Read Day 5 here

I spent a week completing a cultural exchange programme facilitated by the company Angloville, where I provided conversation practice to Polish adults near Bialystok.

You know how I said yesterday that I went to bed at midnight, so I could get a good night’s sleep? That didn’t happen, as shortly after, Kal and Ricky returned to the room. it was about one by the time we all go to sleep. Although it wasn’t too bad in the end. I woke up at six, but managed to get back to sleep for two hours, before going to breakfast.

After breakfast, Ricky, Bridget and I joined the half of the Polish participants (the other half didn’t turn up) for a few morning games like Ninja. Since there were only a few of us, we didn’t play for too long. Once we were done, Voytek and I naturally played some chess.

At half ten, it was time for Kat and I to check Darek and see how he was getting on with his presentation. We both gave example presentations about our hometowns – Kat spoke about her home city of Sofia in Bulgaria – and I spoke about lovely Uxbridge in Greater London. Darek then spoke about his hometown, which was good practice for the presentation tomorrow.

Then it was time for our first conversation session of the day where I was paired with Monika’s friend and fellow manager at Orange – Kasia. We were doing a role-play where Kasia had to buy a train ticket and rent out a car. And any Brit knows that the train tickets in the UK are ridiculously expensive. Fifty minutes later, I was having another conversation session with Piotr where things took a definite turn.

We were supposed to be discussing provocative ideas like legalising weed or whether athletes get paid too much. Instead, I tried selling Piotr my special water bottle that instantly hydrates you and he tried selling me a lamp that emits an aphrodisiac smell. This was all his idea. To be honest, it was quite impressive he was able to improvise like this. It was a good laugh, but it also showed a good progression in his English ability.

Lunchtime. This was chicken escalope with potatoes. Bland and dry like most food in Poland.

Today, I was sitting with Kat and Lydia. Like me, Lydia is a second-generation immigrant, although from Nigeria and not Hong Kong, so we had an interesting conversation about our respective experiences growing up in the ULK and our relationship with our mother countries or lack thereof.

When lunch had finished at half two, the three of us went for a walk around the hotel grounds. Lydia and I climbed some trees before she had to go do the afternoon activity, while Kat and I spent an hour in the sauna.

At half four, it was back to work. I was paired with Elvira to help prepare her for a negotiation roleplay that she later carried out with Piotr – aided by Ricardo. The roleplay was about a big company planning to build a shopping centre to rejuvenate the economy of a dying town. Elvia was arguing the “for” case and Piotr the original case. And the two of them really threw themselves into it. Things definitely got very heated. Lol.

After this, we had a brief break where, you guessed it, Voytek and I played some chess and he absolutely smashed me. Piotr also ordered some fascinating winter tea.

I’ve never seen anything like it. I also had a little chat, in French of course, with Bridget. It was funny, as I opened the conversation with a highly informal “quoi de neuf, ma pote.” It was funny as this is informal language that young people use among your friends. It isn’t what you would expect a baby boomer like Bridget to say. Anyway, all of this must have tired me out, as I struggled in staying awake through my conversation session with Monika and the subsequent debate session with Yvonne, Kasia and Monika.

At half seven, it was dinner time – Polish barbecue.

It was good. We were supposed to finished the day with a final game, but the Polish participants were happier drinking and socialising. As Tyler says in his corporate speech: “If you’re happy, I’m happy.” The Polish were also happy for us mentors to join them. We have a very pleasant evening, drinking vodka, dancing the tango (Ricky and Voytek did) and chilling out. At half ten, I went up to bed. And that was the end of day 6. A day of climbing trees, aphrodisiacs and winter teas.