Category: Column

Helen Hoffmann│helenhoffmann@outlook.com Depending on the university you attend, you either have just started your Euroculture journey, or you are about to embark on it. Surely the coordinators of the programme have sent you some explanations and instructions already (and they will send you many, many more, so brace yourself for the next two years). But … Continue reading Archive 2013 || “Make the most of it” Experienced Euroculturers share their advices with the new MA Euroculture Students

Suzanna Fatyan│susanna202001@yahoo.com I am from Uzbekistan, a country with ancient history, amazing people and an unforgettable atmosphere. When I studied in Europe and travelled around, I met people who, surprisingly, had never heard of my country. Frankly speaking, it made me embarrassed! Ever since then, I have wanted to write about my country, at least … Continue reading Where are you from? Uzbekistan?!

Mario Aller San Millán│marioasm@gmail.com “Deutschland, Deutschland über alles” (Germany, Germany above all)...These are the words with which the first of the three stanzas of the Deutschlandlied start. Regarded as a national anthem from the times of the Märzrevolution in 1848 for the incipient liberal Germans, Deutschlandlied eventually became official with the advent of the Weimar Republic. Its … Continue reading Deutschland, Deutschland über Alles

I heard people asking me if I was the girl “coming from Europe” and was surprised to realise they considered it as exotic. I have watched the news and got upset when Kiwi journalists presented a too simplistic vision of the European Union or took the English point of view to illustrate the general European … Continue reading How I got to feel European

The work of a chef is extremely challenging. Numb heels, backache, cuts and burns are inherent, nothing to complain about. But the chef who wants to make it big today needs to not only master his kitchen but also become a farmer, a forager, a chemist, a fisherman, a researcher, a lean-mean-holistic-gastronomic-machine. Edith Salminen │edithsalminen@gmail.com It’s … Continue reading Finding Nordic Coconut

Syed Rashid Munir │srmunir@gmail.com  I bat an eyelid. I’m walking in the plaza, basking in the sun. I can practically smell the sea from here… I blink again. I’m back in our old house, peering out the foggy window. It’s late. The house has a rickety, wooden fence whose small gate constantly makes a horrible, creaking … Continue reading Tick-Tock: The View from Home

Nadezhda Fomenok │nadezhda@fomenok.net I land in the centre of Europe. A small airport welcomes me back home. When I think of my country, I always picture a charming lady. She has an entangled past to share with travellers. Long ago Belarus used to be part of a huge powerful country, which comprised of Poland, Belarus and … Continue reading Belarus: Past, Present and Future centre of Europe

Borislava Miteva │borislava.miteva@gmail.com Once upon a time, when I used to live between three continents and five houses, a friend of mine expressed her opinion that I would never settle down and have a home of my own unless I find THE love of my life. She was partly right. After I graduated, I returned to … Continue reading A love story about my limitless home

In this article, I do not intend to frame music to its origin, or to generalise music composition into representation of a certain culture. Instead, what I wish to demonstrate is how I see Toru Takemitsu’s Requiem as a response to his personal life experience of war, as well as how the music reflects the … Continue reading Toru Takemitsu’s Requiem – The Aesthetic of Mono no Aware

Why Study Humanities? Chelsea King │ akingjay1@gmail.com This article has had many incarnations. I think I have written at least ten different versions: some leading to nihilism, others to (unrealistic) optimism. Hopefully, this one will be somewhat in the middle. Let’s begin with a story: "In a new building, we philosophers were now going to … Continue reading “Make a parachute, you philosophy majors, and survive the landing”