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  David Saygi

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  The whole group at a war memorial

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  A group of us at our leaving BBQ

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  Climbing the rigging on the ship

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  The Hjalm of Hølbek where we lived for a week

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  All the campers and one of the organisers from the island on the final night

David Saygi, a Year 14 pupil, embarked on a trip of a lifetime during the summer break, organised through The Rotary Club of Dungannon, he wrote of his incredible experience in Scandinavia:

“During the summer holidays I was given the opportunity by Rotary to visit somewhere in Europe where I would never have considered experiencing before. I was the only person from the UK & Ireland to be part of a group of ten international 16-17 year old students heading to the small Danish island of Ærø. There, we met ten local students, one of which I was assigned to spend the first week living with.

During the week, I got to know the other students through self-organised activities such as mini golf, bowling and going to the beach. We also visited various historical sites and museums, were educated about the rich maritime culture of Denmark and the island specifically, enjoyed local cuisine and spent time with our host families.

After only a week since meeting my peers, we embarked on board the wooden sailing ship “Hjalm” (which was over 100 years old) to tour coastal towns and cities across Denmark. We docked in a new location every evening in order for us to disembark and explore. On the ship, we cooked, cleaned and helped hoist and pack sails as well as enjoying live music, climbing the rigging and sunbathing. What I found most rewarding of all was having deep, interesting conversations with the people I shared the ship with. Taiwanese, Egyptian and various different European cultures were represented impeccably by eager, sociable young people; some of whom I still communicate daily with and whom I consider close friends.

On our return we shared our experiences with host families at a Rotary-organised barbeque and were given a chance to say, not ‘goodbye’, but ‘see you again soon’ to all the incredible people we met. I would highly recommend considering a camp like this next summer as it is an inexpensive, content-rich and sociable way to see the world and learn about new cultures. I cannot thank the Rotary Club of Dungannon enough for giving me this opportunity.”

Congratulations to David on his success with the Rotary club. His intriguing account of this trip will undoubtedly encourage many other pupils to participate in Rotary events, both locally and internationally.