Networking in French?!

Published on by Caitlin TurkLeave a comment

This past weekend, I had the amazing opportunity to attend the third edition of the Jotaay Ji Feminist Festival! I can’t believe I almost didn’t go. 

Earlier in the week, our internship coordinator told all ten of us students about an upcoming feminist festival at the Place du Souvenir. I was really excited, especially because I am planning to complete the internship portion of my study abroad experience at the Association des femmes juristes, where I’ll be observing and assisting with their legal work to improve women’s rights in Senegal. I asked my friends if they wanted to go with me and people were all very enthusiastic! 

Saturday morning, the day the festival started, I texted our group chat asking if anyone wanted to go. A few minutes passed. A few dozen more minutes passed. It was almost noon, when the festival was going to begin. Did I want to go alone? I knew vaguely where the place would be, but I would have appreciated someone to go exploring with me and help me figure out how the festival worked. I had no idea what to expect and the thought of going alone, especially when I continuously get comments while walking around as a white woman, was definitely a little scary. 

I have never been the kind of person to let fear get in the way of doing something I’m excited about. I put on my shoes, grabbed my water bottle and sunscreen, and left. 

While walking over, a man riding a motorcycle pulled over on the side of the road, called me pretty, and asked if I wanted a ride. “No, thank you! I like to walk!” I said. He pulled away and I kept on walking, enjoying the sunshine and the view of the ocean to my right. I wish I could say random men saying things to me was uncommon, but it even goes so far as proposals sometimes. I’ve gotten less uncomfortable with these interactions as I’ve lived here longer, but I was oh so happy to be heading to a feminist festival after this moment. 

I arrived and entered the meeting hall. The panel had already begun, and seemed to be entirely in Wolof! I could pick out a couple words here and there, but that was all. For about 20 minutes I sat, just listening to words I couldn’t understand. Then, one of the event organizers tapped on my shoulder and offered me a headset! Clearly, he could tell that I didn’t speak sufficient Wolof. On the headset, I could turn the channel to 1 for English or 2 for French. I selected 2. 

For the next hour and a half, I learned about the Senegalese Family Code. The panelists spoke about issues such as marriage, divorce, and abortion, detailing their own experiences and providing an overview of Senegal as a whole. When the panel concluded, all of the audience members and panelists stood up and began to discuss with one another. Not quite sure what to do, I stood up awkwardly with my headset in my hands. 

Then, a woman waved to me and asked if I was Cati (the name Senegalese people call me)! She introduced herself as Wasso, the woman who reached out to my school’s internship coordinator about the event. She asked me about the panel and my time in Senegal so far, and then introduced me to many of her colleagues and friends.

I spoke with various Senegalese women—named Awa, Dior, and Bineta—working in similar areas to Wasso. I had a long conversation with Coumba, a Pulaar woman who was very interested in the differences between Senegal and the U.S. During these conversations, sometimes there were more technical French words that I didn’t understand. However, each time I asked for clarification, they very patiently explained it to me in simpler French. Between conversations, I paused for a few seconds to think to myself: I was networking in French! And networking successfully! 

Perhaps networking isn’t quite the right word, but these women definitely use these festivals and discussions as a networking event. They discuss pertinent issues and solutions and how to work together, all for the purpose of improving rights in Senegal. Therefore, I think this process absolutely merits the label “networking,” but includes a very human aspect as well. 

I had such a wonderful time speaking with all of these women, eating lunch afterwards together, and I returned the next day with two of my friends from school. I am so happy I didn’t let the fear of attending alone stop me from having such an amazing experience and meeting such incredible people. 

And of course I wrote a LinkedIn post too! Gotta put the “study” in study abroad!!

Ba ci kanam / À bientôt / See you soon, 

Caitlin

My Top Five Culture Shocks in Glasgow So Far (And How I Lived To Tell the Tale)

Published on by Haylee GriffithLeave a comment

“Culture shock” is something I have heard at least once a day since starting my process to go abroad. It is no doubt a very real thing, yet I underestimated all the very small, niche differences I would encounter daily. I have decided to compile my top five culture shocks I have experienced in Glasgow and some tips on how to overcome them.

Enjoy! 

Ice, more specifically, the lack thereof:

Starting with my not-so-favorite as someone who likes to start every morning with an iced coffee. It truly baffled me how uncommon it is for people to have iced drinks, but it is completely true. Most menus in cafes will have ice in small print at the very bottom, and you’re lucky if they even offer it half the time. My favorite coffee place on campus is right by all my classes, but I have just below a 50% success rate of them actually having ice on any given day. 

This also continues in restaurants, where they will bring lukewarm water to your table and think nothing else of it. Ice is just not all that common here, which has made me realize how much I use it in my daily life. I never considered myself someone who needs ice, but I guess I really do. 

