Blogs

Reflect on the presentations of your classmates.

All the presentations of all the students were interesting and great. Although, it was different to hear the words and things that I didn’t know anything about from a different culture. when you hear something about a culture that you nothing know about either sound interesting, difficult, weird, or even something impossible to get to learn them. Hence, the presentations sounded like this for me. For example, some of the words that I heard in Swedish sounded really cool while some of the others seemed very difficult that I have no clue how to pronounce them. Overall, it was all fun, great, and informative. :)

“linguistic aspects”. Body language,

Pakistan is another Islamic country and in Muslim cultures verses a non-Islamic country because religious beliefs play a role as well. Looks and hand signals that are considered friendly in the United States but they are aggressive in Pakistan culture. You have to be very careful about looks and specially hand signals because it is impolite and inappropriate. In addition, eye contact is appropriate, a handshake polite in the U.S but they both considered as rude in Pakistani culture. You are not suppose to look at people directly to their eyes or make an eye contact especially when you are talking to apposite gender. Sometimes it is even offensive for a man to look a woman in the eye or even to glance at her.

My learning plan goes well and i have been working on the structure of making sentence this week with my language partner. I am alot more comfortable with the reading the sentences and mostly i can figure out the meanings and the words as well. One thing that i have noticed to really work hard on is my conversation and speaking because i found out the having a conversation is alot more difficult than the reading. I have learned many good words from the sentence that we did and some other words that i targeted to learn this week in order to improve my vocabulary. In addition, my writing is getting pretty good too. I will be focusing on speaking and having more conversation with my language partner in order to accomplish my next goal.

I think the video is very interesting and thought provoking. It has brought up a lot of points I haven't thought about; even the smallest of things can cause the biggest issues. It is also making me rethink the way I criticize international students and making sense of their misunderstandings. 

Orientation: how overwhelming! That is a lot to handle coming into the country. I feel comforted by being so busy and having plans all of the time but many of the international students do not like to learn and experience so much so quickly to feel comfortable. 

Classroom culture: not speaking in class seems to be the norm outside of the US. When other students do not speak up in class I tend to think poorly of them but knowing that it is the way of their culture makes more sense. I thought it might be a confidence matter but it is simply unnatural for them. They are also intimidated because of language barriers and that their ideas may not be worth sharing. 

Reading, writing, and thinking in another language: this is incredibly hard. I experienced this when I took a class at the Sorbonne in Paris and the professor cut us a lot of slack (luckily). I was not fluent in french and really needed that. If my professor expected the same quality of work from us as from the french students I would not have done well in the class because it took so much effort to even read the assignment, writing a term paper at the end of the semester was another story. I now have a lot more respect for international students after taking that course and being in their positions. I know that most international students here are fluent in english so it is not exactly the same situation but I can understand how hard it is to keep up with the rigor of work. 

The problems that people are having about the smallest things is so interesting. The way that americans aren't comfortable with silence, language connotations and colloquialisms, and other things I would never think about. A topic they brought up that I have actually been thinking about a lot lately is that americans are always so busy, and it is desirable to be busy. That can be very difficult to deal with on a day to day basis and a huge difference in culture. Adjusting to the way people act, manage their time, and plan their social lives is focused on staying busy. Coming from a laid back culture to this uptight, structured society must be unnerving. 

It makes a lot of sense that international students would get along better with each other than americans because they have more in common. Their biggest common point is that they are different from the culture they are in and can bond over their differences from their one similarity. 

My Hebrew learning has not gone as planed. I used to know how to read and write hebrew no problem when I was 12 years old. Did I understand what anything meant? No. But at least I knew the written and pronunciation part. Since my Bat Mitzvah I have done little to no Hebrew reading and writing so I decided to take this self directed course to get back my skills and hopefully learned what some of it actually means. 

Unfortunately I had a rude awakening when none of it seemed to come back to me. I couldn't even remember the alphabet song! Something so basic! I spent a couple of weeks deciding to learn script or print since no one really writes in print anymore and the alphabets are very different (for me at least). I decided I want to learn print since most of the signage in Israel is in print and so are most religious texts. When you learn the alphabet you also have to learn the vowels. There are over 10 vowel signs in addition to the alphabet that you need to learn when starting to learn Hebrew but after about first grade they are never written. I have not take the step of not using vowels and do not know if I will be able to do that this semester. 

