More Adventures in CO!!

So the past couple of days have been completely CRAZY!!! We have been doing so much in so little time that it feels like I have already been here for a month!!! A friend of mine explained UWP time to me as one day feels like a week and one week feels like a month and it is totally true!!! I have already begun to learn things about myself that I didn't know and I am already being tested and pulled in directions that I didn't even know existed! First though, I want to recap for you some of the things that have happened this week. On Tuesday we had a workshop on stereotypes and it was very cool. we had paper all over the room with the different countries that the students represented and we all had to go around the room and write down the stereotype that we had of that culture or that country and then the people from that country would get together and pick 3 things they wanted to talk to the entire group about. the comments that were put on the papers were quite interesting and alot of people were very honest which was great because it really gave others a chance to see how their country is looked at from afar. Being from the U.S. it was interesting to see what people thought of our country and many things that were shared made me really think about the systems here in the U.S. and the fact that to me they had always seemed so normal but from the outside looking in they kind of look rediculous.
Wednesday we had our first Culture Jam. A Culture Jam is like a talent show were people can get up on stage and perform some sort of song, dance, poem, etc. from their country or from them personally. It was so great to see all of the incredible talent and us Minnesotians even got up there and did a little diddy about how to speak Minnesotian because since we arrived eveyrone had been poking fun at us for our "accent". It was a great experience and we got quite a few laughs which is always nice. Wednesday also brought about modules, which are a nice name for tryouts. Each student had to sing and dance for the staff so that they can get a feel of the talent that you can bring to the cast. It was good and in between tryouts we had a bit of down time which was very nice for me to just take time to reflect on everything that had been happening in the past couple days and really take time to talk to people about the experiences they have been having and the emotions that have been racing through them. I know for me that coming into UWP has been a culture shock in itself and I still have moments were I freak out inside going, "AM I REALLY DOING THIS!?!?!" and "CAN I REALLY DO THIS!?!?!" but those moments are slowly becoming few and far between.
Thursday brought about our first cast movement and cast vocals day!! We learned our first dance and a couple of songs. Learning the dance definitely made me realize just how much I miss dancing and I am pretty sure I got a crazy stupid grin on my face that wouldn't come off the entire time I was dancing!! I am so glad that I have a whole 5 months to continue dancing and singing!
And finally, today brought more cast movement and cast vocals along with some presentations about tips on keeping a journal on the road and other ways to document your experience, including keeping a blog! I just want to finish with the fact that I am having a wonderful time dispite all of the challenges and freak outs I have had. It is so worth it and I can't wait to experience more! So goodnight or good day depending on when this is read!!