Well after a long time apart from my friends in Donetsk and a lovely stay back home I returned to a new apartment and new volunteers.

During the first two weeks we have been guiding them through the city, showing them our favorite spots and we also got to know them and even became friends.

Plus our beloved Mama, one of the current Volunteers, had her birthday, so we gathered in the apartment and had a small Party, as you can see down below.

Now our coordinator had the great idea that we should do a project together. Each apartment had to show their first two weeks in a creative way.

Both entries were amazing and we enjoyed the presentations of each other’s work together in the office.

So you can see what I am talking about, here are links to the two presentations:

Flat Nr.1: http://prezi.com/mro9xkqrmztz/where-is-fabian/

Flat Nr.2: http://www.youtube.com/user/DonestkDebateCentre

This activity definitely brought us closer together, which I think was the intention of it.

So to sum it all up: It’s great to be back in Donetsk and see all the familiar faces again, and also those who become more and more familiar ever day.

Bye for now,

Maggie

Christmas is just around the corner, and our trips back home are getting closer and closer.  So to say our goodbyes in a proper manner we held our Oscar Award Ceremony, organized by our lovely office staff and even more lovely EVS volunteers.

An evening filled with laughter and joy was exactly what everybody needed. Seeing all volunteers and friends was definitely a nice experience.

After weeks of planning and working on the ceremony we finally held it on the 8^th of December. All of us gathered in a nice Caf? and everybody was in a good mood. We had a *journalist* (non professional me) and a cameraman to make everybody feel like a star, and who doesn’t want to stand in the spotlight from time to time?

After everybody settled in we started with the actual ceremony and Oscars (delicious gingerbread *Thanks to Ania*) were handed out to the winners of numerous categories.  At the end everybody could bring home a prize and a small gift. It was a nice, relaxed evening that everybody will cherish for a long time.

After that we gathered in the volunteers’ flat to have a Goodbye celebration for one of our own: Piotrek, a Polish volunteer, completed his EVS and returned to his home country.

It definitely was an emotional evening. Nevertheless my mind is filled with fond memories of that weekend.

After that the week was filled with Christmas lessons and preparations, at least mine was. And it finally started to snow; therefore everybody is getting infected with the Christmas spirit, Christmas songs are blasting through the apartment, the smell of cookies and gingerbread is filling the air and everybody is a little more social than usually.

In January new volunteers will join our small family and all of us are quite eager to meet them and welcome them to Donetsk and to our project.  In the last three months we became a second family and expanding it with six new members will be definitely a challenge. But it will be one we are not afraid to face, but excited and happy.

But for now we will be splattered all over Europe since we rejoin our families for our own Christmas madness. And to be completely upfront with you I will miss my roommates and my work.  I grew quite fond of my life here in Donetsk and I am a little upset to have to leave it all behind, even though it’s only for three weeks.  Since we all grew so attached to each other over the last couple of months we all leave with a tear in one eye and a smile in the other.

Let’s hope that the New Year will bring just as many exciting adventures and will be just as fun, interesting and awesome as my last year. Sure, it will bring changes and new experiences but the key is to embrace those new opportunities and enjoy them .

Since I am getting mushy and emotional now (yes Christmas is definitely around the corner) , and it’s pretty much just rambling on from that point on, I am saying goodbye now: I wish you from the bottom of my heart a merry, merry Christmas, filled with laughter and joy, and a happy new year, filled with exciting adventures and amazing people.

With all my love,

Maggie

On the video below you can see how our typical working day looks like. Enjoy!

Hello,

Well, everybody who entered an organization to go abroad knows and fears them: Trainings. I was one of them. Never even thinking about them being enjoyable. But I was proven wrong. Oh, so very wrong.

At the beginning of November, Wojtek, Kamil, Bartek, Monika and I were summoned to the other side of Ukraine for our On Arrival Training. We gathered in the small town of Slavsko with other volunteers from all over Ukraine and Moldova. Being in the midst of the Carpathian Mountains, we had a nice break from working stress in Donetsk and, well, quite a change of scenery. It was nice to breathe fresh air again and enjoy each others company in a relaxed setting.

We first went to Kyiv to be typical tourists (Yes a fanny pack was part of our little group, and yes I made merciless fun of the carrier). After a horrible train ride (the heat was simply unbearable), we arrived in Kyiv. Well, what can I say? That day and the following one were filled with sightseeing, maps and photo-sessions. After two exhausting days, we entered yet another train, heading towards Lvov. This train was to my surprise nicely cooled, and we spent a nice night with games (Yup, take your guesses!!).

