Queen of small talk and bad jokes

IDC 2007 - International Development Conference, Jamshepur India

So I just came back from IDC 2007. I must say the experience was less enjoyable than expected but the unexpected was enjoyable, ok some of it.


Pre-conference - Kolkata (formerly Calcutta)

Friday night Soren and I left for Kolkata on the late night flight. Soren got a really bad fever the day of our flight to Kolkata which made things a bit more difficult but he made it. We were received at the airport at midnight by an AIESECer I met in Hyderabad, Pankaj, who apparently invited me to Kolkata when we met and felt it was his obligation to pick me up. We stayed with a new member who lived by the airport and she, her brother and I stayed up til 2.30 am chatting about the US, India, college, culture, etc... one of the best parts of my trip.

The next morning we had breakfast and then visited the Indian Museum and Victoria Memorial which neither the brother nor sister had been to so they came along. It really does make a difference to have someone who can explain to you what all the pictures of this god and that mean. After we were handed off back to Pankaj at a hookah bar, taken to the LC meeting, then to our train. Overall, things were looking good. =)


IDC

Unfortunately, partly due to riot in the area, there were only about 80 delegates instead of the expected 180. For the international aspect, mainly just 4 trainees (including Soren and I) and 8 internationals (Taiwan and Winne from Kenya) also the faci team which had 6 int'l. It was good though to see peopleI hadn't seen for a while like Winnie, Klepo, Fawzy and others. Ah, memories.

The content wasn't as issue focused as I thought it would be. It was more AIESEC oriented which I thought IDC was less of. For example, we mention what some issues are, but didn't actually delve into them much at all, which is why I wanted to go. I think it must have been different from the prior IDC where I heard the content was amazing about the issues. oh well.

The down side of the conference though was the night of India night where they had performances and such, I got food poisoning from the lunch (or so I feel and I'm sticking to it) and spent my night in the room throwing up and shaking in bed. Not fun in the least.


Post conference

The latter half of the trip was worse than the first by far. I was still a bit ill and so was Soren. Our train was 2 hrs late. When we reached to Kolkata we decided to see BBD Bagh, an old british square but by the time the cab arrived after 1.5 hrs in traffic, it was too dark to see anything. Soren was feeling ill and wanted to just check into a hotel even though we had our host, but she was in an exam. So we walked around for an hour more looking for a hotel because cabs were full and stuck in traffic. Both phones ran out of credit and we were lost and stranded. Long story short, we found our way to the beloved hookah bar and back to our hostess' house. We spent in the next morning, watched part of a Bollywood film, chatted, shopped for 1 hr then took our plane home.

Unfortunately, we arrived home to find our sick cat still sick and much thinner, despite being already underweight. We asked a friend to come by to check on him and make sure he has food and water. Soren asked him to please try to feed him his pill for the one day on Saturday and I believe he must has felt so pressured to make sure the kitten got the pill that he put the pill into its water, for it was all yellow (color of the pill) when I returned. Could explain why he was so starved and ill. Maybe it's a guy thing to lack some common sense. Maybe it's my fault for asking a guy. =P


Interesting Insight

Again someone (Pankaj) told me that they really like me (not like that) but as an American. I asked why and the response was because I'm really open and talkative with him. He said most Americans he's met have an "unnecessary attitude." For example, he picked up an American trainee from Texas this summer and took her around and everything and later when he visited the flats, she acted as if she didn't even remember him or wanted nothing to do with him, like he was just some Indian guy trying to bother her and she was too good for his company.

I can understand the "indian guy" thing with random people on the street wanting to be your "good friend" but at the same time I know many trainees aren't always proper AIESECers who are passionate about sharing their culture etc. And it's a shame I keep running into people who tell me I'm not like other Americans because other Americans are jerks. I thought we kept most of our jerks to ourselves. *sigh*

Soren also pointed out that for some reason when I get into AIESEC mode I have an insatiable urge to make small talk when needed. For example, the first dinner was 3 Taiwanese, 2 OC, Soren and I. No one was talking. I struggled to get anyone to comment one the food, the town, the travel with no success but apparently I just kept going, feeling the need to kill silence and share. It usually works. But I suppose the worst part is making jokes that are completely lost on other cultures. I think for the Taiwanese girls they just didn't understand what I was saying and the other guys, native to English, just didn't get it. Works on some, not on others.

