• Home
  • Posts RSS
  • Comments RSS
  • Edit
Blue Orange Green Pink Purple

U.S. Foreign Service Officer headed to Wuhan, China

The mission of a U.S. diplomat in the Foreign Service is to promote peace, support prosperity, and protect American citizens while advancing the interests of the U.S. abroad. The work that diplomats do has an impact on the world as they serve at one of any of the more than 270 embassies, consulates and other diplomatic missions in The Americas, Africa, Europe and Eurasia, East Asia and Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia.

The duties of a Consular Officer include to provide emergency and non-emergency services to American citizens and protect our borders through the proper adjudication of visas to foreign nationals and passports to American citizens. We adjudicate immigrant and non-immigrant visas, facilitate adoptions, help evacuate Americans, combat fraud, and fight human trafficking. Consular Officers touch people’s lives in important ways, often reassuring families in crisis. They face many situations which require quick thinking under stress and develop and use a wide range of skills, from managing resources and conducting public outreach to assisting Americans in distress.

Reflecting on the end of camp


Although Rotary has kept us busy so far in Tokyo, there's also been a lot of down time spent alone in the evenings because, quite frankly, we're all too exhausted to do anything else.  While I was cleaning the tiny apartment that I'm currently subletting, I turned on the Portuguese playlist from camp and a rush of intense memories came flooding back.



Though it was extremely challenging for many reasons, I'm glad that I had the chance to experience language and cultural immersion in one of the Concordia summer programs.  It was very hard to work consistently with small children, most of whom spoke little or no Portuguese, all day every day.  It was also difficult to work as a multicultural team in such intense, stressful and busy circumstances. My patience was pushed to its limits much more at camp than ever before compared with circumstances abroad.  I hated that I never had a minute to myself and that my time wasn't my own and it was exhausting to be a smiling extrovert all the time.  I remember one night I hid in the vacuum closet  in the staff lounge just so I could think straight and compose a few emails in peace.



But like during any other intense time, I grew a lot and learned even more.  I learned a lot about youth language programming, how to entertaining and manage groups and multicultural communication and group dynamics in general.  I got a lot of new ideas for language teaching especially in terms of games, activities, songs, dances and cultural experiences for the classroom.  It also surprised me how much all of the little silly routines and traditions meant to the campers and showed me how much even a week outside a child's comfort zone can have the possibility to impact him or her for life.  This was really exciting for me and gave me a lot of hope for the future.  Finally, it never ceased to amaze me how much the counselors meant to the campers - even though we had usually just met them a day or two before.  Campers clung to us, imitated us and constantly sought out our attention.  This fact, above anything else, constantly motivated us to speak Portuguese, have a positive attitude and be inclusive at all times.



My favorite thing that I learned about was the power of acting and theatre in language learning.  Though personally I didn't particularly enjoy playing a role in the soap opera and improv-ing in Portuguese, it was the favorite part of most students' experiences and they gleaned a lot of new language from it.  Every week we had a new soap opera written by our leader, Bruno, and based off of a popular show in Brazil.  Every night we'd act out a new episode in front of the campers as if we were appearing on television.  Bruno used a large paper TV remote control to rewind, fast forward, slow motion, mute etc. any scene that he wanted.  The remote controlled all of our (the actors) actions and speech on stage.  It was genius and it was incredibly successful.  He would frequently "Pause" the show to ask questions to the campers to check for understanding and get their opinions and predictions.  If they didn't understand, he'd "Rewind" and we'd play the scene again.  During the pause we (the actors on the TV) would freeze and hold our position until he would press "Play" again.  Essentially, we were Bruno's puppets and he creatively used the remote in comical ways all the time which always got laughs.



Interestingly, most of the campers were itching to either work the remote control themselves or act out a soap opera of their own.  We used this to our advantage at the end of the camp program and had them write and make their own video (it was hilarious and they had a great time). Acting in another language is something I never would have thought of or supported, but it was, by far, the most popular part of our programming for everyone involved.



In addition, working at Concordia gave me a different way to use and practice my own Portuguese.  I learned a lot of new words and had to use Portuguese in both planning classes and activities as well as carrying them out.  I spoke more Portuguese in six weeks than I did in months in Brazil because I wasn't teaching English or working with others who could speak English.  This was evidenced by my visit with Sean on the way home.  Sean's boss was gracious enough to give him the night and day off when I was passing through Wisconsin.  We got a hotel and when the alarm went off in the morning, I started shouting at Sean to get up and get moving so we could make it to breakfast before it closed.  I didn't realize that I was yammering away in Portuguese until Sean shook me and said, "English, babe, English. I have no idea what you're saying."  It had become so ingrained in me to be bossy in Portuguese that I didn't even realize what I was doing.



