Thinking and talking

(By Steef van den Einden)

I wanted to wait with writing my blog post until now because of two reasons: The first is just the busy schedule after we got back. The days were filled with Chiara’s birthday, my birthday, Dormfest, rowing races, my parent’s house cooling and the (goodbye) parties for which the June intensive period is infamous. The second reason is that I wanted the experiences to sink in, to have time to think about everything that happened in Kosovo.

Now, while writing this post, I realise that neither of my two ideas really worked out as I thought they would. I was indeed busy with all kinds of (mostly social) events, but while I thought this would be concentrated around the first weekend that we were back, it has actually never stopped. Partially, this was due to the people from our group that I got to know (better) in Kosovo, as we kept coming together in some setting or another. It is exactly like Anne predicted: One of the most valuable things that we would gain from the class would be the friendships within (and outside of) the class.

Waiting for the experience to be mentally processed also did not work out as expected, because I am still thinking about it, still asking questions, still figuring stuff out. Of course, I have been able to settle some of my thoughts, but I feel like there is still a long way to go. At times, thinking about Kosovo makes me feel frustrated, sometimes so frustrated that extreme ideas, which are not to be taken too seriously. For example, while thinking about the ethnic tensions in Mitrovica, I came up with the plan to simply get rid of the border between north and south by diverting the river around the town, filling up the former riverbed and building cheap houses, shopping malls or sports facilities on the former river. In that way the division is not as clear anymore and the two sides might be more likely to interact with each other. I was also thinking about the fact that the sector with the least ethnic tension is organised crime, according to some of the people that we met. This must be useful in some way. As promoting recruitment of multi-ethnic criminal organisations is probably not the best approach, I was thinking more in the direction of guest lectures or magazine columns by (former) criminals, but I have not really worked this plan out yet.

At other times, when I am not thinking of stuff that needs to be taken with quite a few grains of salt, I also feel hopeful for Kosovo. Especially, when I hear about the projects of our class and how committed everyone is. Also, every time I meet some of the peace labbers at one of the various social events, we always at some point start to talk about something that is related to Kosovo. Sometimes it is the basis of the discussion, or sometimes only to give an example. I think this really shows how we are all still thinking about the trip, even about details. For example, I cannot see a jeep driving past without KFOR popping up in my head, and flags will now always catch my eye and make me think about what it represents. I do not expect this to be over soon, but I also do not mind, as it is good to keep thinking about Kosovo and encourage others to do so too. Like we said in our last classes, we feel like we have become a sort of ambassadors of Kosovo, which explains why we cannot stop thinking and talking about our game-changing experience in Kosovo.

How is it being back in Amsterdam after such a breathtaking trip?

(By Roxy Frey)

Sad.
The first couple of days, I was still in denial about being back in Amsterdam. I felt sad about having left Kosovo and my new made friends, especially Bardha. It felt strange not waking up next to Zoe and Henriette every morning and I missed even the crowded mornings in the bathroom where three of us used to brush their teeth while one was on the toilet, one in the shower, and the others doing their make-up. I cannot wait to go back to visit the places and the people I grew so fond of.

Awkward.
It feels awkward still now because it is hard to put in words what we have experienced. Nobody here seems to really understand how I feel about Kosovo. When I am asked how the trip was I say “It was an experience”. It seems as though everyone expects me to say “it was amazing” or “so fun”. And while this is certainly true, there is so much more to the story. We had fun going out, meeting people, feeling the vibe of Pristina (you can read more about this in other blog posts) but we have also heard sad stories about the failed visa liberalization, the economic hardship and tensions between different groups inside and outside Kosovo (you can read more about this in other blog posts as well).

Exciting.
While I am sad and I feel awkward being back in Amsterdam, I am also extremely excited. In about 1 hour, our graduation ceremony will begin and Amsterdam University College class of 2015 will receive its diplomas. Among us students who went to Kosovo, more than half were in their third year which means we will walk across the stage in no time.
What happens after? I am not sure.
Hopefully, many of us will return to Kosovo, to visit, to travel, and maybe to do an internship.
As a very last word from my side on this blog, I sincerely hope all of you who have been following our updates will go and travel to Kosovo yourselves. It is so worth it. And perhaps you will understand us even a little bit better because own experiences are much stronger than our words could ever be.

