Culture Project

A couple of days ago, we had our Culture Project Days at the university, where various topics concerning American and Irish culture were presented. We were told to participate at least at ten presentations. Well, I’ve managed fourteen. In general, I enjoyed these days. In my opinion, all students did a great job. There were a couple of presentations which really impressed me.

From the Irish group I liked the presentation about Monica Loughman, who is Ireland’s best known ballet dancer. I liked the story and the way the student presented it, in other words, I liked her performance: she seemed to be calm and not nervous at all. She talked with a calm voice and told us fascinating facts about the dancer. She always looked at the audience, though, not interacting with us. But this didn’t bother me, because her research, pictures and the story itself about the famous ballet dancer were extremely good. To be honest, if I manage to visit Ireland one day, I’m going the watch a performance of size-plus ballet dancers. I can’t forget the picture I saw during the presentation and I want to see it live.

I also liked the presentation about Irish Intelligence at its peak. The slides were great as well as the story told in perfect English. During these two Culture Days I noticed that I liked presentations where students interacted with the audience and not simply told a story. Well, this student asked us some questions. Honestly, I couldn’t answer any of them, but I enjoyed the fact of communication J

The best presentation in American group I saw, in my opinion, was about Sheryl Sandberg. Yes, it was presented from a feministic point of view, but not intrusively at all. I was fascinated about the way the student presented it. I mean, I liked her strong voice, she was talking not too fast and she used the right intonation. In my opinion, the story itself was logical, captivating, it included even a short video. During her presentation, the student was always looking at the audience, she asked us a few questions. It impressed me, how self-assured she was. At the end of her presentation we all had to write down answers to the questions we got on a small piece of paper before the presentation. She promised to publish the results soon. I can hardly wait!

Another presentation in the American group I liked was about the CIA. The guy who presented it had obviously no difficulties to perform in front of the audience. Well, sometimes I couldn’t understand some words he said because he talked rather too fast and didn’t pronounce them clearly enough. But anyway, the facts presented and the way the guy did it impressed me.

It’s a pity I couldn’t participate for longer and see more presentations. Well, you know, I have to work and earn my money. Honestly, I enjoyed exchanging knowledge and learning from each other. I hope that this tradition at the Translation Department will continue for many years.