DACIA

On Monday 21st January the group got up exceptionally early all too aware that we had a massive day ahead of us, but that the huge journey was to come first.

We all got on the bus and headed off to Dacia. The bus journey itself took us at least two hours but as usual it flew in as games of eye spy and loads of singing filled the bus. The scenery around us was amazing but the further we travelled the more it seemed like we were going the wrong way. The snow outside grew deeper and looked at least 1 meters and the density of the forests outside grew with it, but it was beautiful. The majority of the group just sat and looked on at awe at world outside us.

2 hours after our journey began we pulled into a tiny little village. This we were told is Dacia. We were warned from the start of the day that we were all to get out of the bus, stay in groups of twos and threes and walk straight to the school. We were to stop for no-one. This was purely for our own safety but the village amazed me so much it was hard. The people who lived there were in poverty. They relied on us for anything we could do for them. The thing though that really struck me was as we walked in our groups I knew each and every one of us were walking over the frozen open sewer that ran down the middle of the street. I cast my eyes around and was drawn to what looked like a pump. I was told that this was the villages water system, everyone was forced to use this one pump or not to use water at all. The snow was high up round it and all I could think of was if it was frozen, which it most likely would have been, where do the villagers get their water from now? Water, something so simple to us and so readily available to us must be such a precious resource to them.

We went into the school and the School Aid Romania group divided and each went to different classrooms. I was in a very small group which went into a class which was probably equivalent to a P5 classroom here. The children stood up in silence immediately and the little boy at the front of the class at the board continued doing his Maths. It was worlds apart from the commotion at Bradet. The children were all very timid and quiet but we could see they were all inquisitive about these guests in their classroom.

5 minutes later and the children were transformed. Their smiles were massive, their laughter rang out in the corridor and all of them just wanted to play and show you about the school. The school itself was one level and the one corridor which connected all the classrooms was freezing, but the rooms itself were being kept warm by big metal furnaces. The kids were very proud of their work but soon exercise books were left abandoned and people moved outside to watch the Romanian kids play the male members of our group a game of football. Of course Northern Ireland lost!!! (the kids they were playing were only about nine or ten!)

The two girls, Sauda and Vaneska I was with were getting cold so we went back inside and I was introduced to a little boy who I had seen running about earlier. It was Vaneskas little brother (aged 6) and he was the cutest little boy I think I have ever laid eyes on. Someone had given him a sachet of Pantene shampoo (the typical free sample you would find in a magazine) and I think they had made his week. He was beaming from ear to ear and kept running up and poking people and rubbing the sachet on his head, giggling and running off. He was just so grateful for this.

It was today in this noisy school that it hit me how little these kids had. As the morning went on I saw other examples of the extent of the poverty in Dacia. Kids with balloons were trying to untie the knots in them so they could take them home to their families and they were just as grateful for a bar of soap as for sweets if not more so. The kids were really good and didnt tend to ask for much but the odd request I did hear was for toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, soap etc and if it was received it was put to the bottom of their bags to be kept safe until they made it home later. Vaneska simply commented to me about how my hair bobble went with my earrings. I looked at her and could see she was admiring it so when she was talking to another member of the group I took it out of my hair and put it in her hand. Her face lit up and she pulled me down to her level, gave me a kiss on the cheek and a huge hug and I thought Wow. That hair bobble cost me 25p, so simple yet made one little girl so happy. It is something you cannot understand unless you have experienced such a place for yourself. It is so sad that these kids live in such poverty with holes in the ground for toilets yet you are so happy you have been able to achieve a smile because that smile is what makes the travelling, the fund raising and the preparation all worth while.

People who lived in the village came into the school begging and I spotted a couple of mothers with their babies but a lot of the group had given most of what they had to the kids already and as time went on the villagers got a bit agitated. I think the staff decided it was better to go now before any more arrived and the group was made to make a rather hasty exit. The little boy with the shampoo however did not seem to approve this hasty exit and came over and grabbed me as I was about to go. I lifted him up and gave him a hug but every time I left him down I could see the big brown eyes looking up at me and it was impossible to go. The teachers insisted though that we had to leave so he walked with me to the bus, still running about and playing and stood with Vaneska and Sauda as we all boarded. The majority of the school were outside along with some of the villagers and all stood and waved good bye as the bus pulled away. I waved for as long as I could and then went to find my seat, the emotions I was experiencing were multiple but one thing I knew, I would never forget Dacia.

RUPEA

We visited Rupea the same day that we had visited Dacia. There is an unbelievable difference between the two places. Dacia, as you have read, was not in a good state at all but Rupea was a nice building and was well decorated inside.

I had been shopping the day before with Mr.McReynolds and all of the aid that we had bought was to be given to Rupea. We carried in bags and bags of pasta, pickles and sweets as well as stereos and CDs.

The CDs were put on immediately and it was obvious that the girls all loved music, five of the girls cleared the floor of people and gave us a dance routine to one of the songs, then the music was switched off and all of the girls sang to us. The night before we visited Rupea we were asked to prepare something to perform to the girls so once they had finished their performance we started ours. Judith and one of the girls from Maghera did Irish dancing and Paula played the flute and to finish it off the girls sang Lean on me.

Once the performances had all finished we all began talking to the girls and giving out the aid that we had brought. I hadnt brought all that much for girls, only a few hair bobbles, hair brushes and purses, although they were very grateful for what you gave them you could see that they really wanted was perfume.

I sat down beside a girl who was twelve, called Alexandra and gave her a colouring book and a set of colouring pencils. We began colouring but as soon as we had started her pencil lead broke! I sharpened it for her and she turned to me and said that she would be back in a minute. I sat talking to another younger child for a minute then Alex came back with a purple teddy bear and said This is for you! Alex then took me by the hand up to her room and she showed me her school books and her art work. I know people who are amazing at art but it didnt even come close to the work that Alex had done. She had painted portraits of her friends, the view from her window and a picture of her classroom, not to mention the copies of famous paintings. I then tried to speak a little Romanian, quite unsuccessfully I might add. Everything that I said in Romanian Alex just had to laugh at and say it about a thousand times before I pronounced it right!

I spent all of my time in Rupea with Alex, just talking and looking at her work but when we were told that it was time to go I found it really hard saying goodbye and finding something that I could give her that wouldnt seem cheap or worthless. But I found a watch that I had bought to give to someone who I really connected with. I brought it out of my bag and gave it to her and the smile that crossed her face was just unbelievable. But even then I didnt feel that I had given enough and I ended up just opening my bag and saying that she could have anything she wanted and all she took was a Taz bar. Ill never forget going to Rupea, even though it was the cleanest and nicest place that we visited I will never forget the kindness and warmth of it.