The European Dream

Have you ever thought about the hardships that African migrants face in Europe? The majority of them come to Europe looking for a better life without having any idea what is really out there. Their dreams and hopes are shattered once they step on European ground. Our reporters interviewed a group of migrants who were willing to share their stories.

Mopi and Emmanuel are African migrants. Both were educated as draughtsman in their home countries, but they are unable to find a job in Europe in that area because they are not educated well enough for European standards. After arriving in Europe, they were faced with many obstacles, such as having no place to live. In order to earn some money and get back on their feet they started parking cars. They usually earn four to five Euros per day, on good days even six. Most of the time, their first meal of the day comes after work. Their friends in Africa think they have money now that they are in Europe and are feel let down by at them for not sending some anything home. Emmanuel on the other hand says that people expect too much from immigrating to Europe and recommends everyone who is doing well in Africa to stay there because of the hardships they might face in Europe.

Another impressive story is about Sylvia from Uganda. She has been living in Amsterdam for 15 years, constantly facing housing problems. She moves like an outcast from one place to another. Even after she obtained her legal papers, she could not find a permanent stay. She says, “When people come to Europe, they think they will pick up money like mangos from trees, but reality is, of course, different”. When people from Africa have problems, they do not have anyone to ask for help, and when they do, it does not mean that someone is going to help them. “We grew up knowing that any person is a sister or a brother, but in Europe no one wants to help you”, Sylvia’s words cut to the heart. The issue is that it is illegal to rent a house to people without papers in Holland. Moreover, when Sylvia was broke and could not pay for the rent, her landlady implied that she should sell her body in order to earn money. After her refusal she was kicked out of the house without any of her belongings. These are the real challenges which people from Africa face every day. After this situation Sylvia wanted to commit suicide. She went to a lake with her little Bible, she was thinking and crying, but then she heard a barking dog. She supposed the owner of the dog must be near, and if he sees her, he will take her to the police and she will be deported. Why do you think people from Africa do not want to be deported? The truth is because it is embarrassing to return home without any savings and without having accomplished anything. Fortunately, Sylvia overcame her crisis and became a stronger person. Now she has a daughter and is looking to the future with confidence.

The new coming migrants are astounded by some peculiarities of European culture, where being broke means there is no use in expecting any help from other people. For example, when a street singer came to a so-called “friend” of his, he was never invited into his house, even though they knew each other very well. Back home people are more open-minded to welcoming friends into their homes. From his point of view Europeans are selfish and too self-concerned. The same conclusion was drawn by an African reporter who claims that people in Denmark are concerned with petty issues, like providing passports for their animals and the amount of money they cost. However, there are of course examples of relatively successful migrants, such as professional football players. Abu did not only make it to the main squad of FC Utrecht, he is now about to open a football Academy in Uganda, which will allow to enrich European football with talented African players. This proves that African migrants, once being accepted can provide a valid contribution to society, not only sell their bodies and park cars.

To sum up, we all want to be happy and we all deserve a better life. However, is it possible for migrants from Africa to find their happiness, is it in their own hands or is Europe being too selfish to respond to this burning issue in modern society?

EU individual paragraph

In 2011 the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizen, the one who started it all, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and over this year they want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities. In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and what better way than to enjoy our year?

(181 words)

XOXO A.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has"       Margaret Mead

Paragraph brainstorming:

-> 2013 "European Year of Citizens"

-> Maastricht Treaty

-> European Commission proposed the idea

-> Rights and responsibilities we have as EU citizens

-> European citizens can make a difference for they are the ones who started it all

Feedback summary 1 (Topic sentence, Register):

I was given positive feedback on my paragraph. Thanks to my colleagues, Cat and Monika, I was able to look at my paragraph from a whole new perspective. I like getting feedback because it shows me what still needs working on. In my case, it is the commas. I make comma mistakes often. I simply forget that they even exist. I think I will have to read through rules for comma usage. My colleagues liked my topic sentence and the high register I used but suggested to change my last sentence in order to connect better to the rest of the paragraph.

Revised paragraph 1:

In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizen, the one who started it all, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and over this year they want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities. In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and this is exactly the point of the „European Year of Citizens“.

(184 words)

Feedback summary 2 (Topic sentence, Register):

The second feedback I got from my colleagues was again very positive. My friend Cat pointed out that I should make two more changes in my paragraph. Instead of saying “over the year” I should use more sophisticated words and write „throughout the year“. She also noticed another mistake. In my paragraph I wrote “To honor this event and the citizen, the one who started it all,...”. This might confuse people as they would think that I am talking about a specific person, which I am not. That is why Cat suggested changing it into „To honor this event and the citizens, those who started it all,..“. I am very thankful for the feedback I got from my colleagues because they taught me valuable lessons about my style of writing.

