International

My experience in Peru is coming to an end, sadly enough. As I am slowly but surely completing my work term report, I am constantly reflecting back on what my presence in Lima has meant to me and to others. It has been hard to determine the actual impact that my internship may have on my environment. Obviously, this factor must be discussed at various levels. On the larger Peruvian community, my work term has not changed any worlds. However, within my organisation and within specific communities in the districts of Lima Sur where I have toiled over the last three months, I believe I have had the opportunity to open some eyes to new ways of seeing and doing certain things. Certainly, I have undergone a similar process, which has made this internship such an amazing learning experience for me. I believe it would be too pretentious or exaggerated to expect any real transformation of ingrained understandings or behaviours, but being able to discern the minute details and differences that have defined the impact of one’s stay in a foreign environment definitely makes the experience worthwhile.

Although a significant portion of my internship was conducted within the confines of an office environment no different than one in Canada, I have had several opportunities to participate in meetings and institutional activities in the Peruvian communities my NGO seeks to assist. I can definitely say that these experiences have been the most interesting, rewarding and educational of my internship, as I was afforded the opportunity to interact in Spanish with real individuals and stakeholders as well as develop true intercultural experience through heated discussions and mutual understanding.

One of the recent events that had afforded me the chance to interact directly with Peruvians of all backgrounds was when I was given the task to represent my institution, Acción por los Niños, at a ceremony called ‘Homenaje a las Mujeres de San Juan de Miraflores’ (Tribute to the Women of San Juan de Miraflores) during International Women’s day. My assignment, with the assistance of another Canadian volunteer, was to promote our institution to the citizens of the district of San Juan de Miraflores and to communicate with and learn about the other social-community based institutions present at the ceremony who also had stands set up for promotional activities. As the event was held on IW day, there was a significant focus towards mothers in our presentation and promotion. While my NGO is primarily interested in advancing the rights of children and protecting them against forms of violence, we also recognize that if the rights of women and mothers are being infringed upon within a family, it is also highly likely to have a negative impact on those of the children as well. Most of our promotional material, while once again targeted at children to inform them of their rights and of the diverse ways in which they can have their case of abuse or violence heard and possibly brought to court, also applies to women. Therefore we adapted our promotional and educational tactics depending on the individual that presented themselves to our stand, be it a child, an adolescent, a man or, most importantly at this event, a women or mother.

Not only did this event allow me to communicate and improve my Spanish with a variety of individuals of all different age groups, sexes and backgrounds, but also afforded me the opportunity to build more confidence in communicating sensitive topics to a wide and varied audience. I believe that this activity is a microcosm of my general learning and working experiences here in Lima and I am infinitely grateful for the opportunities that have been made available to me through this internship.

Despedida final, adios!

My first week here, my roommate and I tried to imagine our lives in threemonths – if we would have managed to settle into this city at all, if we would finally feel comfortable, if we would be able to speak the language and communicate with ease, if our lives here would ever start to make sense. Two and a half months into my time here, and my life in Dhaka is.. happy. It’s not easy and often not comfortable, but it is filled with happiness. Though this city is intense, difficult and exhausting to live in, I love my life here. My friends, a fairly even mix of other foreigners and Bengalis, are wild, wonderful and fun and are up for anything – dinner gatherings and late nights on my balcony overlooking the city, hotel parties with Dhaka’s elite, crashing private parties with fake names, 15 hour bus rides to distant islands, bike adventures through tea estates, scouting out the best cupcakes in Dhaka and eating them all, attending stranger’s weddings across the city… and I don’t want to think about how hard saying goodbye in four weeks will be.

