PVA Article Competition P3 Culture Trips

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More than amazing - Bonaire

By Anna Vesterager Find

Some people love playing football and sports, for others painting or being creative is their thing , but for me it ’s diving. I had diving as my first profile subject and once I heard of the Bonaire Coral restoration culture subject I was hooked. I must admit, it was not the weekl y classes that pulled but knowing it would only be a matter of time until I could once again smell the ocean and hear the bubbles rising from the bottom of the sea towards the surface.

The first thing I noticed upon arriving at the airport on Bonaire was the heat. Even in the evening it was hot, but never would I have guessed the midday sun would be so harsh That didn’t matter too much though, since I up to four times a day felt the slightly cold , however, refreshing temperature of the water.

When entering I made sure not to slip on the many stones on the beach. With each wave I went further and further until I could no longer

touch the rocky bottom and with the signal from my dive instructor we dived under. Then the only sound in my ears was the steady hiss from my regulator when breathing

As we descended deeper and deeper, we neared the edge of the wall reef. Although I had heard many say wall reefs are as beautiful as anything could be I was not prepared for the sight and feeling that awaited me

Upon swimming over the edge of the wall I was

Billede af Anna Vesterager Find

hit by a sudden fear of heights It is the same feeling as when looking over the edge of a cliff or skyscraper, except you in fact are over the edge and not falling. I don’t think there are many other ways to get an experience anything like this

Further down we used our torches to shine light in the holes between corals and in stones, where fish and octopuses were hiding , moving in and out. Some were seeking the light and o thers shying away.

In one hole I spotted a lionfish, the only fish that is hunted in the reefs around Bonaire, since it is an invasive species.

Later during the trip we visited a food truck that sold lionfish burgers, and of course I had to try it, since I had been told time and time again that the ir spikes are deadly.

Helping in the Mangrove

Even though I was not fond of the rotten egg like smell in the Mangrove or the crabs, I cannot begin to describe how giving it felt to help not only the mangrove forest but also the volunteering locals with their mission My fellow students and I were all digging, sawing, chopping or whichever way we saw fit to remove the dead roots under the trees in the water, since it was our assignment to help create a better waterflow in the mangrove, by removing the small dead roots The waterflow is important not only to the trees but also for animals

The mangrove is home for crabs and is an important nursery for the fish living in the reef. The fish lay their eggs in the mangrove and when they hatch the mangrove roots provides safety from

predators and all the nutrients the baby fish needs

The day after being in the mangrove, we helped planting new mangrove trees. I was surprised to

learn they do it not only for coa stal protection but also to keep the island from washing away. I learned that the roots of the mangrove trees holds the sand and dirt in pla ce

Apparently, because the project is small and was only restarted in 2019 , we, the students from REC, planted 10% of all the plants they have planted so far.

On this trip I believe I have assisted in two o f the UN’s sustainable goals: goal no. 13 - Climate action and goal no. 14 - Life below water. I have not written much about the coral restoration part in this text, but on the trip, we helped cutting , tying and planting new corals, since the coral reefs are dying

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Brazil - Ranum Efterskole College 22/23

Brazil. Where should I begin. There is so much to talk about this country, and of the impressions I had during this trip. Everything from the vociferous and chaotic traffic, tall buildings, and millions of people in Rio de Janeiro to the simple life on top of a mo untain, where everything that was to do, was swim in the waterfalls and watch the sunset.

Our trip was a mix of life in the big city, staying on a Brazilian ranch, and the relaxing life in a tourist hot spot.

By Mikkeline Meinertz Student 540

We started out in Rio de Janeiro, the 27th biggest city in the world, with a population of nothing less than 11.900.000 people - twice as many people as the whole country of Denmark!

Here we stayed a total of 3 days - split into two parts

The days were spent walking around the city, visiting the famous statue called Cristo Redentor, taking the cable cart to the top of Sugarloaf Mountain, shopping and visiting the famous Copacabana Beach.

Our second stop of the trip was on an Equestrian School, established by a Danish man, who came to Brazil as a child.

