Your opinion needed: Is this normal? - Exchange student living with family abroad

[kanhawk]

Originally Posted by LindavG

I asked him what his problem with Dutch people was and he said "you people are still trying to take over our country".

This explains his attitude to me a little bit. My knowledge of Belgium politics is very limited but I do understand there is tension between the northerners which are more like the Dutch and the southerners which are more like the French. So maybe he was taking out some of his political frustrations on you as a substitute for Belgium northerners?
Very odd that they would take someone from a place they don't like into their home, unless they were desperate for money.
Your English, by the way, is impeccable.

[LindavG]

Originally Posted by kanhawk

This explains his attitude to me a little bit. My knowledge of Belgium politics is very limited but I do understand there is tension between the northerners which are more like the Dutch and the southerners which are more like the French. So maybe he was taking out some of his political frustrations on you as a substitute for Belgium northerners?
Very odd that they would take someone from a place they don't like into their home, unless they were desperate for money.

Well, he did tell me he doesn't like Flanders (the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium) either and that he never goes to that part of the country. I asked him if he had ever been to the Netherlands and he told me he went there once in the 1960s but that's it.

I don't know if his attitude can really be explained by the tension between Flanders and Wallonia because he hates other countries as well. He believes that many countries (most notably the Netherlands, Germany and France) just can't wait to add Belgium to their territory. We are their permanent enemies (that is literally what he said) and that's why he doesn't trust us. It's a ridiculous idea because any of these countries are doing much better than Belgium in pretty much every aspect, so there's no reason why they would want to take over Belgium. This man is still stuck in the 1800s, the time of war and conquests in WE is long gone LOL.

Your English, by the way, is impeccable.

Thanks

[jasper12]

Find some other students or friends to live with.

[dragon_fly_12]

Glad you're moving on.

From what you described, it sounds like they were expecting a true "exchange student" situation rather than a tenant, but wanted the perks of a tenant for the monthly payment.

My sister spent 2 years in Germany. The first year, she was there as a true exchange student. She lived with several host families and had the expectation of being a member of the family. Eating meals, participating in gatherings and spending time together as a family unit. The host families did NOT receive any monetary compensation for their generousity, only the experience of working with a different cultural background.

At University level, she attended school in Germany for a year. My sister was responsible to find and pay for housing, attend class and participate as a student. Absolutely no expectations beyond the monthly rent, and her time was to do with as she pleased or spend with whom she pleased. It was strictly a business arrangement; she received space to live, she paid rent in exchange.