Written 19th July
Time passes by so quickly...About month ago hosted a lovely corporate event for our partners at Marriott Hotel, and had an awesome rooftop party, where a lot of people showed up, and the rooftop was looking better than in long long time…whilst cleaning the rooftop though encountered some cultural taboos, as was wearing a top, and went to the street with trash, and got told off, as it is inappropriate to wear such clothes and carry trash, so now won’t venture out on the street without my dupata (scarf placed on shoulders)…there are so many subtle cultural norms for women in Pakistan, whereby the men don’t need to adhere to such rules, which is tough sometimes for a Nordic girl!
Pakistan is a country with many cultural norms that you could never think about before coming here, and also a country of such contracts that you could never imagine…in my neighbourhood there are a lot of fancy shops, nice cafes and restaurants as well as beautiful, big mansions, but then few hundred metres away there are street children, unpaved roads, donkeys carrying fruit carts, goats eating trash and tiny shops lined up next to another selling meat, furniture,metal scrap etc in haphazard way…so the contrasts are immense! I do feel for the people living in the streets, but not all actual poor people are allowed to beg here, as in many areas criminals control who begs and who doesn’t. Many children are forcefully taken, and they end up begging and giving their money to the criminal gangs, so by giving money to the beggars you might be contributing to the growth of organised crime…and the worst part is that some children purposefully hurt themselves to get more pity and thus money.
Two of my Finnish friends came to Pakistan about 3 weeks ago for AIESEC internships, and we were celebrating the a birthday of our common friend the last weekend of June, and we went crabbing together, but unfortunately got heat stroke, and fever the next day. However, I still managed to go with them to a lovely family dinner with our mutual friend’s (lives in Finland) family, and the dinner took over 4 hours with many courses of food…here the dinners start late and last for many many hours! The next day I went to work, but straight after work felt extremely ill, and had to be taken to a hospital, as had 39.2 fever, very high pulse etc, as had been apparently suffering from fever already for 2 days and got some sort of infection, so had to stay home for 2 days. Fortunately my friend from Finland came that day, and she was keeping my company during my sick leave. After that I had my first official day at office on 1st July, which was pretty chaotic, and after work was going to dance practices for friend’s wedding which I then missed, as I fell ill with fever again!
Despite my illness, I have been going to work, and started acting classes, and we are practicing for a play in August, funny thing is that classes are in urdu, so someone is all the time translating for me, and will be acting in that play in urdu, which should be fun! We had our first AIESEC seminar, which went really well, and enjoyed my time at the beach! I really love it here, just hoping that my body will get fully adjusted to the heat and food here so that I can really enjoy my time here!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Monday, June 21, 2010
3 weeks have passed…have been busy at work learning new things, having successful sales meetings with CEOs and HRs of big companies, and meeting many new people…have enjoyed many relaxed evenings with new people, as the coffee and restaurant culture here is awesome! I’m still adjusting to the climate and food, however, and unfortunately over a week ago was taken to a hospital due to food poisoning and dehydration, which was a good wake up call, as here cant survive anymore with just energy drinks and chocolate like in Finland…but in any case was able to go to Lahore for a cool AIESEC wedding, which was amazing experience with lots of colours, dancing, laughing, great food, friendly people, and beautiful setting with truly special atmosphere…just loved it! Of course there was some drama of trying to get a camel for the groom to ride, and then getting angry calls from the camel owner, but all ended well, and we enjoyed a successful wedding in a small village nearby Lahore in a pretty farm setting.
Last week I finally saw the Arabian sea, and got to enjoy the lovely breezing wind, and tasted fresh, rich mangoes, and started wearing shawarkamiz, as they are very comfortable in hot, humid weather! Last weekend we stayed overnight at a lovely beach hut with colleagues and trainees, and swam in the ocean, enjoyed the beautiful scenery and rode a camel!:)
This week we are hosting our first roof party for AIESEC members and partners, and having our first corporate dinner with important CEOs…and one of my best friends and another good friend are coming here for an internship in a week or so, and one friend is already here, so will be exciting to share these experiences with them!
