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European culture is heavily influenced by countries from all over the world. From food, to art, architecture and music, European culture cannot be understood without looking beyond its own borders. In Germany, the Turkish influence is seen everywhere and Turkish food (Döner Kebab) in particular has become synonymous with Germany. Differences should be embraced and celebrated! 

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Europe is a destination where many people are always dreaming of visiting. Once you set your feet on Europe, there are indefinite places to visit and experience, to create your own  'Europe'.

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I have chosen to post a photo of my grandmother's house in Israel. My grandmother doesn't live in Europe but her house was always a "European Island " for me since I was a child. The smell of the Hungarian dishes in the air, the dark massive wood furniture, the sounds of Hungarian folk songs and the stories of her childhood before the war. That was my firs impression of Europe and one of the many stones that built my Identity along the way.

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Europe is in a poppy

Both are symbols of remembrance of the fallen

Of various wars and armed conflicts

Europe is in a poppy

Both stand for a lively imagination

As Europe creates. Europe imagines a peaceful common future

Europe is in a poppy

Both are vivid but of extreme fragility
Fragile because of the winds of extremisms and wars

Europe is in a poppy,

Poppy, symbol of Morpheus, the Greek God of dreams,

Europe that might be Morpheus's Sister

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For the centuries Europeans were trying to achive it. To form the empire, to improve, to share our knowledge, our values, to create, to discover or to be a better place. By different means and for different reasons, we share a lot of dreams. And only united, we can achieve it

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Walking down the streets often give me the feeling that I am in Europe. The buildings, the street signs, bicycle lanes, and the stones used for the roads each play a role in constructing "Europe". This picture was taken in Helsinki, Finland. It was a picture I took to send to my friends, to show I was in a European country at that time. Coming from a country outside of Europe, the streets look very different from my home country. The way it is built is of course different, but it is not too busy - I can take a picture with no people in it. The streets encompass more than just is in this picture, but also the lifestyle , which is something I associate with Europe.

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This photo was taken at FUGA, Budapest Center of Architecture. The shared history and identity of Europe are celebrated in rich and diverse cultural spaces across the continent. The streets, theatres, libraries, art galleries, museums, bookshops and concert venues of Europe host an overwhelming variety of experiences and knowledge about our shared past and present.
By exploring and contributing to such cultural spaces, we can hope to engage with a multitude of different testimonies and interpretations about what 'Europe' means to various groups and individuals.

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Europe is a collection of borderless countries where all sorts of Europeans mingle. In this picture, we see a collection of game tokens, from the game called Ludo, in different colours scattered out over Europe. In my opinion, these tokens represent European diversity and multiculturalism, especially in terms of language. Just like in Ludo, each player starts with their own tokens in their own home base, eventually leaving their base and spreading out on the playing field, intertwining with the other players. This should of course be understood as a metaphor for European language diversity. When I travel in Europe, I am always amazed by how many languages I hear on a single day wherever I may be and that inspired me to choose this picture. The truth is, what we have is very unique and does not exist to this extent anywhere else on the planet.

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Soccer is played in stadiums. Soccer is the world's most renowned and followed sport on the globe. It is a symbol of inequality but also a source of dreams for many people. Soccer creates bonds and bring people of the various nations together. Europe is the initiator and the focal point of this activity.

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European ideals, constructs, and ideologies permeate our thoughts and consciousnesses. There are many concepts and beliefs that we take for granted as truths or standards that derive from the European perspective. These range from the metaphysical such as notions of morality or the supposed superiority of democracy to the more basic and everyday considerations like beauty standards.

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The opportunity to travel freely between the European countries without having to worry about border controls and visas, whilst only carrying an ID card represents Europe to me. Spontaneous weekend trips to another country, holidays to the sun or going so far north that you can see the northern lights. All the while without having to show a passport to customs.

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Europe is expressed in the weekends, holidays, semesters and years we spend abroad. During this time abroad we meet new friends from different cultures and countries in Europe, and around the world. This exchange of international culture allows for foreigners to have a broader understanding of Europe, but it also allows for Europe to become multicultural in the form of its citizens. This cultural exchange allows for our differences to bring us together in the process.

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Europe is my home. It is the streets of my hometown, the streets of the other countries I have stepped a foot in. It is the buildings that surround us, the people that built them.
However, Europe is sadly limited to my Western European perspective. Europe is nothing to me but the limited number of countries I have visited. It is not located in Scandinavia, in the Balkans or in the East. Thus, my goal is the following: visit each one of these places and extend my perspective on what is "home".

