!!! Pictures !!!

Since I had started to explore the former Soviet-Union by participating in work camps in the year 2000, I had never been to Belarus. This is quite surprising as Belarus is relatively close to Belgium and as it is pretty easy to travel to Belarus by train. It is even more surprising that Belgians (and most Western Europeans) know so little about this fascinating country. The camp took place in the neighborhood of Brest, just across the Polish border. It is in this region that the EU border will lie after enlargement. It is here that the real frontier between East and West will be. Apart from this, it was also an ideal opportunity to learn how Belorussians got on with their identity as citizens of a relatively new state struggling to stay out of the arms of Moscow and their own doubtful president.

Another reason why I chose for this camp is that I had never participated in a work camp with archeology as the main theme. It was a very enriching experience: we found several interesting objects but apart from the work there also was the Soviet megalomania of the Brest Hero Fortress, the relaxed and humble life in small farmer villages dominated by the Sovchoze and of course two weeks of camping, working and living in absolute harmony with Mother Earth in the Belorussian pine woods. We even participated in pagan rituals during Ivana Kupala night. But probably my best memory will be the warm hospitality and the endless inventiveness of the Belorussian volunteers and the nights around the bonfire with songs full of melancholy and interesting discussions fueled by vodka.

The project took place in the village Petrovichi in the Brest region (close to the Polish border). The history of the inhabitants of this picturesque place is closely related with the history of Gothic tribes. During the 1-2 BC centuries they had created a "velbar" culture. Now this place is a site where archeologists regularly carry out excavations and research. Archeologists and international volunteers tried to find out all facts from the long history of this place.