How to (more than just) run

But let´s make a step back. It was a random day of a random week of my life when I came across a youth exchange about sport and health. I was sold before even reading the info-pack. It wasn't my first Erasmus Plus project, so I knew what to expect. Yet, this one exceeded my expectations so much that it would take me a long time to describe.

Let me set you a quick example. Imagine you arrive at a random place, in the middle of nowhere, get out of your car, and see a kind of short, bold, good hearted fella walking up to you with a big smile on his face. And already, in the second sentence, he mentions food... Then you have amazing pasta which truly gave a taste of how good the food will be every day. Then you meet the members of your national group, who are crazy to meet you, have smiles on their faces, and are followed by some more people from the project already having the time of their lives. The next day you get to meet the rest of the people, and even though with some you don't click, at first sight, you already feel that vibe of happiness and cheerfulness coming from all around.

Then you do workshops for 9 days, some with sports, something with health... And then one where someone steps on your hands as she's walking the rope everybody else is holding a meter above ground!?!?! Yeah... You can guess some were pretty challenging too, but you did... Together! With the people that you never knew before, some you might never see again, but you were one team when it mattered... For a few days, they were all you had. Most moments would not do the justice when described by words... ´Cause you know that what it was all about were emotions, joy, and happiness. And then the project ends, and you are left with all those memories. But now, you are not just some strangers walking down the street... Now you are that type of friend, who you will sure you make time to visit when you are traveling by. And with each one of these people, the world gets smaller, and the people closer together.

Yeah, well, that is kind of what happened there... Must have been unbelievable, right? It sure was... Worth every second.

- Tom

I was looking forward to taking part in this project. I love sports so the theme was accurate for me. The first night was a little bit frightening because the rooms were next to the forest, cold and humid and the showers were in another building. However, we had so much fun that we got used to it pretty fast. All my fears about the language barrier, getting on well with the people, food, program, and so on dropped off within the moment I met all of the amazing, open-minded participants. Everybody was very pleasant and kind to me. Thanks to the many activities and energizers we attended, we could learn a lot from each other and improve our skills. This project and its activities were also a great opportunity for me to improve my English and other foreign languages, my sports skills, to learn new information about diets, and to meet new people. I liked the calm place that we were accommodated in, the morning yoga sessions and I truly enjoyed the tours in the forest and every international evening. I have to say that the days I spent in Hungary gave me a lot. I felt very comfortable with the people, had a lot of fun and experience and I´m looking forward to taking part in the next project.

-Dia