Four students hailing from four different countries are spending this year at Plano West, each bringing their own unique culture, customs and language. Juniors Maria Prati from Italy, Lennart Wittich from Germany, Rico Aoyama from Japan and Chanitsata Thitathana from Thailand are all adjusting to the American lifestyle while taking note of the dissimilarities between their home countries and the United States.

“Everything is different,” Thitathana said. “Different culture, different family, different school.”

The different culture seems to be what drew the students here, however.

“I have liked American culture since I was a child,” Aoyama said. “I would like to learn about American culture.”

This includes one of the biggest parts of American culture: the food, and perhaps most notably, the fast food.

“The food is very unhealthy, but it is good,” Prati said.

Thitathana is also adjusting to American food, including the flavor profiles.

“In Thailand the dishes have five flavors and American dishes have less,” Thitathana said. “We do not have hamburgers or sandwiches for lunch every day and we have rice instead of bread.”

Another distinction between foods of different cultures is the style of eating and the customs associated with it.

“Here, you go out to eat every other night,” Wittich said. “In Germany, it is an event.”

The schooling also differs greatly in size, classes and structure.

“We cannot choose classes at school,” Prati said. “We have the same classmates for five years and the teachers change classrooms.”

The classes in Germany are similar; they are also not permitted to choose their own classes, and their schedule consists of around 15 different classes with a different agenda every day.

“It is strange when the bell rings and everyone is in the hallway,” Thitathana said. “You have to walk to different rooms, but in Thailand, the teachers come to us.”

An additional custom the students find odd is age limit for certain things, such as driving.

“This country is very different from Europe,” Wittich said. “I think it is strange that students are allowed to drive and be in the army before they drink.”

Germany’s drinking and driving laws are very similar to those of Italy, where the driving age is 18 and drinking is legal at 16.

“I chose the U.S.A. because I have traveled a lot here,” Prati said. “I knew that the American lifestyle is very different and now I am sure it is.”