IS THE SUMMER ALMOST OVER ALREADY?!?!

Now that many of you are well into your internships (some of you finished or nearly finished your 13 weeks already), any thoughts on how this experience has influenced you? Ana in Brazil’s post, titled “The most beautiful landfill I have ever seen”Turning point”, and Ally in Italy’s post, titled “thinking about the real world” have inspired more questions in me for you! Have you become more aware of your actions? Have you noticed any changes in yourself (points of views, discussions, reactions, daily routines, values, feelings etc …)? How will you apply your experience this summer to your studies next year? Have you learned about career paths you were unaware of before? Have you learned about a different path you can take to get to a career you already knew about? Has anyone asked their supervisors / coworkers about their career paths and how they got to where they are today?

Is your internship finished or almost over?

If your internship is over already or starting to approach the end it’s a good time to start thinking about what you could get involved in at home, to help ease the reverse culture shock you will experience coming back. Ask your placement if they are aware of or have connections with any similar organizations in Canada; plan on improving your language skills or cultural dance skills at home; don’t forget to note down contact information so you can stay in touch And never forget, if you find yourself struggling with reverse culture shock, our door is always open (Mon-Thurs 8:30am – 4:30pm (3:30pm Fri)) 200 York Lanes.

To the interns who have already completed their internships Oliver, Alley, Robyn, Rene, Tanner, Alina, Sudi, Miglena, Melinda, Andree, Evon, Brianna Congrats!  I hope it was as positive  an experience for you as mine was for me.

Blogs that caught my eye this week

HILARIOUS POST OF THE WEEK goes to Kelsey in Spain. Kelsey’s post titled “Apartment lock out part 2” had me literally laughing out loud. - Kelsey as amusing as this post was, please no more climbing through windows like that! It looks very dangerous! Suggestion: make a spare key and leave it with a friend you trust who lives close by!

Short but Awsome read of the week! I don’t know what it is about her last three posts but Astrid in Rwanda’s short snippets of her life in Rwanda make an excellent quick read! I especially like the poem Astrid posted called “Go now and Live”

Another Hilarious post! What is the moment in your internship you will always remember? While Jenelle in Costa Rica has many happy memories, she will never forget being stung by a bee, jumping over an electrical fence with a bird in her mouth in a lighting storm! Sound unbelievable? Read Jenelle’s post for the full story!

Robin in South Africa and Tiffany in St. Kitts – interesting posts on English to English translation! Yes even the interns in countries where English is predominantly spoken have language barriers at times! 

Tiffany’s most recent post titled “A reason to celebrate” also really touched me. Has anyone else noticed how such a small gesture can make such a difference?

As for news from the home front its another long weekend this weekend! And so far the weather is beautiful!

Have a great weekend where ever you will be!

Lisa

WHAT DID YOUUUUUU DO FOR CANADA DAY?

Happy Belated Canada day everyone!  Hope you all had a fabulous weekend; I know Lucas in Ottawa  did. He updated his blog with two Post titles this weekend 1. "Guess who is seeing Will and Kate tommorow"  2.“OTTAWA FOR CANADA DAY IS THE DEFINITION OF INSANE” – How did you celebrate last weekend Lucas?!? Please post a story behind those titles! Did anybody else celebrate it where they are?

Here in Toronto we had beautiful weather the entire weekend accompanied by fireworks, festivities and the pride parade on Sunday! (HAPPY PRIDE) – This was the first time I had ever gone to Pride Toronto and I loved it! The energy was high, the music was awesome, the floats were colorful and the crowd was so unified and so diverse - young, old, from different countries, different religions, handicapable… the list goes on and on, it seemed like everyone but Ford was at the parade!

Speaking of Festivities, HHHHAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPPYYYYYYY BELATED BIRTHDAYS!!!!

It seems like quite a few of you have celebrated your birthdays while on your internship! Happy Belated Birthday to Alexandra, Sarah,  Ardavan, Emily H, Robin and Nargis from YIIP! What does getting older mean to you? How is getting older viewed in your host country? Besides celebrating your own birthday abroad has anyone been invited to a birthday party yet? How was it different/ similar to how birthdays are celebrated at home?

Continuing with the theme of festivities, I am also extremely pleased to see that many of you are going out to local festivals! The pictures look amazing and the food sounds delicious!

