Alex Boo

So it’s been about a week since ib exams have ended, but the memory of Mongolia is still fresh within my mind. I can finally enjoy life once more, at its best. Trying to absorb and regain my senses that life can give, I went for a run yesterday outside before global class. Indeed, the smell of fresh pine seemed to reawaken my drained brain. My mental activity has never been at such an ease since grade 10, and I finally re-experienced nature, it was truly wonderful. However, graduation is coming up and with graduation comes farewells and goodbyes. But all these friends, all these connections that have bonded on the trip alone will not be severed. It has been a long and tedious journey since the beginning of high school, but very much enjoyable and exciting as well. A bunch of joys and sorrows all neatly compacted into five years of high school, what a learning experience- what more could I ask for? My goal for the rest of the school year is to keep going to the classes that I need to go to, as much as I feel like just dropping off and giving everything up. But really, it is these last few weeks that matter the most. In fact, I should really treasure them while they last. Cheers!

Finally. A chance to blog. Two weeks into IB exams, and I am already pretty drained. I still have Biology and French waiting in the wings for me, but luckily they separated by a week. Up until this time I have seriously doubted  whether taking IB was worth it or not. At first, I weighed the advantages and disadvantages like I normally do, and found out that because I am going to UBC, IB really is not worth it. Despite this, I really reconsidered this and realized that any form of education that I have should be appreciated. So yeah, no regrets.  I have found out how much I feel attached to our global ed class, as I can genuinely say that these two weeks have been pretty mundane, especially without the high enthusiasm and excitement often contained within our class.  These two weeks, my best friend has been my textbook.  But only two exams left, I can’t wait to go back to global!

I have come to the realization that each and every one of us has taken something different from this trip to Mongolia.  I have heard from many that they no longer take anything for granted anymore, and that they now know how to appreciate all that they have. Unfortunately, I cannot say thing for me, as much as I’d like to. Admittedly, I still take many things for granted. The many pencils, pens, and other types of stationery still lie scattered all over my desk. I’m still quite a picky eater, and if something doesn’t suit my taste, I simply will not eat it. Indeed, it caused me some great mental struggle to ponder about this, as I really could not see why I still remain a selfish, careless individual. However, I finally realized that the reasoning behind my seemingly ‘unchanged’ personality was the fact that I was treated EXTREMELY well on the trip, in fact; by everyone. I found that the 30 of us were cooperative with each other, and even with some problems here and there, we managed to successfully overcome all the obstacles despite the adversity we faced. Every idea was welcome with open arms, where either constructive criticism or compliments were given. Global perspectives really created an environment of 30 students which I can share most of my feelings with, and I am sure that a lot of us felt the same. In this aspect, I felt I was quite spoiled to be presented with such a group of peers who supported each other all the way. Similarly, our teachers were always one step ahead of us, and we never had to worry about anything. It was made sure that an ample amount of breaks were taken during the worksite period, and that enough time was given for us to rest during the night in order to have enough energy for the next day. As well, our safety was their largest concern, which really made me feel like family was with me all the time. Regarding meals, there was enough food choice such that if I was picky and decided not to have rice, pasta would be available. I did not even have to ‘expand’ my range of taste. Most of which was given to us was quite delicious, and if not, there were always alternatives. The local Mongolians were really a blessing as well. Initially, I was surprised to see that people in a ‘developing village’ had such a high physical quality of life, as they had their high-tech cellphones, ipods, and relatively good clothes. However, I later found out from a contact that many of them were actually from other cities in Mongolia, and some were actually from the capital, while many had parents working overseas. They were in the village because of the private school that was located there. This really helped me to realize how unfortunate several other children were, and the importance of having money, especially in a country like Mongolia. No money means no education. All in all, I found that the reason why I still take things for granted, is probably because of how well everyone treated me, I really found that I wasn’t lacking much despite being in a developing country.

Is this the end of it all? Throughout this entire trip, I think I have finally learnt to appreciate the word education. I’ve really underestimated the term before, never really understanding its significance. In Mongolia, education is the foundation of the village, and it is the start of communicating with other individuals. With those students who were not as educated in language as others, I was not able to communicate with them as effectively. Those without much education were unaware of the future either, the possibilities that future could possibly hold for them, or the careers that were awaiting them.

The connections made with teachers, fellow students, and Mongolians have been remarkable. Indeed, there is a countless number of stories and experiences that can now be shared between us, and only we will be able to understand the extent of its full meaning. The compassion that people have shown to me throughout this trip have been absolutely amazing. I know the teachers do want any of the fame in terms of their contributions, but their extent to which they have worked should definitely be recognized.

Students: Through mutual encouragement, we have all strengthened our characters together and made ourselves stronger. Thanks to all of you, having encouraged me and kept me going when I most needed it. The quiet complaints inside my head were instantly vanquished with your words of encouragement, and it was amazing for me to hear the experiences that you had, as they might be so entirely different even if we were working at the same work site. To those of you I have never known before the trip started, I can easily say that we are now extremely close friends, and that we know more about each other than ever before. To those who I have already had close relationships with, our characters have only gotten even closer as a result of this trip.

                Teachers: Thank you for always having everything organized and ready to go for us. It is hard being the head honcho and still live up to the standards of our generation and I must admit, we probably did expect to have everything ready on this trip. With your help, the adversities we faced were overcome, and the responsibilities put upon us were lessened. You nursed us back to health, you gave us words of encouragement, you told us to suck it up, and you are the epitome of what we all want to be.  It was an absolute privilege to have spent this trip with you, and I do hope that our relationship does not end here.