On US politics, Soren and I talked about the candidates for the presidency and thought of how ridiculous it would be if Huckabee, a candidate who, to me, embodies all the narrow minded views of stereotypical racist, ethnocentric, Americans, made it to the run off. We both assume he would have no chance since he's just so off, probably good for pre-Lincoln eras, but were saddened by the fact that if he did, there's probably a lot of people in the US who are ignorant enough or that really hate whomever the democratic candidate is that would vote for him. Another *sigh*


That's all I can think of or remember for now. Cheers!

My new love... Caesar!

So, I've found a new love in my life in India. His name is Caesar and he's 2 months old.

How the name came about:

He's orange -> O.J. (Orange Juice)
But also white -> Orange Julius
Orange Julius -> Julius
Julius -> nickname Juli
Jui -> that won't do
Back to Julius -> -> -> aha! Caesar.
aka CZ

We got him from the Blue Cross here in Hyderabad. It cost 300 rupees (about $7.50) for the shots.

I'm so happy to finally have a pet but I haven't figured out what I'll do with him when I leave for China. Either give him to a good home (trainee or friend) or take him with me if regulations allow. We'll see, still have some months left.


=)


IDC this weekend!

Backtracking!

So, I haven't gotten back in the swing of blogging since I almost pulled out all my hair attempting to get it working when I arrived in Kenya. So in turn, I'm just posting whatever notes I had written since then and pasting them below for those who may want to chronicle my life in the future. (just kidding if you didn't get that...)


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Oct 25th - India

Namaste!

Another update on my world wandering. Sorry to those of you in Kenya who haven't been recieving my mails. I've just realized an error on my part in sending to my Kenya list.

Anyways, here's the update.

My life in India so far:

For the first two weeks, I lived at the trainee flats with people from all different countries. There were 3 apartments and the one I stayed in was all girls from Africa (Nigeria and Cameroon) which reminded me of my time in Kenya. However, the only open room for me didn't have a proper wall, where the light switch was outside by the door and I could hear everything in the entire flat. Luckily enough I had decided before arriving to India that I would like to live on my own in India. For many reasons really but mainly because I wanted to truly integrate into the culture, learn to take care of myself, and test my ability to balance work, play, and a home.

The first weekend the trainees were invited to be extras in a Bollywood movie. It was interesting being on the set of a movie, getting paid, and hanging out with other foreigners. I met 3 boys from Iran who have now become very good friends of mine. It was touching to hear them say I was the first American they've met that "wasn't cold to them." Viva la AIESEC! ;) They helped me in acquiring my flat and getting my furniture etc. and I am now the proud tenant of a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom, living room, etc flat in the posh area of Hyderabad. The housewarming "meet and great" is this Saturday! My partner in crime is a trainee from England, Zulfiye and it's amazing to see how different our cultures are when we both thought they were so similar.

Soren arrived Sunday afternoon, interviewed with DE Shaw today and from the sounds of it, he'll be starting work with them in a much better position than offered to other AIESEC trainees. Upon arriving, Soren decided to be his usual clumsy self by first breaking our dining room table and shattering a piece of glassware, the only set of glass items I bought in fear of this. The next day, he ran out side to go talk to the internet man while I was in the shower, leaving the door wide open and the gas stove, which he accidentally put on the highest level, so I come out of the shower to a kitchen filled with smoke. But even still, he's wonderful and we celebrated his birthday yesterday with a nice dinner and a big chocolate cake.

Other than that, I'm adjusting to spicy food. I've been a vegetarian for almost a month now and my hindi is slowly improving despite the fact that many people here speak English and if they can't they usually can only speak Telegu.

