My name is Colombe, I'm 22, live in Diego and study at the university
in the English Department as a third year student. So I want to write
an open letter to you about the great advantages tourism cause in the
education of Madagascar—particularly in a tourist down such as Diego.
First of all, thank you for coming to Madagascar. We are very happy
that you are visiting Madagascar for many reasons. You present to us
a big opportunity regarding education. Because of you the education
in Madagascar has increased.
Currently, Malagasy people are interested in studying different
languages and the number o language courses are increasing in number.
For example in Diego there are: VEC, CREATA, ALLIANCE, FRANCAISE.
Especially in Tananarive you can find many kinds of language schools
such as CNELA and ELI. Those schools teach many kinds of people
different languages. For example, Italian, English, French, Spanish
and Arabic. To know those languages helps people find jobs and learn
more about people. Learning languages makes communication possible
with foreigners.
Thanks to you, teenagers are interested in learning different
languages even if it is not in their schedule—students in physics are
still learning languages. People often say that they want to speak
different languages. Some tourists also teach Malagasy people about
their culture. Knowledge about cultures is of strong importance
because nowadays the world is globalized—so understanding cultures
between foreigners and Malagasy people improves the overall knowledge
of Malagasy people.
In conclusion, Malagasy people benefits greatly because of the
tourist. The education has increased; many people prefer to learn
different languages. Tourism makes improvement in Malagasy people's
lives also about culture.
Yours with love,
Colombe
Dear Students and Monica,
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for sharing your thoughts and feelings about tourism in Madagascar. I learned much from your heart-felt letters. It saddens me to learn that your primary impression of Westerners comes from men who travel to Diego to deflower innocents. Please know that these men travel because their actions are unacceptable to most in their home countries.
Some of us in the West, myself included, want to learn about you and your culture without harming you. However, culture is a tricky thing. Despite your desire to maintain traditions and respect for your ancestors, change will happen. Culture is never static. By reading your letters, I am reminded again of how little importance the USA places on history and ritual, and am unsure how my understanding will shift my perspective, which may in turn influence others. Culture is dynamic. Nothings stays the same. Though we can continue to insist on integrity guiding our actions.
May I be so bold to ask you to share some of your music with me. Could you perhaps post some music and traditional dancing?
I look forward to more posts from y'all (Slang from Southern USA for the plural you). Thanks again for your sincerity and kind intentions.
Cordially,
Ashley Grisso
USA
I think it's fantastic that language is so treasured in Madagascar. English is my primary language and in high school I took French, but I remember hardly any of it. I know a tiny bit of Spanish, but only about enough to ask where the bathroom is! I wish I had had more opportunities to learn other languages when I was in school. In high school I had to choose between French and Spanish, and that was it. I would have loved to have learned Latin, even if it is considered a dead language.
ReplyDeleteI hope you have a great day.
Jenny Fick
USA
Language is so important and it's nice to know many languages. It does help with different jobs and career opportunities. Myself knowing two language fluently (French and English) have helped me in many ways.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts