Over the last few years, I have done a lot of youth exchanges. To be honest, youth exchanges have become a huge part of my life and who I am. Going on these projects is something I love doing, so filling out the application for this one was really easy for me. Even with all my past experiences with youth exchanges, the Youth Bridges Europe exchange in Germany really surprised me in the best way possible.
During this project, I learned a lot of new things about European politics that I didn't know before. What I would really like to highlight is the moment I suggested organising a Culture Night for the group. I am grateful and honoured that everyone loved the idea, and the rest of the evening naturally turned into a karaoke night. It was incredible dancing and singing with people from all over the world. This showed me once again that country borders are just invisible lines that divide people.
Visiting the city of Cologne
We reserved one full day to visit the city of Cologne. I was so excited to see the Cologne Cathedral. I really love travelling, so it has been on my bucket list for a very long time. There are no words to describe the feeling of standing right in front of a building that took over 600 years to build.
We continued our tour of Cologne by exploring the EL-DE Haus, which was the headquarters of the German secret police during the 30s and 40s of the last century. Going down into the basement cells and having the chance to see the original messages carved into the walls by the prisoners brought out a lot of emotional reactions in our group. Just the thought that I was standing where people were tortured to exhaustion and killed gives me chills every time I think about it.
The culture of remembrance is not a new concept to me. I was born and raised in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a country that experienced the biggest genocide in Europe since the end of World War II. Since my childhood, I have been listening to the war stories that my people lived through. Because of that, standing like a frozen person in that basement was not a new emotional experience for me, but it motivated me even more that my generation must never let anything like this happen again.
The story of my journal
Workshops, visiting new places, trying new food, or listening to the stories of other participants are things I always remember from exchanges. But out of everything, the most valuable thing I get from every project is a simple notebook. A few years ago, during an exchange, I got the idea that I wanted to have messages from the people who became close to my heart all in one place. So, I decided that I would bring a notebook with me to every exchange to serve as my journal of memories. Since that day, on the very last day of every exchange, I give my notebook to the other participants I connected with and ask them to write a short and honest message about our relationship during the project.
What's really interesting to me is watching how excited people get about this request, and how they go to a corner of the room to focus and write the best message they can for me. If someone else took that notebook, it would just be letters on paper to them. But for me, those messages represent a piece of that person's soul that they decided to share with me, our relationship during the project, and our funny moments that I will always gladly look back on. This is the way I will always remember those people and keep a piece of them with me forever.
Saying goodbye
The most emotional part when it comes to exchanges is the experience of getting so close to someone in just one or two weeks, feeling like you've known them your whole life, only to have to say goodbye at the end. I always hold onto the hope that our life paths will cross again somewhere in the world, but at the same time, I’m aware that life doesn't always work that way. However, I truly believe that what makes these moments so magical and memorable is exactly the fact that they are temporary.
When you live with the awareness that things don't last forever, you open up more and show the absolute best, most curious parts of who you are.
I am so excited for the next exchange, but this one will always have a special place in my heart.
