A fairy tale in the land of dragons and castles

A fairy tale in the land of dragons and castles

Sandra from Estonia volunteered at UNA Exchange in Cardiff, Wales, from September 2017 to July 2018, where she promoted volunteering abroad in the project “Creating global citizens through European Youth”

Once upon a time there was a younger girl from Estonia looking for a volunteering project abroad who got accepted by UNA Exchange in Wales and was helped by EstYes in Estonia to go volunteer in Cardiff for a year (01.09.2017-31.07.2018). She moved into a modest castle with five other volunteering princesses, one fairer than the other. There was a Spanish one who loved being among people and was always positive; her smile would light up the whole room. Another from France who was a lot of fun and full of crazy ideas; she is the smartest girl to do dumb stuff with and always the last to leave a party. A unique bohemian princess from the Czech Republic, a master of the art of baking; or, actually, the master of arts in general. Then there was a sassy princess from the north of Italy full of opinions, questions, and energy, capable of achieving anything she sets her mind on. And last, but not least, my best friend, the true princess from the South of Italy, who is beautiful inside and out and by far the most intelligent. Together we formed a special bond, the six Mackintosh girls, a small family who built a community around them. 

 

The castle was known as a welcoming place where people all across the land gathered and hung out, it was a place of never ending summer with people basking in the glow of friendship and understanding. It was basically a never-ending Erasmus party: we had film nights, chill nights, cooking nights, holiday celebrations, a unicorn party, birthdays, celebrated 100 years of Estonia and, of course, a Eurovision party bringing all the nations together. It was our very own little European Union. Truly united in diversity. We also had adventures outside the castle where we would travel all together as a family. It’s quite difficult to travel on the small budget of a volunteer and it’s definitely a challenge to organise a group of people, but somehow we managed. We travelled around South Wales, but also had amazing trips to London, Ireland, and Edinburgh. We ended our time together with a road trip around North Wales, where we camped, danced traditional Welsh dances, drove around narrow winding roads, saw more sheep than ever before, visited old castles, and conquered Snowdon – the highest mountain in Wales.

 

When we weren’t chilling in the castle or having adventures, the southernitalian princess and I encouraged young people to go abroad and have adventures of their own. We saw the journeys of troubled youth. They started with spending a weekend on a farm with us working and taking care of animals while having a laugh. Then we spent a week at an historic farm living that primitive peasant lifestyle, and coming out of that stronger and more appreciative of modern ways. And it all ended in them going abroad on projects all by themselves. I say ’ended’, but really I think it was a beginning for them. I am so proud of our young volunteers and grateful that I got to be a part of their journey towards independence. In addition, we promoted volunteering at fairs, schools, and universities, managed social media, helped out in the office and with training, cleaned a beach, and most importantly learned important lessons from everyone around us. We enjoyed it so much that after the official end date we stayed to lead a project about LGBT+ rights and current situation of the community. It was an eye opening international project where we learned about the struggles of LGBT+ people, made a short film with Iris Prize to raise awareness, and the camp ended with us volunteering at Pride Cymru Big Weekend. To anyone hesitant about joining a project I would say that being a volunteer is rewarding beyond measure.

What I value most about my year of volunteering in Wales are the friendships and connections I made that are like no other and last a lifetime. My life was changed by these relationships and the adventures we had together – it was like a fairy tale. It also felt like home in Wales; there will always be special place in my heart for this land of dragons and castles. However, the most important lesson I learned was that people are good, yes there is evil in the world, but like in the words of Albus Dumbledore; „It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities“. We all have the ability to be bad; however, the people I met choose to be good. And they lived happily ever after.