With only 120 kilometres to the coast of Syria only very few antennae are more on the edge of Europe than AEGEE-Mağusa. How European do people feel in Northern Cyprus? How difficult is it for them on their island to connect to the rest of the AEGEE world? In the third part of the series “Living on the edge of Europe”, Süleyman Rebge and Sadun Korhan of AEGEE-Mağusa gave answers.

GT: How European-minded are normal people and students in your city on y scale from 0 (not European-minded at all) to 10 (extremely European-minded)?
Süleyman Rebge: We can say 7 over 10.

Golden Times: How many members do you have? And when was your antenna founded?
Süleyman: AEGEE-Mağusa was founded in 1999 and we have 24 active members.

GT: Is it hard to find members?
Süleyman: No, but it is hard to find people, who stay member for several years, because young people go abroad.

GT: What do you tell potential members when they say: “AEGEE sounds nice, but all the events are far away…”?
Süleyman: We tell them it is more affordable than other vacations and a much better experience.

GT: How much does travelling cost to Central European locations, such as Munich or Vienna?
Süleyman: This is a big problem for us. More than 200 Euros.

GT: Is getting visa for events a big problem for your members?
Sadun Korhan: No, this is not a problem for us, since we are Europeans.

GT: Are there also positive aspects from your geographical location?
Sadun: We have some positive vibe for example, we have sunshine all year!

GT: Roughly how many foreign members are attending your events per year?
Sadun: Around 30 members in each event.

GT: Did you cooperate in 2017 with other antennae or do you plan that for 2018?
Sadun: We had a cooperation with AEGEE-İstanbul recently. We will cooperate more with other antennae in 2018.

GT: Which international events are you planning for 2018?
Sadun: We are planning to organize a Summer University as always. We were third in the total ranking last year and we will aim for the first place!

GT: Do you sometimes wish your antenna was more central or do you enjoy being at the edge of Europe?
Sadun: Yes, because we cannot travel as easily compared to Central Europeans.