October 26, 2019 at 5:23 a.m.
Global connection
Experience shatters stereotypes
Global connection
Why are they here?
The reasons vary.
But for many, at least one of the reasons was to seek out, first-hand, the answer to a question.
Are all the things they hear and see about America real?
“I wanted to see for myself … whether it’s true or not,” said Misaal Fatimah. “It was curiosity.”
Misaal, from Lahore, Pakistan, is one of 14 exchange students spending the year at Jay County High School through the U.S. State Department’s Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) and Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES). Both programs are merit-based and have a goal of sharing and learning about each others’ cultures.
So, what are the stereotypes about America?
Misaal lists some:
That all houses are huge and host a party ever other day. That each household has seven or eight cars. That friends get together constantly for sleepovers. That everyone has a swimming pool. So, is it true?
“It’s really not,” said Misaal.
But some stereotypes do hit the mark.
For instance, that Americans eat a lot of fast food. That one sticks, said Alina Nikolaiets of Ukraine.
For Alina, visiting the United States was an opportunity to learn more about herself.
“I’m about to go into the world and I still don’t know what I want to do,” she said, while also adding that she’s learned to live in the moment and enjoy her time here.
Azerbaijan’s Aisha Bashirova saw the opportunity to live overseas as one she couldn’t pass up.
“I always wanted to travel,” she said. “This is one of the best chances for me to travel to the other side of the world.”
For, Camelia Hodorgea of Moldova, it was a way to expand her horizons.
“I wanted to escape my own bubble. … I wanted something new,” she said. “And I also knew that if I did get to this point, this would be the first step in me growing up. I want to go home and be a more mature person with an experience that I’m sure a lot of people won’t have and I am one of the luckiest ones that actually get to have it.”
And for Egypt’s Gana Elseoudi, as with all those involved, it’s a chance to learn about American culture while at the same time sharing her own.
“I wanted to go and experience that myself, to see what’s the difference between my country and here,” she said. “And also to tell people more about my country because some people think that Egypt is more like sand and pyramids.”
And then she told a story that illustrated, even better, the utter lack of understanding that can exist between cultures and across continents. She said there was a JCHS freshman who assumed she had traveled to America by camel.
And that’s Egypt, a country that is prominent in World History books studied in the United States. The same can’t be said for Lithuania.
“I don’t think a lot of people know where we are,” said Juste Griskonyte. “Lithuania is very small. They think that we’re either a part of Russia or somewhere, somewhere lost in the ocean. That’s wrong, both ways.”
(For the record, Lithuania is an eastern European country bordered by Poland to the southwest, Belarus to the southeast, Latvia to the north and the Baltic Sea to the west.)
With stereotypes set aside, what else have Jay County’s visitors learned?
Aisha has noticed more independence for teenagers. In Azerbaijan, and many of the other countries involved in the exchange programs, most start driving at 18.
“So that makes us more dependent on our families. But here I see students that are completely independent,” said Aisha. “They work. They get their own money. That’s something that I like and which is different.”
Almost across the board, the students noted one of their favorite things about visiting the U.S. is making lots of new friends. They comment about how outgoing and welcoming Americans are.
The reasons vary.
But for many, at least one of the reasons was to seek out, first-hand, the answer to a question.
Are all the things they hear and see about America real?
“I wanted to see for myself … whether it’s true or not,” said Misaal Fatimah. “It was curiosity.”
Misaal, from Lahore, Pakistan, is one of 14 exchange students spending the year at Jay County High School through the U.S. State Department’s Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) and Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES). Both programs are merit-based and have a goal of sharing and learning about each others’ cultures.
So, what are the stereotypes about America?
Misaal lists some:
That all houses are huge and host a party ever other day. That each household has seven or eight cars. That friends get together constantly for sleepovers. That everyone has a swimming pool. So, is it true?
“It’s really not,” said Misaal.
But some stereotypes do hit the mark.
For instance, that Americans eat a lot of fast food. That one sticks, said Alina Nikolaiets of Ukraine.
For Alina, visiting the United States was an opportunity to learn more about herself.
“I’m about to go into the world and I still don’t know what I want to do,” she said, while also adding that she’s learned to live in the moment and enjoy her time here.
Azerbaijan’s Aisha Bashirova saw the opportunity to live overseas as one she couldn’t pass up.
“I always wanted to travel,” she said. “This is one of the best chances for me to travel to the other side of the world.”
For, Camelia Hodorgea of Moldova, it was a way to expand her horizons.
“I wanted to escape my own bubble. … I wanted something new,” she said. “And I also knew that if I did get to this point, this would be the first step in me growing up. I want to go home and be a more mature person with an experience that I’m sure a lot of people won’t have and I am one of the luckiest ones that actually get to have it.”
