My Host Family and I started communicating a year before I arrived, in September 2020. But I couldn't start the program before because Ukrainians were not allowed to get this type of visa because of the pandemic. 

I started the Au Pair program in Germany on May 14, 2021. I came from Ukraine to a small town near the Alps. I was 26 years old at that time. That was the last year when I could participate in this program. I decided to do it in order to learn German. I had a beginner's level of A2. I had to look after four boys. 

My family welcomed me friendly at the airport. For the first couple of weeks, I only spoke English, because I could not say anything in German. Upon arrival, they fed me right away and gave me a few days just to adjust and rest so I could get used to it. It was very nice. All my duties were told gradually so that I could remember everything. I was very bad at understanding speech, so everyone in the house started talking slowly for me so I could catch the meaning. The kids are very nice. When I did not understand, which was very often, they tried to explain it to me in a simpler way, or draw or even show me a pantomime. It was a lot of fun!

Before the trip, I told them that I was observing Shabbat and that it was important for me not to work on the Sabbath. My family didn't mind and I always had Saturday and Sunday off. That was the deciding factor for me in choosing my family. 

I took German courses online because there were quarantine restrictions from the Covid and courses could only be taken by people with a certificate and I didn't have one. What a story! But I found a lot of advantages to online learning, so it wasn't a problem for me. I've improved my German a lot in a year and I'm getting ready to go to a German university now. 

And now about the work in the family. I had my own private room and a shower. There was enough space. The room had a bed, sofa, table, chair, closet, and coffee table. I even had enough space to do Zumba dancing! I worked 30 hours a week, 6 hours a day. I had the first half of the day completely free for my personal things. Only in the morning did I have to make sandwiches. Then the three boys would come from school and the youngest boy from kindergarten for lunch. We all ate and shared our experiences of the first half of the day. Then after a break, everyone went to do their homework. In that time I helped with homework, played with one of the kids, or helped with tidying up the house a bit. In general, working time was fast. The children are well-mannered and very intelligent. Accustomed to homework and always responsive. Parents always help with all things. There were no difficult situations in the entire time. So my review is only positive. I can say that I was very lucky. During my work here my family and I went with my Host Family to Vienna, Mariacel, Salzburg, Freiburg, and Venice, camping in Italy to the sea and our last trip together was to Bonn. Also saw the local sights. It was my first time in Europe and these trips were very educational for me. During trips, I had very few duties. So it is hard to call it work. 

We celebrated all the holidays together. It was cool to see how it all happens in a German family. I noticed a few traditions for myself that I will definitely have in my family. For example, dinner is always at a place. A great time to all relax, laugh, and take stock of the day together. It's great to come together and you feel like part of the family. 

With Russia attacking Ukraine, my younger sister had to flee Ukraine for safety. The family immediately said that my sister could live in their house. And for several months she lived with us. Now my sister has already been able to find a place to live and move in. All questions my German family helped us to solve, also helped my sister to quickly get to university in Germany and continue studying.

I would recommend this program. It's a good opportunity to get to know Germany, learn the language, and explore the culture from the inside. If it were possible to extend my visa, I would definitely stay with this family for another six months. I can talk for hours about everything that I experienced here. I am very glad that my experience was positive.

And a very important point for feature Au Pairs from Ukraine. In this family, they eat everything that we eat too! The children even liked buckwheat (grechka). 

So the food here in the family is very good and balanced. You can go!!