A Lovely Visit From our Friends in Finland

On Thursday, April 5th, the Poly community was fortunate enough to give a very 'warm' welcome to 5 Finnish students from Jarvenpaa, Pasadena's sister city in Finland. These students had the opportunity to see our school from the perspective of their host student, both sitting in regular classes as well as eating lunch with the GIP cohort. As we sat on Arden Lawn and listened to the stories they shared about their wonderful experiences in California so far, one Finnish student, in particular, was brave enough to address the elephant in the room; The small, yet significant deal breaker that haunted each and every Finnish student the moment they arrived in California: the horrible heat! One story I remember quite well was from Maisa, one of the Finnish students in my French class, who had only ever been to countries that have been known to be cold year-round. Her favorite activities included skiing, snowboarding, rock climbing, ice skating, you name it; everything that had to do with the cold was a hobby for her. Yet, the fact that she willingly put herself in a foreign country which had none of these things, is something I find brave, awe-inspiring, and very reflective of the GIP Scholars community. Every member and exchange student is willing to put themselves in an uncomfortable environment to learn something new, to learn about a different culture, and to add to their perspective of the world. With these visitors, I feel like we could all learn a lesson about outreach and one's ability to immerse themselves in a plethora of cultures just to experience life on the other side of the world. I am more than glad that I got to meet these wonderful Finnish students, and I hope that they could say the same for us!