Anti & Di scrimination (Article by Kevin from Group EVS 2013 July/August)

Integration is the « master word » of this European Voluntary Service, easy for some, but hard for everybody. What is integration?

It overpasses itself and even everything in the human effort. It is a vital necessity for everybody. It is a power that can unite everybody’s mind.

It is to go over the differences, in order to go over oneself in a human effort. It is a vital energy necessary fort everybody. It’s this faculty to try to unify all the minds around one cause: “the going over oneself”.

All these small words written on the paper, that seem to be easy to settle up, but this is not the case at all. This is the mystery of humanity in all its complexity. The “technologic jewel” that we are doesn’t have to forget to take its vital space, and the one of the others into consideration.

Here, people are discovering themselves, and discovering themselves again. Human gender learns, refuses to learn, integrates itself into community, or refuses to.

EVS project is to be conscious of one’s selfish though, and of our reflex to close ourselves to the others. It lets us to discover our fears, and to face it. We have to discover it without necessarily trying to understand it. It also deals with minds that try to fight in the middle of a group who has difficulties to see it.

But what the hell people, you have to communicate!! I am chocked to realize that bravery is not that easy here, when people start to gossip and I don’t understand that. They don’t see that by their naughty and bad games, they just copy what they hate the other doing to them. We have people who feel really fine in complaining, they forget the moments they can share here, and they prefer to stick on the childish appearance of the proposed activities without trying to make it attractive. We have people who are scared, other who don’t know how to be loved, people who cry in inside, people who drink, people who are in love, people who hate, respected people, not respecting people, money savers, money wasters. All these lost souls ready to create, to give birth, to get high. People who, using tiredness, don’t see the attacking instinct who is ready to tear the others.

Integration, pain, discrimination, love, fears, tears, happiness, obstacles, the knowledge of oneself… so many words that are hiding a lot of others, in an endless ocean of possibilities.

Master word: TO COMMUNICATE!! Before dying from not believing on what you say.

LINK no 42 Street Festival Edition

Are You ready for Street Festival 2013!? Check up our second summer edition of LiNK that is dedicated for Street Festival! Many interviews with participants, program of festival and much more … !

See You all at the 26th-28th of July 2013 on Street Festival in the carriage park of Kalamata!!!

7th Street Festival of Kalamata / 7ο Φεστιβάλ Δρόμου Καλαμάτας

Support the 7th Street Festival of Kalamata and Be Part of the Action!

http://gogetfunding.com/project/kalamata-street-festival

Kalamata Street Festival is a volunteer’ based structure willing to achieve a wider cooperation of the active organizations in the city of Kalamata. Associations, active groups, individuals, are putting all efforts on organizing a big festival (last year we gathered 3500 people), including more than 10 parallel activities for 3 crazy days, with a very low budget.

By supporting the 7th Kalamata Street Festival, you become one of us, one of the people who care about offering youth the chance to express themselves through their art and to local associations/groups to prove that people can organize a big international festival which includes everyone, with the strength of their cooperation and with limited budget.

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Το 7ο Φεστιβάλ Δρόμου Καλαμάτας έρχεται δυναμικά σε λίγες ημέρες! 26-27-28 Ιουλίου θα προσφέρει όπως πάντα, πάνω από 10 παράλληλες δραστηριότητες, συναυλίες, πίστα για skates, inline και bmx, εκθέσεις, θέατρο, χορό, βιντεοπροβολές και πολλά πολλά άλλα. Φέτος θα φιλοξενήσει πάνω από 100 καλλιτέχνες και εθελοντές από 12 χώρες προσφέροντας στην πόλη της Καλαμάτας εκτός από 3 φοβερές ημέρες και την αναγνώρηση που της αξίζει!!!

Όπως γνωρίζετε το Φεστιβάλ Δρόμου Καλαμάτας έχει ελεύθερη είσοδο και έτσι στηρίζεται στην εθελοντική προσφορά της οργανωτικής ομάδας και των οργανισμών/ομάδων που συμμετέχουν, σε μικροχορηγίες και κατά κύριο λόγο στην προσφορά του κοινού μέσω του Crowd Funding. Crowd Funding είναι η προσφορά των απλών ανθρώπων που πιστεύουν σε διοργανώσεις όπως αυτή. Ο καθένας μπορεί μέσω της ειδικής ιστοσελίδας να προσφέρει από 3 ευρώ ή παραπάνω και να γίνει αρωγός ενός μεγάλου διεθνούς Φεστιβάλ!

Πως μπορείς να βοηθήσεις; Μπες στην ιστοσελίδα:

http://gogetfunding.com/project/kalamata-street-festival

κάνε μια προσφορά ή αν δεν μπορείς, προώθησέ το σε όσους περισσότερους γνωρίζεις!!!

