Aniket Rao and Denver Fernandes. The first is 20 years old. Poles simply call him “Nik”. The second is a year younger. Both study business management in Mumbai on a daily basis. They came to Poland as part of the “Friends” project, carried out by the student organization AIESEC.
“Last year, Wrocław University of Science and Technology approached us with a proposal to host students from rather distant countries,” says Laura Słocka-Przydróżna, principal of ZSOiZ. Initially, Chinese students were supposed to come to Bolesławiec. Ultimately, however, Aniket and Denver arrived.
They came for five days and... made a very good impression on the young people. “What I liked most was the multimedia presentation and the fact that they tried to speak a little Polish,” says ZSOiZ student Katarzyna Hyjek. “It was easy for me to communicate with them. We had common interests. It turned out that Aniket is interested in basketball,” adds high school student Sebastian Miś. The school principal also has a very positive opinion of the unusual guests: “They are young, open-minded people. They were very eager to meet with the students.”
During their two-month stay in Poland, the Indians visited around 12 cities. They told young Lower Silesians, among other things, about the culture and customs of India. Bolesławiec was the final stop of their stay in our country. “I love Poland, I love Bolesławiec,” Denver told the IstotneInformacje.pl portal. “I love this city because it is quiet. It is completely different from the place I come from. Twenty million people live in Mumbai,” Aniket noted. He added that he would come to Poland during next year’s holidays and would certainly visit Bolesławiec.
“I am very pleased that they came, because my students are happy,” Laura Słocka-Przydróżna emphasizes with satisfaction. – “The presentations were conducted in such a way that even those who study English at a basic level were able to learn a lot from them and understand much of the content.”
The ZSOiZ teachers could not complain about boredom either. Last year, some of them completed an intensive English course. “They also had an opportunity to speak freely with the guests,” the principal says with a smile. “I am convinced that I will work to bring more students from different countries around the world here,” she adds.
(GA information)