Tag: Magiafitt

In the past few days, I have had a much better opportunity to settle into the daily routine of working here and to get used to the usual rhythm of life as a volunteer at FITT.

During the week, I was able to get to know more of FITT’s youth centres and help out with various renovations and improvements. We scraped and repainted walls, renovated a bathroom and renewed the roofs.

In addition to the work in the youth centres, we also helped with the construction and extension of a transit centre for refugees from Ukraine, which is now located in the basement of the youth centre. For the facility, we brought in beds and put them in partitioned areas. We also set up areas for eating and a small dining area for children, and cleaned the entire accommodation and put it in good condition.

Besides the work, we also had the opportunity to get to know two countries through organised cultural evenings. While the Spanish volunteers prepared a delicious buffet for us, we learned about traditional dances and were allowed to taste some local food at the Romanian evening.

I also went on excursions with other volunteers over the past two weekends to get to know Romania and the area better. We spent one weekend in Budapest, where we spent our time seeing the city, eating well and relaxing in the thermal baths. The other weekend we rented two cars and went on a short road trip to get to know Corvin Castle in Hunedoara, Sibiu and the regions around Timisoara better.

There are always certain things in life that one would like to do, but that is not the right time for it on one side or another. I had always wanted to live a long period out of Spain (I have had other experiences abroad, but only for a few months).

After one of the strangest years of my life, I decided to go for a whole year to Romania. Yes, Romania. What I didn’t know at that time was that this country was going to welcome me with open arms and teach me so many things.

I arrived with zero expectations about the work I would do, the people I would live and work with, and the city in general. And there you are! From the first minute, I felt like it would be one of the best experiences and I would not regret the decision made.

If I had to define my volunteering year in one word, I would say intensity—intensity in every way. I enjoyed it, cried, had bad moments, was very excited, lost desire, and laughed (a lot).

There’s been something new to do every day, and I love that. I have got skills that I thought I would not have in my life, and I have done many things for the first time (the magic of first times). It is a frantic experience. There have been days of hard work that made me think about what was I doing there. (Yes, I have had a few moments to think about myself and my future -only sometimes 😉) and, in the end, it always wins the bright side of things, and in this case, there have been plenty of them.

Talking to a friend the other day, she said: are you aware of how many people you’ve met this year? It gets to the point where you get used to meeting new people every week/month and don’t realise the reality. And what a great people! One of the best things I have taken away from this experience is people.

It has been challenging to live with many people in the same apartment (we have been up to 16). Each one of different countries and with its ways of living. It is stunning thinking about people you probably would not know in other circumstances, who now live and work with you, and they are essential in your life (and how great to have houses around the world 😉).

The bonds created by being part of a European volunteering project, and in this case, being part of FITT, are so strong that few people understand what it feels like, and it’s hard to explain if you don’t live it.

When it is all over, you wonder if it has been worth it and, if you have left your mark on the project and others the same way they have left it on you. And in my case, I can’t be prouder of what we have created together all this time.

On the 14th of December, the Youth Centre of Dacia exchanged the noise of construction work, with the sound of a guitar and a beautiful voice. Helped by the youth workers from FITT, the place changed its atmosphere. The opening was on! A little buffet, a workshop area, a lot of welcoming puff, and some thankful speeches.

The latest details were made the same day: to embellish the place and put the furniture. What a relief for us to see that big day coming! We were now able to say: we did it! The challenge of renovating a formerly industrial place to a welcoming one in a month is completed. Time was definitely our worst enemy here. But in the end, we achieved to make the list of the Youth Centres growing.

Now, the association CoderDojo will make it its own. This building provides them with a place for their activities as a “general quarter”. Until 2023, as the year of Timișoara European Capital of Culture, other Youth Centres will rise with FITT and hopefully provide local associations places for their work and activities.

2022 will then be a year of hard work for the FITT team. Months after months, the experience will be improved. Other volunteers will come and join this enriching movement. This volunteering was for me a unique, multicultural and most of all intense experience. Full of dust but also full of friendships. And I wish the next ones to enjoy it as much as I did.