In October of this year I was lucky enough to visit the Artek camp. This amazing place is located on the Black Sea coast in Crimea. The camp, seven kilometers long, was founded quite a long time ago and has its own laws, traditions and legends. Mountains rise around it, one of them, the bear-mountain Ayu-Dag, according to legend, protects the entire “Artek” and our “Yantarny” camp. Unforgettable emotions were given to us not only by the stunning natural beauty of the camp, but also by the events that took place there.
Our shift was dedicated to the 170th anniversary of the Russian
Geographical Society. We plunged into the wonderful world of geography, visited Sevastopol and many museums, gained new knowledge and a lot of emotions. We also received knowledge at the camp school.
In addition, the camp hosted events in which we showed creativity, danced, and sang. I was very lucky with the squad and counselors, who were all different, but you could talk to everyone about everything. There were many extras in the camp where we could dance and take our minds off the shift program. In hot weather we went to the sea, sunbathed and swam. For all the children, “Yantarny” and “Artek” itself became a big home, and its squad and counselors became a big family. I will really miss this place, the squad and our beloved counselors. I will proudly bear the name of “Artek resident”.
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Artek has been the dream of many children for nine decades. The most talented guys from all corners of our vast Motherland and even from foreign countries come here. I also had a cherished desire to put on a red tie and receive the proud title of “Artek member”.
The dream came true on the last day of summer. Artek greeted us with sunny weather, the sound of the sea and a dizzying view of the symbol of the camp - Mount Ayu-Dag. It seemed that the fourth month of summer was beginning.
The shift in Artek was incredibly interesting. Every day was different from the previous one. Artek residents are not used to sitting still, so about a dozen field trips were organized for us: to Sevastopol, the amazing cosmonautics museum, Vorontsovsky, Massandra, Livadia palaces, etc. The most memorable was the evening trip on the Artek boat. Memories of evening lights, the cries of seagulls and that atmosphere will warm me on winter evenings.
At the tenth anniversary shift in Artek, the first international festival animated film "Animatika". Over the course of seven days, the creators of "Smeshariki", "Fixies" and "Three Bogatyrs" held many master classes for young journalists from media teams. At the end of the festival, ten people from each camp tried themselves as real animators and created their own cartoons. Now we can confidently say: “If you don’t like cartoons, then you don’t know how to draw them!”
In our camp “Lesnoy” the profile shift of the “Russian Geographical Society” took place. Young geographers and “geographesses” from all over Russia competed in their knowledge of their subject, learning to work with telescopes, barometers and other instruments. Those interested in the north visited a real Arctic tent that arrived from the expedition. To say the least, it was very unusual to find yourself in a polar module under the Crimean sun. After 21 days of intensive study of geography, each participant in the shift is ready for the main test - climbing Ayu-Dag.
Mount Ayu-Dag - one of the main symbols of Artek - was visible to us from the window every day. Here comes day “X” - the day of ascent. Early rise, packing of backpacks, and now the squad is already at the foot. It’s hard to climb to the top alone, but we are Artek residents, we are always together and will lend a helping hand to a friend. At the top, fatigue is forgotten; the view of Artek at dawn will take your breath away. Well, according to tradition - initiation into Artek. 90 years ago, the first pioneers made wishes on a stone in the same way, sang songs to Grandfather Absolute and proudly descended from Bear Mountain.
Artek is unlike any other camp. There is even a “language” here: not disco, but extras; not a quiet hour, but the Absolute. But Artek changes not only words. At the camp, the guys show new talents. Anyone who has never drawn will be inspired seascape and will draw Adalary at sunset; someone unfamiliar with journalism will try himself as a reporter; in this wonderful place everyone will find something to their liking.
Artek helps you believe in yourself. Just three weeks ago you were embarrassed to sing your favorite song, “light up” at a crowd, or confess your love. Today you are performing at a gala concert. You have changed. You have become a better person.
What can I tell you about Artek?..
It is beautiful at dawn and during the day.
Even if you fill out the notebook, you still won’t be able to tell about him!