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I watched the Eurovision Song Contest four years ago for the first time, when I was doing my Bachelor in China. Actually I was quite surprised by such an international TV song competition. For me, I can see a clear European identity from this TV show, as participants come from different European countries and the stage seems to be a big platform that unites the whole Europe in the respect of Music and Language as well.

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European culture is heavily influenced by countries from all over the world. From food, to art, architecture and music, European culture cannot be understood without looking beyond its own borders. In Germany, the Turkish influence is seen everywhere and Turkish food (Döner Kebab) in particular has become synonymous with Germany. Differences should be embraced and celebrated!

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To me, Europe is best represented as a school. It is an experience of coming together with others from all social backgrounds, experiences and cultures. It requires hard work, dedication, and self-reflection. There inevitably, will be ups and downs, with old people leaving, and new people joining. However most of all its a coming together from old experiences with new ideas and perspectives. Where education was ones for the privileged, it now has become public for everyone within its gates to participate in. It is the tale of mixing and learning, appreciating and hating, despising and loving it is Europe as a protector of a learning community. Summarily a school for states.

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To me, Europe can be found everywhere. However, if I think about the idea of Europe and its preservation, I think about young generations. I believe we have to educate today's children about Europe, so that when they grow up, they can shape it in the best way. The children are the ones who will create the future Europe - hopefully, right now, they are spending their time carelessly, in the playground or in nature, but in a few decades they will create the future of Europe with the knowledge we teach them. And however uncertain that future might be, if we start sharing our knowledge now, Europe has a better chance of preserving its beautiful legacy.

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Europe is where History has left its imprint

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Europe is where History has left its imprint

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To me, Berlin is a city that represents a European melting pot, at the institutional, historical, and cultural levels. This is particularly true about Potsdamer Platz which was rebuilt on the remains of the Berlin wall, and has become a symbol of reunification and culture and which is now the vibrant quarter of a really cosmopolitan city. This evokes to me the idea that a place can be identified with Europe not only when it has a significant role today, but also when it has gone through several historical stages that gave it meaning.

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Europe is a hotel with a lot of stars, serving you and making you feel at home while you're traveling. It may be the light at the end of the tunnel for some. At the same time it's in the dark, nobody really knows what it is and where it starts and ends. But finally, Europe is also as familiar as that place in Kraków is to me.

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This photo was taken last summer when I visited Berlin together with two friends from other European countries. Europe is in many different places for me, but among them are the various capitals of the member states, such as Berlin. Whenever I am there I cannot help but feel European because of the diversity of people that you meet there.

I chose a picture of the Berlin wall specifically because of its importance for creating a more united Europe - a Europe without borders. However, at the time the picture was taken, there was also an exhibition on the wall about the war in Syria. Due to the developments of the past years several countries have closed their borders and for many people that wish for a better life Europe is and might always remain a dream. I therefore chose the Berlin Wall not just for its role in the past but as a symbol of a Europe that might not be there at the moment, but that I think it ought to, and also hope it to be in the future.

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To me, Europe is not one thing that can be found in one specific place. Instead, Europe exists everywhere, not only geographically but also symbolically. In good and in bad ways. One of these places where Europe is to be found is in the bureaucracy of the European Union. More precisely, in the huge piles of paperwork. Paperwork consisting of forms, notifications, rules, procedures and so on and so forth. Even though the EU is geographically located in Brussels, its bureaucratic influences reaches far beyond Brussels and affects many.

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Europe is the place where you easily find expressions of opinion in public

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Europe is the place where you easily find expressions of opinion in public

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This photo shows an exterior wall of a house in the centre of Arles, in the South of France.
The current situation in Europe is strongly influenced by the public opinions of opponents and proponents of the European Union and therefore of the present European cohesion.
It does not become apparent from the photo who exactly was expression his or her opinion: Was it a left-wing oriented or a left-wing radical person who wanted to reveal that he or she is not going to be influenced by political scaremongers and therefore seems psychotic to other people? Or had someone else put the lettering “DON’T PANIC I’M PSYCHOTIC” after the Antifa graffiti was there already? Europe for me is a place where many different opinions are existing and expressed, though they are diverging more and more.