Coming home

(By Henriette Hoogervorst)

Coming home from an experience as Kosovo is quite estranging yet oddly normal. The first two days I was in denial to be back, as one could say. I went home to my parents and recreated the Kosovo feeling on Thursday night at Chiaras birthday party where nearly the whole Kosovo crew was present. It was wonderful to see most of the people again, like coming home or taking a warm bath. Nonetheless, (and I knew this moment was coming) I rolled right back into my responsibilities and life in Amsterdam on Friday. Dormfest was around the corner so I found myself on Friday night cutting and defrosting, what felt like, a million pieces of trout and my Saturday and Sunday were filled with Dormfest preparations and clean ups. On Monday I was faced with the piled up stock of work that I had created by slacking on my tasks and focusing on my capstone; transitioning the new AUCSA board, catching up with emails, and finalizing the final AUC graduation/capstone things where among the tasks that I found myself doing.

            Because I had been focusing on my Capstone a lot of work (especially AUCSA) was not finished or in progress and as I am writing right now three things have popped in my head that I still need to do before the end of this week. Due to all these distractions I had not thought about Kosovo a lot up until Wednesday when I wanted to start writing my final project. I went over my blog entry and notes/diary and found it difficult to get back into it. All the experiences seemed so long ago. However, Thursday and Friday were really nice because we were able to evaluate and we were able to talk to each other, who all went through the same emotions. Kosovo really was such a unique experience that it is hard to explain to friends and family. We met so many amazing people like Bardha and Enver but also some of the students and people of Qesh. Thursday’s class brought me back to Kosovo and made it all very real again and I felt motivated to write my project. What I hope to have created is a publishable article about the experiences I’ve had in Kosovo that changed my mind and understanding of the region. However, while writing it I have been struggling with different issues. I find it difficult to put on paper and into writing what I experienced. It has to be written very playfully and I want people to be interested in reading until the end which I found to be a very difficult task. It is important to keep reminding myself of the fact that I am just handing in a draft. Okey, but enough about my project I finally want to share one more experience that I believe many of us have had in one way or the other:

            When we arrived in Amsterdam I my parents were so kind to pick me up on the airport and take me and my sisters out for dinner. Near the end they asked to see my pictures of Kosovo. I did not take much about 4-5 per day but I think I talked about it for an hour or so until I realized that most of them had zoomed out (although my mom was trying to focus but I believe more for me then the actual pictures haha), at this point I had only shown half of my pictures and the realization kicked in that Kosovo left an impression that was really hard even impossible to translate and communicate and something that I should maybe not try to do in this way. It reminded me of summer camps that I used to go to when I was a kid and my parents asked how it was because I was never able to explain how fun my new friends where, what I experienced, what I learned and I believe my experience of Kosovo is quite similar. I am very grateful for the opportunity to join on this adventure; for me it has really puts things in perspective and made me look at my life in a different light. Thank you for everyone who was a part of it! 

Meet Kosovo

(By Ben Nolan)

It has been almost two weeks since we came back yet it still feels like I have not fully settled. My mind has not yet been able to wrap itself around what I experienced in the country of the Young Europeans. I ponder conversations, presentations, information, and even smells, yet giving it all a place within me is harder than I thought. 

When talking to my friends and family about this trip I find myself talking a lot about the troublesome history Kosovo has. Our conversations focus on the war, its aftermath, and the ongoing problems citizens face. It seems as if Kosovo is being trapped in its history, inhibiting its future progress into a new EU country. What people don't know is that there is another side to Kosovo. A perspective that might be new to some of you. Kosovo is also a country filled with beautiful nature, wonderful people, and delicious food. It is filled with hospitality, friendliness, and welcoming strangers. Kosovo also has potential for a flourishing future due to its young generation that strive to become educated. 

This other side of Kosovo is something that you will encounter in some of our projects that you may come across. Sophie Lagarrique and myself have written a 'positive newspaper' that tells you about Kosovo's development, progress, and beauty. WIthin this newspaper we also feature a different project by our peers which is called Meet Kosovo that introduces you to some of its wonderful locals. With our project we hope to present to you a different perspective on Kosovo. One that does not dwell on its past, but that focusses on its future. Please check it out if you have the time.

I will never forget the experience I've had in Kosovo. It was both a great learning experience due to the ability of doing first hand research, as it was a wonderful opportunity to meet some of my newest friends. It took us only 10 days to get to know some wonderful people and I would really love to see them again. For this reason I urge you to visit the petition my classmate Rebecca Franco has started that advocates for Kosovar visa liberalisation. It would be a great honour if we could return the warm welcome we received in Kosovo to our friends here in Amsterdam.