I am so proud to work with ICDDR,B. Whenever I mention my internship organization to a Bangladeshi, they praise the organization, and it’s adjacent Cholera Hospital, which saves thousands of lives every monsoon season (Al Jazeera wrote an amazing article about them last year! l). My first weeks were a bit terrifying: I am literally the least qualified and experienced person in the entire organization, and had no experience whatsoever working for a research organization. Never even having worked a 9-5 job before, office life was a huge adjustment. Luckily, I followed my usual ‘new job’ routine of talking my co-workers ears off and distracting them from their work until we were friends – leaving them will now be one of the hardest parts of heading home. Finding my place in the organization was also difficult; everyone was so qualified and experienced I didn’t know what I could possibly offer. Slowly, I found myself immersed in the work of several different teams, with my own reports and projects to work on, and work became something I looked forward to every day. The other day my co-worker said she doesn’t know what she’ll do when I leave, and it was wonderful to finally feel useful.

I’ve finally had the opportunity to travel around the country a bit and have been floored by the beauty of this place and its people. In the Northern part of the country, I stayed in a village surrounded by tea estates, and spent hours exploring the countryside and nearby national park by bike. At the most Southern tip, I stayed on a small fishing island with no electricity, overlooking Burma, and swam in the Bay of Bengal. Everywhere I go, people invite me into their homes and stuff me with food until I beg them (in the most polite way I can muster) to stop. Every experience here has been extreme; the highs and lows have been some of the highest and lowest experiences of my life. With two and a half weeks left, I still feel like I have so much to do, and can’t quite imagine what returning to Canada will be like. I am already both excited and sad at the prospect of the bittersweet departure to come, and trying to make the most of my last weeks here.

As we near the end of our internship, I feel as though I do not have enough time to do everything I would like to do! Seva Mandir has provided us with the amazing opportunity to do our own field work. The topic, Universal Birth Registration, could be a complete Masters or Doctoral thesis and you could take years doing research on the topic. My experience in the field so far has been amazing. I have loved going into rural areas around Udaipur as it gives me a chance to see parts of India that very few people from outside the area (let alone international travelers) have seen. The landscape, people, houses, farms, and meetings are all fascinating and this rural setting differs greatly from what I have been able to experience in Delhi or Udaipur. I have concentrated my work on 2 different areas, and they are very different from each other, giving two very different experiences. One of the area is an underserved and ‘underdeveloped’ area and we have found that very few people are aware of birth registration or birth certificates, which is not surprising when you consider that a high percentage of the population has minimal education and works in the informal economy.

I feel so lucky to be in India during a time when such change is occurring. In one of my classes this past semester on India, my professor said that each time she goes to India, she is astounded by the changes she sees. Even in the Udaipur area, there have been many changes that have brought about greater mobility and freedoms for people. It is rewarding to be working with an organization like Seva Mandir who is facilitating this change and development.

One of the things that constantly amazes me here is the practice of delayed reciprocity, which follows the incredibly warm reception people give each other. The other day, I had a few hours to kill after being out in the field and was sitting writing my field notes when a little girl, whose family lives at the field office, came to me sayind “Didi…” and beckoned me to follow her to her home. While I didn’t understand her Hindi, I followed her and was welcomed by her mother and aunt. I was immediately given a seat, offered tea, peppered with questions (some of which I was able to decipher from the Aunt’s broken English, and before I knew it heena was being put on my hands. The Aunt then invited me to her wedding in May and also to her Mothers home. A colleague explained to me that it is not just because I am an interesting foreigner to them, but it is also generally accepted that the more you give, the most you get in return.

As a result of 2 week summer break, last week Thursday marked the end of my posting at Belthorn. Looking back, I’m amazed at the lessons Ive learned through the many challenges Ive faced.  The following excerpt will be a reflection of some of these lessons.

