Crossing the Finnish Line

Today marks day 331, essentially this is the crunch time, and soon I’ll be crossing the Finnish line.

Being an exchange student is both a blessing and a curse. I am blessed to have seen sunsets on the other side of the world, but now I have no idea how to live a stationary life. After experiencing the excitement of living abroad, I don't know how to go back to the familiarity of Kamloops life. 

The independence I gained this year took me to a place I know my parents were concerned I wouldn't reach. Sometimes when I'm making choices, I can hear my Dad's voice, saying "Mackie, you're really intelligent when it comes to books, but when it comes to street smarts, I worry about you....". I am just shy of one year from the last time I heard that, and who would have guessed that the girl who needed driving directions from her house to school, would be able to arrive in Paris and find her way to Disneyland with just a metro map and some confidence. Out of all the times my family has traveled to Disneyworld, Mexico, Jamaica, and Nicaragua, I never once worried about pick pocketers (that's what parents are for, right?). Suddenly I noticed myself consciously separating my money and holding my bag closer while traveling Europe. It might not sound like much, but, Mom and Dad, you know I've come a long way from where I was this time last year.

I knew that this year was intended for me to grow, but I never would have expected to learn so much about myself and other cultures. Many people look at a year abroad as a gap year for fooling around, but for me, this year was so much more.

I always thought I knew what kind of person I was. “Hi I’m Mackie, I’m 18, I enjoy dancing, and I am good at math.” There is so much more to me than just that, and this year was my time to explore the other aspects. Suddenly, I was in a foreign place trying new things almost daily, it was a completely different life. Finland is the place where I learned how to be myself. I learned and accepted my strengths, weaknesses, and places for improvement, and I think when I finally understood these things about myself, was when I stopped worrying and simply moved forward trying to improve on the day before.  

I learned that time flies and life goes on. Being an exchange student is like living a short life inside your real life, kind of. When I had a limited amount of time in a certain place, I always wanted to make the best of it, and never waste a moment, after all there were so many amazing things I wanted to see, and incredible people I wanted to meet.  When I was busy seizing the moment, I lived, learned and grew so quickly. Since time doesn’t wait for anyone, I’m glad I enjoyed my time as much as I did. Now I will go home with fond memories and looking forward to my next adventures.

New Home 3.0

My current host family is very diverse, my host dad is Finnish, my host mom is Italian and, of course, now I’ve been added into the mix. They took my cultural exchange to a new level by inviting me to come with them to Italy for the summer. They have adopted me as one of their own and slowly but surely, Nonna Titti is turning me into a real Italian girl with every teacup of black coffee and spoonful of octopus.

This weekend I went away to Aunt Rosi's beach house. The drive was beautiful, mountains everywhere, the seaside on the left, and greenery to the right. We listened to lovely Spanish guitar music and ate apricots till our skin turned orange. When we arrived, the property looked like it was straight off the Club Med, Cancun website. They won my heart by barbecuing and teaching me that good cuisine and good conversation is all we needed for a good weekend. 

The next morning the sun was shining and the sky was blue, so we hit the beach. I didn't get sun burnt and the kids and I had fun in the waves. I went for a nap, and when I woke up I realized that it was slightly too quiet, and right on cue my host dad said "the kids are off catching frogs, they already have two ". I didn't question it, after all they are kids and kids catch frogs sometimes, "we decided we're going to eat them for dinner if they have enough..." *pukes in mouth* "...it's typical Italian cuisine from this area, trust me, you'll like it ". Meanwhile I'm deciding if it's my place to explain the food safe section on proper storage, I'm pretty sure there weren't any specifics stating "leave desired food alive in a 30 degree environment until 45 minutes before cooking" but I think taking it from the swamp and barbecuing it violates some kind of food safe instructions. I decided it's for the best that I don't say anything and be the good exchange student, that I am, and "go with the flow", because they must have some kind of technique if it's typical Italian cuisine, right? 

Most stressful hour of my life passes by while waiting for dinner. I've never been too picky about food, or scared to try new dishes, but this time, I couldn't stop worrying about the wild frogs. I sat down, sweaty but mentally prepared. I'm given a plate and I pile on some barbecued peppers, some toasted bread and I'm given some chicken wings. I get slightly hopeful that there wasn't enough frogs, I thought that I dodged the bullet. 

"Buon Appitito" we all start eating, five minutes in, my host dad, has something in his barbecue tongs "Here Mackie, this one is for you". 

IT’S THE FROG. Commence personal pep talk, now. "Okay, eat the other foods, make sure they aren't touching it, okay, good. Look at the others plate, why doesn't anyone else have one? How am I supposed to know how to eat it?" 

"Mackie! It tastes like chicken. Just eat it. DONT BE A WIMP!" Says my culturally encouraging host sister. 

"Mackie, you don't like it?" Says Aunt Rosi. 

Pep talk continues "Don't look it in the eyes. Oh my. It looks like Mrs. Steenson's 4th grade class pet." 

"Mackie, seriously, we gave you the last frog, you have to at least try it." 

*holds back tears* okay, show time. Be the ultimate exchange student and get cultured by eating the frog. *picks up fork and knife, stabs frog* maybe if I flip it over it will look less like a pet and more like food. *flips frog* 

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW!? THIS WAS A CHICKEN WING THE WHOLE TIME?!" 

Yes, the "frog" was an ugly chicken wing the whole time. Meal ends with everyone laughing and me embarrassingly crying from the stress and/or relief and eating my emotions away with sympathy cheese. 

In conclusion, I'm still proud that I was going to eat the "frog", even if it was just a chicken wing, I'm still proud.

I know that I will miss every aspect of my life abroad, and I must move on, but once I am home, I will do my best to erase the 5,000 km between Finland and Canada.

Proud Mackie

P.S. Here are some photos from the Eurotour - missing my Eurotour family right now :( and also some photos of my new home in Italy. 

Matera, Italy