Thursday, July 29, 2010

You are the Future: Poem by Matt

The future

Words dangle from lips
like suicide jumpers.

Throats are dry, hands are moist
Butterflies make their choice
to build their home in my stomach.

Their flight path makes me queasy,
but please believe me I’d have it no other way. ,
It was the first day.
Tongue tied, tangled, twisted up in translations
I had nothing to say.
and even less to write.

My mind has gone blank.
it’s the spitting image of my notebook...
it’s blank.

I’ve been thinking and writing down lines in my head
for days on end but when it comes to the pen,
I can’t make it move.
I’m stuck in this lethargic groove
of nothingness.
As I stare at the blank pages I confess
this white noise is making me deaf
to the sound of inspiration.
My concentration is a split separation
between morning classes
afternoon games
and much more of the same
Repeat.
Try to find and slow down the beat
of our hearts so they begin to pump as one.
This might be the end of the camp but the journey has just begun.

Our lives intertwine,
cross-cultural country combinations.
Never to be forgotten,
Always to be remembered as celebrations.

Bonds of love are strong
and build bridges that can never be burned.
As I turn and lock eyes with the faces in the crowd
I must confess the feelings in my heart and express them aloud.

You are the future!
You hold the key!
Find the love in your hearts and release it for me,

express it to the world for everyone to see.

It’s time for a change:
one that's been a long time coming.
We all have the tools so lets hit the ground running.

Unite our cultures.
one love from above
Bob Marley used to sing.
At this moment in time
we have the opportunity to make it the real thing.

Don’t lose contact with each other
keep the fire burning strong
write a letter
send an e-mail
paint a picture
compose a song

Remember what we’ve learned
in our classes, on the street,
from our teachers, from our friends,
from everyone we meet.

I am the teacher but alas
i am also the student.
i have learned as much from you
as you have from me. And I guarantee
each and everyone of you are destined to succeed.

Presidents and doctors.
Poets and photographers.
Etc. etc. etc.

As the weeks have gone by
I have glimpsed the future in the corner of my eye
and i can confidently say without a shadow of a doubt
or a sprinkle of a lie.
That you will make a difference!

Combine our minds
and try to find a cure for the illness of our time.
The sickness is strong,
but our course is unstoppable.
Once united we can not be divided.

Remember the good times;
Big -booty, big-booty, ah yeah a big-booty.
Practicing yoga in the rain.
Strengthening our muscles while expanding our brains
to attain the next level of consciousness.
Which I feel we have reached.
Now it’s time to bond together and try to breech
that gap that lays between love and life.
So that one day your children, your husband or wife
can walk down the road hand and hand at night
and not be afraid.

This is the path we’ve paved together.
With love as our foundation and
peace as our inspiration
We will change the world!
You will make a difference!

You all are extremely gifted
in every sense of the word.
And, it would be absurd
if I didn't convey this to you.

Be proud of who you are
because I most definitely am.
Hopefully one day in the future
we will meet again.

Thank you
Hvala
Gracias
Sag ol
Dyaku u
Faleminderit
Madloba
Achiu
Merci
Rahmet
Blagadaria
Namaste


-Matthew Piscitelli


Monday, July 26, 2010

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Spanish Cooking video

Week 2- English Class Spanish Cooking Video


AUBG Spanish Cooking from AEK on Vimeo.

Friday, July 23, 2010

Everything's Bigger in Texas

Written by Zorana (Montenegro)

So I’m here in Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria staying in summer camp at AUBG. I got a task to talk to teachers who lived in Texas or have been living in Texas. First is Andrea from Nebraska, who teaches English language. She is a Peace Corps volunteer here in Bulgaria.


I talked to her about her 3 months spent living in Texas. One question was how is it to live there and she answered very hot. Andrea told me that she lived in Texas only for 3 months. When I asked her how different the style of living in Texas is to style of living in Bulgaria she answered very different. She said that everything in Texas is large. Very big. Houses, buildings, beside the bigness she said that people in Texas wear a lot more jewelry. Going swimming, golf, baseball, going to ranches and shopping are the things teenagers can do when they want some fun in Texas. Also Andrea told us that first place you need to see when you go to Texas is definitely Austin, the capital. I asked for Dallas and she said she has been to Dallas, but didn’t like it as much as she liked Austin. For cooking and food she said that is much better in Texas than her, in Bulgaria. National meals are Tex – Mex and steak with sweet tea. ‘I have been to Texas many times; it’s very hot there, so I wouldn’t be able to live there. I prefer cold.’ – She concluded.

The other person I talked to was my journalism teacher Valerie. She is, as she said “a true Texan.” She was born in Dallas, Texas as well as her parents. That’s why she is so proud talking about Texas. She considers herself to be a true Texan. She is born as I said in Dallas. She was also raised there. I asked her if she can tell us what the difference is between life in Texas and in Bulgaria. She told me that here, in Bulgaria she lives in small village without a car. That’s interesting, even she knows how to drive and had passed the driving test, she and other Peace Corps volunteers are not allowed to drive. But in Texas she lives in big city. When I asked her what teenagers can do for fun, she answered that it’s the same. Girls can go shopping in Dallas’s biggest mall ‘The Galleria’ and boys hanging out with friends. Her answer to question where teenagers are more mature here or in Texas, she said: ‘Teenagers are teenagers’. Austin is the capital of Texas and Valerie told me that if you ever go to Texas that is the first place you should visit. After that comes her hometown Dallas. Dallas is the city where famous 35th president of United States J.F. Kennedy was killed. She agreed with Andrea about meals. Valerie misses a lot Texas’s national meal Tex- Mex. ‘Tex – Mex is the best’. I asked her could she imagine living anywhere else beside Texas and she told me: ‘For a short time yes, but when I get married and have my own family I definitely want to be in Texas.’