My job with Deloitte:

We started working with the arrival of the last trainee, Katia from Russia making us four total. (Tobi from Nigeria, Zulfiye and myself). We're working in the Learning and Development team which is under Human Resources. We've just become aware of what we'll be working on for the next 3 months. We are all working on seperate projects but doing the same tasks. Essentially evaluating the effectiveness of Deloitte training programs. I'll be evaluating "Advanced Business Consulting for Technologists." Probably because I go to Tech or something. =)

It's interesting to me because I'll learn how to value different sessions where the desired outcomes or skills learned are intangible, soft skills such as communication skills, leadership, and so on and if possible, turning it into money and doing a cost-benefit analysis of the program. Quite an interesting thing to learn coming from an organization such as AIESEC where leadership and training and development are the building blocks of our work.

Deloitte seems like a very open organization although the differences in working culture is slowly revealing itself to me but it's nothing too drastic. But it's nice to be a part of a large organization and in an area I have an interest in compared to large company/unfulfilling work in the States (Southern Company) and the "you're on your own but it's eye-opening" venture in Kenya. We'll see how things go from here. =)

Ok, that's it for me now.

Take care,

Tiffany




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Sept. 20th. - Germany

Guten Morgen!

So this is another one of those updates. Yep, in a different country again. Germany this time. But not for long. I leave for India in 7 days. Read which ever pieces interest you or none at all. I'll never know. =) Miss you all! Ah and pictures are attached.

Wrap up for International Congress, Turkey:

All in all, it was a great experience. Although it was more work and stress than I had anticipated, it was worth every sleepless night. I didn't get to meet as many new people or get to catch up much with old friends but I did become close with the other 50 members on my team. As for meeting up in Amsterdam with some of them, it won't be happening due to timing and money issues for many of us. *sigh* Before I left, I got to catch up with a good friend of mine, Devrim, an alum from AIESEC US who's Turkish and was able to show me more Turkish culture. Then it was off to Germany.


About Germany:

I arrived at the Frankfurt airport to find Soren waiting for me. It was so good to see him again after 3.5 months of just emails and some phone calls. After we made our way to Berlin where we stayed for 2 nights and took care of our visas for India. Because I had an American passport, they had to call the US to ask for permission which meant I had to come back to Berlin again the next week to apply for the visa. I was shocked at the cold weather and had to buy some warm shoes and gloves since I didn't have any from Kenya. We walked around a lot and I convinced Soren to impose on a street performer and let him play his cello in front of the Berlin Dom (Catherdral).

From Berlin, we made our way to Gottingen where Soren's grandparents live. They are some of the nicest people you'd ever meet. We had traditional German meals, with lunch being hot and the dinner being cold. We walked or biked to the town where they had cute little shops and bakeries and where his uncle owns a wine shop. We played cards, went for a boat ride, had dinner in a castle, played with train sets, and ate cake. We watched humorous family videos from years back and I was pressured to play some guitar for them which I saved for the last night.

After that we went back to Berlin to apply for my visa and got it back the same day. This time we stayed with his cousin Claudius who plays the horn in the Berlin Philharmonic. He spoke English well so I was able to join in more conversations. Then it was off to Lindau to a small cabin near the Austrian border where we lived in solitude away from internet and traffic. We read books and relaxed. We went with the neighbors to a mountain in Austria to see the man made lake at the top.

As of now, we're in Munich with his mother's cousin, Wiebka. Here I finally have internet and was able to call my mom for the first time in a while. In one hour we're leaving to go meet Georg, the German non-AIESEC intern who lived with me last fall in Atlanta. We'll hang around here for a few days to see the first day of Oktoberfest then to Nurmberg to see his cousins and then back to his grandparents and finally to Frankfurt to catch our flights while Soren goes to Turkey and Kazakhstan and I go to India.


About India:

Yes, India! I was matched to an traineeship there with Deloitte, an international consulting firm, in the city of Hyderabad. I'm told I'll be working with 3 others, a boy from Nigeria and two girls from the UK. I arrive there in 10 days! So exciting because I loved India last time and now I know some Hindi as well. (Even though they speak English and many people use regional languages, but anyways...) I'm really excited to meet more people and experience another culture and business style and living arrangement, etc. Let's hope for the best!