Εμείς ευχαριστούμε προκαταβολικά και σε περιμένουμε στο 7ο Φεστιβάλ Δρόμου Καλαμάτας!!!

First prefest activity and intercultural night

Let’s warm up!

Street Art Festival is not only an unusual event, which takes place between 25^th and 27^th  of July. Parts of it are also various pre-fest activities which give opportunity to warm everybody up and taste a little bit of an atmosphere of the that are waiting for us in the last days of the month.

First pre-fest activity took place in the last Friday 12th of July on the square next to the Youth Centre. The target of most of us were children. We prepared a lot of activities, which gave them a chance to improve their creativity and let them feel free in composing little pieces of street art. Special corner with games offered them also face painting, so after few hours we could see colorful compositions and  patterns on children (and EVS volunteers as well) faces.  Very important part of the evening were special walls on which children could using different materials (sprays, various types of paints,  markers, brushes, bottles of paints and even their own hands) paint what they wanted. The inspiration for them was for sure a graffiti show which gave a guest from France.  Voluntaries from music workshop prepared a little concert, singing with accompaniment of guitars, uculele, mouth organ and rattles. Surprise for viewers in the square was a flash mob in which participated all short term voluntaries. Based on everybody’s own dance improvisation and  song by Florence and Machine “Dog days are over” proved ballet skills of Charlotte and great spontaneously of all of us. It was just the first part of pre-fest activities, we are waiting for next!

Intercultural night

Austria, Belgium, France, Poland and Turkey - it’s not easy to present five countries during one night, nevertheless we made our best and showed the most interesting and the funniest elements of our cultures.

The event started with children games. After 5 minutes I was bored with listening to “Napoleon, napoleon,…" but local children apparently enjoyed it very much and were risking their lifes just to win, to be the best, even though they couldn’t expect any prize.

Then time for presentations came. But the dances were more interesting. We saw elegant Waltz, traditional Polish Polonez, crazy French Pakito and some Turkish movements. Quiz was sometimes tricky, but mainly banal. At the end we could all admire impressive fire show by Mateusz from Poland, as he cleverly manipulated flaming balls.

I think the volunteers enjoyed it, however it’s a pity that only few citizens of Kalamata were at the park at same time and - apart from children - they didn’t participate in our activities.

Anna & Edyta

Support the 7th Street Festival of Kalamata and Be Part of the Action!

It only takes as little as 3 euros and 5 minutes of your time!

http://gogetfunding.com/project/kalamata-street-festival

Kalamata Street Festival is a volunteer’ based structure willing to achieve a wider cooperation of the active organizations in the city of Kalamata. Associations, active groups, individuals, are putting all efforts on organizing a big festival (last year we gathered 3500 people), including more than 10 parallel activities for 3 crazy days, with a very low budget.

By supporting the 7th Kalamata Street Festival, you become one of us, one of the people who care about offering youth the chance to express themselves through their art and to local associations/groups to prove that people can organize a big international festival which includes everyone, with the strength of their cooperation and with limited budget.

For more news about Kalamata street festival, visit the website: www.streetfestival.gr 

Festival Miden

On the 4^th, the 5 ^th and the 6^th of July, Kalamata hosted the short movie festival called Festival Miden. It was the 9^th edition of this video art event. During these 3 days, more than 250 movies from all over the world have been screened in different places of the town. You could find screens at each moment of the day: mornings in the Archeological Museum of Messinia, evenings in Kalitechniko Steki, and nights in Ampheia Square. Besides these different projections, you could try freely a videogame called Banopticon, created thanks to a two years work of Παντειο Πανεπιστημιο Κοινωνικων and Πολιτικων Επιστημων Κεντρο Σπουδων.

For the organization of this festival, a team of 7 curators have worked during several months in order to create different thematics (“Mother”, “All about work”, “Cheer up”, “Come as you are”, “Lasting”…). After the open call launched in spring 2013, they received loads of short movies from every continent. Then, they watched all of these movies and selected the ones that fitted the more with their thematic.

Besides of that, some art schools, video art institutes or artistic projects participated in the Festival by sending one of their selections, let’s quote “Video Art Network Lagos” from Nigeria, “Where Dreams Cross” from Sweden, “Red Nomad: WAW” from Spain and the FILMHOUSE of Kalamata as examples.

The festival started on Thursday, the 4^th of July at 10:30 a.m. with the press release in the Archeological Museum of Messinia, lasted during the 2 days following and finished on Saturday, the 6^th of July, with loads of smiles, thanks and good vibes.

Thanks to the Festival team, and to the help of the EVS volunteers from the Youth Center of Kalamata, everything went on in a perfect way. Our motivation and optimism was stronger enough to fight the small unexpected “surprises” due to technology problems!