Art Exhibition Interviews

1.Name: Matt

Country :USA
-Did you visit the exhibition?
Yes.
-What did you learn from year visit?
If kids work hard and are haring fun, they can make beautiful works of art.  I'm very proud of everyone.

2.Name: Nurbolat
Country: Kazakhstan
-Did you hear of the Art exhibition which taken place en Wednesday?
Yes
-Did you come inside the Blue room to take a full look of the draving there?
Yes
-What did you think about them?
It was something different strange, and interesting

3. Natalia
Country: Bulgaria
-Did you hear about the Art exhibition?
Yes
-From where?
The announcement paper

Where are they going to University?

This summer is almost over. We wanted to know which universities our campers were thinking about going to. We asked students from different countries and some of our teachers because we wanted to know which university they recommend. Here are their answers.


We did an interview with Ivona from Montenegro. She is seventeen and we asked her if she has any idea what she is going to do after high school. She said that she wants to be TV presenter. She said that she really likes cameras and she even has her own TV show in her country. She loves it because she could travel a lot and she could meet a lot of new interesting friends.

We did an interview with Mario, age 19 from Spain. He is going to university next year. He is not sure where is he going, but he assumes it is going to be a university in Valencia and study social integration. He chose that profession because he enjoys working with people, he loves helping immigrants and he is going to that university because it is one of the greatest of its kind.

We talked to Natalia, from Bulgaria. She is 18 years old. She has decided to go to university “Christian Albrecht” in Kiel, Germany. She wants to be a nutritionist because she wants to have healthy life and she wants to help people to have a healthier life. She wants to give useful advice so that she could easily prevent illnesses.

We interviewed Janna, age 16 from Kazakhstan. She liked AUBG so much that she has decided to go to this university. She likes Bulgaria and everything that AUBG offers. She wants to teach languages and she wants to be teacher in elementary school because she loves working with kids.
 
By: Branko (Montenegro), Masa S. (Montenegro), Jelena (Montenegro), Dasha (Russia), Ruslan (Azerbaijan), Polad (Azerbaijan)

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Interviews with Yourself!

Ivan is 15-year-old boy living in his native city Razlog in Bulgaria. His parents Kostadin and Maria have studied law just like their parents. His sister, age 10, studies in the same elementary school where he studied 5 years ago. He is now studying in the high school in Razlog and he just finished 9th grade. The languages he is learning now are English – for 9 years, Russian – for no more than a month and he just started studying Spanish at home.

AUBG Summer Camp is the first of its kind Ivan has ever visited. Anyway, he really likes it not only because of the perfect conditions of practicing his English, Russian, Spanish and even Turkish but also because there he made some really good friends and met many interesting people who deserve only respect and gratitude.

He loves doing sports that require a lot of energy like swimming and basketball as well as mind games like chess, backgammon and cards. His favourite color is blue, he likes eating homemade Bulgarian dishes and he really likes listening to R’n’B and Pop music.

----
Ainhoa is a Spanish girl born in Bilbao in de 25th of June of 1993. Now she is 17 and next year will be her last year in de High School. She went to school where everything was learnt in Basque. But when she was 12 years old she became part of the trilingual project where some subjects where teach in English. Nowadays she is still part of that project “next year I will study Art History, Literature, Law and History in English” she said. The first year of University is so close, so now is time to decide what she really wants to be. “I may study Journalism” she answered. The brother of her mother and his wife are journalists, and this is a job that has always fascinated Ainhoa.


This summer she is taking part in a summer camp in Bulgaria. Travelling, knowing new people and cultures are things that she really loves. After this camp she will meet all her family in a big house in Spain. “My mother has 5 sisters and 1 brother, so when we are all together we have a lot of fun!” Ainhoa said. But she admits that she will also miss so much her friends of Bilbao.

When she is with her friends, she likes chilling out in the sun, playing cards or just talking about life. But they also go to cinema. One of her favourite movies is Billy Elliot. When she is not with her friends she also like reading. This passion has been in inherited by her mother. She said that her favourite is “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak. She also loves listening to music or writing.

----
I spoke with Ruslan. He is 16 years old. He is from Azerbaijan and he lives in Baku. He has a little brother. His favorite sports are swimming, football. He thought that swimming is one of the best healthy sports. He likes English, mathematic, history; favorites movies are Rush Hour, X-Men, Iron man, Fantastic 4 and others. His favorites actors and actress are many of Hollywood actors.

"Letters to the Editor"

Dear Editor,
I write to convey to you the experience I gained during these three weeks in Bulgaria in Blagoevgrad. At the very beginning I wanted to tell you that these were three very important and valuable weeks for me. Reason for this is not just a program and organization, but also teachers and socializing. I will begin from classes for which it is best to say that they are very useful and that our teachers properly conveyed their experiences and knowledge to us. I liked the way they made a connection to each student individually. All of the teachers have very different personalities so it was very interesting experience meet each of them. As for activities I can say only that we played a lot of different games and I didn` t like them because I do not prefer that kind of entertainment, by my point of view movie night and aqua park are the best ones. As for the afternoon activities I liked them because we were able to choose different things that we are interested in. I also liked the fact that we had the opportunity to learn something about the Bulgarian culture. What is really important in this whole experience are acquaintances with new people from different countries. With some of them I will really try to stay in contact as long as i can because i found a couple of people that share the same interests as me. All in all this experience that I had in the AUBG campus will certainly remain in my memory for many different good reasons. Congratulations on the way you designed this camp! Really great job .
 
