Mary_CP8

For my next meeting with Nimah I took her shoe shopping at Shoe Station, since I saw that she had recently broken a pair of her favorite sandals. She was astounded by how cheap the shoes were and I taught her some of the basics of bargain hunting in America. We both only paid $5 for our shoes! They weren’t half bad either. . . On the way back to her house we talked about driving. She said that in Saudi Arabia women are not allowed to drive, and the only possible way to do so would be to go out in the desert and practice hoping no one sees you. I thought that was a little ridiculous and encouraged her to try to learn while she was here in America; it seems like a useful skill to have.

Mary_CP7

My last meeting with Michelle was bitter-sweet. I’m amazed at how much her English has improved; her vocabulary has expanded four-fold. Her pronunciation is still slow-coming, though. I think a factor of this is that she lives with her uncle, a French speaker as well. The immersion really does make a difference in a students ability to communicate, but for me it has been good practice considering I will most likely be teaching English as a foreign language when I go abroad. We were able to talk about a variety of topics. We talked about her church, Spongebob Squarepants, and handsome men to name a few. We also exchanged Skype names so hopefully we can keep in touch!

Mary_CP6

Nimah and I went to Sahara for our next meeting! I was so good, even Nimah thought it was comparable to her native favorites. When she walked into the restaurant the Lebanese waitstaff immediately began speaking Arabic with her, it was interesting to her Arabic being spoken. I’m more impressed with the Arabic students at CIES hearing how different our two languages are. Nimah spoke to me about how dating works in Saudi Arabia, evidently she gets a lot of pressure to get married from her friend because she “has a pretty face.” She said a man will approach her father with the idea and if he looks promising will arrange a marriage when he wants. I asked if this arrangement bothered her at all and she said it didn’t because romantic relationships was not something she wanted to be bothered with; she’d rather focus on studying, which made sense to me.

Mary_CP5

My next conversation with Michelle was a lot of fun. I found she responds well to my humor, even with the language barrier. I thought it would be a problem that Michelle and I don’t go off campus and immerse ourselves culturally, but the one-on-one conversation in a relaxed environment like CIES is the best possible practice for her at the moment. We talked about a lot of interesting things. She said she likes to wear makeup and nice clothes but her parents think it doesn’t makes her look respectable. That kind of surprised me, considering in America when we want to look respectable we try to cover up with makeup and designer duds.

Mary_CP4

For my next meeting with Nimah we took a walk around campus and decided to eat at Pitaria. She says it’s the closest thing to her native cuisine she’s encountered since coming to Tallahassee. I insisted she has to try Sahara and we decided to have a pre-Ramadan dinner there within the next few days. Her brother wasn’t able to pick her up, so I offered her a ride home. Her family lives in Southwood; I’m amazed at the commute some of these students have to make! She said it is sometimes stressful, but that it is worth it to have her family with her during the holy month.

Mary_CP3

My second conversation with Michelle was at CIES. She expressed to me that it was most convenient for her to meet immediately after her English classes. Her English has already improved after just a week from last talking to her. I can really see how teaching lower levels can create a greater sense of gratification for the teacher. Sometimes I find it extremely difficult to understand Michelle’s accent. I usually try to get her to speak more slowly, but if that doesn’t work I have her write it. I was pretty shocked to see how excellent her writing and composition is! I can only imagine how frustrating it must be to understand a language so well, but not be able to use it effectively in conversation.

Mary_CIP

Demet's uncle jammin'

For my cultural immersion project I was invited over to my Turkish friend Demet’s house for a traditional dinner. Her uncles had come in from Turkey and were staying for the month. This was there welcoming dinner, and it was quite a feast. Although Demet is not a devote Muslim, she said her uncles were, and that they probably won’t shake my hand when I meet them, which I thought was interesting. It seemed the women were busy at work preparing the meal while the men conversed in the foyer. As a guest I was allowed to relax, but I felt more comfortable helping the ladies out (not to mention I can’t speak Turkish). The meal was delicious, it seemed like there were endless amounts of courses, hummus, yogurt, rice, meat, lentil soup, these awesome little sweet doe balls, etc. I was beyond stuffed. Everyone was very considerate and kind and I felt very welcomed. The uncles had brought some of the families favorites back from Turkey with them. One of which was a case of fermented carrot juice (it’s as nasty as it sounds). One of Demet’s uncles brought a traditional Turkish instrument (like a guitar) and played for us; it made beautiful music. Overall, it was a new, interesting, and fun experience.