Zuzana in USA

Our student Zuzana from 3B class is in the recent school year on an exchange stay in the United States. She writes:

Until June I will live in Fairmont, a small town in southern Minnesota. I am visiting a Martin Luther High School in Northrop.
My host family, Pam and Roger Carlson, are very nice and hospitable family. I am an only child here, because all their children are adult and away from home and are married.
The first thing I noticed when I came here is that you rarely see someone in the streets. No pedestrians. All those who are older than 16 years go everywhere in the car. So when I walk to the morning school bus I feel a little strangely, because there is no one in the street (the only buses you can see here are those yellow school buses you know from the movies = D).
The American school system is completely different from ours. Every day I have the same schedule, the school day ends at 3 p.m., the breaks are never longer than three or five minutes. There is only a 15 minutes break for the lunch. I think that the curriculum is a bit simpler than what is taught in Slovakia. I like that even though you fail the tests, you can still have a pretty good grade if you are active in the class and do your homeworks. Pretty much importance is assigned to sport here. Each school has its own teams, whether football (American football, not soccer), volleyball, basketball, softball and dozens of other sports, depending on students interest. In most cities already cheerleaders went out of fashion, but each school has its own band that plays at home matches or at school events.
In late October, I finished a volleyball season. I am a little sorry, because I enjoyed it. Now I play basketball again. From 19 to 25 October Pam and me were in San Antonio, Texas. It was a very pleasant trip because in Minnesota it was already very cold in October, but in Texas it was still warm than in summer. The first day we went to Padre Island in the Gulf Stream. Next day we visited the historical sight Alamo in San Antonio, we walked through the Riverwalk and we visited a Sea World.
Of the local customs I liked best Halloween and our Easter circumfusion will certainly miss me. I already have almost completed the first half and I am very glad that I have the opportunity to study in the United States, because even if it is a year without families and Slovak friends, definitely it is worth it.