Here we rode horses (mountain bikes for the non -experienced riders) through a banana plantation and cooled down in the rivers.

It was amazing listening to Mara talk about how her, now deceased, husband had come to Brazil with his family, all the way from Denmark and started Escola Desempenho. She even showed us the toy- farm that was brought from Denmark to Brazil in the 1940’s, and the trees that has been planted in his memory.

She was so enthusiastic, it clearly shined through how much, she loved her home, and what she And Bjarke had built up together.

One of the current biggest problems is Brazil, is deforestation. Lots and lots of r ainforest is being taken down because some need the land for farming. This will, and has already, had a negative impact on the global climate, and luckily some people take this problem in their own hands.

We visited REGUA - Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaç u, who taught us about tropical deforestation. They showed us before and after pictures of the restored areas, and we also planted our own trees, that will hopefully grow big and absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

And then to my favorite part of the trip, which probably is an unpopular opinion, was the 24 hours we spent on top of a mountain in the Brazilian jungle.

We first walked all the way up, in the 30 -degree heat, and I agree that this part wasn’t pleasant, but the waterfalls we swam in made it all worth it.

We watched a beautiful sunset and a sky full of stars, like I have never seen it before.

negative impact on the global climate, and luckily some people take this problem in their own hands.

We visited REGUA - Reserva Ecológica de Guapiaç u, who taught us about tropical deforestation. They showed us before and after pictures of the restored areas, and we also planted our own trees, that will hopefully grow big and absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

And then to my favorite part of the trip, which probably is an unpopular opinion, was the 24 hours we spent on top of a mountain in the Brazilian jungle. We first walked all the way up, in the 30 -degree heat, and I agree that this part wasn’t pleasant, but the waterfalls we swam in made it all worth it. We watched a beautiful sunset and a sky full of stars, like I have never seen it before.

It all ended off with some relaxing days and more spare time when we stayed in Paraty. An old town with beautiful buildings, where we went on a boat-tour and swam in crystal blue water.

Unfortunately, we have also witnessed the not so insta -worthy parts of this delectable town:

As we were strolling through the pretty streets in Paraty, where our only worries were which souvenir to buy first, we saw homeless people trying to sleep in the side of the street. Some didn’t even have a blanket to sleep under, and instead tried to stay warm, by covering themselves with a deconstructed cardboard box.

While learning and discovering, we also had time for something just as important - spending time together with our friends and creating memories for the rest of our li ves.

I hope that I will forever remember the hilarious nicknames we created and drinking games Sif taught us in the jungle. (Of course, the alcohol was replaced by electrolyte water)

I hope that I will forever remember the delicious Acai bowls in Paraty, that were just too good, not to be consumes twice in a day.

I hope that I will forever remember the funniest and craziest bus ride of my life, that took place in Rio de Janeiro.

And I hope to have many more trips and memories like this in the future. Alt hough, they won’t be with Ranum Efterskole.

Anna Valentin Cronqvist, elev 548

Lergulvet føles koldt under vores bare fødder, og røgelsespinde fylder rummet med en skarp sødlig duft. Vi har lige overværet vores nepalesiske værtsfamilies morgenbøn i deres lille tempel, og nu skiftes vi selv til at sætte os på knæ og bede til den hinduistiske statue. Klokken er 6.30, og vi er lige vågnet i landsbyen Mechehhe i de nepalesiske bjerge. Det er her, vi begynder rejsen. I går aftes var vi fremmede, men nu føles vi allerede som en del af familien. Familiernes gavmildhed har overvældet os, og det har virkelig været enestående at opleve, hvor meget de giver ud, på trods af hvor lidt de selv har.

Det næste døgn besøgte vi den skønneste lokale skole og dannede tætte bånd med børnene, hvilket var helt specielt, og noget jeg virkelig værdsætter at have oplevet. Men også aftenen hos værtsfamilien var uforglemmelig, og de betydningsfulde samtaler, hvor vi udvekslede vores kulturer, har været en fantastisk oplevelse, og det satte kæmpe indtryk.

