Mara Fiedler

Mara Fiedler's sister did her overseas study in the US - and it looked like Mara would follow her, but then she saw a television documentary about New Zealand and fell in love with the environment and people. She met her principal, Paul Ferris, when he was on a trip to Germany and now lives with his family in Dunedin where she is studying English at Kavanagh College.

"I have been welcomed by everyone. I've never met so many nice people in one place. I am finding the studies quite easy. I have really grown up and my English has improved. I've made friends who will come and visit me at home.

Probably the thing I've enjoyed most here, is just sitting around, exchanging ideas. The people are so free in their thinking. You never know what topic it'll be over the dinner table or pool table.
We have great discussions and I find it so stimulating - I'm going to miss it.

When I leave here I'll have a New Zealand bursary and I'll do a German bursary - and then I'll come back. I want to go to university in Auckland and study media. We have a television network at my college. It's cool. The students and teachers make videos and we do the music and sound mixing and technical production. I have totally fallen in love with this place. Sometimes I just sit and look out the window for half an hour and feel so free. My younger sister wants to study here too.

My whole family visited at Christmas. We travelled round the country and now they want to come back and pick me up at the end of my studies, just for an excuse to come here again!"