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The Media Workshop
When
Laurent first proposed the idea of creating a media workshop, I immediately
knew that I wanted to take part in it. "Borrowed Identities"
provided us a deeper understanding of the meaning of the concepts multiculturalism
and intercultural dialogue. The Media Workshop has the task of keeping
the records of what is happening here. For that we created a travelogue
where every single detail of our project is presented through the eyes
of the students. We have tried to involve everyone and it seems that it
works. Every student has brought his contribution with something which
made our work easier. This work may seem simpler but, in fact it is a
complex task as we had to deal with all the technical problems, select
the articles, choose the photos. It can be rather frustrating when having
to choose the right article or finding the best image that goes with it!
However, we were very lucky because everyone was willing to help us. One
of the participants, Agnes from Hungary, is creating a podcast and she
has taken interviews so that we could upload on the internet. Therefore,
apart from the written records we leave audio and visual records as the
visitors of our webpage can enjoy the photos of this unique project. I
must say that we have put a lot of enthusiasm in this and we have learnt
a lot from one another. We have realized the importance of working in
a team and make all the possible to make this known for the people who
wish to find out more about these types of projects.
Anda Balasoiu
(Spanish group)
Language diversity management
My
goal as language diversity manager is to encourage the intercultural exchange
of languages and to raise the people awareness of this rich multilingual
environment that surrounds us during this week. In order to accomplish
this, I have prepared some activities based on communication and language.
I did most of my work before coming to Achill, because I needed to print
and prepare some cards and leaflets, and also because it was important
to set a previous plan of action to know better how to implement the different
activities. However, the only fact that people have an innate need to
communicate renders my work far easier, so it was not hard to get everyone
talking beyond the language barriers.
One of the activities consisted of cards that the students should read
and exchange with people speaking a different language in order to solve
a riddle game, i.e. to find out at which famous person the different multilingual
sentences hint. In this case the answer was Robert Schumann, one of the
fathers of the European Union. I was happy to see many people asking native
speakers for a translation and explanation of the different words; all
in all, this was the aim of this "Lingua Linguae" project. J
I prepared other small activities, such as the "talk to me"
stickers in many languages (an activity from the European Day of Languages)
or the multilingual film posters. I also handed out flyers with some basic
Irish expressions, so that people would use them during their stay on
Achill. And last, but not least, my job was sometimes tightly related
to that of the Social Manager, Laura. We prepared a couple of activities
together, just because language means communication, and this means socialising.
Therefore, the social ingredient plays an important role when it comes
to communicate.
The "Lingua Linguae Test", which was distributed on Saturday
in the train to Westport and which people should submit on Thursday, aims
at giving the participants a hint on which aspects of language will be
covered during this week, and intends also to give me an idea of how people
have reacted to language diversity.
I also think that a good idea would have been to mix the roles of Language
Diversity and Social Manager, either in one or two people. Anyway, although
it hasn't been a very challenging job, it has been a pleasure to be Language
Diversity Manager.
Alberto Fernández Díez
(Spanish group)
Clare Island- Be Jealous!
Those
of us lucky enough to go to Clare Island really do feel privileged due
to the beautiful scenery we got to see throughout that morning. Having
started early at quarter past eight, arriving at the pier at 'Cloch Mor'
before nine meant immediately we were able to witness some truly impressive
waves smashing against the rocks in the distance. A rather small and wobbly
ladder lead us down to a small yet comfortable boat named 'Most Likely'.
The thirty minute trip over from Achill provided us with fantastic views
of Clare Island through surprisingly clear skies. Even after a night of
drinking and karaoke, most of us were happy with the choppy seas and being
splashed in the face with icy cold sea water was exhilarating rather than
horrible and nasty.
On arriving, we were surprised how clearly we could see the steps leading
us from the boat to land through the strikingly clear blue water. We began
by taking a look at the map and some how consequently went the wrong way…On
meeting the locals we learnt that Clare Island is in the constant state
of development and has many organisations that contribute to this development
that revolve around those who live on the island and bringing in as much
money as possible from tourists in the popular summer months. Surprisingly
we were told by Donal O'shea that there are 10,000 visitors a year, and
this number was mostly made up of tourists taking day trips for walking
in the summer. Whilst we did manage to 
speak
to Donal O'shea and others at the community centre, our time was limited
due to our thoroughly enjoyable walk over bouncy grass up a mountain called
Knocknaveen which stands at 729 feet. On reaching the highest point we
could manage at ten in the morning, the view were absolutely spectacular.
As the island is only small we were able to see almost all the way round.
Luckily it was a clear day and we could see back to another small island
next to Achill, Achill Beag that was sitting on the horizon. Here we stood
in the strong winds for a good while, ensuring we totally appreciated
the view and how lucky we were. (and how jealous everyone else would be!)
We were back on the boat at midday and a couple of us took the opportunity
to interview the Doctor who visits the small island once a week. We safely
arrived back at Achill before one in the afternoon, extremely happy to
have experienced this fantastic morning for only the lucky few of us.
"Come to Clare Island and enjoy its ageless wonder by walking the
island; experiencing the magic of its history and the quiet moments of
peace and tranquillity offered by the unique and gentle character of Grace
O'Malley's Island." (Chris and Kay O'Grady, Hotel owners)
Alex Johns
(English group)
