Connecting Lives, Sharing Cultures
The Adventurer
AFS Interculture Canada’s newsletter - Spring 2012 edition
A few pictures from Rebecca Schär (Switzerland), hosted in Yellowknife
‘‘ That’s me snowboarding in Canada Olympic Park when my host-family took me on a trip to Calgary (Alberta). ‘‘
‘‘ That is all of us inside my Quinzhee that my host-sister Kirstyn (on the left) taught me how to build. This is a traditional shelter that you build with snow in the winter. Otto the dog and I are on top, Claire is on the right and Karin is at the bottom. I may even sleep in it overnight....or not. ‘‘
‘‘ That’s me standing on the Ice Road that goes between Yellowknife and a small community called Dettah. The Ice Road is an actual road that goes across Great Slave Lake during the winter. The speed-limit is 30 km/h. ‘‘
A few pictures from Teresa Wintergerste (Switzerland), hosted in Abitibi
‘‘ Here are some pictures of our activity in the Aiguebelle Park. We did this activity with a friend from Amos and his father, Yvon. ‘‘
Teresa and Asadeh From left to right; Asadeh Foruzandeh (Germany), Teresa Wintergerste (Switzerland), Benjamin LeCouffe (Quebec) and Rasmus Tue Nielsen (Denmark).
The Villiard-Petit family’s journey in Thailand ‘‘ In 2009, my partner and I welcomed Mew (from Bangkok, Thailand) into our family. Mew was a courageous and exceptional teenager in our eyes. Since we really appreciated our time with her, we had promised to visit her one day. That year we thought about her a lot as her beautiful country was experiencing devastating floods. We therefore decided to visit her despite a 24 hour plane ride and our fears of the floods. We talked about it to some of our family members and 8 of them decided to come along and say hello to Mew. On November 14, 2011 we departed from Montreal, transfered in Japan, and finally landed in Bangkok. Once there, we had a wonderful trip where we had the privilege of meeting all of Mew’s family. She welcomed (all 10 of us) into her home where we were treated like kings! We spent for 18 days in Thailand. We took another plane to go from Bangkok to head to Koh Lanta (South Thailand) to see the most beautiful beaches in the world and spend a few more moments with Mew and her parents who came to visit the Koh Lanta National Park with us. ‘‘ -Karine Villiard
Testimony from the Lopez-Gibeault family ‘‘ It’s by pure chance that we discovered AFS and their activities and found out that over 140 youths from all over the world come every year to Quebec to discover our culture. Margarida, a 16 year old Portuguese girl, arrived at our home on a Thursday night with her small suitcase and accompanied by 2 AFS councilors. Her lovely smile and her intense desire to integrate herself into a Quebec family immediately charmed us. Getting to know one another could begin. She was learning how things were in Quebec and we were learning how it was in Portugal. An exchange on point of views and experiences that opened new horizons for all the family members. 4 months already! And we haven’t seen the time go by. The much anticipated (and feared!) winter arrived and every day, Margarida discovers new aspects of this season: the slowness and noise of stepd in snow, the light on the white blanket, the different types of snow, etc. My partner and I are simply thrilled with the experience. We recommend for everyone to live this experience that is so rewarding and enriching of welcoming a youth at home from a different culture. Thank you! ‘‘ -Lilian Lopez et Marc Gibeault
Intercultural Certificate: practical work #2 – The physical person Sophie Moise, Denmark The hug is exclusive to very close friends and I believe that it is just not part of their habits. As well, contrary to Québec where it is natural to ask how one is doing after the greeting, in Denmark, worrying about that is strange because, in fact, the question is only reserved for people who they are close with. (…) When we meet someone for the first time, it is a good first impression to give a good handshake, a strong presence. (…) When meeting members of the family that we don’t see every day, the greeting is very warm. For example, hugging is a common practice and men will kiss women once on the cheek.
‘‘ Since my arrival, I have noticed that Danes are very reserved. They are very far from the exuberance of the Italians or South Americans; they are more calm and introverted. This characteristic has a great impact of their way of interacting, talking and dressing. Greeting: The greeting is different depending of the person we are greeting. In general, friends will only say hej (hello in Danish) with or without a wave of the hand. (…)
Talking: Where to look when talking to someone? Good question! In fact, certain people will look others in the eyes, while others will try as hard as they can to avoid eye contact. I have also noticed that they rarely just talk. They will often do something at the same time, such as looking at Facebook on their phone or playing with something in their hands. (…) Plus, Danes speak just loud enough to be understood, they do not feel obligated to be any louder. I rarely saw any Dane express themselves with hand gestures. If it so happens that someone needs to use hand gestures, they will only use simple ones. (…) Final-
Nicolas Benoit-Morin (AFS student in India) received the Mr. Affable award by his scool principal for in answer to his amiable, cooperative, receptive and open to challenges personnality. The AFS India team joins AFS Interculture Canada in congratulating him!
