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Friday, March 23, 2007

I just called to say...

Today (Friday, March 23rd) I went to a research conference at one of the universities here in Simferopol. I think the official name of the university is something like Crimean Engineering and Pedagogical University. How engineering and pedagogy are related, I do not know, as it's definitely not a school for future teachers of engineering. ANYway, I was invited to attend a research conference more or less because I'm a native English speaker. The conference was somehow associated with TESOL, which stands for Teaching English to Speaker of Other Languages, so most of the students were from Ukrainian universities who had done some sort of "research" (the term is used about as loosely as possible, as the Ukrainian definition of research differs drastically from the American definition) on some aspect related to English, teaching English, or English-speaking countries. Needless to say, there were probably a few hundred people in the university auditorium waiting to hear the opening speeches this morning. I was invited to make one of these speeches (naturally), but declined, as I was never really able to understand what the exact aim of the conference was and generally felt uncomfortable speaking about the importance of life-long learning (as was suggested to me by the organizer of the conference), seeing as how I'm only 26 and all.
But let's move along to the really interesting part. Some people made some speeches - some in Russian, some in English, some in a language I'm pretty sure was Russian but sounded far different than any other Russian I've ever heard. But it was probably Russian. Then, it was time for the show. You see, whenever Ukrainians gather for any sort of official event, there is a show involved. These shows involve various acts that display a variety of talents, usually of the singing and dancing nature. So, the belly dancers came out and danced somewhat inappropriately for a while (I'm sorry, but that much jiggling just shouldn't be allowed in a public arena), then a Crimean Tartar (the native people of Crimea who were kicked out by Stalin and are currently moving back in) traditional dancer, then a performance of "Pygmalion", which was really just "My Fair Lady". Now, I like a musical just as much as the next person (especially if that person happens to be incredibly fond of musicals), but this was a bit of a stretch. I think one of the foremost rules regarding musical theater is that there should be no lip-synching allowed. Not so in Ukraine. There was lip-synching to songs that sounded like they were literally being played on a record player left over from the 60's. But, well, somehow it was OK, because it was just a little performance and all. So, after I adjusted to the idea that I would be listening to a bunch of lip-synched songs, some girl comes out in a fancy dress with a microphone in her hand. "Well, which song does she sing?" you ask. And you suspect that I will answer with the name of a song featured in the beloved musical "My Fair Lady". But, that is where you have forgotten that this production took place in Ukraine, so, instead of that, I will say "I Could Have Danced All Night" (which might have been in "My Fair Lady", I don't really know as I've never actually seen it) followed by what turned into a sing-a-long rendition of...wait for it..."I Just Called To Say I Love You" by Stevie Wonder. And I know that that wasn't in "My Fair Lady". Thankfully, another PCV was sitting next to me in the audience, so that we could at least confirm the fact that it seemed really strange to be singing along to this song at a research conference, but then smile and realize that this is what they call a "cross-cultural experience". And really, it's not such a bad way to do things.