Atmosphere of eternal love and peace, smiling and happy people, activeness in serious talks during sessions and total relaxation during breaks – this is how Network Meeting in Tbilisi looked like. The first NWM in Caucasian region will come into history first of all as first such event in this area. Three months of organisation period, constant Skype calls and endless mails turned into an extremely good event. 25 people from 9 different locals decided to become true stars and be the first who will experience the first Network Meeting in Caucasus.
The event was started with official opening in the traditional Georgian restaurant, AEGEE Intro game, rivers of wine and endless Georgian hospitality. AEGEE-Tbilisi team managed in breaks between meeting arriving participants and arrangement of last-minute details to dance the traditional Georgian dances and create friendly and very relaxing atmosphere.
The second day was fully dedicated to sessions about organisational part of AEGEE – Alfredo Sellitti as CD representative was torturing participants with the smallest details about AEGEE structure, our projects and fields of action. Participants repaid him with the same kindness, asking a lot of questions and actively taking part in explanation to each other the unclear parts of AEGEE life.
The day full of information and activities was finished with teambuilding session, during which everybody learned a bit of Japanese and was happily hugging not team mates, but already true friends with whom they managed to overcome all obstacles of the teambuilding games.
The third day was a true experiment, as it was day fully dedicated to thematic side of AEGEE – labyrinth game about Visa Freedom Working Group, session of Eastern Partnership Project and true simulation game from Youth UnEmployment Project were finished with hot open space discussions about management of international events and attracting AEGEE members interested in the thematic activities. The day was really tiring and full of information, but everybody survived because that night was The Night! Cultural European Night at NWM Tbilisi was something surprising and extremely interesting – Turkish live music from participants from AEGEE-Ankara was changing with romantic Armenian and Ukrainian folk songs from AEGEE-Yerevan and AEGEE-Dnipropetrovsk girls, after which we enjoyed traditional dancing of AEGEE-Baki and AEGEE-Sumqayit people and of course nobody could resist joining truly Georgian dances with AEGEE-Tbilisi team. Everybody was happy to share own culture and to experience something new and totally interesting.
After all I can confidently say that AEGEE-Tbilisi is a dream team of organizers. Such dedication of host-local and high-class organisation starting from attention to very smallest details is the dream of any Network Commissioner. Also the showed true friendship buying out AEGEE-Tbilisi flag. This is how real team should work!
NWM Tbilisi “Lights, Camera, Action!” will forever come into hall of fame in AEGEE as the first Network Meeting in Caucasus, the meeting gathering so different people from this region and the meeting which will stay in our hearts as meeting full of love, peace and friendship.
Written by Olga Iatsyna, AEGEE Dnipropetrovsk