- Day Two .

THE POLICAL :
The first half of the day was based on cross cultural communication. Spending the first two hours of the day in our LGM’s (leadership group meetings / country groups) , we began to look at the iceberg platform for discovering other cultures (its long and semi complicated symbolizing the surface of cultures vs. where cultures collide) . We headed out to Georgetown for lunch , where apparently “anybody who’s anybody lives . ” - My mom . I ate at a cute little place called “Five Guys Burgers and Fries”, where I got what was supposed to be a “little burger”, but it was larger than a BigMac … ?
After Georgetown and a bit of walking , we headed back to the hotel to hear a guest speaker , Dr. Gary Weaver from the American University , speaking on cross-cultural communication . He was hilarious , effective , and his speaking / presenting skills were phenomenal .
We touched on cultural norms , generalizations , and stereotypes . My lordy , Canada has some of the most stereotypes I’ve ever heard ! You know , when my polar bear is sick , I cant go to school cause I have nothing to ride there . It’s horribly sad having to stay in my igloo with a sick polar bear while my friends are all at school playing in the dark under a maple tree , eh ?
After Dr. Weaver spoke , we headed off to the Jefferson and Roosevelt memorials , which were absolutely incredible. Franklin Deleno Roosevelt’s memorial was split into 4 sections , each representing America and his influence during each of his terms that he served as president. The waterfalls of different dimensions , and the quotes engraved on the walls were incredible. The view that it was on was beautiful as well . The Thomas Jefferson memorial was of a different sort. Less informative, more on a larger scale . The pillars were huge , and the statue of him inside was exquisitely detailed. The stairs leading up to it were flawless, absolutely stunning, and by that point everyone of us was exhausted, so we sort of stationed ourselves there as the rest of the kids made their way through. At that point , I discovered the 1.5 cm opened blister on the back of my heel and wanted to die . I put a blister band-aid on it , but I was the world’s happiest person once we arrived back and I was able to slip on my Toms.
We had a second speaker , Jacqueline Mureketete , a survivor of the Rwandan genocide. She was 10 years old at the time , and by the age of 22 , she was speaking internationally against indifference and extremism .
Today was the first day I’ve noticed that I knew the curriculum in French and had to switch it to English, which confused most of the kids figuring I’ve been saying I speak English as my first language. It took me a decently long time to make the connection that the WTO (world trade organization) was the OMC (organisation mondiale de commerce). Mr. Juneau would be proud.
THE SOCIAL :
I didn’t see Becca much today, and my second roommate didn’t show up! Abby, one of the Australians who approached my yesterday, introduced me to most of the other Australian girls. They’re so funny. They all call me Miley Cyrus ‘cause apparently I sound and act identical to her … ? I spent most of the day with Abby and Emma , (Aussies) , and Emily , (Norwegian) , as well as Holly , who turns out to be from Toronto . They’re all in my LGM . Some of the other Australians are really nice , like Zoë and Simon and Yael .
Nic , (USA) , is helping me figure out what the “Canadian” accent is, and today it has blown my mind how significant it is. We pronounce EVERYTHING . Someone told me I have a pretty accent today , she was from South Africa , but I don’t believe her. They all sound so dainty , and to me , Canadians and Americans sound so butch . Lordy, my accent impersonations are getting to be FLAWLESS. I’ve pretty much got Australian down.
Im learning words like “sooky” which apparently is a mix between moody and sulking? Kind of like grumpy I guess. Its Aussie. Some of their words are ridiculous . At lunch today , one of the Australians told me that rootbeer tastes like “cinnamon and meat”, which I first heard as “cinnamon and mace” which I found funnier. The Australians laugh at everything , even if its not that funny . I was laughing in my head at how fascinated the exterior countries were with Mr. Sketch smelly markers. I explained the joys of Tim Hortons and the concept of a "timbit" , and everyone was so intregued. Its just a small donut?
I shared some of my Dora snacks with the other girls and they found it so cute that my grandma bought me them to take with me. They told me they were jealous .
TOMORROW:
World Bank , Town Hall , and a WTO Simulation , where I have to represent a governor from the United States. Oh , the scandals I could choose.