For those that don’t know, I’m Samuel Ootoova from Pond Inlet, Nunavut. I have been given the amazing opportunity to do another year with Northern Youth Abroad (NYA). I had such an amazing time when I first went on NYA’s Canadian program two years ago. I’ve met people from when I did my Canadian program from two years ago, and a bunch of them are doing the Next program with me.
I have had an amazing time so far in Ottawa. I’ve made friends, and I will remember them for decades to come. It has been a bit of a challenge to get used to the transit of Ottawa to do all of our amazing activities. Ottawa is quite busy during this time of the year, so there were a few times when the bus has been jam packed and we were unable to get in, making transit even more difficult than usual. There were also plenty of fun and interesting activities that we have done within 2 ½ weeks we’ve been here. We go to a construction class, so far we’ve made a picture frame and will soon move on to making a mini picnic table, we went to a market, and a few of us got to personally meet an author, go out into the city as a group and try out new food we’ve never had before (it was delicious), go to the theatres, and we volunteered for the Ottawa Mission (a shelter for those with no home), and I felt AMAZING after volunteering my time to help out people that help those in need. I was cleaning the street that the mission was to show to the sponsors that not all homeless people do drugs and that because people are homeless for other reasons, whether it be that they don’t have a home to go back to, because of safety reasons (whether it from a broken home and that their parents kicked them out, or they don’t feel safe at “home”) or that they’re from a different country and their Visa and can’t work.
My highlight of being out in the city is going to a board game café. At the café we play board games, very shocking I know, but they have any game that you think of, and in multiple versions. So far I’ve been there twice, but I loved every moment I was there, it also helped that the people I went with have been a blast to play with.
Having new friends to talk with totally helps keep you busy and be less homesick. The people that take care of us help us feel safe, making it easier to relax. I am so happy and excited for the rest of my stay with NYA. The best thing about working with NYA is that they help you decide on what you want to work as a career and helps you build up your leadership skills, and Next is geared towards getting used to the life of a college student.
