Maruška Schenk is a third-year student of The Diocesan Classical Gymnasium and a national winner of the constest Juvenes Translatores 2016. The aim of the contest, which took place in November, is to promote language learning in schools and give young people a taste of what it is like to be a translator. This year 751 schools from all over Europe participated, 8 of which were from Slovenia. All official languages of the European Union were available for translating. It is recommended for students to translate into their mother tongue or into the language they most use. Maruška translated from German to Slovene.

This is how she reports from her experience in Brussels, where she travelled with her mentor Mirjam Lindič, teacher of German at the Diocesan Classical Gymnasium: »The main purpose of our visit was to attend the Award Ceremony in Brussels. During that time, I had the chance to meet and get to know all the winners. There, the European Commissioner Oettinger, the Director of the translation department Martikonis and the winners from Ireland, Spain, Lithuania and the Czech Republic gave a speech, all in their native language. Next to our seats were headphones, which we could use, to listen to the simultaneous interpreting of what was said. This was an interesting experience. Although this was a formal event, the atmosphere was very relaxed and pleasant. A refreshment with drinks followed, where I had the chance to talk to Slovenian translators from Luxembourg. Lastly, we went to a Greek restaurant for dinner and with that the day came to an end. We spent our free time walking around Brussels, sightseeing and buying novelty goods. On Friday afternoon all the winners, their teachers and parents went to the General Directorate of Translation, where three Slovenian translators work. One of them is Mrs Golobič, who showed us around her office and described what her normal workday looks like. Sadly, this was the last stop of our visit. I will always remember these three days. I learned many new things and met a lot of nice people.

I believe the contest Juvenes Translatores is an excellent opportunity for young people, who like languages and want to try translating themselves, to show off their language skills. They are something great to have in life, because it opens up new horizons and enriches your entire life. « /Maruška Schenk, year 3/