My first month at Belthorn was one of great internal difficulty as I struggled to find my footing as the school’s first intern. Entering into an environment that was used to the continuous in and outflow of international volunteers, I found myself constantly trying to assert myself as an “intern” and not a “volunteer”. This struggle was further exacerbated with the absence of a clear mandate. In my attempt to find my place at Belthorn, I became rigorously committed to my loosely defined role of a grade 7 TA  and a weekly administrative worker ( a suggestion of the school principal). So much so that I refused the request of a staff to  work on organizing the library. Now from the experiences of previous interns, I was aware of  the importance of availing myself to the needs of my organization. Irrespective of the title I operated under,  when all was said and done, my purpose was to serve the school and Belthorn’s library was in great need of re-organization and cleaning.However, already struggling to occupy an unidentified territory, I believed at the time that allowing myself to take on the library would have further complicated the aforestated dilemma and would have sidetracked me from one of my main desires for wanting to do this internship; learning more about the dynamics of working with pre-teens. Fortunately by February, the school had recruited the assistance of two local volunteers from an organization called “Help to Read”. With the help of these volunteers, the library is now organized and clean. In addition an international volunteer who came towards the tale end of February, took on the research component of organizing a library and now Belthorn is on the road to developing its library.  In retrospect, I am happy that I stood my ground when it came to organizing the library. From this experience I’ve learned that in the midst of uncertainty associated with one’s environment, one must know their limits and not be afraid grab a strong hold onto the things that they can control so as to maintain their sanity.

While working in the classroom, one of the greatest obstacles I faced was trying to gain as much teaching experience ( my expectation), while being fully conscious of my supervising teacher’s duty to complete curriculum (expectation of my supervising teacher). Throughout the three months, I gave one-preplanned lesson to my grade 7 class and on numerous occasions, my supervising teacher would unexpectedly call me up to teach a Math, or English lesson. For someone like me who likes to be in control, these ad-hoc lessons kept me on my toes and caused a slight level of anxiety. As the term progressed and I began to understand the daily rhythm and tempo of the class, I took more of a back seat, completing tasks such as marking and general classroom assistance.Taking this position, allowed me to connect with the students on a more personal level and learn more about their world as students.

One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned during my time at Belthorn has been how powerful words are in shaping and determining the reaction of children. I’ve witnessed students were once rude, snappy and disrespectful, become kind and calm all because they were spoken to in a gentle and respectful tone. Through this, I’ve learned that children much like adults are like sponges; whatever you put in ( i.e. speaking to them aggressively and in frustration), is what you’ll receive from them. This experience also taught me how important it is to intentionally celebrate the positive things in children through words of affirmation. By so doing, an individual contributes to the development of a  positive self-image. This is especially true for children who come from challenging backgrounds, like many at Belthorn .

I am grateful for all of the lessons Ive learned and the experiences I’ve had at Belthorn. I look forward to continuous growth as I out myself in situations that allow me to apply these lessons.

Two months down, only one to go. Some significant changes in my internship and life in Guatemala since writing my last blog:

1-Communication skills and written abilities in Spanish have greatly improved. I have noticed this talking with friends, bargaining at the market and most of all at work. I no longer think about how to say something before speaking, almost always I am understood on the first try, and I am hardly ever picking up a dictionary-resorting to Google translate. Within the past few weeks, a few co-workers have even taught me Guatemalan expressions and corrected my Spanish in conversation. I am also, FINALLY, starting to understand jokes in Spanish. This might sound trivial, but humour does not translate well, and finally understanding what my co-workers are laughing about is quite a relief.

2-Visitors: For the past two weeks I have been privileged with having a special friend of mine stay with me. I have had the chance to share my experience with them and they have volunteered to lend their expertise to some technical work at my organization. This week my father is also here on vacation. My visitors are giving me a renewed appreciation of the stunning region I am living in and a new perspective on the work I am doing.

3-Projects at work are progressing, slowly but surely. I feel better equipped to take control of situations and be assertive with my co-workers when it comes to deadlines and meetings. I am facing some challenges with the time it is taking for my projects to advance, but it is all part of the learning experience.

I am currently looking forward to seeing concrete physical evidence of my work come into place, continuing to learn how to function efficiently within my organization, and travelling to a few more areas I have yet to visit in Guatemala. I believe I am finally beginning to understand how much of a learning experience this internship really is. Cumulatively, it goes beyond learning how to live in a different society, function in a different culture, work in a non-profit organization, and behave in a different social environment. It has taken me three quarters of this internship to begin to understand power relationships between yourself and different groups in society, relations between these different actors, and learning how the historic, cultural and economic context influences these relations. I am so very grateful for this type of experience where everything I come away with is a different perspective and knowledge that can’t be taught.

