Foreigner in Shetlands
This is story about me participating in international summer course in Shetlands. I described, how I felt in an absolutely different country, where people treated me like family, even though they had never met you before. This was a real cultural shock, in a good way though.
Foreigner in Europe
I left a ferry and there it was. A beautiful green country without any trees or high mountains. I wanted to close my eyes and breath fresh air, but it was harder than usual . I couldn´t take a breath for a moment, amazed by the stunning view I had seen. I wasn´t thinking about anything at that moment, because I realized how far I was from my hometown. The only thing I noticed was the peaceful sound of the sea, flowing only a few meters from me, and the gentle breze. The smell of the Shetlands was unforgetable. I can still smell it, even though I have been home for more than two weeks. The country looked exactly like the one I´ve always wanted to live in, a country exactly the same as Shire (Lord of the Rings).
„Hey, come on.... we gotta go“, somebody from our group yelled at me and
I realised, that if I didn´t want them to leave me alone, I should get on a bus as soon as possible. The journey, by bus took about twenty minutes. I enjoyed the fascinating view all the time we were traveling. I didn´t even talk to my friends, because I was wondering how I could describe the nature to my parents. I wanted them to be there, to share everything I went through, since I had left my home, it was unreal. They couldn´t have been there. I felt strange being with other guys, that I had never met before. It was a new experience for me, but I can tell you, we made very strong friendships in next two weeks. I will never forget them.
The real cultural shock was just about to happen, about two days after we had met. Although it was a shock it was in many ways a pleasnt surprise. Since the Island we were on was tiny and had only about 600 citizens, we didn’t often see other islanders . But the day we went out on a trip, I was shocked about how kind they were. Firstly, they kept smilling and waving at us, when they were driving toward us. But when we met them in a shop, they asked us to visit and have a tea with them. I was also surprised about that, because neither of us had met before. The trust we could feel was enormous. They treated us like we were their family, just because we stayed two weeks on the Island they lived on. There was not only one family, who treated us like that, but almost all of them. I´m still thinking about their behaviour. This would never happen in Slovakia. If it happened, they would want something in return. They would never forget, that they did something for you. But it was different there. Something new, but wonderful as well.