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Europe's expansionistic politics left their mark on millions of lives all over the planet. Its wealth and industrial success are the result of its colonial exploitation and world political and economical structures building. Europe can be found in me and in all my privileges

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Artists create the imaginary and narratives of Europe, increasingly in multinational coproductions. Public funding helps them see the light of day. Translators, voice actors, distributors, and cinema networks facilitate their dissemination throughout Europe and beyond. The Commission and the Council of Europe do their bit too. But the cinemas themselves (along with festival directors, museum curators, and even the algorithms governing streaming sites) are the ones who produce the mosaics in which we access them and provide us a communal space in which to do so. Pictured: Strasbourg's public cinema, a Europa Cinema member and one of the only Belle Époque theaters still in use today.

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Europe is in the pages of books, in the mind of the writers and in the stories of the readers. Europe is on the streets, where the books are displayed and where the mind of the readership is nourished. Europe is in words and dialogue, it is in culture, ideas and in the freedom of expression. Europe is everywhere: at the library,  at the cinema and in the bookstalls on the streets of Skopje, Macedonia where I took this picture.

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This is a capture of the wires of the train rails in Europe, in Břeclav, Czech Republic. These wires are Europe. They continue going all around the continent with the same speed, connecting Odessa with Groningen, and Faro with Rovaniemi. These wires do not know the border of the EU or the Schengen zone, they connect Europe without any barriers. This constant fluctuation of energy inside the cables, keeps Europe in constant movement and change. They can always remind us of our interconnectedness. We need to keep the circulation going, and not let the energy to ever slow down or to stop.

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The street arts embody Europe, they are its unexpected stage, where Europe can shine. Performing arts are the meeting place of Europe -but never its final destination- where European and international artists and citizens can meet, share and give.
Here is a picture of one show of the street arts festival "Les rencontres d'ici et d'ailleurs"
(" Meetings of here and elsewhere") in a parisian suburb. There, national and European artists are presented to the inhabitants.
Let's bring alive our streets and our public spaces! Let's bring alive Europe so we can more easily find it!

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This picture was taken in Trieste at Unity of Italy Square. It is Trieste's main square located in the middle of several buildings representing different architectural periods of Italy — and of Europe. It also borders the Gulf of Trieste, which is part of the Adriatic sea and of the Gulf of Venice, shared by Italy, Slovenia and Croatia.

Trieste used to be the most important port of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Its main square is sometimes used for visits of foreign heads of state. Outside every building of the square, we can see the Italian flag alongside the European flag.

Because of the history of the city but also the visual symbols of this square, the Piazza Unità d'Italia embraces the diversity of Europe.

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Europe is in the past and present cultural footprints it leaves halfway across the planet

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Europe is in the past and present cultural footprints it leaves halfway across the planet

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I've always associated Europe with culture. For a person who grew up 11,000km away from Europe, I see it as a place where art is appreciated, ideas are freely exchanged, and individual freedoms are guaranteed.

Once upon a time, the Schouwburg Weltevreden, now the Jakarta Art Building, used to house opera and theater performances for the elite Batavian society. Two centuries after its construction, the Schouwburg retains its "European (and colonial)" façade in the midst of Jakarta's rapid urbanization, but everything within the building has gone through so much change - now it is a concert hall that houses Indonesian theater productions that continues to appeal the small fraction of Jakarta's art-loving demographic. Just a few months ago in the same building, I watched a young Italian jazz artist in concert. At one point, she sang an Indonesian folk song.

As I sat there in the musty-smelling theater, I saw Europe. I saw her evolve from being a colonial force in the past, to becoming an open space accommodating many different cultural influences to mix. She was, and continues to be, a cultural melting pot, despite all the debates about her closing up. She continues to exist, even halfway across the planet. Despite having my country's motto "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika"/"Unity in Diversity"--indeed, the same as the EU's--tattooed in my mind since my early years of schooling, it was Europe that truly helped me internalize that diversity really is our strength, way beyond mere rhetoric.

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This wall is located in Bologna, Italy and it shows pictures of the partisans that were executed in front of that very wall during the Nazi occupation of Italy. A bit of Europe can be found there too, in the remembrance of the brave women and men who gave their life to fight against oppression and whose efforts paved the way (at least ideologically) for the Union that we have today.
I think it is always important to remember that unity among European countries did not just stem from  political calculations, but also from the profound desire for peace that our grandparents and great-grandparents felt after the horrors of the war.

