Hey! I’m Anna, 24 years old, from Hungary. I graduated last year with a degree in Human Resources, and this September I’m off to the Netherlands to start my Master’s in Learning and Development.
Last summer, I did my very first volunteer project in Germany, spending a month in the forests of Ingelheim working on forest protection. I originally signed up because I was craving international experience and wanted to try something meaningful (and a bit adventurous) abroad. Also, my twin had done a two-week camp in Denmark through Egyesek before the COVID years – they had a great time and encouraged me to give it a try as well.
My first camp was so inspiring and impactful that I knew I had to do it again. So this summer, I signed up for another international workcamp through Egyesek and ended up spending 10 unforgettable days in southern Italy.
The Project
This year’s project took place in Crotone, a small town in Calabria, southern Italy. We worked in collaboration with WWF Crotone, focusing on protecting and monitoring Caretta caretta, the local loggerhead sea turtles.
Every morning from 6 to 7 AM (before the summer heat kicked in), we walked the nearby beaches looking for turtle tracks that might lead us to nests. Normally, nesting season runs from late July to mid-August, but thanks to climate change, it’s been shifting earlier so nests can already be found in June.
We also helped clean the local aquarium, which houses injured turtles that have swallowed plastic and need rehab before being released back into the wild. One day, we cleaned a parking lot near the beach, collecting trash and making the coastline a little nicer for everyone.
There were 12 volunteers in total, creating a super diverse group with people from France, Serbia, Peru, Spain, Wales, Ukraine, Mexico, Belgium, and Colombia plus me from Hungary.
We stayed at the local WWF center, which used to be a shop owned by the local mafia and has now been reclaimed and repurposed. The president of WWF Crotone has been volunteering for over 25 years and is actively working to change how locals perceive the mafia (which, surprisingly, is still viewed positively by many). He gave us a one-hour talk about how the ‘Ndrangheta operates, it was eye-opening and powerful.
The Challenges
Okay, real talk: not everything went smoothly. The biggest challenge was the lack of structure and language barriers. This was the first camp of the 2025 summer season, so the organizers were still figuring things out. That meant we didn’t always know what the next day would look like, what time we were starting, or what we’d be doing. Sometimes we found out the night before or even an hour before the activity.
There were no official icebreaker games or intro sessions, so we volunteers took it upon ourselves to create a space to get to know each other. Out of the five local coordinators, only two spoke English, which made communication tricky at times.
But with these challenges, we became super tight-knit as a group. If anyone picked up a piece of info, they immediately shared it. There was this unspoken agreement that we were in this together, it actually helped us bond even faster.
The Experience
Even though I didn’t get to see any actual turtle eggs or turtles in the wild, I still came away with so many beautiful memories. The setting was just wow: crystal-clear sea, mountains in the background, and plenty of free time every day to chill at the beach.
One of the highlights was visiting Vergari, a protected natural area where we swam in mountain springs and slid down waterfalls into 10-degree water!
We played countless rounds of Uno, had deep convos, and because the group was small, no cliques formed, everyone hung out together. We ate pasta every single day (because, Italy), and honestly, it’s been a month since the camp and I still can’t look at penne or pesto.
It was also a growth experience for me personally. The living conditions were pretty basic: no internet, bunk beds with 5–6 people in a room, tons of mosquitoes, no hot water, and the nearest shop was a 1.5-hour walk away. The first day was a bit of a shock, and I felt really out of place. But once again, I proved to myself how adaptable we humans are. You learn to deal. You grow. And looking back, I’m actually glad I had those tough moments, because they made me appreciate everything I have even more.
Final Thoughts
I truly believe that international volunteer camps like this are one of the best ways to gain life-changing experiences. In just a few days or weeks, you get to step into a completely different life, escape your routine, and do things you’d probably never experience at home.
You might make lifelong friends, maybe even fall in love (it happened in both of my camps!), and you’ll definitely grow as a person.
If you’re thinking about volunteering but feel scared, I get it. It does take courage. But trust me: it’s so worth it. You can’t recreate these moments in your everyday environment. There’s something magical about volunteering—while you’re doing something good for the environment or the community, you’re also creating memories that’ll carry you through tougher times.
So go for it. You’ve got nothing to lose, and a whole world to gain.