Inden længe drog vi dog videre ud for at se en ny side af Nepal og efter en lang og hyggelig bustur dagen efter, stod vi pludselig og kunne kigge ud mod Himalaya bjergene, den mest betagende udsigt jeg længe har set. Derefter gik destinationen mod det tropiske Chitwan i det sydlige Nepal. Her havde vi det vildt grineren, da vi deltog i deres lokale show. Næste morgen blev flere af os også rimelig udfordrede, da vi skulle sætte os i en smal træ-kano for at sejle med krokodiller i den nærliggende nationalpark. Crazy oplevelse!

Ved enden af rejsen styrede vi mod Kathmandu, men ramte resortet Himalika Camp på vejen Stedet her viste sig at være den dejligste oase, hvor vi fik mulighed for at puste ud og slappe af. Det var også her, jeg havde nogle af de mest værdifulde samtaler med de andre fra holdet, da vi lå i hængekøjerne og kiggede op på den stjernefyldte himmel. Det er i sådanne

øjeblikke, at det går op for en, hvor heldige vi egentlig er at få mulighed for sådan en tur. Et par dage i campen hjalp med at skabe en balance på turen, så vi fik ladt batterierne op,

lille land som gav mig de største oplevelser

vildt grineren, da vi deltog i deres lokale show. Næste morgen blev flere af os også rimelig

udfordrede, da vi skulle sætte os i en smal træ-kano for at sejle med krokodiller i den nærliggende nationalpark. Crazy oplevelse!

Ved enden af rejsen styrede vi mod Kathmandu, men ramte resortet Himalika Camp på vejen. Stedet her viste sig at være den dejligste oase, hvor vi fik mulighed for at puste ud og slappe af. Det var også her, jeg havde nogle af de mest værdifulde samtaler med de andre fra holdet, da vi lå i hængekøjerne og kiggede op på den stjernefyldte himmel. Det er i sådanne

øjeblikke, at det går op for en, hvor heldige vi egentlig er at få mulighed for sådan en tur. Et par dage i campen hjalp med at skabe en balance på turen, så vi fik ladt batterierne op, inden vi som afslutning skulle udforske den pulserende hovedstad Kathmandu.

At køre fra de fredfyldte bjerge til den travle befolkningstætte dal beviste igen, hvor meget forskelligt vi nåede at få oplevet Det er virkelig noget, som jeg blev positivt overrasket over ved turen!

I den kaotiske storby nåede vi både at opleve vilde hinduistiske templer og spise på lækre gourmetrestauranter. Men hvad, der satte størst indtryk, var faktisk skolen, vi besøgte i hovedstaden. Denne skole var helt klart rigere end skolen i bjergene, og det var sindssyg fedt at kunne tale ordentligt med eleverne og lærerne, for her var de langt bedre til engelsk. Vi fik en vildt interessant samtale med skolelederen omkring FN’s verdensmål og uddannelse og arbejde i Nepal, og det var mega spændende at høre om og kunne sammenligne med, hvad vi er vant til herhjemme.

Helt generelt har turen virkelig sat nogle tanker i gang omkring vores liv i Danmark. Hver dag blev vi mødt af de sødeste mennesker, og landet har oprigtigt noget af den smukkeste kultur og natur, jeg har set. Desuden følte man sig virkelig trygl når man begav sig rundt, og bare det, at vi elever fik lov at gå rundt selv, viser jo, hvor sikkert et land vi besøgte. Selvom rejsen kun varede i 12 dage, er det ikke engang løgn, når jeg siger, at jeg føler mig som en anden, end før jeg tog afsted. Alt hvad jeg lærte og de tætte venskaber, jeg skabte, er kun en lille del af det, jeg fik med hjem i bagagen. Minderne er nogle, jeg vil huske og kigge tilbage på i lang tid, og turen til Nepal har helt klart været et højdepunkt på mit efterskoleår!

