Last Friday I attended the CIES open house to see the students' presentations about their cultures. It was fantastic! There was so much food and music and dancing. I hadn't expected anything so extravagant--maybe just some history-fair type poster boards and a meager pot luck. All of the student were incredibly enthusiastic. They all brought something unique to the event, whether it be a keepsake from their home country, their dance moves, their dress, or just their personality. As far as dancing and personality go, the Africa room took the prize in both. You could hear the students laughing and clapping from down the hall as they danced and cheered each other on. I recall saying to Matt I felt like they were having more fun than I'm capable of.
I went to see Ali in the Middle East room. This was chapter one in the story of Matt and I's downward spiral into a caffiene bender. Here we had dates and chai--what a delicious combination. I had the pleasure of meeting Ali's previous tutor, whose name is also Sarah, and who--like me--completed the TEFL certification with her boyfriend. The two of them will be teaching English in Turkey. From here I migrated to the Brazil room to see my conversation partners, Carlos and Isabela. Isabela immediately directed me to the coffee and sweets. This was the best coffee I've ever had by far, and I took shot after shot of it. Carlos was in good spirits despite having recieved some bad news just the day before. He was busy teaching a group of girls some dance moves. Isabela guided me around the periphery of the activity, explaining to me some of the various displays around the room. She taught me a few common Portuguese phrases and showed me pictures of Minas Gerais, the area she is from.
No comments:
Post a Comment