My tip here is simple: get yourself at least one ice tray. I use mine every single day for my water bottle and any other drinks I bring back to my flat. Also, on a semi-similar note, get used to paper straws because you will not see a plastic one at all while you are here. You have to drink everything really fast before they give up on you and collapse. 

Crosswalks and drivers:

Since my first day here, I have noticed how insane some drivers can be in Glasgow. This could just be the fact that everything looks weird with people driving on the left side and the driver’s seat being on the right, but I truly feel people drive very fast and crazy here. 

I have to use many crosswalks every day to get to school, and there are about a dozen more once I get to campus. The crosswalks were intimidating to me at first, so I want to share my tips for ensuring your safety. 

When you get to a crosswalk, make sure you press the button and see the “WAIT” light turn bright. I have gotten to crosswalks too many times where the other people waiting haven’t pressed the button, and then wondered why there’s been a hundred light rotations where they couldn’t walk. 

After pressing the button, wait for the little red man to turn green (this can take a while sometimes, but it is worth the wait). Even if all the cars have stopped, do not go unless the figure is green. Again, cars seem to come out of nowhere, and sometimes I feel like I don’t know where to look because everything is opposite, so always play it safe. I know this seems obvious, but it took me a while to get the hang of it.

Other than that, avoid jaywalking even though literally everyone else seems to do it. Cars far down the street may look like they are going slow, but can sneak up on you fast. Also, under no conditions should you ever take a step in the road without looking first. Why do so many people do that?! Anywhere you may need to go can wait an extra minute, I promise. 

The faucets:

I never thought I would have such strong emotions about a sink, but here we are. In my flat and many other public bathrooms I have been in, there are two faucets. The one on the left will give you hot water, the one on the right will give you cold. I don’t know why, but I know I hate it. 

This is a first-world problem, I’m fully aware. However, I like warm water, but that just isn’t an option here. When I need to wash my hands or do the dishes, I need to choose between freezing cold water or burning myself. I have tried the hot water too many times, but it just gets scalding hot after a few seconds and becomes unbearable, so I wash my hands and dishes in cold water. 

You’d think you could just turn both on and get a mix, but no. They are too far apart to even try to mix, so each hand just gets burnt or frozen. Unfortunately, I have no tips for this one. I’ve gotten used to it by now, and cold water is really good for your face, at least that’s what I tell myself every time I splash the freezing water onto my face in the morning. It really does wake you up! 

Revolving doors:

This one is funny to me because I have to be the only person who cares. There truly are revolving doors everywhere here. While it can be fun to sit there and watch crowds of people try to figure them out like they are the most confusing things in the world, it’s not as fun when you’re in that crowd. 

My main tip here would be to try your hardest to find a normal door, especially if you’re in a rush, because nobody seems to understand how these things work. If you have to use one and there’s a crowd, you need to be fearless. Just go for it because nobody else will. 

People will sit there forever trying to find the perfect time to make their escape, but there never is one. Just walk into it and you’ll be out before you know it. The actual scary part is the crowd of people that will be standing in front of it on the other side when you’re trying to get out. Unfortunately, you have to just push your way around them until they make you a path. Losing your momentum is the worst thing you can do. Don’t let them trap you! 

The sheer number of people that just stand there fascinates me, so if there’s anything you take from this, let it be how to use a revolving door properly. I swear there needs to be a class people can take for this. 

Restaurant etiquette:

Ending on a strong one, there are some shocking restaurant differences that trip me up every time I go out. First of all, many places expect you to just seat yourself. Considering how mad places get when you do this in America, I hate doing it. It feels so rude to me, but it isn’t here. I still stand there and wait for the hostess/servers to tell me to pick any seat, but it’s nice to be aware of this fact when you’re getting up from your table and other people just immediately sit down before you can even get out the door. 

Waiters are also very different in that they aren’t really waiters at all. They will take your order, give you your food, and then probably not check in on you or even look your direction until you wave them down if you need something. Again, this feels so rude to me, but it’s completely normal to call them over, and you are expected to when you want the bill. I have sat for too long in too many places waiting for them to come give me the check, and they never do. It is on you every time to tell them you are ready to leave. 

It can be nice to just be left alone to eat and talk, but it’s just really weird to get used to. 

Final Thoughts:

I could go on and on about the culture shocks I’ve experienced, and it hasn’t even been a month, but these ones really have stuck out to me and are ones I want people to be aware of if they plan on going to Glasgow or the UK in general.

Knowing these before arrival would have been nice, but learning and adjusting are all a part of the journey, and with how many other international students are here, I never once have been made to feel stupid or like I didn’t belong. 

Thanks for reading!