Final paragraph:

In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizens, those who started it all, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and throughout the year they want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities. In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and this is exactly the point of the „European Year of Citizens“.

(185 words)

Final paragraph-teachers's correction:
In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, the lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizens, those who started it all(?), the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and throughout the year they(?) want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them(?). Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities(?). In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and this is exactly the point of the „European Year of Citizens“.

(183 words)

Final final paragraph:
In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. 20 years ago leaders of 12 member states signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, the lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizens who make up the EU, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and throughout the year the Commission wants to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. To conclude, the goal of the “European Year of Citizens“ is to increase awareness and knowledge of EU citizenship.

(158 words)

My five EU topics!

Hi guys!!

I am BACK! Sumer is over(unfortunately) and I am back to serious business. This blog post is mandatory and the topic is already given so I will not be able to write to you about my summer adventures but I promise I will do so soon. Our task is to choose five topics connected to the EU. Out of those five we will have to choose one for our academic paper. I gave it some thought and these are the ideas I came up with.

1)The role of the EU in the Balkans (Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Kosovo)

The European Union has been considering elargement in the Balkans since at least the late 1990s. Slovenia joined it first in 2004. Croatia, my country, joined it on 1 July 2013 and the other ones are on its way, more or less. Since Croatia has been trying to join the EU for more than a decade I am really familiar with the EU and its politics in this region. I am also currently following the situation Serbia is in. 

2) The advantages and disadvantages of joining the EU

What does a country get with joining the EU?  What are the disadvantages of joining it? Fees? What about EU funds?

3) Is the Euro really the future of the EU?

Since the global economic crisis ht the EU in 2008 a common currency brought nothing but trouble to the EU. Maybe Greece would have been better off if they stayed with their drachme. Countries like Spain and Italy requested bailouts. Those countries are too important to the European economy to just let them go bankrupt. For instance Italy, the fourth-largest in Europe and the tenth-largest economy in the world.

4) Why Iceland does not want to join the EU anymore?

For a long time Iceland wanted to join the EU and then suddenly the Government of Iceland has announced it will suspend its application to join the European Union. Why? What happened in Iceland that they decided not to join the EU? I want to take a better look at the reasons why Iceland refused to join the EU.

5) Neo-Nazi parties on the rise in the EU

Neo-Nazi parties are on the rise in the EU again. More and more people in the countries across Europe are protesting about the EU migration policies. They feel as if the immigrants are taking away their jobs and are trying to take over their countries. Also since terrorism has become more and more so, many people are scared that immigrants are going to terrorize their country. Many Neo-Nazi parties are growing in support among the people such the Golden Dawn in Greece, the NPD in Germany or the Front National in France. I think that this topics would be really interesting to research as we all know what happened during the rise of the Nazis in Germany in the 1940s. 

XOXO A.

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."  Martin Luther King, Jr.

Culture presentations...

Last week was scheduled for the culture presentations me and my colleagues at the ITAT were working on.  We had to choose a topic from the Irish or American culture and write an 800 word essay on it, make a presentation and a handout. Someone also made a Facebook event for our presentations. The introduction to the event was a short story written by one of my colleagues (I am sorry I don’t know your name otherwise I would have given you credits). The intro is really awesome and it is definitely worth reading!

"Once upon a time the American Eagle accidently bumped into the Irish Leprechaun. The Irish Leprechaun was furious and shouted “You’re so full of yourself! Just because you’re huge, doesn’t mean that you don’t have to pay attention to the small things!” The American Eagle raised his eyebrows in surprise and responded “For a small fairy, you have a big mouth. Don’t you know how important I am, Tinkerbell?”.

Enraged, the Leprechaun shouted “You're going to regret saying that! Ireland is at least as important as America. I will call Fiona and she will teach you that Ireland has more to offer than the US!” “Oh yeah?”, asked the American Eagle. “I know Frank and he will impress you with facts about our awesome country!”

From this day on, Fiona and Frank summoned their SUK-superheroes and superheroines to inform the world the cultural aspects of both countries. Every year, their armies of superheroes gather to tell the world the most interesting stories about Ireland and the US.

Meet these heroes on Wednesday, 19th June and Thursday, 20th June on neutral territory in the ITAT headquarters.“

 I have been to twelve presentations, even though we were only asked to go to ten.  I listened to 9 American and 3 Irish presentations. Here is a short info about every presentation:

1)      Ireland vs. Austria - Whiskey Distilleries - Challenge accepted!

