Started learning how to count one to five in Greek, simple words like Yassas (hello), Efharisto (Thank you), parakalo (you welcome) we all got super excited for Greece. Once we cleared immigration and heading to the exit, we met our driving assistant and took us all the way to the huge pink remarkable bus. The first reaction to all of us right after we step out of the airport was, “it is a nice weather”, 14 degrees. We were exploring Athens and appreciating the scenery through the windows of the bus while the driving assistant was telling us about the city. A lot of narrow roads, abundant in sour orange, no skyscrapers, beautiful architecture. In half an hour of driving, we get to our hotel, Athens Studio, funny WiFi password, angusburger. Leaving our staffs in the hotel and showered, we left for lunch in Athens Studio Hotel restaurant and headed to our respective refugee camps, my group to Eleonas which is about twenty minutes driving from the hotel.
Some of us didn’t feel positive when the guards collect our passports at the gate until they explained to us it is to make sure everyone has left at night as no overnight guest is allowed in the camp. Because the passport is the most important thing for us in such situations and there is a rumor that refugees look for other people’s passport especially those whom they look alike (in fact they usually look for European passports as their intention is to get to London or Germany). We Walk to our dancing room while observing the Containers (family homes). As Lea Dao Van (our assistant from Al Sistema organization) was calling the children while giving us a quick overview of the camp. The children were super excited to learn dance, they have no idea about our dance skills. They are lovely and very welcoming, they couldn’t wait for the door to open and start dancing. Before we get started the dance, we were worrying for language barrier as they are from different countries, but it went well, a lot of them speak basic English.
Looking at their shiny smiles and how exciting they are to learn dance, enjoy with us, we all share a bad feeling about the situations happening back in their country. Made some of us think a lot about politics, could politics solve these issues or people got economically greedy and they found wealth better than human life? How come people in this world get extremely opposite, some chase you from your own home country and others, who don’t even know you, accept and makes you feel home.
We had a short tour of the camp at the end and started questioning Lea at the gate while getting our passports back. Some of us weren’t satisfied with the answer we got about the restriction of photographs and video recordings. We were told their families won’t be happy about that but why they won’t be happy? Why don’t they want their kids’ photo to be on Facebook? Thinking about these questions and so many others we left for dinner and back to our hotel afterward.
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During the first day, we went to the Eleonas Refugee Camp in Athens. I did not know what to expect, because I have never been in a refugee camp that hosts over a thousand people. As soon as we arrived to the camp, I noticed that there was a lot of movement through the gate: many young men and women were coming in and out of the camp, usually carrying bags. I noticed then that some of them seemed to have food inside their bags, hence possibly indicating that, during that time of the day, people were coming back and forth from the market in order to bring food supplies to their families.
Going through the same gate so many people cross everyday, we arrived at the camp. The security guard at the entrance of the camp collected our passports before we entered. One of the students asked our guide (from El Sistema Organization) why we had to hand our passports in. She explained that the reason why it is necessary to hand passports in is to make sure that all visitors leave the camp at the end of the day, as overnight guests are not allowed in the camp.
Crossing the entrance gate, I felt quite interested in the atmosphere and dynamics of the camp. People were living inside containers and trailers. On the left side, I remember seeing some young men inside brushing their teeth inside the containers and waving for our group. Later on, we further discussed the situation of young men in the camps, and what strategies need to be adopted in order to include them in activities inside and outside the camp. As most activities are geared towards children and women, some may claim that men are left out. According to Lea from El Sistema, most of what they do is smoking and playing soccer. It would be interesting to provide them with other activities that would enrich their lives as well.
Arriving in the activities room, we met many children that were very excited to learn dance from us. During our dance lesson, I realized something interesting about the kids there. Before being refugees, they are children, like any other. Hence, they behave like other children I have encountered in my life; they are naughty, funny, smart, curious and never stop. When referring to refugee kids, some tend to over-idealize their behavior and attitudes as a means of allowing for the generation of pity towards the child. However, reality is very different from what I imagined: children are and behave like children, including in the refugee camp. This was a quite fascinating discovery for me, because it made me realize that, perhaps, the traumatizing experiences that those kids went through in order to reach Greece did not make their inner child fade away. They remain childish, which is beautiful.
Besides this realization, the experience at Eleonas Camp also made me realize that working with refugees is a quite difficult job, albeit rewarding. One of the main difficulties I think I would face if I would work for a long term with refugees would be controlling my attachment with the children. Although I was in this camp for only a day, I felt really connected with one of the children from Iraq. As people were dancing, we were playing together and, for some reason, I just felt so connected. I tend not to be a very emotional person in these situations. Yet, this time, my mind was just so fully involved in the environment and with the people there that I just felt extremely engaged. Saying goodbye was pretty hard, especially because I knew that I would probably not see him again.