Anyways, that's my ramble. Sorry for the delay. Hope everything is well at home. Keep in touch!

-Tiffany

Austrian Mt.

Castle View

Lindau

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Written Aug 16th

Turkey

Hi all,

I realize it's been a while since I've sent an email but I'm finally doing it. So much has happened in so short a time.

Kenya:

So right before leaving Kenya, I was a facilitator at one of their conferences. It was a great experience and I enjoyed every moment. Noteworthy moments:
- The last day of the conference, the power was out all day so all our sessions and powerpoints were inaccessible. My session was the "take it home" session which I had planned on playing the motivational speech from "Any Given Sunday." Since there was no power and thus no ability to play the clip, I had to pump out a motivating blur for my session, which I'm so glad was only 30 mins long.
- A group of boys named themselves "The Bullies" and took it upon themselves to throw innocent delegates into the pool (with green water that you couldn't quite see through). In a failed attempt to get me into the pool, they ended up breaking my shoe. My one of 2 pairs of shoes. To this day, I'm still wearing these worn out dirty sandals, having to explain why I have dirty shoes and why I never match.

We arrived home Sunday night, I packed, and left for Turkey Monday morning. For some reason, the Kenyan security was more paranoid about me using my nail clippers as a weapon than any of the other 9 countries I've been to.

Turkey:

The airport pick-up was one cultural misunderstanding. I'm not used to using military time so when putting down my arrival time, I put 7:10 (Could have sworn there was an AM/PM option). So when I arrived that night, I found no one. I called and was told they had been looking for me all morning, even calling the police. The university is 1.5 hrs from the airport so I didn't get to my room until about 2am.

About the venue:
We are staying at Yeditepe University, a private school in the Asian side of Turkey. (I'm technically in Asia right now.) The dorms are segregated by males and females with security guards at every door. There is no drinking allowed and there is a curfew, 1am on weekdays, 2am on weekends. This is unlike any conference I've ever been to. There will be more lenience during the conference at certain locations like the party area aka tennis court. The owner of the Uni. loves dogs so there are about 40-50 large dogs that roam the campus. Other than those things, the place is so nice and fancy and it overlooks Istanbul. It's beautiful.

About my job:
I'm a teamster on the Special Events team. However, I have a lot more responsibilities than I expected. Our core VP (part of the year long team) was let go in July for undisclosed reasons. Another girl was assigned to assist my team leader with all the major tasks but this past Sunday, she quit. She took another job that started immediately. I was asked to take her role in addition. So now, ladies and gentlemen, I am the main responsible for Opening Ceremony and Official Dinner as well as nightly parties. I have two members assigned to me although one tries to avoid work so it's more management than teamwork sometimes. I also was told to make the Congress Committee dance because I supposedly know alot about AIESEC dances. I presented the dance this afternoon and was pleased to get a positive response. Maybe my dance will linger in AIESEC history along with Bebot. ;)
It's a very different style of working for me since most is about coordinating with other teams, especially marketing and communications. But also, most of my work consists of planning, organizing, and delegating all leading up to these large events so I don't see results of my work until the day of. It makes me feel like I've been unproductive until then.
The most amazing part of it all is working on such a large international team. There are about 50 of us, across 7 teams. AIESEC International and facilitators just arrived yesterday so now there are about 80 of us. It's really amazing to think that out of 23, 000 members world wide, only 650 get to attend IC. Out of 23, 000 members, only 50 get the opportunity to be on this team. Makes me feel special (and proud that AIESEC GT has 2 of those 50! [Preston is here working on the marketing team]). Pre-meeting starts tomorrow with about 200 members checking in.


