A lot of happiness

 

Hello beautiful people,

 

The most beautiful thing about this project is that it allows you to get to know people from different backgrounds and cultures and can teach you several things. When I first came here, I thought I was going to make more friends and get to know more about other cultures, but it turned out that I made a new family, this experience made me a new person, and I’m grateful for that.

This is my last week, and I feel sad to leave this beautiful city and the beautiful people I knew during those two months; sharing with them all those unforgettable moments shaped my soul.

I first arrived in Ankara full of memories from my last exchange in Serbia, I was feeling ready for the next adventure. Still, I didn’t expect to feel this amount of happiness to meet interesting and lovely people along the way.

Being part of this team created a certain vibe that made me work harder to be the best of myself, do better when it comes to my work and give more than I can take.

We discovered Ankara on our way since we went to all the historical and tourist places together, we enjoyed it to the fullest because we knew that this was our moment and we were here to enjoy everything together as one team.

Our project was divided into three main parts, which made it really interesting and allowed us to be even more creative; we worked with the refugees, and during that activity, we met many people that remain now our friends; they took us to many places in Ankara and welcomed us in the best way possible. We learned how to be more thankful for what we have and be more kindhearted; working with refugees made us realize that we can positively impact people and be the change we wish to see in the world.

We worked in the kindergarten with the kids, and we made English workshops with them, which was interesting and enjoyable.

The last part was to take care of social media to create awareness videos to encourage youth to be leaders and to help them become their best selves. I enjoyed this part a lot since we worked as a team to create enriching content for young people to impact them in every possible way.

During those video-making and post-creation, we learned how to be more confident and learned new communication and leadership skills.

We went on trips together, which made my experience so much better, my last trip was to Eskisehir, and it was amazing since we went to many places and tasted new food. It was our teammate’s birthday, so we went to one of the best parks I have  ever been to and celebrated her birthday.

I love Turkish people; I love their kindness and their spirit; I remember being invited once to our friend’s house, and his mother was one of the best persons I’ve ever met; she made us learn how to prepare Mante which is a traditional Turkish meal, and she was the perfect host, she made us feel like home. We had the best breakfast, and we felt like a family.

Being part of this project is a blessing since you learn how to be responsible and you learn how to get out of your comfort zone. So to every person out here afraid to apply for ESC volunteering programs, thinking it’s not for him, don’t wait for a sign! This program is designed for you; it is made for young leaders to make them aware of their importance in their societies and the whole world: YOU ARE GLOBAL CITIZENS!

This city made me feel different, my team made me feel at home, and our host organization took care of us which made us feel comfortable; so to those who made my experience unforgettable, I LOVE YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART and until we meet again in beautiful Turkey!