Studying at a Faculty of Foreign Languages in Russia brought to me to the USA to work as a counselor at a YMCA camp. I was ready for the experience and everything that came with it. The camp was located in New Hampshire near a lake surrounded by heavy woods. I worked as a counselor before in Russia, but the camp in the US was different. In Russia the camps for kids were just like homes with big rooms placing up to twenty children, and they were slightly furnished with beds, bedside cabinets and drawings on the walls penciled by campers. The YMCA camp had children placed in a big cabin with bunk beds with no mattresses and kids slept in sleeping bags. Huge difference! It looked like a survival zone and I was taken aback.
The cultural shock was terrible. Then other counselors started to arrive- from England, European countries, Australia, New Zealand and the Americans who already were there. Here was me, from Russia, having no previous exposure to so many accents trying to understand what they were talking about and to get engaged in the conversation. I waited for that trip to the US for so long and so anxiously, but at that moment I wanted to immediately go back to Russia. That how bad it was. I couldn't think straight, there was only one thought in my mind - I must go back. So I burst into tears. The girl from England approached me, began talking, and I listened attentively to what she was saying. I eventually composed myself and answered back. I understood her. The dialogue finished with her bringing me a sleeping bag and I decided to sleep on it.
Next day things got better as I met Russian speaking persons and I felt braver talking to the rest of the stuff. After a week of training I was ready to be a counselor.
http://campfoss.org/
The cultural shock was terrible. Then other counselors started to arrive- from England, European countries, Australia, New Zealand and the Americans who already were there. Here was me, from Russia, having no previous exposure to so many accents trying to understand what they were talking about and to get engaged in the conversation. I waited for that trip to the US for so long and so anxiously, but at that moment I wanted to immediately go back to Russia. That how bad it was. I couldn't think straight, there was only one thought in my mind - I must go back. So I burst into tears. The girl from England approached me, began talking, and I listened attentively to what she was saying. I eventually composed myself and answered back. I understood her. The dialogue finished with her bringing me a sleeping bag and I decided to sleep on it.
Next day things got better as I met Russian speaking persons and I felt braver talking to the rest of the stuff. After a week of training I was ready to be a counselor.
http://campfoss.org/
OMG! Your pics are so beautiful! No wonder you wnat to be in a TESOL program. You are a world traveler!
ReplyDeleteI was prepared for a culture shock when coming to America. I knew I was going to deal with a completely different culture and different values. What I didn’t expect how alienated I felt most of the time with people of my own community. The life for them had become a race between work and food store. All the talks were about money and how to compete. I missed intelligent conversations and talks about art, theatre and good music. I still remember the feeling of regret and my enormous wish to go back where I belonged.
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