The country that reaches the sky: Nepal

By: Alejandra Torres Herrera

Getting out of the plane and stepping in this very extraordinary country for the first time is an experience I will never forget

Nepal has been a cultural shock in all the words meaning Starting from the ride to the hotel and seeing Katmandu with all the people; the bikes; the traffic; the tall and worn down buildings, it was chaotic but there is a certain beauty in chaos.

After a little bit of sightseeing, we headed through beautiful southern valleys, our destination: the friendship school Upon arrival, we introduced ourselves to the children who greeted us with Malas and Tika At the beginning, the children were a bit shy, but it didn’t take long until they opened up and started playing with us Right before the sun set each of us headed to our host families. They were extremely nice and welcomed us to their home with a content smile. The daughters prepared the dinner and I was surprised when they didn’t eat with us at the table For them, the guests are first to eat, and then after the host eats the remains of the food Luckily our host spoke English and we found out about his life and his ties to Ranum Efterskole I went to bed with tired eyes and woke up the next morning ready to hike up to the school Between games and classes the day flew by and we were already heading to our next destination…

We made a brief stop in Nagarkot where we could rest and watch the beautiful sunset and sunrise We had a nice trek the day after and headed to the home of mighty beats: the jungle (Chitwan National Park) Where we got to watch a show of a traditional dance which included coordination and fire The next day they took us for a beautiful and relaxing canoe trip and walked through the jungle in search of animals. But in the walk we were so loud that the only thing we saw was our shadows. Although we didn't leave Chitwan empty handed because we went to see the elephant birthing center soon after

Arriving at Kimalika Camp was a relief as we were all exhausted We finally got some time to relax and swim in the river and go to sleep under the night sky Next morning we woke up early and had an exquisite breakfast, got ready and jumped into the rafting boat. We had an awesome time despite the accident with Nigel and the many burned skins.

The trip was soon over, only one last destination: Kathmandu We visited numeros temples and emptied our wallets; but most importantly we had fun and learned much about this different culture Nepal is a country with a very rich culture and many things to experience I recommend everyone to come and see it for themself, I promise you it will be worth your time!

The Way We See the World

Tamar Youngster

Throughout my trip to Nepal, I experienced so many amazing moments. But there's one day that still feels fresh in my memory, even now , weeks after the trip.

On one of the first days, we visited a friendship school located in a small, isolated village in the mountains. As we climbed up the steep, rocky path, sounds of students jokingly grumbling and complaining to their friends could be heard. We were all sweating through our shirts by the time we got to the school, and needless to say, were relieved to have arrived.

One of the first things I noticed when we greeted the Nepalese children was their shoes –they were all wearing slippers, the kind you would wear to the pool, or the shower. I could see that a lot of them needed a larger shoe size. But none of them complained or even brought it up. These elementary school students walk up and down this mountain every day in slippers without a fuss, but we, years older than them, with our fancy hiking boots and gear, couldn't even manage it without whinging about it.

Before we came to Nepal, we had collected donations of clothes and toys to bring to the children. So, while we were playing with the Nepalese kids, the teachers were organizing all of the donations in a classroom. Throughout the afternoon, I saw little boys and girls standing outside the classroom window, pressing their face to it and peering longingly in. They were so looking forward to getting new clothes. And when they finally did, they were so, so happy. I saw them going in, looking as if this was one of the best days of their life, and coming out with their smiles even wider. Backpacks bulging with clothes, dolls and games, they came to show us their newly acquired belongings.

There was one boy who got new shoes, the kind that light up when you stomp. He excitedly ran up to us, stomping his feet and showing us the flashing lights. I truly think he showed them to every person there – he was just so overjoyed to get proper shoes, so proud of them.

Another girl eagerly showed me that she had received some new crayons and a drawing pad. She was thrilled about them, as before she had needed to share the colors and paper with all the other students at the school. She was so glad to have something that was just for her.

