Viktor in Faenza

When Your Child's Dream Comes True - One Summer in Italy

January 2024, Budapest

As a child, I constantly dreamt about three things: studying like Zack and Cody on a ship, becoming the coolest architect in the world, and spending a whole summer in Italy.

During my growing-up years and while attending two universities, I almost gave up on these dreams. I always thought, "Okay, I have plenty of time. I’m young, and after university, I will have a lot of free time," which sounded logically good.

But one day, I found a post on Facebook: "Spend six months in Italy in a small village." It was so intriguing that I couldn’t sleep that night. I tossed and turned in bed, lost in thought. I reflected on my life: I was studying at two universities, running a small online shop, and working a minimum of 40 hours every week, but I was unhappier than ever. I wondered, "Would my childhood self, little Viktor, be proud of me if I left or if I stayed?"

I know it sounds like the beginning of a movie, but it truly was the start of a new episode in my life. I was usually a confident person, but this time I felt scared. I didn’t know how my friends and family would react to my decision, but I chose to go for it. I decided I would do everything I could to participate in this volunteering opportunity, so I took the risk and jumped in.

March 2024, Faenza

After 13 hours on a Flixbus, traveling with a grandma who spoke to me in Romanian for hours (despite I told her three times that I could only speak English), I finally arrived in Faenza.

The vibe was immediately different—it’s a small city like Nagykőrös, with 60,000 happy people. Everyone walked really slowly, they drove like a disaster, and they were gossiping and chatting all the time, but they were HAPPY.

April 2024, Faenza

Without any knowledge of Italian, it was sometimes hard to understand everything, so I played a lot of Activity (game)  with the people there. Everyone was really friendly, which felt strange to me at first, but after a month, I got used to it and I liked it.

May 2024, Torre di Oriolo

I had gotten used to the work, felt confident, and made some friendships with the other volunteers there. My coordinator asked us, "Who wants to come to a wine tasting event?" I replied, "Me, of course," because I have loved wine my whole life. Now I know that it was my favorite moment in Faenza.

There were seven wineries on the hills, and we had to walk at least 2 kilometers to each one. We drank a bottle of wine at every winery: an Italian guy, a Spanish guy, a Lithuanian girl, a French girl, and me. We laughed a lot, watched the sunset, and created some amazing memories.

June 2024, Budapest – Faenza

It was the hardest but also a really cool month. I needed to return to Budapest to take my university exams, so I studied a lot. However, during this time, the Palio del Niballo took place, which is the most important event in Faenza. I worked a lot on this event—I created flyers, made Instagram posts, helped organize things, and even went to the stables to pet the horses.

So, what is this event? It’s a knight tournament, or rather a series of events where the five districts of Faenza compete against each other to prove who is the best. There are countless funny events leading up to it, which I could honestly talk about endlessly.

I didn’t expect this question at all, but my boss, Luciano (who is like a really elegant, traditional, kind, hardworking, and cool Italian grandpa), came up to me and asked, "Viktor, do you want to wear costumes for the Palio?"

I said yes, of course. I didn’t know it at the time, but this was the first time when a volunteer wore costumes for this event. And the event was awesome—just look at the pictures!

July – September 2024

I don’t remember exactly what happened during these months because there were too many memories. We spent a lot of time at Italian concerts, where I had some work or by the river or in Rimini on the beach with my volunteer friends. I went to the Dolomites with my Hungarian friends in a camper van. I explored Naples and ate a lot of pizza with a Finnish volunteer. It was really nice, but I got robbed twice—so, Napoli…

When my best friend visited me, I secretly asked Luciano if he could work with me on the next event. So when Gábor arrived, he was really surprised when I said, “Yeah, we will be working at a medieval dinner. I already told Luciano, so you don’t have a choice. Happy holiday!”

That dinner was actually fun and a memory for a lifetime—we wore costumes, and there were tons of cool activities. Everyone thought Gábor could speak Italian because I said he could. I laughed a lot.

I went to Cinque Terre to hike, swim, and enjoy the sun while camping with my two French friends. These towns are very touristy but truly beautiful. We went kayaking and diving there, and then we had to tend to our wounds because we got stung by a ton of jellyfish.

Before my project ended, my family came to visit me. They are food lovers, so I was eating all the time during those three days. We enjoyed a lot of gelato, pistachio croissants, and we tried the original lasagna that comes from this region.

The Ending, Faenza

When my project ended and I said a heartfelt goodbye to everyone who made my stay an incredible experience, I remembered why I started this journey.

I was poor and sometimes broke during this volunteering, but I was happy and gained a ton of memories. I will never regret this. I fought for my dreams during this time and became a different person. Finally, I can express my emotions much more easily, which is a significant personal development for me.

Some Important Questions That I Couldn't Fit Into My Stories:

(I hope you find this helpful.)

Did I miss my friends and family?

Yes, a lot of the time. My friendships during this period actually became stronger, so when I came back to Budapest and Kecskemét, I felt that these friendships would last a lifetime. I had moved away for six months, but when I returned, nothing had changed.

Have you ever felt alone?

Yes, sometimes, like in Budapest or Kecskemét. Hard days come and go, but the memories remain.

Did you have any Italian language knowledge before your departure?

I learned for 15 days on Duolingo before I got there, so no, absolutely not.

Is the food as good as they say?

No, it’s even better—especially the pistachio croissant (brioche al pistacchio).

I hope I could convince you to start your own experience. 

If I can help you, just text me.