So now I finally relearned the alphabet, vowels, and some basic words. Hebrew is much more specific than English in many ways; for example there are 4 ways to say you (one for a singular female, plural females, singular male, and plural males). Learning these basic words have also not been easy but I think we are about to start learning some more words to put together basic phrases. I am excited to get more conversational but it is not a walk in the park. 

Belirtili:

- Aysenin ayakkabisi beyaz. 

- Otelin odasinda geliyorum. 

- Evimin mutfagi cok temiz. 

- Odanin bilgisayari kulaniyorum. 

- Arabamin rengi siyah. 

Belirtisiz: 

- Benim kitabim cocuk odasinda.

- Gunes gozlugumi nerede?

- Yatak odasinda geliyorum. 

- Matematik kursu gidiyorum.

- Cocuklar cocuk parkinda oynuyorlar. 

Zincirleme

- Bilgisayarin masanin icini.

- Okulun ogretmenin arabasi. 

- Okulun sinifinin sandalyesi gidiyorum. 

- Aysenin annesinin ogrencileri okuyorlar. 

- Universitenin sinavinin ustu. 

Something that I always find interesting about different cultures is what they deem to be polite and how they address each other respectfully, etc. I've probably already mentioned that Sweden is a very egalitarian country and so it would be uncommon in your workplace to call your boss Mr. or Mrs. because you would refer to them by their first names. In general people don't use the Swedish equivalents to ma'am, madam, sire, sir, miss, etc. because you are just much more likely to call someone by their name. That said, because I grew up in the states and we are taught to say please and thank you for everything, I found it interesting that Swedish has words for both please and thank you but that only thank you is ever used. A lot of times I find that my boyfriend and his family omit saying those words in general because it is assumed that if they are asking for something that they are doing it politely and are appreciative- so for them it would be unnecessary and redundant to say please and thank you. The word for please, as I said earlier, is never used. You could say "snälla" if you really wanted to but it's equated with begging in Sweden. A Swede is much more likely to say "thank you" at the end of a request rather than starting with the word please. So instead of saying "please, can you pass the bread?" or "can you please pass the bread", they would say "can you pass the bread, thanks?" And in fact, just like kids in the states are taught to say "please and thank you", Swedish children are taught to say the phrase "tack för maten" which means thanks for the food at the end of every meal and especially if someone else cooked for them or is picking up the check.

This week in Swedish:

Well this was an interesting week for my language learning because most of it was spent in fall break. I went out of the country with my language partner to visit her brother (my boyfriend) where he is attending graduate school. Their parents also joined us for some of the weekend so I was able to hear and interpret a lot of Swedish being spoken! I was happy to discover that I could follow along with their conversations and pick up on individual words that I had already learned. Their accents are really thick so it made understanding specific words challenging!

The best moment of the trip was when I was able to make a discovery about grammar and colloquialism! The word in Swedish for "a museum" is "ett museum". I noticed, however, that when the Anderssons were saying "the museum" that instead of saying "museumet" (like what it would be if you followed the grammar rule), they said "museet". I was able to talk to them about this phenomenon and we figured out that technically you should say "museumet" but that's such a mouthful that Swedes typically just say "museet". 

I am confident after this weekend that my Swedish studies are advancing quickly and I'm excited about adding new words to my vocabulary and expanding the list of things I can talk about in the future.

This past week (before fall break) we watched the culture shock video and I thought it was really informative. I don't often think about what it would be like to study abroad in another country and especially if you are not going to be studying in your native tongue. The part that I found most interesting was the issue with how Americans communicate. I've talked to my exchange friends in the past and they've all said that one thing that really frustrates them in the beginning of their abroad experience is the way people on campus will say "hey, how are you?" to them and then walk away without actually hearing how they are. There is an expectation in the states that you are going to say "great" or "fine" or something like that and then continue walking. It is does not often happen with my American friends on campus that we greet each other in that manner and then stick around to hear the actual answer. I think it can be hand for international students because they don't realize that "hey, how are you?" basically just means "hey"!!!

