You can imagine my reaction when I first discovered the amazingness that are TEDtalks during High school. Hearing people give some of the most inspirational speeches I've ever heard in my life was life changing. And it was all on one internet YouTube page! I must have sat on my bed watching those videos for hours, from science talks to talks about the struggles that some have endured, from music to the arts, and so on. TED's subject diversity and educational message has always held a special place in my heart.
So, now, you can imagine my reaction when I found out that I was going to be volunteering for them in Valencia...
Around mid-February, English professor, the wonderful Prof Kay, mentioned to our class that Valencia would be hosting another annual TED talk in the City of Arts and Sciences, hosted by Berklee school of music. The words "TED" came out of her mouth I knew that I would be buying a ticket as soon as possible! (I'm glad I didn't..)
Weeks passed and I forgot about the event completely. I was reminded here and there, but never remembered to buy a ticket. It wasn't until the ride home from Barcelona during a lunch on the beach in Peñiscola that I learned I still had a way to get in.
"The application was super easy. A few yes or no questions and a profession of my love for TED later, they emailed me saying that I could volunteer with them!" Said Chloe enthusiastically. Brittney immediately lit up with excitement, as she said that she had signed up to be a volunteer also.
I stared at them dumbfounded. There was a slight drop in my appetite at the notion that it might be too late for me. "HAS THE DEADLINE PASSED?? IS IT TOO LATE, DO YOU THINK?" Although they weren't sure, I made sure that one of the first things I did when I got home was check to see if I still had a chance to get in. And sure enough..... A few yes or no questions and a profession of my love for TED later, I got an email the very next day saying that I was on the volunteer team. I tried my hardest to maintain my composure when I looked at the email. From that moment, I knew it was going to be something to remember.
The Tuesday before the show, we went to the Berklee School of Music campus in Valencia to meet the team and go over our roles for Friday's dress rehearsal. We got our free tee-shirts (which I was a little too excited about getting, I'll admit), learned the speakers and our roles, and looked forward to Friday.
Friday came as soon I hoped it would. It was the day to set up the even itself. With shirts worn proudly, Brittney, Chloe, Coryn, and I were ready to start the day.
When we first arrived, we saw Jeremy, a Berklee student and volunteer, with a cart that had four large, red letters on them. I analyzed them, and then it occurred to me what I was looking at...
"Guys... Those are the TED letters..." I tried my hardest to contain my excitement and act cool. But I'm probably one of the most expressive people you'll ever meet, so you know how well that went. We rushed to the main auditorium at the Oceanogràphic, and were able to help set the actual letters for TEDxBerkleeValencia. (Insert fangirl noise here.)
On that Friday, I was given the honor of escorting Mike Muse, one the TED speakers, from the hotel and watching him practice (more like deliver) his TED talk. He is an amazing, enthusiastic man, whose humility, intelligence, and friendliness has helped get him to where he is today. In total I saw about three TED talks being rehearsed before they were given at the actual event. Aside from Mike's talk, I also saw Zoe Schneider's beautiful spoken word about the ability of millennials to step up and create change in our world despite what older generations might think of us, and Jonathon Iwry's talk about the role of human intuition in our lives and its personal impact on his career as a freestyle rapper.
Then came the day of the actual event. Saturday. I was excited to get to witness this. And plus, there was an after party to look forward to. Most of my day was spent ticketing, but during the later part, I got to see the remainder of the TED talks. People from Tatiana Oliveira Simonian (a Marketing and Business Development Executive) to Will Lydgate (a masters student @ Berklee, VLC and a chocolate educator) spoke and delivered various powerful and informative messages. It was a surreal experience to be able to watch something that I spent the last few years admiring on YouTube unfold in front of my vary eyes.
After the event, I was able to help clean up and learn a little about the Berklee-TED production team and what they do to get the show going. Our evening came to an all time hight when attended the TEDx After Party at the roof of the Barcelò hotel next to the Berklee campus. Here we met the majority of the speakers and got to see the more personal side to those behind the TED talks. We even got to meet the guys who won the Hyperloop-SpaceX competition! There was an aroma of sophistication in the air that chilled my bones. This was awesome.
I have to say, one of the coolest parts for me during this whole experience was getting to meet and make friends with Berklee students and to explore the Berklee Campus a little bit. While I was looking at universities as a Senior in high school, I highly considered applying to Berklee school of music, Boston. But the price tag was a little too high, and I figured I should give scholastic university the old college try. So it was truly an honor to get to do that.
The connections that I have made during this TED experience, be it with volunteers, speakers, or the production team, I know that most of them will produce life long friendships. And I have this amazing city to thank for that.
'Til our roads meet,
Christian Camacho
The Traveling 'Nole
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