PROGETTO AIESEC EDUCHANGE: LA NOSTRA ESPERIENZA CON BRUNO, L’UNIVERSITARIO BRASILIANO CHE PER SEI SETTIMANE CI HA FATTO CONOSCERE IL SUO PAESE. IL RACCONTO DI BRUNO DOPO LE PRIME SETTIMANE DI PERMANENZA IN ITALIA. On 15th January, after more or less 36 hours in the "street", being in airport chairs and unconfortable airplanes, my host family, as soon as I got home, treated me like a king since the beginning, giving me special Italian food (all kinds of pasta) and a warm bath. Kevin is my host brother and we got along really well. He is always telling not to worry about stuff and in the first week he showed me the nicest places around Venaria Reale. He has a good relationship with his mother, Francesca, and he is always, as she said, "joking" with her. Kevin also has a good relationship with his Step Father, Mario. At the first weekend, I had the chance to meet Maicon, who is Kevin’s brother. He also was really nice and he is a good soccer player. Unfortunately I have seen him just once but I hope I can see him one last time before I leave to Brazil in a few weeks. Francesca, who is my host mum, is super fun and she is always trying to comunicate with me. I think we got along really well and we communicate, each other, using a mix of Italian - English - Portuguese - Spanish dialet. The only bad thing about her is that she does not let me doing the dishes after the meals, and I feel a little bit bad because they do everything for me and I wish I could help them in some way. My host dad is called Mario and he works in a bar next to Kevin’s house. He does not speak English so this is a big barrier for our communication. One time, we were alone at home and we could not understand each other, so I got desperate because I never had a similar situation of lacking of communication before. But thinking now it was a pretty hilarious situation and I think I will remember this for the rest of my life. About school: To go to school I have to wake up every day at 6 AM and I leave more or less at 4 PM, so by the time I get home I feel pretty tired. I don't think the word "dissapointment" can be applied to anything in my AIESEC experience. However, certainly I can use the word "barrier" for some aspects that I found in school. Their lack of English fluence makes almost an impossibility to have a real conversation with some of them. On the other hand, even if they can't speak English, they are always nice with me and they all greet every time they see me at the hall. So even if we can't talk each other, they try to show that they care about me and this tells me a lot about the Italian people - how kind, polite and social they are. The classes usually take place in the Computer Laboratory, where I present some Powerpoint slides about different subjects, such as Landscapes, Politics, Economiy and the Brazilian General Culture. Teachers Masi and Savoldi always help to translate the most important information and it's rewarding when I feel that they actually understand a bit about the reality of Brazil. On Tuesdays and Thursdays afternoons I am teaching Portuguese to 13 students, and until now it's being awesome! Portuguese, as the Italian language, is very hard to learn but this does not discourage them. They work hard to memorize each word and to speak in the right way, repeating to fix the correct pronunciation. Also, in these weeks, I have lessons about food waste, with the help of Mr Magliola. He is such a nice person, and this class is so important because I can understand and compare different issues between Italy and Brazil. To conclude I'd like to comment that this has been an amazing opportunity to grow up not only as a profession that will work with different people, but also as a human being, who is growing and learning how to live together in a society that has different social values from my country. The AIESEC experience is imprinting qualities that will help me how to change the world in a positive way for the rest of my life, and after these 6 unforgettable weeks, I will not be the same person that came here before this adventure! ECCO QUANTO BRUNO HA PUBBLICATO SUL SUO PROFILO FACEBOOK, IN INGLESE E PORTOGHESE, APPENA TORNATO IN BRASILE, PER RACCONTARE LA SUA ESPERIENZA IN ITALIA E LE DIFFERENZE FRA I DUE PAESI: For the first time, I had the opportunity to live 6 weeks in Europe and here I am going to leave some considerations about my trip and stay in Italy. For some people, especially who lives in Europe, some items might be very foolish. But believe me or not, for me it was all new. The Italian people helped me to turn this experience an unforgettable one. They were always kind, nice and sometimes a little bit crazy – I will recommend for ever this place that for me was always magic. 1. Pizza in Italy is individual. There is no Pizza for 4-6 people. Just one flavour, “catupiry” in the edge does not exist. 2. The “drinking fountain” was something I thought was very different. The first time I saw some AIESEC people drinking it I thought they were joking. 3. The words “grazie”, “prego” and “figurati” are used a lot more than the equivalent in Brazil. The Italians thank each other more frequently than us. 4. A lot of places that I went had some particularities – for example, when you enter in a coffee, you must pay to have a sit and to use the bathroom!!! In some bars, you just buy the beer and go outside; in some occasions it is not common to stay inside the place, you just do what you have to do and leave. 5. The High School in Italy is more specific than in Brazil. The one where I did volunteer work had only students that one day will become chefs, waiters, waitresses (or something related to food – restaurants), with exception of some girls that I met from something called the “Liceo”. The subjects that you study are all related to food – difference of digestion between protein and carbohydrates, chemical reactions inside the stomach, English vocabulary inside a restaurant, how to read a recipe in English, etc... 6. I thought that in Italy the teachers demands more oral participation in class from their students that in Brazil, even if you are a shy person. They participated more and respected each other opinions. 7. A few times, I saw the Italians using United States of America (USA) shirts, cap, etc... 8. Here people smoke a lot more than in Brazil. It could be because of the cold! Moreover it is almost impossible stopping smoking, since you can find a tobacconist’ in each corner. 9. Almost impossible to do #2 (I don’t know if you understand what I mean) in public places – just in emergency cases. The toilet is very strange in some places, there is just a hole so it could be a tragedy to do #2. There is often a lack of water inside the toilet as well. 10. People in Italy like soccer as the Brazilians. Some of them knew Brazilians teams, like Flamengo, Santos, Atlético Mineiro. 11. In Italy betting is legalized. One time I saw an old man losing 20 euro in just a few minutes in the “Lotto”. 12. The bar is something different of what we have in Brazil. In Italy they go to drink a coffee – actually a very small and concentrated coffee. 13. The public transport for me is very efficient, even though the Italians use to complain with me all the time. That is because your reference maybe is Germany and England. Now if you go to Brazil you will understand what I am saying. You can track in real time what time is the bus arriving and if it’s late. 14. A lot of people had never visited the surrounded countries. It is like the Brazilians that sometimes never got out of their own State. 15. Sometimes, during a conversation, they suddenly raise their voices. I got scared at first, but later I got use to it. 16. The Italians that speak English in Europe are the minority. I could say that in some parts of Brazil, like the south, people in general speak English better than in Italy. 17. In the supermarket, to take out the “supermarket cart” you need 1 euro. After you do what you had to do, you take that euro you deposited out. My first Italian “mama” said to me that this is necessary because some people use to leave the supermarket with the “supermarket cart”. 18. I did not see many motorcycles. I never saw ONE car/motorcycle accident as well. My first Italian Brother said to me that the “Patente” written test is not so easy. So not many motorcycles + difficult test = a few accidents. 19. They drink beer at room temperature. It seems bad but it is not – outside is cold as hell and if you put in the freezer you just take out the taste of it. 20. People that have mental / physical deficiency have access to public schools as the other students.