I believe the reaction that stuck with me the most was that of a little girl, perhaps five years old, who received a new, thick winter jacket. It was around thirty degrees outside , the Nepalese sun shining brightly, and yet, the girl wouldn’t take the jacket off. It was a few sizes too small for her (the sleeves only reached the middle of her arm), but she insisted on keeping it on.

It was that moment, I think, that made me realise how lucky I am. Here in Denmark, we complain about too much homework, or how we don't feel like eating what was made for dinner. We take stuff like new clothes, shoes, and even school for granted. Those children that we met have so little. Seeing them that day, jumping with joy, truly made me look differently at the world.

Adventures in Rio de Janeiro

A journey to Brazil with wonderful experiences, breathtaking views and learning how to save rainforests

Is it really necessary to get up this early (or rather never go to bed) just to travel halfway around the world? After a long flight students and teachers finally arrived at Rio de Janeiro. The journey started with dinner at a fastfood restaurant with delicious burgers followed by a good night's sleep back at the hotel

I wish to wish the wish you wish

The following day the program was set to sugarloaf mountain where half the day was spent There was a wide variety of different animals spotted while hiking through the adventure path There was also a wish tree where several students jumped through in hopes that their long awaited wish shall be granted After this, the group proceeded back down where they headed to Copacabana beach and enjoyed the burning sun and cool water Some time was spent walking around Rio, where everybody got to see how different the city was from a city back in Denmark Soon the second day was near over, with dinner still ahead before going back to the hotel to get one last night's sleep and then heading onwards to a new destination - continuing the journey

Stirrups, saddles and sunburns

Now, it was time to either go horseback riding or bike riding As half the students and teachers got their riding lessons, the other half went on a biking trip that felt like it would last forever but in reality only took about two hours even though it was supposed to last two and a half When out biking the group stopped at several places where they learned about the history and culture of Desempenho While many were getting used to a saddle and how not to fall off their assigned horse, others were struggling to keep up with the biking instructors Although a busy day, most students enjoyed the opportunity to try horseback riding The following day was even better with a long ride heading towards a town with a nice river to cool off the sweating cyclists and the many sunburns due to insufficient sunscreen application

(Trail ride, Desempenho)

Climate action & life on land

Exploring and learning about how to save the rainforest may just have been the most important part of the trip as it is essential for the developing world to know how to maintain important ecosystems and help the life on land grow in order to slow down the climate change The first day spent with the

(Wish Tree, Sugarloaf Mountain and a view of Cristo Redentor)

REGUA organization was based on learning about how they replant and maintain forest in order to help endangered animal and plant species repopulate Three days later, the students got to take action in helping REGUA plant trees at Desempenho.

Chasing waterfalls

The two days following the day at REGUA would be as close to survival in nature as anybody could get on the trip with no wifi and a toilet that consisted of a hole in the ground. The first day was the sweatiest, hiking uphill to a humid rainforest campsite After reaching the camp everybody found their tents and changed into bathing clothes before heading to the first waterfall where the fresh water was enjoyed by many students Some time later it was time to head back before hiking to another waterfall. At the second waterfall there was a cliff where several students jumped from while others preferred sunbathing The next day started out with a final trip to a waterfall where there also was a great cliff to jump from After heading back and eating lunch the path was set downhill, continued by a drive from the bottom and back to Desempenho to enjoy one more night there before heading back to Rio de Janeiro

Adventure on the sea and in Paraty

The last days of the trip were spent in Paraty where there were many small shops to explore along with a dock where the teachers had rented a boat for everybody to join in the adventure on the sea Several stops were made in order to go for a swim and enjoy the ocean view. Delicious food was served before heading back to enjoy the rest of the day on land

The last day was nothing but relaxation and freetime before beginning the journey home

(Street in Paraty)

Simply the best

After many experiences and inspiring adventures, the trip came to an end too soon Looking back it is safe to say that the trip was definitely worth the trouble of flying so far and getting up so early. Exhausted but cheerful students and teachers are ready to enjoy the long flight home and treasure the memory of Rio de Janeiro, Desempenho and Paraty forever

Af Sophie Vesterby