Making dinosaur soup :))

Yesterday, one of the coolest things happened. I read on Facebook that there was going to be a theater workshop at the University of Warsaw, organized by the ESN Network for the Erasmus students who are interested in the sublime arts of scene representation.

The most interesting thing of all is that everything happens in polish, thus you are able to learn more words in this beautiful, but quite complicated language. I had two weeks of intensive polish in the middle of September, but to tell you the truth I managed only to learn a few words and phrases. Our teacher, the marvelous, Danuta was great, but she did not speak English so good, due to that, some of the things she said remained a mystery at least to me, I do not know what my colleagues felt.  

When I say that we speak in polish, do not be alarmed the girls that were our “teachers” explained every word or phrase that we did not know. It was pretty nice to actually implement what we learn during those exhausting hours. I liked my polish course, but I did like three hours and a half per day, so it was a bit hard to remember from one day to the next what we learned. Still, the base of the language we “caught” it here, during the two weeks before the academic year properly started.

Moving on, I was telling you about this kind of interactive course. The meeting for the workshop was at 18.30, so we tried to be on time, punctuality is not our strongest quality, but we arrived at the designated hour :d. Surprise, surprise! Me and my dear friend, Giorgiana were the first people to come.

I did not tell you were the workshop takes place. So, you know the building where the International Bureau Office is, the one that deals with all Erasmus issues. You have to know it, since we all had to go there to pick up our student cards at the beginning of the year.  Well, in this building at the ground floor there is a room that has a complicated name: “Brudzińskiego”.

Don’t worry,it’s easy to find it. Just look at the big board that is in the hall of the entrance, you can’t miss it! There, you will see all the classrooms from the building, the one that has the previous name and the number seven on the list, is what you are looking for. But if you didn’t manage this way, then there is a more simple way to get here. Enter the building, walk straight ahead and stop. You have two options, to turn right or left. Choose the first, walk until you reach the wardrobe part of the hall and just in front you will see the workshop room.

So, as I was saying, me and my friend arrived first. On Facebook we saw that more than 15 people said that they will be at the meeting. Guess this shows that this mean of wide public communication can’t be trusted. There were two nice girls that were expecting us, one is Paulina and the other Agatha (hope, I wrote their names right :D). Really nice and pleasant people.

We felt a bit uncomfortable because it was just us, four, but soon someone else came, a boy from Germany, Simone (I do not know if it was with S or Z). The workshop organizers wanted to wait 15 more minutes for other people, but at the end of this academic quarter, no new appearances were made. Thus the five of us were left to actually take part in the program that they had prepared for us. Again I felt restless and yes, weird because we were such a small group.

Did I mention that the add on Facebook concerning this cultural and interactive activity, said, and I quote “Do you want to learn Polish and have fun at the same time? We will use drama and theater techniques to practice Polish language and explore Polish culture in a friendly atmosphere. You will have an opportunity to use nonverbal and verbal communication and to test words and phrases useful in your everyday dealings. We invite people with different levels of Polish, including the beginners. You don't need to have any acting experience or special capacities.” This made me think that maybe a lot of people were interested in this kind of subject and I thought that I would meet more people.

Now, the most important question is “did I get bored?”. My answer is honest, NO, definitely NOT! I had a great time. We played a lot of games that involved polish words, we did games that talked about our passions, our thoughts about who we will be in the future and most pleasant of all, nearly at the end of the class we conjured up a short play where we had to use the words that we learned during the workshop. For this small act we also had props, because the girls brought a lot of stuff, like red and black hats, bowls used in the kitchen, kitchen aprons, scarves, spoons, a green toy dinosaur and other stuff.

So, we had to think about using the props that they gave us and the words that we learned to construct a short scenario.

I am proud to say that yesterday was the day when I ate dinosaur soup :)). Yes, you heard right! But, of course it wasn't real soup, an imaginary one, cooked by our German friend and my friend, Giorgiana who acted as his wife.

“Gotować zupę dinozaura” – “I am cooking dinosaur soup” became my favorite phrase.  Our play involved the nice couple, staying at home, having a nice evening and waiting to have dinner, when there is a knock at the door.

Tananana, there is an unexpected guest, me :D. I come in find out that they are making dinosaur soup, get mad and leave in tears, because I ate the most horrible thing ever, I ate T-rex :)). As you can see, the workshop brings something new, it is a different kind of experience and I, for one recommended it.

Moreover, it would be really nice if more people showed up next time, because the girls, Paulina and Agatha put a lot of work in this, so they should be rewarded somehow. The meetings take place, every Wednesday from 18.30 to 20.00 and they will keep on going until January, so you have a lot of time to come and join in. One more thing that you should know is that every meeting is going to be a kind of follow up of the previous one, so it is better to came earlier. Now, least, but most important of all, is that this workshop is free! The advantages are on your side, you get to meet people, learn more about the polish language and traditions and you get to have a great time, laughing at our own "art". 

That is all from me! Have a great day!

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