Finally, camp gave me some solid new friends.  Now, let me assure you that we weren't always the best of friends and had several conflicts because of some high-stress situations, but since we had to work closely together to plan the program, we had to constantly work through our differences and just get over it.  Since I lived, ate, worked and relaxed with the seven other Brazilians, we became really close and I know I'll be in touch with many of them for years to come.

In conclusion, camp - would I do it again? Nope.  Am I glad I did it? Yep.  Thanks for sharing the experience with me!

Read More 0 comments | Posted by Sarah Sanderson edit post

0 comments



Post a Comment

Newer Post Older Post Home

Wanderlust

  • In Mandarin: 旅遊癮 (lǚyóu yǐn)
      According to my Mandarin teacher, the term 'wanderlust' can best be translated as 'a travel addiction or craving'. In the above translation, 'yǐn' has several meanings such as 'a strong impulse', 'a longing', or 'a desire'.
  • About Me

    My Photo
    Sarah Sanderson
    I am currently in Mandarin language training as a new diplomat in the U.S. Foreign Service. Sean and I depart for Wuhan, China in November 2019 for my first tour in consular affairs.
    View my complete profile

    Sarah and Sean

    Sarah and Sean
    Grateful for my very tolerant, supportive and easygoing husband who's always game for a new adventure

    On Language Learning

    On Language Learning

    Disclaimer


    This website is not an official U.S. Department of State website. The views and information presented are the officer's own and do not represent the Foreign Service or the U.S. Department of State.

    Blogs I follow

    • I Should Probably Be Doing Something Else
      1 day ago
    • Dani Francuz Rose
      1 week ago
    • Buckets of Joy
      3 years ago
    • thesolesearch
      6 years ago
    • About | Travel Unraveled: Brazil
      7 years ago
    • Ken's Blog
      7 years ago
    • 7500 miles
      7 years ago
    • Just the Three of Us
      7 years ago
    • La Vida Eterna
      9 years ago
    • Give and Take: Oh darling, let's be adventurers
      9 years ago
    • From Minnesota to Minas | They don't sound that different, do they?
      9 years ago
    • ONE + 2
      9 years ago
    • Mike and Anna's Blog
      9 years ago

    Wanderlust

    Wanderlust

    Blog Archive

    • ►  2020 ( 4 )
      • ►  April ( 4 )
    • ►  2019 ( 1 )
      • ►  January ( 1 )
    • ►  2018 ( 6 )
      • ►  September ( 1 )
      • ►  June ( 1 )
      • ►  April ( 1 )
      • ►  March ( 2 )
      • ►  January ( 1 )
    • ►  2017 ( 29 )
      • ►  November ( 2 )
      • ►  October ( 9 )
      • ►  September ( 1 )
      • ►  June ( 4 )
      • ►  May ( 2 )
      • ►  April ( 6 )
      • ►  February ( 4 )
      • ►  January ( 1 )
    • ►  2016 ( 68 )
      • ►  December ( 1 )
      • ►  November ( 8 )
      • ►  October ( 13 )
      • ►  September ( 2 )
      • ►  August ( 5 )
      • ►  July ( 6 )
      • ►  June ( 2 )
      • ►  May ( 4 )
      • ►  April ( 8 )
      • ►  March ( 3 )
      • ►  February ( 2 )
      • ►  January ( 14 )
    • ▼  2015 ( 75 )
      • ►  December ( 9 )
      • ►  November ( 4 )
      • ►  October ( 9 )
      • ►  September ( 5 )
      • ▼  August ( 15 )
        • Dog cafe
        • Snail Mail
        • Beer garden party
        • Sunday outing with a local non-profit organization
        • Thoughts of home
        • Class XIV Peace Fellows at ICU
        • Japanese class
        • On my way to ICU (International Christian University)
        • First day in Tokyo, or how I ended up staying at a...
        • Heading to Tokyo
        • What are you doing in Japan?
        • Trip preparations
        • Home again
        • Reflecting on the end of camp
        • Tokyo, Japan
      • ►  July ( 7 )
      • ►  June ( 5 )
      • ►  May ( 8 )
      • ►  April ( 5 )
      • ►  March ( 3 )
      • ►  February ( 1 )
      • ►  January ( 4 )
    • ►  2014 ( 62 )
      • ►  December ( 3 )
      • ►  November ( 4 )
      • ►  October ( 3 )
      • ►  September ( 11 )
      • ►  August ( 6 )
      • ►  July ( 3 )
      • ►  June ( 6 )
      • ►  May ( 5 )
      • ►  April ( 6 )
      • ►  March ( 9 )
      • ►  February ( 6 )
    • ►  2013 ( 134 )
      • ►  December ( 6 )
      • ►  November ( 8 )
      • ►  October ( 14 )
      • ►  September ( 8 )
      • ►  August ( 14 )
      • ►  July ( 3 )
      • ►  June ( 8 )
      • ►  May ( 12 )
      • ►  April ( 12 )
      • ►  March ( 19 )
      • ►  February ( 17 )
      • ►  January ( 13 )
    • ►  2012 ( 158 )
      • ►  December ( 11 )
      • ►  November ( 14 )
      • ►  October ( 15 )
      • ►  September ( 12 )
      • ►  August ( 10 )
      • ►  July ( 15 )
      • ►  June ( 6 )
      • ►  May ( 12 )
      • ►  April ( 16 )
      • ►  March ( 19 )
      • ►  February ( 17 )
      • ►  January ( 11 )
    • ►  2011 ( 128 )
      • ►  December ( 5 )
      • ►  November ( 4 )
      • ►  October ( 5 )
      • ►  September ( 2 )
      • ►  August ( 7 )
      • ►  July ( 7 )
      • ►  June ( 12 )
      • ►  May ( 17 )
      • ►  April ( 16 )
      • ►  March ( 17 )
      • ►  February ( 16 )
      • ►  January ( 20 )
    • ►  2010 ( 175 )
      • ►  December ( 18 )
      • ►  November ( 18 )
      • ►  October ( 15 )
      • ►  September ( 17 )
      • ►  August ( 13 )
      • ►  July ( 12 )
      • ►  June ( 13 )
      • ►  May ( 14 )
      • ►  April ( 14 )
      • ►  March ( 13 )
      • ►  February ( 12 )
      • ►  January ( 16 )
    • ►  2009 ( 71 )
      • ►  December ( 20 )
      • ►  November ( 20 )
      • ►  October ( 18 )
      • ►  September ( 10 )
      • ►  July ( 1 )
      • ►  April ( 1 )
      • ►  February ( 1 )
    • ►  2006 ( 23 )
      • ►  June ( 4 )
      • ►  May ( 6 )
      • ►  April ( 6 )
      • ►  March ( 4 )
      • ►  February ( 3 )

    Followers

    Popular Posts

    • Matching Couples' T-shirts
      One of the first things that caught my attention upon arriving in China was the amount of couples wearing matching shirts - they were ever...
    • Room Service
      What does Sean do? Room service at the Hilton, that's what. Except that at the Hilton you can't call it Room Service but rather ...
    • Happy Dragon Boat Festival!
      Today (Monday) is a national holiday in China and as I write this, fireworks are going off and everyone is happy (including me) that we don...
    • Turn-down service
      Somewhere along the orientation process I missed the fact that for one day a week I have to work a double shift. This is because this hotel...
    • Khao San Road (winter break)
      Before heading to Cambodia the next day, Sean and I spent one last night exploring Khao San Road in Bangkok. While we had been staying in t...
    • Blepharoplasty
      Yesterday, when I was teaching at my part-time job, a girl walked in to my class wearing sunglasses even though it was 8:00 in the evening. ...
    • Flight of the Conchords
      If you read the title of this post and thought, "What's a Conchord?" you would not be alone - I had similar questions when I f...
    • Countryside of Cambodia (winter break)
      Our first full day in Siem Reap we decided to take it easy and explore some of the surrounding area before we tackled the main tourist draw,...
    • Angkor Wat (winter break)
      When I first told people that Sean and I were going to try and make it to Cambodia during winter break, many of them said that we absolutely...
    • Culture Class: East meets West
      I must admit, I am having a blast working with these culture classes. It is especially fun because David, the new teacher has taken over m...

    Total Pageviews


    View My Stats
  • Search






    • Home
    • Posts RSS
    • Comments RSS
    • Edit

    © Copyright Wanderlust . All rights reserved.
    Designed by FTL Wordpress Themes | Bloggerized by FalconHive.com
    brought to you by Smashing Magazine

    Back to Top