Summer 2021

Cè gente che ci chiede “Ci sono ragazzi che partono per il volontariato quest’anno?”, unica risposta da dare è: Certo che si!! Qui un piccolo racconto in lingua inglese da parte di Tu Dang (residente in Italia per studio) che ha visto per un mese in Ungheria.

Xin chào! Ciao! Szia! 

My name is Tu Dang from Vietnam. I am a volunteer in the European Solidarity Corps program in Hungary with Hírös Agóra Cultural and Youth Centre. My task in the program is to organize cultural and youth events in Kecskemét City, a lovely city in the center of Hungary. It is a great experience to live in another country and see the local lives. The organization has other volunteers like me from different parts of Europe like France, Portugal, Bulgaria,…etc. Together we make an international group of volunteers and exchange cultures there. I also make friends with the local people from Hungary. They taught me some of the most common words of Hungarian.

In my volunteer time, I helped to organize the Hungary Product Festival and Week of Kecskemét. We had a booth to promote the activities of the European Solidarity Corps. I was there to explain to the youth of Kecskemét about my experience in joining a project. My volunteering time happens in the period that the Hungarians celebrate their State Foundation Day on August 20th. It was a one-of-a-lifetime experience to visit Budapest and see all the festive activities on that day. I got to see the Hungary military march, the air show by the Danube River, and the famous firework in Budapest. I also got to see the Hungary National Museum and the Parliament. The central position of Hungary in Europe also helps me to travel easily. My city is a one-hour train to Budapest so I can travel to other places effortlessly. The long break in the national holiday gave me a chance to travel to Vienna for 2 days. 

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Thanks to the opportunity I get to volunteer in Hungary in the European Solidarity Corps. It is a great experience. I also saw other volunteers in the same project as mine who want to participate in more projects in the future. But everything is not always good. After the initial excitement of living in a new country, I did experience some culture shock when I first came to the city. I missed my home city and had trouble adjusting to the new culture and language. I read about it in the training guide for new volunteers on the European Solidarity Corps platform but I was not mentally prepared enough. Everything eventually got better as I got used to life in Hungary. So my advice for future volunteers is to research the country you will be in. The more information the better you are prepared. Be aware that culture shock will happen. Overall, it was a great experience which took me out of my comfort zone. I totally recommend it to others!!!

Tu Dang ha partecipato al progetto Volunteers in Summer theme camps in Hírös Agóra presso l’associazione Hírös Agóra Kulturális és Ifjúsági Központ Nonprofit Kft.nella città di Kecskemét, Ungheria.