Emily_CP_10

I’ve spent a lot of time with my conversation partners lately, so for my last CP post I’ll just talk about what all we’ve done recently. For Thanksgiving, Amanda and Laura were part of the international entourage that came to my house. Three girls from Holland and a guy from Kuwait came as well.  It was such a fun day!  They were all so appreciative. We stopped to take pictures by the Georgia and Florida signs, had a traditional Thanksgiving meal, hung out with my family, explored downtown Thomasville, made bananas foster, and did a little Black Friday shopping when we got back to Tallahassee that night. They loved my dog as well. It was a great experience.

Several of my tutees and conversation partners invited me to the CIES International dinner. Earlier that day, I took Soren shopping at the mall because he wanted to buy some American clothes before heading back to Denmark. He gave me a Danish Christmas calendar, which I’m excited about. It’s also noticeable that Soren’s English has improved since I met him. He’s constantly asking my questions, and I think he absorbs the information.

The dinner was a lot of fun. I saw Nicole, Bobby, and Ryan in addition to most of my tutees and conversation partners. I enjoyed trying many different kinds of food; it was all so good! I got to take a bunch of pictures with my tutees and conversation partners, hold Angel Rios’s cute kids, watch performances, etc. I really enjoyed the certificate ceremony for the students that are leaving. They all gave nice speeches. Afterwards when everyone was dancing, it was funny seeing the teachers dancing with their students. I even got to meet some new people, and it was a really fun event.

Last night, I hung out with Laura because it was her last night here before going back to Panama. I’ve known her for about 9 months, so I’ll really miss her. It’s cool to see how her English has improved so much over her time being here. I know I’ll see her in the future and that she will succeed at FSU Panama. I gave her a drawing that I did of her, my sister, and me. She loved it and said she’s going to hang it in her room.

I’ve genuinely enjoyed getting to know these people. I’ve learned a lot about different cultures and customs and have probably benefitted from it just as much as they have.