Elena Popovska: EVS in Great Britain

The next step was the corridor leading to the plain, the excitement growing bigger and bigger, although I must admit that I don’t like plains so much. Anyway, it was time to take off, and when I saw Vasko turning pale, the fear increased. But everything went OK, after the three-hour flight we arrived at Luton where we were welcomed by our mentors Martyn, Yasin and Sean. During the ride to Huddersfield we introduced to and learned about each other. By the way, I needed two weeks to get used to the Yorkshire dialect. I should note that the roots of the Yorkshire dialect are in the old English and old Norse language and does not mix with modern English, and is also used in classical literature, for instance, in “Wuthering Heights,” a gothic novel by the English writer Emily Bronte, where the very title of the novel is derived from rocky Yorkshire, the region where the story takes place.

Together with Vasko, I was part of the CUP (Community United Project) founded by its current directors Paul Louis and Lesley Steel who, since the beginning of the CUP aim at providing sport activities and voluntary work, and better opportunities for the locals. The goal of the project, which made it our goal as well, was to improve the relations between the youngsters and elders in the community, and to foster creativity. Few days in the week we were part of the activities in the Cowlersley Community Centre, Bleak House, and Fieldhead Junior School where we could realize our ideas, and gained new ones, too. My mentor was Mandeep Samra which gave me a great support during the project and helped me understand the youth work, and at the same time, shared with me her culture. We had additional training in the Voluntary Action Kirklees, on 3 May, the topic being introduction to volunteering, for which we received attendance certificates.

The training course in Scotland 15-18 May was a chance for connecting and exchanging experience with the other young people who were part of the training  and a great opportunity to visit Scotland, Dundee and beautiful Edinburgh, I was impressed by every corner and every event. On 19 May, thanks to Mr Martyn, we visited Bradford, a sister city of Skopje and we were part of a charity event providing funds for children form India. The organization and the ambient was extraordinary. London was the last destination I visited. We dedicated our last weekend to out mentors, we organized a Macedonian evening, with nice ambient, Macedonian music, traditional food and drinks, that evening was one of the best, Sean had a small show with his guitar and accompanied by Monika, a beautiful and unforgettable night. The next day in the Dewsbury centre and in nice atmosphere there was a Macedonian presentation, as well as a presentation of all ethnic groups.

I must quote Sanja “You won’t feel the 2 months passing” you were right Sanja, beautiful moments don’t last long… I hope that I’ll the chance to see the beauties Great Britain offers again, for now in Macedonia, with new impressions and nice memories.