I can mark quite a great deal of progress since I last posted on this blog. My familiarization with the city continues, and as time progresses I become more and more comfortable with life in such a large, cosmopolitan centre. The transportation system has been one of my primary challenges. At first glance it appears to be quite convoluted, and the idea of building some form of comfort with commuting from one side to the other appears as a near impossibility with only three months. Despite this, I have become semi-competent with finding my way around.

The majority of the transportation system uses a payment system which hinges on a device called an Akbil. These small, keychain-like devices (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akbil_(smart_ticket)) can be loaded with money for rapid payment, eliminating the need for tickets are payment via cash. Akbil reload stations are readily available near any large metro hub. This system of payment is convenient, compact and efficient… I wish we had something similar in Ottawa.

Transit is also cheap. Although costs seem to vary, even amongst identical transportation systems, you can expect to pay a maximum of 1.75 TL (around a dollar CAN). The system presents a variety of options for every commute with buses, ferries, Dolmuş (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolmu%C5%9F), subways and trams within a stone throw of most areas.  My personal favourite is, of course, the ferry. The fact that I would probably ride the ferry for purely recreational purposes makes it an ideal way to get to and from the prime destinations within the city. Ferries link some of the primary hubs, and due to this, act as a failsafe against ever getting lost. I simply need to find my way to a ferry route and I can get myself home. They also provide a scenic tour of the Bosphorus and a vantage point for viewing the large shipping vessels that traverse the route daily.

My familiarization with this system has enabled extensive wandering amongst some of the popular sites: Taksim, Galata Tower, Eminonu, Kadikoy, the Grand Bazaar, Sultanahmet, among many others. The city has an endless number of offerings for every kind of sightseer, and efficient day plans will be the determining factor in whether or not I leave Istanbul without disappointment in having missed out on some of what the city has to offer. Recently, my stomping grounds have become Eminonu, which is accessible by a combination of bus and ferry from my home in Maltepe. Eminonu has the benefit of being a central hub for the ancient part of the city, the golden horn. From this district you can explore (within walking distance) areas such as Sultanahmet, the Grand Bazaar, Taksim.

An essential part of venturing about the city has been the food which is encountered along the way. An endless number of sweet and coffee shops, featuring puddings, Turkish delight, Baklava, Turkish coffee litter the city (particularly within Taksim). They serve to distract even the most determined passerby. Simply irresistible.

It is also easy to find small restaurants where you can grab a quick, delicious donair; or a street vendor selling Simit, a bread ring covered in sesame seeds.  Both of these options are quite affordable, making it possible to grab a satisfying meal on the go for under 5.5TL in nearly any place. A popular fast-food establishment which boast a broad variety of donair and other Turkish foods is Bambi’s. Although it can most definitely be categorized as a fast food chain, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the quality of the food far outstrips that of any fast food chain that I am familiar with in North America. Outside of the typical fast-food restaurants which are commonplace around the world (also present here), it is difficult to find a restaurant meal in Turkey which leaves you feeling regret after consumption.

Bonjour à tous!

La fin de mon stage approche à grand pas. Il a passé à une vitesse folle. J’ai l’impression que c’est hier que je mettais un pied au Burkina Faso pour la première fois. Ils avaient raison, 3 mois c’est court. J’essaie tranquillement de faire l’inventaire de tout ce que j’ai pu apprendre ici.

La tâche se révèle être beaucoup plus ardue que je ne l’aurais d’abord cru. J’ai donc décidé de commencer par l’inverse. C’est-à-dire ce que moi j’ai bien pu apprendre aux gens d’ici durant mon stage. C’est en effet beaucoup plus facile. Puisque ce que j’ai apporté se trouve à être des connaissances pratiques et tangibles. Durant mon stage j’ai donné des formations, crée des documents de références, produit des maquettes, élaborer des nouveaux outils, j’ai agi à titre de conseillère, j’ai tenté de leur montré d’autres manières de procédé, etc. J’ai aussi réussi à faire de la Poutine et de la faire goûter à mes connaissances ici. Je leur ai aussi fait découvrir le Canada à travers quelques photos que j’avais et plusieurs petites anecdotes ici et là. Je me suis rendue compte à quel point le Canada est idolâtré par les gens d’ici. Pour eux, le Canada est une sorte de paradis où la vie est meilleure. Je me suis alors mise à penser à ça. Et sincèrement, j’ai eu de la difficulté à déterminé lequel des 2 pays était meilleur. Les 2 ont des côtés positifs et négatifs. Je me suis mise à penser qu’un mélange des deux pays serait parfait.

