Hello, May!

The beginning of May was very interesting for the members of ESN BelUPgrade.

It started off with the celebration of Labor Day on May 1^st. We celebrated the traditional way with early rising (prvomajski uranak) at Košutnjak, followed by barbecuing, drinking, dancing…  The fun went on ‘till late afternoon.

But, we didn’t stop there! From 2-4^th May there was the Nature Adventure. The trip begun with the visit to Drvengard (a.k.a. Kustendorf) - an ethno village created by famous Serbian film director Emir Kusturica. Next stop was the camp ,,Hum’’, located near the town of Foča. Since it gets cold alongside the Tara River, the campfire kept us warm and made for a romantic ambience for playing games, dancing, drinking medovača and getting to know one another. The pinnacle of the trip was, of course, water rafting! It’s adventurous, it’s fun and it keeps the adrenalin levels high. The skippers were very nice and introduced us to the history and background of the location. Of course, there were breaks for capturing memories near a waterfall and a little brook. On the way home, we visited the famous  bridge near Visegrad, and a little town dedicated to Ivo Andrić, who described all the historical events of this area in his Nobel Prize winning novel ,,The Bridge Over the Drina’’.

It may seem that all we do is party and eat, but no! This week is dedicated to others, when we gather to help those in need.

This week is SocialErasmus Week, when ESNers across Europe turn their focus and energy to contributing to their environment and helping those in need.  While volunteering at the Belgrade Zoo is well underway, members of ESN BelUPgrade and foreign students will also have the opportunity to help cancer-stricken children at NURDOR (National Association of Parents with Children who Suffer from Cancer), and homeless kids at Belgrade’s children shelter “Svratište”.

Volunteers at the Zoo have, so far, been involved in cleaning cages, petting animals and assisting zookeepers in other tasks.

Hopefully, our volunteers at NURDOR and Svratište will put a smile on these childrens' faces and draw inspiration from their strength and energy. 

 (written by Tijana Šipka)