Last week I finally saw the Arabian sea, and got to enjoy the lovely breezing wind, and tasted fresh, rich mangoes, and started wearing shawarkamiz, as they are very comfortable in hot, humid weather! Last weekend we stayed overnight at a lovely beach hut with colleagues and trainees, and swam in the ocean, enjoyed the beautiful scenery and rode a camel!:)
This week we are hosting our first roof party for AIESEC members and partners, and having our first corporate dinner with important CEOs…and one of my best friends and another good friend are coming here for an internship in a week or so, and one friend is already here, so will be exciting to share these experiences with them!
Monday, June 7, 2010
First encounters
6 days have passed since I arrived to Karachi, and have experienced many new things which have already made me appreciate the little things in life more.
In my first day I was pretty shocked about the child labour that is openly used here…have been boycotting child labour for over 10 years, and it really breaks my heart to see the kids on the streets and makes me want to rescue all of them…In my perspective it is wrong if I continue using child labour in the flat, but if I don’t do that the kid will end up on the street or to another flat where he can be abused, so it is very tough situation that I have never faced before!
In my second day I was going to local supermarket, where everyone kept staring me, and I got a group of child beggars after me when leaving the place, which is something that I’m getting used to,and they dont mean any harm and are just curious! In my office building I am one of the only women who work there, as not many women enter business life here…although many women are highly educated and go to university, majority of them end up being housewives due to the societal norms, which is really in contrast to Finland-where we have equality between the sexes and women in high positions like President, ministers, CEOs etc.
On my fourth day we went for a dinner with AIESEC people at Karachi Boat Basin, which is really nice place with a lot of restaurants, and was having troubles as I’m vegetarian and people generally eat a lot of meat here, and don’t understand the concept of being vegetarian, but I’m used to that, as the situation was very similar when living in Colombia! But it was lovely to see locals and relax with them…generally the life here is a lot more relaxed than in Finland, where people are workaholics and work so much that they hardly ever have time for hobbies, friends and family and it makes me wonder what are they working for? What is the purpose of gaining money, if you don’t ever have time to spend it to the holidays, house etc? Here people see they family and friends more often, hang out with them in the evenings, and live a more balanced life. Generally speaking, people here don’t complain about small things, but appreciate their life, though the living conditions might be very tough at times…unlike in Finland where people complain about the amount of the social welfare benefits and don’t realise that they are very lucky to get such benefits!
Saturday we were celebrating a friend’s birthday party, when the torrential rain started, as the cyclone that hit Oman and killed a lot of people, hit the Pakistani coast…luckily it had slowed down a lot, and we only experienced a thunder storm with a lot of rain and lightnings…we were by the beach and looking at the beautiful sky filled with approaching clouds, lightnings, and it was truly beautiful! As the rain stopped for a while, we rushed into the cars, but our cars got stuck after a huge pond of water, and had to wait for another car to pick us up…I was taking it very easy, as have faced very similar situation in Venezuela, when was on my way to see a friend in torrential rain, and car’s engine broke, and we got stuck in huge pond, where water was up to our knees…and in Colombia experienced huge thunder storm in my snorkeling trip in this small island where lightning struck few meters away from me and fell two trees…so after we got back to home, the interns flat was flooded, so together we took out the remaining water…interesting evening, indeed! Funnily enough, the storms in Venezuela and Colombia were the worst ones for two years, and Karachi hadn’t experienced such rain for a year…so I guess I bring the rain and thunder wherever I go!
But I love it here because it is so different, and people are super friendly, although strangers do stare at me all the time…but here I can actually relax, and take time for me, my hobbies and friends, as the life isn’t so hectic and people value free time and their friends and family differently than in Finland, where I’m always too busy, and working and have no time for hobbies and friends…so I have decided to start dance classes, karaoke, swimming here, as people here love dancing and karaoke!! Already have been hanging out in many cafes and enjoyed delicious food with awesome people, and every day you experience something new …for example due to the thunder storm we didnt have electricity or running water yesterday, but I’m already used to it and take these experiences as they come…will be very different year for sure!!;)
In my first day I was pretty shocked about the child labour that is openly used here…have been boycotting child labour for over 10 years, and it really breaks my heart to see the kids on the streets and makes me want to rescue all of them…In my perspective it is wrong if I continue using child labour in the flat, but if I don’t do that the kid will end up on the street or to another flat where he can be abused, so it is very tough situation that I have never faced before!
