Day of the Hague and Farewell party

    

The Hague

Freedom has restrains but no frontiers.

-David Lloyd George

On Thursday we went to the Hague, probably one of the most famous cities in the Netherlands.  Our group was divided into two parts: the first one went to the famous Hague Court and the second one visited Humanity House.

From the first sight the Hague doesn't seem so beautiful and welcoming. The biggest part of the city is filled with modern buildings which definitely have no intention of catching tourist's eye. The center, however, is quite charming. Unlike Amsterdam, the buildings there are massive but they still manage to look elegant.

Both of our groups enjoyed their time spent in the Humanity House and The Hague's Court. The excursion to the Court had a huge educational value. At the same time, the Humanity House tour helped us to understand.
In this museum every visitor has a unique opportunity to go through a full refugee experience: from leaving the country to finding a new home. Several incredible metaphors included into the excursion can literally give the creeps to anybody. 

But considering that a lot of refugees have to face judging from other people, not to mention living in constant fear for their family and difficulties with documentation, this experience is very important.

The second part of the day in the city we spent in the center. Our group had a short excursion during which we visited the Outer Court and the Inner Court. 

 In my experience, the Inner Court is one of the most  stunning places in the whole country. Despite huge gothic buildings, this place still manages to be nice and even cozy.

The Hague has an absolutely different spirit than any other city in the Netherlands. Most streets are very small and dark and, as I've already mentioned,  the buildings are mostly quite high.

 














But somehow this city doesn't make its guests feel claustrophobic,  I would even say that the Hague makes a very positive impression on anyone who's ready to open the heart to this magnificent, yet so unusual, city.

 

On the way back we passed by the tulip fields which are considered to be one of the Netherlands' symbols. The gorgeous variety of colours with mills here and there - this is one of the many Dutch wonders. The beauty of these places can't be described by words it needs to be seen. 

The Farewell Party

The farewell party was a perfect ending for a perfect day. Everybody had fun dancing, singing and basically eating. Each country prepared incredible performances. Everyone was involved in the event.  Smiles, sound of laughter and kind words everywhere - that's what every participant will carry in the memory for a very long time.

Presentation about Russia

Performance of students from Spain

However, it really seemed like the end. The end of all the fun and all the pleasant moments we had in the Netherlands. Even though a popular saying goes: "The hardest word to say is goodbye". In this case it was completely wrong. Because even though it made a lot of us feel happy and sad at the same time, it wasn't heartbreaking. If that was a farewell then it was definitely a farewell this country deserved.

Moskvina Anna