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Obermiyer twins take on Italy through Rotary International's Exchange Program

Dakota and Emily Obermiyer, seniors at Brookfield High School, got the experience of a lifetime this summer. The Obermiyer twins took on Italy through the Rotary International Exchange student program.


Dakota and Emily arrived in Italy on July 7, 2019. Dakota stayed with the family of Luca Pedrini in Treviso, Italy – while Emily stayed with Lavinia Paliani and her family in Dawson, Italy. Dawson is a suburb of Treviso, so the Obermiyer siblings were only minutes apart


“I thought it was a really good experience. We did a lot, we saw around nine to ten cities in 20 days,” said Dakota Obermiyer.


The Obermiyers visited Rome, Venice, Vatican City, and more. They were able to experience a gondola ride in Venice, and the Colosseum in Rome. Dakota says, he’s grateful they got to learn another culture but the language barrier was tough.


On July 29, the Obermiyers returned back to the U.S. with Luca and Lavinia. Dakota and Emily’s parents picked the four of them up from the airport and they spent four days in New York City and one day in New Jersey. The following weekend, the Obermiyers took Luca and Lavinia to Niagara Falls. They also spent time showing them around Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Youngstown, and several places around Brookfield. Luca and Lavinia returned to Italy on August 19.


Dakota says, spending time living with Luca and Lavinia helped the Obermiyers learn different things. They learned how to make authentic Italian pizza and pasta. The Obermiyers still communicate with Luca and Lavinia to this day, and have plans to reunite with them in the near future.


Dakota and Emily encourage other students to participate in an exchange program.