I also thought it was interesting how many of the international students (and the exchange students I know) say that the amount of work they have here at Richmond is much more than they would have at home. This actually doesn't surprise me to hear because I know for the most part that when Richmond students study abroad there is typically not expectation that they have to attend all of their classes, most don't start studying until days before the final, and there is very little participation in classes (so you don't necessarily have to do the reading before class like you do at UR). I just find this very interesting! I don't know whether it's a good thing or a bad thing or just completely neutral.

This week due to break and missing my flight home on Wednesday, we had to meet for double the time on Friday. We focused on transportation words today. We have a ton of words to memorize by Wednesday for our weekly test. But in this word list we are focusing a lot on nouns, which is good because I don't know too many of them. I think what I need to start doing is looking up more grammar on my own. Perhaps each week when we have the vocabulary test with Louise on Wednesday, Ill start giving myself a grammar test then as well. Because I know words but I am not the best at putting together coherent sentences. The thing that is frustrating with that is when I look up grammatical terms, I don't know what the terms even mean in English, none the less Swedish. Maybe I will look into youtube videos to see if that helps with the explanation.

Culture shock video.

The video appeared to me like an accurate representation of my own experience. It shows that cultural shock and home sickness affect some people more than others but definitely underlines the fact that moving to an unknown culture definitely require some degree of open mindedness. 

The "honeymoon phase" described in the video is somewhat what I experienced when I first arrive in the USA. There is always some curiosity and excitement going along with a new experience, however once the new experience is not that new anymore and that it starts looking more like a routine, the excitement definitely comes down. People might realize that the culture they were part of their entire life is not there anymore. The fact that ones' bases and fundamentals are not present may represent a trap that can be scary to be in.
It is possible to overcome this feeling by realizing that it is just another way of living and that adaptation is not impossible. Accepting and understanding a foreign culture is the first step towards adaptation. Some people may have more difficulties than other to adapt, which makes the transition harder, but the key is to stay open minded.

Ben Turk yemekleri cok seviyorum. Turk ve Bosnanin yemekleri cok benziyor. Biz doner ve sarma var. Ayni isim var. Bizde bunlar yemegi ayni isim verdik. Hicbir zaman, kizarmis dondurma denmedim, ama ona denmek istiyorum. Sarma cok seviyorum. Sarma hemen hemen en sevdigim yemegi.  Istanbulda kalktim, cok Turk yemekleri yedim. Yogurt cok sevdim. Biliyorum, Turkler cok iyi baklava yapiyor. Turk baklava dendim ve cok sevdim. Baklava cok geleneksel bir yemek Bosnada. Biz baklava Bayram icin yapiyorum. Ben de Turk yemekleri arkadaslarima her zaman oneriyorum.

Bir gunun nasil geciyor?

Her gun saat yedide kalkiyorum. Her gun derslerimi var. Bazi gunler sadece iki dersim var, ama bazi gunler dort ve bes dersim var. Saat yedi bucukta kahvalti yiyorum. Kahvalti sonra, derslerime gidiyorum. Derslerden sonra, isim var. Kutuphanede calisiyorum. Ara sira isimde odevim yapiyorum. Saat birde uyuyorum. 

Sabahlari ne yapiyorsun?

Sabahlari kahvalti yiyorum ve derslerimi gidiyorum. Cumartesi sabah calisiyorum, ama pazar gunu uyuyorum. Pazar gunu calismiyorum. 

Oglenleri ne yapiyorsun?

Oglenleri ogle yemegi arkadaslarim ile yiyorum. Ogle yemegi sonra, tekrar derslerimi gidiyorum ya da calisiyorum. 

Hafta sonlari ne yapiyorsun? 

Hafta sonlari kutuphanede calisiyorum ya da odevimi yapiyorum. If I have sinavim gelecek hafta, ozaman sinavim icin cok okuyorum.  

