New blog about EVS in Ribadavia

Since September 2015, I have started a new blog to document my EVS (European Voluntary Service) experiences in Ribadavia, Spain. The title of the blog is Ribadavia Behind the Grapes and through the eyes of an EVS volunteer.

¿Obama is in Spain?

Porque, I am also going to document my learning Espanol experiences, from time to time I will write in both languages. I will make mistakes. I will show funny situations. I will highlight my favorite words and generally ponder over this bonita language Espanol. So, welcome to my playground, and welcome to correct me!

¿Why Spain? From stone to a volunteer

I still remember the theatre play that we – a group of youngsters from a summer school – performed in a little village near Zaragoza back in the 2008. I was a stone. Actually one of the stones. My role required to say one sentence in Spanish. Though I thought I had learnt the phrase during rehearsals, when the time of the play came, I forgot it: I messed it, I blushed and blankly stared at the audience. I had screwed up the role of a stone.

Seven Days, Eight Flights: China-Barcelona-China

A trip to Girona (with all contestants).

There is one week of my life which still seems unbelievable as I look back at it. Seven days, eight flights, one night train, one night bus. That’s exactly what happened after I found out that I am one of the finalists of IEMed short story contest “A Sea of Words” and have been invited to the awards ceremony in Barcelona. Great! I am in China now. I said to myself. But in my mind, I knew, I would be there. And I was (except for the fact that I missed the ceremony itself). Now being back to boring Lianshui County (village) where nothing much happens, I am still living in those days and those planes: hectic, happy, rewarding.

Among Finalists in the Literary Contest "A Sea of Words"

My short story “Zilo acu stāsts” (“Blue Eyes’ Story”) was selected as one of the 14 finalists in the short story contest “A Sea of Words”, and I was invited to participate in the awards ceremony on 5th of November 2012 in Barcelona. 

In the ceremony, three winners were announced, as well as the contestants took part in the workshop “Literary Language, An Instrument of Dialogue”, organised with the General Directorate for Youth. We also went for a cultural visit to Girona. 

This was the fifth year of the contest organised by the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed) and the Anna Lindh Foundation. It received 283 short stories by youths from European and Mediterranean countries.

All fourteen short stories will be published in a book. The list of finalists can be found here: 

http://www.iemed.org/dossiers-en/dossiers-iemed/cultures-mediterranies/sea-of-words-2012/winners