Farewell party brought together around 40 students from the Americas, Asia and Europe
Photo: Camila Cunha
Around 40 exchange students from Germany, China, Colombia, South Korea, Spain, France, the USA, Italy, Mexico and Norway joined the “Arraiá da Mobilidade”, offered on Jun 30 under a Festa Junina theme. The exchange students’ buddies were there, too. The event was offered by the Office of International and Institutional Affairs (AAII).
Sami Pierre Januel, Mechanical Engineering student at ENISE (France), spent two semesters at PUCRS and is proud to say that this has been the best experience of his life. “I’ve found many answers to the questions I had as to what I want to do in life, and I’m returning to France with lots of projects and ideas in mind. Staying out of my comfort zone helped me understand that I can count on myself and that the values of independence and work my mother has taught me have are real”, says he.
Being independent, being able to speak in Portuguese and in Spanish, having lots of stories to tell and having the ability to make friends easily are some of the things he has developed over the course of the exchange program and which Januel is bringing back home. “I was able to exercise every morning here in Porto Alegre, rain or shine. I have made constant progress and I want to grow in many aspects of my life”, claims he. Besides that, he has a new world view. “Things such as music and politics helped me leave behind a great deal of my eurocentrism. Every country has their own reality. The world seems much more complex.”
For Andrea Mena, Industrial Engineering student at Universidad de Celaya (Mexico), the semester she spent at PUCRS gave her a new vision for all areas of life. “For my academic career, learning Portuguese was one of the goals I have accomplished. Learning and working with new methods, approaches and people in Engineering has been very good, and having received a warm welcome from professors and peers was good too”, says she.
Among the challenges she faced in a different country, Andrea mentions public speaking, academic integration and attending lectures in a different language. “I’ve become more confident. I have developed my abilities to adapt and tolerate. I can relate to people from all over the world as I know a bit more about their cultures and life styles”, claim she.
From left to right: Mathilde Lafranque. Sami Januel, Andrea Mena. Photo: Yasmin Dutra
Andrea intends to put the knowledge she gained in her program and internship in practice back home, as she will need some understanding of Portuguese. “I’ve done two courses that are essential for my professional career. At the university, I want to bring businesses and universities closer together, and have a more global understanding of things”, says she. When asked what she is going to miss most about Brazil, Andrea mentions her friends, parties, music and PUCRS.
On the other hand, Januel will miss speaking a foreign language every day. “Being in a different country is like an escalator for progress. Even when I’m not doing anything special, I’m practicing the language. This can have major consequences in life. I’ll miss this dynamic environment I found here with my international friends”, reveals he.
Being in Brazil for the first time, Andrea and Januel have adopted some habits they intend to continue at home. Andrea enjoys drinking coffee, chimarrão and making brigadeiro. “People drink chimarrão everywhere, at the office, at home, at the university, at the park, at the beach … people are always carrying their kit”, says she. Januel claims he became addicted to the gym and Latin music he danced to at parties. In his view, having evening classes was a plus because he was able to start the day doing exercises. “I enjoyed how easily people become familiar with one another. A professor had greeted me in a very informal way on the very first day. I loved it! Don’t do that in France. Or maybe you should, so people will learn”, joked he.
Photo: Yasmin Dutra
According to Andrea, PUCRS is an excellent university, with highly qualified professors and great facilities, high technology and complete integration between practice and reality. “You’ll meet people from all over the world. The excitement and energy of the Brazilian culture are contagious. Besides, you will learn Portuguese and other languages with exchange students from all over the world”, says Andrea, as she encourages other international students to come to PUCRS. “I loved being on such a large campus which is home to 30,000 students: it made me feel like I was in a melting pot”, says Januel.
