On-Arrival

Last week, Marta and me went to Warsaw for our On-Arrival training. On-Arrival training brings volunteers from all around Poland to the same place. It is a program where you can find answers to your questions about Poland, your project and everything about it. Before I went there, I was thinking that it might be a boring week which is full of cheerless sessions. But my opinion has quickly changed once I arrived to the hotel.

First meeting has started in a beautiful park which is located right next to our hotel. Our trainers divided us into groups and gave us different topics each time, so we got to know each other with the volunteers. We could learn more about each other while exploring the park. It was a very good start to a great training week.

Shortly after, we all became very good friends. We were always given very interesting topics to discuss which I find very inspiring. I had a chance to think about many subjects and compare my thoughts to the thoughts of people who are coming from different backgrounds. Even we are from different cultures, we have a lot in common and we are all here for a good reason, solidarity.

During the training, we also had a chance to learn a lot about Polish culture. We had short Polish language classes in the beginning of the sessions and we learned many phrases which we can use for daily communication. We also had an activity where we have chance to go out and search for answers of locals for many different social topics. We decided on a topic according to our interests and were divided into different groups. Some of us had meetings with organisations and some questioned people on the street. For me, it was a very good opportunity for us to see how Polish people think and how they react to different topics.

Of course, it was not always discussing and talking. On Tuesday evening, we had a city tour with a tour guide in Warsaw and we learned a lot about historical places, monuments and symbols. On Thursday evening, there was a surprise for us. A group of dancers and musicians came and had a performance which was full of fun. They taught us how to dance and we had a competition😂

It was an amazing week for all of us!


-Hande Ozdemir