Guest Blog: UNT Professors in Kosovo Day 5
Jun 16, 2010
Day Five in Kosovo:
Slovene Village Camp, 2010
Slovene Village Children, 2003
This morning we drove through the last remaining camp in Gjakove. Vlora has lived in camps ever since the war and this is her home now. As we drove through we saw the building where the SMF offered its very first programming at the end of the war. We were taken aback to see children the age of Jennifer’s daughter and younger…these children were born in the camps and know no other way of life. The world must not forget that while the war in Kosovo is over, the consequences of war are still very fresh and an entire new generation is suffering.
Vigan and Burim Teaching First Skivjan Village Singing Class
After viewing the camp we went to a nearby village, Skivjan, where SMF is starting a new class. As we drove up in the jeep, children jumped on the bumper and banged on the windows in excitement. Nearly 140 children showed up for their first music class. The children in the village are not accustomed to classroom rules but try very hard to follow the new rules. With Burim leading a team of teen volunteers and Liz solving problems on the spot, the children master their very first song. “A ram sam sam, a ram sam sam, guli, guli, guli, guli, guli, ram sam sam” goes through our heads for the rest of the day and reminds us of the smiling faces and loud voices in the village singing class.
Skivjan Children Singing "A Ram Sam Sam"
When it came time to leave, many of the children practiced their English saying, “good to meet you!” To keep them safe from the jeep an adult had to walk behind and pull children off as they leapt to the bumper over and over again.