To future global ed students, know that love you will experience is indescribable, from the moment you enter the program, until even after the end of the trip. The effect of this program long exceeds the length of the actual experience.

Today is the last day at the worksite. All our hard work has finally come to a conclusive ending. The windows and the door are starting to get put in. We are making benches for the  fire pit and the outhouse is making good progress. I am really going to miss these people and their way of living. So many friendships established, so much knowledge gained. But the worst part of it all is the fact that we    are never going to see them again. It has been a long journey with many ups and downs, but all I can say is, I LOVE Zuunkhaara.

Today is the third day at the worksite. Progress is going quite well, and we have a wall up. On top of this, I am starting to get used to all this manual labour despite the sore muscles and stiff back. Of course, it now seems as if every meal is much more satisfying, as if we all worked for our food. Each bite we take represents the hard work we put into this project, even if the food is a tad bland. Today I went to the inner city with “Mr. David” and Andrew in order to buy some hammers. Apart from the multitude of stray dogs, it seems as if everyone in the city knew each other. Garbage was sprawled everywhere amongst the city, thus reminding me of its status as an LEDC despite the level of technology that everyone seems to have. I have seen younger kids all carrying cellphones!

Yesterday’s cultural night was again extremely surprising. They really indulge themselves in Michael Jackson. For all three cultural nights so far, there has been at least one act each night dancing to MJ. Boy, are they good. As well, I found it exciting how the past two nights have had ‘discos.” Dancing with Mongolians is intense, but indeed a very good way to make new friends. Again, I have met some more Mongolians yesterday that I have gotten the names of, and I had a good time asking about their hobbies, interests, and plans for future. They seem quite interested in our culture and our language, as well, and I really do enjoy attempting to communicate to people who do not speak our language. However, I really do hope that they do not think our culture is mainly filled with dances and contemporary entertainment, which we might be able to prove otherwise to them tonight in our cultural night.

Hurray for our mascot Chinggis, she’s a really cute puppy we all named on the worksite. It is amazing how she comes to see how we are doing everyday. Unfortunately, I am starting to get a sore throat and a bit of cough but hopefully it will go away soon. I do not want to miss any moment of this!

Ever since the global perspectives class stepped down from the plane as a group, we’ve had a little wobbles here and there. The plane to Mongolia was being cancelled, the worksite was not properly organized, the gers were too cold. HOWEVER, it is amazing how we all pulled through this together with patience, and also, every problem came with a solution that worked for us all. The airport supplied us with a free night at a hotel in Incheon, the worksite foundation is now being worked on, and we have moved into some school dormitories with a central heating system.

The main thing I can emphasize about Mongolia is their cultural explosion. These past two days have been highly eventful, with a cultural night every night planned by some of the students here in Zuunkhaara. It is amazing how they have managed to embrace their own historic culture, and yet they are able to step into modern day cultures as well with astonishing enthusiasm. Zuunkhaara seems to be a relatively small town, and I am blown away at how well this town receives visitors like us. I have already gotten to know a few people in the village, and I must say their thirst for knowledge and friendship is crazy.

Our sleeping quarters now might be a bit cramped, but that’s totally fine. Considering how hard we all work during the day, it really doesn’t matter where we sleep! The first day in the Mongolian gers were a bit too chilly, and the teachers managed to keep us alive by keeping our fires going throughout the night! They had no sleep at all! As much as I enjoyed the authentic Mongolian lifestyle, I am glad to be living in a building again. So far, all of us have been working together extremely well as we have faced each upcoming obstacle with optimism and patience. We just got to keep going!

Is it just me? Or has homework been piling up? Now that there are only 5 days left to Mongolia, it’s time to start packing. Time to prepare myself both physically and mentally. What am I to expect there? I know I personally will receive more help and guidance from the whole experience there, as opposed to me helping them, which seems kind of selfish.  As well, how will I be able to cope with this new environment? I already hear my endless complaints droning on and on. No, I will not let myself do that. I have started to realize that packing what I need, and packing what I want can be completely different concepts. But indeed, it is hard to know what one needs exactly if one has not been to the destination before. Sure, there will be a few obstacles in the way, but that’s life. Compression bags are good.

So much anticipation. So much excitement. So much enthusiasm. I could barely wait until the ‘secret’ guests were revealed. We were all sitting individually in our desks, physically and mentally restless. Until the ambassador finally came. I couldn’t believe my eyes on how much this man had done for his country, and now he was here, in front of us; a mere group of students. The way he immediately started to thank us really amazed me, it should’ve been us up there thanking him! What a humble fellow! He didn’t even sit down, but was so enthusiastic with the experiences he had to share with us. It astounds me how much welcome we are receiving as a group, we’re just a group of kids going into another country. Following this was even more excitement, we managed to learn a few of the most important words in Mongolian! Although I really do not remember many of the words which we were taught, the word ‘hairtie’ really stuck in my mind, which meant love is English. Why might you ask that? Well for obvious reasons, it was a simple word in English which when read translates to a fairly well pronounced Mongolian word. I enjoy that. What this “hairtie” word really tells me though, it’s quite difficult to explain. A common word like “hairtie” turns out to have so much meaning in Mongolian. To me personally, it was me attempting to bridge the two cultures linking through a common language in which both countries know. I really, really did not expect that. Honestly, now whenever I think of Mongolia, I think of hairtie. 20 days left.