The blog has shown some of our experiences, frustrations, heartfelt moments, and joys, yet it is only a glimpse of a truly life changing experience. To all the AUC students out there, I encourage you to take Peace Lab next year to experience something that truly is once in a lifetime, and to all the others I advise you to visit the culture. You will not be let down, trust me.

It might take me some time to really digest all that I have encountered and I think I will revisit this blog in the future. It has been a platform for me to express my thoughts and to really brake down what was going on throughout this intense time. Perhaps once I have been able to really explain all that I witnessed I will come back and share this with you. For now, I say goodbye to a wonderful course filled with wonderful people and experiences. You will not be forgotten!

Trying to grasp the essence of Kosovo

(By Max Jilderda)

What is Kosovo? A question I have heard many times the last week when trying to explain what I did during my intensive period in June. The inability to explain what I did for ten days to my family and friends was very frustrating. Not because they were unable to comprehend what I did, but because I was not able to tell what I had seen and experienced. The complexity of Kosovo was even too big for me to comprehend, let alone to explain to others.
This annoyed me.

This led to me going back to our trip in my mind, thinking of all the great, emotional, frustrating, boring, tiring and inspiring memories that together formed my impression of Kosovo. I realized that I would never be able to give an objective overview of Kosovo, nor did I want to. I just want to be able to explain what the trip to Kosovo meant to me and how it affected me. I thought that my project would help me with this by mapping the different truths present in all the organizations that we visited, but it only helped to some extent. I know have a clear way to explain the differences present in the visited organizations, something which is really important and also causes a lot of frustration, but Kosovo was more than that.

Already in class we asked ourselves ‘Why do we care and what changed this’, and the reoccurring answer was the relationship we’ve build individually, but also as a group, with the people we met in Kosovo. Being personally interested in the wellbeing of those people that have been present throughout our trip in Kosovo, and wanting positive change for the country because it would benefit them. Bardha, Enver and their families have made us feel at home in a country we had never visited before, but also the students in Kosovo that wanted to show us the good aspects of Kosovo, by taking us to fancy bars and cool clubs. Even people we did not knew through our visits came up to us and were very kind and open, with their sole motivation being to leave a positive impression behind so that we would take this back and spread the word about how nice Kosovo and its people actually are.

We have become the ambassador of Kosovo, because of these relationships. Because we care what happens to these people. Although we have also seen and experienced the problems present in Kosovo’s society, such as poverty, unemployment and corruption, we have also met a lot of people striving to change this and this offers hope. I am not sure whether I will be able to tell to people what Kosovo meant and means to me, but I don’t think it is something I will be able to put into words for a long time, but this is okay, because it has changed me as a person and my personal view and I am really grateful for this.

Olafs’s Quest to Find the Perfect Cappuccino

(By Chiara Tulp)

As some of you might have read in the other posts, during our ten days in Kosovo one of our main challenges was to juggle Pristina nightlife with days packed with meetings. We often spent hours sitting in rooms without air conditioning just to go back out into the burning sun. So, what better way to freshen up than to sit down on one of the many lovely terraces Kosovo’s cities have to offer and enjoy some coffee and fresh orange juice?

Spending the days in cafés is a big part of Kosovo’s culture and social life. If you are wondering how it is possible that all cafés are filled with people pretty much any time of the day - we were wondering the same thing. It turns out that this lovely way of socializing and enjoying the day is closely related to the high rates of unemployment in Kosovo. The numbers we found ranged between 45 and 55 percent oft he overall population and 60 to 70 percent oft he youth being unemployed. The next question we had was how the people in Kosovo can afford to spend their time in cafés drinking coffee without a steady income. The answer is simple. A lot of money is flowing back into Kosovo from the diaspora living abroad, in countries such as Germany, Turkey or Switzerland. The fact that this is where the money goes is perceived differently. On the one hand people say that it is good because, well, at least it is spent and goes back into the economy. On the other hand, some are very frustrated by this behavior, because they believe the way to get the economy back on track is to increase employment.

