I could get a breakfast in Paris, shop in Luxembourg, come to the afternoon lectures in Germany, join the Bulgarian party in the evening, and fly in my dreams to the UK. I AM EUROPEAN. I was born in the western Ukraine, studied in Lithuania, Germany, travelled all around the continent. I AM EUROPEAN. I equally love Ukrainian borsch, English tea, French croissants, Turkish kebabs, German beer, Belgian chocolate, Dutch cheese, Lithuanian kepta duona, Czech knedlyky, Italian pasta and Spanish sangria. I AM EUROPEAN. I can speak 5 different languages and have friends from all over the globe. I AM EUROPEAN. I am young and active, engaged in student organizations, journalism, research, conferences, forums, discussions, believing that together we can build the bright future for this great hodge-podge of different cultures and countries called Europe. I AM EUROPEAN.
For a small 16-year old girl in Ukraine going to a different country to study was so exciting and scary. Living on the border of European Union, we are still divided from the free mobile life most European young people enjoy by the tough border regulations. I was so curious what is behind those borders. Just to get a glimpse through the hole in this metaphorical Berlin wall that has not yet fallen for us. Long lines of Ukrainians standing in Kiev to the embassies of our European neighbors. People coming at 3 am to take a place in this line. Getting a visa has always been a humiliating experience for me. People skeptically examining your documents, asking questions with enormous suspiciousness, taking your money without even promising you anything. But my curiosity has always pushed me forward making me willing to put up with such a long inefficient bureaucratic system. That’s because I am a damn good stubborn fighter for my happiness. I believe that Ukrainians are no less Europeans than Poles or Hungarians are. We are the last gateway between Europe and Russia, which makes us strategically important for both sides, tearing Ukraine apart. But the minds and hearts of young people are turned to the West, to the freedom of thought and speech, freedom of religion, science and creativity, which drives Europe forward.
My studies in Baltics have proven to be an amazing experience connecting me to people from all over the world and opening an exciting window of opportunities for me. Besides lectures, night-long conversations and beach walks with students from other countries have shown me how similar indeed we all are. We are united by our enthusiastic and ambitious desire to succeed, to develop ourselves, to make an impact, to get as much fun in life as we can, to talk and talk and share our ideas, passions, thoughts. If the European youth could be assigned a colour it would definitely be red. It symbolizes the internal drive we have, the love we seek, and the confidence we have in that it is all possible and all in our hands. And it is amazing, you know. We keep our cultural identity, but at the same time enrich our understanding of other cultures and traditions, learn to live and function all together, regardless of the differences in our backgrounds. That is very much the idea of the future Europe as I see it.
There is no need for Europe to become the second America. I have been to the US, and in many ways I admire the new age society they have built. But it brings too much homogeny. People blend, forget about their roots, united only by the common culture of entertainment and consumerism. Somehow in the US I found Turkish people as closer to me than the Americans themselves. I just loved the long philosophical discussions we could lead with my Turkish friends drinking strong and aromatic Turkish coffee, looking at the moon and diving into the European rich history and tradition. Long time ago our ancestors have been enemies, today we are blessed to sit together and listen to each other, learn from each other. Europeans are united by cherishing their national peculiarities, being proud of them as of something special and unique, and this is so cute J That is why we have so many jokes about each other. British joke about French, Germans about British, Ukrainians about Moldavians, Lithuanians about Estonians, Dutch about Italians and so it goes on – our spicy love of each other.
I have lived for quite some time in Germany and although there the way of life differs so much from the one we have in Ukraine, I want to be able to pick up the best things about it in order to bring them to my native country. For example the way Germans care about their environment, the recycling and the green attitude all around. I believe that is something valuable and good many European nations could learn. And imagine picking the tastiest healthiest ingredient from each European country – this synergy could really change the way we live! Mobility is the key to this change. If is better to see once than to hear 10 thousand times. Before I got a chance to live in Germany, which automatically meant me having to sort our trash and garbage into 5 different bins, I would never quite understand it.
Mobility opens so many opportunities. Cheap Ryanair flights and the Couchsurfing allow one to travel almost for free and enjoy the sights of most of the European countries. It opens a chance for me and others like me to choose a variety of European universities to study at. I applied for my Masters to London, Stockholm, Hamburg, Maastricht – all to the greatest surprise of my parents who have never got a chance to travel further than Russia and Poland. But now it is all different. If I ever get a chance I’ll start a real movement for Europe without borders. I want to spare my children the difficulties I had to go through to be able to savor this freedom of movement. Which is by the way included into the Declaration of Human rights.
My friends are in Finland, Latvia, Sweden, Portugal, Poland, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Turkey, Germany, Czech Republic, Romania, Albania, Kosovo, Croatia, Ukraine and Ireland. My boyfriend is in the UK. I am everywhere. I AM EUROPEAN :)
