Sunday, February 26, 2012
Rotary Ski Trip
I just returned home about an hour or two ago from a fantastic weekend! Today was the last day of our weekend ski trip- my first skiing experience ever. I picked up quickly though and even got on an intermediate slope on my first day! Hopefully I'll learn even more while I'm in Finland since I'm sure I'll end up skiing there at some point. This was the first time I got to know some of the Rotary people, and we had so much fun. I met Giselle, from Taiwan, and, though I had already met David from the Czech Republic at orientation, we definitely got acquainted, and by the end of the weekend we were all teasing each other and getting along great. I also got to know Emmy and Raven better, both outbound students like me. Emmy is going to Spain, and Raven is going to France. I think the best part of my weekend was being pulled across the flat parts at the ski resorts by David. Kudos to him, his arms are probably sore.... And a huge thanks to Rotary for paying for everything; I'm pretty sure I have to diet for at least a month to make up for the exorbitant amount of food we consumed last night alone....
Monday, February 20, 2012
Homework, Check!
As time has passed, I've realized how silly my blog's title is... But in reality I am completely indifferent to this. It makes me laugh, so we'll roll with it.
Anyway, today I finished my last two homework assignments, due before the ski trip next weekend! I had to write 200 words on what Rotary is, 500 words on the US, WV, and Morgantown, and then 3 things that impress me about my host country. I definitely think the first and third were the most interesting. Mostly because I already know what there is to know about the US and WV and Morgantown so it was rather boring to write about. Learning more about Rotary was good though; it feels nice to get to know the program which I'll be traveling abroad with. As for the 3 impressive things about Finland, I had a little help. My mom, being a concerned and curious parent, did research on Finland and discovered that they had a great education system (something she was thankful for, seeing as she's worried I'll become indifferent towards my studies while abroad), and she also found out that Finland is known for their great fabrics. Needless to say, I'll be returning with a suitcase full of colorful fabrics for my mother. As for my third impressive thing, I asked a foreign exchange student at my school, Toby, for advice. He gave me tons of suggestions, like the molotov cocktail, which is a bomb, and Nokio, the electronics company. But after a little research, I settled on saunas, if only because I didn't want to give the impression of being an extremely violent person for having found the molotov cocktail very interesting. But anyway, I can't wait to try the saunas. I'm kind of hoping I won't have to do it in the nude, but if I do, hey, its all part of the experience!
I'm not looking forward to the 1000 word history on Finland, mostly because I'd rather just read up on it, and not have to compose an essay, but I'm sure the research will be interesting... What I'm really dreading is learning the language. Or maybe not dreading, because I do want to learn, but I'm pretty worried. Toby told me that there was an exchange student at his school from the U.S. and he never learned Finnish. I'm sure I'll be different though. I have the personality to need to communicate. So even if I make a fool of myself, at least I'll be learning! I looked into the Rosetta Stone demo thing we got at orientation, but of course Finnish wasn't one of the languages they offered. So I checked itunesu, and of course there wasn't anything there either. So then I tried youtube. Most of what I saw was childish though. I did learn how to say fire though! (tuli) But I'm not sure how often I'll be using that word... Oh, and I know how to say hello and goodbye! So I guess I'm set for about three situations. Saying hello, awkwardly waiting for a conversation to end, saying goodbye, and screaming "FIRE!" when my host mother's cooking goes horribly wrong.... Till next time!
Anyway, today I finished my last two homework assignments, due before the ski trip next weekend! I had to write 200 words on what Rotary is, 500 words on the US, WV, and Morgantown, and then 3 things that impress me about my host country. I definitely think the first and third were the most interesting. Mostly because I already know what there is to know about the US and WV and Morgantown so it was rather boring to write about. Learning more about Rotary was good though; it feels nice to get to know the program which I'll be traveling abroad with. As for the 3 impressive things about Finland, I had a little help. My mom, being a concerned and curious parent, did research on Finland and discovered that they had a great education system (something she was thankful for, seeing as she's worried I'll become indifferent towards my studies while abroad), and she also found out that Finland is known for their great fabrics. Needless to say, I'll be returning with a suitcase full of colorful fabrics for my mother. As for my third impressive thing, I asked a foreign exchange student at my school, Toby, for advice. He gave me tons of suggestions, like the molotov cocktail, which is a bomb, and Nokio, the electronics company. But after a little research, I settled on saunas, if only because I didn't want to give the impression of being an extremely violent person for having found the molotov cocktail very interesting. But anyway, I can't wait to try the saunas. I'm kind of hoping I won't have to do it in the nude, but if I do, hey, its all part of the experience!
