Holidays Offer New Experiences For Au Pairs As Well As Families
December 22, 2011
Because the U.S. is host to people from many different cultures and backgrounds, the holiday season can offer an incredible diversity of traditions. Some families celebrate Thanksgiving with ham instead of Turkey, some celebrate Christmas without presents, some celebrate Hanukkah or Kwanzaa and some have a completely different schedule for their gift-giving celebrations.
For au pairs visiting from places around the world as scattered as Germany, Japan or Brazil, celebrating the holidays in the U.S. can be a culture shock, but Caroline Sadowska, a writer for the Stamford Patch, notes in an article that they also represent a wonderful opportunity to introduce them to American traditions.
The U.S. Department of State-sponsored au pair program brings thousands of young people to the U.S. every year to work with families with the added benefit of cultural exchange. Cultural exchange organizations sponsor qualified au pairs, which offers the opportunity to introduce children to a vastly different culture at an early age, from basics like international cuisines all the way to learning a new language.
Several “host families” with au pairs in the Stamford, Connecticut area came together to show their au pairs that it was not only their children who stood to gain cultural understanding.
“It’s always hard to be away from your family this time of year, we’re doing what we can to make it special, we consider Veronica part of our family,” Rachel Friedman, whose au pair is visiting from Colombia, told Sadowska. “It’s important for our kids to experience a different language, a different culture — but we get to share our culture too, it’s a different twist. It’s just a smorgasbord of events and holidays this time of year.”
The au pairs already experienced the light-hearted fun of Halloween and the slightly more relaxed Thanksgiving dinner, but all the families hoped to show them some of the different ways that their families celebrate the holiday season, from presents under a Christmas tree to classic holiday movies. Among these traditions, several of the nearby au pairs came together in Greenwich, Connecticut, for an Enchanted Forest holiday fundraiser.
Cultural exchange programs have made it relatively simple for families to find young people abroad looking to travel to new countries and experience a new culture directly, making au pairs an increasingly appealing prospect for parents who need help but also want new experiences for their children.
