Irina
It is always nice to see in reality something you have read about or researched. We read a lot about the Texell and spoke to many “texelaars” or people somehow related to the island, but without seeing it yourself, it is, sometimes, hard to verify certain facts .Therefore, before coming to an island I was wondering if what I am going to see, resembles the picture of Texel Island I had in my mind. To be honest, I was quite skeptical at the beginning, because I could not imagine that such a small island can have such a big ego and that so many things are going on there. I was wrong.
The biggest surprise for me from the very first day was the enthusiasm of local people. The day of our first presentation and our first day on the island was not friendly in terms of weather conditions. On the way to the VerzamelPost, we were almost blown away by a strong wind. (By the way, it was my first experience of cycling under an angle). Thus, in the evening, while I was listening to the wind and rain outside, I thought that no one will pay a visit in order to hear ideas about sustainable living from small group of students. I was wrong again. Moreover, the people that came for our presentations were really enthusiastic and wanted to find out what we can propose to make their island and lives better. This is a milestone when everything started to become real.
Another fact that surprised me on the island, that I would like to mention in this last column, is cheese farm Wezenspyk. This is small cheese farmwe paid visit to. On the wall of the factory in a simple frame hangs an award for the best sheep cheese in the world dated 2014. Small island, small factory, that uses only local products, manages to make best sheep cheese in the world. Amazing.
To sum up, after this long week came to an end, I feel tired and satisfied. Satisfied not because our idea was accepted very good, but because of the fact, that places were people really care about their environment, exist.