It will never be forgotten

It’s hard to leave Norway after several months of living there.

My story is quite simple, I was a confused kid, not really ready for adult life and looking for opportunities to explore the world before stepping in to bigger decisions.
I was looking for EVS projects for some time and in the end of the day I found one in Sund Folkehøgskole, which seemed perfect match for me. So I applied and my story starts here.

Before I start going into my experience I want to say that Erasmus+ projects and EVS as well is all about what you make it, you are very open about almost everything and you can do whatever your crazy mind tells  you.

Challenging start

Arriving in Sund was not easy, the first few weeks were quite challenging and exciting as well, every new day was full with new stories, problems and challenges, started from going to grocery store finished with dealing with the washing machine and everything you can imagine in between, but at some point every single problem solves itself and then you feel like home, It happens unconsciously and you are happy that you got over them. You have friends now and starting exploring even more, it’s not about environment anymore but more about emotions and feeling. You start going out with your new friends and enjoying the moments you could never imagined happening several months ago, in the middle of Norway, very far from your original home.

You feel included

You are independent now, living you own life, you are responsible for every single action and decisions you make, that’s the most important life lesson, you do mistakes and even though EVS is meant to be pleasant experience It is not like that every single day, remember that and be ready for it, but also remember you are not alone, you will have people who are there to help you whenever they can and whichever way they can but most importantly don’t be shy to ask for help if you need so.

Sund and the people in sund will do their best to make sure you feel comfortable and you enjoying your project and stay there, they will make your journey even more adventurous and will include you in every possible activity, so you feel included and accepted whoever you are.

Language going to be a small difficulty and if I can give an piece of advice to future volunteers it’s to learn it and don’t give up like me, because you will regret it and will miss the opportunity to learn that thousand dialects which are spoken in school.

I am grateful for every single story

Environment in school itself is more acceptable than you can ever imagine, even though everyone agrees that Sund is a big bubble, it’s the most diverse bubble I have ever seen, and the classes themselves are also completely different but somehow connected.

Finally this is the moment in my life when I look back and I am happy with my decision, I am still sitting in the airport waiting for my flight and can’t wait to see my missed home and family but this school and the students made the biggest impact on my life and I’m so grateful for every single story which was written in Sund and will never be forgotten.

Irakli Khekhelashvili, Tiblisi, Georgia