Check out:

Festa Junina e Boi Bumba in Brazil posted on Kathryn in Brazil’s blog
Pride El Salvador posted on Sarah In El Salvador’s blog 

Been to a cool festival? Blog about it! Oh and Pictures please!

Blogs that caught my eye this week:

Alina in Nicaragua – Awesome post on the definition of beauty in Nicaragua. Humorous with a deep message  – thanks for answering my questions Alina!

Tiffany in St. Kitts - Lot’s of photos and good posts. Tiffany’s accounts truly document the life of someone living abroad vs. someone being a tourist abroad. Check out the festivals she has gone to, the teams she has joined, the meals she has share with her new community but also the harsh realities she sees around her. 

Ardavan in Barbados  - has some great post about how life and his position in Barbados are having a positive influence on him. I especially like his post on “Something that touched my heart”, though taking the lead on a project can be a lot of work, those who put in the time and effort often gain the most – see Ardavan’s post for a good read. 

Sucdi in Kenya – It’s great to see the positive impact that many of you are having on your community. Check out Sucdi’s post “Something I will Never Forget” to find out how a woman in her community honored her.

How many points on the scavenger hunt checklist have YOU checked off already?!?!

If your answer is between 0-3

 PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE get at LEAST one out this week.

Keep having an amazing time!

Regards,

Lisa Your  most dedicated blog reading fan at home!

OOoo Nice Pictures!

Check out these blogs for some amazing photos:

• Erika in Fez - Check out  Erika's photos of Fez, what a site to see!
• Alex in Italy -  Scroll up and down alex's blog for a glimpse of the italian life
• Jenelle in Costa Rica - Awsome pictures of wild life in CR!
• Emily in China -  Rural schools in China look so different from what I imagined. Great pictures emily!

Questions inspired by your blogs

After reading all of your blogs, (Yes I am reading all of them!) I have soooo many questions to ask all of you! Here is my list of questions so far:

• What are some of the big differences your are noticing between Canada and your host country?

             Oliver in Germany mentioned the fact that everyone smokes everywhere in Germany! For those of you in countries where smoking is allowed in the office, in restaurants, everywhere, does it seem odd to you?

• Are you treated differently/ given special treatment because you are North American? Canadian? 
• Do you feel more at home in your host country now or do you still feel like a visitor?

Feelings have been mixed across the blogs. Some interns express that every day culture shock leaves them feeling like a visitor, while others feel right at home 

•  Have you had any cravings since you have been abroad? Has it been easy to satisfy those cravings?

Cravings that have stood out so far: Sushi, Excercise and Independance

•  Have you Splurged on anything since you've been abroad? If so, what did you splurge on?
• Is there anything you have abraod that you wish Canada had?

Even though many of you are in countries described as "third world", quite a few of you are praising these countries for many things: their economical cellphone plans, cultural events, food... the list goes on. Apparently in Argentina there  is even an entire towns with WIFI (not just restaurantes, houses and cafes but literally every where!). Dear Canada may I make a suggestion...

• Are any of you adressed with new terms of respect? Or have any of you developed new names/ nicknames within your work place or communities?

I found it so interesting that Stephanie in India is greeted by local school girls as Aunty.

Interesting posts this week:

• Sophie in Vietnam - In vietnamese "xe om" is the name for motor bike taxis. In English this literally translates to "Bike Hug". In her latest post Sophie has started a list of "funny things she sees on motorbikes"  Take a look at sophie's blog to find out what's on that list. PICTURES PLEASE! I'd like to see how some of those items fit on a tiny motorcycle!
• Lynsey in Uganda - Check out lynsey's "something that touched my heart". It's amazing how those with so little are so willing to share whatever they have.

News from home

The weather has finally become nice and sunny at home! For the past few weeks Convacation has been taking place at York and weekends in the city have been filled with street festivals! (Taste of Italy was last weekend!).

With the nice weather in Toronto, your posts of exploration, dancing, adventure and fun have inspired a little adventure in me as well! Two weeks ago I went to an international paint party concert for a mexican DJ with some friends and I had an amazing time! Clowns on stilts threw paper confetti  and sprayed fog in the air while the DJ had the crowd dancing! Giant balloons fell from the ceiling; popping and splattering paint all over us as canons on stage also shot out paint! Check out the picture below!

