Greta Rastel

My biggest fear when I came to the US was that I might not be able to find friends. At first, I did not think very hard about the differences in relationships due to sociocultural standards that vary from country to country. Little differences aren’t totally obvious; sometimes it is the small things that you would never notice on your own, but they quickly become very clear after a while, especially if a lot of them pile up.
The first thing I noticed is that it is a lot more common for people to have larger groups of friends. Granted, I went to a smaller school with less than one-third of the number of students at SHS, but I think this difference stems from the fact that we do not switch classmates every period in Germany. In Germany, you stay in one class with the same exact people every day for multiple years. Many people in Germany have a smaller friend group they spend time with every day, and they do not spend too much time with other people. I, for example, sat almost every bell next to the same friends of mine for five years.
To be honest, I think the lack of autonomy has been very frustrating for not only me, but many other people that have recently moved to the United States, This struggle comes with not having a license or a car, which in most countries, would not be a problem. In most places in Europe, you can bike everywhere or take the bus or train. However, because the US does not have as much public transportation, it is impossible to go anywhere without relying on your parents to drive you if you cannot drive yourself. That means you always have to double-check plans with everyone and accept that you are not as autonomous as you were before.
Plus, German schools rarely ever have sports events. There are no football games to go to, no sports or marching band in most schools. In the US, it seems common for many to spend their entire afternoons at practice, so it is a hard switch if you have never followed a sport for multiple years. It is much harder to make new friends if you do not participate in sports. So, while all of your friends are out playing sports and participating in clubs, it is harder to fill up your free time.
I am not trying to say there is a wrong way to maintain a friendship, but the differences do make me miss home from time to time because of how unfamiliar it is in the United States. It is the least obvious things that throw you off the most sometimes. But ultimately I am grateful for the opportunity to experience living in both countries.