It all began for me in the summer when I applied for the project. I really wanted to join in this project because the timing and the topic were perfect. So, in the end of August when I got approved for the project I was more than happy. I guess all my Villardi flatmates saw my excitement. Greetings to my "rahvuskaaslased". Our Estonians' team was firm when suddenly our group leader couldn't participate in the project anymore and one of my best friend Heleri got an opportunity to take part in. It was magical because only weeks before I wished her happy birthday with more epic trips together and it all got true. So, be careful what you wish for because you might get it. At least I got a company with whom to travel to Cyprus. We worked together with Heleri in Bulgaria, we shared so many emotions there and she definately made a Cyprus project also better for me. 21 & 22 of September It was a busy day for me. I supposed to have a full day in university before departure but I was too tired to go to my first chemistry lecture and last lecture was cancelled. So, instead of 4 lectures I attended only 2. Oh well, what to say, at least I got time to make a presentation about Estonian art cultivating Europeans consciousness. I met with Heleri in the bus station. I hadn't had seen her since winter time. So, it was a cheerful reunion. We randomly had picked seats next to each other and practically all our way to Riga we chit-chatted about life. In Riga we had way too much time to just sit and wait in the coach station. We went for a walk in the old town and we got lost. It is already a second time this shit happens with me this year in Riga. Fortunately we got out of the street labyrinth and found a right direction. Some more hours of sleep and we arrived to Vilnius. It is so nice that baltic bus companies offer free hot drinks on board. In chilly and raining evening it is so cosy to follow city lights and drink cocoa. We ordered a car through Taxify and only paid 2 euros for that. Vilnius airport was pretty empty but it was good for us, we tried to rest in Samsung corner before our flight to Larnaca. Larnaca's weather was amazing. At first I thought that I am in North Africa, the nature looked like that. Already in the morning it was super hot. It was pleasant surprise that the bus driver spoke excellent English. So, first impression about Cypriots was great. City centre bus route was pretty messy but we ended up in a correct location. We had a filling breakfast and headed to beach. Uhhhh, this water. I am in love, I realized why Cyprus is Gods' island. This beach was AMAZING, I really didn't want to come out of water. Nothing from my previous experiences can beat that swimming there. We tried to visit some sights as well but it was freaking boiling outside and hard to move around. We split with Heleri. She went shopping because she lost her scarf in the morning and needed a new one. After that we met with another part of Estonian group. We went to a cafe and suddenly it was already a time to meet up with others in the bus station. We saw other groups but we were too Estonians to go and talk with them. We sticked together also in the bus. One more common line that connected us was sunburn skin. Mine and Sten's situation looked pretty bad. I can say that I am kind of used to have a red skin on vacations. After hours of driving by bus we had our first dinner all together and we met with Eric, one of the local supporters. At first when we arrived to our hostel it looked like a hospital, long corridor and white walls, darkness makes everything so creepy. It was a good news that we were all together in the same room with Estonians. It is so much easier to communicate with your compatriots in this case. 23 of September First day was dedicated to Clio, a muse of history. Actually was first part of the day full of ice breaking games. Second part of the day we dedicated to history while doing tour in Agros. We started with classic name games. Name + adjective and ball games. We also played games to get to know each other more like asking questions from each other. We also met another supporter Stelios from Cyprus. It was great to have small breaks between our sessions to munch all the delicious stuff they offered us. We all got a present from Cyprus ☺️ After that we started with a mission impossible. We had 15 tasks so solve in 60 minutes. For example, we needed to create a logo of the project, timetable and also stupid tasks like collecting 50 different socks. Somehow I am used to handle with socks, so, I took responsibility to take care of that task. At the end I even had way too many socks. We didn't manage to solve all the tasks but this is normal. I have never completed a mission impossible in 100% Before lunch we had to collect a name tag from the tree and find the owner. It helped us to learn names. On the tag there were most important contacts, this is something new and really professional. Our restaurant was about 700 meters away from our accommodation place. At daylight it was nice to see the whole village. I personally enjoyed every walk to eating place and back because it was charming to walk in Cyprus streets. We only had a breakfast in our sleeping place. But in general I really prefered to keep eating and activity life separated. After lunch Janre made a tour for Estonians because it was his 5th time in Agros. We walked up- and downhill and enjoyed beautiful views and all the nature around us. All the grapes and kiwis that just grow in the gardens. Insane, totally insane. Cyprus is a paradise. Second part of the day we started in our hostel. We chekked mission impossible tasks and played a funny card game. Then we headed to a Agros tour. We visited rose house and degustated different products they are making. It all reminded me Bulgaria and our lovely Sveshtari. Our next stop was sweet factory. The technique they used was pretty interesting and unique, at least for me. We made quick visit also to the sport hall and elderly care home. Then a meat shop, so many different flavors. We got an access to the local Orthodox church. It was great for me. I explored the interior and was facinated by the art there. A priest also told about the history of the place and showed us the chapel full of icons. They preserve really old and valuable piece of art and I love it. During our tour it went dark and cold so everybody enjoyed the time spent inside a room. Finally, we saw how they prepare traditional Cyprus delight lokma. Then we headed back to hostel to prepare ourselves for the Banquet for muses. Spanish team was most prepared for the banquet, their white outfits were pretty authentic. During the banquet we made gossip, secret and punishment(read Spanishment) box. Somehow the free wine we got made us playing a drinking game. Eric rules were pretty simple but effective I would say. Then we went to one of the three clubs in Agros and next is a history. Huuh, it was an emotional night and I lost my scarf. I don't know why Cyprus needs Estonians' scarfs. It was really interesting to watch Laura's snapstory in the morning. 24 of September On Sunday, a day of epic and love poetry, dedicated to Calliope and Erato. We started our morning with stretching exercises and some more ice breaking games. Later we made common rules to make atmosphere more cozy. We also presented our home work about Estonian art. That day I wore a Bulgarian T-shirt and got only good feedback from Bulgarians, they really appreciated my act which was so lovely. In the morning we had a world cafe about epic and love poetry. 5 different topics to discuss about in your group. The topic was linked with my university myths seminar topic and it kind of prepared me for my studies. During our second session we had to write a real epic poem. We were in international group, so we included ideas from different countries in all together. Spanish Laura was a great leader to lead us to the right track to complete this task. She is an excellent youth worker, this job really fits to her. In the end of the day we had our first international evening: Italy, Bulgaria, Malta and Czech Republic. Italians introduced their magnificent region. Bulgarians were fully dressed in their national clothes, it was so marvelous. It was such a cute gesture when Bulgarians gifted me a rose oil. I got so much information about Malta. And in Czechia presentation I saw a castle where I have spent a night, now I know the name of the place where I stayed (Valtice) By the way, we got famous. Publication of our project in Cyprus news accociation, the biggest news network in Cyprus published a photo of us. Click here And some more publications here and here - the article is the same but the publications are different.
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AuthorMy connection with Erasmus+ projects. Youth exchanges and training courses. Archives
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