On the positive note, this lifestyle makes for a very vibrant social life. Especially if you speak English with each other people sitting on the table next to you are likely to start a conversation. And trust me, they have very interesting stories to tell, and they will give you the best tips on which areas of Pristina and Kosovo you should visit. There was only one problem; you might not always get the coffee you ordered. During our stay it took Olafs about 5 days to find out how to get a cappuccino just the way he wants it, which could leave him let’s say slightly frustrated. So let me translate the language of coffee for you. If you order a classic cappuccino you have a 90 percent of chance of getting an extra thick layer of chocolate syrup on top, which sounds lovely, but apparently there are those who are not keen on chocolate in their coffee. So his next attempt was to order espresso, which in Kosovo usually comes in a small cup with milk froth. If you order a cappuccino and the waiter asks you if you want milk with it, he probably means a huge layer of cream on top of your cappuccino. Luckily some cafés, especially in areas where a lot of internationals work, the coffeemenu might have pictures. So order from the pictures rather than from your knowledge of coffee terms. After five days Olafs had almost given up hope and just reduced his order to plain coffee. And surprise, he actually got a real cappuccino! So let me sum this up for you: Espresso means Espresso Macchiato, Coffee means cappucchino, cappucchino usually means an extra layer of chocolate syrup, cappucchino with milk means cappuccino with extra cream, and don’t ask me what you get when you order a latte macchiato, because I haven’t quite figured out what we got. It could probably best be described as a giant café au lait, or koffie verkeerd. So, bare this in mind when you plan your next holiday in Kosovo.

Creating a family

(By Zoe Meijer)

As I sit down to write my last blog post I find myself struggling with which words to put down on paper. I'm still trying to process the overload of experiences that I have had this last year at AUC, and I am overcome with emotion, both happy and sad. Happy, because I have seen so many amazing things, have met so many wonderful people and have heard so many inspiring stories. Sad because for me, this month is a month of AUC lasts: last trip, last project, last class, last party. And also a month of saying goodbyes, or at least some heavy "see you laters".

Our trip to Kosovo has made everything that I have learned the last three years come to life, a real theory to practise moment. What has struck me most about Kosovo was the huge discrepancy between the people that we have met and the state that the country is in. Whereas Kosovo has made a lot of progress, the country is still dealing with major issues regarding recognition, visa liberalisation, education, economy, discrimination and corruption. On the other hand, the people that we have met were often so young, strong-minded, smart, creative, passionate and full of potential. Therefore, my hope is that in a couple of years this vibrant young population will be able to get a hold over their own future, and make use of the enormous potential of theirs.

In a course called “Violence and Conflict” I learned that major conflicts and violence often a result from “creating an enemy”. When one group creates an enemy out of another group it enables them to justify their violent acts towards that other group. Even though the Kosovo war has ended 16 years ago, in some areas you can still sense the wounds of the conflict. Unfortunately, victimization still plays a role on different sides. However, what I have also noticed is the magic sometimes created when people come together and are interacting, talking and, maybe most importantly, listening to one another. I have said it in my first post and I will say it again, from the first day our big group has felt like a family to me. And that family has grown. Bardha, Enver, their families, people from Qesh, people from the universities, in that short 10 days they have all become a part of that crazy big family of ours.

Therefore, I have given this blog post the corny (yet catchy?) title of “creating a family”, instead of creating an enemy. Anne already touched upon this in our last class, peacebuilding perhaps should be a lot more about creating relationships and communicating with one another. And I agree. Many people who we have talked to mentioned that the most frustrating part of the development of Kosovo is that they were often not given a voice. Hence, why not start talking? Why not come together, interact, talk and listen? As I mentioned, Kosovo is a country full of potential and I think that the only way to make use of that potential is for all these amazing (young) people to start working together. Of course, this is all well and good, but what about corruption, economy and visa liberalisation? Unfortunately, I also don’t have the answers. But I do know that these people are wonderful, and they deserve dignity, respect and rights, just like anyone else. So I would like to end this post by thanking everyone, for creating this amazing, quirky family with me. I am missing you already, but I will see you later.  

Reflection

(By Vera Houwaart)

We've been home for almost two weeks now, and as all the former blog posts have already shown, we are all still very much processing everything that we've seen and heard in Kosovo.

I can of course not speak for others, but for me this was the first time I every went to a post-conflict area that is so close to home. 

It remains ever so difficult to describe the experience we had in Kosovo, especially because it cannot be described in only 5 or 10 minutes (if it is even possible to describe it to someone else). I try to capture everything, but then realize that I have to sit down for at least an hour or two if I really want someone to understand what Kosovo all is. 