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Europe is in the hopes and fears of all passengers, whether they are just leaving or going back. Europe is in anyone of us, and we realize it when, while meeting new people, we see their story is not so different from ours in the end. Europe is in our smile when, despite the distance from our family, we are not homesick. Europe is in our enthusiasm for traveling and discovering that boundaries are just in our mind, because in spite of cultural differences, we all still share common values.

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Europe is in the hopes and fears of all passengers, whether they are just leaving or going back. Europe is in anyone of us, and we realize it when, while meeting new people, we see their story is not so different from ours in the end. Europe is in our smile when, despite the distance from our family, we are not homesick. Europe is in our enthusiasm for traveling and discovering that boundaries are just in our mind, because in spite of cultural differences, we all still share common values.

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3500 salvaged life jackets, collected from refugees arriving at the Greek Island of Lesbos, are crammed into the windows of this museum in Copenhagen. To me, this artwork captures the political and social reality of Europe. On the one hand, it embodies the harsh reality of the multiple crises that Europe is facing. On the other hand, it shows how we feel this burden all over Europe (or tells us we should); how the fate of different countries has become interconnected.

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Europe is in anyone of us, even in the guy sitting next to you on the airplane

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Europe is in anyone of us, even in the guy sitting next to you on the airplane

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Europe is in the hopes and fears of all passengers, whether they are just leaving or going back. Europe is in anyone of us, and we realize it when, while meeting new people, we see their story is not so different from ours in the end. Europe is in our smile when, despite the distance from our family, we are not homesick. Europe is in our enthusiasm for traveling and discovering that boundaries are just in our mind, because in spite of cultural differences, we all still share common values.

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Between 20 to 25% of

The Top 100 Must-See Attractions in Europe by Ranker are castles and/or palaces.

In regard to their history, castles were said to have originated from Medieval times. They served as the home and fortress of monarchs or nobles. The earliest castles were built from earth and wood and by the 12th century, they began to be made from stone. These stones came from local mines or quarries if possible, but sometimes they had to be carried long distances by water or on ox wagons. They were built on steep hill sides or at the top of rocky cliffs for protection from attackers as it made it harder for them to reach.

As it pertain to palaces, they were built to show the power of the king as well as to inspire loyalty and fear in ordinary people and visitors. They demonstrate the wealth and achievements of the former.

Today, though, they serve as a visual feast for various people around the world, thanks to their architectural sublimeness, it should be noted that countless of lives were impacted, whether positively or negatively by the construction of these edifices.

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This little collage consists of two pictures taken in a supermarket in Hong Kong. On the shelf, all kind of vegetable comes from abroad. This includes imports from european countries like Italy, the Neatherlands (Holland) and the UK.
Europe is home to delicious chocolat, and not only from Switzerland. So one can find there a well-known German brand, too. Food plays an important role when it comes to feeling home away.

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Yes, Europe is also in a salad bowl.
The integration of many different cultures is combined like in a salad and the various cultures are like its ingredients.
An example can be seen in the EU program ‘integration of non-European nationals’, encouraging the dialogue in the civil society.

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My parents currently own a B&B in France. Every night, the guests sit together at a long table and have dinner together. Dutch, English, Spanish, Swedish; all nationalities sit side by side and engage in discussion. Sometimes in their own language, sometimes in broken French or English, people talk about their everyday lives, their differences in culture, or current world problems. Sometimes we laugh, sometimes we get caught up in heated debate, but good food and a whole lot of wine always make for a fun and interesting evening. For me, the dinner table is therefore a perfect representation of a culturally diverse but united Europe.

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Europe is for me every place I can reach within a day, spontaneously and for every purpose. It is the possibility to cross boarders, live and study in different countries and the possibility to stay connected to loved people all over the continent. For me Europe is the place where I can create my own life, however I want it, wherever I want it and with whoever I want to.

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Initially, I wanted to post a photograph of our current Euroculture-group in Groningen. Our diverse group of students (mainly) from different European countries represents for me personally where Europe is. Thanks to the daily contact with this group, I regularly learn something new about another European culture and feel more connected. However, solely a photo of our group was not sufficient for this theme. The universities, where we meet each other, established all of this through exchange programmes. Because of this, I chose a picture with the Academy Building of the University of Groningen, the building on the right. Furthermore, a place where once again all kinds of European students come together and all are united by having the same goal, is the University Library, the building on the left.

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The fall of a wall in Europe and its meaning for the world

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The fall of a wall in Europe and its meaning for the world

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The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 became one of the key events at the end of the Cold War and the fall of the "Iron curtain" . This original part of the Berlin Wall is located in the Newseum, Washington D.C., USA. It is the largest display of unaltered parts of the wall outside of Germany, acquired in 1993 by the museum. A guard tower (visible right behind the wall portions) originally from the famous "checkpoint Charlie" in Berlin, is also part of the permanent exhibition.

What does this tell us about Europe? This part of European history attracts visitors outside Europe. For many, it symbolizes European unity and peace. The fascination with the story of the Berlin Wall still, over 25 years after the reunification of Germany, continues and thus reminds us of what has been achieved but also what needs to be preserved.

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Free movement is one of the core principles of the European Union and this principle makes many things possible. How this affects our traveling comes even clearer, when you leave the Schengen-area.

This picture is from a town at the boarder of the Netherlands and Belgium. It's just one example of Europe's peaceful borders and how easy it is to cross over.

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The picture is from the movie "Flotel Europa" from 2015, directed by Vladimir Tomic. He tells the story of a refugee family coming to Denmark after the civil war in Yugoslavia and illustrates how they were treated and what conditions they lived under. Today we have a similar refugee crisis in Europe, and watching the movie makes me think about how Europe has developed its response to the needs of the people on its doorsteps.

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Europe is in the international  mobility and in youth policy

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Europe is in the international  mobility and in youth policy

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Europe is this marvellous auditorium where the University of Deusto, in Bilbao, welcomed me and more than 300 students coming from 56 countries from all over the world.
Europe is having the chance to study through the Erasmus programme in such an internationally-friendly University and city that promote cross-cultural diversity beyond any geographical border. It’s discovering that the limits of Europe are less blurry in real life than on a map.
It’s the privilege we are given to broaden our horizons, and breath some international air out of our confort zone, sometimes finding ourselves more comfortable with people not belonging to our own country and continent, than with our compatriots.
Maybe some of you are recognising themselves in these words!

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This picture shows the inside of a tramway in Krakow, Poland. While I was doing my Erasmus there, it stroke me to see how often the signs stating that "this has been funded by the EU" was present, on everything: in front of my classrooms, in the station, and at the Tram stops. Even if this sign is seen more in countries which joined the EU recently, it is important to remember that older members have profited from it a lot, and continue to enjoy it today, in other ways than through fundings.

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Today we can find Europe in places which encourage and invite all of us to envision and imagine a shared future. A future where we will all live together, where we face the future challenges and think about solutions creatively, critically and productively. Public space, museums, culture institutions and universities can be places for those confrontation and conversation. The images for example shows Ivana Wingham's „Waste“ in the Hello Robot exhibition at the MAK in Vienna in 2017.

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Today we love Europe... What about tomorrow? 

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Today we love Europe... What about tomorrow? 

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This light installation, made by the artist Massimo Uberti for the Amsterdam Light Festival, makes me wonder about Europe. Today we love Europe, and today Europe loves us. A magical sentence that seems to be nothing but positive, but also evokes questions. What about tomorrow, or next year? Will we still love Europe then? Is this love eternal, or will it slip away in time and do we have to content ourselves with the moment?

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This was taken from the river l'Ill, offering a view on the bridge linking the building of the Council of Europe, on the left and that of the European Parliament, on the right. It was taken during a boat tour of the city. The audioguide explained the history of Strasbourg as a European city torn between two countries, but then finally finding its place as the centre of European democracy and cooperation.

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Europe is everywhere in our daily life. It is many cheerful festivals that brings everyone together. It is also the serenity you found in a busy yet peaceful little town. For me, it is every bite of waffles with melting ice cream in a lazy Sunday afternoon.

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M. Chat is a graffiti cat which originally appeared in Orléans, France in 1997. During the early 2000s, this particular image became widespread across France (allegedly, there are 60 in Paris alone). From there, Monsieur Chat went on to travel to other parts of Europe and the wider world. Personally, I've previously spotted him in Lisbon, Belgrade, and Sarajevo. This particular example is one I photographed in Pristina around 2 years ago. There are several M. Chat images around the city, but if I remember rightly, this one is in the street 'Emin Duraku', close to the Sahat Kula (clock tower). For me, the fact that a particular figure can become popularised and prevalent in the work of (anonymous) graffiti artists across the world is symbolic of the manner in which we may be unified and connected even by the simplest of images, such as a cat with a cheesy grin.