After way too little of sleep, an exhausted group of Donetsk volunteers arrived in Lvov. Maybe it was my lack of sleep or the overall exhaustion, but I felt like home. The buildings were nice, actually nice. I was in heaven.  We only stayed for a few hours until we had to find a bus or a train to get to Slavsko. Well, that turned out to be quite a challenge. The people at the information desk told us to ask the bus drivers, and the bus drivers told us to ask the information desk. Several very unpleasant errands later, we finally sat in a Mashrutka (Mini-Bus) heading towards our final destination. And yes, that trip turned out to be very interesting and dangerous indeed, since the roads consist of more potholes than asphalt. Crammed into a tiny bus with a legion of Babushkas (Grandmothers), all we wanted was to finally arrive and take a shower.

And well, against all odds we did. After a delicious meal we got our long awaited shower and a bed. After a short nap, we were good to go and started with the official part of the training. As soon as that was over, the not so official part started. And I think everybody can imagine that: 24 young adults in a hotel. I don’t think I have to say any more.

This pattern continued for the full 5 days of the training. When it was time to say goodbye, we had found dear friends, comrades and we certainly had fun. A lot of it. All of us were sad to say our farewells.

A not so exciting 23 hour train ride later we arrived in Donetsk, happy, tired, and a lot wiser.

Dear fiends, we are very happy to present a comics blog created by our long term volounteer Fabien. On that blog in very funny way Fabien is describing  how he got here and what were his impressions about Ukraine. Here you have samples of his work:

If you are hooked by Fabien’s unique style and sense of humore there is more , link to Fabien’s blog is on right side of EVS Daily. Enjoy!

Посмотрите, как выглядит наша квартира и кто в ней сейчас живут!

Привет, привет! Мы донецкие Гномики: Оля, Магда и Агата.

Когда в конце концов мы нашли это сокровище, мы быстро познакомились с тремя мальчиками – Владом, Димой и Андреем, которые стали нашими гидами по этом посёлке. Они показали нам важнейшие места своего “королества”. Потом мы все вместе начали играть и так прошёл наш первый день работы.

Величайшей наградой для нас были улыбки детей и радость которую мы могли увидеть в их глазах.
Хотя бывали и трудные моменты, свою поездку в Украину будем вспоминать со слёзами на глазах.
Наш проект длился 2 месяца, но мы даже не заметили когда это время прошло.

Один, два, три … ПУСК! Началось! Группа «Ёшки-матрёшки» 1-го августа бежит на детскую площадку в Донецке. Термометр показывает 40 градусов жары. Но группа не замечает препятствий, вплоть до остановки. Почему нет расписания? Ну ладно, «Ёшки-матрёшки» ждут автобус.

Пока они ждут, давайте познакомимся с ними. Группа состоит из трех весёлых и оптимистичных девушек из Польши – Марты, Едиты, Наталии. У них приветливые лица (фотография сбоку от текста) и футболки (фотография там же)). Автобус опаздывает (даже если он не опаздывает, можно сказать, что он не приходит вовремя, так как расписания нет), девушки перестали болтать.

Что случится через 20 минут? Захотят ли дети с ними играть? Будут ли игры интересными? И самое важное, поймут ли дети их польско-русский язык? К счастью, судьба оказалась доброжелательной.

Марта, Едита и Наталия отлично дополняют друг друга. Индивидуальные качества и свойства каждого из них становятся богаче и ярче, а недостатки сглаживаются. Порядочность, трудолюбие, чувство юмора смешиваются с беспорядком, ленью и ещё раз с чувством юмора).

Итак, всё идёт по плану. Значит, автобуса ещё нет. Вспомнить цель нашего EVS, в этот момент, было бы очень кстати. Главная задача волонтёров – играть с детьми на разных, детских площадках и нести радость и улыбку. Донецкий Молодёжный Дебатный Центр позволяет реализовать собственные идеи волонтёров. Каждый работает как подсказывает чутьё. Благодаря этому, у каждой группы, а даже каждого волонтёра есть свой неповторимый стиль. Именно поэтому донецкий проект так разнообразен.

Несколько мудрости из детской площадки:

-Не бывает скучных игр. Бывают только робкие дети или плохой ведущий на площадке

- Дети всегда проверяют наши границы

- Успешный лидер на детской площадке – это самоуверенный взрослый человек с детским воображением и чувствительностью.

- Языкового барьера не существует для детей. Они понимают больше, чем мы все думаем

На счёт автобуса. Он приехал ВОВРЕМЯ….

И все зажили счастливо!;)

П.С. всем советуем EVS!

Привет!!!

Нашу группу зовут DZIUB-DZIUBY! (это название польской песни для детей)Наша команда состоит из трёх человек: Кубы (называемый также Бубой, Купой, Бумой) Моники и Ивоны. Для всех из нас это первый волонтарият в жизни. Куба только что начал учить русский язык , но для него этр не препятствие чтобы общаться с детьми. Мы очень любим играть в спортивные игры и на площадках каждый из нас чувствуется ребёнком.

Волонтёрство в Донецке является для нас новым опытом и хорошим средством для развлечения и общения с русскоязычными людьми. А когда у детей улыбка на лице чувствуем себя нужными и сразу хочется сделать что-то хорошего для других.