Exchange Location: Lublien, Poland

Program Name: Express Your Knowledge

             
Internship Duration: 8 weeks

 

 

A typical day on your internship:

 

Express Your Knowledge is an educational project designed to promote cultural diversity to students in middle and high schools. Working in pairs, we would facilitate workshops and give presentations about the culture of our countries, and then develop their English language and soft skills through activities such as mind mapping and mnemonics.  Working 3-5 hours a day,  because classes start early at 8am, we often finished before 12, so there was a lot of free time. We would normally meet up with other interns and organising committee locals to sightsee, hang out or partyyy. Because we lived in uni dorms, the doors were always open, and there was always something going on, which offered a great chance to socialise and make new friends. Weekends also offered an opportunity to travel.

I spent a week in small village where I met some of the kindest and most hospitable people. One of the teachers despite not knowing any English, invited us to his house for dinner; we ended up using Google Translate and hand gestures to communicate, which was quite an unforgettable experience. Dinner at the Mayors house was also a highlight!

Most of the children in Lublin have never been overseas, or seen foreigners so through this project we were able to in a way, bring the world to them. They were fascinated and excited about our cultures, asking many questions, and even requesting for autographs. Seeing their enthusiasm was extremely rewarding, and reminded me I wasn’t there to just have fun, but to also make a difference.

We were also given a 2 week Christmas break, which offered us the opportunity to travel to surrounding countries, and also get to know Poland better. Many Polish cities have an ‘old town’ which is well preserved, Krakow is particularly breathtaking with its market square, well decorated with beautiful medieval buildings.


 

 

What did you enjoy most about your exchange?

 

Definitely meeting and living with people from all over the world. Living with other interns from Brazil, China, Colombia, Mexico, NZ and Vietnam was so much fun, there was never a dull moment. We shared our stories, made fun of each others accents, cooked and cleaned together. We were there to teach kids about our culture, but at the same time our own perceptions became more culturally diverse. We were also able to share our new Polish discoveries as we experienced and learnt about the country together. I also learnt a lot about myself through seeing the way people around the world lived.

I enjoyed being able to slowly learn about Poland, the countries traditions, history and way of life. Before arriving, Poland was a part of Europe I didn’t know much about, except that Dorota from Gossip Girl was Polish! But it’s amazing how much that can change in 8 weeks. I feel like I was able to connect with the people, share our similarities and differences, try the food, learn a bit of the language(-only a bit because Polish is like a never ending tongue twister), and understand some of their history. That is definitely something I would never have been able to experience coming here as a normal tourist. The locals were able to show us about real Poland, the good and bad, and despite being a country not exempt from hardship, the people are very hard working and humble.

Polish hospitality is also something that amazed me. How kind and generous people could be to open their homes after just meeting us. One of the members from the project invited us to his hometown for a few days. His family were the most beautiful, kind people, and even though his parents didn’t know English, they still made the effort to communicate and make us feel welcome. His father was so funny, speaking the few words of Chinese he surprisingly knew and his mum would cook up the most delicious feasts.

Trying new things is also something I believe exchange is all about. Especially new food. Polish cuisine was quite interesting, I enjoyed trying everything, though I admittedly didn’t like it all. Some dishes like Sledz(pickled fish) and bigos became my favourite. I’ve found a Polish restaurant in Sydney and can’t wait to go! Learning the Polish way of drinking was also quite an experience in itself…

Teaching the kids is something that I will miss. It was refreshing to see them so curious and eager to learn, and asking some innocently random questions like ‘are there cats in Australia’? Hopefully we left showing them that learning English is important, and there is an amazing world out there waiting to be discovered.

Going on exchange really offers you many opportunities, to try to new things, meet new people and grow as a person. It is however, up to you to seize those opportunities, as it is always more rewarding to be out of your comfort zone, adapt and ultimately thrive- cheesy I know. Independence was also something exchange really enabled. We didn’t have the comfort of our homes or the safety blanket of parents, so it was up to us to be responsible, show up on time, plan our trips, cook, clean and live independently.

The hardest thing about going on exchange is definitely leaving. 8 weeks went by so quickly, and I didn’t expect to miss it this much, and become so attached. I miss the interns, the students, teaching, the parties and of course the snow!  I have met some of the most amazing people, and coming here has shown me how beautiful the world can be.

 

 

 

What was the most shocking/curious/fun fact you learned on your exchange?
 

Poland is not a very ethnically diverse country, so this resulted in some stares when shopping, and especially on public transport, which was a bewildering experience. However we eventually got used to it, after understanding that it was more out of curiosity than anything else. Sometimes individuals would also initiate conversation on transport, asking about our program and the work we do.

The most amazing thing for me was the patriotism that the Polish people exhibited towards their country. They are so deeply rooted, and beautifully proud of their country, despite a complex history that at times was not so forgiving. Many are quite passionate about sharing this history and can talk for hours! It has proven to be a very beautiful place with some truly amazing and kind people. Polish hospitality was also something that really warmed me.

A pretty random fun fact is that over there lunch is called dinner, and dinner is called supper, which really confused me in the beginning. I also learnt that Mt Kosciuszko was named by a Polish, after a Polish national hero. I was constantly quizzed on the tallest Australian mountain, by many history and geography teachers.


 

 

Any words of advice for future exchange participants?

 

It’s definitely up to you to give yourself the ultimate experience. Meet the locals, get to know the interns, see as much as you can, and try everything(reasonable)! Step out of your comfort zone, go in with an open mind, and you’ll leave with the greatest memories.  Be open to everything, as it can be one of the most amazing times of your life!



AIESEC has given me an experience that will remain with me forever. I’m glad I took that first step to an incredible journey and applied.