks really nice and promising!
I turn left on Broadway and then I only have to walk straight ahead until I reach the Converse Language School. Again, I am greeted by a friendly guard and I walk up the stairs toward the counter. Despite the confirmation email I received from CISL I check if my registration went well and if it is right that the English classes will start on Monday. “This Monday the English lessons will start”, the friendly lady tells me that on Monday there will first be a test to see what level you are and in which class they will put you. She further said that I was more than welcome and that if I have any questions I can come and ask. She also pointed out the many beautiful sights that CISL organizes or which you can do individually.
After a few days travelling around San Diego I found that this is a city with many beautiful places and sights. The Pacific Ocean, La Jolla Beach, Coronado Beach, the San Diego Cinema, Comic Con (a festival where people get all dressed up as their favorite comic heroes), the shopping malls, San Diego Bay with the big Navy ship, fireworks at the harbor and much more. I’m enjoying my stay here and I am so glad I came.
The people are very kind and hospitable, the student residence is good and I am really looking forward to my first English lesson this Monday. I am so glad that I travelled all over the world as a 20 year old student to come here.
Yes, I really do feel at home here!