Wendy's mid-term meeting

Time flies when you are an EVS volunteer. I can't believe that my project started half a year ago, in May. I had my on-arrival training the end of June, and although my EVS life already was a roller-coaster at that point, after that the ride just kept speeding up. Many things to do, people to meet, places to explore... So when I got the invitation for my mid-term meeting, I felt happy and sad at the same time.

I can't get enough of travelling, so of course I couldn't wait to visit a new place (Toruń) and meet with other EVS volunteers. Some of them I knew already, some faces were completely new, but soon the whole group turned out to be a big bunch of awesome people. Together we explored Toruń, in our free time but also during some of the workshops. The old medieval city centre is small but beautiful and full of atmosphere, in a fairytale, 'Grimm-esque' way. It might not be as interesting or appealing as Kraków, Wrocław and Gdańsk, but it's definitely worth a visit. And for the foodies among us: try Toruń's famous gingerbread, in one of its traditional cookie forms (pierniki), or combined with another Polish pride: beer! Maybe gingerbread and beer doesn't sound like a match made in heaven, but piernikowe piwo is definitely worth a try, or two...

Besides these tourist-style explorations, we also explored our EVS projects and our lives. What did we learn in Poland? How did EVS change ourselves? And what do we want to do next? Thinking about the future might be scary, but when you talk about it with other people, it becomes less vague, less threatening. Therefore I'm glad that EVS offered me this opportunity, the mid-term meeting, to get to know myself better - and my goals after EVS.

Unfortunately, thinking and talking about the future also made me realise once more that my EVS in Wrocław isn't going to last forever. My project ends within 3 months - and when time flies, 3 months are over too soon... Which doesn't mean that I don't want to start something new and that EVS life is absolutely perfect. Don't get me wrong. I can't wait to move to a place that is closer to my family, for example, and to an apartment with more personal space (and a kitchen table). But even if I manage to find an amazing apartment, close to my relatives and Dutch friends, I am going to miss this part of my life, forever and ever. Especially some people I met here, even though I'll keep in touch with them. Oczywiście.

At the beginning of my project, before I went to Warsaw for the on-arrival training, at least two ex-volunteers told me that this training was the best week of their project. Fortunately I can say that, although my on-arrival training was an unforgettable experience, maybe it was not the best week for me: the mid-term meeting, and some weeks in between, were at least as superb.

Do widzenia bardzo!