The G'Day USA cultural exchange program includes living with an American family for 10 days, going to school and exploring attractions.

At first we were nervous, but more so excited, knowing for the next 20 days we'd encounter once-in-a-lifetime experiences and make lifelong friends.

Los Angeles was the first stop of our jam-packed adventure, in all its star-studded glory, where we spent five days seeing the most famous sights. This included Knott's Berry Farm with its insanely thrilling rollercoasters; the 'Hollywood by Night' tour, with the Walk of Fame and other renowned locations; a day tour of San Diego with outlet shopping and finding the best bargains as well as the historical Old Town San Diego; and Disneyland, where we spent the day completely drenched down to our socks in the rain, although this didn't ruin our spirits at "the happiest place on earth".

At Universal Studios we again pulled on our rain ponchos as we went crazy on rides like Revenge of the Mummy and Transformers: The Ride- 3D.

Then, for the next two days, we spent our time in the busy and beautiful city of San Francisco. We enjoyed a bay cruise, walking across the Golden Gate Bridge and visiting other famous landmarks such as the 'Painted Ladies' and the eerie Alcatraz Prison (and, of course, some more shopping).

For the most exciting part of the trip, we lived with host families in Sacramento, California for a true living-in-America experience.

In Sacramento, we took day trips to explore the city, visiting the State Capitol, Old Sacramento, Black Chasm Cavern and the Jelly Belly Factory.

We also were able to attend a school day with our host student, which was something great to take part in.

The highlight of my trip was a day spent skiing through the crisp snow at the amazing Lake Tahoe in the Sugar Bowl Ski Fields. This day was supposedly Lake Tahoe's best, in terms of weather, for 10 years, so we were very lucky.

Eventually the time came to say goodbye to our lovely hosts, who we all couldn't have thanked enough for accepting us as part of their families. It was definitely hard to say goodbye.

I would encourage anybody who has the chance to take part in this excellent program to do so, because it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience.