JOENSUU 2017-2018
1-Before participating this project I haven`t had almost any contact with immigrants. I still thought that I had pretty good picture of what the life of an immigrant in Finland was, but found out that I really didn`t know much about the topic. I`ve also noticed that many people that are close to me don`t know the situation and make comments and statements based on prejudice. That`s why it is really important to spread information through projects like this.
Working with immigrants was interesting. It was eye opening to get to know people from so different cultures and backgrounds. It would have been nice to organise the small group meetings, but we had some communication problems. Sometimes it seemed that they said one thing and did another. We have to understand though that they have been through things we cannot even imagine and try to integrate into a fully different society now.
I think that since immigration is continously increasing phenomena thorough Europe everyone should have the understanding of the situation. This would possibly change people`s attitudes about the issue. It is easy to judge based on the information you get from the media. However a lot of that information is biased and there is not much stories from immigrant`s perspective. I learned a lot about the process and journey those people have to go through and how they are treated in our system. That however is not written about in media.
The highlight of the project without a question was our trip to Pamplona. I was little concerned, because I didnt really know any of the Finnish students in the project. However I ended up to getting to know them fast and even make a few good friends. I haven`t ever lived with an other family as a ”exhcange student” before, and even though it was only for a week it was kind of an once in a lifetime experience for me. With local people, we saw Pamplona in a way I wouldnt have if I had gone there by myself. I doubt that I wouldnt have ever gone there without this project.
I would totally recommend this project for everyone. I think almost everyone can manage even if you think that this kind of thing is not really your thing. Even better if you have some kind of of prejudice about immigrants with the help of this project you will certainly learn if your opinion is justified and can make your mind with objective knowledge.
Overall I am really happy I decided to participate. I think I grew as a person and got a lot of confidence. Internationality had and continues to have big role in my life. I study in english and plan to move abroad at some point in my life, atleast temporarily. However I often noticed during the project that I tend to ignore Asia and mid east. Wich made me question if I am that international-minded at all.
2- This project gave me a lot of experience about immigration here in Finland and in Spain. I have also found in myself more tolerant and understanding perspectives. The whole project opened my eyes and teached me a lot.
If I compare the fall to the spring, I have got more important information and learned a lot during the project.
The most challenging thing was trying to identify with immigrants and the problems they are struggling with. They had experienced so hard times and I often felt very bad for them.
The best thing in this project was getting to know the students from Pamplona. They were so amazing and lovely people. Living in host families was a new experience for me and loved to stay in my host family. Also getting to know the immigrants and their story was very interesting and eye-opening.
I would definitely recommend this project to the other students because it gave me a lot of new perspectives about immigration and the work with it. I think everyone can learn something new from this project.
I think interaction between Finnish young people and immigrants could be possibly added with projects like that. Also some activities between Finns and immigrants would be awesome. They should bravely gather together more often to get to know each other.
I think I´m going to face immigration in my everyday-life. Internationality increases all the time and we are going to be in contact with different people more and more often.
Thank you all for the project!
3- The project was eye-opening. At the beginning of this project I didn’t know much about Joensuu’s immigrants, so it was interesting to get to know how my city helps immigrants. And if I speak honestly, I did not really know much about the asylum seeker process either.
The most interesting and touching things in the project was to hear the stories of immigrants. Things became more real when we heard stories from real person. In my opinion, listening the stories was the best way to learn to understand. We see a lot of news about refugees, but these people reminded us that news don’t tell the whole truth. Sometimes it was difficult to understand why a refugee was not granted a residence permit.
I learned a lot about asylum seeker process, refugees, and what kind of activities we have for immigrants. When we met immigrants of the same age as us, it was nice to hear about their school or what they like to do at their free time. At the same time, encountering immigrants was one of the most challenging things. At first it was difficult to know what to talk about. But when we met immigrants again, it was so much easier to have a conversation.
The project was also nice because we got to know Spanish immigrant culture. Week in Pamplona was nice and taught a lot about another culture. And now I’m braver to speak in English!
This project has been interesting, and I can say I’m more open-minded now. I recommend the project to others, because this project gave so much. I also think that this I one of the best way to get information about immigration and refugees and bring together Finnish young people and immigrants. I think we will be more international in the future, so it’s important to know about other cultures. And we will encounter more and more people from foreign cultures, so I’m glad that I’ve learned to be more open-minded!
4- During this project I have learned a great deal of things. Firstly I have got educated about really current issues concerning immigration here in Finland and also in Spain. I feel like I have got see the real side of the things, got to hear real stories, which is in my opinion so much more important than just flipping through statistics about immigration for example.
I also feel like this project has given me a chance to grow as person and learn new things about myself as well. Trip to Spain proved that I´m capable of doing so much more, than I (as a rather shy person) though I would. Also interacting with people from different cultures has definitely improved my social skills and made me more relaxed and flexible in different situations.
During this project my attitudes haven´t necessarily changed that much, all though I have got more information and confirmation for my earlier views. That´s maybe because my opinions and views were already quite similar to the ones I have heard during the project. For instance I have never had negative attitude towards immigration and different cultures.
The most difficult thing about this project was maybe just stepping out of my own comfort zone. For example I was very nervous about staying a week in strangers´ home. (Though now I´m so happy I had courage to do it.)
Definitely the best thing about this project was to get to know new, different people and learn about their life, both in Finland and in Spain. Also I feel like I have made some really good friends, which is always awesome.
I would warmly recommend this project to everybody! I think everybody should try living in a foreign family and also acting as a host to foreign people. Not only is it fun, but also useful and teaching experience. Also I think that nowadays it´s important to get familiar with such an important and current topic as immigration and refugees. Through this type of project one can really get a realistic view about these topics and for example issues with Finland´s refugee policy. And last but not least, it´s always nice to travel abroad!
Increasing interaction with Finnish youngsters and young immigrants could make a world of difference to social integration of immigrants and also changes some negative attitudes towards immigration. If you ask me, meetings, playing games, just talking – stuff that we did during this project – is a great way to get to know people. Maybe it can even act as a start to interact more.
I´m positive that in future I´ll face internationality, whether I stay here in Finland or go abroad. World is surely getting smaller and different cultures will probably meet and even mix up, which I think is great. Personally I´ve made friends, who are for example refugees, so multiculturalism is part of my everyday life. Also I could think building a career concerning different cultures and immigration, for instance as a teacher I would like to help immigrants to integrate here in Finland.
5- I’ve learned much in this project about immigration and refugees, for example what kind of path they must have travelled before arriving in Finland. I’ve also learned much about Spanish (and especially Basque) culture and their way of living. When we were in Spain in November, I noticed that Spanish people tend to stay up much later and that they eat very differently than us. In the morning they eat couple of white bread and some pastries and the next proper food is in the evening. Between that they only have sandwiches and some snacks for lunch. That was a bit of shock for me because I’ve used to have a proper breakfast and five meals per day.
I’ve become more open-minded during this project because I must have communicated with people with different backgrounds and it have made my worldview wider. It is always a richness to work with people who has different background than you because it makes you think beyond your boundaries. This exactly was the best part of this project, working with people who comes from different cultures. I get to experience that a lot in Spain which was a trip that I would never forgot (in a positive way).
I would highly recommend this project to anyone who is at least part-way interested in different cultures and internationality. I think in the future I will be working abroad, and this project just encouraged me to speak more English and be more social. I would love to get a job where I can interact with people who comes from different cultures and I could work abroad.
PAMPLONA-IRUÑA 2017-18
1-Joining this project opened my mind. We hear about refugee people on TV, in the radio, at the newspaper… and we talk about it not even realizing actually how hard it is to be an asylum seeker. We talk about it as if we knew how hard the experience is, but we haven’t lived through that, we have just watched it in front of a screen. Meeting this kind of people during this project was beautiful and very interesting. It was a pleasure. Hearing many of their stories was tough, but that way they made us aware of a problem that affects to our society, and we need to be part of the solution.
This has been a different way of learning from other people’s experiences , and I think we have been very lucky to have the chance to do it. Also, working with such a nice group has been a pleasure! We have lived two amazing weeks that we wouldn’t forget!
This project has been a great experience, a great challenge especially when we had to communicate with others and learn new cultures. Besides, it has been great fun to live with people who have different customs from ours and to learn new things. We have been able to see how immigrants live in their daily lives and that was something that before we didnt know. I really appreciate the opportunity to see everything they had to do to survive during their lives and that made me think in another way. In addition we were able to improve our level of English listening to different stories and communicate with our Finnish hosts.
We were able to learn about amazing places with beautiful landscapes. However, the downside is that I would have liked to have more time to visit all the places like for example Koli or Helsinki.
Overall, it’s been the first time I do an exchange and it was a very good experience and unforgettable. I made a very good group with the Eunate partners and also with the Finnish partners.
Meeting people of Finland was so good…, they are very nice people and my Finland exchange is like my sister right now. I miss her so much and I hope to see her in a future.
The most negative issue about the trip is that it is very short time; not enough to have a great relationship with your partner.
I do not have much more to say, it has been incredible, thanks for everything.
Andrea, Maitane and Irati
2-The Erasmus Plus project has been an incredible opportunity for meeting new people and for seeing new places. You can know new people and you can visit places you have never been before.
Visiting Finland has been a fantastic experience. If I could repeat it, I would do it, sure. When you visit a remote place like Finland you are not only seeing new places, you are also knowing different cultures and traditions. I have enjoyed a lot meeting Finnish people. I think they are very nice and my host family has been very kind with me. Finnish people are very friendly.
Going to Finland has been my best experience. There I discovered new beautiful places, I did amazing activities and I met new people, who now are my friends. We did some activities with immigrant people, we spoke about our cultures and we learned so much about their culture, why they went to Finland… We also visited the city, we ate typical Finnish food, we knew their traditions… for one week I felt like a real Finnish person. My host family and the Finnish people were so nice… I really liked this Erasmus Plus Project and I would repeat it a thousand times.
This project has been incredible, I think. We learned a lot of new things about other cultures and about the social situation of the immigrants and the refugees. In November, we hosted Finnish students in our homes and we went with them to a lot of activities related with culture and immigration, and we also had a great time in Iruñea. Then, in February, we went to Finland with our Finnish partners. Personally, it was the best thing in the project because we visited a different country and we had new experiences in it. My partner’s family was very nice and they treated me fantastically. The next day after our arrival, we went to their school and it really impressed me. It was so different compared to the schools I have always seen in our country… They even had pianos out of their classrooms! But the activity I enjoyed the best in Finland was ice swimming. First, I was quite worried about the icy water, but finally, I dared swimming there and I repeated the sauna-water cycle many times. So, as I said before, the project has been incredible and I would visit Finland again, definitely!
Ibai, June and Asier
3-When we decided to join this project, we never thought it was going to be as enriching as it has been.
On the one hand, the knowledge about the Finnish culture we have acquired is amazing. Having the opportunity to live for a week in their environment has been fantastic to learn and see their different education system and way of life. We could realise that their methods are quite different; more dynamic and practical. That’s maybe why their way of communicating in English was brilliant.
On the other hand, we have learned a lot about the refugees’ situation; a situation which is not shown in the media. On the TV we only listen about numbers, numbers of deaths, injured people… However, we could see their real situation speaking face to face with them and listening their unfortunate realities. We got impressed with the way they shared with us their stories, not in a sad way but hopeful for achieving their goals. We checked this in the activity of putting in common our cultures with some refugees and also with a guy who came to the school to tell us his story.
Apart from doing activities related with the main idea of the project, we also made cultural activities, which we enjoyed and learnt a lot. A place we would like to stress is Koli; a natural park with fantastic views.
Even all the activities we made were really interesting and almost perfect, we would like to mention that the meeting with the social worker who works with refugees was maybe too long.
We don’t have bad words to this unforgettable experience which we will always remember. So it has been a pleasure being able to take part in this project.
Leyre, Andrea and Iraia
4-
General experience
The eight months that this project has lasted has been amazing. We have had wonderful experiences full of good time. We loved this project because it is not only a simple trip; through this project we have learned from the current situation of immigrants in Finland to different typical of Finnish culture, like ice swimming or tasting different Finnish dishes. This project has been also amazing because we have learned and we have been aware about the real situation in which the immigrants live and also how they feel, and, sincerely, it has been an eye-opener. Because most of the people, when hearing about immigrants, think it’s a distant topic, and they don’t take it into account, but listening to their own experiences face to face was really hard.
