Hi, my name is Julian Gon and I’m an international participant at a program called Northern Youth Abroad. Right now as your reading this blog, I am currently in Botswana, Africa. Along with five other participants, we are placed in a town called Maun. The place actually makes me feel stupid because I never thought of it being so developed, as my point of view. Can’t believe I’m half way around the world spending my summer with happiness and laughter with seven people for six weeks. Most of them I just met this past orientation. I’ve experienced the San’s people traditional way of life such as dancing which was used for healing and entertainment and a “bush walk” which they showed us the kind of roots they use for medicine and last the huts which we slept in. While we were here we met some wicked people who are just too cool such as Blair and Slim. Blair is a volunteer from Canada and Slim is the director at BOWFA. Our work placement where we work is BOFWA (Botswana Family Welfare Association). The main target is to help with health issues such as HIV/AIDS testing along with counseling and youth involvement programs. That’s just during half of the day and the other half we work at WAR (Woman Against Rape). It’s program to help women who have been sexually assaulted and to encounter them with shelter. Both workplaces are a non-profit organization…Moving along as for the climate, the weather here is hot but dry and yet it’s almost the same back home in NWT, Canada. But during the months of May to end of July it’s winter where we are. And at the moment I’ve never seen the wild life yet but it’s on my things to do list, like all the animals on Lion King. LOL. And I’m missing the Canadian phase people. So yeah I’m glad I have joined such a program that gives me the opportunity to experience living life on the other side of the world. The friends I made, the laughs I hear and the smiles I see everyday makes me want to experience more, so that I say “I encourage others who are ages 14 to 21 who are reading this to give NYA a try and see for themselves that it is a great program and a way to meet new people.” So yeah that’s my blog to NYA, and I would like to say Thank-you to my dearest friend, Rebecca Bisson.
-Julian Gon #9
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