Cependant, ce qui fait la beauté de toutes choses ou ce qui les rends uniques c’est leurs bons ET mauvais côtés. Je ne peux donc pas dire lequel je préfère. Je crois que 6 mois au Canada et 6 mois au Burkina, me plairait bien!

Ce voyage m’a tellement apporté. Comme j’ai dit un peu plus haut, j’ai aussi apporté une contribution au réseau pour lequel je travaillais, mais ce n’est nullement comparable à tout ce que j’ai pu apprendre ici. Le mode de vie ici est simplifié. Je me souviens qu’à mon arrivé au Burkina, lorsque je revenais à la maison je parlais un peu avec la famille où je logeais, puis je me rivais à mon ordinateur pour garder le contact avec mes amis au Canada. Plus les semaines avançaient, plus je délaissais mon ordinateur pour me concentrer sur la vie social d’ici. Puis, sans que j’en aie conscience, les soirs et les week-ends je n’utilisais tout simplement plus mon ordinateur et j’en profitais pour voyager et tourner en ville avec mes amis d’ici. J’ai commencé à adopter les mêmes habitudes que les gens d’ici.

Je me demande sérieusement ce que je vais faire au Canada avec toutes ces habitudes. Par exemple, à 14h tous se rassemblent devant la télévision et écoutent la série qui passe. Au départ, je trouvais le jeu d’acteurs mauvais, la traduction pénible, puis tranquillement je suis devenue accro. Pas tant à la série, mais plutôt au moment que tous passent ensemble. Il n’est pas rare que 30 minutes après la fin de l’émission qu’on en discute encore. On en parle, comme si la série était réelle! J’ai aussi pris l’habitude après le travail de m’asseoir dans la cour ou dans la rue avec ma ‘’famille’’ et de discuter avec voisins et amis. Dans la rue, les gens me reconnaissent et me salut et je fais de même avec eux.

J’ai commencé à apprendre le Moré et à ponctuer mes phrases d’expressions Moré. Lorsque je vais au marché pour acheter de la salade, cela peut me prendre facilement 1h. Puisque aller acheter de la salade au marché, c’est tout un évènement social! Je rigole un peu, mais c’est quand même vrai. Je parle avec les dames du marché, elles me parlent de leur petite famille, etc. Les habitudes que j’ai prises ici ont toutes un lien avec l’aspect social. Je dois avouer que j’ai un peu peur pour mon retour au Canada.  Puisque je sais pertinemment qu’au Canada la vie sociale est moins riche. On ne prend pas la peine de se saluer ou d’engager une vraie conversation.

Je pourrais continuer de le faire à mon retour, mais j’ai l’impression que socialement parlant les gens me trouveraient ‘’inadaptée’’. L’autre scénario serait que les gens y prennent goût comme moi.  J’espère que les gens vont y prendre goût, parce que j’ai vraiment l’impression que ce climat va énormément me manqué. J’ai aussi commencé à apprendre les rudiments de la langue, j’aurais énormément aimé continuer de l’apprendre et m’améliorer. Ce sont pleins de petites choses comme ça qui me font regretté que mon stage se finisse si tôt.

Mais en même temps, j’ai bien hâte de retrouver ma maison, mon lit, mes amis, la famille et tout ce que je connais. Par contre, j’ai  l’impression qu’eux vont toujours être là, tandis que le monde que je me suis construit ici, lui va disparaître.

Comme mes amis au Canada me disent : Une chance que tu as des cours à l’université à ton retour, sinon on a l’impression que tu resterais là-bas….Et ils n’ont pas totalement tort!

