On Friday, I got a chance to go out with some young people in Geneva. Along Lake Geneva, there is a street/strip (Mont Blanc) where lots and lots of people populate to have drinks, chat, eat ice cream, play guitar in a circle on the grass (lol), sky's the limit! I met several interns from countries such as, Serbia, Barbados, the U.S., and Canada. While standing outside chatting and getting to know one another, Simeon & Sofija began a conversation about how "sexy" the German language is. Yes, I had the same confused look as well. French? Of course. Italian, uhh yea. Portuguese? We can
still work with. But German? So time passed and we talked of so many other things: literature, travel, cultural differences, the grammar of foreign languages, etc. While I started blabbing about conclusions I've come to when it comes to relationships and dating, two other interns join us, one of whom speaks Austrian German. So naturally, we return to the sexy German language debate. So at the request of these German-language-loving people, Nema is asked to say something in German. The verdict? For whatever reason (unbeknown to me...I can't even understand a lick of German)...Austrian German is quite racy! While the riveting German discussion was quite interesting, what I enjoyed most about that night was the opportunity to talk to people who are excited about learning, excited about exploring the world and delving into new cultures, new lands, new ways of life. It's refreshing when you can talk about the reasons why one Shakespeare play needs an entire semester of study by itself in one breath and then collectively crack up at the Belgian guy who is belting "Georgia on my Mind," after asking where I was from! I think it's true that we should all be violently snatched from our comfort zones and put in situations that force you destroy limitations and barriers set up by our own minds and our own environments. I'm thankful that I've had parents who have pushed the envelope and exposed their children to not only different countries but different perspectives, different types of schooling with different types of cultural atmospheres. Because when it is all said and done, you discover that what you think makes one group of people so different from another group is really just the same thing expressed in a seemingly different way. Even language. While most things do not directly translate from French to English or English to French, there is always a corresponding phrase or gesture or look that is amazingly identical. You just have to be open enough to discover what that phrase, that gesture or that look is.
Sunday was an awesome day. The Church of the Nations never disappoints. There was a woman Bishop from Kenya who spoke. She had wonderful testimony after wonderful testimony, sharing what God has done in her life. She said that this is the time to act. Sometimes you have to stop praying over and over for the same thing when you already know that you need to put an action right next to your faith. It was a rich message and truly for me. After she spoke for an hour and a half, she prayed for people longer than that! After service, there was pot after pot and dish after dish of food from various ethnic origin that was absolutely amazing! Because we were new and guests at the church, they treated us with so much warmth, hospitality, and love. We sat arou
nd talking for so long, we didn't get home until 4:30! We took a a bus ride to the mall area to check the times (everything closes earlier in Geneva than in the States and on Sunday most places are closed all day) and then took a bus ride to a quaint little town called Carouge. It was qu
iet there, a different feel from the center of the city where we have been spending most of our time. After wandering around Carouge, we headed back to our side of town an
d dined at a Lebanese restaurant. I wanted to cry because the food was so good. Literally. The waitress was so sweet. We told her that we were working on our French so she really helped us by going back and forth from English to French and allowing us to practice our skills. She broke down the menu for us and suggested the best things to order. It was such a pleasant experience. The Lebanese music was a perfect touch as well! I couldn't stop dancing in my seat. We stuffed ourselves and went home, anticipating another week full of new and unexpected joys.
Sunday was an awesome day. The Church of the Nations never disappoints. There was a woman Bishop from Kenya who spoke. She had wonderful testimony after wonderful testimony, sharing what God has done in her life. She said that this is the time to act. Sometimes you have to stop praying over and over for the same thing when you already know that you need to put an action right next to your faith. It was a rich message and truly for me. After she spoke for an hour and a half, she prayed for people longer than that! After service, there was pot after pot and dish after dish of food from various ethnic origin that was absolutely amazing! Because we were new and guests at the church, they treated us with so much warmth, hospitality, and love. We sat arou
nd talking for so long, we didn't get home until 4:30! We took a a bus ride to the mall area to check the times (everything closes earlier in Geneva than in the States and on Sunday most places are closed all day) and then took a bus ride to a quaint little town called Carouge. It was qu
iet there, a different feel from the center of the city where we have been spending most of our time. After wandering around Carouge, we headed back to our side of town and dined at a Lebanese restaurant. I wanted to cry because the food was so good. Literally. The waitress was so sweet. We told her that we were working on our French so she really helped us by going back and forth from English to French and allowing us to practice our skills. She broke down the menu for us and suggested the best things to order. It was such a pleasant experience. The Lebanese music was a perfect touch as well! I couldn't stop dancing in my seat. We stuffed ourselves and went home, anticipating another week full of new and unexpected joys.
So Mo, question: when you're having these lovely and enlightening experiences about language, culture, learning, etc. what language are you all speaking? Is it French? If so, I think you are that much more amazing. Well, you're amazing either way it goes actually. Lol.
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