Samyu and her friends(Lewis, Yusef and Zerina) were middle school graduates from India, selected for a cultural trip to the Netherlands for 3 weeks. This blog narrates you about their journey together as four that the memory were much better, since...
One day, my mom decided to take me and Juliette to a neighborhood park for a walk after we finished having our dinner. I discovered it was extremely near to my house, and Juliette had taken me on a ride through this serene park once. In my opinion, it was never like a park, but rather a forest.
The weather was frigid, and the park smelled strongly of green. We discovered bunnies jumping on the earth, and the deeper we went, the calmer we felt. The park kept a tiny surprise in her hand all day, from a caterpillar to the melody of a bird, or the individuals who decided to spend a part of their life in that green area.
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We couldn't find anyone wandering in the park. Nobody was sure where the park begins and ends. My host mother and Juliette told me about their great moments together in The Engelse Werk. They come here to ski whenever it snows and goes on a journey with packed meals whenever the sun shines brightly.
There was a huge pond and canals at the English Work. It did not have a playground, but nature and the lawns provide lots of chances for play. We walked up to a massive green wheel and then returned back home. The only path I remembered was from the giant green wheel back home.
There was a huge lake view with benches for people to sit and relax. In the season, the comfort of the green seat is a spot to take in the beauty of the park. They were the beauty—the trees and lakes—and they conveyed a sense of calm reverence.
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As I walked home, I was certain that I should show this place to my friends as well! And since that day, I've begged Zerina, Yusef, and Lewis to accompany me to the park, and I've told them that they won't regret it.
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Our last Monday in Zwolle,
We made the decision to dress in our Indian school uniforms to Dutch school. My host mother always admired the Asian tradition of wearing uniforms to school, which fosters a feeling of community and breaks down socio-economic boundaries. We rode our bikes, and I felt a completely different atmosphere as people stared at me.
We got to our school and gathered in our room. Lewis and Yusef wore beige bottoms with white shirts, while Zerina and I wore beige pinafores over white shirts. We wore our one-of-a-kind brown belts with our school motto emblazoned on the tiny metal in the center. When we wore our uniforms, people quickly recognized us as exchange students. Schoolmates approached us and spoke to us.