My future plans:

I was told I have an interview with Deloitte India tomorrow but haven't arranged how so maybe not but in short, I'm trying to get a job for fall in India. I've just about forgotten most of the Hindi I taught myself in Kenya because of working here and little free time. I've been able to register at GT for fall, keeping me enrolled, assuming I get a job (which I will).
After IC, I will be flying to Germany and touring around for about a month with Soren. I'm really excited! I wish I knew German though. I'm excited to see Germany, especially with Soren, and am curious what Oktoberfest is like since I've only seen mock versions at DisneyWorld as a child.
After that it's on to India but just before I will stop by Pakistan, meet all my friends who weren't able to come to Turkey and see what it's like there. I just spoke to my friend today who can arrange a place for me and take me around.


I think this email is long enough to make up for the weeks of silence. I hope all is going well at home, wherever that is for you. I've attached some pictures of Turkey and of IC.


Keep in touch!

Preston and I for Global Village, Representing the ATL/USA

Blue Mosque

My pants, one of 3 pairs I brought... Kenya really took it's toll on them. I don't think they'll last to see Germany... =*(

5:52pm Tuesday, Jul 10

Hello from Kenya!


I can see it's been a while since I've updated people on my where abouts. I'm still in Kenya but I leave for Turkey in 20 days for International Congress. I'm really excited to see all my friends again and to see Turkey.

So what I've been up to:

AIESEC Kenya Annual Dinner : The annual dinner and turn over of the national staff. I've attached a picture. I bought myself a nice dress for my birthday. ;)

Birthday: I spent my birthday at the top of a mountain. If I can't be home with my family I might as well be somewhere really memorable. It was exciting, but tiring. Now I can actually say to people "Come to the States, I'll buy you a drink." I celebrated by waking up at 2am climbing up, climbing down, and passing out at 8:30pm while everyone else stayed up and partied.

Mount Kenya: This was the most physically demanding challenge of my life. 5000km. Day 1: 4 hr drive 4 hr hike to Camp 1, Day 2: 7 hr hike to Camp 2it rained, then hailed, then snowed (I made it to camp before the snow but others didn't). Day 3: 2am wake up, 5 hr hike to the top, 3 hr hike down falling all the way, lunch, 7 hr hike to camp 1. Got lost with 4 others and had to use survival tactics and things because we were in the dark and there were wild animals. Day 4: 3 hr hike down then 4 hour drive back home. I was totally unprepared, with just 2 light jackets and sneakers. Needless to say I was freezing. I also had the second scariest moment of my life when I slipped off the side of the mountain in the snow. I was second to last and the snow gave out and I started sliding down the side, stuck at one point, and held on until the guy behind me hoisted me back onto the path. But it was beautiful. I'll send pics when I get them on my flashdrive.

My plans for rest of summer are taking shape now. I've been selected to be a facilitator at int'l conference here in Kenya at the end of July and then I leave for Turkey. After that, I hope to visit Germany with Soren. Really exciting!

Also, in case any news reaches where you are, I'm safe and am cautious about getting around. There have been some murders going on all around the country and in Nairobi because it's election year and radical groups and all that.

Anyways, I hope everything is good at home, where ever that may be for you all!

Tiffany

PS I'm learning how to cook! The ingredients are different here so I improvise. I can make a mean sour milk pasta! =P

blogger sucks

blogger sucks, at least in kenya...

So, I think I'm officially settled. I started working, though there was quite a bit of miscommunication about my job description, and I finally have a place to stay permanently, although that was hectic as well. But, hakuna matata! (no worries).

About my job:

I sat down with my boss today and finally got a few words in about how I see myself contributing to their MF program, which as we've come to know, hasn't been implemented yet and also suffers from some capacity issues.

I came up with some ideas last night about how to spend my time learning and contributing and now what I will be doing is creating materials for the credit officer, whenever they may get one, to help streamline the process for applying, since their current structure is very jumbled. Also, I will be creating material for the groups to help them better understand the program since the organization doesn't have the capacity for training. These materials may need to be translated by them into swahili later on for groups that my not speak English but for now it's the best that can be done for them. (For example, the apply they need a business plan but after reviewing a few, it's obvious that the org. provides no training or even format for the business plan.)