Masa M. (Montenegro)
 
---
 
Dear Editor,

My name is Georgi from Bulgaria. I really enjoyed this camp and I don’t want to go home. In the first week I study computer skills and I learnt a lot of things that will help me in the future. Our teacher there was Alex and he is very cool. In the second week I have studied business which very difficult on first sight, but Billy helps us to cope with the problems. The fun starts when we started making the commercials. I like business classes very much and maybe they will help me in my future job. However, the class I like the most is journalism class. For me, Valerie is the best teacher in the camp, because she is very friendly and kind.

Next year I will probably come again!

---

Dear Editor!

My name is Dasha, I'm from Russia. I've decided to spend a part of my summer holidays in the camp in Bulgaria. I can say that I really enjoyed being there. What I liked there - a lot of different kinds of entertainment. We were busy with something all the time. We also had to spend 3 hours a day on our courses. It was very useful experience for me because I've chosen the courses which will be necessary for my future profession.

Besides the courses I've found a lot of friends there and now I'm afraid of the last day when we'll have to go to our countries and to split up with each other.

It was the best summer holidays I've ever had!!!

Bye, Dasha

Friday, July 16, 2010

creative writing week two

Creative writing






Rita Avdiu



Spoken Words Poem



Standing at the window

Watching up the planes

They’re in every place

Thinking how to escape

No way, no way… no way

Hearing children crying

Mothers, they’re trying

Trying to do something

Fathers, ran away

Far away in the military

They take one picture

And put it on the plane

When the time comes

They’ll go insane

Crash the plane

That burned picture now is gone

The angels are not alone

They took great people

Mama, answers the call

While the baby crawls

They tell her what happened to all

She drops the phone

Thinks that she’s alone

Grabs her children

And goes somewhere else

She doesn’t care about herself

Opens up the door

The road was red

Even the trees were red

Hundreds of people were on the ground

Waiting for God

Screams everywhere

Here, there, here, there

Some tear drops mixed with the blood

Sitting under a shelter

Afraid from the wind

Afraid from the rain

Afraid from your self

And afraid from the gun

Start to run

But that doesn’t work

Not that one

They pull her

While the babies fall in the ground

They’re all around

Pointing on their heads

4 shots an their gone



Haiku



Waking up in the morning

It was Sunday

I was too tired too get up



Suddenly a noise hit my head

Hit the door, hit the window

I looked to the right, no one



Put my feet on the floor

Went downstairs

In that calm air



Opened the door

I saw two children

And the parents



I saw myself

Walking down the road

While the sun was shining on my body



At that time I looked around

Nothing was how I wanted to be

Sat down, thinking strongly

My tears join the rain

While many people passed by

My brain was whining



I found out I can do more

Better now than never “as they say”

Life doesn’t seem that bad



Flowers make my day

Put a hat on my head

Made a step and went out



The city turned into a river

Walking, splashing everywhere

I was the smallest, one out there



Felt like a water drop in an ocean

I was lost

Didn’t know where I was going, didn’t care







Hana Bacaj



Six sentences story (no repeats)





Once upon a time, was this little girl, who got lost in Kosovo. She went there for holidays. Her name is Lea, cute, respective, lovely one. This big city, rainy, small lighting and freaky. Like stranger walking through darkness. Finally being with your favorite people feels great.



Haiku

1. “ Living there

Breathing the fresh air

Feeling the blowing of air”

2. “ A rainy day

The sky is blue

The ground is green”

3. “ The butterflies flying

A flower smelling

A bird singing”

4. “ Children running

Parents smiling

Everybody in a sunny day”

5. “ The sun is shining

The clouds gone

The river flowing

6. “ Sitting down the tree

Seeing the mountain shadow

Singing louder

7. “ Hearing the nature

Feeling the sun

Having fun”



Spoken words

Sitting near a window

Thinking about nothing

Just watching the nature

Analyzing everything

Every drop of that rain that

Was making a melody

Suddenly a tornado started on me

And some things started passing by,

All the dreams I left behind

In that dreams I always see me looking

By the sky, in my dreams I always

See a place for me

Now I’m really seeing the reality,

Seeing people running for their life,

Letting all their thing behind

Letting that quite melody which stopped,

And hearing guns and screaming

Of mother, fathers, sisters, brothers.

It was that felling that made my eyes

Full of tears, it was that scene that

Made me ran away.

I was running like crazy,

Now in that strange place,

Were everything was covered in red, everyone

Babies crawling

Mamas dying

Everything was blurring

Everything got dark

Fathers going away

Their kids don’t see them

Anywhere

When all this had stop, just

News made everything WHITE






Stefani Angelova

The poem



She was a sun in the beautiful days.

She was a rose in the garden with poppies.

She was a key from the door.

But now she was going…

Clouds are covering the sky.

In the garden there are only poppies.

The door is closed…





Kolesnikova Marina



A story.

A homeless boy.

Onetime in December a lonely homeless boy was walking through the night city. It was late night, so almost nobody, except a boy and two cats, were in the quiet street. The fur of cats was so black, that their bodies seemed shadows on white-white snow.

A poor homeless child whose name was Philipp was looking for a place to stay in order to warm himself. But there was no sign of fire or light anywhere near. The only thing he could distinguish from the white-white snow were black shadows of dirty cats. Philipp called one of them:"Kss-Kss-Kss". A cat dashed to Philipp and began wiping itself around his leg. Our hero felt little warmth of its flesh and the cat gave him a positive sense, that he is not alone in this hard world.

Philipp looked at the cat's eyes and suddenly a reflection of light appeared in them. He looked around and noticed an on-light window. Then Philipp took the cat on his hands, went to the window and began observing a foregoing picture.