In my second day I was going to local supermarket, where everyone kept staring me, and I got a group of child beggars after me when leaving the place, which is something that I’m getting used to,and they dont mean any harm and are just curious! In my office building I am one of the only women who work there, as not many women enter business life here…although many women are highly educated and go to university, majority of them end up being housewives due to the societal norms, which is really in contrast to Finland-where we have equality between the sexes and women in high positions like President, ministers, CEOs etc.
On my fourth day we went for a dinner with AIESEC people at Karachi Boat Basin, which is really nice place with a lot of restaurants, and was having troubles as I’m vegetarian and people generally eat a lot of meat here, and don’t understand the concept of being vegetarian, but I’m used to that, as the situation was very similar when living in Colombia! But it was lovely to see locals and relax with them…generally the life here is a lot more relaxed than in Finland, where people are workaholics and work so much that they hardly ever have time for hobbies, friends and family and it makes me wonder what are they working for? What is the purpose of gaining money, if you don’t ever have time to spend it to the holidays, house etc? Here people see they family and friends more often, hang out with them in the evenings, and live a more balanced life. Generally speaking, people here don’t complain about small things, but appreciate their life, though the living conditions might be very tough at times…unlike in Finland where people complain about the amount of the social welfare benefits and don’t realise that they are very lucky to get such benefits!
Saturday we were celebrating a friend’s birthday party, when the torrential rain started, as the cyclone that hit Oman and killed a lot of people, hit the Pakistani coast…luckily it had slowed down a lot, and we only experienced a thunder storm with a lot of rain and lightnings…we were by the beach and looking at the beautiful sky filled with approaching clouds, lightnings, and it was truly beautiful! As the rain stopped for a while, we rushed into the cars, but our cars got stuck after a huge pond of water, and had to wait for another car to pick us up…I was taking it very easy, as have faced very similar situation in Venezuela, when was on my way to see a friend in torrential rain, and car’s engine broke, and we got stuck in huge pond, where water was up to our knees…and in Colombia experienced huge thunder storm in my snorkeling trip in this small island where lightning struck few meters away from me and fell two trees…so after we got back to home, the interns flat was flooded, so together we took out the remaining water…interesting evening, indeed! Funnily enough, the storms in Venezuela and Colombia were the worst ones for two years, and Karachi hadn’t experienced such rain for a year…so I guess I bring the rain and thunder wherever I go!
But I love it here because it is so different, and people are super friendly, although strangers do stare at me all the time…but here I can actually relax, and take time for me, my hobbies and friends, as the life isn’t so hectic and people value free time and their friends and family differently than in Finland, where I’m always too busy, and working and have no time for hobbies and friends…so I have decided to start dance classes, karaoke, swimming here, as people here love dancing and karaoke!! Already have been hanging out in many cafes and enjoyed delicious food with awesome people, and every day you experience something new …for example due to the thunder storm we didnt have electricity or running water yesterday, but I’m already used to it and take these experiences as they come…will be very different year for sure!!;)
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
First impressions
Not many people can say that they have lived in Colombia and Pakistan, some of the most world's dangerous places according to the US authorities...two years ago AIESEC brought me Colombia, where I spent awesome summer teaching English at a private university...and yesterday I arrived to Karachi, Pakistan to work for AIESEC, which has given me such opportunities that I could never imagine. If someone had told me 2 years ago that I would be living in Colombia and then Pakistan, I wouldnt have believed them, but that is the beauty of the whole organisation...you never know where it takes you!
Coming from Finland from 15degrees to 35degrees heat and humidity, from 1 million people in Helsinki to 15 million people in Karachi, from pure nature to polluted environment, from solitude and silence to buzzling cosmopolitan city is definetely a huge change!
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