Before coming to Saratoga on Nov. 18 from his home in Cuernavaca, Mexico, BIU senior Andres Martinez wasn’t sure what to expect.  Would he like California?  What would Saratoga be like?

It’s an unusual experience to be able to go to school in another country, not fluent in the language or familiar with the people or traditions.  Six students and one teacher from Bachillerato Internacional Uninter (BIU),

Mexico got to experience this when they travelled to Saratoga.

After coming, Martinez said, “[It was fun] to meet a lot people, visit the most [significant] places of Saratoga and live a new experience.” Martinez stayed with sophomore Andrew Weng’s family. 

“It was easy [to adjust] because the Wengs are wonderful, they gave me all the attention that they could,” Martinez said.

Weng was happy to host Martinez and said getting to know Martinez and the other students and showing them around Saratoga was his favorite parts about being a host.

“Andres liked [the trip] a lot. He was really cool and laid back,” Weng said.

The Mexico students visited some of the major sightseeing spots and cities in the Bay Area, such as San Francisco, Apple, Intel, the Great Mall, Facebook and Google.

“My favorite part was San Francisco. We took a ride all over the city and a ride on a ship,” Martinez said.

While this was Martinez’s first trip to California, he  said the state is similar to what he had imagined it to be, except for the fact that it was “maybe a little colder.”

“[When] one of my best friends [came back from California last year], he told me about all his experience in Saratoga, and that made me want to come here,” Martinez said.

The group returned to Mexico the weekend after Thanksgiving.