During
the summer of 2011 I spent three weeks in the north of the Cantal. I
took part in a project run by the EuroCulture association. There were
thirty people from different countries (Turkey, Slovenia, Croatia,
Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria and France).
It
took me only two days to find out that this big crowd of nice people
was simply awesome! The first people I connected with were the
Croatians, and one girl in particular that I felt, after two minutes
of talk, like I had known her forever.
And then, everything went
so fast. The first week, our monitors taught us theatre, dance,
singing, puppetry and percussion. By the second week, we started work
on creating a show. I chose to use my theatre and percussion skills
(I had wanted to take the dance classes, but the schedule didn’t
match). So, every day, we trained for the big day where we would
perform on and off stage. It was my first artistic experience, and I
can vouch that it was the most thrilling event of my life thus far!
But the great part about
that experience was not only the knowledge we gained in every
artistic activity, but also the culture and characters that we got to
discover. I learnt more about the world around me during those three
weeks than at any time in my life. I found out about the history of
eastern European countries, about the social and economic situations
of those same countries, but also about the food and the languages. I
wish I had taken more time to learn Croatian and Slovenian!
The thing that impressed
me most was how easily relations were built and how strong they
became. Staying three weeks with the same thirty people really
creates very strong and deep bonds that would take much more time to
emerge in everyday life. And of course, it makes the departure and
the separation so much harder. It is really heartbreaking to see all
those people that you’ve considered like part of your family go,
and you know that you’re probably never going to see them anytime
soon, if ever.
This experience was the
greatest thing that has ever happened to me. I feel like I’ve grown
so much in such a short period of time. It is a once in a lifetime
experience that you wish you could relive every year even if you know
that what makes it so magical is the uniqueness of it all.
I know I will never
forget that summer and those people. I am still in touch with several
of them. I am incredibly grateful to them for revealing a part of me
I never knew I had. If I am anything now, it is because of them, and
for that, I send them all my gratitude.
I really recommend that
you grab an opportunity like this one, at least once in your life,
because I believe that it releases the most unexpected aspects of
your soul!
