This project was run and managed by Momentum World
and supported by the Youth in Action Program

For more information email paul@momentumworld.org

We build Europe - We build a bbq!

Great final evening. The group decided to cook a bbq and really get our teeth into a variety of meat and salad.
Incredible food with great people :).
Our first full meal I think and a real opportunity for us to team build. If only this could have been every night.

Turkiye

Amy again with a quick chat with Seher.

I am Seher Saka, I live in Manisa, Turkiye.

My favourite thing about my country is the beaches. They are perfect! The sun never disappears in the south part, but I know alot of Britons already know that. We have a lot of people travelling to our sea during summer.

The economy in Turkiye is better than some European countries, but we are still a candidate for the union.

I have done some amazing things but the most interesting thing I've ever done is calling for and taking with spirits. I did it when I was younger and don't think il ever do that again. It was difficult to get it out of my mind.

I'd like to make projects together in the future, absolutely. I am a teacher at a state school Gediz Ilkogretim Okuku. I would like to do a cultural project because I want my students to learn about other counties, especially England.

Meeting people from another countries has been the best part of this training. I will never forget any of them.

Get to know Italy?

One of the most active participants this week has been Loredana Crucitti. She is from Torino in the Piedmont region of Italy.

She says, '' My favourite thing about my country if the food. We have sevenal regions each with their own style of cooking. Its really diverse and it differs from village to village. Everyone can find something they will enjoy. I also love the sea, its beautiful.

The most amazing thing I've done is move to New York on an internship with the UN. I was working there for 3 and a half months, it really gave me a chance to learn about different ways of life. It really is a city where you can meet people from all over the world, fantastic experience.

I am not as experienced in youth work as some people on this course therefore I think I am learning alot from it about non-formal education, from an international point of view I work with Romanian Roma children, living in camps in Italy. So its great to have some first hand experience of their country.
However it is interesting seeing how we work as people and realising that we too as youth workers need to develop and be open to change. Courses like this are a step to help us push our boundaries and learn that we must take the aims of our organisations into our day to day lives.

Piedmont is in the north of the country. It means the foot of the mountain, as it sits close to the Alps.

I am working on a local project at the moment around film and photography in the camps. I really hope to make this a international project, and most certainly work with Amy and Momentum to achieve this''.

I think you are better off in Romania the weather in England is crazy!!

rain, rain, rain and as you can imagine travel chaos

 

Interview with the Bulgarian team

Amy here with another quick interview with one of my fellow participants.
This is Petar Stoyanov, from Pleven Bulgaria. He is currently living in Sofia, the capital.

He says, ''My favourite thing about my country is the Nature. Bulgaria is Heaven on Earth. Starting with the black sea with its beautiful sandy beaches, going through the high mountains full of various natural forms such as lakes, waterfalls, caves, canyons and all this combined with the seasons. The blossoming Spring, warm Summer, colourful Autumn, and snowy Winter.

Something you may not know about my country is that when we nod up and down we mean no and when we shake our head from side to side it means yes. This can get confusing for us and English speakers, so we always have to check we are on the same page.

I've had some awesome experiences in my life, but if I had to choose one it would be my Erasmus project in Latvia. It was my first experience abroad and I really enjoyed it. This is when I realised I wanted to travel more and learn about other countries.

I would be happy to work with you again in the future and cooperate in anyway I can. I've been excited about this project. However I am very tired, and I wish I wasn't because I like to have alot of fun and want to get to know everyone better :) ''.

Inclusion with Modelling Clay

Me again :). We just completed a great team building exercise around moulding a flower and a lighthouse.
In my team we had, Alexandra,Lory, Momo and Eddie. We had a mask over our eyes and were not allowed to talk. To simulate being blind and deaf.
Communication was key during this exercise. However we had to use different senses in order to communicate. Touch was our most important ability, to understand how the rest of the group was feeling. The first activity we were just told we had to build a flower. I don't think we did a bad job.
For the lighthouse we had the oportunity to look and discuss a strategy before our senses were took away. We decided to split the lighthouse into sections sharing responsibly.
Great activity when working with participants from all walks off life, for an example of role reversal.