For most Comenius Assistants, fundamental questions about how to get to their school placement centre around which airline to go with and how to avoid excess baggage charges. However, for Vlad Buxton and James Lazenby, their main concern was who had packed the bicycle puncture repair kit and where the next hot shower would be.
Vlad and James have both recently finished Comenius Assistant placements in Scandinavia; Vlad in Denmark and James in Sweden. Keen from the outset to make their experience an adventure, they decided to travel to their placements by bike – being the most environmentally, if not leg, friendly way to travel! Their route was ambitious but allowed them to see many more places and meet locals and travellers along the way, as they took a boat from Harwich and cycled through 1370km of Dutch, German and Danish cities and countryside – finally making it to Goteborg in Sweden.
Vlad says “We did the trip over one month, staying with welcoming hosts we met along the way. Visiting the cheese museum in Alkmaar, watching a punk football team in Hamburg and crossing spectacular island bridges in Denmark were some highlights of the trip. We also met a guy in a Danish eco village who had walked to London in the mid-nineties, which was a pretty humbling experience. He said he enjoyed the sense of freedom that comes with slow travel. Towards the end of our journey, I began to understand what he meant.”
James agrees: It’s a pretty memorable way to travel. Nothing rivals the feeling of 120km of cycling followed by a hot shower and a cup of tea brewed by an enthusiastic host. Or three days of heavy drinking with a big devious Dutchman, determined to make tomorrow’s 80km cycle to the border as difficult as possible! Having arrived in Stockholm, my new Swedish friends continue to introduce me as ‘Jimmy, he cycled here from England’. One person even responded ‘Wow, you’re my eco-travelling idol!’ That was a bit embarrassing really. Anyway, at the end of the trip we were healthier and happier than before and as Vlad says, we learned what great freedom comes with slow travel.”
Despite their arduous journey, the boys arrived at their new schools full of enthusiasm for their 8 month placements as Comenius Assistants. Their roles included teaching English, explaining about UK culture, and offering support for a range of other subjects and activities, enhancing pupils’ experience of another language and culture, and their understanding of European issues.
For James and Vlad, it was an opportunity to gain teaching experience and improve their language skills. Like most assistants, they found it a life-changing experience, and a boost to their confidence and teaching skills.
If you would like to find out more about being an assistant or if you are a UK school that would like to host, please contact comenius@britishcouncil.org or telephone 0161 957 7755
Placements are available across Europe and can last between 3 and 10 months.
A language grant is available for complete beginners, to help assistants settle in to a new town and learn a new language.
Travel expenses for the journey to and from the placement are provided, but please note that cycling is not compulsory! However, according to James and Vlad, it’s definitely an option for those who are environmentally conscious and like the thrill of a challenge, or simply want to be someone’s eco-travelling idol!
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