This is how one of Artek’s songs begins, and, in my opinion, there are no better words to choose.
When we were offered to become counselors at Artek, we were not fully aware of what was happening. What does the average Russian resident know about this place? The best children's camp, in Soviet times it was a paradise for children. After the collapse of the USSR, little information was received about him. And, strictly speaking, there was no time for that. After the entry of Crimea into Russian Federation Artek was again talked about as the best camp. But I assure you, one person in twenty understands what is being said.
Let's start with the fact that Artek is not just a children's camp, no, no, under no circumstances make such a mistake. " Artek» is an international children's center consisting of nine children's camps: « Ozerny”, “River”, “Field”, “Forest”, “Azure”, “Cypress”, “Sea”, “Amber” and “Crystal” . At the stage of reconstruction is "Diamond" and during the construction process - "Solar" . The camps occupy a huge territory, so there is on-duty transport for employees, otherwise it takes about forty minutes to get from home to work. The Artek IBC is located in the city of Gurzuf (if, of course, one can say so, because it is more like the Vatican and Rome, adjacent through a wall), between Yalta and Alushta, and occupies an entire bay near Ayu-Dag.
“Ayu-Dag” translated from Crimean Tatar means “bear-mountain”. It is covered in myths and legends. The guys from every shift go up there to be initiated into Artek. Rumor has it that a red-bearded old man, Absolute, lives there and guards the peace of the children during quiet time.
Any shift at Artek has its own theme, within the framework of which camp life takes place. There are also highlights that are held every shift - excursions to the hero city of Sevastopol, along the southern coast of Crimea to the Livadia, Massandra and Vorontsov palaces, battles of specialized detachments, a combined tourist route and, of course, the opening and closing ceremonies of the shift. We worked the ninth, tenth and eleventh shifts, when the big MUZ-TV concert, the KVN festival, meetings with Olympic champions and much more took place.
This is all very exciting, but completely irrelevant. All this is about the walls, the administration and the teachers. After you leave Artek, the first thing you remember is your children. And you can’t even say it any other way, they are “yours.” No matter how many shifts you work, no matter how many camps you visit, children will remain in your heart forever.
At the very beginning, colleagues said: “I’m afraid to come back here... because I will never be able to leave Crimea, away from my children”. Honestly, I was skeptical about this. But after the first week spent in the detachment, when you see their faces 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, communicate with them, and are responsible for their life and health, you understand that nothing else is needed. Sometimes you tell them something, you bring some important human value to their heads, and they look at you like you're a superhero– you can sell your soul for such moments. For their enthusiastic sparkles in their eyes, for their laughter, even for their misdeeds and self-indulgence.
After such an experience, life becomes different. Now it is no longer possible, as before, to simply walk along the road and calmly look at the world. Having become accustomed to an active lifestyle, you can no longer stand still.
And I also want to end with the words of the song, I’ll just change them a little: “Oh, how I want to go back, oh, how I want to break into... ARTEK”.
Anastasia Beregovaya,
3rd year student at the Institute of History and Politics
Series "Memories of Summer 2009"
Author - Tatyana Borbitko, teacher-organizer of the school "Yantarny"
"Artek" is a separate country of which one becomes a citizen for life. When I vacationed at Artek, as a child, I didn’t like it. I don’t know why, it’s just not that’s all…. And now I think I have found the answer: The secret is in the counselors and friends!!! It didn’t work out for me, and I had the whole summer to catch up….
... Hurray, many years later I found myself here again! The nature is wonderful, everything just breathes warmth and tranquility! I can’t even believe that there are such quiet and cozy places in Artek, however, in a few days they will be filled with happy children’s voices, the summer season will begin and my first shift will begin... 
We had ten whole days to learn everything. Every day was scheduled minute by minute, and life in the camp was clearly defined. We, young and “green”, ready to work day and night, were distributed into groups and asked to get used to the image of children! We were also given experienced counselors, with whom we played different games from morning to evening, testing our strength "slides-ladders" and even the mighty Crimean mountains, swam without respite and at the same time saved someone, pranked funny scenarios, invented on the fly, danced and sang until they sweat, feigning sincere joy, in general, they had a good and extremely interesting time! And, oddly enough, we liked it. The sharpness and unpredictability of sensations is what we and our children needed.
