the
adventures of alessio
Nigro’s extraordinary travels
during the year as an exchange student in Turku.I
Last
words as an exchange student
Alessio would like to stay in FinlandAlessio spent his Easter holiday in a
very interesting way. He travelled to Poland to meet some friends and to see new
places. The most impressive experience was his visit to Auschwitz. Alessio had
visited a concentration camp before, so he knew what to expect, but the effect
was still very strong.
- I could
almost hear, in my head, voices of people who had suffered there, he says.
- It’s
something that really touches you inside.
The ice-hockey season is over.
Alessio saw lots of TPS matches, here he is in a match against Tappara.
Alessio feels
that it’s important to see places like Auschwitz. He suggests that everyone
who considers going into politics should visit Auschwitz first. Maybe it would
prevent history from repeating itself.
- Just think
what’s happening with the Palestinians at the moment, he sighs.
Apart from
this touching experience, Alessio saw many nice and beautiful places. He visited
Krakow and in Tallinn he met his friend Arto, who was also studing in Turku last
semester.
- Arto had
really nice friends and I had a lot of fun with them, Alessio says. Arto might
soon also come to Turku to visit him, which Alessio finds absolutely great.
Alessio’s
time as an exchange student is almost over and he’s trying to figure out what
to do next. He would really like to stay in Finland, but at the moment
everything still seems a little bit uncertain, because to be able to stay, he
needs a job.
- I’ve been
trying, but so far I haven’t found anything, he says.
- But I’m
prepared to do anything, so I hope I’ll find something!
Studying in
Finland has been a wonderful experience. Alessio says that the best thing about
being here have definitely been the relationships. In every way and in every
situation.
- For example
the relationship between teachers and students is very different than at the
Italian universities, he says.
Alessio has
had a chance to compare different cultures and to get a wider view about the
world.
- I’ve also
met friends I’ll always stay in touch with.
The only
negative thing Alessio can think of are the prejudices people still have. Not
everyone of course, he wants to stress, but some of the people he has met.
- It’s
disturbing that some people assume that I, for example, am always late, just
because I’m an Italian, he says.
- I really
think you should get to know me, before saying things about me. Stereotypes are
based on something of course, but everybody’s different. You can’t
generalize.
We could also
turn this the other way round: is it really true that we Finns are all shy and
drink too much?
- Well, I
wouldn’t know about that, I’ve made many Finnish friends totally without
sauna and booze, Alessio laughs.
All in all
Alessio has enjoyed being here so much that he’d like to stay.
- So I’m
free for all kinds of job offers, he laughs. But he’s clearly not joking at
all. As a matter of fact quite the opposite, he seems very determined. Turku is
a nice place to live.
