Globe trotters

By Amy Tay

Daily Bruin Contributor

Loren Newman’s freshman English students were preparing
for a usual day of class at Beverly Hills High School when suddenly
the door swung open and a stranger from Brazil walked in.

His name was Jazon Santos, and he was among several UCLA
international students participating in the school’s fourth
annual International Speaker’s Day.

“I really think it’s a very good idea to give
students the opportunity to contact people from other
countries,” said Santos, a graduate student in the department
of Spanish and Portuguese.

Foreign consulates and international scholars from UCLA are
invited to share their countries and cultures with local high
school students.

“It enhances the learning of the students. They are
getting first hand experience of a person who is able to tell them
what it is like to live in that country and adapt to other
nations,” said Raquel Ramsey, English learning coordinator of
the Beverly Hills Unified School District.

International Speaker’s Day is also intended to promote
tolerance and awareness of foreigners, according to Ramsey.

“It’s important that people see other nations and
ethnicities as a plus to our nation rather than a minus, and making
them interact with each other removes their fears of each
other,” she said.

During the 30 minutes he spent with the students, Santos showed
a colorful map of Brazil, writing down the names of the major
cities, described Carnival, and the rivalry between Rio de Janeiro
and Salvador.

“One day I predict Salvador will have the most beautiful
Carnival party, but right now Rio is ahead,” he said.

Meanwhile, a few classrooms away, Jose Rodolpho
Hernandez-Carrion, a visiting scholar from Valencia, Spain, was
giving a lesson on his country to Stephen Rappaport’s hotel
management class.

Without the map that he was promised, Hernandez-Carrion
demonstrated expertise in his country by drawing a detailed map of
Spain on the board within minutes.

He also circulated photographs and literature about Spain. With
enthusiasm apparent in his rapid speech, Hernandez-Carrion covered
several areas of Spanish culture, such as religion and family, the
economy and the university system.

“Normally, you don’t change places when you go to
study ““ you stay close to where you live. It’s not like
here where you apply to far away places,” he said, as he
walked up and down the classroom aisles.

While International Speaker’s Day gave the scholars a
chance to teach others about their native culture, they usually
spend more time learning about American ways of life.

Often, they discover that their preconceptions of the United
States are wrong.

“I expected it to be more violent because in the movies
you always see people shooting each other,” said Massimiliano
Del Papa, a law student from the University of Bologna in
Italy.

Similarly, Matt Evans, a third-year geophysics student from the
University of Leeds in England, found his stereotype of Americans
to be inaccurate.

“I thought they were all going to be fat, loud and
obnoxious. There are some like that, but thankfully with the vast
majority, that’s not the case,” he said.

At the same time, Evans also learned about Americans’
stereotypes of the British.

“Apparently we’ve all got really bad teeth,”
he said.

Some international scholars also noticed many differences
between their countries and the United States. One major difference
was in driving traditions.

“Here people travel much more and spend a lot of time on
the road,” Hernandez-Carrion said. “In Valencia, the
main transportation is by bicycle.”

Likewise, Del Papa said, “The driving style was hard to
adjust to because you have to respect all the rules here while in
Italy you don’t, so you have to really get in line and stop
at the stop.”

Some also feel that Europeans are friendlier than Americans.

“It’s more difficult to have a close relationship
with someone here unless you marry them,” Hernandez-Carrion
said.

“People don’t seem to care a lot about others, and
it’s easier to feel lonely,” he continued.

Yet, according to Del Papa, Americans are more laid back and
less judgmental.

“The general attitude is more relaxed ““ you can go
preppy or elegant and no one is going to say anything. In Italy
it’s more snobbish,” he said.

Another cultural aspect international students enjoy is the
variety of cuisine found here.

“I still think Italian food is the best, but here you have
such a choice ““ I can eat Thai today and Persian
tomorrow,” Del Papa said.

Still, Evans said, “The junk food is very similar, but
there’s more choice over here. We pretty much just have
McDonald’s, KFC and Burger King.”

American jargon adds yet another dimension to their experience,
though it causes confusion at times.

“I was taught that when someone says “˜thank
you’ you should answer “˜not at all,’ but when I
was visiting a friend they kept saying, “˜You’re
welcome’ and I was surprised,” Hernandez-Carrion
said.

For the most part, however, many visiting scholars enjoy what
the United States has to offer, and feel that travelling has
enriched their lives.

“Once you’ve spent any period of time in another
culture you’ll be able to understand it more,” Evans
said. “Personally, I think I’ll be more open-minded to
different ideas.”

In addition, Del Papa said, “You see that in the end
we’re all the same, and you become wiser in general because
you can widen your world perspective.”