Suzanne-CP 1

Our first meeting with our conversation partners did not exactly go according to how I thought it would. For starters, I was hoping for a Spanish-speaking partner (since I'm headed out to Argentina) but didn't get one. Then, when I arrived, my partner wasn't there. So I snatched Jordan and Francis, also aimlessly standing around in the lounge, and the three of us approached a group of three guys who also seemed un-paired. I later found out that my partner, Albraa, was a friend of theirs, and all of us made tentative plans to hang out later, so it ended up working out really well.

The two guys I talked to the most were Hassan and Muhammad, both from Saudi Arabia. My first thought when I realized the sheer number of Arabic-speaking individuals in the program was surprise. For some reason, perhaps because of Florida's minority population and high number of Hispanics, I assumed most CIES students would be Spanish speakers. After talking to Hassan, he explained to me that a lot of Saudi students, almost all men, come to a university like Florida State because it's a prestigious place to get a business or computer informations degree - the favorite two of Saudi students - before going back to Saudi Arabia to work. I'm not entirely sure they understood why I was a creative writing major, but hey, different strokes!

Hassan was the easiest to talk to - his level of confidence with the language made for a very comfortable interaction. He was willing to take risks and make mistakes, and likewise seemed very interested in all of the TEFL students and where we came from. Plus, he had his collar popped - uber-American - and definitely knew how to "rock the swag." Muhammad, though less gregarious, was also very well-adapted to verbal English, though he admitted that when it came to writing and reading, his skills were not as good. Still, we talked about his passions - diving, and how he fought fear of the water: "you just have to see your fear and close your brain" - and the Saudi government. The highlight of our chat was when he taught me how to write my name in Arabic, then proceeded to show Camille hers so she could try to copy it on the board. Everyone laughed together and it reminded me of why I want to do this - because not only did I not expect Saudi conversation partners, but I learned more than I thought I even could in one hour session.