I hope you could join at least for one night this amazing worldwide festival, otherwise, see you next year for the 10^th edition. Let me tell you that 2014 edition will be an amazing week-end in Kalamata!

-Manuela

Short EVS first impressions

As some of you already know for July 2013 21 young and cheerish volunteers com together to Kalamata to participate in Short EVS. As many of them are already here, let's listen what they have to say about life here:

Yana's impressions of Kalamata

Hi everybody!

I was very excited to come to Kalamata, because when I was reading about this program I immediately knew that I would like this. Things were not really prepared, but I’m always in for some adventure, so I packed my things in between all the other things I had to do the week before I left.

Our trip was ok, although we almost missed our flight because the guys really wanted to drink one last Belgian beer (Duvel). We were just relaxed, but when we realized it was almost time for our flight to leave we had to run like crazy, they were just closing the gate, we didn’t even leave yet and we already had some adventure. When we arrived at the hostel there were not a lot of people yet, but Loïc (one of the long term volunteers) took us to have some pita (they love pita over here, being a vegetarian in Greece is not easy I noticed, but the fruit and vegetables are so fresh and tasty, so I will be very fine).  Every day new people were arriving, I was always excited to see who would join the group.

The first days we did all kind of activities to get to know each other. Since day one we were all getting along very well, all the people are enthusiastic and open minded and wanting to make something unforgettable of this experience. We’re living together with a lot of people so of course there are sometimes some small issues, but I think everything is going quite well.

What I really love is the Greek sun, going for a swim in the sea, the smell of the bakery next door, the siestas, ‘zigga zigga’, the fact that people are gathering on the squares and at the beach every evening, always having somebody to talk to, hearing about other countries, talking about life with people from all over Europe, trying out the local drinks, going to the market to buy fresh fruits and vegetables and almost getting it for free, trying out some Greek words we learned, … .

And I’m surprised to be a victim of the Greek mosquitoes, in Belgium they don’t like me, but here they apparently love my blood. But of course they can’t stop me of having a great time over here.

I’m looking forward to the rest of my stay here, I’m sure it will be great!

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First impresions of Anna

Bye Warsaw!

I catched hectically last stuff, without which I won’t survive next 5 weeks, to force them into my suitcase and check on the map what is my precise destination, hoping not to get lost in the meantime. 

Then I speeded for the plane to Athens through crowded streets of Warsaw.

Happily at the airport I met friends with whom I’m going to live and work during my whole project.

During the flight the stewardesses were constantly amusing us passing by with their meal carts.

Next stop: Αθήνα. The city welcomed us with warm setting sun. We travelled through pale streets and dried up landscape that resembled the realm of Hades. 

What’s the meaning of life (of a Greek)?

When you pass by each 5 km label EXODOS, it comes easy to start reflecting on postmortem life.

1 a.m. - finally at Kalamata. Welcomed by over-talkative French punk girl and more reserved but humorous Austrian guy, who wanted immediately to show us the whole town, even though it was solate, I only thought of getting some sleep. The nearby streets were full of life, people chatting at the square and drinking beer and a strange old dancing drunk guy.

Ti kanis;

Next day morning I saw a beautiful square filled with sun, surrounded by charming old buildings. I went down to the living room and met crazy people talking with different accents: Casanova guy, elf girl, guy showing constantly all his teeth in a big smile - it’s not gonna be boring here, I thought.

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First Week by Edyta

Now, after listening stories about „flight adventures” of participants from France or Belgium (cancelled flight, running after a bus to the airport, almost missing the plane because of the last Belgium beer”),  my 20-hours lasting travel seems a very relaxing event. However, when I came to Kalamata I was very happy to get  my destination. The first what I have heart was that I will live in the apartment without connection to the internet, 40 minutes on foot to the place where everyday  activities take place. So it was really nice welcoming news. But how old (probably greek) proverb said, “every coin has two faces”, so everyday trip to the hostel is worth living 10 minutes from the beach.

First week in Kalamata was a mix of integrating activities, working during Miden Festival, getting know a little about Greek cuisine and language.  Common work in helping organizing festival, from one hand gave as possibility to get know us each other  better and have fun together, and on the other hand unique opportunity to  discover the world of video art, which for many of us was unknown.

And my the most important observations after this first week are:

1.    Definitely it is too hot here (but this is said that  is the mildest summer from 20 years)

2.    Greek people haven’t invite a sugar bowl yet (but on the other hand it is really interesting deciding about amount of sugar before tasting coffee)

3.    Greek Coffee in reality is Turkish (in this name we know it in Poland)

4.    Pita is the best economical choice for the breakfast, diner, lunch and supper. Sometimes also as a night snack.

 Έχετε μια μεγάλη EVS !  :)