ly, the distance between people who are talking is the same as in Québec, maybe a little bit bigger, but not that much. Clothing: Clothing is one the thing that shocked me the most when I came here! They are big believers in the “vintage” style and the high couture, something that contrasts against their rather quiet personalities. Girls wear shirts, shorts with tights, wool sweaters, as well as jean and chequered shirts. (…) For the guys, most of them have a pair of pants that gives the impression of hipsters and they also love skinny jeans with long knit shirts and sweaters. (…) Even though schools do not have a dress code, I never see any inappropriate clothing, meaning no belly shirts, spaghetti straps, no plunging necklines or low pants. (…) Finally, my observations permit me to conclude that Danes are not the kind of people to be very demonstrative. Their way of standing out is from their clothes and even then, their discretion is still visible. ‘‘
Montréal 3 students, 2 counselors, 2 host families and 2 volunteers from Montreal went skating on Mont-Royal. This get-together was organized by the local volunteers and everybody was happy to have the chance to chat and have fun together.
Deux-Monts ‘‘ Here is a picture take on February 11th during our trip to Quebec Winter Carnival. It was a day full of activities and everybody really enjoyed it! The other picture is from our Christmas dinner. Every students had to cook a dessert from their home country and they were about to share them.’’ -Johanne Ferland
Bois-Francs and Sherbrooke ‘‘ We held our mid-year orientation camp with the Sherbrooke chapter, in a reception room located in the woods in the Bois-Francs area, with a White-tailed deer reserve on the estate. In the afternoon, the students went sliding in St-Louis de Blandford. In the evening, we held the orientation workshops and the students teamed up to make gigerbread houses. The activity was organized by Nancy and Ginette Drouin from Sherbrooke and Yves Héroux, Denis de Billy and Céline Provencher from Bois-Francs. ‘‘ -Denis de Billy ‘‘ A mid-year orientation filled with fun, reflection, sharing and last but not least collaboration! The students and volunteers were very happy to see each other. The Bois-Francs and Sherbrooke chapters paired-up, so our 10 sudents would have a wonderful time together. We wish them a year filled with learning and happiness! ‘‘ -Nancy Drouin Evocative pictures…
Beauce ‘‘ The AFS Beauce chapter held it’s mid-year orientation in St-Victor. After the orientation activity, students, families and counselors went on a sleigh ride. People enjoyed a pit stop to feel the warmth of a fire, but also to taste marshmallows and saussages. Some even ate snow for the very first time! Another activity was organized for the AFS students; snow sculpture at the St-Georges skating rink. We are very proud of the students and their achievements! ‘‘ -Isabelle Larose Christmas international tasting, sleigh ride and other winter activities.
Mont-Laurier / Abitibi A freezing dip for the courageous and maple taffy for the sugar lovers!
Peel After their mid-year orientation, the Peel chapter’s students, volunteers and families went to Medieval Times, a chivalrous dinner and a show held in a castle in Toronto.
The Intercultural Corner This section of The Adventurer offers articles that invite all those involved with AFS; from participants to returnees, volunteers to host families, to broaden their cultural perspective and improve their intercultural knowledge. These readings will cover a variety of themes such as the concept of culture, cultural values, communication styles, cultural adaptation, etc. This month we are happy to share with you a text that will allow you to differentiate between cultural generalizations and stereotypes. Happy reading !
Find the words in horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines
Z K O G K C A N S S D T T U R K I C E L W Q J C G H A N H S S Q Q M M G K R N W A U S T H H H S Z M K W X X S I Y D N P
I A H E A N A A J Y R V S H D
W D A Y N N R A Q P A B I M E
P A I U D Y P V A O L L A U N
O I L J S A X R N B I L K F M
R L A K N T A Y O P A J A I A
ARGENTINA AUSTRALIA AUSTRIA BOLIVIA CANADA DENMARK FINLAND GHANA HUNGARY ICELAND INDIA JAPAN LATVIA MALAYSIA PARAGUAY PERU PHILIPPINES PORTUGAL THAILAND TURKEY
T A N N R G R L P Y A Q I N R
U T D K U O I I S Z L V Q L K
G V W A P V N I A M U T I A L
A I Y U I E A R G E N T I N A
L A E A S C R Y R R U A J D H
J W O L N A B U X D I N D I A
Spot the 7 differences
Answer Key
Z K S T I W G H Q K A H Z X Y
K O G I W C A N A D S D T H A U R K E Y C E L A N Q J C N N H A N A R S S Q A A M M G J Q R N W Y P U S T R A H H S V B M K W S I X S I H M D N P D E
P O R A I L I L A U J K D S N Y A T P X A V R Y A N O O B P L I A L L J A K A U F I N M A
T A N N R G R L P Y A Q I N R
U G A T V I D W Y K A U U P I O V E I N A I I R S A G Z M E L U N V T T Q I I L A N K L A
L J A W E O A L S N C A R B Y U R X R D U I A N J D D I H A