This was the first presentation I listened to. Two distilleries, Jameson Whiskey from Ireland and Waldviertler J.H. from Austria, were compared. Verena told us something more about their history and about the process of making whiskey.

2) American High school & its reputation in Austria

The second presentation I took a look at was from Katie. She was talking about the American and Austrian school system. I decided to listen to this presentation because I myself was going to an American high school for 6 months. Katie was talking about the general reputation of American high schools in Europe, extracurricular activities and peer class. She also compared the teacher-student relationship in Austria and the US. 

3) Walt Disney (Mickey Mouse: how a mouse conquered the world)

Max from my group was talking about Mickey Mouse. I loved his presentation. The idea to play "When you wish upon a star" as the intro to his presentation was simply brilliant. The song has like Mickey Mouse become an icon of The Walt Disney Company, used in the opening sequences of Disney anthology television series and in multiple versions of Walt Disney Pictures' opening logos (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqvF85T4vCg) . You could really see on Max that he liked his topic and that he knew what he was 

talking about. 

4) Reality TV - Jersey shore and beyond

Manueala presented two reality shows to us. She brought the concept of a reality show, especially Jersey shore and Big Brother, closer to us. Manuela also played a short clip from Jersey shore. This gave us the possibility to once again see what kind of idiots these people are.

5) Fort Knox

Patricija talked about Fort Knox. Fort Know is used to refer to the United States Bullion Depository, a building near the military base, which is a vault housing a large percentage of the United States’ gold reserves. It was very interesting to listen how it is protected and how often guards and codes change. What I especially liked was when she talked about the conspiracy theories. Even though we heard a lot about fort know the majority of it still remains a secret.

6) Witchcraft in Ireland

Another Irish presentation that I chose to listen to was about witchcraft. I really find it interesting how people could believe that someone has magical powers or is worshiping the devil or whatever just because someone else told them so. The period of witch hunting can easily be labeled as one of the darkest periods of our history. Hundreds of thousands of innocent women were burned at the stake or hanged. Even more were tortured till admitting they are “witches”. I don’t want to get into the details here but witch hunting and the witch trials are really fascinating, at least for me. I learned more about it in school  while in the US by reading The crucible from Arthur Miller. A movie was made based on the book. I highly recommend watching the movie (the 1996 film). It really shows how a community was dealing with witchcraft back then.

7) Delta Blues

Lejla introduced us to Delta Blues. The Delta blues is one of the earliest styles of blues music. It originated in the Mississippi Delta, a region of the United States that stretches from Memphis, Tennessee in the north to Vicksburg, Mississippi in the south, Helena, Arkansas in the west to the Yazoo River on the east. She mentioned famous musicians and played us their songs. I really liked the last song she played with which she let us go home called „I am going home“.

8) The Integration of Islam in Ireland

Islam was the third choice of mine that was connected to the Irish culture. Alexander was talking about the growth of the Muslim communities in Ireland. He explained us how Catholic and Muslim children go together to school and how that works and told us something about the ICCI (Islamic cultural center of Ireland).

9) Oprah Winfrey: perhaps the most influential woman in America

One of our Spanish Erasmus students admires Oprah; therefore she decided to make a presentation about her. Oprah being one of the most influential women of today inspires hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. She is to be admired for everything she achieved in life considering where she comes from and what her childhood and teenage years were like.

10) Scientology: A Religion Made in America

Harald from Hungary tried to explain scientology to us. Most of us know it only as something Tom Cruise is fanatic about. But Harald told us more about the history of scientology and what they believe in. 

11)  Racial Segregation as depicted in 2 movies

Racial segregation is a big part of American history. Tiana wanted to show us what it was like by talking about two movies, The Help and the secret life of bees. These movies clearly show how hard it was for African American back in those days. Tiana made a great connection to the audience by asking us questions which I think is great.

12) TV shows depicting social issues

Christine informed us about social issues depicting from TV shows. She took 5 very well-known shows and explained on their example what she means. In the end we even got to see a short clip from one of her favorite shows - Breaking bad.

The five presentations I chose for my KGP are:

1) American High school & its reputation in Austria

2) Walt Disney (Mickey Mouse: how a mouse conquered the world)

3) Reality TV - Jersey shore and beyond

4) TV shows depicting social issues

5) Oprah Winfrey: perhaps the most influential woman in America

"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world."
Nelson Mandela

XOXO A.

