It is always a pleasure for CID to work together with YEU International. This time we took part in the 36th YEU Convention, which took place in 3 Balkan countries: Greece, Albania and Macedonia. The convention, titled “CYCLE OF LIFE: TRY WALKING IN MY SHOES”, gathered around 50 young people from across Europe to discuss about intercultural dialogue from gender perspective and to define new approaches, methodologies, exercises and activities which will contribute to build more tolerant and understanding societies. It ws supported by the European Youth Foundation.
CID was present at the convention with Dragana Jovanovska and Filip Janevik as trainers, as well as with Nikola Savevski, Angela Zdravkovska and Dragan Perkov as participants. As always, being part of a YEU event meant meeting old friends, making new ones, working yet again together in order to move forward and contribute to achieving our common goals, and having a lot of fun while doing it.
Nikola Savevski, active volunteer and member of CID, attended the convention as a participant. Here are his thoughts about the event:
So where do I start? From the full suitcase, asking what’s missing, to buying tickets and getting on the right bus… I was ready for a new adventure, full of knowledge and new friends. I was full of emotions and smiles and with positive energy, ready to share it. I enjoyed the time spent at the convention, the shared emotions, everyone’s experiences with their problems, a million solutions that we came up with, and more. In the process we created games, we came up with different ways of having fun that will help us understand everyone and everyone to understand us.
During the training I learned that since the moment we are born, we are all the same in a way that everyone stands out as an individual. But there are not many words to explain this experience lived all the 12 days that the convention lasted; even the difficult moments were in the end overcome, either by talking to someone, or just by asking for help from facilitators. As with every new trip, we always have a new experience that we share with people around… This is what I will remember, besides the party, the people, the quality way of spending time there.
When packing my suitcase, I was wondering what was missing in it; in fact, I had everything I needed, but somewhere deep down I was preparing myself for an unforgettable journey. Now that I am at home and unpacking the same suitcase, I realized that I am now enriched with new acquaintances, new memories, and I ended this journey with a smile just as it started, getting ready for a new adventure with YEU.