Three old women, around 90 years old each, were sitting comfortably at a wooden table, covered with a beige cloth. Not the beautiful cloth, but the food on the table attracted attention of the starving boy. In order to habitants of the room could enjoy the evening, a jar of strawberry jam, hot toasts and cool butter were served in the most perfect way, being the best decoration of the room. Philipp could try to be the part of this peaceful place, but his tiredness and coldness didn't let him do that.

Suddenly one of the women glanced at the window, where a homeless boy was standing outside. She gave a short cry and now all three women were looking at Philipp.

Our hero couldn't remember how it's happened that he was laying in a comfortable bed under a fluffy puvet in a nice room, which he was observing yesterday. Sunshine woke him up, remaining of the recent events. Philipp wanted only one thing now- to find the cat that has saved him life. However, he couldn't begin realizing his plan, because suddenly one of the old women entered the room. as she saw Philipp awake, she smiled and sat on the bed. The old woman began kissing Philipp in cheeks, hugging him and with tears on her face she cried:” My dear grandson! At least I have found you!"



Aleksa Grgurovic



My friend

grave?

You were shot. Is this really the end?

We were close

So why do I have to put rose

On your

I think that is how you wanted to die.

Not in sleep, not from disease.

You wanted to dies in some struggle.

In some impossible situation.

Surrounded by murderers like you were.

But I still want that you aren’t dead.

And there is nothing I can do,

I can’t be you,

I can’t be in your place.

At day you died

A mailman passed buy.

He had a letter you wrote,

I hope you had a pleasant thought.

Now I give you these coins

For a ferryman.

I hope you will cross the Styx,

And find your way to the underground.

There you will be just a shadow,

But here you will stay in our hearts.


6 sentence no repeats

I like to sit alone and think. My head is very quiet. It is a peaceful place with bright lights, imaginations. Thoughts hit the walls of my mind. Ideas come; some of them will be realized. At the moment think inside my head works fine.


Ekaterina Selivanova



About camps, difference and the word “respect”…



Where are you from, a cute guy?



Every year AUBG camp becomes home for students of almost 40 nationalities. While staying here I have understood that we are not only students, we are faces of our nations. When I was a child I was bored of talks about “good behavior” abroad – it seemed silly and naïve to me. Nowadays I notice it really depends on our impression about one or another country.
At the moment I am very much interested in such countries as Azerbaijan, Kosovo or Moldova, for example. Friendly and open-hearted people from these countries made me feel like this. I am willing to study more about their culture, language and places to visit. I am sure that if a person who is pleasant, who has an inspiration for studying something new, but not only for shopping and hanging somewhere looking for adventures, if he understand what is the word “respect” means, he will make a great amount of friends and peers respecting his country and talking only good opinion about his nation independently of political conflicts.
We are all different: somebody is from Ukraine, somebody is from Spain; somebody is afraid of imaging himself in a coffin while reading an elegy; somebody would not mind about making crazy videos for Alex and Toy from the office situated in the closet. Nevertheless, for a whole month we are to live together and try to get pleasure from it. We are doing it successfully, but sometimes we have troubles and arguing…
Firstly not everyone is ready to make their mind that we must not go to stranger’s monastery with our own rules. Shouldn’t we respect each other? It is possible not to scream and not to weep in corridors; take your dishes away after a dinner; to switch off the light while your room-mate is trying to sleep and actually you don’t need it anymore.
I try my best to leave warm opinion in my foreign friends’ hearts and I do want my dream to become true. As for me, I have meet a lot of nice people, but also such ones, who I don’t respect and, as a result, I am not interested in their countries. It is a petty, but such things happen and I am sure not only with me.
Sometimes I have a feeling that if the President of France was staying in camp with the President of Russia (or just the other way around), who was always making a mess in their room as a little piglet, we would not have such nice relationships among our countries. It is just a joke, but… Every joke has a piece of truth, doesn’t it?
The great things always contain a lot of tiny ones. People’s relationships and communication is the thing that makes the Earth’s moving dependent. They are complicated to over think and there are no special laws for successful communication. We should just learn by heart that RESPECT is the most important thing for everybody.



Valia Dimitrova

Epigraph


Pluses are positive, power is not needy

Official announcement can be deep excuses

For being slippery innocent pencil in someone’s hand

Trying to be vehicle witness

Without using any silly words

In the sand sent of time

Story

It’s all about the possibility we have, sometimes you’re the right person for something and you have to do it. Luck is not enough, pluses are positive and they have the same influence on people. Being powerful is not needy it’s something that many people like and are addicted to. When you’re on a crossroad and you have a limit of time, the sand sent is not waiting, you just have to decide which way to go through. Optimistic people feel like pluses influence helps them to choose what to do. Being inspired, there isn’t anything better. You know it’s because you already felt it and you liked it a lot.

Don’t you like being wanted? Do you like being the centre of attention? Every single person likes being the best even for a second, that’s the way he feels wanted, exactly the moment he sees the face of the people how are sure he is good at something and his face is part of his memory. Of course it’s not a perfectly perfect memory but it’s something left in his head and he will remember it forever.

It happened with a girl, all there staff happened with a girl as pretty as a rose, smart as a genius. Bravely beautiful girl exploring world’s adventures and thinking positive, trying to help people. And this girl had a very happy life, full of possibilities and wishes that became true. One hardworking girl, loved and respected.

It all happened before she was accused of murder. There were so many clues and each was against her. But she didn’t do it, she was not guilty. An innocent girl on the court. Many people thought that it’s her destiny, others believed she actually has done it, but it was not true…

She was judged on ten years prison but the poor girl couldn’t wait her last day between those four walls and decided to kill herself.

Spain Takes the Title!

