I learn Russian in Toronto"Well, first I learned Russian at home, in Belgium.
It was an optional class we could take, in addition to English and French, which are compulsory, of course. Since I was fifteen, I figured I might want to study International Relations and eventually join the diplomatic service. So it made a lot of sense to take Russian on board as well. I have a natural talent for languages and I make the best of it." Daniel is nineteen years old now and has been a Global Native for seven years.
Last year he completed his A-levels, packed his backpack and left for Canada. His family's partner family there had already welcomed his two sisters for a year each and in return they had sent off two of their kids to study in Ghent. There will be a Russia without Putin. |
Case Study
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Toronto, like all of Canada, has large Russian and Ukrainian communities.
"I had asked our friends a year beforehand, if they knew any Russian speakers personally. They did!
Now I can practise my skills in three languages. I have a part-time job in a small software company, where I speak English and French with colleagues and clients. Weekends I work in a Russian Restaurant where I deliberately speak nothing but Russian. I can really tell how I'm getting better all the time!"
"I had asked our friends a year beforehand, if they knew any Russian speakers personally. They did!
Now I can practise my skills in three languages. I have a part-time job in a small software company, where I speak English and French with colleagues and clients. Weekends I work in a Russian Restaurant where I deliberately speak nothing but Russian. I can really tell how I'm getting better all the time!"
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Daniel is an expert in geography and knows a lot about the countries whose languages he speaks. He's read Dostoevsky, Pushkin, Gogol, Chekhov and Solzhenitsyn, and he has studied a fair number of Russian cookbooks too.
The story and fate of Alexei Navalny touched Daniel deeply. "One day, sooner or later, there will be a Russia without Putin. And I share the belief of my Russians friends here, that there are better days to come. I will be ready then." |