Headaches, heartburn, and dissapointment.
So, it was most definately a scam. Upon requesting some verification of the fee, I was just given a bunch of crap answers. We researched and researched as we kept trying to get answers out of these people. I claimed not to have that kind find of money and was told to send what I could and suggested to borrow it because it was refundable. My supposed host family said they would pay the remainder of my fee. My mom messaged them and told him that since it was refundable and he was so certain, that he should send the money. He told her he could not because it had to come from me. Fishy fishy. He can pay the difference but not the balance? He even tried to get my mom to pay. Claiming he was paying for my travel as we had already agreed which was in fact a lie. The more they tried to get us to pay and we researched the more it was a certainty. I asked for my money back, and have recieved no response. So, today I have been spending all morning filing complaints with offical people, to hopefully protect myself from identity theft. I have no hopes of getting my $200's back but maybe I can prevent furture damage to myself and others. I did not realize how much of a hassel all this is though. I have literally spent about 3 hours working on it. I'm exhausted from all the questions. I just wish I had been a little smarter or less nieve from the get go.