Salam Aleikoum tout le monde (Bonjour en Wolof),

Déjà à la 9^e semaine, le temps passe encore plus vite que le début. Les grandes chaleurs viennent de commencer. À Dakar, il peut atteindre les 35 degrés, mais lorsque je voyage les fins de semaine, il peut atteindre 40 degrés et plus.

Mon premier billet sur le blog de la faculté vous donnait de l’information sur l’arrivée des élections présidentielles et ses violentes manifestations. Heureusement pour moi, la journée des élections c’est très bien passé. Il y a eu quelques retards au démarrage dans certains bureaux de vote, car certains présidents de bureaux sont arrivés en retard. Tout au long de la journée, dans toutes les régions, un sentiment de calme prédominait malgré les inquiétudes liées à l’incertitude des résultats. Quelques jours plus tard, les résultats annoncent une participation de moins de 60% et lancent officieusement le début de la campagne pour un deuxième tour d’élection entre Abdouleye Wade et Macky Sall, le 25 mars 2012. En espérant que cette journée sera aussi calme que la première.

Depuis les 3 dernières semaines, j’ai été très occupée au travail. Pour accomplir mon mandat, élaborer un nouveau plan stratégique, j’ai organisé une grande rencontre avec tous les membres du Conseil d’Administration du Réseau Siggil Jigéen (RSJ) et quelques représentants du CECI pour un total de 13 personnes. Cette rencontre a permis d’analyser les nouveaux enjeux auxquels le RSJ voudrait s’engager et a permis aussi de faire un diagnostic organisationnel (forces/faiblesses) du RSJ.

Par la suite, j’ai organisé 1 atelier, sur deux jours, qui a réuni les 16 associations membres du Réseau et deux représentants du CECI (41 pers.). Dans le cadre du renforcement institutionnel du RSJ, nous avons élaboré un diagnostic interne de chaque association afin d’évaluer leur niveau organisationnel et d’établir l’état des lieux de la synergie entre les structures. Cet atelier a permis également d’échanger sur des questions fondamentales relatives au Réseau, notamment son fonctionnement, forces, faiblesses (problèmes) et son mutisme sur d’importants sujets d’actualité. Tous ses éléments s’inscriront dans l’élaboration de mon plan stratégique afin de renforcer la dynamique organisationnelle entre ses membres.

Pour organiser ses rencontres, je du préparer des termes de références (justification de la rencontre, objectifs, résultats attendus, agenda, nombre de personnes invitées, budget) et j’ai rédigé des lettres d’invitation pour convoquer les participants. Je suis bien contente du déroulement de la rencontre et de l’atelier, cela a été très fructueux, toutefois, il reste beaucoup de travail et d’atelier à organiser pour compléter mon mandat. Par manque de temps, je n’aurai pas la chance de terminer ce travail fastidieux, mais j’espère que les membres pourront terminer ce travail afin d’améliorer la situation interne du Réseau.

Pendant mon stage, je lis beaucoup les journaux. Cela me permet de me tenir au courant des événements et de faire des analyses avec la théorie que j’ai apprise à l’Université, car nombreux sont les problèmes dans les différents domaines et le fruit de mes efforts est très fructueux. À certains moments dans mon travail, je me suis rendu compte que nos méthodes ne sont parfois pas appropriées à certains pays en développement, d’où l’importance de faire des études avant de développer une idée ou un projet dans un pays différent du nôtre.

Dans un autre ordre d’idée, j’ai réalisé qu’à un moment donné, j’étais en choc culturel. Certaines personnes ne comprenaient pas le français donc cela me frustrait. Je m’ennuyais de mes amis au Canada et entre blanc dans la rue, il n’y a aucune salutation, ni de regard échangé. Pour régler le tout, j’ai commencé à faire du sport et à rencontrer plus de personnes pour être plus entourée. Depuis, je me sens bien !