The shift flew by in one breath. All these games and events: “KTM”, “Artekov Safari”, “Tour City”, “Cossack Fun”, music competitions, business card competitions, clubs, sports games, extras and, of course, the “Gala Concert” so captivated the children that they did not have time to look back, and the shift was already approaching the finale….
"Artek" has some kind of magical power, forcing people to return there again and again, and then for the first time it seemed to me that after leaving I could yearn for the “capital of children's happiness.” But the summer continued. Two of my unforgettable shifts have already passed, and things were heading towards an international change. I was a little upset because I was not given a foreign delegation, but was assigned to a detachment with children, mainly from Russia and Ukraine. Then the camp director reassured me and said that “ordinary” children also need a good rest. At the end of the shift, it was very pleasant to learn that, according to the results of the survey, “ordinary” children liked Artek more than foreigners. They got to know kids from all over the world so actively, it felt like there was no language barrier between them at all.
The last one summer shift I worked with older children, they required a different approach than middle-aged children. They understood right away, they didn’t have to repeat it twice, and that’s a plus. But each had their own distinct interests, it was much more difficult for them to do something together. At first we simply learned to compromise, but then we became friends and quickly found a common language.
It so happened that it was my last shift This year, in principle, I was glad, I was slowly drawn home. True, Artek has long become my second home. Maybe for some it will sound banal, but here I found new friends, understanding and care, “Artek” left the brightest memories in my heart. Here I gained invaluable experience of working together for a common result, I understood what mutual assistance is, and I myself learned to help just so that the person would be pleased, I learned to think and calculate everything two steps ahead. It seems that I learned to trust people, but to be a little more careful, I became more confident in myself and taught this to others. I will never forget “Artek”, songs with a guitar by the fire, friends, the nature of Crimea, the lunar path, starfall, and I hope that I will come to this beautiful place on the Black Sea coast again. 
I don't know who wrote the following lines, but I like them. I found this letter and edited it slightly.
“...So the summer ended, we parted ways. And sleepless nights began... Believe me, you are tormented not by memories of Artek, but by your fantasies about him. You can remember it once, twice, three times... You can’t watch the same movie thirty times. But every night your fantasies will creep under your blanket, from which you cannot escape.
But these will be delightful fantasies.
This will continue until your soul hardens. Until you become an adult. Then you will only have to remember Artek. And you will miss the fact that no one crawls under your blanket at night...
And it's very sad... When you are still a child, you live in your fantasies. When an adult - with your memories.
Text + photo - Tatiana Borbitko (in the title photo - on the right, on the left - colleague Katarina Ketrish)
Hello Lesnoy everyone! In October of this year, I had the opportunity to visit the International Children's Center called Artek, which celebrated its 90th anniversary on June 16, 2015.
Call from mom
It all started when my mother called me during a history lesson and said without further ado: “You are going to Artek!” My joy knew no bounds! The next day I started preparing for the trip, sat at various Artek forums, read about the traditions of each of the camps and thought which one I would end up in (there are 11 camps on the territory of Artek, two of which are currently under reconstruction) .
A week passed and the time for departure arrived. I didn’t sleep that night, the rush of excitement mixed with joy didn’t let me calm down. The journey was long, and I spent almost 30 hours in an uncomfortable sitting position with one of Murakami's books in my hands, which accompanied me until the end of the shift. Advice for those who are going to the camp for the first time: to make the time on the road go a little faster and more interesting, take with you some small book, after reading which you can briefly retreat into the world of your dreams and forget about the stuffy bus.
And here we are at Artek...
Closer to lunch we arrived at the Pribrezhny reception building. Since it was my first time at Artek, I decided that the reception building was the camp in which I would live, which I was very surprised by, since the photographs on the Internet showed me a completely different picture.