From the first day, we really hit if off with our partners.
Refugees
Before joining this project we were not aware of all the difficulties that refugees have. But through it we could know some of them and learn some new things which happen in our planet almost every day. If we think about it, it is horrible. Just because of being from another country or having a totally different colour of skin most people looked down on them. They cannot build their life project anywhere, because they have no means in their home country and they are not allowed to have them either in the destination country. But, apart from that, it has been a great chance to get to know some refugees, the culture of their countries, the reasons why they had to leave their country and the difficulties they had to enter and stay in Finland or in Spain. We also made new friends (apart from the Finnish people), who were two Filipino girls. So this chance we had to join this project has opened our eyes, and now we see how difficult life is for some people and why this situation must be stopped, because society has been changed in a lot of aspects, but why not in this one?
Experience with the families
We didn’t have a close relation with Finnish families because we spent most of the time outside having fun or doing some of the activities that we were supposed to do.
Anyway the families were really kind with us and they gave us all we needed.
Some of us hadn’t the opportunity to know the families because their partners lived alone. Those partners lived alone because they are given money to study, so they can afford to pay their own houses. It was great to see how a real Finnish family is and also to know which types of food they eat.
The families did always their best, and they showed us more things apart from what we learned in school activities.
Experience with activities
The both activities we did (with refugees and Finnish culture) were amazing. First of all, through the activities we did with refugees, as we said before, we learned a lot, because it is not the same listening to immigrants’ issues while watching television or having the opportunity to listen from their own voice their real hard experiences. Thanks to these activities we have realized that we are all equal, no matter where we come from or what colour our skin is.
And about the other activities, it was quite nice to have the opportunity to experience what Finnish culture is based on.
We loved the trip to Koli National Park. It was really stunning seeing how little we are, and what beautiful places there are on the Earth. Also ice swimming was an outstanding experience, because it was really shocking how Finnish people are used to doing these types of activities and we couldn´t understand how they could feel relaxed after doing ice swimming. But anyway, it was quite nice to have the opportunity to try this curious traditional activity, at least once in a lifetime.
Experience with school
The first day when we arrived at the school, all of us got surprised, because the building, apart from being enormous, had a lot of facilities. The first we could see were the wide corridors. If we continue talking about the facilities of the high school, we have to say that the cafeteria was very nice. We saw for the first time a machine which spreads butter to the bread. It was really funny. There was a students’ room too, which was very comfortable. But if we have to say the truth, the thing that we got in love with was the piano which was in the corridor. All the school was incredible and we think that we will never forget it.
Final conclusion
We have learnt a lot of things on this exchange such as Finnish culture, how a refugee lives or how to communicate with people of other countries using English. We have learned many values and now we are more respectful and open-minded and we are also more self-sufficient because we had to do things on our own. That was a little bit hard, but we managed to do it because most of the time we all (Eunate students) were together and this was fine, we didn’t feel alone and we all had fun together.
We do not regret anything and we believe that it has been a great experience that we will always remember. We recommend taking part on this kind of projects, because it is true that they take time, but they are really amazing and really worth it.
Andoni Zubiria, Iván Rangel, Mikel Mateo
5-We had a really good time in Finland. This experience has been really enriching. We did lots of things during these weeks, and we loved them! We really enjoyed going to Koli, it was an amazing place, definitely the most beautiful place I’ve ever been. Also, it was great to see this new culture, so different to the one we know. The only bad thing of this culture was the temperature. Iit was really cold there, and for us it was really difficult to manage the cold. Although it was cold, we had a really good experience.
People in Finland were very nice with all of us. They knew that we weren’t used to cold so they tried to warn us every day to take warm clothes. The host families were very nice and although not all of them knew English, they really tried and the most of us felt really comfortable. Our partners also were caring and the teachers were very friendly. It couldn’t be better.
Learning throughout the exchange about the immigrants or refugees and the problems they have to face to enter other countries has been incredibly adequate and interesting. Especially because it’s an actual problem that needs an immediate solution both from the governments as from the people. The talks of all the immigrants were eye-opening and also moving, because we were shown that people like us worked so hard and suffered to obtain a better life. That helped us get rid of the prejudices we might have.