I'm not looking forward to the 1000 word history on Finland, mostly because I'd rather just read up on it, and not have to compose an essay, but I'm sure the research will be interesting... What I'm really dreading is learning the language. Or maybe not dreading, because I do want to learn, but I'm pretty worried. Toby told me that there was an exchange student at his school from the U.S. and he never learned Finnish. I'm sure I'll be different though. I have the personality to need to communicate. So even if I make a fool of myself, at least I'll be learning! I looked into the Rosetta Stone demo thing we got at orientation, but of course Finnish wasn't one of the languages they offered. So I checked itunesu, and of course there wasn't anything there either. So then I tried youtube. Most of what I saw was childish though. I did learn how to say fire though! (tuli) But I'm not sure how often I'll be using that word... Oh, and I know how to say hello and goodbye! So I guess I'm set for about three situations. Saying hello, awkwardly waiting for a conversation to end, saying goodbye, and screaming "FIRE!" when my host mother's cooking goes horribly wrong.... Till next time!
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Are We Having Fun Yet?
Today was the first day of orientation! In almost exactly six months, I'll be off for Finland. I don't know where in Finland, or who my host family will be, or where I'll go to school. I don't know how to speak any Finnish, let alone repeat the alphabet. But, hey! That's the fun of it, isn't it? And once I get there, it's not like it'll matter. Whether they speak fluent English or none at all, I know I'll have the best experience of my life. I'll learn about myself and about others, and I'll never want to come home... Right? Right. Jumping from a relatively small town in West Virginia to the other side of the Atlantic won't be a big deal...
Here's a little about my life, pre-Finland. My name is Lucie, and I'm currently 16 years old. I go to Morgantown High School, and this year, I'll finally be graduating. I've lived in the same house all my life, and I've loved my hometown since the very beginning. My parents both work at West Virginia University. My mom is from France, and she moved to a town called Moultrie, Georgia, when she was 20 to marry my father. They had my sister, Allison, and then moved to Alabama, where they had my brother, Alexander. They were both offered jobs at WVU, and they moved to Morgantown and had me! We speak French at home, which means I'm fluent in both English (obviously) and French. Every summer, my mom teaches a program that she started with my dad in '89. I used to go with them every year, but last year I couldn't go since I went on a trip to Mexico. The summer before that, after my sophomore year, I had to leave France early to go on a trip to Canada. I think it's fair to say I've traveled quite a bit... This summer, I'll be in Germany for two weeks too. It's always been my dream to travel, to learn everything about the world that I can. I hope I'll be able to travel for my job, but I'm not sure how I'll manage that yet. Mainly, I'm interested in psychology, and I hope to do something involving social work or maybe nonprofit organizations. But my career seems a long way off. After all, I don't even know what college I'll be attending! I just hope it's not at home. Like I said before, I love Morgantown, but I've been here all my life. I don't think I'll be able to return after a year in Europe. So hopefully, I'll be accepted to McGill University, in Montreal, and I'll live my college days off switching between French and English, and maybe some Finnish too! If I ever learn it... I hear it's pretty complex. But then again, if it was easy, would it really be worth doing? I guess we'll find out!
Here's a little about my life, pre-Finland. My name is Lucie, and I'm currently 16 years old. I go to Morgantown High School, and this year, I'll finally be graduating. I've lived in the same house all my life, and I've loved my hometown since the very beginning. My parents both work at West Virginia University. My mom is from France, and she moved to a town called Moultrie, Georgia, when she was 20 to marry my father. They had my sister, Allison, and then moved to Alabama, where they had my brother, Alexander. They were both offered jobs at WVU, and they moved to Morgantown and had me! We speak French at home, which means I'm fluent in both English (obviously) and French. Every summer, my mom teaches a program that she started with my dad in '89. I used to go with them every year, but last year I couldn't go since I went on a trip to Mexico. The summer before that, after my sophomore year, I had to leave France early to go on a trip to Canada. I think it's fair to say I've traveled quite a bit... This summer, I'll be in Germany for two weeks too. It's always been my dream to travel, to learn everything about the world that I can. I hope I'll be able to travel for my job, but I'm not sure how I'll manage that yet. Mainly, I'm interested in psychology, and I hope to do something involving social work or maybe nonprofit organizations. But my career seems a long way off. After all, I don't even know what college I'll be attending! I just hope it's not at home. Like I said before, I love Morgantown, but I've been here all my life. I don't think I'll be able to return after a year in Europe. So hopefully, I'll be accepted to McGill University, in Montreal, and I'll live my college days off switching between French and English, and maybe some Finnish too! If I ever learn it... I hear it's pretty complex. But then again, if it was easy, would it really be worth doing? I guess we'll find out!
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