If you would live in Algeria, what do you think is the biggest change for you? What would you miss from French way of life and what would you like from Algerian life?
Living in another country always means changing your way of life. And France and Algeria are two really different countries, in various dimensions, whether it be climate, mentality, food, etc.
First of all, the climate. It seems that it's a pretty trivial element, but in Algeria, the weather is hotter than France, as it has a Mediterranean climate on the coast, and it gets more Arid the more you go South. Obviously, when you get used to a certain weather for several years, at the slightest change it's easier to get sick, fortunately it's usually for a short period of time, thus why people don't tend to think much about it. Fun fact = I once catched a sunburn and a fever because I went out in the middle of the afternoon with 40ยฐC outside ! ๐ฅต๐๐
But the most important thing when you move to a new country for a long period of time is of course : the mentality of the locals.
You see, Yue, I know that you yourself come from a dual culture background, you can ask your parents too (if they were born in China) I'm sure that when they moved to the new country, they had to adapt not only to the new way of life in general, but also to the new culture. My Parents did the same when coming to France.
Anyway, all the time, different countries all have a different mentality. Different ways of thinking, communicating or sharing with people, and different standards that can sometimes be very different from the country where you have lived until then. So, when you come to this new country, you have to accept this new mentality to get along with people, and avoid conflicts.
But when you have lived in the same country all your life, it is necessarily complicated to adapt to the new mentality of the people, especially when you do not understand why such a thing is well seen, why such a thing is badly seen, etc. I personally think that if I could go back to live in Algeria, I would not have too much difficulty integrating into the mentality of the Algerians because I have already understood it a little bit throughout my life when I went there on vacation. But I am sure that I still have to understand, because a total immersion is never the same thing as a few months of living.
If there is something I would miss in France, I think it would be my hometown where I would have lived all my youth. But also French food ๐๐ because even if some foods are present in Algeria in shopping centers or bakeries (chocolate, cheese, croissants), it doesn't have the same taste as in France ! And I guess I'll miss that ๐
What are the most beautiful places in Algeria to visit and why? And are they safe?
That's a good question ! There are actually a lot of beautiful places to visit in Algeria ! I wish Algeria developped tourism more like Morocco or Tunisia did, because Algeria tends to be an underrated country in terms of touristic places to visit. Fortunately Algeria slowly opens itself to the world of tourism ๐
I think that visiting Algeria as a foreigner, is getting out the beaten track, and instead of choosing overcrowded destinations, choosing something calmer, and that has its charm. Algeria has such a Mediterranean charm that can't be found anywhere else. It's a mix of the different cultures that Algeria acquired throughout its history, it's like a color palette. Everywhere you go, there's someting beautiful and special to see among the other places.
There are so much nice places to visit in Algeria, that I can't fit them all here or it would be soo long for this interview, but I might make something on the Penpal Gate University Forum.
Anyways, I'll give some examples of nice places in Algeria.
- Algiers, the capital city, is the major city in Algeria, where a lot of historical events and periods happened.
- the city of Oran, the second largest city in Algeria.
- the City of Constantine, one of the Oldest of Algeria
- Kabylia, a Region in the East of Algiers, home of the Kabyle Amazigh people.
- The Roman ruins of Tipaza (First Photo), Timgad (Second Photo) and Djemila (Third Photo). These are the major ones, there are much more Roman ruins to visit!
- Now we head to the Center of Algeria, to the city of Ghardaรฏa, home of the Mozabite Amazigh people.
- the City of Ouargla is probably the last stop before entering the deep desert of Algeria. It's also the only city in the Sahara Desert that has a Tramway... That actually surprised me when I first heard it ๐ฎ
- the Cultural Park of Tassili N'Ajjer. Recently, some places on the Planet Mars were named after this Cultural Park, in reference to the shapes of the massifs. There are cave paintings that date back to thousands of years and prehistory !
- the Province of Djanet, in the deep southeast of Algeria, near the border of Libya and Niger. A lot of people go Camping there to see the stars or to relieve themselves in the calm of the desert, but also to discover the Ancient Lost City of Sefar, (Third Photo) about which many frightening legends are told.
- Tamanrasset, the Biggest City in the South of Algeria. The South of Algeria is also home of the Tuareg Amazigh people.
That's it, I hope you enjoyed those nice photos ๐
Most of these areas in the north are safe, but when you enter the Desert (Ghardaรฏa), usually for foreigners the presence of a guide is necessary (or even mandatory) for safety purposes. The Algerian desert is considered a protected area (Some tourists may damage very ancient remains), and it is sometimes dangerous if you venture there alone (getting lost, etc).
But overall everyone can enjoy a nice stay in Algeria ๐
What do you eat for lunch at the university? Do you bring food from home or do you eat dishes from the University restaurant? And do you prefer bread or hot meals for lunch?
When I eat at the university, it depends ! You are free to bring food from home, or to eat at the University restaurant, or even buy something in any shop and come back at the university to eat. You can also eat at any surrounding restaurant and come back again. Anyway you are autonomous. I prefer prepared or hot meals from the University restaurant, because they of course have balanced foods like vegetables or proteins. Bread is only used as an accompaniment. If it is eaten alone it is also good, but it makes you fat, and we avoid taking too many calories. Sometimes I like changing a little and buy something to eat somewhere else.
What sports have you done and would you like to do ever? And can you sing and dance any sort (hiphop, ballet, street dance, ballroom, latin or anything)? If not would you like to learn to play music or dance?
Speaking about sports, I've done karate for a short time when I was 8-9 years old. At the beginning I was doing quite well, but it didn't go well because I didn't dare knock people, and my hits were too soft. When I hit someone my master would tell me that I had hurt the person I was fighting. So I restricted myself even more... Plus the people in my group had adopted a strange distrust and hostility towards me for no reason. Then we moved home away and I stopped. I guess karate wasn't for me ๐
However, overtime I managed to find my own tastes ๐ I like swimming, cycling, and Badminton. Those are probably the sports I enjoy the most. Swimming is also pretty relaxing when I'm alone lying on the water, and just emptying my mind. Cycling is a bit like driving, and I like outdoing myself by going far. And badminton is fun, especially when you have to keep to run to avoid the badminton shuttlecock entering your court ๐
I'm not a professional dancer ๐ but I guess I can dance to Algerian songs quite well like any average Arab can do ๐. Though the most aged people overtime dance much better than the younger generations !
Do you want to have children later when you are married and if yes how many? Does it matter if it is a girl or a boy or not? And would you give French names or Algerian names?
I guess I would. ๐
Sometimes it happened that I didn't want it, because I was "traumatized" (not literally ๐) by my younger siblings who always run around without stopping, sometimes it's too much !!! ๐๐
But in reality I would love to have children, have a cute baby, raise him, teach him, create lovely bonds as my parents did to me and my siblings ๐ and also have a legacy and see when my children will become adults and then have their own chindren, in sha Allah ๐
It doesn't matter if they are boys or girls. I'll just be satisfied of what God will give me. Speaking about the names, in Algerian culture, names are pretty important because obviously they will keep it their entire life, so even though it is not required in religion to give only Arab or Muslim names as long as the meaning isn't bad, the name has to have a deep meaning for the family. I think though I'll listen to my culture. My culture is an asset and I don't want it to be a handicap. I have to admit I have a preference for Arab names or what we call "international names" (you know, those names that are given worldwide no matter the country).
I hope one day I'll have children. But destiny belongs to Allah Almighty!
