Last days in Minnesota

Well, after almost 3 months in Minnesota it seems that we are moving. The fact is that we will change the agency we work for, the new placement will be Maine, sorrounded by the same amount of snow as we have here, but with other GEO fellows who live around the area. The reasons why we are moving are different and diverse. I just want to point that these 3 months have been very hard sometimes, but that I have also learnt profesional and personel things that I bring with me. I also feel thankful for the people whi has helped us and tried to make our stay nice and warm. But sometimes in life there are things that don't work and it is not anybody's fault.

This last 3 months we've been working a lot. I have had the chance to know different parts of the agency, different programs with different kind of clients, less restrictive environments.

The American working environment is still sometimes difficult to understand for me, and sometimes amazing. Here is normal that the Youth Counselors don't have any degree or studies related with the job they are doing, and is also very common that the people need to have 2, or even sometimes 3 jobs.

It still aplies the rule that the Americans are very nice in words but sometimes they don't really mean what they are saying. Once you get used you understand when it is real and when it is just politeness.

Unfortunatelly, two of the GEO fellows who were with us left by the end of December, that was one of the things that made these times even more hard. Lonelyness is something we can feel here, and sometimes have been hard to handle.

Looking forward to start a new episode of this adventure in Maine!

Here two nice pictures of Minnesota. The first one, the average temperature of these days in Celsius, the second one, standing on the water of Mississipi River!

One month and a half in Minnesota

It’s been already more than one month and a half, and good news, I’m sill here, bad news, some things are not like we expected… It would be a long and boring story telling everything that worries and dislikes us, so I’ll try to make it easy.

Well, in general terms, the Social American System and the educational methods used in this country are not the same as the ones we use in South Europe. I’m working in a Juvenile Center, I understand that some restrictive settings need to apply, however, there are some things that I think could be different.

The American culture is also surprising me. First of all, I’m realizing that the Americans not always mean what they say, mostly in the working environment. This is the place of the forms, the trainings, the offices and papers. Another thing is what happens on the floor, day by day, when it’s time to do what is written on the paper and said in the training. You can sometimes be pissed when you realize it but you are not prepared to understand it yet.

My European fellows who share this experience are great and we get on really well, bad news, two of them are leaving soon, they have realized this is not what they expected and other issues that can not be solved here have raised, so they need to go back home. Each one has their own trip. I will not lie though if I say that all of us think about staying longer or going back home very often.

My option has been staying for now, I decided not to take any decision until two or three months have passed… Anyway, in Spain the general financial and social situation it is not great.

The Americans tell us that it is being a very warm December so far, that we should be freezing and with more snow than there is now. The average temperature now is -7ºC, getting colder in the night, and the worst still has to come. At least, as you can see in the picture when FCBarcelona plays they keep me warm! Visca el Barça in the USA!

And when FCBarcelona is not playing we just enjoy our talent The Trumpet Man who also keeps us warm! Enjoy the video and his amazing talent!

.