Stories and Pictures by:
Emin (Azerbaijan), George (Russia), Ivan (Bulgaria), Narmin (Azerbaijan), Sayad (Azerbaijan)

 Interview with fans: 


SPAIN WINS THE WORLD CUP! A single goal score by Iniesta just four minutes from the end of extra time gave La Roja the world title for the first time in their history!

It was very interesting match not only for the AUBG camp but also for the whole world.

Del Bosque's side started well, there was a lot work to do for Stekelenberg. For example, Sergio Ramos’s header in the opening minutes. But the Dutch made some hard tackles and played rough, that’s why Spain got down and was just controlling the ball. In addition De Jong and Van Bommel were almost sent off by English referee Howard Webb before the end of half time.

After the first half, the Dutch started well and almost scored two times. But Casillas beat A. Robben twice. Afterward Spain began their attack but every time they just couldn’t push the ball into the gates. 90 minutes over 0:0. I want to highlight that by the end of 90 minutes Holland had already had 8 yellow cards.

Again Spain pushed forward, Stekelenberg had to do his best to save shots from Iniesta, Navas and Fabregas. Besides Holland were left with ten men because Heitinga picked up a second yellow for a foul on Iniesta, and within just four minutes Iniesta scored after a perfect pass from Jesus Navas. A goal worthy enough to win the World Cup, and Spain added the world title to the European championship they won two years ago!

Vicente del Bosque said, “This is an unforgettable moment. We have to congratulate our rivals because they made it very difficult for us. The Final was all about attacking football and both sides tried to play the game the way it should be played. There’s a great sense of happiness in the dressing room right now. It’s hard to put it all into words and the way the players feel goes way beyond words. The satisfaction people feel goes way beyond sport and this is a reward that’s richly deserved. I’d like to thank the Spain fans for all their support. They’re enjoying this as much as the players.”

Andreas Iniesta: “It’s hard to put into words how it feels to win a World Cup. To win it that way was amazing. It didn`t come easy and I still can’t believe it. I’m just happy I managed to do my bit and score such an important goal for the national side. It’s a game to remember and to celebrate. All we want to do now is go home and enjoy it.”


"World Cup" Group

Creative writing week two

Fashion

Stories and Pictures by:
Ana (Montenegro), Arin (Ukraine), Christiana (Bulgaria), Diellza (Kosovo), and Elina (Ukraine)

Interview with Stanislava (Bulgaria)
-Do you like the fashion in AUBG camp?
Yes, I do. I like the fact that everybody has his own and different kind of dressing. People look nice and I can say that I definitely like the mode in the AUBG camp.

-Do you think that the women are more vain from the men?
Yes, absolutely! Women have different kinds of accessories, they like jewels and stuff like this. They can spend hours in front of the mirror making up them selves. They are always interested in the newest fashion in order to be modern.

-What is your style?
I like wearing different kinds of clothes but I most prefer the sports one because they make me feel comfortable. I also like official dresses because they make me feel more elegant.

-Do you imitate somebody?
No, I don’t. I have always my own style and I am really proud of this fact.

-The mode code with shoes today is comfortable. What do you prefer – high heels or trainers?
Well it is depending on something . If I need to go to an official dinner or some special event I ‘d prefer to put some high heels but if I go shop with friends I’ d prefer to put some trainers in order to feel more comfortable.

Interview with Goritza (Bulgaria)
-Which is your favorite color?
My favorite color is blue because I like the sea , I like the sky and people with blue eyes.

-Do you think that the mode and way you wear are very important and show to people who are you actually?
Yes, the style of clothes I wear is important for me. It shows what kind of person I am.

-Do you wear clothes with messages?
Yes, sometimes, depends what is the message.

-Which are your favorite clothes and when do you wear them?
My favorite clothes are jeans and T- shirts. I wear them almost always.

-How do you choose the clothes which you want buy?
First I watch the model and the color of the clothes. Than I try them on and if I like the way they fit on me I buy them.

"Camp Fashion" Group

Excursions

Stories and Pictures by:
Bora (Kosovo), Deimante (Lithuania), Ivana (Montenegro), Lucia (Spain), and Nina (Montenegro)

Last Saturday all the campers went to Rila Monastery or Sofia. We all had a great time, but we wanted to know other students’ opinions. In general, everyone liked his trip and would go there again.


Rila Monastery
The Rila Monastery (Monastery of Saint Ivan of Rila) is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the northwestern Rila Mountains, 117 km (73 mi) south of the capital Sofia in the deep valley of the Rilska River. The Rila Monastery is located in 1147 meters altitude in the middle of the fragrant coniferous forests of Rila Mountain.

The monastery is a complex of cultural, dwelling and farming buildings which take about 8800 square meters. The Rila Monastery has an unique architecture. Outside, the monastery looks like a fortress. It has 24-meter stone walls which forms irregular pentagon. The church has five domes, three altars and two side chapels.

Masa Sofranac (16, Montenegro) told us that there she had a great time with all her friends in Rila, that she met a lot of new friends too and they were talking and laughing all day. She really liked that trip. Masa said they entered in one cave which was very exciting but also a bit scary. Masa bought some postcards at Rila Monastery for her parents, her sister and brothers. There were nice things to buy and to see she added.

Rita Avdiu (15, Kosovo) was in Rila Monastery on Saturday. She said that the thing that she liked the most was the architecture of the monastery because it was old but still beautiful, but she also liked the paintings and the trip to the cave. She walked around the monastery, visited the museum and the main church. She bought a cup where it was Bulgaria written and the city and the monastery was drawn on it. She said that it was funny when they walked in the main church with their hands in heir pockets and the priest started screaming at them. She described that trip in only one word that was “Amazing”. She learned that it was named after St. Ivan of Rila, and is known as one of Bulgaria's most important cultural and historical monuments. She said that she would like to visit again because it was very beautiful and she had a great time.

Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city by population in the European Union, with 1.4 million people living in the Capital Municipality. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha, and is the administrative, cultural, economic, and educational centre of the country. Sofia was originally a Thracian settlement called Serdica, or Sardica, possibly named after the Celtic tribe Serdi.

Prehistoric settlements were excavated in the centre of the present city, near the royal palace, as well as in outer districts such as Slatina and Obelya. The well-preserved town walls (especially their substructures) from antiquity date back before the 7th century BC, when Thracians established their city next to the most important and highly respected mineral spring, still functioning today. Sofia has had several names in the different periods of its existence, and remnants from the city's past can still be seen today alongside modern landmarks.

Hana Bacaj (15, Kosovo) was in excursion to Sofia last Saturday. She said that all the things were different and unique, but most of all she liked Church built in 11th century. They were walking around the city, to the museums and churches. She has learned many new things there, for example, that Sofia is one of the oldest cities. Therefore, there was nothing she did not like. She also bought some souvenirs there.

Marina Kolesnikova (17, Russia) went to Sofia and we asked her if she met new people there. She told us that she already knew everyone but the tour guide. She went to lots of souvenirs’ shops and bought wooden accessories and gifts for her friends. She also bought a rose perfume.  They had lots of funny moments such as going to Mc Donald’s because no one wanted their food or taking pictures to a Ferrari which was parked at the entrance of a shop. She had a really good time.

Sayad Ibrahimli (16, Azerbaijan) went to Sofia on an excursion with the AUBG group. He liked walking and sightseeing, because he could see many interesting things like the Historical museum, monuments, and parks. Sayad liked the visit to Mc Donald’s the most because he could eat as much as he could get. He didn’t like their trip to Sofia because it was uncomfortable and there was no air in the bus, but he had a lot of fun singing songs. Sayad said that he would like to visit Sofia again in the future.

These trips connect different people from different countries with different dreams and goals.


Photo courtesy of Ana (Spain)

Photo courtesy of Ana (Spain)

Photo courtesy of Ana (Spain)

Photo courtesy of Albafaz (Azerbaijan)

Photo courtsey of Albafaz (Azerbaijan)

"First Week Excursions" Group

Week #1: An Unforgettable Time

Stories and Pictures by:
Anna (Russia), Anya (Russia), Olga (Ukraine), Rumen (Bulgaria) and Tina (Bulgaria)


First week interviews

"First Week in Camp" Group

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Photography class

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Healthy Bodies, Healthy Minds

By Ana (Montenegro)

Everyone knows about this proverb. Many teachers, members of family and sports people have told us the importance of healthy life, so that is why many children have started playing some sport. Boys usually like football and girls prefer playing volleyball, but there are also other sports like basketball, ballet, tennis, judo, handball, swimming and others.


But why do we need it? Many people do not like spending their time in some activity, they are lazy or even they don’t have enough time for any kind of movement. Sure, we can blame today’s lifestyles which are rigorous, people work a lot, pay attention on their careers, take care of children or they just don’t want not to have fun in their life which they thing is too short to be wasted.

In many cases, after I spoke to a friend asking about some sport or activity, I could find the answer devastating. `Oh no, I have to study! I don’t even have enough time to watch TV and rest, sometimes I don’t even eat whole day and I am always, but always tired. How do you think I could handle one exercise without falling down? Besides, my parents also think I am too busy...`

Response like this should be considered as problematic, because the person doesn’t even know the importance of healthy life. While playing sports we improve circulation, the lungs fill with oxygen and they spread, so we can get more oxygen, fill our body with it and help or cells work, our metabolism improves and all toxins leave our body. The result of this is good body structure, nice looking that everyone enjoys having, and there are nice, strong muscles with no fat and cellulite.

The most important thing is the start. We have to begin from something, and the beginning is the hardest thing. Breakfast at 8, nice meal with cereals and milk, lunch at 3 with lots of vegetable and meat and rice and dinner at 6, light and easy, with snacks full of fruit in between. Every day one hour exercise, always something different like riding a bike, doing sit ups, running, walking, or we can play some sport, do aerobics or swim.

Whenever I finish doing some exercise I feel like I have been resting for hours, somehow I feel free, light, easy and nice. I feel like I have lost all of negative energy and that I am full with new, fresh one. That feeling is great. That’s why I recommend yoga classes here in camp. I attended it and I want to attend it again! Take it, and you will see why. Until then, keep in mind the proverb at the beginning of the article.

Life and Music

By Diellza (Kosovo)

I think that if music didn’t exist there would be no life because music makes people happy, it's something where people can see their selves in, where they can express their selves, and where they can feel the freedom.


What would happened if people would go to clubs and there would be no music? I think that If this would happened life would be boring, clubs would be closed ,or they would never be opened, and, if they would go to pubs they would just chat with their friends and listen to others talking gossips and things like that.

Okay maybe we would adapt but would life be the same as now? Well first of all people wouldn’t know what music is as a start, then they wouldn’t know how life is with it, so they would adapt but if something happened and music stopped now... that’s different because I think people wouldn’t allow something like that, even if it did happened at least people lived with it and experienced it and we would know the difference.

I have heard and read stories that usually say that the kind of music that teenagers listen these days is bad just because maybe they can sound the same to each other to them, to much rep, and they mostly have the same topic with each other , but the thing is that teenagers don’t care anymore so they listen to whatever they want and no body can stop them. Who care if there is too much rap or too much rock? At least we listen to it, we dance with it, and we are happy. If someone ordered me to listen to music of 80’s for just one week I wouldn’t handle it because I am not used to listening to that kind of music and it takes time to adapt. I just don’t understand why sometimes older people than us don’t understand us, and why they don’t understand that time has changed as so has music, its not 1980’s now but it’s the 21st century. I will end this by saying that music is changing and will continue to change but people will still listen to it, and enjoy it.

