At the beginning, I hated free time because I was mostly bored; nevertheless, my boredom manifested through hiking, nature and exploring the city. Volunteering with people at Pekarna is motivating me to do more in my free time and to reflect on myself, growing as a person. To be honest, I have not expected everyone to motivate us (the volunteers) to participate in brainstorming meetings, and also to give us the chance to develop our own ideas. Furthermore, recently we were introduced to our mentor (the forest guy). He had a great first impression. As a nature lover, he seems like a genuinely cool person to learn from about the importance of the local ecology, forest and plant life. I really hope he takes us hiking one day, because connection with nature to me is really important. Personally, I feel grateful towards the organization for the hospitality they showed so far.
Second week in, I was introduced to the StopTrik festival. For me, StopTrik was a really important experience because I was met with a lot of things and details that are essential for organizing such a big event; having low responsibility tasks gave me the opportunity to enjoy the festival and learn from experienced organizers. Meeting a lot of foreign people during my first days in Maribor gave me more confidence to engage more with local people. Through the festival, I also met local students and developed friendships outside of the organization.
In conclusion, I have a hunch that the more I am involved with Pekarna, the more opportunities, big projects and great people will come in my way. I can feel that the next ten months will be one of the best periods of my life. I am looking forward to every new project in the organization.
