A New Friend

Today, I made a new friend!
My company is participating in a partnership with the US State Department in a program which will: "provide young women in business and law an opportunity to practice their skills and gain experience to help them grow as professionals and advocate for an improved investment climate and legal reforms."
One of the young women chosen for this fellowship, a lawyer, started working in my department today, and what a joy it has been to meet her and talk with her about her country (Tunisia--which is in Northern Africa) and her experiences in her homeland as well as her impressions as a newcomer to the United States.
I taught her a new term today: 'packrat' and she taught me the nicer French term for it--which I cannot spell, but has something to do with squirrelling things away. :)
This is a fantastic program to give young women a chance to experience first hand our culture, as well as to gain real work experience here in the US. And I personally am just fascinated to learn more about a new culture, and so happy to have made a new friend.
http://mepi.state.gov/outreach/index.htm