UN Weekend - or so...
As I have been accepted to the YPP exam I'm now more than ever motivated to learn about UN and everything which relates to it. Therefore I looked forward to this weekend event, organized by one-to-world (same organizations taking as to NYTimes Press e.g.).
A few days before, we got detailed informations about schedule and other details. I (and several other attendees) perceived the description of this weekend as seminar, therefore including academic training/lectures/workshops/whatever... but nothing like that could be found in the schedule. Partly demotivated by that fact (and other reasons) 3 friends of mine just cancelled... too bad.
We drove out on Saturday morning by a bus. Looking forward to lunch at 12pm (that means noon...), I didn't had a lot of breakfast. But what I learned... don't expect someting proper - lunch was just cookies&cupcakes (tasty, but not the right thing if you had no breakfast :D).
On the way out I met Sheraz from Pakistan and we had great discussions about diverse economic topics, frightening off other people. However these talks proved to be also liked to by our host family throughout the weekend. But I want to share one funny fact with you, pointed out by an italian pharmaceutical chemist to us (no worry, it's not econ!):
When Pfizer invented Viagra,
they were looking for something again breast cancer.
In the end, the weekend became "Community visit" without a lot of organization "UN" but a lot of spirit to united nations (so again UN!). We spend our time with the family, enjoying time together, having idscussions about everything and getting to know a family in preparation for a hurricane hitting the next week - therefore an interesting experience.
After a marvellous dinner we also got a lesson of "Squaredance" and similar dances. It was promoted as classic american folk dance, but as many things in the US... it was another version of european dances. For example the "Virgina Wheel" is a simplified version of "Quadrill" (danced at midnight at every ball in Vienna). Regardless of its origin, it was a lot of fun!
I was also lucky to come to a family with three children, one almost my age. As next week is Halloween, she went out and was so nice to take us with them. Even though we didn't had any costumes, we dived into the crowds of Avengers, police ladys, Marios&Luigis and all kind of other people... Very notable are two further costumes, related to great movies: Slutty Pumpkin (HIMYM) and Flash Gordon - great!!!
Well.. enough text - now some pictures:
An "arts and craft" house - there are about 500 houses like that in these areas. A few times, the architect made the back look alike the front to sell the same house twice...
well yeah.. pumpkins at the market - almost leftovers
the living room of an "Arts and Crafts" House with some of our generous hosts
me with Sassy... who has stolen a piece of pizza from some neigbhour on sunday :) 
Graveyard in front of everybodys house.. Halloween...
... party at "grasshoppers"..
... ending at a diner, where they serve Hot dog with Sauerkraut - great german dish and even written with a capital S!!!