The last two classes that we had for the course were for me personally very helpful as it was really good to come together with the group once the dust had settled a little bit and we could talk about how we now felt about the trip and all that it brought with it.

What Anne pointed out to us, is how remarkable it is that we all started to care about Kosovo and its future at one point. We were no longer objective researchers who remained at a distance; we want to make a change for all the people that we got to know during those 10 days. 

We tried to identify that moment when we started to care, but it seems to be really difficult to find the exact moment or even day when the line between 'researching' and 'being emotionally engaged' was crossed. 

As Olafs also mentioned in an earlier blog post, we now are all working on different projects and as he also rightfully stated, these projects are different from anything I've worked on during my three years at AUC. We all want to achieve some form of change in the sense that we want to tell people about what we witnessed in Kosovo, but more importantly, how we want to help the Kosovars in every (tiny) way possible. I just love how everyone has gone along with her/his creativity in order to voice the different opinions/dreams/hopes/ideas that are still all very much present in Kosovo.

This was my last course at AUC: tomorrow I will be graduating after three years of studying in Amsterdam. It's funny how this last month has been one of the most intense and educating ones that I've had here. I will always look back on this month as a time in which I finally got to experience the theory that I've read about for three years, but also as a month in which I realized that not everything can be captured by those theories. There is so much more to a country such as Kosovo than 'just' peacebuilding models, EU/UN regulations, and post-conflict theories. There are emotions, pride, and dreams that all intertwine with those theoretical components. 

And truth be told, there is no book or paper that can explain all this as beautifully as those 10 days in Kosovo did. 

Continuing the engagement

(By Olafs Arnicāns)

We had our final two classes last Thursday and Friday. Apart from the emotional discussions of what actually happened in our 10 day trip as already noted by Joon in the previous post, we also devoted much of our time sharing the projects that each of us (as individuals or groups) were and still are working on. In total 12 different projects: some are in progress, others have been already launched. I’m sure several upcoming posts in this blog will have a more in-depth focus on some particular projects, so I will try not to speak on their behalf. Instead, what I do wish to tell is how amazed and excited I am about the engagement and ambition of my fellow peers.

Let me tell you why: throughout AUC each of us has been involved in numerous projects and written way too many papers and after the submission date that’s where the engagement stops. The work is handed over the professor and perhaps sometimes presented in a small classroom and later on it’s on to the next one. Too often it might feel that a paper is written just to get a grade or improve our research skills. And suppose it’s fine and usual: you don’t think about it, you just do it.

Now, with the projects that we are working on now after the trip it is a completely different ball-game. Each of the 12 projects, some smaller in scale others more grand, are all focused not just on handing it over to the teacher, getting the grade and then good riddance, but towards engagement, actual care and desire to contribute to others in a scale not many anticipated at the beginning of the course. Let me share a quick example, last Wednesday Carolin, Chiara, Sophia, Roxy, Zoe and me launched a project on Facebook called MeetKosovo. We share personal stories (shorter or longer, simple or complex) of Kosovo as told by the local people there. We want these stories to tell you and everyone else what Kosovo is like. In about 5 days more than 300 hundred people have engaged in reading these stories and our project is far from over.

In the upcoming week or so more projects will come to life. There’s going to be a short documentary, journal/magazine articles, research articles, presentations, a petition and more. All with an aim to one way or another reach as many people as possible and raise awareness, engage and teach more about Kosovo not only to foreigners but also the local population.

Already I have heard from some friends the ‘complaints’ about how MeetKosovo is spamming their Facebook News Feed or the Announcement section. Understandably, it can become tiring for some, but the thing is, through these projects that we are working on Kosovo is constantly in our minds as well as in our hearts and we like to share that with people around us. It’s not Candy Crush invites we’re sharing, it’s what we care about and want you to care about just as much. As the new creative projects will appear, I hope our engagement will get you engaged as well. So keep a close eye on this blog and Facebook, it’s going to be exciting!

Tripping

(By Sophia Bensch)

Tripping.

While consciously trying to make ourselves more aware of all the different angles of the current situation in Kosovo, many things may have been happening within us that we were less aware of. Today, after a few days with little sleep, reminiscent of our time in Kosovo, I feel myself strangely set back to my state of mind during our trip.

