Hello everyone!
This week has been developed in a quiet way. We have not had excessive office work, and at the Caritas shelter all completed in a quiet way, unless the days that I’ve had to go. I say that I’ve had because Dimitris weekly organizes couples so that we agree with all partners.
On Tuesday evening we started our “Screening Club“. The theme of this month will be about French cinema. So on Tuesday we projected a film about a French family in which four daughters get married with men of different ethnicity and religion. A comedy that everyone could enjoy. But the funniest thing was to see the face of a group of Senegalese people when the prettiest sister pretended to get married with a black guy. Among them you could see as a feeling of pride and hope at the same time. We also had more audience than expected to be the first screening, and good taste at the end of the film. So satisfied.
Wednesday again in Caritas and in the afternoon more office work. We had to prepare the radio program for the next day. In the evening I had dinner with Elli to catch up lots of things, because since she had been two weeks away and I hadn´t been able to see my mentor.
And Thursday arrived and with it the radio program. To be honest I have to say I wasn’t too anxious. It was something new for me given that I´d never participated before in a radio program. But the fact of knowing that you can program wahtever you want and that it isn´t a station that has excessive audience made me feel more comfortable. It´s an online radio station that plays from the neutral zone of Nicosia and that is aboutt to a programme of approachment between the two parts of the island, the Turkish Cyprus and Greek Cyprus. But let´s back to the program. We started it the four volunteers at 4pm with a stifling heat. The program was a little about us (what a novelty), our first impressions in Cyprus and about our projects this year. We also added some songs from Eurovision Song contest between chat and chat, and on the occasion of the gala which was held last weekend. Courtesy of my colleague Benjamin. After an hour of stories, anecdotes and laughter, the general feeling of the group was good. We had fun and enjoyed doing what we did. At the end, and after all this is the purpose of this experience, at least for me.
In the evening, I met my mentor Elli in her “WindCraft” Music Center. There was a music concert attended by a famous israeli saxophonist named Gilad Atzmon and jazz with the collaboration of several local musicians. At the end, a little help to pick up the living room and home.
Friday was pretty quiet. Office work throughout the day. At night I went out with my language exchange partner to help her with her Spanish exam. We also took the opportunity to have a beer, as it well deserves a Friday night. And after finishing with her, party time with friends to finish the night, but not too late because the next day was going to be a little hard.
As I said before, Saturday was going to be a hard day because my colleagues and I decided to collaborate with a recycling company in a social event for the whole family. I say hard because our work was to dress up a costume pet of the company and to encourage participants, especially to children. An hour in the morning and another in the afternoon. I decided to participate in this experience to know what was to be in a costume, in my case a robot, and the experience from the inside. Have you been in a sauna once for an entire hour? There the answer. Good experience, but if I can avoid it, I think that I won´t return to dress more like this. Return home and to rest, that the weekend still hadn´t finished.
On Sunday morning, my Friends and housemates Gioia, Barbara and I went to a hiking route to know a bit more the island. Specifically, we went to Kalo Xwiro Orinis, near Agros, South of the city of Nicosia. The route was something softer than expected, but I was happy to go out for a few hours in the city and see a bit of nature.
In the evening, we invite our friends Elena, Zoe and Maria at home to dinner and closing a full weekend.
Yesterday we started the week at the Caritas shelter and in the afternoon meeting with Dimitris, Lefki and the former coordinator of YEU Cyprus, Iliana.
See you next week!
Ps: without realizing it, already took a month in Nicosia! how quickly time goes on when one enjoys!