Rock and Rap

By Bora (Kosovo)

People have listened to music for centuries, and many cannot imagine their life without music. There are many kinds of music but right now the most popular are Rock and Hip Hop. When it comes to music everyone is a critic they hate it and they love it. Rap right now is the most popular music but there is still a number of people who listen to rock. Generally speaking, rock music is very guitar, bass, drums, and often keyboard-centric, and often focusing on instruments more than the lyrical content itself.


While with rap, the lyrics are much more emphasized and plays a major role in keeping the beat and rhythm together. Rock and Roll began and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, first from a combination of the blues, country music and gospel music. Rock music in the 60’s usually talked about the war, conflicts, and many other things while now all rock bands have an emo image and usually talk only about drugs and the good times they had. I think that music from the 60’s is the best , because now everyone can be a singer very easily. 60’s were very hard times and that’s were many inspirations came for the bands of that time. Without getting into the discussion that rappers don't and cant sing or can't play instruments, In my opinion Rap is worn out and overdone in a way but still people listen to it because it’s about money, drugs and woman all the time.But still there are many rap artists that are talented and actually make good songs about what’s happening in the world .Even though rock was good in the 60’s these day’s there are only a few bands left with their originality and as I said before they all have a different style. But there are many bands that mix rap and rock together. And one example is the band “ Korn “ . They combine to make rock into rap. But in the end everyone has their opinion and the discussion between rap and rock is going to still live for years and everything is a matter of taste. But in the end you still got to have talent to sing them both and It doesn’t matter what kind of music you listen to, all it matters is if it makes you happy.

Euthanasia

By Deimante (Lithuania)

Euthanasia is the intentional ending of a patient's life by a physician, usually by lethal injection. There are many opinions about euthanasia. Some people think, that it should be banned, so many countries haven’t allowed euthanasia. But there are such countries like Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington where euthanasia is allowed.


In my opinion, euthanasia should be allowed in much more countries, because such little quantity of countries in the world cause many inconvenience. Firstly, if human being lives in Lithuania, where euthanasia is not allowed, and wants to intentionally kill himself, he can’t do that in Lithuania. So he has to go to, for example, Netherlands, and do it there because he wants it and can’t stand pain of his disease. It causes much inconvenience. Secondly, euthanasia is not done to whoever wants to. It is done basis physician’s advices and bioethical laws. It means that euthanasia is done for people who have serious diseases.

Moreover, human being has a right to choose if live for 2 months in pain and suffering or end his life calmly, with his family and physician. “In...cases where there are no dependants who might exert pressure one way or the other, the right of the individual to choose should be paramount” [“The Independent”, 2002 March].

However, many people think that only God has a right to end a life and the main idea of euthanasia is amoral. But right to life includes right to die and of course, it does not mean, that a doctor has right to kill a patient. A patient has right to choose how long he should live.

To sum up, I think that euthanasia should not be banned because human being has a right to life and death and there are laws how and why euthanasia should be done. Last, but not least, if euthanasia is banned in country where human being lives, it will cause many inconvenience and will cost for person very much.

It's your choice after High School

By Ivona (Montenegro)

In my opinion, all children in the world have to decide on their own what they are going to study after elementary or high school. They should listen to parents` advices, but they can not permit that parents decide for them.


For example, my best friend had to go to a high school she did not like just because her mum wanted so. Now, she has a lot of problems and she can not study something she is not interested in.

We spend a lot of time in the life working and it is important for us to do what we want. There are some people who don`t enjoy their job or profession and every single day they are bored and sad. I think all we have a chance to pick what we want and what makes us happy and satisfied and that way this life will be less difficult and we can enjoy it.

Eminem: The Best Rap and Hip-Hop Performer

By Rumen (Bulgaria)

Eminem has a lot of albums like: Infinite, Relaps, Recovery, The Eminem Show, Encore and more.


Singing about his life ,his daughters he quickly became from a Dr. Dre sidekick a full plague rap superstar. Also he has done a songs white almost all of the greatest names in the rap industry like: 2Pac, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre , 50Cent, Nate Dogg and others.

Many big names like Jaruls, Benzino, and others have tried to “diss“ Eminem and said that he is stealing black culture and said that he is so successful because of his skin color .

A stream of fans and artists came to the defense of Eminem. There were many white rappers before Eminem but they weren’t as successful as him selling 8,9 million records.

Dre sold 6milion records, Snoop sold 7 million records before they weren’t white they were black. 50cent said in an interview “I am black … and I love Eminem.“

Mr. Mathers sings about true things and reality like death, drugs, family and such.  Don’t give him credit because he is white, give him credit for his lyrics.

And this is why I think Eminem is the Best hip-hop and rap performer.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Business Class Week 1 Commercials

Vital Energy from Billy Knox on Vimeo.


V.E.P. Summer Camps from Billy Knox on Vimeo.


BARS Travel from Billy Knox on Vimeo.


MURSÉ from Billy Knox on Vimeo.

Student Interviews

For interviewing skills practice the Journalism class teamed up to interview each other and ask probing questions.  The following are a few examples from the class! Great job guys!

Lucia is from Spain and she`s 14 years old. She is from Madrid. She has two younger sisters; Carletta who is 12 and Teresa who is 7. Lucia is a pupil of European school in Madrid. She likes commercial pop and her favourite singer is Justin Bieber. Lucia's favourite books is a collection of Stephanie Meyer's books like Twilight and New Moon. Her favourite movie is Lovely Bones. In the future Lucia wants to be a surgeon. She likes biology and chemistry in school. She likes horses and prefers national Spanish dishes. The place Lucia wants to visit is Hawaii, but she has been to Bulgaria, Sweden, France, England, Portugal, Domanicana Republic, Tunis and Finland.

