Brand Spanking New Friends

The Extension students visited Washington State University (WSU), and had a great time at the IALC (Intensive American Language Center) on September 22. This is where international students study English before entering the university. We met and talked with international students who came from around the world, and are learning English at the IALC to enter the undergraduate program at WSU. Two things were interesting to me.


Eating ice cream with my fantastic friends

First, I learned a lot about the personalities and language of the students by talking with them. I talked with 4 international students who came from Brazil, Saudi Arabia, and China. They were cheerful and welcomed me. We enjoyed talking and communicating in English. I was surprised they speak English naturally even though they came to the US just a few months ago. I felt they don't hesitate to speak English, or make mistakes. They are very eager to learn English, and happy to live in the US and surround themselves with a lot of English. Also, we took an interest in our own languages, so we shared them with each other. Arabic letters is very complicated for me like secret codes, and it's interesting to read from the right to the left. Japanese Kanji is akin to Chinese characters, but the pronunciation is totally different. They seemed to be surprised to learn that Japanese has three kinds of the letter which are kanji, hiragana, and katakana. I was glad to be able to have this exchange with these students.

Second, I also learned a lot about their clothes, their religion and their culture. The day I visited there was National Foundation Day of Saudi Arabia, so most Saudi Arabians there wore a traditional costume. My friend from Saudi Arabia told me that women in Saudi Arabia have to wear a chador which is traditional cloth that covers Muslim women’s whole body except their eyes. She also wears it every day whenever she goes outside. When we had a lunch together at their cafeteria, she ate food from underneath her veil. It looked a little difficult to eat. Also, she told me that Muslims don’t eat beef or pork because of their religion. She said they have to obey their religion and rules even if they can’t understand them. Also, my Chinese friend told me Chinese can drink alcohol at any age. He said he drank beer when he was 6 years old. We Japanese are not allowed to drink alcohol until we become 20 years old, so it was the surprising thing to me. In addition, my Brazilian friend told me she dances in her room every day because the carnival is popular in Brazil, and she likes to dance to Brazilian music. I began to want to go there to see wonderful carnival. I was happy to know lots of cultural things that I didn’t know. 

In conclusion, I could learn a lot of interesting things such as their culture and their religion. Also, they have an eagerness to learn, so my way of thinking was affected. I want to see my friends again and go to their own countries.