We also learnt a lot about the systems the governments have (most of the times insufficient) to take the immigrants in. We realized that, for example, they have serious problems in Greece to assimilate the huge amount of people that were arriving. Also in Finland, although they have an excellent method to take care of the immigrants and help them to integrate into the society. They also have some problems with the ones known as asylum seekers. All this stuff made us understand that the problem of refugees and immigrants is very real and present in our everyday’s life, although most of the times we can’t see it. So we should be really involved with this problem to make it visible and help these people.
Nahia, Haizea and Unai
JOENSUU 2016-2017
1- I think this project has given me very much and I totally recommend this for first graders. It opened my eyes more for that what is going on in this planet right now and how we need to understand more those people who has come here and try to help them. I also met one guy who can speak almost seven different languages. And his skills are not used even if he wants to give his help as a translator or something. And that’s sad. Some of refugees have so much talent but we are not trying to use these. They have so much good things to give us, native Finns and we need to figure out how we could exploit those.
I see as a big problem that refugees and asylum seekers can’t learn Finnish so well because they don’t have enough Finnish friends and contacts. We need to get refugees and Finnish together and learn more about each other and our cultures. Also it gives more motivation if you know that you can use your new learned language as your everyday life. Learning English is too very important for everybody.
I learned about myself that I need to try understand more people and why they are like they are.
My attitude towards immigrants and asylum seekers is now better and I know how I can help them better. I also learned that I have a desire to help them. Respect for all people is important because people’s history can be that kind of what you couldn’t even imagine
Many of refugees have still positive attitude and that is something wonderful.
Some countries in Europe is easier to be refugee than in some other country. Somewhere they can have good education and they can do work but in the same time somewhere they don’t have anything that could help them to get educated. And if they get education they have easier to integrate to their country.
I believe I will see refugees rest of my life. They will be maybe from different countries than now but I believe that refugees will always be. I will see them on markets, in my workplace, everywhere. And that’s totally okay to me.
Difficulties on this project was that I didn’t find good words to say and it was pretty sad to listen all those peoples stories.
This project was really nice and I could do all this again! It shows more about world and how we are not right people to judge others. More love is less war!
2- This project has been an eye-opening experience. I never realized how badly people treat each other and what refugees have to go through when they leave everything behind to escape terror and violence. If I hadn’t talked to the people this project introduced me to I could never have understood how tough life is when your future is seriously unstable and you have to live in constant uncertainty, fearing for and missing your family. The project made me realize how limited my understanding of these issues was. Sure I knew that life is not easy for asylum seekers and immigrants but I couldn’t have imagined how many underlying fears, worries and insecurities they deal with every day. This experience has definitely strengthened my will to work against racism and for a more open and accepting world where everyone can feel safe.
For me, getting to know new people, hearing their stories and helping them feel accepted and welcome was the best part of the project. I want to keep in touch with the people even after this because there are still things to learn and stories to share.
The most challenging part of the project was finding a way to communicate. Some people were not too confident with their Finnish or English skills so getting them involved in the conversation required some extra effort. I didn’t find that as a problem though. Those who did understand would translate our words to them and their words to us.
I think this project would be a great experience for all kinds of people. It can teach anyone to be more considerate, open-minded and kind. We need to be reminded of these issues every now and then in a special manner so that we don’t become ignorant or numb to things happening elsewhere. Even if it happens far away from your home it doesn’t mean it’s not your problem. It is our duty, as humans, to help each other. I believe that if participating in a project like this was mandatory in all schools and the students took it seriously the world would be a more peaceful place.
During this project I’ve gotten to know kind-hearted and strong people with interesting stories to tell. I’m glad to have been of help to them and I’m glad to have made them smile or even laugh when they are gough something most of us can’t even comprehend.
3- I have learned about the lives of immigrants and about the journey what asylum seekers and refugees have to go through. I have learned more about the helping work what is done here in Joensuu. I have learned how important it is to pay attention to immigrants, get to know them, understand them and help them to settle in Finland. About myself I have discovered that I possibly want a job in the future within I can help people. Also, I need to be braver when I meet new people, forget my shyness and get chatting.
