Chapter 8: "Palermo", Mormons, Stereotypes, & Paying for the Bathroom

Okay, so about a week and a half ago I had to go to an AFS camp in "Palermo," although apparently it wasn't actually in Palermo, it was in a tiny city an hour away from Palermo but ya know. Anyway, the camp was reaaaaaaaaally long and awfully boring but it was fun to see all the other AFS kids. We basically just spent all 4 days talking about our feelings and answering questions like "Are you happy? Is everything ok? Do you like it here? etc." For those of us that didn't have any complaints or problems this camp wasn't all that useful and was very time consuming. On the positive side, we all learned some new dance moves and were treated to some interesting/fantastic talents in the annual AFS Talent Show. (Shout out to you Yuma. You rocked our world kiddo.)

Me, Danielle (USA), Annette (Mexico) Baddest babes on the bus.

Danielle, Magnea (Iceland), me. Best exchange friends a girl could ask for.

The highlight of this camp for me was hanging out in the bus station before and after the camp. We ate at one of the few McDonald's in Sicily and Danielle and I (the other girl from the US) were teased by the other students that the golden arches must make us feel at home. After finishing our MickyD's Danielle and I were heading to the restrooms when one of the volunteers ran up to us and asked excitedly if we were the girls from the US, we said yes and she pointed at two blonde, non AFS, guys standing next to her. I immediately recognized them as missionaries of the Mormon church, but Danielle was glancing at my confusedly. They introduced themselves, asked us if we were Mormon, and talked with us about their experience here and how ours is going so far. One of the guys was from Utah and the other was from Michigan, and they both had only 6 months left of their 2 year mission. This whole situation was just hilarious to me, because never once did I think that I would run into Mormons in Sicily. They reminded me of Prescott, where the LDS church has a huge presence, and the experience made me chuckle every time I thought about it for the next few days. 

Now, I'm not sure about you all but I have never had to pay to go to the bathroom before.. But in the Palermo Centro Station, it costs 80 cents to use the bagno.

Alright! Now onto the deep stuff. At the camp we had to make posters representing our countries, and then we were all asked to write what we know/thought about every country on StickyNotes and stick em onto all the posters. Japan's poster was full of StickyNotes that said things like origami, sushi, anime, and even atomic bomb. Brazil's was full of carnival and "big booty". And the Scandinavian countries all had plenty of tall, blonde, and beautiful notes. When each country was called the students from that country would stand up and read what the StickyNotes on their poster said. Immediately after the activity was explained, Danielle and I knew that our poster was gonna be embarrassing. Sure enough our poster had multiple "stupid" "ignorant" "fat" "fast food" "hamburgers" and "McDonalds," notes, and unlike all of the other posters our poster didn't have a single "nice people" or "friendly people" note. Of course we sort of expected this, because honestly, the US has an awful reputation for being arrogant and way too into itself. But still, it wasn't all that fun to stand in front of 65 other students and multiple volunteers and read the stereotypes that people have about our country. 

I think that for me, and possibly Danielle, it was kinda hurtful to read those things because here we are, exchange students, trying our hardest to learn a brand new language, live in a brand new country, and completely immerse ourselves in a brand new culture; we are the exact opposite of the stereotypes that were written on our poster.

Anyhow, I think these stereotypes stem from the lack of education in the US about other countries and world history. Seriously, in my experience in the public and private school systems, I have learned extensively about US and Arizona state history, but very little about any other countries. For example, my freshman year in high school (2012/2013) I took a World History class that spent one whole semester focusing on ancient, ancient Chinese history, while the second semester was a jumble of Mesopotamian, Roman, and Greek history. Not once have I ever learned about any of the Scandinavian countries, Germany (besides its involvement in both World Wars), Russia, or ANY countries in South/Central America. So, basically I can give you a brief summary of what an aqueduct is and how the wheel was invented but I probably can't tell you who the preceded Putin as the president of Russia, or who is the current prime minister of Norway. This is pretty dang sad considering many of the kids I have met through AFS can name more than 10 US presidents, what they are known for, and can describe the difference between the Declaration of Independence and The Constitution. This is even more impressive considering many kids in the US only know the current president, Abe Lincoln, Washington and maybe Kennedy. Don't get me wrong though, this isn't the fault of the students, it's the fault of an entire education system. And that's what has seriously got to change in the US; kids need more history, more languages, more access to culture. 

Eventually I hope that exchange students, and educated people, can help to get rid of these stereotypes because the USA is a pretty great overall place to live and visit. Coming to Sicily has made me appreciate Arizona and the US, more than I ever thought was possible. And I hope that one day the US is known for things other than fast food.

PS. I didn't mean for this post to seem negative, because there were notes on the USA poster that said "Apple" "Steve Jobs" "California" and "Grand Canyon" (holllla!) and other positive things. I just felt a need to write post pointed out some of the common stereotypes that people have about the US, and how we should work to change them. Also, I want to add that not a single person has been anything but kind to me during my time here. Everyone has been molto dolce to me. 

Lots of love! 
R