I`ve always wanted to take part in an exchange and when I heard about this one, I immediately knew this was finally my chance to live my dream. I expected it to be fun and I knew I was going to learn a lot of things and improve as a person, but it exceeded my expectations by far.
It all started with 12 Romanians impatiently waiting for a bus that would take them on their next adventure. I was one of them! First stop was going to be in Székesfehérvár where the Hungarians were waiting for us to pick them up. During our trip to Hungary, we played a lot of games and we got to know each other and built up friendships. By the time we arrived in Hungary, we were like a little family waiting to expand as more members were to join. We spent the night at a cozy pension in Hungary where we started to build up friendships with the Hungarian fellows.
Next morning, we had a delicious breakfast at the pension and then we were ready to embark on our next great adventure. Our trip to the Netherlands was long and tiring, but despite that, we never lost our excitement and good mood. We all listened to both Romanian and Hungarian songs and that helped us build an even stronger bond because we understood each other’s cultures better.
We arrived at our little scouts’ cabin in the Netherlands at around 2 am and we were welcomed with open arms and a warm late night dinner because we were all hungry after our long bus drive. We all slept like babies that night! We started our next day with a name game to get to know each other better. It was quite hard to memorize so many names at once, but we were soon to become very familiar with each other.
Our time spent in the Netherlands was full of activities that got us out of our comfort zone, taught us many new and fascinating things and helped us grow as individuals and evolve on different levels. One of my favorite activities was “Abigail`s tail” because we got to discuss the character’s behavior and we discovered that there were a lot of differences in the way that we see things. It made us look at things from different perspectives, taught us to respect each other’s opinions and set the scene for a series of interesting discussions. Another activity that I enjoyed was the one about “Sustainable houses”. As we are all slowly reaching the point where we will want to have our own place, it seemed to me that this workshop was very useful and it helped me understand that there are many things that we should take into consideration when building a house, far more than I thought.
We had a lot of meaningful workshops that were all very well organized and explained, but we also had a lot of fun. After a day full of activities, we would take the afternoon off to party. We all danced on Dutch, Romanian and Hungarian music, ate traditional foods from all three countries and talked about the differences that we had in our cultures. This helped us understand each other better, it broadened our cultural knowledge and strengthened our bond even more. During our stay in the Netherlands we visited the capital city, Amsterdam and we also took a day off to have fun at Walibi, a theme park filled with rollercoasters and excitement.
After eight days in which we made a collection of new memories, we were all set to head to Brno, the second biggest city in Czech Republic and the home of our next adventures. We visited the Moravian Karst, a beautiful cave that left us all speechless. The landscapes that we got to see seemed out of this world. I felt like I was trapped in a fantasy movie. I was more than impressed by the genuine beauty of that place. I took the time to admire the landscapes and I let the energy of the place run through my veins and fill me with calm and positivity.
Our next stop was in Hungary. I`ve been dreaming for a while to visit Budapest and I finally got the chance to do it. The Hungarian capital city is absolutely stunning. Budapest is a city that truly has something for everyone: incredible architecture, cultural venues, beautiful parks and also shopping, dining and entertainment options. While in Hungary, we also went swimming at lake Velence, which made me feel as though I was at the seaside. One night, we each had the chance to have dinner at one of the Hungarian participant`s family to eat traditional food. The food was delicious and the people were very nice and welcomed us with a lot of warmth.
Last, but not least, we visited Romania. We stayed in a touristic Romanian village, called Rimetea. There, we went hiking to “Piatra Secuiului”, a beautiful mountain peak located at 1129 m height. The landscapes that we got to see along the hike and at the top of the mountain were absolutely breathtaking. Even though the hike took us around 8 hours and it was very tiring, it was definitely worth it! The people that did not want to join the hike, had the opportunity to go to Cluj-Napoca, one of the most beautiful cities in Romania. The next day, we visited “Trascăului fortress”, a beautiful and peaceful place where you can reflect upon the mountains that surround it.
Unfortunately, the day in which we had to say goodbye has come. We all went to the airport by bus and we said our goodbyes in front of the airport. It was quite an emotional moment. After spending two weeks and a half with the same people, it seems quite weird when you have to part ways, knowing that you won’t be seeing each other any time soon. We all hugged each other very tight and wished only the best for one another.
The story ends just as it began, 12 Romanian people hopping off the bus back in their country, but this time wiser, more mature and ready to take on new challenges that might appear on their long and beautiful journey through life. The time spent in this exchange might have been short, but the memories that had been made, shall last a lifetime!
Written by: Teglaș Anamaria-Cristiana