Instead of sharp, critical thinking, which I observed with many of my peers, it was my senses which seems to be taking a hit. Paradoxically (or maybe not), seeing beauty has never been so easy as in a place that has seen the worst kind of atrocities. My senses were hungry to absorb all the impressions coming my way. Even if I didn’t always know how to place them, I am convinced they are somewhere in there, hopefully ready to resurge and extend the magic of our recent experiences. What added to the sensory experience was the intensity and pace of our programme which required us to constantly adapt to new situations.

A day that immediately comes to mind in this context, is Saturday the 13th of June. In the early morning hours of that day we had been joyfully dancing in a beautifully decorated semi-outdoor club, which some of our newfound friends had invited us to. With seemingly endless supplies of energy we danced ourselves out of the premisses after closing time and continued our celebration in the taxi and briefly at home (we had the apartment to ourselves). Then it was time for a brief nap before the meeting with The Ideas Partnership, likely the initiative closest to my heart. Admittedly feeling a little mushy, I was in the most agreeable mood, excited to see the inspiring projects of TIP. During the introduction of staff and the tour around the TIP building I found myself staring, fascinated by the colours of peoples’ eyes or the sounds of peoples’ voices, which came to be a recurring theme for the remainder of the trip. However there was not only beauty to be receptive to in the Fushe Kosova's Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian community, but also pungent smells and the sight of dire poverty which left me frustrated. Having explored the area and interacted with some local kids, we were picked up by the bus taking us to have a much needed lunch. After the kind of night we had had, it was not surprising that the majority of the bus crashed and slept until the next arrival. Waking up from deep dreamy sleep, still digesting the heavy morning, my eyes were telling me that we had arrived at a lush Oasis full of waterfalls and flowers with a restaurant in its midst and a pirate sailing ship casually located next door. At the same time relieved and disgusted by the stark contrast to where we had been, what seemed like moments ago, I found my way to the long table prepared for us, where we had yet another delicious meal together. Next stop on our adventure was the Serbian Orthodox monastery in Gracanica. There, we were received by a nun, who briefly explained to us the history of the monastery and the meaning of the famous Fresco paintings inside. Very knowledgeable on the religious building and its artwork, she showed no sign of emotion to us which gave the visit a film-like, sinister character. Not usually an eager church visitor, I was hooked by some of the organically flowing, mysterious paintings, that made perfect use of the light and space, creating an uplifting sensuous experience.

When expressing the intensity of perception I had experienced that day, I was startled to hear that others had felt the same way, to the extent of having the same obsession with eyes.

This example shows how apart from the lessons learned about post-conflict societies and the different perspectives of people living within them, the trip to Kosovo has reminded me to live in the moment as much as possible and to truly soak up what I smell, taste, see, hear and feel.

June 25: First day back in class

(By Joon Colaianni)    

It has been a week and a day since we have been back from Kosovo. It is really hard to describe how I am feeling about the trip, the people that we met, and overall all of the different perspectives that have been given to us in Kosovo. Today we are all finally together again since the day that we got back on June 17th. It's really nice for me to hear about all of the memories and feelings that people have collected during our 10 days in Kosovo. It has helped me re-embrace my memories and feelings of Kosovo that I have not been able to explain to my friends. I mean how do I talk to my loved ones about the trip that I just experienced? Do I explain all of the organizations that we went to, do I let them know all of the perspectives that we were given, would they even understand anything that I am telling them? This is something that we discussed during class. After being in Kosovo for 10 day and then going right back into the "real-world" it was and still is really tough for all of us to really explain the complexity of Kosovo. There is history to be taken into perspective, background on the organizations that we went to, and most importantly understanding how and why Kosovo has changed us.
       
        In the beginning of class when Anne told us that we were going to be discussing our experiences of the trip, what has changed our perspective of peace-building, and what had the most impact on us while in Kosovo it took me a little off guard. After she told us this you could almost feel everyone beginning to hold their breath. No one wanted to start or knew exactly what to say. But once Ivan told his perspective many others in class began to share their perspectives as well, almost like a domino effect. Being able to hear peoples high points, low points, or even life changing events really helped me put my thoughts back into various perspectives. This reminded me of the many different perspectives that were given to us inside Kosovo. It also made me relate these perspectives to the way that people interpret the same experience differently. For example, when someone listens to someone else speak some other people might hear a different perspective then the person next to them.
   
