This is the second cross-cultural presentation in Ice-breaker’s Culture Clash section – January 2007. Four schools are presenting their view on Carnival in their countries.

• Slovakia - Gymnasium Skalica
• France – Lycee du Coudon
• Italy - Istituto Tecnico Industriale G. Marconi
• Poland - Zespol Szkol Ogolnoksztalcacych i Zawodowych im. Krola Wladyslawa Jagielly

Carnival 2007 - presentation

Here are our opinions on cosmetic surgery…

“I think that cosmetic surgery is good in some cases like after an accident or if the person is very embarrassed by his look. But when it’s a whim of a teenager who wants to be like a star,it’s very stupid because nobody is perfect and the most important is to be natural.” - Laura I.

“In my opinion this is a really big issue because teenagers can’t accept the way they are , they don’t understand that if they don’t love themselves, nobody will. I believe it’s entirely beauty magazine’s fault, because they promote low self-esteem. They try to tell us how we should be showing us “perfect” people on their “photoshop-pictures” because perfect people don’t exist.
I think it’s not the parent’s fault because they just want their children to be happy and they know people judge others only upon appearance and will never accept somethinf which is too different from them.
To conclude, I hope someday, people will be able not to juge people by their appearance and their preconceptions.”- Audrey E.

“In my view, I think that nowadays, the cosmetic surgery is a real society phenomenon. Our society is based on beauty and the healthy. Most ads want us to know that we can look like models so,the teenagers are more influenced to become a model’s stereotype. When I read that a father compared cosmetic surgery with piercing babies’ ears I think it’s stupid. I see parents who are not responsable. They don’t see that cosmetic surgery can be dangerous and teenagers are going to take this type of decision too much. We aren’t mature enough. It’s the parents’ role to control children, they have to reassure them.
However cosmetic surgery can sometimes be a good thing, for example, if a person had an accident, it could help to repair the body.” - Chrystel.

“In my view, cosmetic surgery it’s very good because it helps a person to feel better or it might help an injured person ( for example the graft of a face in France !) But sometimes, cosmetic surgery is not used for a very good reason, indeed it’s very ridiculous for a teenager to impose extra work on her parents just to pay for better breasts or a little nose. Also, cosmetic surgery might be used very often and it will be a disaster… for example Michael Jackson, today is a monster, he has a plastic nose because of plastic surgery ! I think it’s ridiculous to want bigger parts of the body even though nobody can see it !
To conclude, I would like to say that cosmetic surgery might be more selective, the surgeons should select the cases. I am saddened by the parents who must pay $6,000 just for their daughter’s bigger breasts.”
- Jean-Sebastien V.

“It’s very simple to have a new body. They want to ressemble stars and they think cosmetic surgery is the best solution. But I don’t think it is the best. I think everybody is like he is and we have to accept reality.I have read that 16 years old is the average age in the U.S.A. to have the first operation of cosmetic surgery. It isn’t normal, it’s too young. In conclusion I’m opposed to the cosmetic surgery on teenagers.” - Guillemette T.

“My personal opinion on the girls who use plastic surgery is:the plastic surgery is necessary for the girls who have big noses or large ears because they will feel less complexed. They will feel more beautiful after the operation and especially it will avoid the mockeries about their noses and their ears. And also they will feel normal like the other girls. On the other hand I don’t find that it is necessary that the girls use plastic surgery to have bigger breasts because they are too young and they will ressemble Barbie dolls !” - Benoit N.

“I don’t think that cosmetic surgery is a problem because I think that everybody is free to do what he wants, but I think the real problem is that it’s younger and younger people who use this surgery, I find it unhealthy.”
-Matthieu L.

“On this subject, my opinion is the following : Cosmetic surgery is immoral and in the USA it’s done very early. The doctor should judge the teenager’s physical and emotional maturity and suggest a careful evaluation by a certified surgeon. Cosmetic surgery is a lie, it cheats and destroys the rules of nature.” - Raphael L.

“I think that in life we don’t need to pay a very expensive surgery to have a good body. Sport is a very good means to lose weight to have a beautiful body. For breasts, it’s necessary to plan to change them later at a mature age when the body stop growing”. - Pierre A

“Cosmetic surgery is artificial it isn’t natural. Nobody is perfect ! I am what I am. But there are people who have too much complexes and cosmetic surgery can help them. Now these people can feel happy and more confident.” - Audrey M.