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Europe is in its many historic city centers

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Europe is in its many historic city centers

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This photo was taken in Porto but the same small streets and complicated street patterns I believe can be found all over Europe, from Amsterdam to Budapest to Athens etc.

These streets to me don’t only show history and cultural heritage of Europe but they are also often filled with a certain liveliness and creativity that resembles the Europe of today.

Wandering through these streets always makes me feel at home and like I am a part of Europe.

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Europe, European culture, and European influence can be found in almost every constitution of the World.

This map shows us that almost all the countries in the world belong either to the civil law family, to the common law family, or to a mix of both.
Both systems originated in Europe.

The legitimacy of this "transplant" can and should be questioned, but the fact that Europe is in almost every Constitution of the world is a fact that can not be overlooked.

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No matter where you go in Europe, you can always find a mixed European cuisine. You don't only find people talking in your mother tongue but most likely also your favorite food form your home country when you travel abroad.

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Europe is culture.
Europe is in my books, is in what I studied until today and in what I'm still studying. Europe is in what I hope will be my future. Above all, Europe is in the possibility to study and live experiences in different countries without Passport.

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Europe is also hiding in places like St. Petersburg. Tsar Peter the Great had the city built from scratch and designed it to be as "European" as possible. The influence of European culture on the city also shows, how Russia was part of Europe even before the geopolitical events of the afterwar period.

The architect of the famous Winter Palace is an Italian, Bartolomeo Rastrelli.

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Through exchange programmes like the Erasmus programme as well as travelling, different places and cultures in Europe can be discovered. By living in another country, one is able to fully emerge in different cultures than their own. A wide variety of cultures within nations is what makes Europe.

This is a picture of the dinner table (full of homemade gnocchi) of my Italian au-pair family. During the time I spent as an au-pair, I became not only an observer of the different culture, but also a participant.

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Europe is in the woods between the mountain and the river.

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Europe is in the woods between the mountain and the river.

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The Devil’s Nook is a shady stone amphitheatre with a small waterfall.  The path through the woods is now not well-marked and it is easy to miss it entirely unless you know where to find it.  Some think that it might have once been a sacred spot in pre-Christian times.  Recent folk belief makes it the home of a trickster devil who used to take the form of various animals like a black ram or white rabbit who would cause distraction and trouble (and sometimes injury) for the peasants working in the fields nearby.  The devil was displaced from his namesake nook when workers came to quarry stone for a new church to replace the old wooden one.  The parish priest blessed the worksite, and thereafter the devil could not return to his old home.  However, having no other home, he simply picked a new spot to haunt closer to the river, and his tricks became crueller than ever.  Rather than pointlessly pushing their problem from place to place with priestly blessings, the peasants consulted a well-travelled and cunning blacksmith instead.  The blacksmith used a blessed chain to bind the trickster devil and drag him from his home.  The blacksmith threatened to take the devil to a church for baptism if he did not solemnly swear to leave the valley entirely and never return.  And so he did, and went away to play his tricks on people in some other valley and has not been seen in these parts ever since.

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The most tangible symbol of Europe is the euro. Most of us have euros in our pockets. It has played an important role in the unification and synchronisation of the European Union (for most countries). It has made travel and trade a whole lot easier. Europe is an entity that can be unified by means of using symbolism and therefore visibility. Also, the back of the euro coins represent different countries, that are brought closer to the people, literally into people's hands. It creates awareness and closeness.

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Europe is future and progress. The coordination of every single country on issues that matter to reach development. Europe is our confidence to save the planet. Europe is our friend to fight against climate change.
This picture was taken this summer in Germany, where people from all over Europe and beyond came together to present battle against a coal mine. Thanks to the European Commission soon these mines will stop poisoning our Earth.

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Every year in January, artists from all over Europe come together in the city of Groningen, the Netherlands to play at the Eurosonic music festival. In the same way, visitors from all over Europe come to Groningen to witness the festival. It runs at the same time as another event: Noorderslag, which only features national artists. Together, Eurosonic and Noorderslag represent the balance between the international and the national, giving us the best of both worlds.
Europe, for me, then, is wherever its people are and events like ESNS show us exactly how wonderful it can be when we all come together.