I spoke with my language partner today about Israeli culture. Something I did not think about is how the army draft affects the culture. It is a topic for small talk, you will probably be asked about it in an interview, and it changes their high education. Once you finish high school you are drafted into the army for two or three years (2 for women, three for men). Then people typically work at a restaurant or a cashier to save up some money for a couple of years. Then they travel, typically around Southeast Asia because it is less expensive, for a couple of years before heading to a university. So by the time they start their higher education they are around 23-25. Their universities are also focused on a profession; for example if you want to be a doctor you wouldn't have to get an undergraduate degree before going to med school, you would just go straight to med school. 

Israelis are know to be straight-forward and aggressive so I wanted to read a bit into it. The first blog post I read had a more negative experience it seems but the next article I found explains it all. Their culture is simply different and things they view as the norm we, as Americans, think are rude. It is important to make sure to understand the people before making any judgements. The second article hits a lot of key differences between Israelis and Americans and made me reflect on a lot of interactions I have had with Israeli people I know and how they may have perceived me as well. 

In Hebrew there is script and and print writing, most signage is in print but everyone writes in script so it is important to know both. Something I find interesting is that words like the,  to, from, at, etc are not typically their own words but an addition to another word. For example putting a lamed (L sound) in front of a word means "to" and then whatever word you say. It is very different from English in many ways: first of all it is written from right to left, many of their sentences start with the verb and then the subject, and it has sounds that we do not have in English (like the chhhhh sound in your throat). There are many more differences between the languages that are difficult to adjust to. 

http://lifeinisrael.blogspot.com/2008/12/two-looks-at-typical-israeli.html

http://israelnewsagency.com/crossculturaltipsdosdontsdoingbusinessisraelus489051207.html

  Identify a topic for your culture project and your learning goals for your topic.

Music is my life and i cant live without it. My favorite aspect about Pakistani culture is its music. The music basically connected me with the culture and language. Of course, Music is extremely important into any culture. Life without music is impossible for many. I love music and listening to Pakistani Music makes me to feel a deeper side of the world. Its just beautiful. Although, i dont understand it that much but still i am not able to stop listening to it because it feels very special and wonderful. Actually, listening to Pakistani music makes me improve my language ability and makes more enthusiastic toward to everything of country.

  A hearhtouchhing Pakistani song

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Topic of your choice: How do people greet each other in Pakistan?

• Greetings are  often between members of the same sex in Pakistan; however, when dealing with people in the middle class, greetings may be across sex lines.
• Men shake hands with each other. Once a relationship is developed, they may hug as well as shake hands.
• Women generally hug and kiss. Pakistanis take their time during greetings and ask about the person's health, family, and business success.
• Pakistani names often include a name that denotes a person's class, tribe, occupation, or other status indicator.
• They may also include two names that have a specific meaning when used together, and the meaning is lost if the names are separated. . It is best to ask a person how they wish to be addressed.
• In general, this is not a culture where first names are commonly used, except among close friends.

Pakistan is an Islamic country, so the below video shows a typical Islamic greetings and introduction! od

Formality and Informality in Target Language:

Urdu in its less formalized.If a word is of Persian or Arabic origin, the level of speech is considered to be more formal and grand in Urdu. In addition, if Persian or Arabic  grammar constructs, such as the izafat, are used in Urdu, the level of speech is also considered more formal and grand.And usually the degree of formality and informality is signaled by other consonant clusters, by derivative suffixes, borrowed encephalitic and certain types of function words.

More information about Formality and Informality of Urdu Language

Since I was a kid, I had a very special interest in learning different languages.  I loved learning Urdu since my childhood because we have lots of TV series in Urdu back home and watched lots of Bollywood movies which I loved them all. I am sure that I am going to love learning Urdu this semester. I just need to stay patient and try to find good ways of learning it such as watching short movies, videos, reading picture text, and practicing my writing. I am going to work very hard to spend a good amount of time to practice, study, and most importantly to work with my language partner which is going to be a great help toward my learning of Urdu language. I love Indian and Urdu songs. It will be awesome that I can translate them by myself one day. Urdu is such a beautiful and sweet language. Its songs give you all the great emotions of being happy, relaxed, or go crazy. I am very excited and can’t wait to learn how to talk and understand Urdu by the end of this semester.

A very sweet Urdu song with nice words