Week 6 - Cultural

On the move...

So this week was full of Dutch and Irish culture. The week really was the same as we took off for teaching practise on Monday and Tuesday, in which Tuesday I taught the children about our own culture in Northern Ireland. I let them see about the different flags, the royal family, St Patrick ’s Day and the 12^th of July. The children were also interested in the different sports that we have back home, for instance Gaelic football and hurling. Here the children loved watching the videos of the sport as it looked so fast and so dangerous.

Eindhoven

This weekend then we decided to go to Eindhoven as we hadn’t really travelled all that far in the Netherlands itself. Plus Sarah’s friend from home was coming over to visit and so we met her in Eindhoven to bring her back to Nijmegen for a few days. During the day though we got to look about Eindhoven and my first instinct was how modern it was compared to Nijmegen. We later found out this was because the city was only about seventy years old and therefore there were very few old buildings that existed in Eindhoven.

Saint Catherine's Church

We got to see the numerous shops and shopping centres as well as bars and churches. The one church that we did go in and visit was called St. Catherine’s, in which it was amazing. The beauty of the building oozed out with the incredible stain glass windows that throughout the church told the stories of the Bible. The church also had an area where you could light candles, which many people did and said prayers at. Really and truly this building had a humble sense to it and made you realise and think about what really was life about.

“When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator.” Mahatma Gandhi

Saint Patrick's Day celebrations in Eindhoven

We then walked around Eindhoven the rest of the day looking upon different monuments and buildings, with also the constant reminder of St. Patrick’s day being on Sunday. This was an instant reminder as some streets had green and white balloons hung up around some of the irish pubs. With this reminder of culture from home, it got us excited for the night to come as everyone had decided to celebrate our culture and head out while dressed in green. Never the less we took things to a new extreme as I was covered head to toe, quite literally, in green. With green hair, green face and clothes I was a walking green blob! Nevertheless everyone had a brilliant time and it showed us that maybe us Northern Irish Erasmus students had formed more great relationships than we had originally thought.

P.s. Top tip for this week… no matter how home sick you may feel or have, remember as you are missing old friends and family, realise you have many new friends that you will always stay close to or in contact with for the rest of your life, who will still be able to cheer you up.

Us all dressed up ready to go and celebrate Saint Patrick's Day!

“If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.”

John F. Kennedy

References:

Gandi, M. Brainy Quotes. Available: 

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/topics/topic_religion.html#MM1ZJP2owLOKmKi2.99. Last Accessed: 19/03/13

Kennedy, J.f. Brainy Quotes. Available:

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/culture.html#mIr73XsA7ZF5D49r.99. Last Accessed: 19/03/13