Friday 1 November 2013

Blog # 5 : Cultural Encounters


Wednesday October 23th I took on my fifth day of internship. My host Sonia decided to proceed with the activity of <<papier maché >>. Rather than participating in creating the masks, as I did the last Wednesday, I decided to observe the environment and ask some questions to my elderly friends.

My Cultural Observations:

During every class the yoga instructor plays soft music to allow the elderly people relax. During my observation I noticed that in this establishment we don’t have any cultural objects to respect other people who use the room after us. Also, I saw many flyers on the counter about alimentation, diabetes and about the schedule of many activities in the yellow door or in the social club.



Questions and Answers:

Kim and I:

Me: Hello Kim can I ask you three questions for my blog?

Kim: Sure, go ahead!

Me: Do you love to read books, if yes, tell me which types of books?

Kim: Yes, I like to read biographies of famous people, books about psychology and books about philosophy.

Me: Wow, that’s interesting. Where are you from?

Kim: I am from Malaysia.

Me: Do you celebrate Christmas or other holidays?

Kim: No, because I live alone now.

Me: Hmmm… Did you come, last year, to celebrate Christmas with the social club?

Kim: Oh yes, it was very pleasant. I hope they will do it again this year.

Me: So do I. Thank you very much Kim! I will let you continue your mask, it’s very beautiful.

Kim: Thank you Arina. Good luck with your blog!

Another Sonia and I:

Me: Hi Sonia, can I ask you some questions?

Sonia: Of course!

Me: What is your nationality?

Sonia: I am Armenian. I am from Egypt.

Me: Wow I didn’t expect that! What then is your religion?

Sonia: I am orthodox.

Me: What a surprise! Me to! Do you celebrate Christmas or Easter with your family?

Sonia: Yes, my family and I gather together for every celebration. We bring a lot of food, we chat, and we dance. Most importantly we have a lot of fun!

Me: I imagine a lot of love and laughter.

Sonia: It was a pleasure to talk with you Arina, but I have to go home.

Me: Thank you for answering my questions. See you next Wednesday!

Describe the types of English you have been exposed to:

I used 5 idioms from our class notes which are;

1.Against the clock: Rushed and short on time AND 2. Pig out: To eat a lot and eat it quickly: Before my internship which starts at 12pm, I had my exploration class and my meeting for Hawaii. Furthermore, many times, I have rushed to come earlier, because I didn’t want to disturb the seniors during their yoga class. Also, I need to eat quickly, because my internship lasts 3 hours.

3.A leopard can't change his spots: You cannot change who you are: One of my elderly friends came to talk to me about her life. She says that if she could change then people will not judge her. I tried to give her some advice that was; first, she needs to love herself, and second, ignore other peoples negativity because they are simply jealous.

4.Keep your chin up: To remain joyful in a tough situation AND 5.All in the same boat: When everyone is facing the same challenges: Every week I have a lot of writing, listening, and speaking exams as well as homework. When I then attend my internship I try my best to benefit from this time, to relax, and to enjoy the moment. On another note, even though everyone is not in the same grade, in my class we are still all in the same boat. We have the same goal to improve and do well in the class.

Rewards and challenges:

At the beginning the challenging part is to go talk to the elderly, because I am shy. But when the shyness is gone, I am more comfortable and able to improve my English

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