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Before I moved to Germany in 2015, Europe for me was sitting in a cafe outside on some nice plaza in the summer, drinking coffee - I suppose the antithesis of summer in the UK. Europe was a holiday destination and an idealist lifestyle I aspired to.
Now I live here and don't sit outside drinking coffee all day, my idea of where Europe is has changed. I very much want the UK to be part of Europe, especially since the vote for Brexit. The picture is of my mum and sister going to vote in my village on the day of the EU referendum in the UK. My sister drew a picture of me on it (my mum voted on behalf of me hence why I'm proxy Abb). Europe for me is not just where I live now but also in my rainy, very average-looking village.

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Everybody must eat. So Europe spends quite some time in the kitchen. Some days, the majority of guests likes what is being cooked up. Most days, quite a lot of people are discontent. Especially in Europe, people make a lot of fuss around 'their' signature national dish or 'their' local beer. When Europeans get together, it is a battle of tastes, a fight for your right to eat what you want and to convince everyone that they really want the same. After lengthy discussions, most dishes are served luke-warm.
With a few adjustments, we could end up with pizza and Brie cheese on top in the future, maybe even Vinegret as a side dish. This is hard to stomach at first, but a balanced diet will be better than just the same old Bratwurst every day. 'Europe' has become a synonym for many things. Some might associate the bad, some associate very good things with it. The house of Europe is big, but for many years, we have been able to sort of meet in the kitchen. Let's move what we learned there to the next level and make the future bright and tasty!

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Soccer has played an important role in Europe´s history as it has and keeps bringing together people from different countries and backgrounds. The below depicted Stadion is the Allianz Arena in Munich, where part of the UEFA Europe 2020 will take place.

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Europe is represented by cultural heritage and arts

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Europe is represented by cultural heritage and arts

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The Centennial Hall (Hala Stulecia) is the landmark of the city of Breslau that was the European Capital of Culture in 2016. The building was designed by a German architect, based on the structure of the Pantheon in Rome. Nowadays it is one of the most known polish architectural sights and is listed as an UNESCO Wold Heritage Site. The building unites different European influences and shows how entangled national cultures in Europe are and have ever been. There is hardly any piece of art, architecture or other kind of cultural symbol that is not influenced by more than one European member state.

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Today, Europe has to deal with a range of challenges: rising euroscepticism and popularism, increasing fears of the 'other,' and Brexit, which are only some examples. I feel like societies have become more polarized and divided, also on the benefits of EU membership. Some blame Europe and the EU and turn inwards, others see problems but also possibilities. Universities represent the places where Europe's presence is to a large extent still appreciated. The picture shows the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.

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"Polenhotel" in Boskoop, The Netherlands

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"Polenhotel" in Boskoop, The Netherlands

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This hotel is situated in Boskoop, a town in Holland. It's the world's biggest joined floriculture area. The town is known for its nurseries and my family owns one of the 750 nurseries in a town of only 15,000. In recent years, hundreds of Polish men have come to the town to work, resulting in social tensions. A special 'hotel' was opened two years ago in order to house a part of the Polish workers, but also to decrease the nuisance. To me this place is a great tangible example of what the effects of the European Single Market can be for smaller towns in Europe that rely on lower paid work.

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Where is Europe to be found? Maybe not within actual symbols but within action. Europe is creating a connection where none used to be. Europe is bringing together people by breaking down borders. The picture shows people from all over Europe celebrating bands from all over Europe on a festival.

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Europe is everywhere, Europe is a network

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Europe is everywhere, Europe is a network

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Europe is a territory of multiple cultures, countries, ideas. It is a place where people feel free to travel from one country to another. The Schengen area allows citizens to go from borders to borders, like trains do between Spain, France, Luxemburg, Belgium, Germany, Italie, and so on. Europe is a network

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Pont de l'Europe is located in Strasbourg and crosses the river Rhine, that constitutes the border between France and Germany. In 2017 the tramline has been extended from Strasbourg to Kehl, the first German city beyond the border. The tram passes on the new bridge you can see in the picture. Today it takes only a few minutes to cross a border that some times ago was considered a barrier between people and cultures. Is this the proof we are still willing to build bridges and shape Europe?

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The picture shows the Avenue de l'Europe in Strasbourg. The building in the back is the Agora - Council of Europe.

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EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg is a rare airport located in France and built by the Swiss which gives service to three different cities from three different countries: Basel (Switzerland), Mulhouse (France) and Freiburg (Germany). Due to its international nature, it also has three codes: MLH for Mulhouse, BSL for Basel and EAP for EuroAirport. The airport infraestructure was inagurated after the WWII in 1946 and it can be considered a symbol of cooperation as well as union within Europe.