“I’m not concerned by cosmetic surgery, my body is perfect for me. And my girlfriend isn’t concerned by it because she is so beautiful, she is perfect for me and I love her. Some people need to please others to feel good. I think cosmetic surgery is too expensive and not indispensable.”
-Guillaume G.

” This phenomenon isn’t only in theUnited States of America, it’s in the United Kingdom too, it’s mainly to look like a star you like. For certain people it became an obsession because looks are very important when you’re a teenager.In my opinion it’s not a good thing, it’s very expensive and you are what you are. Of course, after an accident or a disfiguation, you can do it. But if not, I think it’s not good. I hate superficial girls who use cosmetic surgery.” - Romain T.

“To my mind, cosmetic surgery is an abberation because we were born with a small or big nose, little or big breasts and we must accept our own physical appearance and not search to modify it. Or, if we try to modify it, do it with natural things. For example if you have small arms, do musculation body-building to develop them. However, as a last resort if there is a physical accident, cosmetic surgery is allowed.” - Franck B.

“In the U.S.A. the cosmetic surgery is made earlier. Young women want bigger breasts or smaller thighs, maybe for to compare them like Barbie dolls.
It implies they are easily-influenced by the tendancy of the moment and by the media. Moreover they don’t need the permission of their parents, but to pay the operatio - yes! This is the reason why in this country there are a lot of teenagers who have already changed a part of their body. It’s almost something to do to be like the others and they don’t feel abnormal. But meanwhile, doctors make surgery on immature people because they believe thanks to the operation it can render them happier. I think it’s all in the head. For all I know, it’s not an operation that can change our life or make me feel better. In most cases, we can think people have too much money and the operation is really superficial.
Nevertheless,these operations can save people who have had an accident and it deformed their face. To put it in a nutshell, the cosmetic surgery has its use when it’s really serious.” - Stella D.

Here is a presentation about my champion.

Bye bye.
Daniele

Hi everyone,

I was just thinking about the topic for February. If it doesnt have to be connected with the month, how about National Hero/Heroine? Or Does your country have its Robin Hood?
By the way Happy /new/ year 2007!

Luba

Maybe this could be an idea for the next communication among the teachers and pupils:
what about comparing school-holidays and extra activities?
Well, in Austria the 13 year old pupils are on a skiing course for a week with their sports teacher in January, and there is one week of semester holidays from February 19 to 24.
By the way, thank you to Marta for the great ideas, for example sending presentations of Carnival.
Ok, but maybe our’s will arrive a bit later…
Greetings to all the other participants from the middle of Austria and from Ernestine

In Finland the summer cottage has always been a matter of great importance. Many Finnish families have a cottage of their own. Before it was a modest house without running water or electricity.It means that if you wanted to drink coffee, take a bath or make some food you had to walk hundreds of meters to get water. Everybody was happy and days spent at the cottage were the highlights of the years.

Nowadays our life has changed but still cottage life and going to the sauna are typical of Finnish people. Now we have water and electricity to make our cottages pleasant and we have good roads to travel quickly and of course we swim in a hole made in a frozen lake. It means that a cottage is like a house where we can spend our holidays in winter too.

Finns and potatoes….

The last time I wrote an article for this site, I wrote about something sacred to Finnish society: I wrote about saunas. This time I’m writing about something the Finns are obsessed with. When you go to lunch in Finland, you get potatoes almost every time. We may just have meatballs with our potatoes, and some kind of sauce. But no doubt, we will have potatoes. We eat potatoes fried or boiled. We eat potatoes in soup. We eat them mashed. And we eat them 5 to 7 times a week. Even though I’m a Finn, I can’t understand the potato-enthusiasm most of us share. Seriously, you’d think that people would get sick of eating potatoes every day of the year. I at least experience a bit frustration due to all of these potatoes.
Yet, as a visiting friend from abroad pointed out, potato chips are a dying breed in Finland. We only have two major brands making potato chips in Finland. Not much competition. Lack of potato chips doesn’t really shake the balance of potatoes here though. (more…)

Our young reporters spent a week in P.A.C.A. ( Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur ) in order to find tourist attractions of this region. Thanks to them, we’re going to suggest an ideal week in the south east of France. (more…)

SOLLIES TOUCAS
History…
The founders of the village were two brothers, Merino and Bernardero Tocasso. They left their native village of Italy to go to live in Provence. They built the first house of the village near the fountain. The town’s name was modified from Tocasso to Toucas during the seventeenth century.
Today … (more…)

To start with, there are more and more people interested by science. Nowadays the access to science is easier because the ways to learn it have evolved. (more…)