Thursday July 12th marked the annual multiCOOLtural evening of the summer school and this year once again saw the participants elevate the evening with their unique displays and presentations. The evening began with all participants availing of the sumptuous barbeque on offer which provided them with a relaxing atmosphere prior to the presentations. The barbeque was enjoyed by all and the fantastic weather coupled with the beautiful scenery on offer at the Villa, made for a wonderful beginning to what would be a fabulous evening. Once the barbeque had finished, everyone congregated in the room the presentations were set to take place in. Once everyone was together, the Director of the Vila Dr. Danuta Glondys gave an emotional speech highlighting the many amazing aspects of the Visegrad Sumer School. She thanked all the participants for their contribution and enthusiasm to this year’s event and wished them all the best in their future endeavours. Also thanking all who made the event the most successful edition yet, the Director finished by reaffirming the core values of the Villa; Freedom and Solidarity. Once her phenomenally emotive and powerful speech had concluded she received a rapturous round of applause from the audience and subsequently the presentations for the evening began.
The opening presentations of the evening were delivered by participants from outside the V4 countries and Ukraine. The first presentation of the evening was on Belarus and provided a truly amazing insight into the magnificence that this sometimes controversial country has to offer. Moving on from this the next presentation was on Slovenia, once again the presentation managed to capture the audience’s imagination from the offset and this presentation succeeded in involving the audience in many activities that are commonplace in Slovenia. Continuing with the presentations from these countries, Georgia was the next country to be highlighted. Once again the standard of the presentation was terrific and this presentation focused on the beauty and splendour of this captivating country. Using an array of images and videos this presentation truly allowed all in attendance to picture themselves within Georgia. The next presentation was on Russia, given in a manner that evoked much laughter from the audience this presentation tried to give a humorous take on Russia. From its opening image the presentation made everyone within the room burst into fits of laughter and this pattern continued until its conclusion. The next presentation on Romania offered everyone present the opportunity to really appreciate the beauty and diversity this amazing country has to offer. Using many distinct images, this presentation certainly captured the imagination of many and was greatly enjoyed by all. The final presentation of this section was on Armenia and was delivered with a lot of personal meaning. Once again the presentation was excellently delivered and was undoubtedly heavily influenced by the use of many personal images of many different dynamics within this fascinatingly beautiful country.
Once this round of presentations had concluded it was the turn of the Hungarian participants to showcase their nation. They began the presentation by offering the crowd the chance to sample some Hungarian delicacies (wine), this immediately earned them praise within the audience and from here they began their engaging and thoughtful presentation. This presentation was truly beneficial to all in attendance and took the form of six different lessons on the Hungarian language. Each Hungarian participant explained some basic rules of the language in an engaging and thoughtful manner that allowed all present to immerse fully into this presentation. Providing clear illustrations of each aspect of the presentation, the participants succeeded in establishing a wonderful template for future presentations and their ability to involve the audience in every component of the presentation was truly commendable. Finishing by leaving the crowd with a popular Hungarian song they presented each group with a bottle of Hungarian wine, before departing to a well earned round of applause.
The next group to present their country was Poland. This presentation once again emphasised the creative nature of the participants at this year’s VSS. The format of this presentation was a quiz, with two people from the other groups answering questions on a range of confusing but stimulating topics. The questions created a relaxed atmosphere from the get go, but one of the requirements of the game was those who failed to answer the questions correctly would have to drink a shot of the ‘’famous ‘; Polish vodka. Immediately this made the groups more focused and led to much laughter and enjoyment. Once this aspect of the presentation had concluded, the next part featured a similar game but this time involving musical chairs. Again this was keenly contested in a competitive but fair manner, and the involvement of the audience was again something that made this presentation exciting and rewarding. Finishing by thanking everyone for their support the Polish participants departed to a well earned bout of applause.
The next group to present was the participants from Czech Republic. This presentation was exhilarating from its opening moments and it primarily offered an amusing take on the V4 countries as well as the Czech Republic. Using different exhibitions for each country the participants showcased Czech ‘’superiority’’ by using many contrasting images and videos. Succeeding in capturing the interest of all in attendance from the beginning, this presentation certainly brought everyone in attendance much enjoyment and pleasure. However, the presentation not only featured some humorous sketches and exhibitions, it also featured one of the Czech participants singing beautifully to the delight of all in attendance. Offering everyone the chance to sample some Czech food this presentation was truly well recieved. Once again this presentation created new dynamics and earned all participants unanimous approval from all fortunate enough to be in attendance.
The next presentation came from the Slovakian participants and was similar in many instances to the Polish one, in that it took the form of a quiz. However, it differed in many critical aspects, such as the fact that everyone in the crowd was involved in this from the beginning and also the style in which it was delivered. Fifteen questions in all were asked on a range of issues relating to Slovakia, and the team who answered most correctly would receive a prize. Once the rounds had concluded there was a three way tie, eventually the white team prevailed. However, the fundamental point to remember from the Slovakian presentation was the involvement of each participant from the country and the creativity they managed to showcase to everyone present. Once their presentation had concluded they gave everyone the opportunity to sample some Slovak cuisine which delighted everyone in attendance.
The final lecture of the evening was delivered by the Ukrainian participants. This presentation was short and immediately tried to capture the spirit of Ukraine through a song. The participants sang a terrifically engaging Ukrainian song in unison which thrilled all in attendance. Allowing all members of the audience to join in this was an appropriate way to end what was in truth a fantastic evening. Finishing by thanking every participant, the Ukrainian participants gave the crowd one more thing to remember some Ukrainian whisky!
Once again the multiCOOLtural evening had succeeded in demonstrating the creativity and imagination of all participants of the VSS and those fortunate enough to attend will savour this evening for a long time to come.
The opening presentations of the evening were delivered by participants from outside the V4 countries and Ukraine. The first presentation of the evening was on Belarus and provided a truly amazing insight into the magnificence that this sometimes controversial country has to offer. Moving on from this the next presentation was on Slovenia, once again the presentation managed to capture the audience’s imagination from the offset and this presentation succeeded in involving the audience in many activities that are commonplace in Slovenia. Continuing with the presentations from these countries, Georgia was the next country to be highlighted. Once again the standard of the presentation was terrific and this presentation focused on the beauty and splendour of this captivating country. Using an array of images and videos this presentation truly allowed all in attendance to picture themselves within Georgia. The next presentation was on Russia, given in a manner that evoked much laughter from the audience this presentation tried to give a humorous take on Russia. From its opening image the presentation made everyone within the room burst into fits of laughter and this pattern continued until its conclusion. The next presentation on Romania offered everyone present the opportunity to really appreciate the beauty and diversity this amazing country has to offer. Using many distinct images, this presentation certainly captured the imagination of many and was greatly enjoyed by all. The final presentation of this section was on Armenia and was delivered with a lot of personal meaning. Once again the presentation was excellently delivered and was undoubtedly heavily influenced by the use of many personal images of many different dynamics within this fascinatingly beautiful country.
Once this round of presentations had concluded it was the turn of the Hungarian participants to showcase their nation. They began the presentation by offering the crowd the chance to sample some Hungarian delicacies (wine), this immediately earned them praise within the audience and from here they began their engaging and thoughtful presentation. This presentation was truly beneficial to all in attendance and took the form of six different lessons on the Hungarian language. Each Hungarian participant explained some basic rules of the language in an engaging and thoughtful manner that allowed all present to immerse fully into this presentation. Providing clear illustrations of each aspect of the presentation, the participants succeeded in establishing a wonderful template for future presentations and their ability to involve the audience in every component of the presentation was truly commendable. Finishing by leaving the crowd with a popular Hungarian song they presented each group with a bottle of Hungarian wine, before departing to a well earned round of applause.
The next group to present their country was Poland. This presentation once again emphasised the creative nature of the participants at this year’s VSS. The format of this presentation was a quiz, with two people from the other groups answering questions on a range of confusing but stimulating topics. The questions created a relaxed atmosphere from the get go, but one of the requirements of the game was those who failed to answer the questions correctly would have to drink a shot of the ‘’famous ‘; Polish vodka. Immediately this made the groups more focused and led to much laughter and enjoyment. Once this aspect of the presentation had concluded, the next part featured a similar game but this time involving musical chairs. Again this was keenly contested in a competitive but fair manner, and the involvement of the audience was again something that made this presentation exciting and rewarding. Finishing by thanking everyone for their support the Polish participants departed to a well earned bout of applause.
The next group to present was the participants from Czech Republic. This presentation was exhilarating from its opening moments and it primarily offered an amusing take on the V4 countries as well as the Czech Republic. Using different exhibitions for each country the participants showcased Czech ‘’superiority’’ by using many contrasting images and videos. Succeeding in capturing the interest of all in attendance from the beginning, this presentation certainly brought everyone in attendance much enjoyment and pleasure. However, the presentation not only featured some humorous sketches and exhibitions, it also featured one of the Czech participants singing beautifully to the delight of all in attendance. Offering everyone the chance to sample some Czech food this presentation was truly well recieved. Once again this presentation created new dynamics and earned all participants unanimous approval from all fortunate enough to be in attendance.
The next presentation came from the Slovakian participants and was similar in many instances to the Polish one, in that it took the form of a quiz. However, it differed in many critical aspects, such as the fact that everyone in the crowd was involved in this from the beginning and also the style in which it was delivered. Fifteen questions in all were asked on a range of issues relating to Slovakia, and the team who answered most correctly would receive a prize. Once the rounds had concluded there was a three way tie, eventually the white team prevailed. However, the fundamental point to remember from the Slovakian presentation was the involvement of each participant from the country and the creativity they managed to showcase to everyone present. Once their presentation had concluded they gave everyone the opportunity to sample some Slovak cuisine which delighted everyone in attendance.
The final lecture of the evening was delivered by the Ukrainian participants. This presentation was short and immediately tried to capture the spirit of Ukraine through a song. The participants sang a terrifically engaging Ukrainian song in unison which thrilled all in attendance. Allowing all members of the audience to join in this was an appropriate way to end what was in truth a fantastic evening. Finishing by thanking every participant, the Ukrainian participants gave the crowd one more thing to remember some Ukrainian whisky!
Once again the multiCOOLtural evening had succeeded in demonstrating the creativity and imagination of all participants of the VSS and those fortunate enough to attend will savour this evening for a long time to come.