I had considered myself already as an open-minded person but I feel that it has only become stronger during this project because I’ve got personal experiences about immigrants and their backgrounds. Also, I have realized even more how absurd it is to hate other people without even knowing one single thing about them.
I didn’t find anything too challenging in this project but the best things were to get to meet young immigrants and learn more about the different organisations which cooperate with immigrants in Joensuu and how they work. It was also lovely and sad (in the good way) to meet asylum seekers and hear their stories.
I would absolutely recommend joining in this project to everybody. I have got new friends, I have learned much and I wish every person in Finland would have the same experiences what I have. For example, the afternoon in Niittylahti and the games outside. Or the visiting in Kaislakatu Lukkarila-Homes, which really had an effect on me and opened my eyes.
I noticed that it was easier to get to know immigrant youngsters at first while doing some activities: for example board games or outdoor games.
I hope that I will meet immigrants or/and internationality in my later studies and in my life. I have thought that I would like to work or volunteer in immigration/refugee work at some point of my life. Also I hope that through traveling I make loads of friends around the world.
4-This project has given me an opportunity to learn about many different and important things in detail. I have learned about the integration programs in Joensuu, the immigration work that is done here and the organizations that concentrates on immigration. I could also see the differences between Finland and Spain once we learned about their policies and ways of dealing with immigration.
At the start of this semester I didn’t really know where the immigrants went to school or where they even lived. I think I have never been prejudiced towards immigrants, but before this project I hadn’t met or talked to many of them. That has changed during this semester.
The best part for me was the week when our Spanish friends were here. Visiting Niittylahti with the immigrants and the Spanish was the highlight of the week. I also loved hearing the backstories of some immigrants from Joensuu and Kitee. It’s completely different thing talking to the asylum seekers and hearing their stories in person than reading about it on the news.
The hardest part of this project was getting to know the immigrants and making them trust you. It was probably hard for them too.
I would recommend this to everyone because getting information about important issues is what shapes your own thoughts and opinions even if you don’t agree with everything. This project is very beneficial even if you don’t plan on working with immigrants in the future. Something that should be taken into consideration if you want to be part of this project is that you’re going to be working in groups and meeting new people so this might not be for you if you’re super shy.
There’s already many foreign students in almost every university in Finland and I have seen many immigrants working for example in restaurants so I’m sure I’m going to bump into them in the future. Internationality is already showing in Finland in the media, school, libraries etc. and I think it will increase in the future.
5-Before joining this project I thought I knew quite much about refugees, asylym seekers and the situation around the world considering the subject. During this project I have learned much more and become more aware. Racism and discrimination causes strong, negative feelings in me and I noticed that also during this project. I also noticed feeling helpless when I heard people tell about their experiences. How they´ve had to leave their homes and families.
It is two different things to read about refugees and to actually hear a real person to tell their story. When reading the newspaper or looking at news about refugees you see them as numbers. It all becomes real when you hear it for yourself. Connecting with different people was the best part of this project. We made friends with the Baski students, but also got to meet a lot of refugees and people with different backgrounds.
I would definitely suggest this project for first year students, you won´t regret joining this project! If meeting new people all around the world, getting to know more about current events in the world, travelling, hosting an international quest and experiencing new things doesn´t sound good to you I don´t know what will!
This project showed that forming connections and friendship between Finnish youth and the young immigrants is very important. I will get to deal with immigrants very soon in the future since I got a summer job as a tutor in a home for young immigrants that we visited thanks for this project. Internationality has been and will be a big part of my life even after this project. I want to travel the world and what better way to do that since now I know little more about it.
PAMPLONA-IRUÑA 2016-2017
1-We must say that our evaluation of the project is really positive. Firstly, we would like to describe the emotions that we felt during the exchanges. It was incredible to live with people from another country, with such a different culture; it was very enriching. Here in the Basque Country we did a lot of interesting things with which we learnt a lot, such as the interview with the foreign women in Bilbo. We also saw many amazing places and we think that Finnish people enjoyed a lot their trip.
Two months later,in February, it was time for us to go to Finland. Without any doubt, it was one of the most incredible experiences of our life. We had never seen amazing landscapes like those! For instance, the Koli National Park is one of the most beautiful places we have ever been to, but it was a pity that we couldn’t spend more time there. Our finnish friends had to rehearse for their dance, which was great to see, but because of this we had to be in a hurry many times. We think that that is the only thing that we would have changed.
