At a very young age, my parents taught my siblings and I the importance of ACCEPTING, UNDERSTANDING and LEARNING about other cultures. We've travelled INCESSENTLY every summer to different countries around the GLOBE. Ultimately, my parents gave us an invaluable GIFT; they made the world our CLASSROOM and helped us to become CITIZENS OF THE WORLD.
Traveling has become an integral part of my life because I want to CONNECT with people, and have an INSATIABLE curiosity about other cultures. I love to learn about how people live, OBSERVE them as they UNASSUMINGLY carry on with their days and SHARE experiences with them that I will remember long after my stay. I try my best to evade the TOURISTIC destinations (although appreciating the historical foundations of CIVILIZATION is important): the visits to monuments, overcrowded museums and makechief local restaurants (whose menus reflect the tourists pallette instead of the local DELICACIES). I prefer to INTERACT with others and find out what makes us ALIKE despite the differences of location.
Recently, I saw posted on a friend's Facebook page a video entitled "PARIS," which I thought at first was a movie trailer. To my delight, it was actually a commercial that followed a young woman through her stay in the "City of Love." It gave you a glimpse of Paris as she navigated her way around, DISCOVERING and learning the French LANGUAGE and CULTURE. The WHIMSICAL snippet ended with the company logo "EF."
WHAT IS EF?
I began to research for other CITIES using the company letters "EF" and these are some of what I found:
EF is an abbreviation for EDUCATION FIRST, an international education company that specializes in language TRAINING, educational world tours, academic programs, cultural EXCHANGE, and leisure travels. EF was founded in 1965 in Sweden by Bertil Hult. Today, it is represented in over 50 countries with more than 20,000 language teachers and cultural guides.
For more information about Education First please visit their website- http://www.ef.com/
I love the CONCEPT of traveling not only to be a tourist, but also to LIVE the culture and language of another country, even if it is for a few days.
A GREAT new way to TRAVEL and VISIT a country!
Something to CONSIDER on a next trip....
Notes:
Would you enjoy to learn the language of the next country you visit? What new culture would you like to learn about?
With Love,
Minou
I would LOVE to fluently speak Italian, Spanish, and French! I am planning my escape of traveling abroad at the end of this year, and I'm looking forward to seeing everything there is to see, learning, and "finding" myself in the process. I want to immerse myself in the Italian culture :) I am going to really enjoy going through your posts! They are very informative and sooo well-written! I've stumbled across a gold-mine :)
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