NGI Recipient: Charis Nandor
Session Attended: Royal Scottish Country Dance Society - Scottish Session II (2016)
Going to Pinewoods Scottish Session II was a truly amazing experience and I feel so privileged that I was able to go. I absolutely loved my time there and hope that I will be able to return again in the future.
I had only started dancing about six months before attending camp, so naturally I was nervous. But I didn’t need to worry! Everyone there was so nice and welcoming, and helpful to an inexperienced dancer. Classes helped my technique immensely; I’m a much better dancer than I was before going. I also feel like much more of a part of the Scottish dancing community than I did before.
The dancing was great: classes were available for a wide range of experience, and evening dances were tons of fun. Of course, as a new dancer, I can’t count the number of times I made mistakes. But nobody minded; they were friendly and helpful and guided me to fix what I was doing wrong. As Scottish is a social dance, I danced with many different people, probably almost everyone else at camp, which was a wonderful way to meet people and feel a part of things. I danced so much, that by the end of the week I could barely move my legs!
It wasn’t just dancing, although that was a major part of it. Everything about camp was great. From playing games on the dock to swimming in the lake to late-night parties, it was truly a blissful summer camp experience and I always felt invited to hang out, even with people I barely knew.
I’m so grateful for the opportunity, and I’m sure I’ll be back in the future for more summers of Pinewoods!