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Because Europeans are free to travel across the continent, they are often confronted with different languages, different systems and sometimes even with different currencies. This makes buying metro tickets a typical European challenge.

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Rather obvious location to search for Europe: Brussels, one of the EU's institutions' main HQ.
However, why this building precisely? It is named after Altiero Spinelli, one of the founding fathers of the EU, but also the founder of the European Federalist Movement, which aims at going beyond the national state borders (and even beyond the current EU framework through various associations and organisations). It is also the main building of the most democratic EU institution -the European Parliament. There, one will find the good, the bad, the beautiful and the ugly of Europe.

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It is actually a debated matter. Some claim it is in Hungary, others in Poland or Belarus...
It raises again the question of where the boarders of Europe are.
One of the nicest dedicated monuments, however, is in Lithuania!
"In 1989, scientists of the French National Institute of Geography declared the geographical centre of Europe to be in Lithuania, 26 kilometres north of Vilnius."

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Europe unites with other parts of the world at the world's biggest salt flat: el Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia!

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The Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations in Marseille, France was inaugurated when Marseille was European Capital of Culture in 2013. Europe is cosmopolitanism and Marseille perfectly embodies this. The Mediterranean in the background also demonstrates the southern boundary of Europe. This place is a space of exchange and intercultural dialogue where temporary exhibitions move from one country to another.

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The Europa-Park in South-East Germany, near to the French and Swiss border is the embodiment of Europe in a theme park. Here, visitors can find 15 countries of Europe represented. Each country's culture is made visible and it pictures the continent's unity and nevertheless it's diversity. The park's logo uses three flying stars and even has its own anthem.

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In a small village situated partly in the Netherlands and partly in Germany, the local German and Dutch police patrol together and work at the same station. Even the police cars have bilingual lettering. This situation becomes even more remarkable when taking into consideration that a barbed wire fence ran through the village and separated the two parts less then a hundred years ago.

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Europe can be found in practical melanges like this, a supermarket for the polish minority in the UK.
What will happen to it after BREXIT?

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... in example to be seen down below in the display of an Eastern Pyramide, situated before a Hong Kong shopping mall (April 2017).
The object resembles pretty much Eastern decorations to be found in the low mountain rage of Germany. Even the supporter company here is named stereotypically 'Müller'.
This picture is a reflection on perceived 'European Traditions', in East Asia. Especially how Europeaness is used mostly in a commercial way. Is that all what Europe and its symbolism is good for?

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Europe was made on the pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostella

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In Swakopmund (Namibia) the colonial legacies of European empires overseas are still to be seen, as is the case with this hotel in Swakopmund (Namibia), which used to be a German colony during the 19th century. The colonial legacies (especially the commemoration of extensive violence and trauma and the killing of thousands of Herero and Nama people   by Germans under the command of General Von Trotha in the early 20th century) is an issue that has only recently started to get widespread attention, even though it forms part of our fraught "multidirectional" memory of Europe's past.

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Europe? Europe is clearly in Kiev ... this photo shows the Ministry of Interior in Kiev, boasting the EU flag next to the Ukrainian national flag. This becomes the more interesting when taking into consideration that even some statesmen within EU countries refuse(d) to fly the EU flag on their own residences ...

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Where is Europe? Well, it is in Sarajevo, right next to the Ferhat-Pasha Mosque and it stretches over the Ottoman archaeological site Taslihan and overlooks the Ottoman part of Sarajevo (Bascarsija). Taslihan was a sort of a 15th century Ottoman inn, one of the biggest in the region. In 2004, when the hotel Europe was renovated and expended, another part of Taslihan was discovered. This part is now incorporated into the hotel's summer garden and it is accessible only to the hotel guests. Hotel Europe is a modern building with shiny lights and fancy cars that are parked in front of it. The rest of the street is a part the Austro-Hungarian Sarajevo with buildings dating back to the late 1800s and early 1900s. Hotel Europe is situated at the end of the street and functions as a sort of a liaison between the Austro-Hungarian and the Ottoman part of the City (Bascarsija) . Oliver Stone stayed in this hotel during his visit to the Sarajevo Film Festival. Several people found this information relevant and have shared it with me. Everyone should visit Sarajevo. There, you can not only find Europe, but also the Hotel Europe.

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This is also Europe. But this hotel is clearly not in a very good shape. Is this symbolic for the situation of contemporary Europe now?