Summer Camp

Right after coming back to reality from the medieval fairy-tale, we had been in during the weekend, Daniele and I embarked on another adventure - the summer camp. So we spent a week at Ginučiai Watermill with 10 kids from different parts of Lithuania to learn together about traditional Lithuanian crafts and dances.

The weather was perfect - sunny and warm all the time so we enjoyed every minute outside singing and dancing. Well, actually, Daniele and I sang and danced only the first day and after that we mostly enjoyed long walks around the village and in the forest and relaxing sun baths. We also had a very cute company - a couple of swans with their feathery ducklings.

On the next day we had to do our second-day visitor monitoring and it was quite intense as I had nearly 500 tourists that day and I didn't even start in the morning! But I really enjoyed it - actually visitor monitoring is the best job I have ever done!  One tip to the volunteers 2014 - when you do the visitor monitoring, choose Paluše beach and Ginučiai Watermill - it is the most strenuous but it is worth it - you get the chance to talk with a lot of interesting people, most of whom are very nice, and also to enjoy the sun, and I can tell you that you don't even notice when the day has passed by.  Meanwhile the children went around the village for a walk and visited some old people and listened to their stories.

On Thursday Daniele and I made presentations about traditional crafts in our countries and after that joined the children's tutors in making a "Friendship chain" - while twisting a special line we had to think and say a wish for the kids. In the afternoon we all went to Ladakalnis Hill where the children had to take part in a special task prepared by the park. They had to find various items hidden in the woods and to solve different riddles in order to get to the next one. After running around I thought they would be exhausted, but nope - late in the evening we danced around the campfire and we even devoted a prayer to the tutors and to the TEA! :)

I don't mind going late to bed but not when you are being woken up in the morning by the drums and the tambourine. Well, this was a tradition in this summer camp and as you can see most of us were not very fascinated.. :)

The last day the children prepared themselves for the concert they were going to perform for the local people - they made a last rehearsal and after that drew different posters and prepared the decoration. Daniele and I helped for the English poster and cheered everybody with strawberries from the forest. The concert was very beautiful and everybody enjoyed it when at the end of it the children invited the guests to dance together with them. Daniele and I showed our moves too! The children even surprised us with a song they have written the night before for their tutors and for us and which they performed at the end of the concert as gratitude.

 

It was a hot day so after the performance we all went to get cool in the river and to swim in the stream coming from the millstones. And after that for our greatest regret it was over. But we made really good friends with the children and we are going to miss the time we spent with them!