Pour la première fois, j’ai été malade 2 mois après mon arrivée au Sénégal. Selon deux hypothèses, c’est soit une intoxication alimentaire avec des crevettes pas fraîches ou le paludisme parce que je m’étais fait piquer énormément par des moustiques en une seule nuit. En résumé, je suis allée à l’hôpital deux fois et je suis allée à 4 pharmacies pour trouver tous les médicaments dont j’avais besoin. C’est très difficile psychologiquement lorsque tu es malade et que tu n’es pas chez toi, ni au Canada et ni à Dakar, mais dans un village éloigné.

Être loin de ma famille pendant si longtemps et avoir été témoin d’une multitude de situations, ça a changé ma perception de beaucoup de choses. Ça me fait encore plus apprécier le fait que ma famille soit ensemble, sous le même toit, dans le même pays et non pas éparpillée à travers le monde, prisonnière de pays plus riches desquels on n’ose pas repartir. La famille des pays en développement est très unie, donc il ne laisse pas de côté les aînés. Tout le monde sait qu’on abandonne nos aînés dans des centres spéciaux avec des purs inconnus qui s’en occupent. Même en étant industrialisé, sur certains points, on devrait prendre quelquefois exemple sur les pays en développement concernant certaines valeurs…

Je vais tenter d’en profiter au maximum avant le départ, malgré que je sois très occupée avec le travail et mon rapport de stage.   

Ba benene (À la prochaine),

Inch Allah

I’m not a big fan of cliches, but when I think of how little time is left at my placement in Vietnam the expression “time flies” seems appropriate. As I was getting over jet lag, the country was getting over Tet lag, and finally in mid-February things at work really picked up. Admittedly, teaching english was awkward at first, and it took about month, but I’ve finally found my groove. At last! Also, the students are very eager to learn, but are also keen to play games and joke around. This has also helped to create a more relaxed classroom atmosphere, and makes teaching a blast.

Also, a few weeks ago I started presented two soft skills workshops I prepared on teamwork and leadership, and communication skills with the help of some very lovely and very patient translators. Before preparing the workshops I conducted a small-scale survey to get an idea of what the student’s needs were. It turns out, there is a lot of skills they want to be more informed about so I’ve tried to squeeze as much as possible into these workshops such as information on job interview skills, conflict resolution, and constructive feedback. Doing workshops in English with Vietnamese translations needed intermittently has been interesting in terms of keeping people’s attention, but for the most parts the students seem enthusiastic about the subject matter and are always respectful despite their initial shock at my age (most are older than me). Again, it helps that there are many games included to encourage practice and participation. Teaching and presenting has also given me valuable insight into the realities of the students. For example, one of the teamwork activities included in the workshop asked students to think of the worst tv show the know and come up with the ways to make it better. After some small discussion, the students informed me that they didn’t know how to do the activity because they never had time to watch television. Also,  ”no time” is a common answer to the question “what do you like to do in your free time?” when practicing conversational English with the girls in one of my classes. Between work, school, and the basics like sleeping and eating there isn’t much time for leisure activities. I’m continuously amazed by their work ethic and determination, and the fact that they can even stay awake during the workshops…

In terms of living in Vietnam, although I feel like I’ve settled down and gotten into a nice routine, things still surprise me. It’s surprising to see how many egg cartons people can carry on the back of their motorbikes. It’s surprising to see the crowded turkey fight going on just outside of the bus station. It’s surprising what I’ve eaten here (*cough* duck fetus) despite being vegetarian before I left. It’s surprising how many teenage girls want their picture taken with me. The best surprise of all, by far, is people’s kindness. I never would’ve imagined people anywhere in the world being this nice to a stranger. Every time I hop on the public bus people immediately want to know where I’m going and if I know how to get there. Even on crowded buses older ladies invite me to sit on their lap, which I politely decline for fear of crushing them. Also countless of people have invited me into their homes for amazing meals and have treated me like family. I’ve been so lucky to find many second homes here, from my host family, to my loving co workers who insist on feeding me and get worried if they think I’m not eating enough. The support of my friends and the WUSC staff in Hanoi have also been invaluable. Honestly, I’m not quite sure what I did to deserve such kindness but it’s something I’ll never forget.

