December 4, 2011

  • Pride and Prejudice

    Sometimes you may think that you are the one who is being looked upon differently or who is being excluded from the group when in fact you yourself are the one excluding everybody else.

    About a week ago, last Saturday, to be exact, I walked onto the Lapland tour bus feeling quite weary about the next few days as I saw how the whole bus seemed to be filled with caucasians and that me and Natalie, Karen, and Bonnie were the only asians there. It made me feel uneasy as I never really interacted with caucasians much and I felt excluded from the group. I remember riding on the night bus feeling like people were staring at us strangely and when I woke up in the middle of the night and found out that my scarf was on the floor in the middle of the aisle, I was quite sad that nobody picked it back up for me but instead were walking over it. I felt like they were racist towards me. Nobody from the group talked to us the first day, but they were talking amongst themselves getting to know each other better. Some people were from Russia, Germany, Belgium, mostly EU countries, with one guy from Austria doing an exchange in Helsinki. Lots of talk about EU and the outside world but none about Asia and definitely nothing to do with us. I felt irritated.

    But as the days went by, I think I realized that perhaps I had a part in the whole prejudice part of the scene. Perhaps I was just as racist towards them as they were towards me the first day, and that they were just as uncomfortable speaking to me as I were to them. That's why no one initiated a conversation with us. It wasn't because they hated us or what not, but because of the cultural difference it was hard for them to stem up conversation with us. But as the tour went by, we got to know each other better and friendship stirred up in the midst of small incidences and fun activities. For example, Karen didn't bring her pair of boots to Lapland so she wore her runners, which, in my point of view, is pretty bad for snow. So, one night, we met Marta from our tour who wanted to take pictures of the Northern Lights with us and gave one of her pair of boots to Karen to wear because she could stand watching her feet get cold. That was such a touching gesture I don't know what to say. Then, during our survival course training, we got put into a group with Lisa and Howka, who turns out to be exchange students also studying in Lund, so we got to talk with them and about Germany, where the both of them originally came from. One night, a girl from our next door cabin knocked on our door and asked if she could come in for a moment because her cabin was locked and she couldn't get back in. Karen and Natalie initiated to make her some tea at 3am in the morning while I continued lying in bed. I think its one of those moments where I go "wow" at how caring some people can be to others in the midst of trouble. I listened to their conversations and wanted to help too but it also triggered a part of my thinking "am I just lazy or if I was put in the same scenario just with myself would I actually be as helpful to this girl?". I guess I have much much more to learn in terms of how to really care for others. And lastly, on the last night of our tour, I remember walking into the common Sauna room feeling a bit uncomfortable at first because there were so many guys and they were having beer inside. But everybody welcomed us once we stepped in and for the first time initiated very openly to talk to us. They were fascinated and happy that we were on the tour, and taught us how to do a proper sauna and walked with us outside to see the Northern lights together. I was more open to talk to them too and enjoyed the following times when we barbecued together, sang songs together, and said our farewells to each other. It definitely showed to me how sometimes just because I think someone doesn't like me doesn't mean that they actually don't, and that cultural differences can be cast away when your're working as a group and interacting with each other more often than usual.

    So my trip to Lapland was much more than just pure fun. God gave me the Northern lights to see, a great group of tour mates, memorable moments with the reindeer sleigh, husky safari, and a lesson to learn about how to care for others. Seriously, I don't know how Karen can be so adorable, kind, and caring at the same time but some of her qualities are the ones that I wish to possess in the future. Hopefully I can someday! =D