Uganda. I saw different animals: lions, zebras, giraffes, baboons, vervets, red-tailed monkeys, crocodiles, hippos, elands, water bucks, Jacksons, oribics, buffalos, and several elephants. I listened at night to the lions roar and the hyenas laugh . In one National Park near Sudan one buffalo visited in the night ate grass and I didn:t move when the buffalo came because it is an dangerous animal. One male baboon showed his teeth. In another National Park : I saw one snake eagle and crested hard eagle Jose Santiago

My stay at OISE Bristol:

So I think I would like to begin at the beginning. Why did I choose OISE Bristol?

First of all I wanted to participate language course as soon as possible because personally I would like to going to an International university for myself and of course for my parents. It's really really important to learn English and I think the English in school is not enough! So I looking for a school in England and I chose OISE because when i was looking for a school I sent a lot of E-mails about what I wanted to do. And OISE had the best response.

Therefore 6 months later I’m in Bristol! When I’m arrived at the OISE school I was very impressed because I’m a younger student and there were people from all over the world. I really enjoy to work with for example the Italians or Russians or Japanese students. It is really rewarding for young people like me and it is for this reason is that I am very happy to have participated in OISE.

Arthur Leroux 

How to avoid culture shock.

Nowadays a lot of people suffer from the culture shock. I'm sure that if you want you can avoid it. I hope the following advice will be of some help for you.

First of all, you should know that the culture shock includes the shock of a new environment and the shock of being separated from your home country.

 If I were you, I would look information about the place before I' ll go to it. It's a good idea if you know about customs, tradition, rules of behaviour and cuisine of the destination country.

Moreover, I believe you should take something with you. it can be a toy, a photo, anything. Besides, it's a good idea if you keep in touch with your family, friends and native speakers of your country. You can do it through social network or your mobile phone.

I also suggest you to eat dishes from your country or to eat food which is similar to yours. If you do it, you won't  feel sad and homesick.

All in all, don't be scared to travel abroad! Don't be afraid of culture shock! You can get through it with the help of this advice.

Review of "The Last Days of Mankind", by Virginia Bianchi

Last Saturday evening I went to Bristol Old Vic Theatre to see "The Last Days of Mankind". Here's my review of the play.

"The Last Days of Mankind" is a play written by Karl Kraus in 1922. Bristol Old Vic has adapted it, as it originally required an enormous cast and its script had 800 pages. However, it has not lost its original satire and its criticism towards the world of war.

This play hasn't a well-defined plot, as the main idea of the writer was to report aphorisms, conversations anche speeches heard during the First World War. The play is set in Austria from 1914 to 1918, from the start to the end of the war. At first everyone is bored, the jurnalists don't know what to write about, as nothing seems to happen, until the Archduke of Austria is murdered and Austria declares war on Serbia. That is when every citizen in Vienna becomes proud of their country. They finally have something to chat about, newspapers are again full of news (even if this is usually "half-true") and women wish to have a son in order to send him to the front line. The only man who seems to understand what war really is and what its consequences will be is a playwright, who represents Karl Kraus himself. The play is based on the destruction of mankind by war, and the audience is quickly swallowed up into the events.

The play is clearly a powerful satire of the world and society during war time, and of war itself. The audience witness the destruction of humans and of society, usually by laughing, because of how events are presented in the play, but in the meantime they become more and more aware of what the playwright is really implying, especially during the last part of the play, when the real brutality and violence of war are show in details.

In addition, the actors, the direction and all the technical aspects, such as lighting and music, contribuited to making the play a powerful and high quality piece of theatre. It is gripping, moving and funny at the same time, and certainly a must-see play.

What can individuals do to combat climate change… and How can we encourage people to take these actions ? By Luca Wermelinger

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It is really hard to make people change their habits because in many cases people prefer to take their own car to go to work because it is more comfortable than taking the bus. They are on their own, they are not reliant on the bus’ schedule.

So we might find out ways to change their habits by little steps, not radical ways like forcing them to take the bus for example.

Regarding transport the government could subsidise public transport more than nowadays, so that tickets are cheaper or even free. One of the problems which might occur is that the buses could be overcrowded then. However it would be a great progress in the fight against climate change.

But the problem isn’t just with car journeys but also flights. For short-haul flights the price should be much more expensive than by train. People might think it is worth taking the plane instead of taking the train for short distances even if it is more expensive just because it is faster and more comfortable. Indeed, when you’re taking the plane you don’t have to carry on your luggage, you know it is in a safe place.

Although I think that people are  less concerned with their comfort than saving money when there is a huge difference in the prices. After all, I think that the government should introduce an obligation for airline companies to increase their prices or to decrease train trip prices.

The other aspect of the climate change we are responsible for is our difficulty to sort out our rubbish, and that’s a big problem these days. The solution could be that we have to charge more for the trash bags to make people thoughtful about recycling as we do in Switzerland. Another aspect of it is to get a free access to the recycling centre, so that people are encouraged to sort out their rubbish.  

Moreover a huge topic in the fight against climate change involves steps any person could take to reduce their water consumption. 

I am amazed at the  number of people who have a daily bath. I agree that in some cases it is the only  moment of relaxation in the day but when it is too often it is a disgrace and disrespectful. I mean that a shower is as effective as a bath and uses much less water.

Besides we should establish a prevention morning in every school once a year to make children aware that they should turn off the water while their brushing their teeth as we do in the primary school in Switzerland.

As a conclusion I would say that it is more a matter of education and lifestyle. If you grow up as a respectful child, you will be more aware and concerned about the environment than other children. As it’s my own opinion it won’t work for every situation and it won’t make any big changes in our unforgivable attitude towards climate change.

What Can Individuals Do To Combat Climate Change? By Quentin Bollé

Several individual decisions could be taken in order to fight global warming. Firstly, we should reduce our water consumption, turning the tap off while we are brushing our teeth is a good decision. Many people leave the lights switched on when they go out of a room, as a consequence it uses more energy. That's why we shouldn't forget to switch off the lights. In addition, people should do recycling: organic waste, plastic and glass. It's a relevant means to avoid more consumption of oil for example, elements have in this way a second life. Not to mention, public transport, cycling and walking constitute alternatives to the car, if people choose to avoid the car as much as possible, CO₂ and NO₂ emissions will significantly decrease.

Anyway, we can buy energy efficient cars, why not electric cars?

How Can We Encourage People To Take These Actions?

To get people to be involved, we can impose a fine if they don't follow the new rules, which will be very effective. On the other hand, people who take positive steps to protect the climate will be subsidised by the authorities. Even so, governments may establish televised campaigns in the goal to say realities about climate change, even if some of them don't want to see the situation facing them. But then again, public organisations such as councils, cantons and states have to develop their garbage recycling systems with more gathering-points near people's homes and with logistical facilities.

My time in OISE Adel last post

My time in OISE

I have been studying here since 8^th October 2012. In my first day I found it so difficult to adapt with the school environment because I was just graduated from high school and suddenly I found myself surrounded with new experience. I asked myself “how could I survive here with people from different countries and cultures”. However, I dealt with the situation in short period. The solution was I should have been confident.

I began my course as a lower intermediate student with Adriana. She helped me to improve my language so quickly. She used lots of equipment to assist us to learn. I liked here lessons for two main reasons. First, she smiles all the time. Second, I liked here style of teaching.

If I would start again

if I could begin again I would practise in basic things first and practise step by step until I reach my point.

What to do next

I just finished my main aim (improve my English), which is assist me to begin my second aim. My second aim is to join university. Thanks god I finished and I accepted in Aston University and my course or my new experience will begin in September 2013.