Anyway, we will always remember our trip to Finland because it was full of unforgettable moments with all our friends.
Apart from this, in this project we learnt several things. First of all, we learnt and practiced English, because almost every activity was realized in this language. Secondly, we met different cultures, not only the Finnish one. We would like to emphasise the contact with the refugees, because it was very interesting. We heard some tough stories, and in our opinion it was the best activity we did related with immigration. Thirdly and finally, we met a different society, the Finnish society, and we learnt how Finns live, what their habits are and how their education system works.
Overall the most valuable message we have got from this project is that social exclusion is a problem we must solve, because a lot of people are affected every day by this problem. Refugees are an example of this, but they aren’t the only ones, there are a lot of immigrants that need help, and in our opinion this problem needs to be solved.
So, in conclusion we can say that this project has been very positive, due to the large amount of things we have learnt, to the improvement of our English level we have acquired and to the awareness- raising we have had about immigration.
However, in order to improve future projects as this one, we would like to emphasise that in some cases the organisation of the activities has been too fast, so in those cases we haven’t enjoyed the activities completely.
2-We had a very good time in Finland. We made nice relationships with our partners and also with the family. On the one hand, it has been nice to see how they celebrate their graduation but at the same time they were more anxious about the graduation than about being with us. Maybe we had a very short period of time to enjoy some activities. For example when we went to Koli National Park.
To sum up, it has been a great experience.
3-This project has given us a lot of new experiences, we have learnt a lot in different aspects and we have discovered new people, new cultures and new places.
The first thing that we have learnt is how hard are some people’s lives. Nowadays that we are on the 21st century, to have difficulty to live should be forbidden. Because of that, it’s really important to help other people, for example, immigrants, because they’re in a new country and they don’t know anything and anybody. Besides, they don’t know the language and, if each person puts a bit from themselves, you can help them a lot.
About the country and the people, it was incredible to go to Finland because everything in that country is so different, and it was so nice to go there in winter, because all the views and landscapes were incredible. Also people there were so nice, we made new friends and we hope to keep in touch with them.
We enjoyed every moment of the project and we would recommend to anyone to live an experience like this, because it’s incredible and it was one of the best experiences of our lives. The places where we went in Finland were amazing and as the only negative point was that we didn’t have much time to spend, for example in Koli.
Now we are more conscious about how bad are some people’s lives and how proud we should be for having our own house and a place to eat and sleep.
4-This project has given us the opportunity to learn many things and we recommend it totally.
Before the project, we didn’t know much about the situation of immigrants; thanks to this experience, we were able to hear about their lives and nowadays we are aware of the horror that the immigrants have lived and are living. We also learned to live with people from another culture who speak another language and we knew how to communicate perfectly. Finally we could practice English.
The best thing of this project was visiting Niittylahti. We spent the afternoon with a group of immigrants and we had the opportunity to know different cultures, trying traditional food and seeing different exhibitions. Despite being from different cultures and speaking different languages, we were able to communicate and enjoyed a lot doing different activities.
The hardest part of the project was that sometimes it was difficult for us to communicate, or overcome shyness but nothing else. To add something, we would say that we didn’t have much time in the park Koli. In general, we were in a hurry because of the Prom dances and we would have liked to be calmer and enjoy the activities without being in a hurry.
In conclusion, it has been a great experience where we have met new friends and we have learned being more aware of the exclusion and migratory problems. We hope every year there will be fewer people going through that situation and we will try to help when possible.
5-This project has been one of the best experiences in our lives, because we have learnt a lot of things about other cultures and about other people. This hasn’t been a normal exchange, we have worked with immigrants and we have learnt about them. We think that was beautiful.
The Finnish families were great, they were very caring and sweet with all of us. And so were our partners, our relationship with them was very good, and we hope we will see each other again in the future.
Finland was amazing. Maybe it is not the place you would think to go, but it is really worth it. The views were breathtaking, we had never been somewhere like that before, it was shocking in a good way.
However, we have to point out that not everything was wonderful. The Finnish students were having prom that same week, and sometimes we hadn’t got enough time for some activities.
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