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PORT PERRY STAR -- Wed. August 7, 1985 -- 3 Why does Brian speak Swedish? Brian Van Camp will probably be the only stu- dent with a Swedish ac- cent when September rolls around at Cart- wright High School. Not that it's a strong accent, but it's there nevertheless as Brian struggles to translate his Swedish thoughts into English words. All this and he isn't even Swedish. He did, however, just return from a year-long exchange trip to Sweden, courtesty of the Port Perry Rotary Club, and you can tell from talking to him how thrilled he was with the experience. "I could go on for ten hours and still not tell you everything that hap- pened," he enthuses, a huge grin spread across his face. He heard about the trip in September 1983 when Cartwright Principal Gord Paisley handed him a brochure sent to the school from the Rotary Club. Brian says he "jumped at the chance," applied right away and was told early in 1984 that he was chosen. Although the 19 year old dairy farmer's son claims he took the news pretty cool, his younger sister said he was so ex- cited he 'jumped up and down." And no wonder. The year that stretched in front of him, from August 1984 to August 1985, was jam-packed brand new experiences from a totally different world. "1 did everything!" he says. SMOKED EEL It was crayfish season when he arrived so he in- dulged in a lot of that, as well as all kinds of fresh seafood including herr- ing and smoked eel. "Yeah," he says reassuringly. 'It was really good." On arrival he spent the first eight weeks in an in- tensive Swedish course before starting school at Osterport, in the final year of the system's three year course. In Sweden, students don't choose subjects as On- tario High school kids do. Instead, they decide on "lines"', much like col- lege students do, and concentrate on a specific field, whether it be science, mathematics, mechanics or, as Brian did, economics. Before heading overseas, Brian didn't know a word of Swedish and since it is such a dif- ferent language than English, with three more letters in the alphabet, it took all his concentration learning. "Just listening to them sort of boggled my mind,"" he admits. "It was totally different." Fortunately, most of the people he lived with (three families) and got to know spoke English fluently, since all children learn the language in school from grade three on. RAREN E. HUNT ELECTROLYSIS | Permanent Hair Removal Waxing Now Available. Free Consultations Day or Evening Appointments 985-9085 "But they wanted me to speak Swedish," he says, still grinning, 'So | did." Actually, every time Brian speaks of his trip he can't stop himself from smiling. His adopted families, a farmer, a village store owner and a Volvo salesman, all made him feel like a real member of the family and it was a pretty tearful occasion when it cam time for him to come home again. The country itself en- joyed the same basic climate as Canada with slightly milder winters and cooler summers. And although the popula- tion is roughly 8 million, about the same as On- tario's Brian says '"'You can put Sweden in On- tario about three times." TRENDINESS In school, he noticed his friends were three to five years ahead of Cana- dian students when it came to dress styles. While local young people just started to wear short jeans a while ago, Swedish teenagers finished that trend years ago and now wear the same jeans as "old clothes." And, surprise, not everyone in Sweden is blonde. "This is a myth," he laughs, taking note of his own blonde hair and fair complexion. Although soccer and basketball are big in Sweden, nobody cared much about baseball or curling (especially in the southern part of the country, where Brian liv- ed). Other differences in- cluded the political climate, which in Sweden is very much socialist. "The socialism wasn't horrible, I guess, they do have the highest stan- dard of living in the world. But you can't get ahead because of the high taxes. There's no poor people, no poverty. The government pays for and The Price! An Unbeatable Combination for Gents in the 80's ... the look created specifically for your lifestyle at an affordable price! MEN'S wes 3 cut & blow dry incl August 7th through < everything. You have to pay the high taxes but you're taken care of." One of the best things about Sweden, for Brian, was the month long holidays everyone takes in July. And the Danish beer next door. During his holidays Brian toured through Holland, Belgium, France, Monaco Italy, Austria, and East Germany. SKI DREA The highlight of his side-trip was skiing for a week in Austria. "It was just a dream come true. Skiing in Austria, the place you see on TV," he sighs. But the biggest day of his entire year was graduation, June 7th, a celebration for the whole town. 'Graduation is a real- ly big time for them," he explains. "It was like something you never have here. I was so hap- py that day, it was incredible." It started out with a champagne breakfast and included presents, flowers, a special hat, singing, feasting and a loud, celebratory tour around the town in decorated cars, much like a wedding. Brian says the best thing about the trip, besides graduation was "and this is a typical Canadian answer, the people!" 'All the friends I met. All the people who treated me really well," he says. 'They had a big party for me before I left, with friends, family. It was great. Just sort of a big tear-jerker right from the start." And, needless to say, a good time was had by all. Brian Van Camp, the 19 year old Blackstock student who just returned from a year long Rotary exchange trip, has nothing but good things fo say about the experience. Above, he poses with a few of his souvenirs, including the Swedish flag, a hand-painted horse, a bottle of Vodka, some Swedish crystal and his graduation hat. See story for details. Pizza, swimming fun at Greenbank I can't believe it! Five down and ONE to go! Last week we enjoyed swimming, a trip_to Mother's Pizza, Movies and a big trip to Pleasure Valley. This week is our big playground event, when all playgrounds get together for a day to have some fun. At this time I would like tp thank Greenbank and surrounding area for all their support and co- operation. Our three fund-raising activities were all tremendous suc- cesses! First the Walk-a- thon raised $110., then the cake raffle raised $125., and the bottle drive raised $45.90. With all this collected we were able to arrange for buses for transportation to Mothers and Pleasure Valley. Also we would like to thank everyone that gave their time and places for tours for the children. They really en- joyed learning to make bread and a trip to the farm. Thank you also goes out to Greenbank and all the people that form this town. Your support and generosity were greatly appreciated! We hope the 1986 playground will receive as much co- operation as you have shown us. Thank you once again and hope you all have a very safe and enjoyable summer. Scugog Island (R.R.3, Port Perry) es @e Hearing c Aid Centre ¢f Port Perry Dennss J Hogan ann Hearing Aid Consultant Dr E Mannen"s Office - 24 Water St S , Lakeview Plaza, Port Perry, Ontario LOB 1NO 985-9192 985-3003 (under new ownership) Seven Mile Island Resort presents... KIDS' DAY Sunday, Aug. 11th From Noon to 3:00 P.M. MOVIE: 'Alice in Wonderland' (for ages 7 to 14) LUNCH: Hot dogs - Hamburgers - Drinks COST: $5.00 per person (includes movie & lunch) - Parents' Lunch Available - For more information call: ~_ * RESORT Aldred's ~~ . Corner 985-9949 ou PORT PERRY - BRING Perry THIS AD FOR A FREE DRINK! 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