        I think that this is because of our emotions. Once you become emotionally attatched to another group you tend to forget about the groups around you and the hardships that have gone on in their lives as well. This is especially true if the side that you are emotionally attatched to had something bad happen to them by the other group. Yet, once you leave those emotions behind and begin to listen to all of the people or groups around you, you begin to start and see the whole picture more clearly. You have a 'what is' perspective within the society instead of a 'what is supposed to be' perspective of the society. This is true within any conflict resolution or resolution in general and especially true for a group of people that are coming into a society that is not known to them like we did. It was nice to know that peoples perspectives changed within our group from having a one sided view of one group, or even getting offended by what another group said, and then realizing that they had a bias view and rethought their perspective.        

           Overall this trip has really helped me see resolutions in a completely different way. I always knew that you have to listen to as many various views as you can but I never knew how complex it was to combine them all together when they have very little in common.

Peacekeeping? Keep walking, keep talking!

As you may guess by now, the field trip to Kosovo was super intense; emotionally as well as physically. In this post I just want to highlight the physical intensity. I am using a fitness tracker which keeps track of my daily movements and counts my steps. Here is the summary of the 10 days in Kosovo including travel days:

In 10 days I had 54 hours of sleep, made about a 103000 steps, which equals to a total distance of 78 kilometers. On average this means about 5.4 hours sleep per night, 10000 steps a day, which equals to an average distance of 7.8 kilometers per day.

Yes, field work is physical work, a place where theory meets practice and practice obviously requires some movement. But actually, it's not about theory, it's not about practice; it's about meeting people! And where do you meet people? Everywhere and anytime! The following graph illustrates this nicely:

Night time was obviously party time, followed by a quick nap, only to be ready for the excursion a few ours later. 

We truly enjoyed the Kosovo trip; the nightlife, the day-life, meeting people in nightclubs, meeting  people in official settings during the day, and meeting people at home. 

In other words, keeping peace means talking to people and in order to talk to people you need to walk to people. Thus, keep walking, keep talking! 

Back in Amsterdam

(By Jules Goslinga) In this blog post I would like to write about some of the sporadic thoughts I have had about our trip since we’ve returned. So, we’ve been back in the Netherlands for nearly a week now, and as with returning from any journey, it is easy to slide back into the usual patterns. I’m back in the environment I’m used to, with the people I’m used to, doing the things I’m used to doing. I realize that I have a somewhat less observing attitude compared to last week, paying less attention to signs of peace and conflict that were so prominent in Kosovo. This appears to be because of several reasons. First, here in the Netherlands, peacekeeping is not a daily matter for many people, let alone peace-building. Thus, lessons that apply in Kosovo concerning peace and conflict are triggered less frequently. However, in addition to this, our time in Kosovo was largely spent in a learning atmosphere, whereas the context in the Netherlands may not always be as academic and hence allowing for contemplation of our peace.  Lastly, the past couple of days have been filled with an overload of parties, birthdays, housewarmings, dinners, boat tours and, not unimportantly, Dormfest. The time I’ve had to critically look at our country from a peacekeeping perspective is rather limited.

Nevertheless, I hope that by acknowledging this tendency to slide back into my normal (thinking) patterns, I can also remind myself to become more conscious of the lessons learnt in Kosovo in my daily life. By repeatedly giving recognition to the different ways that the journey has made an impact on me, I hope make these impacts last. Perhaps most importantly is a change in my perspective. I believe that the most inspiring courses at AUC have made an addition to the things I become aware of when I am not actively engaging in the subject matter of that respective course. In other words, I notice more or different things and am able to understand and explain them, when, say, I’m walking through the street.

What also caught my attention upon returning was the apparent ease with which we as students were able to explore the various UN branches, NGOs, educational institutions, etc. On the pretext of understanding Kosovo’s circumstances and by taking an appropriate observing stance to the many debates, it is possible to come to learn about both sides to the conflict. We have experienced a hint of suspicion when talking to the Serbian population in Kosovo after having mentioned that we resided in Pristina and mainly talked to Albanian people. Nevertheless, most difficulties were resolved when it became clear that we did not want to choose a side in the debate, we simply wanted to understand the debate itself. Perhaps, some of the people even feel some responsibility towards students in order to avoid the atrocities that occurred during the war from happening again. In any case, I felt very welcomed by the people we met during our appointments and those we met more spontaneously. Interestingly, there have also been times where it seemed that some people, coming from rather unilateral environments, were more willing to discuss certain topics which were not up for debate within their own circles.

