"If you can dream it, you can do it." (Walt Disney)

These were the great moments… with some great people… in some great places. Probably confused by the repetitive splashes of the word “great”, the reader may ask himself what on Earth could have been this wonderful, this memorable to such an extent. The answer is Euroscola and anyone involved in this exceptional project can, and I’m sure will, if case, confirm the allegation I have just made without a blink of an eye. I’m talking here about the unique day of March 12^th, a most beautiful day that I spent in the European Parliament. Not only was I there accompanied by my very high school colleagues, but I also had the occasion to meet new people, best quality people, who were able to give me my most amazing time there in Strasbourg.

Everything has a beginning…

But first, let me give you a hint of what this whole Euroscola project means, at least in the shape of my own personal experience. It all started one year ago, back when I was in the 10^th grade, and a very nice Physics teacher, afterwards followed by an equally nice History one, came to me and described this project. We were supposed to popularize the European Parliament and its activity in connection to the all-new elections that were to take place in June 2009 in my country, Romania, which selected those to represent the Romanian people in the European Parliament. As the chief editor of our high school’s magazine, ID: MONNET, I was the one to lend them a hand in achieving their goal, in addition to the already set seminar which had the exact same purpose. I took the invitation on the spur of the moment, as it all seemed extremely interesting and productive and what was more, the final was to take place in Strasbourg. And so I started my journey: I took part in the seminar; I made an article about it and then published it and then the big (not the biggest) news came: we qualified for the next round, which consisted in making an essay on a given theme, in which we would emphasize on the role of the European Parliament in relation to the European Union’s position in the world history of conflict resolution. Hmm… tough task, but after some very hard work of delving into the depths of European history and extracting the best ideas, the relevant ones, we finally managed to make ends meet and produce a viable essay. But this was not all: we did the essay in Romanian, my native language and considering the fact that we had to use either English or French, our masterpiece had to be translated. And who did that? I did, of course, because I was the one to best know one of the two imposed languages, namely English. So I spent a whole night working on the composition (the deadline for sending the essay was the next day, hence my working schedule) and then I finally managed to send it to our coordinating teacher who would take it to the post office – destination: Strasbourg, France.

Unlikely destinations

Honestly, I wasn’t very confident. Why? Can’t really answer, maybe because reaching Strasbourg seemed such a “too good to be true” option. And then, on December 14^th, came the biggest news (I myself was announced by my teacher via e-mail, at a very late hour. I was sleepy. But this really woke me up, I cannot describe the thrill that took over my whole body.): we were among the 12 finalists of Romania, on the 4^th position. We were going to Strasbourg on March 12^th!!!

Reaching for a star in Strasbourg

After this very event there was approximately a month of planning and deciding and speculating. I am due to admit that it was a bit all too stressful; there were extremely high demands on us as we were the only high school from Bucharest, the capital, to qualify. A lot of emotions and a handful of thoughts led my way to the event. We left on the 11^th and in the evening we were there, in Strasbourg. The following morning arrived with great alacrity, I might say, and everything was to happen. At 8:34 I was standing in front of the Parliament. 8:41 and we were all in the big restaurant, serving break-fast. 8:55 and I, as a speaker on behalf of my school, was nervously walking towards the impressive hemicycle of the Parliament, with the other representatives from the 24 participating countries. We took our seats on the first row of in the plenary hall, waiting for our colleagues. We started talking to each other and right from that moment we began the befriending processes.

Oh, how nice to meet you!

The 4 officials from the Parliament greeted us and then explained a few things, after which we, the speakers, had to go in an adjacent room. We were alphabetically arranged according to the represented country and then, one by one (or two – some countries had 2 students) we presented our high schools. I can only tell you that for me, it was magnificent: I loved the way I was hearing my voice, the way people looked at me and the ovations that followed, which I shan’t mention that really tickled me pink – a once in a lifetime experience! We then had the occasion to experience the vote in the European Parliament, by using the special voting buttons to express our opinions.

Seriously now, this is really happening!!!

No sooner did we finish the queries, than a debate was launched. You shouldn’t think of a debate in which people argue with each other, with everyone just bolstering their own views, but more of a Q&A session, where we all had a chance to clarify certain things, to emphasize on others and to raise attention on various issues. I am very proud of the fact that I managed to ask the officials a question regarding the way the EU could determine people to give up their comfort in order to reduce environmental problems, a question which was appreciated both by the other students, who applauded and by the men from the Parliament who gave an equally good answer.

And so time passed and we went to the restaurant to have our lunch, after which 4-member teams were constituted for playing the Eurogame, which consisted in some questions in all 27 official languages of the EU. The next activity gathered us in themed groups – working commissions – where we had to find certain solutions for given problems. In my commission we had to analyze the ways of breathing life into Europe and I also had the pleasure to be elected rapporteur by the approx. 80 members of the group, having thus the chance to collaborate with the elected Chair, Rhys, an extremely intelligent and interesting boy from the U.K. Only after listening to everybody’s proposals did we make out the report, which I later had the pleasure to present in the Parliament, in front of the whole audience. Rhys then answered questions from those in the Hemicycle and afterwards our report went through a voting process and it was adopted. Of course, I was extremely happy as the possibility of rejection really existed, like in the case of other 2 reports, which were dismissed.

Ceremonies always end with flag waving… 

The Euroscola activity was almost at the end. The Eurogame final took place, the winners claimed their righteous cups and then we, the speakers, had to carry the flags of all the countries within the EU, while the official hymn, “Ode of Joy”, was played. You cannot but imagine how beautiful the whole ceremony was, as everybody was standing and paying their respect to the institution and its meaning. And then we finally left the building, firmly holding tight to our fresh memories, very pleasant ones and hoping we would one day go through this all again.

Origins looming high again

I then had 3 free days in Strasbourg, where I visited all that I could possibly visit in that time of the year and then of course, I did a little bit of shopping and then left the city, reached the Stuttgart Airport, left Stuttgart and eventually arrived in my very own Romania, back to the so familiar streets and buildings and people and…

Loving memories are treasures

All I have now are loads of pictures, some new Facebook friends and a bunch of MSN contacts in my Messenger list… and memories, many, beautiful, unforgettable memories. I will be honest now: as much as I praise my experience back in Strasbourg, I yearn for it with all my heart. I met great people there, whom I now miss and I hope I will have the chance to meet again in the future.

And finally…

The Euroscola experience meant a lot for me. Not only did I earn a lot of positive and useful experience, but it also opened my eyes, made me dream of things that I had never considered before, such as a political career or studies right there, in Strasbourg. It broadened my horizons and I truly believe that it is urged that other students, just like me, be interested in these fruitful European projects. They make a difference. They matter. They make you. And if you want it, you really can do it!