Also, I said I'd like to visit other MFI's in Nairobi to learn from them, perhaps obtain other material. So I will have afternoons to do my visits (which is awesome since I LOVE doing visits.)

About my housing:

So now I will be living with a host family right behind where I work. I live with 3 sisters, one of whom is the friend of the AIESEC LCP. Their mom works and stay in a city aout 3 hours outside the city and comes home on the weekends but it works out since I will be traveling over the weekends. I think this is the best since it's next to work, I'm with other girls my age and I don't have to live in the prision they call a girls hostel. They also have a female helper who lives in the house who cooks the meals usually. Good deal huh?

About other stuff:

This past weekend we went to Masai Mara, which is the typical safari place but there weren't many animals due to the season which was disappointing. This weekend we're going to the same place as the first weekend but a different part. We're climbing Mt Longonoot which takes about 3 hrs up and 3 down. It's in preparation for Mt Kenya which takes 3 days! AND! It happens to be on my birthday weekend AND I believe they way it's been arranged is that we'll reach to top of the mountain on the sunrise of my birthday!!! So last year, birthday at the Taj Mahal, this year, birthday at the top of Mt. Kenya! Exciting!

People here say I talk to much, but I think they're crazy. =P This weekend it was 9 people from all different countries in a car ride for 7 hours and no one said a word. It drove me crazy! Anyways, my cell number here if anyone wants to call is 0729670241 but remember the 7 hour time change. (I'm 7 ahead of Atlanta.)

I'll attach pics in my next email but I left the converter for my laptop at home so I couldn't transfer the pics before coming to the cafe (internet at work is down but I don't believe it will ever be reliable).

It's quite an experience here and I'm actually finding out a lot about what Kenyans think of Americans. Nothing bad or anything, just that we're overweight and believe in aliens and the supernatural. (The American shows they play here are terrible! But they do play all my favorite music.) Last night one of the sisters said confused because she always thought Americans were fat but I'm skinny. "Oh it must be your asian side." haha.

Ok, time to get back to doing something I guess. Sorry to make it long. Haven't tasted internet in a while.

Kwaheri! (bye)

So, Kenya. I’ve never been in a place where there are so few foreigners. The plane ride was full of foreigners. But here on campus, it’s just me. There are a handful of Canadians and Turks, no more than 20) I saw (they were pointed out as traveling in packs) but they are here for some 3 week study thing. People don’t stare as obviously as in China or India except for the school children. No one other than AIESECers speak to me because I’m told that the foreign students that come here like to keep to themselves and local students have given up trying to befriend them.

I was given a Kenyan name. First it was Mwenda which means “loved one” but then was changed to Wanja which is a typical name but similar to Wa Ja or something which means “outsider” essentially, “one from…(outside implied)" so I'm told. Everyone is really nice and pleasant but I hate feeling like I need to be baby sat but until I learn my way around, that’s what I’ll be doing.

So far the food here is delicious aside from the stale versions at the cafeteria. I still haven’t really bought food, just what I had at the house and then the cafeteria. I had tea at the house and it was delicious, it’s just like bubble tea but hot.

They drive on the other side of the road here. They say we don’t drive like they do because we hate the Brits. And they do kinda believe that Americans are fat and believe in aliens.

I’d feel better if it weren’t for the bathroom situation. The showers are uncomfortable for me mainly because they’re either cold or out of a Tupperware container and I should have brought shampoo since people here don’t use it. I just didn’t want to tote it in my luggage.

I think the trip to India really helps since much of it is similar. Very similar actually, just different people. Most everyone speaks English, the driving, the bathrooms, the cell phones, etc.

Crap, computer is dying and the other trainee accidentally took home the charger! Went traveling this weekend, write about it later with pics!

In Kenya

Safe, in Kenya. It's a huge change but I think it will be awesome once I adjust. The trip to India last year was helpful for this experience in many ways. Got to go email the mom and get to an event.

leave love!

4 more days...

and I'll be in Kenya.


2 more months and I'll be in Turkey as an IC 2007 teamster! (With Preston!)