Additionally, I’ve had the pleasure to travel around Vietnam. Hanoi alone is a pretty happenin’ city, and there are many cultural and historical sites to visit at the weekend. I’ve also been taken to many beautiful pagodas and temples, one of which we had to climb a huge mountain to reach! The college staff also invited me to travel with them to Sa Pa, an amazingly beautiful area known for it’s landscapes but also for the area’s northern hill tribes. Last weekend I finally went to Halong Bay, a must for anyone visiting Vietnam. It’s pretty neat what nature can do.

I’m anxious to know what the next few weeks will be like as I wrap up my time at North Thang Long Economic Technical College. Oddly enough, the only thing I know for sure though is that I can expect many more surprises.

Now that I am two months in I figure it’s about time for a reflection on my internship as a whole thus far: how this experience has influenced my future and how my university schooling prior to my internship has helped me here.

First and foremost this experience has affected me in ways I did not foresee. As with most experiences in life things do not usually go as planned, but always end up leaving you with something good and worth-while (and often better than what you had anticipated). At first I was slightly frustrated and disappointed that the mandate and working conditions would not be that of what I had expected (those of which the interns before me had and of which I thought I had signed up for), but over the past two months I can see that in many ways this discrepancy has turned into a wonderful and unique experience which has opened my eyes to new opportunities and positively changed my ambitions for the future.

As well as working on an evaluation of the Young Leaders Academy program I have been helping prepare for a human rights camp that is to take place on the island in the coming weeks. Working on both of these assignments has encouraged me to pursue a Masters in Conflict Studies and Human Rights to become a Human Rights Officer. Although this is not a new education and career path which I had never considered before, working on these assignments has allowed me to closely reflect on such an option and realize that it is something I am truly called to. It is funny how sometimes just what you were looking for all along was actually lying right in front of you the whole time, yet it takes a certain something to help you to see it in a new light. To try and explain specifically how my involvement in these assignments has lead me to this conclusion could take pages and pages of writing so I will spare you the explanation. But I will mention how fortunate I feel to have ended up with my current mandate (despite some of its short-comings) as it has led me to this conclusion.

On a slightly contradictory note, my experience here has also shown me that I do not need a big fancy Bachelors or Masters degree to make a difference. Sometimes with all of the complicated and complex information about the world and all its set-backs that university social science courses throw at you it can feel like you need super powers to make a change in the world. We’ve all heard the sayings “one person can make a difference” or “anyone can make a difference,” but this does not always feel as easy to do as it is to say. Working on Robben Island I see people making a difference every day. It doesn’t take someone with special training, a certificate or a fabulously brand new spectacular idea to make real change. The people here just get up and do it; they don’t let doubts in their abilities or worries about failing cause hesitation. I don’t know that they ever even think of this at all to be honest. If they have an idea (no matter how simple) that they think could have a positive impact they just go with it. They have confidence in their ideas and that is all takes; confidence, initiative and perseverance. This has truly convinced me that anyone can make a difference, it really isn’t that hard, and you don’t have to dedicate enormous effort and income to it; the most important step is just to try. And that is exactly what I am going to start doing more of when I get back to Canada. Now, to avoid the risk of sounding like a cliché broken record I will move onto my next point.

OK so I know I just went on and on about how you don’t need degrees etcetera to make a big difference, but now I am going to contradict myself once again by saying that my university experience has actually really helped me during this internship. It is not so much the crystallized knowledge that I have attained, but more so it is the perspective lens through which I see the world, the aptitude for independent initiative, and the critical analysis and problem solving skills that I have developed through my studies which has helped me here. Thanks to university I have been prepped in receiving big projects with hardly any instructions, where you just have to “figure it out on your own.” I have learned to be comfortable with receiving intimidating and overwhelming tasks and take them in strides without getting stressed or losing confidence. University has taught me how to find quality solutions to a seemingly hopeless assignment or situation. And I am honestly not just saying all this for a grade or because it might be what the university wants to read. This internship really has significantly contributed to revealing how valuable my social sciences degree has been for both my personal and professional development.