By Arin from Ukraine
 
----- 
In this interview, I’m writing about Ana from Montenegro. She is 16 years old and she really likes her country. She has two younger sisters – Angela (15) and Milica (13). What is interesting about Ana is that she has already been in the AUBG summer camp two times. Since that is her third time here, you could say that she knows her way around. When I asked her why she likes this particular camp so much, she said that many girls from Montenegro come here, so for her it is like refreshment from the tough school program back home. Her dreams are to be successful in her job, travel a lot and possibly live in London, for it is the city that she has wanted to live in since she was very young.  What Ana really likes about herself is that she is ambitious, responsible, simple and a good sister.

Written by Valentina (Bulgaria)
 
----- 
Elina is a 15 year old girl from Ukraine. She is an only child and she is a little bit spoiled.  Elina has a cat named Leo and a parrot called Chika. Elina and her best friend Arin are both from Odessa and they have been friends for nine years.  Elina loves music,she is a writer and a composer,and in Ukraine she is famous for her poems and music. Her favourite singer is Lady Sovereign,and in her free time she likes to listen to her song,write some of her own and she also likes skateboarding. She found out on the internet about the AUBG camp and applied in hope of improving her Engish.  Elina is a very good person and a great friend.

Written by Nina from Montenegro

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I would like to tell you about Rumen. He is 17 years old. He is studying at 11th grade. He is from Sofia, Bulgaria. He is an only child in his family. He has got dreams and they are to become a technical professional and to do that, he wants to study in technical university in Sofia.  He hopes for a perfect home and to have a wife, a house, a dog, one daughter and two sons. He is a very talented person, that’s why he can also write computer programs. He’s life is full of interesting things and wonderful feelings! And in the end I would like to point out that Rumen is perfect chess player!

By Anna from Russia

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Sayad was born on 22 January 1994 and lives in Azerbaijan. He has a little sister named Ofa who is 14 years old. His favorite Azerbaijan food is ‘’Dolma’’. He likes the city of Baku, it’s historical places and walking at night. He likes playing football and was even invited to play with the national team on the Under 16 year old.  He likes playing Chess and even came in third place in Azerbaijan.  He doesn’t have a style of music it is whatever he likes. His hobbies are walking and reading. His dream is to study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and he wants his parents to always be proud of him.

Written by Ivan from Bulgaria
 
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She is Bora. She is from Kosovo from Prishtina. As she said Kosovo is landlocked and two years ago it was recognized as independent. She is 14 years old. She has one sister and one brother. Bora adores music, particularly rock from 60s and 70s and heavy metal. She likes these below bands. :
The DOORS, THE BEATLES, KINKS, SLIPKNOT, PINK FLOYD

Bora desires to be a photographer. She likes to take photos of nature and etc. She is very talkative she reads fan fiction a lot. Bora is very excited with their national foods such as FLIJA, GROSH and etc.

While interviewing Bora said that the funniest movie she's ever seen is "THE HANGOVER". In the end, I would like to highlight that her dream is to be a film director or, as I said before, just to be a photographer.

By Emin (Azerbaijan)

Monday, July 12, 2010

Creative Writing

During the week 21 students learned about poems, fables, short stories, and wrote a 3,000 word story. At the end of the week they then wrote about their countries, favorite places, along with a rocking rap.

Here are some examples:


Mountains,
wind blowing in my hair
watching an eagle fly above.

Feeling free from all,
with my thoughts,
but not alone.

Being close
to the clouds
thinking about the meaning.

-Mary Geladze, Georgia 17



A clouded sky, no sun,
Only a few quiet birds
Crossing the sky.

The ending of July,
A girl, sleeping and dreaming
In sunflowers.

Sunday morning,
Granny picking mushrooms
In a foggy green forest.
Diemante Barkauskaite, Lithuania, 18


Butterflies are cool
beauty burning
so high flying

sea shining
waves padding
breeze chasing them!

stars
greatness falling
wishes wishing, in the distance twinkling

Goritza Vasileva, Bulgaria, 17 yrs


Fable
The Tiger and the Mouse
Once upon a time, there was a tiger. As the tiger
was moving through the trees, stalking his prey, he
accidentally got a splinter stuck in his right paw.
Now the tiger was very feared across the jungle,
so he went to the gorilla and ordered him to help,
but the gorilla’s fingers were too big to pull the
splinter out. The tiger then went to the snake,
but the snake had no fingers to grab the splinter.
After asking all of the most powerful animals in
the jungle, the tiger finally gave up and sat down,
yelling in pain. Suddenly, a mouse passed by and
said: “I can help you tiger, but only if you stop
hunting small creatures!”. The tiger agreed and the
mouse pulled the splinter out. Suddenly, the tiger
grabbed the mouse. “Stop! This wasn’t our deal!”
yelled the mouse. “You should never trust a tiger” –
the tiger said before swallowing the mouse.

-Bind Skeja, Kosova 


Fun, beautiful and dangerous
Joy
Traveling through the land
Beyond divine
Visiting new places
Meeting new people
Europe

-Vesa Bashota, Kosova, 15 yrs

Old songs are ringing
Many memories are bringing.
-Ivan Ivanov, Bulgaria


B-rilliant
O-utgoing
R-espected
A-stonishing

   Interesting, Hot, Fun
Happiness
Landing on Heaven
Meeting new people
Having Fun
Tunisia


-Bora Duli, Kosova, 14yrs