Being a volunteer has been a goal of mine for a very long time. I’ve heard some stories that make the idea intriguing. So I thought, what kind of experiences will I bring home?

This project took me to Gdańsk, Poland, a city I’ve wanted to visit for years. However, as I had no experience prior to this one the whole process was a bit intimidating. I was fortunate enough however, to be accompanied by extremely kind, helpful and smart individuals who helped me through every challenging part of the process.

Before arriving at my destination, I pondered about all the exciting opportunities that awaited me once I was settled, as well as how I would handle the challenges ahead. Our group was first to arrive at the dormitory, and after receiving the keys to our temporary accommodation, we started gathering items that were graciously given to us, like cooking pans, pots and tableware. Soon after, we met some of our colleagues and quickly started discussing what to expect on our first day of work, something I was eagerly anticipating. That first day, we spent the morning getting to know one another through icebreaker games. After that, we had a light snack, then went out together for dinner at an inexpensive local restaurant. Later, we took a walk through the beautiful historic part of the city.

Over the next few days, we followed a routine schedule: going to the office, discussing various topics, getting to know each other better, and preparing for our upcoming projects. I quickly formed a group with a few of the guys, and we began brainstorming ways to make our project stand out from the rest. At this point, the days felt like minutes, they were passing by as quickly and I hardly ever missed being back home. I have to be also honest and say that waking up early to go to work was challenging at first but I grew to like the feeling of doing something new and productive every day.

My first volunteering experience was at the Velo-city Conference, an impressive expo held over several days at Amber Expo. From a volunteer’s perspective, this was my favorite event, mainly because I had the chance to meet and talk with people from all over the world. They told me of their countries and cultures, wishes and goals, and I too shared stories from my homeland. I can only hope they enjoyed hearing them as much as I enjoyed telling them.

After the conference we had the school project. Even before we began, I had already started thinking about how we would approach the task. My team and I gathered to discuss plans and with the help of our coordinators the task seemed to go without any obstacles. The first school we visited was close to our dormitory.  I had initially imagined a much larger setting, but the class turned out to have only about 15 students. We presented our topic, which was “food waste” with 2 separate classes, and I was surprised to see the level of English mastery from the students. We later visited another school, this one a lot further away. The presentation was similar to the first, with a few improvements. The classes this time were bigger, and it was a really unique experience getting to visit a school like that, if only because it was so different from the schools I’ve attended throughout my life.

The third assignment, the senior parade, took place in the city center. We were each given various tasks for the day, including handing out flags, giving directions, and generally assisting the elderly. Since I was helping with directions and managing the queue, I had the chance to speak with some of them. The parade soon began and made its way to a nearby park, where my colleagues and I continued to assist by distributing food and drinks. I once again had the opportunity to talk with some of the seniors, even though the language barrier sometimes made communication a bit difficult. At the end of the day, we had some of the food and drinks for ourselves. A few of my friends even went out on the dance floor, but since I’m not much of a dancer, I chose to take one last walk through the city. The next day, my roommate and I were planning to take a train to Warsaw.

I had my bag packed and was eagerly looking forward to seeing the capital, even if only for a day. The sheer size of the city was unimaginable at first and I knew from the start that I would not be able to visit everything I wanted to. My friend Konstantin and I decided to head to the old town immediately upon arriving. I had my camera out at every step, documenting as much as I could of this lovely city.

Upon buying some souvenirs, I decided to visit the offices of CD Projekt Red, a place I had wanted to see for many years. Since there wasn’t much time left afterward, all we could do was wait for the train back to Gdańsk. I had a coffee near the old square, and then we boarded the train.

The last few days were a chance to reflect on the memories I had made for the past few weeks. I visited the beach often, walking along the sand at every opportunity I got, sometimes alone, sometimes not.

As I’m writing this I look back at the hundreds of moments I never managed to write down, but that I’ll always carry in my mind.

Gorazd Trimparevski

Team Volunteering “Bridging Generations” hosted by Wolontariat Gdańsk