Category: 10 Cologne/Rossendale/Moncada

On Thursday we went to Schladern, to climb the mountain with the ruins of Castle Windeck on top. Dense fog arround the ruins created an unique sight and allowed us to take many great pictures. Before going back we had a cup of coffee or hot chocolate in a place called “Im goldenen Spinnrad” (“Golden spinning wheel”).

A cooperative challenge in the afternoon required a lot of patience and tolerance for frustration: the group had to escape a small area without touching the ropes that where encircling it – in adventure education this excercise is also known as “henhouse” (?!?).
On Friday we traveled to Bonn.
With amazing weather we visited a lot of point of interests like the “Poppelsdorfer Schloss” and the “Bonner Münster”.
A highlight for our participants with an interest in culture was the House of Beethoven and the Friedrich-Wilhelms-University Bonn, at which historical characters like Marx, Nietzsche and Adenauer studied.
We had another highlight on Saturday: a tour with canoes on the “Sieg”. We started in Eitorf in boats with a 2- or 3-man crew on the relatively quiet river. Although it was the first time for many, we all arrived our destination Blankenberg after several hours and only some wet feet.

After an amazing dinner we met for our last evening in the auditorium of our house. After an intensive feedback with lots of laughter every nation presented their country for one last time: there were specialties from all countries, we sang and laughed. Afterwards we turned up the speakers one last time and spent a long night together.

The last days passed in a wink and after our ukrainian participants headed home on this Sunday morning we slowly began to realize that our time here is almost over.
We got used to get up in the morning and to be surrounded by all those new personalities in our life.
We got used to start the day with a mutual breakfast.
We got used to communicate in other languages.
We got used to spend our time together and deal with everything in a team.
We got used to have so many different people around us who were interested in our stories, interests and problems.
And although we were so different we got used to the fact that our origins and our oddities, cultural differences and politics do not matter for what we did.
Despite our diversity we are all alike and it became clear that cooperation matters more than anything else.

Finally we achieved our great goal for this project: with tireless effort our selfmade birchbark-canoe was finished tonight. We are really happy and proud about that! A very special thank goes to Vaslii, Tjoma and Evgenii who worked so hard and guided the all other participants in working on that beautiful product. To be part of the building process was an amazing experience, espacially when you know that every little part of our boat is completely natural and handmade.

So tomorrow our paths seperate…at least for the next month ;-) We all would be very happy when we meet again in 2016 for our next camp in russia or ukraine!

The first week of camp activities has gone. During this time three national groups became the only (single) organism that works very concertedly and efficiently. Team work (collaboration) and rest time(recreation) contribute to peaceful relations and mutual adjustment ,both within the program and their spare time. Preparation of food in interethnic groups makes it possible to learn how to cook new recipes and promotes the study of language and communication through non-verbal methods.

There is a desire to bring its own stake in the organization of free time and to teach something new of our new friends. Evening of traditional dances attracted all participants for learning new steps and feel the pleasure and pleasant fatigue after hours of classes and the realization that you can now boldly take part in all dances amusements. Kayaks structure of natural materials is quite a new thing for most participants and now all waiting to complete the process to ensure the reality on their own eye. The outer shell of kayak is formed from the bark of the birch that crosslinked with roots of spruce and the inner side is made of stabs plates of the middle part of trunk.

Friday night was expecting us with a pleasant surprise. Girls from the duty group on the kitchen, able to turn ordinary interior seminar room to the cozy restaurant with an appropriate entourage and refined cuisine as to the conditions of the camp , candles and classical music.

Participants were trying to know each other better, during presenting their self made websites on plenary session. During the day participants of EWOCA camp were learning basic words in four different languages(Ukrainian, German, Russian and English).

 

Refining the area of Haus Schönstein territory.

The participants were involved in cleaning the attic,  removing shave court and old branches and brushes. The Ladies were preparing barn for painting.

 

 

 

First day presentation, name game and knowing each other