And for Egypt’s Gana Elseoudi, as with all those involved, it’s a chance to learn about American culture while at the same time sharing her own.
“I wanted to go and experience that myself, to see what’s the difference between my country and here,” she said. “And also to tell people more about my country because some people think that Egypt is more like sand and pyramids.”
And then she told a story that illustrated, even better, the utter lack of understanding that can exist between cultures and across continents. She said there was a JCHS freshman who assumed she had traveled to America by camel.
And that’s Egypt, a country that is prominent in World History books studied in the United States. The same can’t be said for Lithuania.
“I don’t think a lot of people know where we are,” said Juste Griskonyte. “Lithuania is very small. They think that we’re either a part of Russia or somewhere, somewhere lost in the ocean. That’s wrong, both ways.”
(For the record, Lithuania is an eastern European country bordered by Poland to the southwest, Belarus to the southeast, Latvia to the north and the Baltic Sea to the west.)
With stereotypes set aside, what else have Jay County’s visitors learned?
Aisha has noticed more independence for teenagers. In Azerbaijan, and many of the other countries involved in the exchange programs, most start driving at 18.
“So that makes us more dependent on our families. But here I see students that are completely independent,” said Aisha. “They work. They get their own money. That’s something that I like and which is different.”
Almost across the board, the students noted one of their favorite things about visiting the U.S. is making lots of new friends. They comment about how outgoing and welcoming Americans are.
Aizada Bobuiova of Kyrgystan saw the difference from airport to airport. In her home country, airport employees were very serious, stoic. In the United States, she said, they were welcoming.
Aidai Meirachova, also of Kyrgystan, agreed, saying she’s noticed how frequently people smile at each other here.
“When you do that in our country, they think that you are crazy,” she said.
When listing their dislikes about the U.S., and what they miss the most about home, the same answer kept popping up.
Food.
They miss the dishes of their home country, with Amaan Shah specifically noting his craving for spicy Indian food. And, almost universally, they dislike overly sweet American tastes, naming items including Lucky Charms, caramel apples, banana splits and the All-American apple pie as least favorites. (They do, however, say this miss Milka, a brand of chocolate that originated in Switzerland and is now produced primarily in Germany.)
It’s those little details — Milka for the exchange students compared to a Twix bar in America — that are part of the experience of getting to know someone from a different culture.
“It’s been really fun,” said Mikale Knight, a JCHS senior whose family is hosting Camelia Hodorgea of Moldova. “Just learning about how different their cultures are and how they have different beliefs … It’s just very crazy to think that it’s so different. It’s just a lot of fun experiences to learn from them and they learn from you.”
For all of the differences, there are also striking similarities. A teenager is a teenager, no matter the nation of origin.
They tell funny stories and laugh together. They get excited about their favorite foods. They have to be reminded by their adviser that cell phones are restricted during the school day.
They miss their families, friends and pets back home.
They look forward to vacations and holidays while they are here.
Aizada summed up what she, and all of the exchange students involved, have seen in comparing their home countries to the U.S.
“Not worse. Not better,” she said. “They are just different.”
Aidai Meirachova, also of Kyrgystan, agreed, saying she’s noticed how frequently people smile at each other here.
“When you do that in our country, they think that you are crazy,” she said.
When listing their dislikes about the U.S., and what they miss the most about home, the same answer kept popping up.
Food.
They miss the dishes of their home country, with Amaan Shah specifically noting his craving for spicy Indian food. And, almost universally, they dislike overly sweet American tastes, naming items including Lucky Charms, caramel apples, banana splits and the All-American apple pie as least favorites. (They do, however, say this miss Milka, a brand of chocolate that originated in Switzerland and is now produced primarily in Germany.)
It’s those little details — Milka for the exchange students compared to a Twix bar in America — that are part of the experience of getting to know someone from a different culture.
“It’s been really fun,” said Mikale Knight, a JCHS senior whose family is hosting Camelia Hodorgea of Moldova. “Just learning about how different their cultures are and how they have different beliefs … It’s just very crazy to think that it’s so different. It’s just a lot of fun experiences to learn from them and they learn from you.”
For all of the differences, there are also striking similarities. A teenager is a teenager, no matter the nation of origin.
They tell funny stories and laugh together. They get excited about their favorite foods. They have to be reminded by their adviser that cell phones are restricted during the school day.
They miss their families, friends and pets back home.
They look forward to vacations and holidays while they are here.
Aizada summed up what she, and all of the exchange students involved, have seen in comparing their home countries to the U.S.
“Not worse. Not better,” she said. “They are just different.”
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