:)

Why don’t they read?

I love modern technology. I really enjoy being able to walk around listening to music or have internet connection in almost every place in the world. I think it’s great that my family and friends in Zagreb are only a phone call or Skype video chat away from me. Modern technology has brought us so many good things but it has also made us dumber. And that’s a fact. When I was a kid I remember spending my time by reading books, drawing, riding a bike or playing with other kids on the street. I and my neighbors would play with Barbie dolls and plush toys the whole day and we would never get bored. No matter what we did we always had fun. But when I look at the kids of today I don’t see that. I don’t see girls playing with Barbie dolls or boys chasing the ball on a soccer field. All I really see them doing is playing on their gadgets. Every single one of them owns an iPod, iPhone or iPad. At home there is a Wii, Xbox or PlayStation waiting for them. I see girls dressing up a Barbie doll on the screen of their iPad or boys chasing a ball in a PlayStation video game. What the heck? Can this really be more fun than actually going outside to play with your friends? I don’t know. I really can’t understand the kids of today. Their whole world revolves around their phones and Facebook and how many likes they will get on a picture they post. It’s just sad. They call and text each other constantly even though they are sitting only meters away from each other. I remember us always knowing where our friends are even though we didn’t have cell phones. You could always find your friend either at home or at the playground. What worries me a lot is the fact that I don’t see books. I don’t see books in the hands of the kids. Why? Reading opens up a whole new world to us. It encourages creativity and imagination and takes us to places we have never been before.  Reading from an early age is also important for developing better social and language skills. So why in the name of God are these kids not reading? Probably because their parents don’t have time to read to them and think that buying them a gadget will do it. Little do they know how wrong they are. I really consider myself lucky to have been born and raised in the ‘90s and for my parents to have showed me the importance of reading and socializing. I know that if there is a power outage one day I will now how to entertain and help myself. Can these kids say the same for themselves?

This is what I am talking about! This guy is brilliant!

XOXO A.

Smile - because you can

I am a “follower” on Obama's Facebook page. I like the pictures people that work for him are posting on there. As you can read in my earlier posts I really think that Obama is a good president. He is doing his best. Anyways, I am not here to talk about him but to share this photo with you. My heart melted when I saw this photo. Look at the face of this precious little kid. You know that feeling when you see something cute and just have to scream a little bit? Yeah, that was my reaction too after seeing this photo.   :D

Every day you spend without a smile, is a lost day.

XOXO A.

Saving a life...

I love National Geographic! I am not only talking about the TV channel but also about the magazine. When I am at home I love to switch to NatGeo and watch a good documentary. One of my favorite things to do in my spare time is to buy the NatGeo magazine, make myself a cup of coffee and sit in my garden in the sun to read it. Every issue is unique in its own way. The magazine is full of interesting stories and colorful pictures. Sometimes I catch myself staring at a page with a photo for quite a long time just thinking “How in the name of God did they manage to take such an incredible and powerful photo?” NatGeo chooses a photo of the year every year. I honestly don’t know how they do it because all the photos that come in are so breathtaking. Let’s take this one for example.

In 1987 James Stanfield’s photo of Zbigniew Religa was proclaimed a photo of the year in National Geographic. The photo was taken in Poland. Heart surgeon Dr. Zbigniew Religa keeps watch on a monitor tracking the vital signs of a heart-transplant patient. One of Religa’s colleagues who helped him perform two transplants in an all-night session rests in the corner. The surgery lasted for 23 hours! The patient survived and still lives in Poland. Unfortunately Dr. Religa passed away 2009.

 

Since I was always into medicine this picture kind of made me think. I am really sad that I suck in science so much that I actually can’t be a doctor. Doctors, nurses and other medical stuff are true heroes of today and not top models, soccer players or pop stars. Every kid dreams to be a doctor when they grow up but they lose that wish over time as they see pop stars making a lot of money in no time. Instead of being true heroes they chose to be people that fill covers of magazines by doing nothing. I personally think that being a doctor is one of the most honoring and fulfilling jobs there is. What can be more beautiful than to save a life? This photo is so strong because it shows us all the studying, knowledge and work behind becoming a doctor as well as the beauty of saving a life. I don’t know what else to tell you about this photo because I can’t really put it into words. I am just amazed by it and think that we should all be thankful for people like Dr. Religa. And I also feel very sad because I will never be able to know the feeling you have after you have saved someone’s life. I think I am going to call my cousin and her husband now who are both surgeons to see how they feel after saving a life. :D

“And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.”

XOXO A.