“Viel Gluck ünd viel Spaþ” means “good luck and have fun” in German. This is all, 16-year-old senior, Linda Weber said she has had in her studies at San Benito High School.

Weber is attending SBHS as a part of a foreign exchange student program from her German school, Freiherr-vom-stein Gymnasium in Rösrath, which is next to Cologne in the western part of Germany.

When asked about what she thought about America, specifically California, before she came here, she said, “I thought that everyone was easygoing, friendly, had a tan, and likes to surf.”

Weber added that she expected that the weather was going to be nice and that she would see celebrities. Now that she has been in Hollister for a while, Weber said she still thinks of America as “easygoing” and “not as stressful” as Germany.

Weber is studying in America because, she said, “I wanted to improve my English and I didn’t want to go to England because it is boring and I have heard a lot of good things about California.”

The trip has also kept her more open-minded about different cultures and ways of life.

“The schooling here is much easier than German schooling,” Weber said. “Here you get out at the same time every day, you only have to worry about three classes a day instead of six, and there are fun things to do here like rallies and school activities which we don’t have in Germany.”

Weber said that the workload here is much easier than the workload in Germany because instead of homework assignments in six classes every day like she had in Germany, she only has to focus on three a night, which helps her do her work with more quality.

Weber is playing on the SBHS water polo team. Even though it is her first time ever playing the sport, she said that it is enjoyable and that she likes both her teammates and her coach. Weber plans to try out this year for basketball, which she has played since she was 6 years old.

Having been here since August 10, Weber said she cannot wait to see her parents once again.

“I am going to definitely come back here with them for vacation one day,” Weber said.