In conclusion, as the very loose structure of this blog entry (or complete lack thereof) may suggest, I believe that in the coming weeks randomly reemerging memories will trigger me to think about what the course has thought me about Kosovo, but also about the Netherlands, and ultimately, myself. I suppose it will take some time to let all the experience settle.

One week later

Here I am a week later, sitting at my kitchen table in the afternoon with the light on because the sky outside is so grey that having the curtains open isn't enough; "Yeah here is hot, same like the days you were here" Bardha messages me. Shorts and sandals seem like a distant memory. The tub of Kosovar cheese in my fridge is still almost full, it just doesn't taste the same when I'm not sitting at the kitchen table with five girls around me, sleep battling excitement in their eyes as we talk about the day's meetings ahead.

Those ten days in Kosovo already seem like a distant memory but I know that they will stay with us forever. The people that we met will stay in our hearts and their stories I hope will be shared with our friends and family by ourselves and by our projects. Although we all went with differing interests, and we all chose to focus on different things in our research, I think there is one particular issue that every one of us found impossible to ignore.

I myself chose, together with five others, to make a blog for the final project, on which we would share the Kosovar people's day to day lives, hopes, and dreams. We interviewed stall owners, bar keepers, and people walking through the streets and asked them why they like Kosovo and what they hope for the future. By this point we were already very aware of the issue but made sure not to bring it up ourselves, without any prompt, the vast majority of our interviewees referred to this particular issue when talking about the future: visa liberalisation.

The Kosovars are desperate to travel, young and old, whether it be out of pure curiosity or a wish to visit family and friends. But for those that are not travelling as part of an organisation it is near impossible. Currently, Kosovars can travel to fewer countries than citizens of North Korea. It's a terrible thing to be trapped in one part of the world like that, unimaginable to most of us, blessed with widely accepted and respected nationalities. It is also a violation of Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: the right to freedom of movement.

On the last evening, as we prepared to say goodbye to our new friends, especially Bardha and Enver who accompanied us almost continuously during those 10 days, it hit home what this really means in practice.

The elderly gentleman selling necklaces on the boulevard doesn't know if he'll be able to travel again in his time.

The friendly barman at Half & Half has never been able to visit his grandparents in Germany.

And, at least for now, we won't all be together again unless the entire Amsterda cohort managed a second trip to Pristina.

Being home and feeling more frustrated then ever.

(By Suzanne Groen)

Many people have most probably already reflected on our trip to Kosovo since we came back, but over the last couple of days I only really started to notice what an impact this Kosovo trip has had on me. Besides the busy schedule, we got to meet so many students and people who were, in so many ways, so similar to us. Hearing stories about the past: stories that deserve to be heard, but also stories that hold on to hatred and inspire "us" and "them" narrative; realizations that distinguishing between ethnicities is wrong, but subsequently also emphasizing the goodness of their own ethnicity and how they should fight for their honor and rights; a member of an NGO clearly accusing the other ethnicities of having committed atrocities and still continuing to do so.
The other always appears to be in the wrong and it has been so incredibly confusing. There are so many different truths, different realities, even about why Roma people live in poverty. Some said that they chose to do so, others said they were provided with equal chances in society, but then there are organizations who try to help these children in preparing them for education and making sure that they register for school. What is true? What is not? The line is so very thin and the truth is not necessarily in the middle. Where some Kosovar individuals still have hope for Kosovo others appear to have completely lost it. It was the latter that totally surprised me. Before we left the Netherlands, I thought we were going to visit a country that was definitely up and coming. It may have been babysteps, but they were definitely moving forward - so I thought. But when, one night, we took a cab to go back to our host's family house, the taxi driver welcomed us into his country and asked us whether we were having a good time. When we responded positively he acted merely surprised. 

"It's a country with many problems and it seems like nothing is going to change". 

- "Well, at least you are moving in some positive direction, right?" 

"Forward? Politics will always be corrupt and the rest of the world doesn’t even recognize us. We can’t go anywhere. Literally, we are stuck". 

It was the first time reality struck me. These people live in a country that has been fighting for its independence for such a long time, they are landlocked and the rest of Europe has turned its back on them. They cannot travel anywhere and the less progress they seem to be making the more and more people seem to get frustrated. I can’t imagine what will happen if Europe does not give them the very thing they need most: recognition and membership. These people need hope for a new future and for a country that is probably the most pro-European country in the world, (European NGO’s literally on every corner of the street) it is Europe that needs to give them that hope. If ‘we’ can save Kosovo then what the hell is stopping ‘us’?