Day 1 of retreat

I was unable to access this blogging website much this past weekend so I am writing now about the retreat I just finished. Every year, as part of the required obligations of attending the GIEU field sites (because GIEU is also considered an academic class - we get 2 credits for it), students are assigned a weekend for a retreat. These retreats last all afternoon (4-10pm) on Friday and all day (9-5pm) Saturday and Sunday. They are designed to aid in team building skills, intergroup relations, intergroup dialogue, social awareness, cultural awareness, among other things. There were about 35 students at the retreat this weekend and it was lead by 2 main facilitators along with about 10 guest facilitators throughout the weekend. 

Friday was pretty boring. Not to mention it was about 65 degrees outside and all of us wanted to be playing frisbee, not doing icebreakers. We were paired up with another random, unfamiliar GIEU student, someone going to a different field site than ourselves, and we had to 'interview' them - the facilitators idea of an icebreaker. We sang some chants and the director of the program opened the whole retreat with a libation (in a plant.) He apparently lived somewhere close to Uganda and at the beginning of each group meeting there, the leaders would pour water into a plant and then sing chants. It was interesting but confusing. Because only 1 or 2 other people from each field site were there, the retreat was not intended for me to learn more about China. Instead, it was to help me build skills that I can use not only in my trip to China but also in my life (or so they told me.) Needless to say, I was skeptical of the entire weekend. 

Two other China team members were also at this retreat and at one point, we were all instructed to draw a picture of what we are doing overseas this summer. It was cool to go around the room and listen to all the projects. They sound so NEAT and much more interesting than they did on paper in the original field site descriptions. After our drawing/sharing session, we watched a horrible movie called Black Robe. I found it extremely offensive and completely irrelevant to the GIEU program and our field sites. By Friday night, I was ready to scream. In fact, I actually might have at one point while venting to September on the phone that night. However, Saturday would prove to be much better.