About five or six o'clock the guys from different delegations were distributed into groups, and closer to eight in the evening it was the turn of Dagestan. We were told to take out everything that was in our suitcases and put it in huge plastic bags. Not only was the bag instantly filled with my things, but a uniform was also added to it. I read that you don’t need to take a lot of clothes to Artek, but for everything to be so serious, I didn’t even think about it. Of course, unable to withstand everything that had accumulated within me, my bag burst right along the way to the building. Fortunately, one of the boys of the detachment passing by agreed to help me, and I safely carried my things to my new home - a building called “Maple”. I was met by a very sweet and cheerful girl Alena - my counselor. On the way to the room, she tried to cheer me up, joking and asking where I was from.
Three days of depression
The room was quite spacious: six beds and each had a bedside table, a sofa, a table, a shower and a bathroom - just what you needed! The interior was done in light green color, the atmosphere of the room was calming. The girls I came across were cheerful; when we met, they joked every now and then, I felt comfortable and cozy. However, on the second day the mood changed to depressed. Although my neighbors had a cheerful character, I could not yet call them friends. I remembered a friend from the city, I felt sad and lonely, so I decided to call her. This went on for several days - my friend supported me over the phone, telling me about what was happening in the city in my absence.
And then the holiday began!
You know, in the Artek anthem there are these lines: “How can I tell you about Artek? It is beautiful at dawn and during the day. Even if you fill out the notebook, you still won’t be able to tell about him.” To the point! Seriously, the entire newspaper would not be enough to describe this camp, every day is so eventful and filled with interesting events.
After these three days, my depression in camp life began new chapter: we traveled to a variety of seaside cities with wonderful names: Alupka, Sevastopol (a fabulously cozy city), Livadia, Yalta, Chersonesos; We visited a lot of museums: the museums of the Massandra and Livadia palaces, the museum of the Black Sea Fleet, the Pushkin museum, the museum of magnets (there are as many as 13 thousand of them!) and many others, their name is legion.
About the Botanical Garden, studies and Ayu-Dag
We were in the magically beautiful Botanical Garden, and also climbed Bear Mountain (Ayu-Dag), went down to the sea to launch paper boats, went to visit other camps, rocked out at crowd scenes to songs of the nineties, performed in front of the entire “Forest” camp and did much, much more!
At the same time, we still had time to study, I especially remember biology lessons in nature and experiments in physics lessons. And how many clubs and sections there are - for every taste and ability: from judo to soft toys, from psychology to robot design.
Oh yes, I forgot to tell you about Ayu-Dag. There is a sad legend associated with this mountain, I advise you to find it on the Internet and read it, but for now I’ll tell you about my impressions of being on this hill. From Ayu-Dag you can see everything: Artek, Yalta, Sevastopol, and the sea - the whole Crimea is in full view. While life is in full swing below, here on the mountain time stops. So it’s better to sweat and be initiated into Artek than to sit in the building all day. Don’t be scared by the counselors’ stories that climbing Ayu-Dag is difficult - it’s not!
Speaking of counselors
Counselors are a separate issue. Honestly, I miss them most of all. I really fell in love with my people - Polina and Alena, with whom we communicate even after separation. Day after day they made us happy, tolerated our “When are we going to Bosco?”, “What’s the plan for tomorrow?”, “Will there be Absolut (quiet hour)?” I really miss our common jokes, no one tortures the counselors anymore with questions like “How old are you?”, and no one answers “48!” I miss those Artek nights, when the whole room tried to hold back laughter while the counselors checked whether we were sleeping after lights out.
Their shift is over, just like ours, but I am one hundred percent sure that we will meet. I am sure that we will again secretly bring them gingerbread from the animation table, that we will again climb Ayu-Dag and all the way we will joke about “we went up today - we went down tomorrow” and again we will all sing Artek songs together. Everything will be fine. I know.
Finally, I would like to add a line from a letter from Nadya Rusheva, a Soviet artist and graphic artist: “My life is divided into two halves: one before Artek, and the second after it...” And, you know, that's how it is.
Alida Khidirbekova,
7 “1” class, Lyceum No. 52, Makhachkala
