Josefina Sundblad, or as she would like to be called, Jo, is an exchange student this year. Although she is originally from Argentina, for the past six years she has been living on a sailboat with her family, traveling the world.

Four years ago her family visited Rhode Island on their sailboat and docked in Wickford. Since it was around the time school was starting people told her that she should enroll, so she did. For three months, her freshman year, Jo attended NKHS.

Due to her height, the volleyball team sought her out. Jo had never even touched a volleyball in her life. In Argentina, schools do not have sports; if you would like to play with a team, you have to join club sports. While on the volleyball team, she mostly practiced with the team and didn’t really play much in the games. Jo tried out for the team again this year, and made it. She loves the sport and the girls on the team.

After three months, her family decided it was time to leave, and they traveled across the Atlantic Ocean in their sailboat to Europe. Jo has been to 28 different countries, touching every continent besides Asia and Antarctica.

While out at sea, her mother homeschooled her, her sister, and her brother. When asked about homesickness, Jo explained she doesn’t have any time to feel homesick; she is either practicing volleyball, doing homework, or hanging out with her friends. She does miss the beautiful landscape of Argentina, although America has beautiful views as well.

Something she does not miss about her home country though is how unsafe it is. In Argentina, you always have to be aware of your surroundings and who is around you. In Rhode Island you are free to walk around wherever and not be afraid.

As a young child, Jo went to a bilingual school. The first half of the day was in spanish, and the second half was in English. Her mother also taught her and her siblings english while traveling on the boat.

In the future, Jo would like to attend college, probably start in Argentina, and then maybe finish in the U.S. or Europe. Her ideal country would be in England so that she can continue to speak english. She also knows enough French, Italian, and Portuguese to get by.