That's all for now! Continue blogging - I love reading your thoughts and stories!



News from the home front:

 VANCOUVER CANUKS VS. BOSTON BRUINS!

Final game of the Stanley Cup was a Riot!

NO, LITTERALLY!

While in Spain locals riot in the streets, waving the national flag, demanding social change ( see photos on Chris' Blog and Kelsey's Blog), this Wednesday there were riots at home as well. After the Canuks lost 4-0 to the Bruins, angry Canuk's fans went wild in the streets of Vancouver. Vehicles were turned over, store windows were smashed and garbage cans were set on fire. The city remained trashed for the night. But all is restored now as locals and city officals cleaned everything up the next day. I can only imagine what some of you must be thinking:

Dear Vancouver,
                              
  Nice to see you riot over the important things.
   
   Sincerely, those of us fighting for social justice and civil rights. 

Let the blogging begin!

It's exciting to see YIIP Blogs spring up from all over the world! Many of your blogs have already made me drool, get goose bumps, laugh and literally say out loud - NO WAY!

I strongly encourage everyone to check out other YIIP blogs. You'll never believe what some YIIPers are experiencing half way around the world! 

These blogs in particular caught my attention this week:

Sarah’s blog from El Salvador http://solidarityseeker.tumblr.com/

 

Thugs steal water pipes which leave many towns without water! Seriously? Wouldn’t somebody notice people digging that deep? And why steel water pipes? (Also on this blog, a really interesting account of a new brides life in El Salvador.)

Alina’s Blog from Nicaragua http://girlwithhugebackpackinnica.tumblr.com/

An interesting picture is posted on Alina’s blog which reads “WARNING: reflections in this mirror may be distorted by socially constructed ideas of ‘beauty’ ”. Alina, I am extremely interested in knowing what made you post this picture? Does it reflect the definition of beauty in Nicaragua? Or could it be how you view the definition of beauty in North America after comparing it to that of Nicaragua? 

After seeing Alina's picture and reading Sudi’s post http://sucdi.wordpress.com/ on the definition of  beauty in Kenya,  I remember how the definition of beauty  in El Salvador affected me. I felt more content, confident and beautiful in El Salvador than I had ever felt at home. How is the definition of beauty where you are affecting you?

Oliver’s Blog from Germany http://olivershen.wordpress.com/

A LAUNDRY CAFÉ ! – Totally Bizarre but interesting in my opinion!  How does it work you ask? Read Oliver’s post called “Laundry and Life lessons” posted on May 17^th to find out. (Tons of beautiful pictures of Germany too!)

Brianna’s Blog from Kenya www.creativeinkenya.wordpress.com

Brianna crosses off  “what I value” on her scavenger hunt list.  Her accounts of the education and health system she is witnessing seem unreal to me at home. After complaining about taking French in summer school for the last few weeks I think I’ll shut up now.

Robin’s Blog from South Africa http://adventureinjoburg.blogspot.com/

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to eat a big, fat, Juicy CATERPILLAR? Robin can give you an account. Check out her post from May 18^th called “A few highlights” for the story. I found her most recent post quite interesting too! 

Alexandra’s Blog from Italy http://allyinitalia2011.blogspot.com/

A dynamic blog! The pictures of food have me drooling; the fact that she saw the girls from jersey shore is just… what are the chances?! And her latest posts on “the definition of beautiful in Italy” and “Work, work, work” had me chuckling.  

For those of you who haven't updated your blog yet, let's go! I am anxious to read about your adventures!

Your blogging mission:

Check off at least one of the ten statements found below every 2 week by blogging about it! (A minimum of 6 must be submitted by the end of your internship).

Scavenger Hunt Checklist

•  Something that touched your heart.

•  Something you now appreciate that you didn’t before.

•   A lesson learned.

• What you value.

• The definition of beautiful where you are.

•   A moment you will always remember.

•   See yourself through someone else’s eyes.

•   Best meal of the summer.

•   Movement.

•  Turning point. 

Be creative! This is your opportunity to briefly pull out of your day to day activities and reflect on who you are within this international experience. Developing this understanding will make your experience all the more meaningful.

As for what's new in Canada, today we are FINALLY having our first day of pure heat and sunshine! If this weather keeps up I will surely have some adventures of my own to update you with - until then, keep working hard!

Lisa The YIIP Assisant Alleyne